Chapter 417: Hotel or Bar

Zhu Mei was only crying and did not answer Xia Yu’s question at all.

“Where are you now?” Xia Yu rubbed his forehead; he decided to go see the girl.

Zhu Mei sensed Xia Yu’s intention and gave him her address.

“You wait there.” Xia Yu hung up the phone, saved the game, and stood up.

He sent a message to Xu Youxiang, telling her he was going out to play.

He felt like he was cheating on his girlfriend.

The reply took a long time to come, so Xia Yu went to Xu Youxiang’s room and knocked on the door.

“What?” Xu Youxiang’s voice came from inside the room.

“I’m going out to play,” Xia Yu said.

“You go play, why tell me?” Xu Youxiang seemed confused.

“Alright, I’m leaving then,” Xia Yu turned and walked out.

He had told Xu Youxiang just to prevent exposure later. Now that he had told her, if discovered later, the blame could be shifted onto Xu Youxiang.

From the garage downstairs, Xia Yu drove one of Yu Liang’s cars toward the address Zhu Mei had given him.

Previously, Yu Ningmeng had said that the villa arranged for Zhu Mei was far from An Siyao’s villa, which was indeed correct. However, Yu Liang’s mansion was also far from An Siyao’s villa, coincidentally very close to Zhu Mei’s.

Xia Yu quickly arrived at the entrance of the villa complex. He stopped the car, not because the community didn’t allow entry, but because he saw Zhu Mei standing at the intersection.

He opened the car door, letting Zhu Mei get in.

“What’s wrong?” Xia Yu asked.

Zhu Mei lowered her head without speaking.

Xia Yu knew that he couldn’t rush her now; they needed to find a place to talk slowly.

After thinking for a while, he decided to take Zhu Mei to a bustling cafe, but just as he started the engine, Zhu Mei spoke.

Xia Yu turned off the engine and listened to what Zhu Mei had to say.

“My brother wants to go back.” Zhu Mei’s voice was hoarse.

“Go back? Go back where?” Xia Yu was surprised.

“Back to District 232. He found someone who can help him reclaim the land.” Zhu Mei said.

“What person?” Xia Yu asked curiously.

“Someone from District 14.” Zhu Mei nervously pinched her fingers.

Xia Yu thought for a moment. District 14 was a district near District 232; it wasn’t strange for them to want to get involved.

He didn’t know how Zhu Mengbing had managed to hook up with people from District 14.

“The royal family of District 14 is our ancestral branch.” Zhu Mei volunteered the answer.

“Then why didn’t you go to District 14 before, and instead came to District 26?” Xia Yu’s gossip flame burned.

“The king of District 14 has just recently taken the throne. Before that, they had no king for three consecutive years, and it was only after much difficulty that they found a royal bastard among the common people.” Zhu Mei explained in detail, making it easy for Xia Yu, who knew nothing about the outside situation of the districts, to understand clearly.

“Aren’t you not concerned about your brother? Isn’t it better for him to leave?” Xia Yu continued asking.

Previously in District 26, Zhu Mei had asked Xia Yu to rescue Li Hua, and Zhu Mengbing had only been a secondary concern.

“Li Hua is going too.” Zhu Mei clenched her fists.

Xia Yu now understood Zhu Mei’s sadness. Zhu Mei regarded Li Hua as her only relative, hoping to live peacefully with her, but Li Hua was always thinking about reclaiming their land.

“Will you go back too?” Xia Yu asked.

Having the help of District 14 didn’t mean Zhu Mei and the others could relax. Assassins and killers could threaten their lives at any moment.

“I don’t know.” Zhu Mei was confused about this.

“I can’t give you advice,” Xia Yu shook his head.

Zhu Mei now faced a choice: to live with her family amid turmoil or live alone in peace.

Emotionally, Xia Yu hoped Zhu Mei would stay, but he had no right to say such a thing—he wasn’t anything to Zhu Mei.

“I know,” Zhu Mei replied.

“So why did you call me out here?” Xia Yu didn’t want to stay too long, fearing some undesirable developments.

An Siyao and Xu Youxiang were already giving him enough headaches.

Zhu Mei stretched out her hand and grabbed Xia Yu’s arm: “Touch me.”

“???”

Xia Yu didn’t move, so Zhu Mei took the initiative, lifting Xia Yu’s hand and placing it on her head.

This was a gesture that Brown Bear often did, giving Zhu Mei a sense of security.

Seeing that it was just a pat on the head, Xia Yu relaxed.

In this way, the two quietly stayed in the car.

Feeling a bit bored, Xia Yu took out his phone and started playing a game with one hand.

This was a prototype created by Duan Tai and others. It was still quite a distance from the wildly popular “King of Glory” from Xia Yu’s past life, but it already had a basic framework. The rest was just meticulous work.

Once this mobile game was released, Xia Yu planned to shift his capital from a gaming company to a pharmaceutical company.

Games weren’t as profitable as pharmaceuticals; medicine was truly the global bestseller.

He was happily playing the game while Zhu Mei beside him felt a little better.

However, Zhu Mei’s mood hadn’t reached the point of joy.

She couldn’t quite accept Li Hua’s actions. Why did she abandon her to follow Zhu Mengbing? What was so good about Zhu Mengbing?

“I want to go to a bar,” Zhu Mei said to Xia Yu.

“Huh?” Xia Yu was puzzled why she suddenly wanted to go to such an unreliable place.

“I heard it’s more fun there,” Zhu Mei explained.

“Actually, a cafe can be fun too,” Xia Yu said.

Zhu Mei didn’t speak, only looking at him.

“Okay then.” Xia Yu started the car and hit the road.

He took Zhu Mei to a hotel building, booked a presidential suite, and brought Zhu Mei to the room.

Pointing to the bar counter next to the living room, Xia Yu said to Zhu Mei: “This is the bar.”

Although Zhu Mei had never been to a bar before, she wasn’t that easy to fool. She questioned: “I heard there are colorful lights.”

Rubbing his chin, Xia Yu took Zhu Mei to a KTV room and turned on the lights: “This is it.”

Although the lights were indeed colorful, Zhu Mei still felt deceived.

But it didn’t matter anymore.

Lying on the sofa, Zhu Mei patted the table: “Where’s the alcohol?”

Xia Yu fetched some alcohol from the bar counter and handed it to Zhu Mei.

Pouring it into a glass, Zhu Mei drank it in big gulps.

After finishing a bottle of red wine, her eyes became hazy, and her face flushed red. Combined with her seductive face and the dim lighting, Xia Yu couldn’t help but stare.

This girl hadn’t fully matured yet, and she was already this much of a beauty. When she turned thirty and evolved into her final form, how stunning would she be?

Suddenly curious, Xia Yu wondered what Zhu Mei’s mother looked like.

He took out his phone to search but found nothing.

Information about District 232 was scarce; even the king’s photo had only one picture.

Putting the phone down, Xia Yu continued looking at Zhu Mei. After getting tipsy, the girl drank faster. Not only red wine, but she also reached for the white spirits.

He let her pour a small glass, quickly hiding the brandy under the coffee table.

“When I was in the palace, I barely saw my father throughout the year…” Zhu Mei hooked her arms around Xia Yu’s neck, rambling about the past.

“Mm-hmm.” Xia Yu casually responded.

After three hours, Zhu Mei collapsed on the floor.

Poking her face, Xia Yu confirmed she was really asleep and then picked her up, carrying her into the bedroom.