Chapter 42: The Question of Death

It was clear that Chen Bo had something on his mind, but Li Tian'er did not connect his worry with An Yuan. At that moment, she still had no idea what tie existed between An Yuan and Chen Bo, much less that Chen Bo's partner was An Yuan himself. She assumed Chen Bo was anxious because business had been poor since the Royal Nightclub opened.

People only ever saw the glittering surface of a老板's life and rarely noticed the blood, sweat, effort, and worry that lay behind the success, the struggle, the toil, and the sleepless nights spent building a business.

Perhaps because each of them was preoccupied with the other's thoughts, a candlelit dinner that should have been romantic ended up dull and tasteless.

Several times Chen Bo seemed ready to say something, but each time the words reached his lips, he swallowed them back. Looking at her rounded belly, he felt that whatever he said would be unnecessary. She was his woman, after all, and no matter what, she could not escape him.

Still, when he thought it over carefully, he felt certain that An Yuan was not normal. With so many beautiful women available, why had he come all the way to Dongling City to flirt with his wife? It was obvious: he must have remembered that Chen Bo had once told him that no beauty in the world, no matter how dazzling or various, could compare with his own wife, Li Tian'er.

After a hurried end to dinner, Chen Bo took Li Tian'er home and personally escorted her upstairs to the bedroom before finally going back down, leaving the building and driving to the nightclub for work.

Chen Bo parked in the nightclub lot but did not get out at once. He took out his phone and called An Yuan.

When An Yuan saw Chen Bo's call, he laughed heartily.

"What's the situation at the nightclub? Something you need to tell me?"

An Yuan got straight to the point, without any politeness.

"The nightclub has been open for a week already. You ought to come and take a look. Everyone wants to see what kind of big boss you are. Your visit would give them confidence."

"Ha! What kind of talk is that? You're the nightclub boss. I'm just a hands-off investor. I don't concern myself with your side of things."

"I'm not asking you to manage it. I'm inviting you to inspect it. Everyone knows exactly what kind of man Chen Bo is, and everyone knows exactly how much I have. I mortgaged my house and even borrowed one hundred thousand from my wife, yet there is no way I could have opened a place this big on my own. Stop teasing me. Even if you don't want everyone to know you're the man behind the scenes, you should at least come take a discreet look."

"All right, I'll come by tomorrow. How's business at the club? Is that girl Juanjuan you hired any good? How many VIP guests has she brought in for you?"

"Come tomorrow and you'll see."

Cunning old fox!

Chen Bo cursed inwardly, then exchanged a few more perfunctory words with An Yuan before hanging up.

An Yuan was only a year older than Chen Bo, unmarried, and without a proper girlfriend. Rumor had it that he had never even dated a woman.

Yet Chen Bo always felt that An Yuan was nothing like the simple figure people described. Just look at the wide range of businesses he invested in, and one could tell he was not a man content to stay still. Not having a girlfriend on the surface did not mean he lacked women in private.

As a man in his thirties, unless his body was ill, what normal man would truly have no interest in women?

In the past, at Chen Bo's drinking parties, An Yuan had always behaved like a refined gentleman. While the other bosses had beautiful women from Chen Bo's entertainment staff in their arms, only he sat there with a teacup, seeming different from the rest. He did not care for the rumors or the provocative stares from others; he remained at ease, unruffled. A man with money and power could command respect anywhere, in any setting.

Chen Bo felt that An Yuan must have two faces. He had only seen the cultured, handsome, and wealthy side of him, and he very much wanted to uncover the other side to see what lay beneath that image of a man who seemed uninterested in women.

By nine o'clock, quite a crowd had already entered the nightclub. Ever since it opened, any man in Dongling City with even a little spending power had taken pride in experiencing imperial-level indulgence at the Royal Pier Nightclub.

Chen Bo passed through the glittering, star-lit dance hall and strode quickly toward the staircase covered in deep crimson wool carpeting.

"Hello, Mr. Chen!"

"Hello, Mr. Chen!"

The staff members lined the stairs from the first floor to the second, standing as if in formation in their formal dresses. No, they should be called princesses. One after another, the princesses greeted Chen Bo with sweet smiles. It began to irritate him. At first he would nod and return their looks, but after climbing more than a dozen steps, he simply lowered his head and hurried on up to the third floor.

He knew their sweet smiles were meant to be sold for money, and he could not afford to enjoy them on himself.

Chen Bo pressed the internal phone button and called Blue Juanjuan upstairs. He wanted her to select twelve of the prettiest princesses and prepare them for receiving important guests the next day.

"What kind of important guests?" Blue Juanjuan asked curiously. By rights, every guest of any real standing in Dongling City had already been drawn to the Royal Pier.

"Are you gathering a file?"

"No, I'm just curious. Anyone you consider important can't be ordinary."

Although she had already given up on Chen Bo, when she looked at his face and listened to his domineering tone, Blue Juanjuan still could not help offering him those tender, watery eyes.

Not ordinary.

Chen Bo savored Blue Juanjuan's words over and over, then looked up at her again. Seeing the tenderness in her eyes and the graceful line of her body, he could not help letting the corners of his mouth lift.

A beauty's scheme never goes out of fashion. It might not work on him, but that did not mean it would not work on An Yuan.

Back when they drank together, An Yuan had carried himself like a man above the clouds, untouched by the beauties who threw themselves at him. But who knew? Perhaps beneath that polished surface he was a fierce beast from the primordial wilds.

"Blue Juanjuan, what do you think of how I treat you?" Chen Bo asked suddenly.

Blue Juanjuan froze. What a deadly question that was!

If she said Chen Bo treated her well, then what about the several times she had tried to give herself to him, only to be coldly pushed away and rejected? A woman's pride had been trampled to pieces. How could that be called treating her well?

If she said he did not treat her well, then every time they were at social gatherings and she was flirting with other men in their arms, letting them grope her and get fresh with her, Chen Bo had always stepped in just in time to rescue her, never allowing anyone else to go any farther with her body. Twice, in retaliation for his refusal to accept her, she had slept with other men, and when Chen Bo found out, he had been furious, nearly ready to hit her.

Only a man who loves a woman would not want her touched by anyone else.

Blue Juanjuan believed Chen Bo did have feelings for her. It was only that another woman had long ago taken residence in his heart, and so he would not let her force her way in. Even to let her brush against him a little felt to him like a desecration of the love he held for the woman in his heart.

"Oh, hmm, how would you like me to answer that?" Blue Juanjuan asked with a sweet smile, puckering her heavily painted lips into an O as if she were seriously considering Chen Bo's question.

"You don't have to take it as a question. I want you to help me with something. Once it's done, you can ask for anything you like. As long as I can do it, I'll agree."

The service staff at the Royal Pier Nightclub had no fixed base salary; they earned high commissions instead. Blue Juanjuan was now making more than Chen Bo. Although Chen Bo was the second boss, he would still have to wait until the year-end accounts were settled before receiving any profit bonus. Right now, he only drew a fixed monthly salary. So he could not promise her a sum of money, nor could he really give her one.

"Then I'll think about what kind of request I should make. But if you want me to help you, I'm afraid I may not be capable of it."

Blue Juanjuan parted her red lips and revealed a trained smile bright as spring blossoms.