The first person he contacted was, of course, the star of today's gathering: Lu Man.

When the call connected, a series of "beep... beep... beep..." echoed in the earpiece.

After a moment, accompanied by a sudden "crackle", the call went through.

Some noisy chatter was coming from the other end, with quite a few voices talking.

In the midst of it, he faintly heard Lu Man saying from afar, "Xiao Kong, this makeup isn't good enough. I want to be more glamorous, the kind that makes everyone watch me when I stand in a crowd."

While Lu Man was speaking, another woman's voice giggled and said, "Sister Man, with your looks and aura, even without makeup, everyone will turn their heads to look at you anyway."

Lu Man laughed heartily, "You're so sweet. Hurry and fix it for me~"

"Alright~ Sister," the other voice responded.

Moments later, Lu Man's voice grew closer and became clear through the earpiece, "What's up, Chen Yan?"

Chen Yan had been listening quietly, and now that Lu Man had responded to him, he hurriedly and obediently said, "Man Man. Do you want me to pick you up with the sports car or the nanny van?"

Love tip: When you want a girl to do something, don't ask "can you?" but instead directly offer her two choices that both mean "do it".

Women's thought processes get used to selecting from these two options quite easily. That way, it's as good as agreeing to your request.

Chen Yan had used this "tactic" on Lu Man before, and it had always been irresistibly successful.

But today...

Lu Man, "Pick me up? No need. I'll go by myself. You just stay at home."

Chen Yan: .....

What's with this woman and not playing by the script today...?

Thinking this, Chen Yan was preparing to try convincing her again.

But before he could say anything, Lu Man said hastily, "Chen Yan, is there anything else? If not, I'm hanging up. I'm busy."

She didn't wait for Chen Yan's response and just hung up the phone.

Listening to the "beep beep" from the handset, Chen Yan: .....

Forget it. Can't rely on this goofball, better ask He Meng Xue.

With that thought, Chen Yan made a call to He Meng Xue.

Compared with the ringing of Lu Man's phone, He Meng Xue's phone .... was not answered for a long while.

Chen Yan, deciding not to succumb to this, called a few more times, but still no one answered.

Chen Yan opened the Virtual Girlfriend Simulator to check on He Meng Xue's situation.

In the game, He Meng Xue's pixelated avatar was in the He family's manor trying on clothes.

Several maids were gathered around her, lined up behind her, constantly pulling out clothes from the wardrobe.

Wearing skin-tight clothes, He Meng Xue stood in front of a luxurious full-length mirror, receiving clothes from the maids and trying them on her body.

She didn't seem too satisfied with the clothes she was trying on, throwing each onto the floor after a quick trial.

Judging by the number of clothes scattered around, she probably had been trying them on for two or three hours.

Her phone, meanwhile, was buried under the clothes, its screen lighting up occasionally but going unnoticed.

Chen Yan felt that He Meng Xue now needed a stylist, and as for himself...

So, he stopped trying to call He Meng Xue, exited the game, and made a phone call to Yang Rou.

Surprisingly, Yang Rou's phone was picked up right away.

This made Chen Yan feel unexpectedly delighted.

However, when he heard the voice on the other end of the line, his "delight" disappeared.

"Chen Yan? Are you looking for my mom? We're in the beauty salon. She's doing a full-body spa treatment and can't come to the phone right now."

Chen Yan: .....

Sure enough, even career-focused women don't want to concede at times like this, do they?

Moreover, she's actually getting a full-body spa treatment!?

It's just one gathering!

You're not even going to a gala or anything!

While thinking, Chen Yan said to Yang Nuannuan on the phone, "Oh. Nothing important. I just had a document to discuss with Sister Rou. If she's busy, never mind. She can deal with it tomorrow."

Hearing Chen Yan's words, Yang Nuannuan hummed in acknowledgement, then asked, "By the way, do you know if my mom has something happening today?"

"She bought new clothes with me today, got her hair done, her nails done, and now she's doing a full-body spa. It all feels a bit strange."

Hearing Yang Nuannuan's remark, Chen Yan: .....

Ah, the damned competitive drive of women.

He improvised a response, "No idea. Maybe she's just happy you're back."

Yang Nuannuan pondered for a moment, hummed in agreement, "Probably."

Then, Chen Yan chatted a bit more with Yang Nuannuan, inquiring about the progress of her finance company's registration, before hanging up the call.

After making several calls, Chen Yan came up empty-handed.

The women all seemed to be busy with their things, fully preparing for tonight's gathering.

Chen Yan unexpectedly ended up being the superfluous one.

So... there's really no need for men in palace dramas.

Just put a few women together, and they'll start fighting among themselves. Quite entertaining....

While he sighed about his domestic standing, Chen Yan picked up the phone and called the last woman: Zhao Ying.

"Beep... beep... beep...."

"Moshi moshi. Chen Yan?"

Having given up on any fantasy, Chen Yan said listlessly, "Brother Ying. Are you getting ready for tonight's gathering? Do you want me to come pick you up?"

Hearing Chen Yan's words, Zhao Ying clearly paused for a second, "Huh? You need to prepare for a gathering?"

Zhao Ying was on a treadmill at the hotel gym, running.

She had the treadmill set to its highest speed, but she was running effortlessly, still managing to contemplate, "Do I need to bring gifts or something?"

"Maybe I should buy a cake?"

Hearing Zhao Ying's words, Chen Yan was taken aback, "You didn't go buy some clothes? Do some manicure work? Get a spa treatment?"

Zhao Ying ran and replied, puzzled, "Isn't it just a normal gathering? Do I need to do all that?"

"And... what's a manicure? And what's a spa treatment?"

There was a moment of silence on Chen Yan's end that lasted a full three to four seconds before he excitedly slapped his thigh, "Right! It's just a normal gathering! No need to prepare!"

"And those two things, they're just nonsense! Pointless stuff!"

Hearing Chen Yan's words, Zhao Ying's face immediately lit up with a sunny and adorable smile, "Then you come find me later?"

As she spoke, she complained, "I don't know who chose the time, 8 pm. It's not even dinner time! Let's go out and eat something first."

Hearing Zhao Ying's adorable words, Chen Yan immediately agreed with a laugh, "Okay, okay. Let's have a meal first."

....

6 pm.

Chen Yan arrived at the Twin Towers Hotel and picked up Zhao Ying to go out for dinner.

6 pm.

Lu Man had finished her makeup, a look that was both glamorous and bold.

The surrounding staff, seeing her makeup, all clapped and exclaimed that they had never seen such a beautiful look before.

After finishing her makeup, she started trying on clothes. Although she didn't have as grand a cadre of maids as He Meng Xue, she was still surrounded by a group of professional makeup artists giving suggestions.

6 pm.

By this time, He Meng Xue had finally found the dress she wanted: a black, elegant high-fashion women's outfit, somewhat masculine, but revealing a dashing elegance and grand family heritage when worn by her.

Having chosen her outfit, she sat down in front of the vanity mirror, and the makeup artist, matching her clothes, started applying her makeup.

6 pm.

Yang Rou had finished her skincare, her skin fair and tender as if it could be squeezed for water.

It made her look like she had shaved off a decade.

Standing next to Yang Nuannuan, she seemed more like an older sister.

Mother and daughter linked arms, chatting and laughing as they walked toward the garage....

6:30 PM.

Chen Yan and Zhao Ying ordered a table full of food and began to enjoy their meal heartily.

Although Zhao Ying loved Tiandu, returning to Qin Island and playing with Chen Yan clearly made her very happy.

This was evident in her appetite.

Boy, she was eating with such delight.

6:30 PM.

Lu Man, having chosen her dress, now started picking out shoes.

For women, especially celebrities, this is a downside, too many clothes and shoes, making it hard to choose.

However, there is also an advantage for celebrities: plenty of professionals around. If they are indecisive, there are always experts to offer advice.

6:30 PM.

He Mengxue's makeup was flawless.

As the legitimate heiress of a prominent family, there were many rules to follow at home.

So, she arrived at the side hall and began to dine with her mother.

Still, clearly aiming to maintain her figure for the evening's gathering, He Mengxue ate very little, just nibbling delicately on a couple of pastries.

6:30 PM.

Yang Rou and Yang Nuannuan returned home, and Yang Nuannuan personally cooked a simple meal for the two of them.

Since her return, the relationship between mother and daughter had obviously grown much closer.

Moreover, with Yang Rou experiencing the nourishment of love, her expressions had become a lot more animated.

Thus, there was a convivial atmosphere at home.

7 PM.

Chen Yan and Zhao Ying finished their meal. Zhao Ying went back to the hotel to bathe and change into... a sports outfit.

7 PM.

Lu Man was all set, ready to go. As a celebrity, not eating had long become a basic skill for her, so she had plenty of time to dress up.

Tonight, she was wearing a high-slit Chanel haute couture dress, draped with a velvet tassel overlay, her bright red attire and makeup complemented by crystal-like high heels, moving about like a celestial being who had descended to Earth.

The company's caregiver vehicle had arrived, and with the support of the staff, she covered her chest, bent over, stepped in, and got into the car...

7 PM.

He Mengxue finished dining, touched up her makeup, and dressed all in black, like a regal sprite in the night.

She stepped into the He family's prepared black stretch Lincoln...

7 PM.

Yang Rou put on a new brown tweed outfit she had bought, its fluffiness giving her a fashionable, metropolitan white-collar look mixed with the gentleness of a married young woman...

7:40 PM.

Yang Rou drove her Mercedes-Benz to Twin Towers Hotel.

7:45 PM.

The caregiver vehicle arrived at Twin Towers Hotel. The doorman welcomed them, and the crystal shoes hit the red carpet, with slender, fair legs as enchanting as the finest jade sculpture...

7:50 PM.

The black stretch Lincoln arrived; the black-clothed bodyguards stood to each side, the butler, holding an umbrella, solemnly opened the car door...

8 PM.

Zhao Ying yawned and stretched as she crawled out of her room, heading to the staircase and pressing the button for the upper floor...

Chen Yan stood on the second-floor terrace of the hotel and "spectated" the stunning entrance of several women, his hands clenched together, feeling a bit anxious.

After all, even though he wasn't at the scene, he felt too involved.

These women had dolled up like this, obviously harboring intentions to compete.

And why were they competing?

For Chen Yan, of course...

So, Chen Yan felt a mix of pride in having these women vie for beauty over him and worry about the possibility of them actually fighting...

As the women entered the room, Chen Yan did not leave.

He sat in a glass house in the second-floor Sky Garden and then took out his phone, opening the Virtual Girlfriend Simulator to "live stream" the night's gathering.

Though he couldn't participate, if something unexpected happened, at least he could swoop in to save the day.

As for the rest...

He would leave it to the women.

Fortunately, the game displayed not only the current status of the girlfriend being observed but also those around her.

Thus, Chen Yan didn't need to switch between the perspectives of different girlfriends; he simply needed to lock one person's "camera" to see everyone else...

Following Zhao Ying to the presidential suite, all four girlfriends gathered in one room.

Chen Yan had locked onto Lu Man's camera, so he could easily see that Lu Man was in control of the situation, chatting with the other women.

She came prepared, exuding a state of "confidence" as her pixelated avatar stood in front of the other three women and spoke ardently.

In contrast, the others were more reserved.

Chen Yan could see Zhao Ying fidgeting incessantly: Hmm... It's not that she's reserved, she just seems a bit restless.

Chen Yan switched to He Mengxue's "screen" to check her mood.

As expected, compared to Lu Man's confidence, He Mengxue was feeling "apprehensive".

Chen Yan used He Mengxue's perspective to continue watching the "live stream" of the gathering.

After about fifteen minutes of chatting, Lu Man stood up and went to the inner room.

Seconds later, she rolled out a rack full of clothes, standing in front of the other three women and continued to speak earnestly.

Chen Yan could tell her words were significant.

Because He Mengxue's mood swiftly shifted from "apprehensive" to "embarrassed" and then to "angry".

Chen Yan switched to Lu Man's viewpoint and saw her emotional state had turned into a mix of "apprehensive" and "guilty".

Chen Yan switched to Zhao Ying's perspective.

Sure enough, her status was... confused.

The subtle rivalry between the women was too much for Zhao Ying to handle.

She didn't understand, and Chen Yan didn't blame her.

Since Yang Rou hadn't become a Virtual Girlfriend, Chen Yan couldn't see her mood or status.

This prevented Chen Yan from analyzing exactly what Lu Man had said, let alone what she was up to.

He could only guess she was doing something of importance—

Something that the other women found hard to accept.

Because, soon after, He Mengxue and Lu Man began to argue.

Zhao Ying looked from one to the other, still utterly perplexed.

Yang Rou sat coolly to one side, watching with detachment....

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