13: Chapter 13: Caught in a Hotel Room by Ex-Girlfriend

When running out of Xiouqiu Park, Zhang Fan's shirt was already soaked with cold sweat. Tang Wanqing's head rested on his shoulder, her warm breath spilling into the crook of his neck, carrying the scent of alcohol and a faint perfume.

Standing by the roadside, looking at the woman in his arms who was dead drunk, he felt for the first time that the aftermath of "playing the hero" was trickier than the rescue itself.

Take her home?

It sounded ridiculous, but even though he and Gu Jingshen were close, he truly didn't know where Tang Wanqing lived. That guy didn't like going home, so Zhang Fan had never asked for the specific address.

Wait by the roadside?

Even worse.

Those two thugs had been caught off guard by his surprise attack, but if they came to their senses and brought backup, he wouldn't be able to protect Tang Wanqing alone. He had already thrown the brick into the bushes in the park; now, empty-handed, fighting them head-on would be suicide.

The wind swirled hydrangea petals against his face, cold as ice. Zhang Fan looked down at the person in his arms breathing evenly; her hair tips were covered in grass clippings, and her expensive dress had been pulled askew.

He gritted his teeth, his gaze crossing the street corner and landing on the building lit by the "Sheraton Hotel" sign. The golden characters were glaringly obvious in the night, like a choice made out of helplessness.

"This is the only way." He muttered to himself, adjusted his posture to let Tang Wanqing lean more securely, and walked firmly toward the hotel.

The sweat on his palms dampened her sleeve, but he dared not let go—this was the only way to protect her at the moment.

"Please, I'd like a luxury suite." The receptionist eyed his half-wet suit, then glanced at Tang Wanqing in his arms, a flash of knowing ambiguity in her eyes. Zhang Fan didn't explain; he took out the remaining cash from pawning the necklace, counted out four thousand yuan, and slapped it onto the counter.

This was the biggest amount he could come up with at the moment. But looking at Tang Wanqing's valuable dress and the luxury watch on her wrist, he felt that only a place like this matched her status and could ensure her safety.

The elevator "dinged" open, and just as he helped Tang Wanqing out of the cab, he heard boisterous laughter coming from the other side of the lobby.

"Director Chang is awesome! This game hit two hundred thousand downloads in the open beta; won't the year-end bonus be seven figures?"

"Feifei has a good eye, indeed. Following Director Chang, we'll all be heroes in the future!"

Zhang Fan's footsteps came to a sudden halt.

That group of people was wearing Blue Whale Games team-building shirts, surrounding Chang Yuan and Gu Feifei in the center.

Chang Yuan was holding up his phone, showing off: "I just got a call from President Zhang, saying he's going to equip every person in our department with the latest laptop!"

Gu Feifei snuggled up to him, wearing a new necklace around her neck, smiling like a flower.

Enemies often cross paths.

What was even more ironic was that the game they were celebrating, "Cangqiong," was actually "star path" that Zhang Fan had written originally.

The framework he had spent three months of sleepless nights typing out had been renamed by Chang Yuan and became his own "masterpiece."

"Yo, isn't that Zhang Fan?" A sharp female voice pierced through the noise; it was Li Wei, the department's biggest gossip.

She covered her mouth dramatically, her gaze scanning back and forth between Zhang Fan and Tang Wanqing, "Just got dumped by Feifei, and you've already found a new one? This lady looks... quite wealthy. Not bad, Zhang Fan, your methods are fast!"

Bursts of laughter erupted instantly.

Gu Feifei's face turned white in a flash. She broke free from Chang Yuan's hand, rushed to Zhang Fan in a few steps, her eyes looking like they were soaked in poison: "I really misjudged you! So you're willing to do anything for money! A gigolo! How disgusting!"

Her voice was sharp and loud, and the eyes of the entire lobby focused on them.

Chang Yuan hypocritically grabbed her: "Feifei, don't get angry with him, it's not worth it." But his eyes hid a gloating smile—he wished for Zhang Fan to be even more embarrassed.

Tang Wanqing seemed to have been woken up; she moved in Zhang Fan's arms and muttered something indistinct.

Zhang Fan looked down at the person in his arms, then raised his eyes to scan the group of mocking faces. Li Wei's gloating, Gu Feifei's jealousy, Chang Yuan's hypocrisy... they were like a swarm of flies buzzing around rotten meat.

He suddenly felt it was ridiculous.

Back then, when he took the demo of "star path" to Director Chang to ask for a raise, Director Chang patted him on the shoulder and said, "Young people need to be down-to-earth";

Gu Feifei thought he was poor, and turned around to hook up with the boss who had stolen his achievements;

Now, this group of people had the nerve to stand here, using the filthiest thoughts to speculate on someone else's kindness.

"Move aside." Zhang Fan's voice was very calm, as if stating a fact.

"What? Hit a nerve?" Li Wei continued to stir the pot, "Taking a rich woman to a hotel and still acting high and mighty? Zhang Fan, isn't that suit still the one the company issued? Do you want to borrow some money to buy a new one, so you don't embarrass your sugar mommy..."

Before she finished speaking, Zhang Fan suddenly stopped.

He didn't look at Li Wei, but looked at Chang Yuan, a very faint smile curling at the corner of his mouth: "Director Chang, congratulations. However, I recall that the database architecture of "star path" has some issues. If the user count rises further, it will crash. You'd better prepare a contingency plan in advance."

Chang Yuan's expression changed instantly.

This vulnerability was one he had forcibly ignored after taking over to rush the schedule; only he and Zhang Fan knew about it.

"What nonsense are you spouting!" Chang Yuan shouted, his voice fierce but weak inside.

Zhang Fan ignored him, supporting Tang Wanqing and walking straight to the elevator. The gossip behind him continued, and Gu Feifei's curses were like fingernails scraping against glass, but he felt those sounds getting further and further away, as far away as things from a past life.

The elevator doors slowly closed, cutting off the noise outside. The mirror reflected his calm face and the side profile of Tang Wanqing sleeping peacefully in his arms.

"Inexplicable." He cursed in a low voice, but felt a strange sense of relief in his heart.

The carpet in the luxury suite was so thick it felt like walking on clouds. Zhang Fan carefully placed Tang Wanqing on the bed and pulled the quilt over her waist. Her brows were still furrowed, as if she were having an uneasy dream, and her long eyelashes cast faint shadows under her eyes.

He stood by the bed for a while, then turned to leave—it was time to return to his own small motel; this place didn't belong to him.

But just as his hand touched the doorknob, his wrist was suddenly grabbed by a force.

"Don't go..."

Tang Wanqing's voice was very soft, with a heavy nasal tone, like a child afraid of the dark. She didn't open her eyes, but her brows relaxed, her fingers gripping tightly as if she had grabbed a life-saving straw.

Zhang Fan was stunned.

Moonlight spilled in through the floor-to-ceiling windows, illuminating her flushed cheeks and lips that were unconsciously murmuring. He tried to struggle, but she gripped tighter, her fingertips even trembling slightly.

This was the first time he had looked at her from such a close distance. Stripped of the sharpness from the business world, Tang Wanqing appeared exceptionally fragile after getting drunk, with unknown exhaustion hidden in the fine lines at the corners of her eyes.

Leave, or stay?

Zhang Fan's gaze landed on the wrist she was gripping; the warmth of her fingertips still remained there. He suddenly remembered Gu Jingshen always saying, "She's just acting pitiful to gain sympathy," but at this moment, the woman who was gripping him and refusing to let go was clearly just an ordinary person in need of support.

The night wind crept in through the window crack, blowing the curtains. The person on the bed groaned, and her grip on his hand tightened again.

Zhang Fan sighed and slowly sat down on the sofa by the bed.

Forget it, he'd wait until she was fast asleep before leaving.

He leaned against the sofa, watching Tang Wanqing's peaceful sleeping face in the moonlight, and suddenly felt that the four thousand yuan spent tonight was worth it. At the very least, he had protected someone's dignity and held onto his own bottom line.

He just didn't know how to explain this ridiculous night when she woke up tomorrow.