Zhuang Baihua finally understood what Luo Zhenduo meant by the word "stunning".
It doesn't refer to her appearance, but to Chi Yue's mental outlook.
It was as if something had broken through the ground and was growing freely and vigorously towards the sky. Chi Yue grew from a boy into a man.
Stay true to your heart and stand tall and upright. When a boy grows up to this point, he can be called a man.
Chi Yue stood there, fiddling with her cufflinks with her slender fingers, her black eyes looking over quietly, a smile on her lips, emitting endless hormones, which was fascinating and heart-moving.
Zhuang Baihua and Chi Yue looked into each other's eyes. Chi Yue openly entangled Zhuang Baihua with her eyes, teasing her subtly.
Zhuang Baihua shifted his gaze uncomfortably to Chi Yue's neat bow tie and cuffs, then saw Chi Yue's protruding Adam's apple and strong wrist bones, and thought to himself, Chi Yue is really completely different from the first time he met him.
The little white flower with a pointed chin and delicate face on the cover of the original book has completely disappeared, replaced by the handsome young man who struggled in the darkness and stood up again.
Zhuang Baihua looked at Chi Yue, unable to look away. At this time, Luo Zhenduo beside him suddenly said, "You must have been fascinated by our Xiaoyue."
Zhuang Baihua subconsciously looked at Luo Zhenduo, who said with a half-smile, "That's why I said it would be amazing."
Zhuang Baihua's face flushed slightly. He cleared his throat and said, "Xiaoyue is indeed becoming more and more handsome."
Luo Zhenduo's eyes flickered across Zhuang Baihua's face and he said, "That's right, good genes."
Zhuang Baihua glanced at Luo Zhenduo and said with a smile: "Maybe Xiaoyue has a genetic mutation."
Luo Zhenduo finally smiled, but the corners of his mouth just lifted up, and the arc immediately disappeared, because Chi Yue came over and said to Zhuang Baihua: "Mr. Zhuang is also very handsome today."
Thinking that Zhuang Baihua dressed up to attend her birthday party, Chi Yue's eyes became more intense.
Luo Zhenduo also hadn't seen such a gorgeous Zhuang Baihua for a long time. Since Zhuang Baihua's personality changed, he usually dressed very low-key. Today he wore a limited edition dress, looking radiant and young.
Zhuang Baihua didn't know that she was equally attractive in the eyes of both father and son.
He smiled and looked at the Luo family father and son, and asked: "How long will you stay here?"
Luo Zhenduo put his hand on Chi Yue's shoulder and said, "I still have some things to tell him, such as which guests are more important and must be greeted."
Zhuang Baihua knew that Luo Zhenduo wanted to recommend Chi Yue, and that he might let Chi Yue participate in the company's affairs in the future. This was paving the way for Chi Yue, so he nodded and said to Chi Yue: "Although it is boring, this is the only way to go. Come on."
If it was like usual, Chi Yue would disdainfully say "Don't treat me like a child", but today Chi Yue was more stable than before. She did not refute Zhuang Baihua's nagging advice, but said: "I understand."
He said calmly: "Remember what I said before? I said I want to be the big boss."
Zhuang Baihua laughed. At that time he thought Chi Yue was joking, but who knew that he would actually keep his word.
Luo Zhenduo interrupted them again and said with his eyes downcast: "Bai Hua, go take a look downstairs."
After hearing what Luo Zhenduo said, Zhuang Baihua said goodbye to the two and walked out of the room, leaving the remaining space to the father and son, while he returned to the first floor.
As time went by, many guests had arrived. Zhuang Baihua saw a few familiar people and took his secretary to chat with them.
Everyone who came was in pairs, only Zhuang Baihua came with his secretary, looking pure and simple.
The Luo family made a grand arrangement for Chi Yue's birthday. The entire banquet hall was decorated magnificently and dazzlingly.
Mrs. Luo comes from an aristocratic family and has extraordinary taste. She boldly uses crystal elements to allow light to collide and refract in the space, creating a star-studded effect.
Anyone who comes in will praise how beautiful it is.
Everyone knows that the reason why the Luo family spent so much money is to let everyone see that the Luo family holds Chi Yue in the palm of their hands, and Chi Yue is the next heir of the Luo family.
Chi Yue's life experience is known to everyone, and everyone knows it tacitly, and no one mentions it. As long as the Luo family is willing, even if they bring out an ugly person, they will pretend not to notice and flatter loudly.
These people's thoughts immediately disappeared after Chi Yue appeared.
Chi Yue was led by Luo Zhenduo and came in front of everyone. He was well-dressed and behaved gracefully.
He stood there in a suit, with a smile on his face, clear eyebrows and a handsome appearance. His eyes were like the brightest stars in the sky and his face was like the smoothest jade in the world.
It's no wonder that the Luo family likes such young people so much. After twenty years of wandering outside, not only has Mingzhu not been overshadowed by dust, but Chi Yue has also become more calm and steady, which are the most lacking things in other rich kids who have not been through any experience.
Many guests came to the banquet with their daughters. The daughters of wealthy families blushed at the same time when they saw Chi Yue's appearance.
Zhuang Baihua looked at Chi Yue, feeling relieved, but at the same time, a familiar feeling of sadness welled up in his heart.
He didn't understand what was going on recently. He always had a sour feeling, especially when facing Chi Yue. He felt particularly unbalanced.
Chi Yue should be proud that others discovered his excellence, but he still felt a little jealous, as if his own treasure had been discovered and he didn't want to share it with others.
Because it was a birthday party, the guests naturally brought birthday gifts. As Zhuang Baihua expected, the gifts were either expensive or valuable. The gift Zhuang Baihua brought was the key to a small private plane. He studied the fashion show for a long time and finally chose a gift that would not go wrong.
Giving such a big and expensive gift is not Zhuang Baihua's style, but as a good friend of Luo Zhenduo and Chi Yue, he cannot bring shame to the Luo family or himself. If the gift is too light, it will seem neglectful.
Zhuang Baihua could only comfort himself that low consumption could stimulate domestic demand.
During the dinner, everyone was toasting and talking and laughing. The Luo family invited celebrities and bands to perform on stage, and the atmosphere of the whole birthday party was very lively.
Secretary Chen, as the president's personal supervisor, should have been accustomed to such scenes, but the luxury of this banquet even shocked him. The Luo family really spared no expense in building momentum for Chi Yue.
The evil concubine has too powerful a background. If she becomes the queen in the future, she will probably have to bring an outsider to power.
Others might not have noticed, but Chen Wang, standing next to Zhuang Baihua, saw it most clearly.
Zhuang Baihua's eyes drifted towards Chi Yue from time to time, and his look was sometimes kind and sometimes depressed.
While Zhuang Baihua was looking at others, another person was also observing him.
Luo Zhenduo led Chi Yue to mingle among the guests, and whenever he had time he would look over at Zhuang Baihua. Mr. Luo's eyes were much more melancholy, filled with sadness, and hesitant to speak like an adult.
Secretary Chen stared at the handsome profile of his CEO and sighed in his heart.
He suddenly felt very fortunate that he had found his position very early. There were so many beauties who wanted to climb onto the emperor's dragon bed, but there was only one chief eunuch.
It is enough for him to just do his job as steward.
"What are you thinking about?" Zhuang Baihua turned his head and saw Chen Wang in a daze, so he asked.
Secretary Chen was stunned for a moment, but soon came to his senses and smiled at Zhuang Baihua: "Nothing, dinner was delicious."
The dishes for the dinner were naturally prepared by famous chefs. The presentation was gorgeous and exquisite, and the flavors were rich and delicious. However, most people were focused on socializing and had no intention of enjoying the food.
Only attendants like Secretary Chen eat more.
Maybe he really ate too much, Secretary Chen was in a daze from time to time. Zhuang Baihua found that not only him, but others also often appeared absent-minded.
For example, Chi Yue. Zhuang Baihua found that although Chi Yue was smiling, her expression was a little vague and her eyes were empty. She often stared at someone or a certain place without blinking for a long time, as if she was thinking about something.
Luo Zhenduo was the same. Although he laughed, when he was not laughing, he would frown, frown, and stand quietly, not knowing what he was thinking.
The temperaments of father and son are surprisingly similar.
As Chi Yue grew older, her figure became more and more like Luo Zhenduo, except that her appearance was more delicate. When the two stood side by side, there was always a same melancholy atmosphere lingering around them, which was out of tune with the hustle and bustle of the birthday dinner.
What made Zhuang Baihua even more worried was that Luo Zhenduo drank too much.
He is a heavy drinker, and he certainly would not restrain himself in such a big occasion as today. He accepted all toasts and even helped his son to drink.
So he drank glass after glass of various famous liquors, which mixed together in Luo Zhenduo's stomach. It was really an unhealthy way of drinking.
Zhuang Baihua was very worried, so he found an opportunity to walk over and whispered to Luo Zhenduo, "Take it easy, don't drink so much."
The aroma of alcohol wafted to his face. Luo Zhenduo raised his eyes and looked at Zhuang Baihua, and there was finally joy in his eyes.
Luo Zhenduo felt warmed by the fact that Zhuang Baihua came to advise him because he was worried about him.
But the next second, Zhuang Baihua said, "You must always set an example for your son." He turned to Chi Yue and continued, "You should persuade your father."
The speaker may not mean it, but the listener may take it seriously.
Luo Zhenduo discovered that as long as Chi Yue was around, Zhuang Baihua's thoughts would revolve around Chi Yue, and no matter what he said or did, it was all about Chi Yue.
He discovered this phenomenon very early, but he has been numb to it, which shows that Zhuang Baihua cares very much about his targeted poverty alleviation targets.
But now, he couldn't even deceive himself.
No matter how much you drink, there will always be a moment of sobriety.
Luo Zhenduo raised his head and sighed deeply. Zhuang Baihua turned his head and asked, "What's wrong with you? Shouldn't you be happy today?"
Luo Zhenduo twitched his lips, gave a weak smile, and said, "I'm happy. Of course I'm happy."
In order to express his happiness, Luo Zhenduo drank the wine in his cup in one gulp. He looked at Chi Yue, patted her on the shoulder, and said to Zhuang Baihua, "You guys chat first. I have something to do."
After saying this, he strode away without paying any attention to his son and the guests in the room.
Zhuang Baihua noticed that Luo Zhenduo was a little bit abnormal today, and asked Chi Yue: "What happened to your father?"
Unexpectedly, Chi Yue also looked absent-minded. After hearing Zhuang Baihua's question, he came to his senses and shook his head slowly.
What is going on between this father and son
No matter what, today is Chi Yue’s birthday. He is the protagonist and people keep coming up to talk to him.
Chi Yue is indeed different from before. When facing visitors, he is polite and always maintains a friendly attitude, which makes people feel good about him.
Zhuang Baihua looked at this scene and felt deeply moved.
In the past, Chi Yue seemed to not care about anything, was cold and numb, and tired of everything; but now he tries to communicate with others and knows how to disguise himself. This disguise is filled with kindness and desire, and he longs to start a new life in this world.
This is Chi Yue’s growth. Zhuang Baihua speculated that the turning point might have happened that night in the small dark room.
Chi Yue listened to what he said at that time and thought about it.
Chi Yue’s performance now represents his choice, and he is actively facing his future life.
However, behind this positivity there was a hint of uneasiness. There must be something bothering Chi Yue, but he did not say it out.
Zhuang Baihua really wanted to talk to Chi Yue alone and wish him a happy birthday, but there were too many guests and they were all people he couldn't deal with perfunctorily. At this time, he stood beside Chi Yue, playing the role of Luo Zhenduo, and dealt with the guests together with Chi Yue.
The grand dinner was going on, interspersed with colorful performances, and both the guests and the hosts were having a great time.
However, Luo Zhenduo has not appeared since he left, and Zhuang Baihua is a little overwhelmed by the constant flow of guests.
After all, he can't drink as much as Luo Zhenduo.
After a while, Madam Luo came to them and asked Zhuang Baihua and Chi Yue with a frown: "Where is Zhenduo? I don't know if anyone is waiting for him."
Zhuang Baihua didn't know either, and looked at Chi Yue, who also shook her head.
Mrs. Luo said worriedly, "He was acting strange some time ago." She thought about it carefully and said, "It started from the night Xiaoyue ran away from home."
Chi Yue looked slightly embarrassed and defended herself: "I didn't run away from home."
Mrs. Luo smiled at him tolerantly: "I understand, it's all in the past."
The matter of Sun Yu had passed, but her son seemed to have not gotten over it yet. Mrs. Luo turned to Zhuo Shuhua and said, "Bai Hua, can you do me a favor and go find Zhen Duo? He may be in the yard outside. I will stay here with Xiao Yue."
Zhuang Baihua quickly agreed: "Of course." After that, he plunged into the crowd and walked out of the house.
Chi Yue looked at Zhuang Baihua's back and wanted to follow him, but as the protagonist of today, he couldn't get away.
Mrs. Luo saw that Chi Yue was worried about Zhuang Baihua, and she sighed in her heart.
What an injustice.