Sure enough, in the next second, Lu Yanbei was proven wrong.
He beckoned to the manager.
"Mr. Lu, is there anything you need?" the lobby manager scurried over, flattered.
"Bring up the surveillance footage from ten minutes ago," Lu Yanbei commanded concisely.
"Please wait a moment." When the boss spoke, the lobby manager didn't hesitate and personally went to the surveillance room to retrieve the video.
In less than two minutes, he returned with a tablet.
Lu Yanbei's handsome fingers tapped the screen a couple of times, displaying the footage for everyone to see. "If your eyesight is bad, don't wander around blindly, lest you harm yourself and others."
His words drained all color from Zhou Yingzi's face.
However, this was not the most embarrassing moment for her.
What followed, Lu Yanbei's next statement, was what truly dragged her dignity through the mud.
"Project this video onto the lobby television and play it 24/7. It will be taken down only when Miss Su forgives her impulsiveness."
When it came to ruthlessness, no one could outdo Lu Yanbei.
Upon hearing this, Zhou Yingzi's eyes rolled back, and she fainted.
*
"Thank you, just now." Su He remembered to thank him as they walked out of the restaurant. To be honest, seeing Zhou Yingzi get such a brutal beating made her feel like compensation was irrelevant.
It was her first time seeing Zhou Yingzi so mercilessly crushed, utterly defenseless, hahahaha.
It was utterly satisfying!
Lu Yanbei walked wordlessly to his black Maybach, seemingly with no intention of further conversation.
Gu Yuheng and the others behind him had already left. Su He glanced around and, gathering her courage, followed him. "Can I ask for a day off tomorrow?"
Lu Yanbei's hand, which was reaching for the car door, paused slightly.
Su He licked her dry lips. "My adoptive parents want me to go back and stay for a night."
"Just one night," Su He promised repeatedly.
After hearing her explanation, Lu Yanbei slowly relaxed his clenched fist. "You have one night. See you at the Civil Affairs Bureau tomorrow morning."
"Huh?" Su He didn't react for a long time.
By then, Lu Yanbei had already gotten into the car. The driver stepped on the accelerator, and the car sped away.
Just as Su He was about to chase after him to clarify, her adoptive father honked the horn. "Susu, get in!"
Hesitating for a moment, she watched the Maybach disappear.
Su He shuffled over to her adoptive father's seven or eight-year-old Volkswagen, trying not to dwell on the deeper meaning of Lu Yanbei's words.
"Why did it take so long?" Tang Jiaojiao, unaware of what had happened in the lobby, asked.
Su He smiled, not wanting to burden them with these bothersome matters. "It took some time to claim my bag at the front desk, and I also went to the restroom."
"Hurry up and get in, it's nice and cool in the car," Tang Jiaojiao moved over and waved to Su He.
Su He obediently got into the car.
On the way back, Tang Jiaojiao was scrolling through the list of young handsome men on WeChat. "Susu, take a look, are there any you find agreeable?"
Su He leaned over to take a look, not understanding, and couldn't help but shake her head. "Ms. Tang, where did you add these people?"
"I met them while getting my nails done," Tang Jiaojiao didn't hide anything. "You have no idea, young people nowadays are all so vain, even the boys!"
Looking at Su He, she didn't seem like a girl at all.
"Susu, how long has it been since you've done skincare?" Tang Jiaojiao asked, touching Su He's dry face.
"I put something on my face every day," Su He replied earnestly.
"That's not skincare, you should go to a beauty salon at least twice a week!" Tang Jiaojiao tutted in disagreement.
"A woman's youth lasts only a few years. If you don't take good care of yourself, you'll age very quickly," Tang Jiaojiao lectured as someone with experience.
Su He nodded vaguely, but her mind was still on whether she should confirm the matter of paying the bill with Lu Yanbei.
Seeing her distracted, Tang Jiaojiao's lips couldn't help but curl upwards. "Susu, I saw you talking to a man just now, do you know him?"
Su He snapped back to attention and replied cautiously, "Oh, I was just... asking for directions."
"Asking for directions?" Tang Jiaojiao secretly pouted.
This girl wasn't being honest!
Who asks for directions while dressed in a suit and tie, driving a Maybach? Moreover, from the looks of it, he had a dedicated driver; why would he need to ask her for directions? Hmph, something's definitely up.
Tang Jiaojiao suppressed her curiosity and didn't press further, afraid of accidentally nipping this budding romance in the bud. Well, there would be plenty of opportunities to find out later.
Returning to the long-lost home, Su He felt like she had returned from another lifetime.
Over the past three years, she had mostly lived in her own small apartment, returning here only a handful of times. During holidays, she would occasionally visit but rarely stayed overnight.
"Susu, your room has been kept for you. Do you like the new bedsheets?" Tang Jiaojiao looked like a noblewoman detached from worldly affairs, but she was actually very practical.
Su He walked towards the familiar door, her eyes widening at the girlish bedsheet set.
"What do you think, isn't it very girlish?" Tang Jiaojiao presented it proudly.
Su He smiled awkwardly yet gratefully. "It's very nice. Thank you, Mom."
The title "Mom" came from the bottom of her heart.
Tang Jiaojiao linked her arm and pulled her inside. "The towels and toiletries are in the bathroom, all brand new. Your pajamas and change of clothes are hung in the closet; they were all bought not long ago..."
Feeling her adoptive mother's care, Su He's heart instantly warmed.
After telling her where to put her things, the mother and daughter began to have a heart-to-heart talk. "As long as you think it's good, we'll support you in whatever you do. But that family might not. You need to think carefully, don't let them trick you!"
When it came to her biological parents, Su He felt quite speechless.
Logically, she was their flesh and blood, and after being lost for so many years, they should have compensated her and doted on her. But they didn't! Not only that, but they constantly favored their adopted daughter, Su An'an, as if she were the outsider.
Su He simply couldn't develop any positive feelings for such parents.
"I don't plan on going back there," Su He said. "They already have a daughter by their side, they don't need another one like me."
"It's good that you're not going back, saves you from getting upset. If they try to guilt-trip you or force you to do something you don't want to, tell me, and I'll deal with them for you!" Tang Jiaojiao gently stroked her head, offering comfort.
"If they want to bully me, they'll have to see if they have the ability," Su He scoffed.
She wasn't a weakling to be manipulated.
"We're not afraid of them openly, but I worry about them secretly..." Tang Jiaojiao had no worries about her other children. Only Su He, among the four, was the most sensible and the most heart-wrenching. "How about this, I'll pay to hire you two bodyguards?"
"That's too exaggerated," Su He refused. Besides, she was living with Lu Yanbei; she didn't need bodyguards. "I've resigned, and I usually draw at home, so I don't go out much. There's no need for such a big fuss."
It was only after Su He's repeated explanations that Tang Jiaojiao abandoned the idea.
The mother and daughter reminisced for about an hour, and then Tang Jiaojiao started yawning sleepily.
Su He coaxed her to go back and get her beauty sleep, but she herself couldn't fall asleep in bed.
What was Lu Yanbei planning? Why was he so determined to tie her to him? Although they had signed an agreement to dissolve their marital relationship after two years, she didn't think it would be an easy matter.
Drowsily, Su He drifted back into slumber.