SC - 75

Although Le Ya wasn’t the focus of the interview, the reporter still made a point to note down that piece of news before leaving.

After all, if it was an engagement, then the fiancé must be a young talent with a good background — that kind of news would definitely make headlines.

There were others in the room too, and after the reporter left, Le Yijian lowered his voice and said, “What fiancé?”

How come he had never heard of this?

When did Chen Yang and Le Ya get engaged without him knowing?

Le Yijian suddenly felt that frustration you see in TV dramas — when the kids have already secretly promised themselves to each other, and the parents are kept completely in the dark.

Le Ya said softly, “Well, it will be that way eventually.”

Le Yijian: “...That’s still in the future.”

The more he thought about it, the more uneasy he felt. He knew it couldn’t be his daughter’s doing, so he figured it must be Chen Yang’s idea.

Le Ya didn’t dare provoke him and went along with it, “Yeah, yeah.”

The charity gala was about to start, and Le Yijian didn’t stay long. He walked with her along the red carpet to the main hall.

Everyone had assigned seats.

After sitting down, Le Ya looked around. Chen Yang was at the table two over from her, accompanied by Liang Qian and Zhao Mingri.

Seeing him staring at her, she gave a smile.

A cough sounded by her ear.

Le Ya hurriedly turned back and sheepishly smiled at Le Yijian.

Before long, everyone had arrived and the gala officially began. A beautiful female host was speaking on stage.

It was mostly the usual official speeches — the charity gala had no other purpose but to raise funds and donations; it was basically a small auction.

Everyone would buy something, big or small.

Some donated calligraphy and paintings, some donated jewelry — all sorts of things. As long as people had money, they’d show some goodwill.

Le Yijian also bid on a piece of calligraphy.

The last auction item was a set of jewelry. When Le Ya first saw it, her eyes lit up and she told Le Yijian, “This one’s nice.”

Le Yijian said, “Yeah.”

Almost everyone in the jewelry industry knew about this piece. It was quite famous. A few years ago it was bought by a foreign collector, but no one knew when it had returned to the country.

Le Yijian asked, “Do you want it?”

Le Ya shook her head.

Seeing she wasn’t interested, Le Yijian casually raised his paddle a couple of times, then stopped bidding.

Le Ya rested her chin on her hand, watching the price climb. Many bids were from bosses, and the women accompanying them had shining eyes.

Actually, the thing being sold wasn’t just the jewelry itself, but the stories behind it. Once the story circulated, the price would rise — this has been true since ancient times.

When the price reached 12 million, it was almost final.

Le Ya glanced at the bidder — a tall, thin man talking to the woman next to him, his expression flirtatious.

At that moment, the host on stage exclaimed in surprise, “20 million! Mr. Chen from table number 3 bids 20 million! Any more bids...?”

Everyone’s attention turned to that side.

Le Ya looked confused but followed the gaze and saw that only Chen Yang among the group at that table had the surname Chen.

Chen Yang was also watching her. They made eye contact. He smirked slightly, but his expression was hard to read from a distance.

Le Ya pressed her lips together.

Le Yijian said beside her, “That kid really has money.”

Le Ya found it amusing and kindly reminded him, “Dad, you have money too.”

Le Yijian said sourly, “Is that what you’re thinking? You all must be thinking ‘He’s handsome, he’s great...’”

Le Ya hadn’t expected him to have such thoughts and almost laughed out loud. Without blinking, she held back and said, “Yeah.”

Le Yijian was speechless.

The jewelry set ultimately went to Chen Yang’s hands. No one else was so reckless as to raise the bid by 8 million at once.

Actually, none of them lacked money — they just didn’t want to waste it here. With that money, they could buy better things.

Many people thought making games must be really profitable.

After the auction ended, the gala dinner began.

Le Yijian went to chat with familiar business partners. Le Ya decided to explore on her own, wandering near the long table to see if there was any food.

Most of the food on the table was desserts and fruit, along with lots of alcohol.

Beside her was a glass of very pretty-colored drink. Le Ya’s eyes fixed on it, curious what it was.

As she stared, a gentle female voice warned, “I don’t know who put that there, but it’s best not to drink it.”

She turned to look. The woman looked a bit provocative but her eyes were serious, and her smile was somewhat cute.

Le Ya asked, “Why not?”

“Because there might be something inside,” Lin Qianlu replied. “No one can guarantee it’s clean.”

She had seen too many tricks like this and had nearly been tricked herself, so every time she came to a gala like this, she was cautious.

She hadn’t meant to say anything, but seeing Le Ya staring, she couldn’t help but warn her. When she turned, she was stunned.

Le Ya said, “Thanks.”

Even if there wasn’t really a problem, a kind warning was still good.

The two chatted near the long table.

Le Ya didn’t like alcohol and wasn’t sure what to drink, so she just asked for a glass of plain water and took a few sips.

Just after setting down her cup, she saw Chen Yang’s figure.

He seemed upset about something and headed straight to the lounge with a gloomy expression. Liang Qian was following behind him, saying something.

Le Ya thought for a moment and decided to follow.

After all, there wasn’t much to say at the gala, and she wanted to see if he had heard the things said during the interview.

Le Ya’s ears flushed a little.

Lin Qianlu saw her looking at the figure not far away and whispered, “You’re not interested in that man, are you? If so, you don’t stand a chance.”

She had assumed Le Ya was also a small celebrity or internet influencer.

Le Ya turned to look at her, “Why not?”

“I have a few girlfriends who thought the same but never got close,” Lin Qianlu whispered, “And not long ago he publicly said he already has a fiancée, so no chance.”

Even though there were plenty of people still wanting to get close in the circle.

Le Ya nodded thoughtfully.

Chen Yang’s popularity was understandable. Compared to some men here, he was especially handsome, and now he owned a company — his potential was obvious.

Le Ya blinked. “Got it.”

Lin Qianlu thought she had intimidated her into backing down, but unexpectedly, the next moment she saw Le Ya walking toward the lounge.

The lounge was only accessible to certain people.

Lin Qianlu hurried after her, trying to stop her, “Don’t act rashly. What if you get beaten up?”

Le Ya was surprised, “People still beat others?”

Lin Qianlu said, “I was just kidding, but what if it happens?”

Le Ya was a bit amused and a bit exasperated.

Lin Qianlu continued, “Look, he looks really fierce. Maybe he’ll just scold you or something. People like him look down on people like us.”

Le Ya thought about Chen Yang’s face—it was indeed a bit stern.

Every time he put on that expression, which was probably one reason why no one at their school dared to speak up against him before.

Le Ya patted Lin Qianlu’s hand, “It’s okay.”

She knocked on the door.

When there was no response, she spoke again, “Chen Yang? President Chen?”

Suddenly, the door was opened, and Le Ya was pulled in before she could prepare herself. When she turned back, she saw Lin Qianlu’s eyes wide with fear.

Inside the lounge, there was a faint scent of perfume.

Chen Yang was wearing only a white shirt, with the top two buttons undone, revealing his lean collarbone and chest.

He asked, “Why are you here?”

Le Ya quickly looked away and said, “I just saw you come in, so I wanted to check on you. What happened to your clothes?”

Chen Yang said, “I accidentally got some wine on it.”

In fact, a woman had tried to get close to him, using wine as a pretense. He immediately saw through the clumsy trick and asked Liang Qian to bring him a change of clothes.

Le Ya sat on the sofa and touched the suit. Sure enough, she could smell wine—a small damp patch right in front.

“You should be more careful.”

Chen Yang didn’t explain further.

In his eyes, Le Ya looked beautiful. This dress was handpicked by him, and the image of her wearing it was even more stunning in person.

Chen Yang half-closed his eyes, “You’re really beautiful.”

Le Ya’s ears twitched, “Thanks for the compliment.”

Chen Yang chuckled softly.

Maybe she didn’t realize it herself, but with her ears flushed and eyes sparkling with moisture, she looked most alluring at this moment.

Le Ya sat across from him and suddenly remembered, “When I first came in, someone said you were fierce, that you’d scold me, maybe even hit me.”

Chen Yang: “…”

He didn’t understand where that conclusion came from.

Chen Yang said, “I don’t do domestic violence.”

Le Ya was stunned, immediately rebutting, “Domestic violence? Don’t be ridiculous.”

Chen Yang raised an eyebrow but said no more. He leisurely buttoned up his shirt. As his slender fingers moved, it was strangely sexy.

When he buttoned the top button, it looked almost ascetic.

Le Ya couldn’t take her eyes off him.

“Le Ya.”

Suddenly called out, she snapped back to attention.

Chen Yang held a tie in his hand, looking down at her, quietly asking, “Can you help me tie this?”

Le Ya said, “I don’t know how… I really don’t.”

Chen Yang said, “It’s okay.”

After hesitating, Le Ya slowly walked over and added, “If I mess it up, don’t blame me.”

She had never learned how to do this before.

She vaguely remembered seeing steps somewhere before, but had long forgotten and now couldn’t recall anything.

Chen Yang stood still with a slight smile.

Le Ya took the tie from his palm. It was silky and smooth, quite comfortable to touch. The last time she pulled a tie, it wasn’t this one.

Lost in her thoughts, she almost wrinkled the tie.

Chen Yang looked down and teased, “You’re standing so far away?”

Seeing the playful glint in his eyes, Le Ya snorted and stepped closer, now standing right in front of him.

The height difference became more obvious.

She’d always known Chen Yang was much taller but never paid much attention—now she had to tilt her head up slightly.

Chen Yang furrowed his brows and saw her eyes shining under the light, dazzling as if they held a galaxy.

So beautiful.

Her graceful neck was right in front of him, seeming so delicate it could break if bent. Her eyelashes fluttered lightly—utterly adorable.

Chen Yang saw she was tired from holding up her hands and bent down halfway.

Le Ya finally felt more comfortable, looping the tie around his neck, the two of them much closer now.

She could even feel Chen Yang’s breath near her ear.

Le Ya wasn’t good at this, and the closeness made it even harder. She could only guess and slowly wrap the tie.

It was far more complicated than tying a bow on a girl’s dress.

She muttered in her heart, if she’d known she’d need to do this someday, she should have practiced at home on Le Yijian’s tie so she wouldn’t be so embarrassed now.

After a bumpy attempt, she finished and looked at the tie, which was quite a mess, then nervously withdrew her hands, “Done…”

The embarrassment of an unfinished task quickly flushed her cheeks.

Chen Yang’s gaze moved from her face down to the tie, momentarily stunned, then smiled.

Le Ya was already feeling self-conscious and thought his smile was mocking her.

She pouted angrily, “Don’t laugh.”

Chen Yang returned to a calm expression, “Okay, I won’t.”

Le Ya was shy and turned to leave.

“Are you going to run off just like that?” Chen Yang grabbed her and said, “Aren’t you going to say anything?”

Le Ya: “…You told me to do it.”

She gave him big, beautiful eyes that still held a slight complaint about his behavior.

Chen Yang said nothing.

Le Ya thought he was mad and looked at him pleadingly, “I didn’t mean to mess up. You tie it yourself.”

Honestly, it looked really ugly.

Chen Yang lowered his gaze, took her hand, and in a low voice inside the small lounge said, “I’ll teach you how to tie it.”

Le Ya was stunned, “No need…”

Seeing the dangerous look in his eyes, she quickly changed her mind, softening her voice, “Okay, you teach me, I’ll learn.”

Chen Yang untied the wrinkled tie.

Le Ya watched his quick movements and couldn’t catch the details, but felt too embarrassed to ask him to repeat it, so she just forced herself to follow along.

In the end, it looked better than her first attempt, but still not perfect.

Chen Yang’s eyes were full of amusement, finding her frustrated expression especially cute, and his heart softened completely.

He held Le Ya’s hand, guiding her step by step, from the first move to the last. Her hand was covered by his palm.

Every touch made his heart skip a beat.

This time it was perfect.

Seeing the finished product, Le Ya finally relaxed, and the romantic atmosphere was completely ignored by her.

Chen Yang noticed her proud little gaze, suddenly leaned down and kissed her. Le Ya only saw a shadow fall over her.

By the time she realized it, Chen Yang was standing straight again.

Le Ya stepped back, licked her lips, and inadvertently caught his suddenly deep gaze, which made her heart skip.

She quickly said, “I’m going now.”

Without waiting for Chen Yang’s response, she quickly ran to the door, opened it, and left.

Chen Yang was left alone in the lounge, silently smiling.

Lin Qianlu waited outside for a long time before seeing Le Ya come out, looking her up and down, surprised that she had come out unscathed.

Really amazing.

Women who had approached Chen Yang before said he had a bad temper, never wanting to talk, and was completely inhuman.

So why was Le Ya in such a good mood when she came out?

When Liang Qian brought a set of clothes over and knocked on the door,

he saw Chen Yang sitting inside and said, “That woman has already been sent away by the organizers.”

Chen Yang responded with a “Hmm.”

As he looked up to take the clothes, Liang Qian saw his face and froze for a moment, his heart skipping a beat.

Did he cheat?

Seeing Liang Qian’s strange expression, Chen Yang tidied his clothes and asked, “If there’s a problem, just say it.”

Liang Qian finally couldn’t hold back and pointed at Chen Yang’s lips, swallowing nervously, “You have a lipstick mark on your mouth…”

Chen Yang wiped it off with a tissue.

It was probably from when he kissed Le Ya earlier.

Liang Qian looked at his expression, which didn’t change, and felt even worse. He scolded, “Yang-ge, I’m not saying this to you, but how can you treat Le Ya like this?”

Chen Yang turned his head and asked, “What did you say?”