Chapter 84: Hidden So Deep

Lily shook her head repeatedly. “Impossible—there must be some other reason.”

“How could anyone show deference to someone like Xia Yu, just a lowly driver? It doesn’t make sense.”

“Maybe there’s something else going on,” she murmured.

Xiao Qin and Xiao Rong both nodded. The more they thought about it, the less plausible it seemed. To put it bluntly, Xia Yu was just a nobody, scraping the bottom of society, while Fang Yun was the manager of such a grand hotel—why would she bother to give him any face?

Unable to work it out, the three gave up pondering. In any case, the matter had passed.

Meanwhile, Xia Yu and Zhao Sijie returned to their room. The girl was still fuming, her indignation unspent.

“It’s infuriating—how could Lily be like that? Good intentions are never rewarded.”

“Alright, I’m not even mad—why should you be?” Xia Yu soothed her. “It’s enough to know the truth. Best keep your distance from such classmates in the future.”

“I know—I just felt bad for you.” Seeing his unconcern, Zhao Sijie finally relaxed. After all, she was the one who’d invited Xia Yu; after all the wrongs he’d suffered, she felt guilty.

Just then, there was a knock at the door. Xia Yu opened it to find a server standing outside, who bowed respectfully.

“Excuse me, are you Mr. Xia? This wine was sent to you by Ms. Fang.”

“Thank you.” Xia Yu nodded, accepting the bottle.

“Yu, did you… buy wine?” Zhao Sijie eyed him curiously, her expression shifting to shock as she recognized the label. “Romanée-Conti? Yu, did you really buy such an expensive bottle?”

Working in a restaurant, she knew all too well what it was worth—one hundred thousand yuan per bottle, at the very least. In a hotel, the price would be even higher, especially depending on the vintage.

“Don’t be nervous—I just won it in the lottery downstairs. The staff brought it up themselves,” Xia Yu laughed. “How’s that for luck?”

“Such a fine evening deserves a fine wine, don’t you think?”

“Really? You won such a prize?” Zhao Sijie was half-convinced, half-doubtful.

“Of course.”

Xia Yu poured them each a glass.

Saying nothing more, Zhao Sijie smiled, and the two of them stood at the window, drinking and talking.

A few glasses later, the troubles of the night were all but forgotten. With the atmosphere so intoxicating, it was inevitable that two young people would get carried away.

Almost unconsciously, Zhao Sijie leaned against his shoulder, and Xia Yu, surprised, wrapped his arm around her waist.

Before long, the wine glasses were set aside, and their passion flared.

They tumbled together onto the mattress, ready to take things further—when suddenly, Xia Yu’s phone rang at precisely the wrong moment.

He shuddered, tempted to ignore it, but the caller ID caught his eye: Lin Yuqing.

“Who is it?” Zhao Sijie, cheeks flushed, glanced at the screen and fell silent when she saw the name.

“It’s Yuqing. I… I’d better answer,” Xia Yu said, hurriedly sitting up and picking up the call. “Hello, Yuqing? What’s wrong?”

All he heard was her sobbing.

“Yuqing, what happened?” His heart sank.

“Yu… Yu, where are you? I want to see you…”

Her voice trembled through tears.

He glanced at Zhao Sijie, torn, but then nodded. “Alright. Where are you? I’ll come find you.”

After hanging up, Zhao Sijie asked gently, “What’s wrong with Yuqing? Are you… going to her?”

Xia Yu nodded, not wishing to hide the truth. “I’m sorry, Sijie. I don’t know what happened to Yuqing, but she was crying the whole time on the phone. I’m worried, so I’ll go see her now.”

Zhao Sijie’s nose tingled, but she managed a gentle smile. “Don’t worry. Go to her—what if it’s something serious? Otherwise, why would she cry?”

“Thank you, Sijie. I’m sorry…” he began, but Zhao Sijie stood up and hugged him, interrupting.

“Enough with the explanations. We have plenty of days ahead. Yuqing’s emergency is more important.”

“Thank you, Sijie. You’re so understanding.”

Relieved that she wasn’t angry, Xia Yu added, “You stay here. I’ll go. Tomorrow you can leave with the others.”

“Alright, you go. Rest early tonight.”

“Could you…” Zhao Sijie started to say, but Xia Yu was already out the door, which closed behind him.

“Could you hold me before you go…” she whispered at the shut door.

She tried to appear composed, but in the end, she was only a woman. At a time like this, the man she loved dropped everything to rush to another girl.

She could understand, but Xia Yu’s response was all too clear—he still cared for Lin Yuqing, more than anything.

“It’s alright, Yu, I told you I’d give you time…”

…

“You’re unbelievable! I told you I’m out with classmates tonight, and not coming back. Are you done? What does it matter if there are guys here? If you can’t trust me, let’s just break up. I’m tired of this.”

Lily spat down the phone at her boyfriend, irritated by his constant check-ins. In her eyes, he no longer had any value, especially after meeting Wang Dong—her desire to break up was stronger than ever.

She was making the call outside the hotel, and after hanging up, she glanced up at the windows of Wang Dong’s room, wondering how she could win over a man so perfect.

Just then, she saw Xia Yu coming out of the hotel.

“What’s that loser doing up at this hour?” The sight of him made her blood boil.

She was about to march over and give him a piece of her mind, but stopped in her tracks, startled, as Fang Yun approached from the other side.

“Young Master Yu, do you have any instructions?” Fang Yun bowed respectfully before Xia Yu.

Lily froze in place, staring in disbelief, her hands covering her mouth. She thought she was seeing things, but then she heard Xia Yu reply:

“My car’s parked outside the scenic area. I have an urgent matter and need to leave. Could you drive me to the parking lot?”

“Of course, Young Master Yu. I’ll bring the car right away,” Fang Yun answered, bowing again before hurrying off.

“Oh my god…”

“Why is this happening…”

Lily was dumbstruck, staring at Xia Yu in shock. She had heard every word.

Fang Yun’s attitude toward him was utterly deferential, bowing and scraping.

And she’d called him “Young Master Yu”!

If she remembered correctly, scions of powerful families always addressed each other with that title.

Could he really be one of them…

The realization dawned on her. Suddenly, everything made sense.

No wonder Fang Yun had let her off the hook after just a few words from him.

At that moment, Fang Yun pulled up in the car and Xia Yu got in, leaving.

Lily stepped out from the shadows, watching the car disappear into the distance. "He really hid himself deep."

“Oh god… I think I insulted him today!”