Zhan didn't know what woke him up. It was like the sound of a door being closed. He slowly opened his eyes and for a while he was disoriented. He looked around for a few moments. He was inside an unfamiliar room and was lying on a large bed.
When he lay down and stared at the ceiling, he took a deep breath. He sees himself on the large ceiling mirror. What a joke! He grimaced in disgust.
Absentmindedly, he grabbed the white blanket that was covering his body. After looking at himself he found that under the blanket he was naked!
Fear gripped him as a sick sense of déjà vu washed over him. Except this time, he was alone in the room. He got up suddenly but remained sitting in the middle of the bed. His chest felt like bursting with nervousness as he felt himself. The relief he felt almost made him weak. Except that he was naked, he didn't feel he had anything to worry about.
What happened? Where is he at? Why is he naked?
He stood up and wrapped the blanket around his body. He hadn't even taken a step when he felt as if the floor was shaking. He immediately sat down again. He looked around the big room again. There were no windows but-portholes! He touched his forehead. Instantly returning to mind where he is. Which only added to his worry.
He is on a yacht. At a private party at the invitation of Councilor Zhao. The third party he attended in just two weeks. The last one was at Chengpeng's party where he first met the old man. He was in Zhuocheng farmhouse when Zanjin called him from the condominium and said he had accepted the invitation of Councilor Zhao, on Zhan's behalf.
"You have no right to decide for me, Zanjin," Zhan remembered himself reprimanding Zanjin. He didn't go home to China just to waste time attending parties. The very thing he had been dealing with for years.
"I already told you about his invitation, didn't I?" Zanjin justification. "Besides, as far as I know, I'm still your standing manager, Zhan. I haven't received my termination paper, verbal or otherwise. Councilor Zhao is a well-known person. And if I reject him, it's bad publicity."
He was forced to agree and promised himself that it would be the last party he would attend.
Zhuocheng drove him from his farmhouse that morning. He rested for a while at the condo and after he and Zanjin got dressed, they took a taxi to the Beijing Yacht Club. From there a ferry took them to the party hall. The yacht was docked not far from The Port of Tianjin. He was even surprised to see that there were not that many people on the yacht. There were probably less than fifteen people present. And when he counted them there were only six women.
Councilor Zhao smiled when he greeted them. While holding him possessively, the old man introduced him around. The smile on his lips was frozen. Two of the women he was introduced to were film actresses. He doubted if he would remember the names of those he was introduced to. Wines were served. And while Zanjin mingled with those present, Councilor Zhao didn't leave his side.
And when the old man saw that his goblet was empty, he stood up to get some wine. He walked towards the bar. Zhan saw Zanjin approach him. He wondered why their heads had to stick together in conversation when even if they spoke loudly no one could hear what they were talking about because the guests were far away from each other and having fun.
Zanjin then turned to him. He may not be expected that he is looking at him, he gave him an awkward smile. Zhan smiled back. But out of nowhere, a shiver rose in his chest. He didn't know why.
"Hey," Councilor Zhao greeted with a smile that Zhan didn't realize was standing in front of him. Two goblets in both his hands. "A penny for your thought? Your thoughts are far away, ah."
Zhan smiled back. "It isn't worth a penny..."
The old man sat down and gave him a goblet. "You're not enjoying, I can see it..."
"Perhaps I'm tired. Three parties in a row." The old man laughed sympathetically. The champagne would make you feel better. Then let's raid the buffet table. My party's famous for mouth-watering food. And my caterer's name remained a secret."
"I had two shots already, "Councilor..."
"Another shot won't make any difference, Zhan," he urged, reaching for the goblet on the side table and handing it to him. "And call me 'Henry."
Zhan was forced to accept it and brought it to his mouth. He sipped a little, and before he could put it down, Trixia, one of the female guests, approached them. A male guest was with her.
"Henry, darling..." She was smiling. "Will I pass as a model, honey?" She posed and after staring at Zhan, she turned to her companion who smiled and strongly agreed with what she said. Zhan took advantage of the moment the old man was talking to them and throw the remaining contents of his goblet into the adjacent plant. And when he looked up, he saw Trixia staring at him.
He is expecting she would tell it to the councilor. Instead, she let out a loud laugh. She seemed to be amused by what he did. Or maybe she's had too much to drink.
A few moments later, the two moved away and disappeared from his sight. Zhan covered his mouth with his hand and yawned delicately. "I feel sleepy, H-Henry..."
"No problem, honey," the old man said with a smile. "This yacht has a lot of rooms. Would you like me to take you to the guest room so you can rest?" Guest room! Gradually, the horror crept through Zhan body. This happened more than two years ago. The situation is almost the same. The only difference is, then he gave in to sleepiness.
Someone took an empty goblet from his hand and replaced it with a full one. He couldn't remember who. It could be one of the roaming waiters. Zhan remembered feeling so sleepy after the second drink. Maybe he was affected by alcohol.
One of the guests offered him the guest room. Zhan saw the huge bed but hadn't used it. His suit will be tangled. Instead, he sat on the settee and leaned his head against the backrest. Five minutes, he promised himself. He would sleep for five minutes. And then he drifted to sleep. How long he did not know.
The next thing he realized was that he felt a hand on his body. Taking his clothes off. And he was lying in bed. When that guy saw that he was slowly regaining consciousness and his eyes widened at what was happening, the guy covered his mouth with his hand.
"Don't ever try screaming, Zhan. You will only embarrass yourself."
He didn't have a chance to think about whether to follow or not. The door opened and Meng Ziyi went in. At first, she seemed like a statue staring at them. And then her scream filled the whole mansion.
And now it was happening again! But this time he tried to fight the sleepiness. But why is he sleepy? He hardly drank anything. Then his eyes widened in fear when he thought of the possible reason. The alcohol that was given to him had drugs! "N-no! I'll be fine," Zhan said, panic rose in her throat. His eyes searched for Zanjin. At the bar. But Zanjin is not there.
Councilor Zhao grabbed his arm. Zhan tried to protest. Helplessly, he remembered shouting Zanjin's name before he lost consciousness.
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