A Trip to London (Dedicated to Zizhuhuangguan)

London, a city you fall in love with at first glance!

The resplendent night of London is extraordinarily mesmerizing, charming tourists from all over the world with its alluring physique.

And the London Bridge at night possesses a somewhat enchanting glamour. Spanning across the River Thames, this bridge quietly blooms with exotic romance beneath a starlit night, while endless winding neon lights create a breathtaking view!

Upon arriving at the booked hotel, Ling Lan still followed behind them. This was only her second time traveling abroad, and the first time had also been in his company. Mo Zhicheng's room was reserved as the presidential suite on the top floor. Seeing him and her enter the elevator together, Ling Lan paused, took a deep breath, and waited for the next one.

Unaware of which room belonged to Mo Zhicheng, Ling Lan simply buried her body into the soft Simmons mattress. The crystal chandelier overhead cast a clear and bright luster, yet memories surged like a gushing spring, spreading throughout her entire body.

On that day at Jimbaran Beach, beneath the glow of the setting sun, she had once asked him whether he had ever loved, loved so deeply and intensely that he was willing to give himself unreservedly. Regardless of whether she had a sound body, regardless of her background, he would be proud to have her.

He had not answered. Yet on an ordinary night, inside her apartment of over eighty square meters, he had unexpectedly collapsed to lie across her legs, murmuring to himself: "Actually, I want to tell you that I never did before, but now I wish to have such a woman living in my heart, making me unforgettable, unable to extricate myself; making me possess everything, yet all of it falls short compared to her alone; and making me cherish her with the memories of a lifetime."

Ling Lan closed her eyes and smiled faintly, the arc of her lips carrying an endless, lingering nostalgia!

Having spent the entire day dealing with that case, Ling Lan felt as though her head was about to split. Her gradually curling figure was reflected on the pure white sheets, and her long, dark, glossy hair poured out like splashed ink onto that white expanse of paper.

She watched the tiny ripples form on the sheets, filled with tenderness, as if she were resting within that warm embrace. The entire world was his body, perfectly safe and sound. Awaking suddenly from her dream, the sky outside the window was entirely sapphire blue. Between the meeting point of earth and sky lay scattered points of distant lights. As usual, Ling Lan stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, watching the river surface of the Thames reflect the remnants of the stars.

Unable to sleep, Ling Lan waited early for Leng Tingyu in the hotel's luxurious lobby. London was prone to lingering, continuous drizzle, and the morning thin mist lightly veiled the towering London Bridge.

Seeing her waiting so early, Leng Tingyu showed a hint of surprise in her eyes and asked, "Am I late?" She instinctively glanced at her wristwatch.

"No, I just arrived early."

Leng Tingyu had always been punctual at work, but she had not expected this woman to be even more fond of taking precautions. Seeing Leng Tingyu arrive all by herself while Mo Zhicheng was nowhere to be seen, and noting that Leng Tingyu looked utterly radiant, one could not help but let their imagination run wild.

"President Mo has to attend an important meeting this morning," Tingyu mentioned casually. Ling Lan forced herself to regain her composure and merely nodded: "Hmm!" What she wanted most right now was to sign that contract as soon as possible. That morning, she and Leng Tingyu headed together to the client's headquarters in London.

This was Leng Tingyu's first close-range contact with Ye Linglan. She could not deny that she harbored a deep interest in her, and Linglan's outstanding performance in public relations also made her look at this woman with a new level of respect.

The joint appearance of Leng Tingyu and Ye Linglan seemed more like a stunning scenery to outsiders. Men loved beauties, but they loved beauties with brains and ideas even more—those who could be described as possessing both talent and appearance.

At the negotiating table, those fair-skinned, blue-eyed, native British men gazed at the two Eastern beauties before them, each uniquely charming. Ling Lan possessed a gentle temperament and fair skin, resembling an exquisite porcelain doll, whereas Tingyu radiated a powerful aura from within, leaving everyone utterly dazzled.

After another day of maneuvering, Ling Lan slumped tiredly into an armchair in the lounge. Tingyu walked out of the conference room just as her cell phone rang. She answered it and walked into the lounge along the way: "Zhicheng..."

Ling Lan's heart tightened inexplicably. She stared at the slender and graceful figure before the floor-to-ceiling window, her vision gradually blurring. When had she stopped calling him "Brother Zhicheng" and switched to just "Zhicheng"?! Though it was only a minor change, she still caught it. She gasped for breath, her brows unconsciously knitting together into a knot.

"We ran into a slight issue during the contract negotiations. The other party keeps clinging to a minor detail, insisting that we lower our price by another percentage point." Ling Lan watched as the woman's originally stern demeanor suddenly turned lighthearted in response to whatever was said on the other end. Tingyu smiled: "Are you going to help me?" The soft, melodious laughter pierced painfully into Ling Lan's ears.

Her chest hurt. Massaging the area, Ling Lan felt her breathing grow rapid. Fearing she might have an attack at this critical moment, she steadied herself against the chair, reached for her bag, and prepared to take her medicine for relief.

"I don't want your help," Tingyu touched her lips and laughed, her voice brimming with exhilaration. As she turned around, however, she caught sight of Ye Linglan bowing her head to swallow a pill. Tingyu froze. Seeing the woman's somewhat pale face, a sense of confusion arose within her: What was she taking?! Then, mindful of the person on the other end of the line, she continued: "You know I won't give up easily. Since I'm already here, there's no reason to admit defeat so lightly."

******

By evening, the other party invited Ling Lan and Tingyu to a banquet to play the role of gracious hosts. Ling Lan truly disliked banquets filled with clinking glasses, yet she could not decline. Leng Tingyu had the habit of packing a few evening gowns for business trips just in case, whereas Ling Lan had only brought a few work suits. In this situation, Ling Lan was caught in an utterly unexpected and awkward predicament.

When setting off, Leng Tingyu finally noticed that she was still wearing that black suit. Looking Ling Lan up and down, she asked, "Don't you have an evening gown?"

Ling Lan grew even more awkward: "Indeed, I was insufficiently prepared and only brought suits."

Tingyu smiled faintly: "It doesn't matter. I happened to bring a few sets. Your size is not much different from mine; you can change into one of them first."

"How can I do that, President Leng!" Ling Lan hurriedly refused. If she were to attend the banquet wearing someone else's gown, it would make her feel even more mortified, wishing she could find a crack in the ground to crawl into. At that moment, she realized she was harboring a sense of rejection toward Leng Tingyu.

However, Leng Tingyu simply grabbed her wrist and dragged her into her room: "You must remember that attending a banquet represents the image of Tiancheng; you are not allowed to be perfunctory like this."

Helpless, Ling Lan put on the gown chosen by Leng Tingyu. A mesmerizing red radiated a low-profile wildness, and wearing it actually tempered the blazing, seductive vibrancy of the color. Leng Tingyu looked at the woman in the full-length mirror, her eyes gathering a gaze of appreciation: "You're a natural beauty."

"Thank you for the compliment, President Leng," Ling Lan replied with a polite, faint smile.

"When a girl is young, she should dress herself up well. Do you know why?"

——

"Because a woman's youth cannot be bought back."

The smile at the corners of Ling Lan's lips deepened. What a line: youth cannot be bought back!

"Is there any man you have your eyes on?" Leng Tingyu leaned in closer, probing softly with a hidden smile at the corners of her lips: "Only when a woman has a man she loves will her whole person radiate brilliance, don't you think?"

Ling Lan was startled and quickly steered the conversation away with practiced tact: "It's getting late, President Leng, we should head to the banquet."

"We are peers. In private, just call me 'Tingyu'!"

The smile on Ling Lan's lips froze for a moment!

In the magnificent banquet hall, a minuet drifted softly through the air. High-society ladies and business elites gathered here. She had always felt that the superficial wealth and luxury of high society were merely for show, which was why she always felt somewhat out of place whenever she attended such events.

After a lapse of a day, Ling Lan finally saw Mo Zhicheng again. Throughout the entire banquet, he remained as dazzling as a star, holding a champagne glass in one hand while wearing his customary, scholarly smile. Yet, upon closer inspection, Ling Lan noticed scattered wounds on the back of his right hand. Remembering that frantic night, a cold sweat still seeped down Ling Lan's spine.

Mo Zhicheng also spotted the woman dressed in a red gown against the luxurious backdrop. The strapless design outlined her graceful shoulders and back, her slender collarbones, and the faintly visible cleavage at her chest. The brilliant red hue made her skin appear as white as snow. She had casually coiled her long hair into a bun, and as the hem of her skirt fluttered, her posture appeared even more poised and graceful.

He never concealed his gaze. While interacting with others, his eyes remained fixed intently upon her. Raising his glass to drink the wine within, his gaze never once drifted away. Tingyu soon found him. Glancing over, Tingyu said to Ling Lan, "President Mo is over there, let's go say hello together."

Ling Lan felt somewhat apprehensive in her heart, simply following behind Leng Tingyu. Even though they were separated by only a short distance, why did her steps feel so heavy at that very moment?

"Pardon me, President Mo, for making you arrive first," Tingyu said with a smile.

Looking at him, Ling Lan merely nodded slightly: "Hello, President Mo." Those three words were squeezed out of her lips with immense difficulty.

Mo Zhicheng downed the red wine in his glass in a single gulp.