Chapter 316: Chapter 164: This Damn, Inexplicable Pride

A single, clear floor-to-ceiling window offered an unobstructed view of the entire Rongcheng cityscape.

A huge crystal chandelier, meticulously carved wooden sculptures, walls adorned with hibiscus prints, and silk brocade decorations all permeated the space with the charm of Rongcheng.

Next door was the hotel’s breakfast restaurant.

The breakfast selection here was vast, offering everything from hot dishes and cold cuts to Chinese dim sum and Western baked goods.

They even had beef noodle soup and Sichuan-style soft tofu pudding.

Xu Yun went straight for a bowl of beef noodle soup. ’Something hearty like this really hits the spot.’

Xino, on the other hand, opted for some cake and milk.

While they were eating, Xino suddenly asked, "Am I pretty?"

Xu Yun looked up and smiled. "Prettier than the average woman. You’ve got class, too."

"Am I not sexy?"

Xu Yun recalled the image of her stumbling into his bathtub the previous night and replied, "You’re quite cute when you’re drunk. Like a little white bunny, so white and pure."

"A little white bunny?"

Xino took a deep breath, telling herself not to get angry.

She pressed on, "So last night, when I was naked and throwing myself at you, you didn’t have any thoughts at all?"

"I choose not to answer!"

"Why?"

"Because if I say I did have thoughts, I’m afraid you’ll call me a beast. But if I say I didn’t, I’m afraid you’ll call me worse than a beast."

Xu Yun said helplessly, "See? It’s a no-win situation."

"Just answer it."

Xino demanded, flustered and angry, "What exactly is our relationship right now?"

"Well..."

Xu Yun answered tentatively, "Good friends?"

"Just good friends?"

Xino retorted glumly, "But you’ve already seen all of me."

"If you feel like you got the short end of the stick and it’s not fair, how about this!"

Xu Yun hesitated for a moment, then said, "When we get back to the room, I’ll strip naked and let you take a look. That should make us even, right?"

"Pah! Who wants to see you?" Xino was beside herself with embarrassment and anger, and started to eat her breakfast, gritting her teeth.

’That Xu Yun is never serious.’

At this point, she actually wished Xu Yun had given in to his beastly urges and done something to her last night.

That way, she wouldn’t have to be in this state of turmoil.

’If we had slept together, we couldn’t possibly still be ’just good friends,’ right?’

At least it wouldn’t be like this—not quite friends, not quite lovers, just a confusing mess.

She’d lived her whole life, only to be seen completely naked by a man who wasn’t her boyfriend. He might have even touched her.

The crucial part was that she had actually taken a bath with him in the same tub!

’And that Xu Yun... he’s really something else!’

’I was right there, and he still managed to hold back!’

’Am I really that unappealing to him?’

’Do I really have no feminine charm?’

For the first time, Xino started to doubt herself.

As if sensing her thoughts, Xu Yun tried to console her, "Don’t be sad. My standards are just a little high. It has nothing to do with you."

"..."

This was like rubbing salt in the wound of Xino’s already bruised heart.

Now she didn’t want to talk to Xu Yun at all.

’He’s so mean! I hate him!’

"Alright, alright, I was just teasing you."

Xu Yun said, "Let me be honest with you. Last night... I was close. Really. I was tempted."

"Really?"

Xino asked, a little insecure, "You’re not lying to me?"

"I’m not."

Xu Yun said with a serious expression, "I may not be a ’good person,’ but I still have my principles. Even if I was tempted, I wouldn’t take advantage of someone in your state."

"That’s more like it. I was wondering how I could have zero feminine charm."

Xino was easily placated. Her sad face from moments ago immediately brightened up, and she sniffled back the little "pearls" that were about to fall.

Xu Yun silently breathed a sigh of relief.

’Good grief, she was about to cry just because I didn’t sleep with her last night.’

’This damn, inexplicable pride!’

But it just went to show that she was a princess who had been spoiled since childhood, always thinking she was the best at everything.

That’s why his intentional prodding had nearly shattered her confidence.

"Xu Yun," Xino called out softly.

"Hm?"

Xino asked tentatively, "Hypothetically—and I mean, hypothetically, this isn’t real—but what if I happened to like you? What would you think if you heard that?"

"What do you want me to think?"

"I’m asking you."

"Nothing special. Plenty of women like me."

Xu Yun finished his beef noodle soup and replied, "But you’re different from them."

"How am I different?" Xino’s face lit up with anticipation.

"You have money, so you don’t have to spend mine."

Xu Yun grinned. "And I can spend your money. Be a kept man."

Xino’s face fell with disappointment. "So, besides money, I don’t have any other good qualities?"

"You do."

"What?"

"You’re a good singer. So full of emotion, like a pitiful woman who’s been dumped countless times."

"Forget it. I’m not talking to you anymore. Not a single true word comes out of your mouth."

Annoyed, Xino stood up. "I’m done eating. I’m going back to the room to sleep."

"Don’t go."

Xu Yun called out with a smile, "I’m not full yet. I’m thinking of getting a couple of small steamed buns. Do you want some?"

"..." Xino was speechless.

She glanced down at her chest and felt like she’d just taken another critical hit.

’AHHHH! He’s doing it on purpose!’

Humiliated and enraged, Xino spun around. "I’m not eating any small steamed buns! I’ll never eat small steamed buns again for the rest of my life! If you want them, eat them yourself!"

"???" Xu Yun was baffled.

’All I did was ask if she wanted some small steamed buns. Why did she get so angry?’

’A woman’s mood changes faster than flipping through a book.’

’So weird.’

Xu Yun picked up a small steamed bun, popped it in his mouth, and savored the delicious taste.

’Sigh. Her loss for not eating any.’

「...」

On the internet, Eastern Airlines, a company where cash is king, had never paid much mind to a few VIP customers.

But who would have known that among them was a high-level client holding a private banking card from a partner bank, whose privileges were equivalent to their own airline’s permanent platinum status.

Now that they had offended him, the bank was relentlessly hounding them for an explanation. To top it off, another platinum member had also filed a complaint.

They had planned to form an investigation team, casually discipline the person in charge, have them apologize to the client, and resolve the matter privately.

But who could have predicted that they would wake up one morning to find the incident had spread all over the internet, gone viral, and shot straight to the top of the trending topics for everyone to see.

It was obvious someone was fanning the flames from behind the scenes. (Note: Xino bought the trending topic and platform traffic.)

Now it was too late for them to pull down the trending topic or suppress the discussion.

Meanwhile, everyone online was grabbing their popcorn, enjoying the drama, and waiting to see how Eastern Airlines would handle the situation.

People were especially interested in this "Mr. Xu."

Faced with the dismissive attitude of Yage, this young man who could summon a private jet with a single phone call had everyone guessing which tycoon’s son he was.

Some people with too much time on their hands scoured the Forbes list for every tycoon with the surname Xu, going through them one by one to see who might fit the profile.

And so, numerous rumors began to circulate.

Netizens had wild imaginations and were making all sorts of connections. One moment he was the son of the tycoon Xu Xing, the next he was the scion of another big shot also named Xu.

Some even speculated that Xu Yun was a "princeling"—the third-generation descendant of a high-ranking official.

In an instant, rumors were flying everywhere.

The top executives at Eastern Airlines started to panic.

Being rich wasn’t scary; what was scary was being a third-generation "princeling"!

So, after some deliberation, the third-in-command at Eastern Airlines took a team and flew directly to Rongcheng, hoping to meet Xu Yun, apologize on behalf of the company, and resolve the matter as quickly as possible.

After all, he was their customer; they had Xu Yun’s name, phone number, and ID number on file.

Through certain connections, they quickly found out he was staying at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel.

Pretty impressive.

At the same time in Jiangcheng, Su Mu and the others were at their company when they came across the news.

At first, they found it rather amusing, but when they saw the passenger’s surname was Xu and then looked at the photo of his back, their expressions changed.

As women who had slept with Xu Yun many times, they recognized him in an instant.

The "Mr. Xu" that netizens were hyping up was none other than the very same Xu Yun who had recently ghosted them!

He had secretly flown to Rongcheng.

And according to the news, he had angrily summoned a private jet to fly there!

It wasn’t the money that bothered them.

After all, Xu Yun had always been casual with his spending, never batting an eye at the cost.

What they were all thinking now was—

’Which woman did he run off to Rongcheng to see?’

’If you said he was there on business, or just for fun, who would believe that?’

Xu Yun was a good guy, but he had a habit of philandering.

So, after seeing the news, they hesitated for a moment before one by one, they started calling him, trying to subtly fish for information.

Xino hadn’t been sleeping in the bedroom at all; she’d been eavesdropping on Xu Yun’s phone calls with her ears pricked. Finally, she couldn’t take it anymore.

She walked out of the bedroom, looking displeased.

Xu Yun turned to look at her, confused. "Weren’t you sleeping?"

"How could I possibly sleep with you on the phone the whole time?"

Frustrated and annoyed, Xino demanded, "Tell me, just how many women do you have?"