Chapter 085: Who Said There's Plenty of Time?
Ye Fuli exchanged greetings with the host and was granted permission to continue her performance on stage.
Seated at the piano, she looked out at the audience below.
Scenes from past and present lives overlapped in part.
Only now, the emotions she felt sitting here were entirely different.
Her gaze lingered on Ye Zhen.
Seeing the little kitten stuffing her mouth full of fruit, Ye Fuli smiled knowingly.
Yes.
There was plenty of time ahead.
In time, she would have all the opportunity and patience to truly understand this person, to uncover every one of her secrets.
How many secrets could such a dim-witted creature possibly hide?
As the melody of "Für Elise" began to play, a white light descended upon Yefuri.
Her simple attire could not conceal her radiant aura.
The entire hall fell silent as the gazes of numerous young masters and ladies from prominent families settled upon her.
Ye Zhen, chin resting in her hand, admired her performance, a satisfied smile spreading across her face.
"The heroine is truly the heroine—her presence is unmatched, and her craftsmanship is beyond reproach."
…
At that moment.
Several figures lurking in the shadows of the venue also fixed their gaze upon Ye Fuli performing on stage.
"Jun, if you ask me, you shouldn't be thinking about marrying that underdeveloped Miss Ye Zhen. You'd be better off marrying her sidekick, Ye Fuli!"
"Yeah, Ye Fuli is really gorgeous!"
"Should I ask for her contact info later?"
"Alright, alright. If you get it, give me one too."
The leader of this group was clearly Zheng Jun.
As the Huang family's illegitimate son, he never got the chance to shine in the spotlight like Huang Li. Instead, he had to lurk here like a cockroach or a rat, watching others bask in their glory.
Zheng Jun spoke coldly, "Shut up, all of you. What good is Ye Fuli being pretty? Can she make me stand in the spotlight like Huang Li?"
The group fell silent.
They had grown up playing alongside Zheng Jun, yet today marked their first encounter with such a grand spectacle.
Their loftiest ambitions in life amounted to little more than marrying a beautiful wife or hooking up with a wealthy woman.
As for anything beyond that…
they dared not even dream of.
Of course, their situation differed from Zheng Jun's. They weren't the illegitimate sons of some powerful figure. Their greatest stroke of luck in life was simply knowing Zheng Jun.
Unfortunately, they'd chosen the wrong mentor.
Tonight, Zheng Jun planned to pull off a major heist, thrusting the Huang family into the eye of the storm and delivering a bitter lesson to Huang Li.
As mere foot soldiers, they had no idea Zheng Jun had already made preparations—namely, to use them as scapegoats should the operation be exposed.
In Zheng Jun's eyes, they were no longer childhood friends, but merely cheap pawns.
"Jun, honestly, I think…"
A frail-looking boy tugged at Zheng Jun's sleeve and whispered, "Honestly, making some money is enough. There's really no need to go as far as killing someone…"
Zheng Jun turned his head, smiling warmly at him.
"Liang, what nonsense are you spouting? It's just a fire. At worst, a few people might get hurt. How could anyone die?"
That gentle smile and tone sent a chill down one's spine.
Aliang shuddered and lowered his head.
Zheng Jun turned to the others, his face still smiling. "If you're scared, you can leave. But then we won't be brothers anymore. Don't come looking for me, and I won't have anything to do with the orphanage from now on."
Hearing this, the others lowered their heads as well.
Seeing no further resistance, Zheng Jun solemnly promised that once the job was done, he would give each of them a large sum of money and arrange for them to travel far away, to live a life above others.
This finally settled them completely.
…
Time quickly approached ten-thirty.
Ye Fuli's performance had long concluded. Under the curious gazes of the crowd, she slowly descended the steps and returned to Ye Zhen's side.
Glancing at the time, Ye Zhen knew the moment was drawing near.
She needed to find an excuse to get everyone up to the top floor.
The top floor was relatively safe. The fire wouldn't last long before being extinguished, and it might not even reach the floor below.
"Ladies and gentlemen! On such a splendid occasion, I've decided to add a little excitement to the banquet."
Ye Zhen took the microphone from the host and addressed the audience: "I just made a call and spent a fortune to invite the hottest male and female idol groups of the moment. They're about to arrive at the rooftop venue aboard our Ye family's private jet!"
Those remaining in the hall were mostly young ladies and gentlemen of privilege.
Their elders had already ascended to the upper floors or the penthouse to conduct business negotiations and engage in mutual flattery.
It wasn't that the young crowd necessarily idolized celebrities, but they certainly loved a good spectacle.
The moment Ye Zhen made this announcement, the entire venue erupted in excitement.
Ye Zhen kept the hype going, urging them to head upstairs.
"Later, there'll be a red envelope shower! Folks, don't miss out—hurry up and grab them while you can!"
"Oh~~! Miss Ye is so generous and cool!"
As they dragged one or two others along, they gradually left the venue. By then, it was already 10:55.
Zheng Jun, concerned for his own safety, had already left the main venue half an hour earlier.
His henchmen, seeing the crowd thinning, secretly breathed sighs of relief.
They couldn't stop Zheng Jun, but they certainly didn't want to risk anyone's life.
"Looks like no one will get hurt tonight!"
"Go. Proceed with the plan."
"A Liang? A Liang, hurry up! Stop dawdling!"
The shadowy figures in the darkness retreated furtively.
Inside the venue, Ye Fuli remained seated, her gaze fixed intently on the unusually distant Ye Zhen.
"Miss Ye Fuli, aren't you going to join in?" Ye Zhen forced herself to look calm as she addressed her.
"May I ask, Miss Ye Zhen, why are you doing this?" Ye Fuli tugged at the corner of her mouth, deliberately inquiring, "Could it be that something major is about to happen inside?"
In her view, the so-called "major event" wouldn't happen today.
Huang Li had conducted a thorough inspection and ruled out any circuit malfunctions.
A chill ran down Ye Zhen's spine.
Sigh. Feng Aotian was terrifying enough in his original form, let alone this reborn version.
How could she possibly pull this off convincingly?
Ye Zhen shrugged. "Tsk, are you suffering from some kind of persecution complex, if I may ask? I just want to splurge a bit, make a splash in the circle, and have some fun."
With that, she picked up the handbag beside her.
"Ye Fuli, if you're not coming, I'll head up first."
Watching her figure head toward the top floor, Ye Fuli sighed, rubbing her temples. She reluctantly convinced herself she was overthinking it.
The two of them stepped into the elevator together.
Once they reached the rooftop, Ye Zhen suddenly clapped her hands together. "Oh! I just remembered! I didn't grab one of those decorative candy canes downstairs. I'm sneaking back for one to take home. Hehe~"
Saying this, she pressed down on Ye Fuli's shoulder and plopped down.
"Give me half a minute, I'll be right back."
Ye Zhen shoved her purse and phone into Ye Fuli's arms.
Facing Ye Fuli's slightly skeptical gaze, Ye Zhen steeled herself, leaned in, and planted a kiss on her cheek.
"Alright, alright! Wait for me, I'll be right back."
She dashed off like a whirlwind.
Ye Fuli stood there, dazed, touching her cheek.
That lightning-fast, comforting peck left her with a surreal, almost magical feeling that the world itself seemed unreal.
About ten seconds later.
Boom—
Downstairs, a sudden explosion echoed, catching everyone off guard.
Ye Fuli's pupils contracted sharply.
Thick smoke billowed out through the shattered floor-to-ceiling windows.
Panicked crowds screamed and cried out.
"Oh no, the balloon tower downstairs exploded!"
"Thank goodness everyone got out. Hopefully no one's hurt?"
"Thank you, Miss Ye! If she hadn't invited us to see the idol performance, we'd probably all be dead by now!"
"Wait, where's Miss Ye?"
"Where's Ye Zhen? Where's Ye Zhen?"
…
Where is Ye Zhen?
She… she… where could she be now?
Ye Fuli felt all the blood in her body run cold.
She sprang to her feet, pushed through the crowd, and raced frantically toward the exit!