Chapter 22: The Sky Restaurant

"I—I’m warning you, don’t try anything or I won’t let you off," Li Qingying felt her heart pounding wildly.

Never before had she shared a room with a man, and the sensation left her both embarrassed and afraid.

No, that night, He Haoxuan not only shared a room with her, but even the same bed. At the time, she was barely clothed, and that wretched man took advantage of her.

Thinking of this, Li Qingying’s embarrassment ebbed a little.

Amidst her nervousness, she didn’t even know when she fell asleep.

Early the next morning, Li Qingying felt an itch on her face. Opening her eyes, she discovered He Haoxuan teasing her face with her own hair.

"Time to get up, sleepy little pig," He Haoxuan mocked.

Li Qingying blushed, shooting him a glare. "You’re the pig."

For the past half year, stress had kept Li Qingying from sleeping well. For some reason, although she’d been tense at first about sharing a room with He Haoxuan last night, her heart gradually calmed and she slept deeply.

Indeed, she had slept through the night and didn’t want to get up.

"Hurry up and wash up. Let’s have breakfast, then go for a swim," He Haoxuan said, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

If a woman went swimming, she’d surely wear a bikini—he would enjoy quite a spectacle.

"Alright," Li Qingying said with a smile.

The wardrobe here had brand new swimwear for men and women, making things convenient.

He Haoxuan happily went downstairs, and before long, Li Qingying joined him for breakfast.

After breakfast, He Haoxuan took his swimwear to the lakeside, expecting Li Qingying to come soon.

But after waiting a while, Li Qingying still hadn’t appeared. He couldn’t help but call out, "Honey, why aren’t you coming down to swim?"

"I don’t feel like swimming," Li Qingying replied with a smile.

"What? Didn’t you just agree?" He Haoxuan asked.

"Haven’t you heard? Women’s words can’t be trusted," Li Qingying said, taking out her laptop and settling on a stone bench nearby to handle company matters.

Seeing that swimming alone was dull, He Haoxuan went up to keep Li Qingying company.

When Li Qingying saw that Li Dasong, on behalf of the Bai Li Group, had signed a non-litigation agreement with the Picturesque Group, she cursed angrily, "Li Dasong must have water in his brain, actually believing Yang Zhiyi’s nonsense that the Picturesque Group won’t seek revenge on Bai Li Group in the future."

"He’s definitely got water in his brain—otherwise, he wouldn’t do such a thing," He Haoxuan was furious as well.

If Bai Li Group sued Picturesque Group, they would easily get thirty million in penalties.

Li Dasong was a fool, afraid of retaliation from Picturesque Group, and gave up the lawsuit.

And after Yang Zhiyi had been beaten by He Haoxuan so badly, he certainly wouldn’t let the Li family off.

Suddenly, Li Qingying looked up, startled by the scars all over He Haoxuan’s skin. "How did you get hurt?"

He Haoxuan couldn’t possibly tell her those scars were from his past mercenary missions. He laughed, "I used to work outside and got injured. It’s nothing now."

"Be careful," Li Qingying said, her heart aching inexplicably when she saw his scars.

Though her husband wasn’t particularly capable, his cheerful personality and tolerance made him good to her.

Ring, ring, ring. Li Qingying’s phone rang.

When she saw the number, her brows furrowed slightly.

The caller was Lin Shaozhen, her former classmate. They had shared a dorm, but never got along well.

Lin Shaozhen always believed Li Qingying overshadowed her, so she competed with her at every turn. Lin Shaozhen had married into Lanmen City and returned to Qingshan City several times a year, always flaunting her husband and wealth before Li Qingying.

Helplessly, Li Qingying answered, "Shaozhen, what is it?"

"Qingying, my husband and I are at the Sky Restaurant in Qingshan City. Bring your husband over—I’ll treat you to authentic French cuisine," Lin Shaozhen said, not giving Li Qingying a chance to refuse before hanging up.

"Honey, someone’s inviting us to a French feast. Why the frown?" He Haoxuan asked, puzzled.

"Sigh, she just wants to show off and put me down," Li Qingying explained.

He Haoxuan snorted, "They want to embarrass us? Are they even qualified? Here’s an idea: just say I have lots of money, and I’ll have the waiter bring a set of expensive suits."

He Haoxuan thought his current beach shorts and sandals were an easy target for ridicule.

Normally, he wouldn’t care, but for Li Qingying’s sake, he didn’t want her to lose face.

"You don’t need to pretend. I’ve gotten used to Lin Shaozhen’s arrogance over the years," Li Qingying shook her head helplessly.

They were classmates, and she didn’t want to cut ties completely.

"Let’s go then," He Haoxuan said with a smile.

Though Li Qingying said she didn’t care about clothes, halfway there she stopped to buy He Haoxuan a set of casual wear. It only cost a few hundred, but on He Haoxuan it looked strikingly handsome.

Sitting in the passenger seat, Li Qingying covertly sized up He Haoxuan, realizing she had never really paid much attention to her husband before.

When dressed up, he really looked the part. If she claimed he was a successful professional, no one would suspect otherwise.

Maybe I should tell Lin Shaozhen my husband works at a company as a white-collar employee, Li Qingying mused.

After all, every woman has a competitive streak, and Li Qingying didn’t want to be looked down on.

And He Haoxuan’s friend Fang Yongsheng was quite nice too, insisting this stay was free and refusing to take their money, which made her feel embarrassed.

The Sky Restaurant was the finest French restaurant in Qingshan City; its waiters and chefs all hailed from France, so prices were steep and ordinary people rarely ventured there.

This time, Lin Shaozhen specifically invited Li Qingying to the Sky Restaurant to flaunt her wealth.

Upon entering, Li Qingying asked a French waiter at the door, "Excuse me, sir, where is table eighteen?"

Whether the waiter didn’t understand Chinese or wanted to show off, he replied in French.

Li Qingying was stunned—she knew English, but not French.

He Haoxuan led Li Qingying to a corner seat on the right, where Lin Shaozhen and her husband Liang Jie were sipping red wine.

The Sky Restaurant’s privacy was excellent; each booth was separated by decorative screens, so unless you stood, you couldn’t see others.

"Hey, how did you find your way here?" Lin Shaozhen asked in surprise.

Earlier, she’d told the waiter to greet any young couple heading for table eighteen in French, intending to test her friend’s French skills.

Lin Shaozhen wanted to see Li Qingying embarrassed, but was surprised they found table eighteen on their own.

Li Qingying glanced curiously at He Haoxuan; he had led the way directly.

Could He Haoxuan understand French?

Impossible, Li Qingying thought with certainty.