The plane only roused Zhong Yun when the flight attendant gently pushed him awake. Lately, he’d been plagued by a profound drowsiness; the moment he settled onto the plush sofa, his eyelids felt weighted down by a thousand pounds.

When Zhong Yun finally opened his eyes, a blinding patch of snow-white caught his gaze. At first, he thought he was lost in a sensual dream, staring fixedly. Only when his shoulder was nudged again, accompanied by a soft, distinctly feminine voice whispering, "Mr. Zhong, Mr. Zhong..." did he snap back to reality.

Zhong Yun shivered violently. His gaze drifted upward to see the flight attendant’s beautiful face flushed with a slight blush. The moment her lovely eyes locked with his, she instantly recoiled, like a startled rabbit, pulling her gaze away.

Yet, a faint trace of nascent desire lingered in the curve of her expression. That mixture of shock and shame was utterly captivating, as alluring as could be.

Zhong Yun felt a wicked heat surge up from his lower abdomen, spreading throughout his body like a wildfire. In that instant, his mouth went dry, and his breathing became ragged.

Seduction. Blatant seduction.

Zhong Yun, still carrying the residual evidence of his nap, nearly lost control. Fortunately, at the critical moment, the plane’s internal announcement broke the spell: “Esteemed passengers, we are three minutes from landing at Mingzhou Airport. Please prepare for disembarkation…”

Zhong Yun sprang up from the sofa in one motion and hurried toward the lavatory.

The flight attendant sank onto the seat, her face clouded with vexation.

So close.

She shot a look of simmering anger toward the lavatory door, thinking irritably, He won't even take the beauty delivered right to his lap. What a block of wood.

She had always been confident in her appearance. Which man didn't stare at her, eyes glued in place? Zhong Yun’s reaction was a significant blow to her self-esteem.

Then, a counter-thought surfaced: Perhaps this proved her taste was sound. This young man wasn't just anyone easily swayed. If she was going to attach herself to a wealthy backer, it should be one with integrity.

A moment later, Zhong Yun emerged from the lavatory. On the surface, at least, he appeared completely composed.

They acted as if nothing had happened. Just before they exited the plane, the flight attendant slipped him a small note: “I have a seven-day leave. I’ll be staying in Mingzhou City the whole time.”

Holding the note, sighing about how forward women were nowadays, Zhong Yun stepped out of the airport.

Stepping onto the soil of Mingzhou again gave Zhong Yun a feeling of having returned from another world. With such advanced technology, even worlds light-years away felt like the next street over. Who would have imagined he’d spent over a month living dozens of light-years away?

At that moment, a man in his early thirties approached him and said respectfully, “You must be Mr. Zhong Yun?”

“And you are?” Zhong Yun asked, puzzled.

“I was sent by Young Master Yang Er,” the man replied. He showed no disrespect despite Zhong Yun’s youth; his demeanor remained perfectly deferential.

“Ah.” Zhong Yun understood instantly.

Yun Qi’s brother is decent enough, he thought, waving a hand. “Lead the way, then.”

“Zhong Yun!”

After taking two steps, he heard someone call his name loudly. Zhong Yun paused and turned, his face lighting up with surprise. “Manager Ou! What a coincidence.”

It was Ou Feng, the General Manager of the Pearl Tower.

Ou Feng, accompanied by a few others, quickly walked over, chuckling. “It’s no coincidence. I came here specifically to wait for you.”

“Wait for me?” Zhong Yun looked surprised. “How did you know which flight I was on?”

“Let’s get in the car; it’s not convenient to talk here,” Ou Feng invited.

“But…” Zhong Yun glanced at the man sent by Yang Yunrong, feeling a pang of awkwardness. On one hand, Yun Qi’s brother; on the other, his business partner. This made choosing difficult.

Ou Feng ignored Zhong Yun’s conflicted expression and addressed the silent man. “Tell Young Master Yang Er that I have taken the person. If he has any issues, he can come find me.”

The messenger seemed to realize the situation was irreversible. With a blank face, he said, “I will certainly relay Manager Ou’s message.” He then turned and left without uttering a single superfluous word.

Once inside an enlarged transport shuttle, Zhong Yun and Ou Feng sat facing each other. Suddenly, Zhong Yun spoke, “Are you with the Yidao Group?”

Ou Feng expertly uncorked a bottle of red wine. Hearing the question, he couldn't help but smile. “The Pearl Tower is, after all, an asset of the Yidao Group.”

“Oh, no wonder.” Zhong Yun hadn’t paid attention to that before.

He figured the Yidao Group, having lost face at Wol’s Airport, was unwilling to accept it and sent Ou Feng to the Mingzhou Airport to retaliate by snatching him back. It was quite ironic that he had become the object of their territorial struggle.

“You big players fighting over prestige, don’t drag me into it. I’m just an ordinary citizen. If I get caught in the crossfire, I won’t even have a place to cry foul,” Zhong Yun grumbled, half-seriously, half-jokingly.

Ou Feng gave him a knowing look. “Can this 'ordinary citizen' of yours tell me—” He poured Zhong Yun half a glass of red wine. “—exactly where you’ve been for the past month? The entire world couldn't find you.”

Zhong Yun’s heart skipped a beat. The situation he feared had indeed arisen.

Before leaving, Zhong Yun hadn't made many arrangements, only telling those around him that he would be gone for a while. He hadn't anticipated that Liu Yunqi and Xiao Ruo, worried sick, would mobilize people to search for him—and that both searching parties possessed immense power.

His cover story about exploring the desert might fool his parents and Tian Hai, but it certainly wouldn't fool immensely powerful entities like the Yidao Group and the Yang family.

The moment he encountered the man and woman claiming to be police officers, he sensed trouble. Later, seeing Zhao Dai from the Yidao Group and Yun Qi’s second brother in succession, he had a premonition that his whereabouts would inevitably be scrutinized. But while Yang Yunrong searching for him made sense, why was the Yidao Group so keenly interested in him?

Zhong Yun raised his glass, took a sip of the wine, and gently placed the glass on the table. “There is one thing I don’t understand.”

Ou Feng gestured politely for him to continue.

“Why are you looking for me? Although I fixed one of your zithers for you, you also helped me acquire many rare items. We should be even.” Zhong Yun voiced the question burning in his heart.

“Curiosity,” Ou Feng replied with a mysterious smile. “A middle-school student capable of repairing the Jialan Zither—anybody would be curious, wouldn't they?”

Zhong Yun extended a hand and lightly tapped the wine glass, producing a clear, resonant ding. His expression seemed to accept the explanation.

But was it truly just curiosity?

“I was just handling a very private matter,” reciprocating the question, Zhong Yun offered.

Ou Feng shrugged, realizing Zhong Yun didn't want to elaborate, and quickly steered the conversation to other topics.

About ten minutes later, the driver’s voice sounded from the front of the cabin: “We’ve arrived.”

After bidding farewell to Ou Feng, Zhong Yun stepped out of the shuttle and saw a familiar figure standing at the entrance of his well-known home.

“You wicked Ah Yun, where on earth have you been?” A stout figure lunged forward and embraced him.

P: Still 2000 votes shy of the top recommendation list. The gap is too wide; I won't push for it anymore.