Volume One, Chapter 7: After Living Half a Lifetime, I Never Expected This Day to Come

To obtain an invitation to this banquet, Wei Guoxiong had no idea how many connections he had to call in or how many gifts he had to send out.

His sole purpose was to exchange a few words with Fu Mingyuan, the Crown Prince of the capital, hoping to secure rights to raw material supplies.

Currently, raw materials for daily chemical products were in short supply, and some scarce ingredients had been inflated to exorbitant prices. Xiongfeng Daily Chemical Company’s products were already niche; if middlemen took their cut, the profit margin would be pitiful.

If he could build a relationship with the Fu Group and directly access first-hand sources, it wouldn’t just increase profits—it would also earn respect within the industry.

Yet Fu Mingyuan merely gave a slight nod. He never concerned himself with unfamiliar supply chains like this.

“Kuan, handle this,” Fu Mingyuan said, turning away before Wei Guoxiong could react.

“Wait! Your Highness! We…” Wei Guoxiong started, but was cut off.

“Mr. Wei, given your experience, you really shouldn’t be attending banquets in the capital’s top commercial circles. If you persist in offending others, don’t blame me for being impolite,” said a deep voice, cold and stern.

Wei Guoxiong had just taken a step forward when a man named A Kuan blocked him.

Before coming, Wei Guoxiong had researched the Fu family. The elder Fu had retired years ago, leaving the entire Fu Group under the control of the Crown Prince—who was actually the elder Fu’s adopted son.

This man named A Kuan had once been the elder Fu’s personal bodyguard, now serving the Crown Prince. Rumor had it he was a man of few words, ruthless yet unseen, with keen senses and swift hands.

Better not offend him; in such a setting, being thrown out like a punching bag would be a business humiliation.

Wei Guoxiong nodded with a forced smile. “Yes, yes! You can rest assured, Your Highness. I know exactly what to do!”

Before he finished, A Kuan had already turned away, face cold.

Wei Guoxiong watched A Kuan’s retreating figure with disdain, downing the champagne in his glass.

Silently, he vowed, “One day when I rise, let’s see who dares treat me like this. And even if I don’t, I still have a son!”

*Click.*

The banquet hall lights brightened as the host took the stage.

“Distinguished guests, welcome to the Fu Group’s annual conference. As always, we have a splendid opening performance. Our Crown Prince has specially arranged a piano recital for the elder Fu. Let us listen together!”

“Everything arranged?” Fu Mingyuan looked to A Kuan in the private room on the second floor.

“Yes, young master. The hotel manager confirmed it’s all set.”

Fu Mingyuan nodded and approached his father.

“Dad, your sleep has been troubled lately. I invited a famous foreign pianist to perform tonight. If you like her playing, I’ll do my best to keep her here.”

Fu Kun patted his son’s hand. “Thank you for your thoughtfulness.”

Now fifty-three, Fu Kun had never married—not for lack of opportunities, but because his heart belonged to an irreplaceable first love.

Suddenly, the lights in the banquet hall dimmed.

On the center stage, a woman in a crystal white gown appeared. Draped in a striped shawl, her long hair cascading over her shoulders, she sat gracefully at a white Steinway piano.

The audience fell into a deadly hush. Lou Nanzhi was nervous—after all, the piano was expensive, and the guests prestigious.

Though her hands were used to washing clothes, cooking, and cleaning every day, the moment she sat at the piano, it felt as if she and the instrument became one, as if she had rediscovered a long-lost part of herself.

Lou Nanzhi leaned slightly forward, her slender, pale fingers resting lightly on the keys.

As the first notes floated gently, she was completely immersed, her fingers dancing across the black and white keys with effortless grace—lost to the world, her body and soul at last relaxed and joyful.

After thirty years, this was a kind of peace she had never known.

Meanwhile, in the second-floor private room.

Upon hearing the beautiful melody, Fu Kun pressed his hands to his head, his expression twisted in pain.

Fu Mingyuan bent down and saw that the person below was not Vivian.

“Kuang!” Fu Mingyuan shouted, chest rising and falling. “Seize her!”

But before A Kuan turned to act, the elder Fu called out.

“Wait!”

Kuang stopped in his tracks.

The elder Fu’s emotions were stirred.

For thirty years, he had searched for this voice.

Years ago, when Fu Kun visited friends with his parents, he fell instantly in love with a girl who played the piano. That melody was etched into his heart. But when he tried to find her again, the house was empty.

It felt like a dream.

He had searched for her three decades. He thought he would live and die with regret, but fate had not forsaken him.

Seeing tears on his father’s face, Fu Mingyuan was at a loss.

“Mingyuan! Father has found her!”

Only then did Fu Mingyuan believe it—the pianist downstairs was the woman his father had sought all these years.

Because of her, his father needed piano music every night to fall asleep. Fu Mingyuan had even tracked down piano pieces from all over the world, but none matched what his father truly longed for.

As father and son lost themselves in the exquisite music and joy, the piano suddenly stopped.

“Kuang, we absolutely cannot let her go,” Fu Mingyuan said tensely, nearly breathless. This was not just his father’s affliction but his own. He would not allow history to repeat itself.

Chaos erupted in the banquet hall. The lights went out instantly; guests panicked, their affluent composure shattered. The wealthy feared losing both their money and their lives.

Amidst the turmoil, Lou Nanzhi, still seated at the piano, was suddenly grabbed by a strong hand and pulled roughly off the stage.

“Let me go! I’m just a pianist!” she struggled fiercely.

She dreaded the nightmare scenarios from dramas becoming real—she wasn’t divorced yet, hadn’t even begun to enjoy her second half of life, and didn’t want to be treated as a substitute for some rich merchant, only to be kidnapped and silenced.

As she fought desperately, she was thrown hard into the hotel garden outside.

Though the lighting was dim, Lou Nanzhi recognized the man at once.

It was Wei Guoxiong.

She summoned all her strength.

“Wei Guoxiong, have you lost your mind?”