A Twisted Love Affair-Chapter 211: She’s gone, huh" -1

He didn’t want love; he only wanted power.

He wouldn’t develop feelings for anyone; whoever was by his side made no difference.

Zhuang Ming, who was packing up the fishing gear, suddenly said, "Miss Shen has already left."

Zhou Luchen plucked a green leaf from the edge of the flowerbed, toying with it between his fingers. "Has Mr. Blaire’s class ended?"

Zhuang Ming followed behind him and reported truthfully, "It hasn’t. I asked Mr. Blaire. She left today. Her hotel booking was originally for seven days. Perhaps something came up; the decision was very sudden."

Zhou Luchen got into the waiting car without a word.

The two of them were speaking Chinese, which Joanna didn’t understand.

Perhaps they wanted to talk without her overhearing.

Mr. Blaire’s name carried significant weight in New York. Joanna recalled that Zhou Luchen had once asked Mr. Blaire to send someone to receive a female student.

Joanna asked Zhuang Ming, "Is the President interested in female university students?"

Unable to comment directly, Zhuang Ming shook his head, indicating he didn’t know. Actually, the Second Young Master seemed to prefer young women of high school age—the kind with ponytails, wearing JK skirts. Maybe now he’s into black sweaters paired with black stockings. Fickle men change their affections so easily.

One day, a photo appeared on YouTube. Someone in Mr. Blaire’s class had taken a picture—a side profile of Shen Jing. It looked like it was specifically taken of her, and it was accompanied by a caption praising her "subtle beauty from the East." She was listening to the lecture very attentively, her head down as she took notes.

Zhou Luchen tossed his phone aside. The path had been paved so smoothly for her, yet she was still working so hard. Shen Ci was her benchmark; it seemed she wouldn’t rest until she could do what Shen Ci had done. She originally had a stress-free job in Su City—relaxed, comfortable, with plenty of free time. Yet, she still changed her way of life according to the Shen Family’s arrangements. Let her be; it was none of his business.

Zhuang Ming poured him a glass of iced water and placed it in his hand. "I checked. Miss Shen was being followed by a vagrant who seemed to be on drugs. Fortunately, an overseas Chinese driver saw what was happening, intervened in time, and let her get into his car. She seemed terrified of this place and left in a hurry."

Zhou Luchen could just picture her, walking alone and helpless on the street, her eyes welling with tears.

Zhou Luchen took a sip of iced water, undid his belt, tossed it aside casually, and went into the bathroom to shower.

Guests had arrived downstairs at the manor. Zhuang Ming waited for a long time, but the Second Young Master still hadn’t come out of the shower.

A full two hours later.

The bathroom door opened. The man’s upper body was bare. His powerful, broad shoulders were beaded with cool water droplets. A white towel was wrapped around his narrow waist. Above the edge of the towel, the distinct lines of his abdominal muscles were taut and formidable, looking as if they might burst through his skin.

A potent mix of bergamot-scented body wash and surging hormones filled the room.

Zhuang Ming turned to find a bathrobe. Thank goodness, apart from Miss Joanna who occasionally came for meals, no other women lived here long-term. Otherwise... this... Anyone who attended to him while he bathed would surely be dazed. And thinking of the cleaning lady, if he didn’t lock the door, it would truly be unbecoming of a gentleman.

Zhuang Ming passed him the bathrobe. "Mr. Blaire has arrived. He’s been waiting for you for two hours."

Zhou Luchen slipped on the bathrobe, loosely tying the belt. He bent down, tapped a cigarette from the pack, and placed it between his lips. He felt in the bathrobe pocket but couldn’t find a lighter.

He held out his hand. "A light?"

He hadn’t been smoking much lately. Why the sudden craving after a shower? Looking at the Second Young Master, it seemed he just wanted to relax.

Zhuang Ming didn’t smoke. He patted his pockets; it seemed he had a lighter. His suit was like a treasure chest. In the past, when Miss Shen went out without a purse, he could even hold her lipstick and a small powder compact for her.

「Some time later, Mr. Blaire was somehow invited to Beijing to be a business consultant.」

Shen Jing also wanted to go. She stared at the reports, her eyes practically bulging with anticipation.

Unexpectedly, Mr. Blaire sent her an invitation. He stated that he had no acquaintances in this foreign country, and since she was his student, he invited her to accompany him to a financial symposium.

The man before her was the investment godfather of the European and American markets. Shen Jing was overwhelmed by the unexpected honor.

After the series of meetings concluded, Mr. Blaire expressed a desire to sightsee in Beijing for a few days. "Miss Shen," he asked, "would you be interested in being my guide?"

Yes! Being a guide would be great.

Shen Jing knew the area like the back of her hand. She first took Mr. Blaire to try an iron pot stew, then to experience the majesty of the Great Wall. However, Mr. Blaire barely made it to the North Fourth Tower.

She adjusted her baseball cap and said lightly, "We should at least reach the North Eighth Tower. Most of our countrymen can stroll up to it. That’s where the Haohan Po, the Hero Slope, is."

Approaching fifty, Mr. Blaire was spurred by a sense of competition. "I definitely have to see this Hero Slope."

Shen Jing strolled leisurely, unhurried, offering encouragement, "You can do it, Mr. Blaire. Keep going!"

It was her first time here too; she’d finally found a companion.

To show respect for her teacher, she carried Mr. Blaire’s water canteen. The assistant accompanying Mr. Blaire had given up and headed back by the North Second Tower.

Shen Jing wasn’t in peak physical condition either. Her legs quickly grew tired and sore, but she was determined to persevere and climb to the North Eighth Tower to behold the magnificent landscape.

Shen Jing handed Mr. Blaire some water. She was actually a bit curious. She had only attended one of his lectures in New York, though she had asked many questions, yet this financial magnate seemed to remember her quite well.

She even allowed herself a fleeting moment of narcissism, thinking that perhaps she was exceptionally talented, and that’s why Mr. Blaire remembered her so clearly. Of course, such thoughts vanished quickly. She knew her own capabilities.

They say businessmen only care about profit and won’t act without personal gain, but she found that Mr. Blaire seemed to have no ulterior motives towards her, just a genuine desire to help her develop.

In the end, Mr. Blaire didn’t make it to the North Eighth Tower. He managed to reach the North Fifth Tower before giving up. He sat on a step, holding his face in his hands. "I’m utterly defeated by this place. It’s just too long!"

When Mr. Blaire returned to New York, his first stop was the United Bank Headquarters Building to see the President of United Bank. "Fuck!"

Mr. Blaire kept complaining about the Great Wall climb; his legs had been trembling ever since that day.

Zhou Luchen chuckled lightly and raised a finger, signaling a bodyguard to bring Mr. Blaire a cigar.

Mr. Blaire accepted it with a smile.

Zhou Luchen said gracefully, "A small courtesy."

This young President of United Bank always projected the air of a refined gentleman, yet he was the most insidious and cunning entrepreneur in Lower Manhattan.

Mr. Blaire recounted many amusing anecdotes about his time with Shen Jing—where they went, what they saw, and what they ate and drank.

Zhou Luchen wasn’t really listening, sitting atop the tallest building, overlooking the New York nightscape.

The traffic flowed endlessly, and the lights sparkled brilliantly.

Zhou Luchen pinched the end of the cigar. Zhuang Ming, holding a butane torch lighter specifically for cigars, toasted the foot of the cigar before respectfully handing it to him with both hands.

Zhou Luchen placed it between his lips, took a draw, let the smoke swirl around his tongue, then exhaled. "Is she easy to teach?"

Mr. Blaire leisurely puffed on his cigar. "As far as I’m concerned, Miss Shen is an excellent student. She has one flaw, though. To use your words, she’s very stubborn. I find it difficult to sway her thinking or her decisions."

Zhou Luchen tilted his head, his gaze fixed on the night view beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows. "She has her own rigid set of principles and has never truly experienced hardship."

"Is that what you call ’not turning back until one hits a southern wall’?" Mr. Blaire finished with a smile, pocketed the cigar box gifted by the young president, and took his leave.

Zhuang Ming personally placed the cigar box into a black gift bag for Mr. Blaire. "Did you enjoy the Great Wall?"

Mr. Blaire waved his hand dismissively. "I am absolutely never climbing that again!"

Zhuang Ming personally escorted him to the door. "When the Second Young Master was only ten, he walked from Jiayu Pass to Shanhai Pass with the Eldest Young Master—a distance of 2,283 kilometers. The Old Master timed them. If they exceeded the time limit, they had to start all over again."

Yet, his temperament remained as volatile and unpredictable as ever, lacking the Eldest Young Master’s aptitude for concealing his emotions and exercising restraint.

Later, Zhuang Ming reflected that managing United Bank wasn’t merely about forbearance and self-control; it was about absolute authority.

"The Zhou Family is quite harsh on the two brothers, eh?"

Harsh? Compared to what Zhuang Ming himself had endured, that was nothing. Of course, he didn’t explain this to Mr. Blaire.

"Is Miss Shen a younger relative of your Zhou Family? What you would call a ’cousin’?" Mr. Blaire suddenly asked.

Zhuang Ming pressed the elevator button without changing his expression. "No."