Chapter 49: Booking the Entire Venue
Chapter 49: Chapter 49: Booking the Entire Venue
The higher the expectations, the greater the disappointment.
Zhang Yan had told her early this morning that he was taking her on a date to the aquarium, and the junior had been looking forward to it immensely. Moreover, from the moment they met, Zhang Yan had been constantly elevating her mood, keeping her on cloud nine. Naturally, her anticipation for the upcoming date only grew stronger.
But the words "Temporarily Closed Today" made her feel as if she had stepped on thin air, plummeting from a great height in disappointment. A crowd of indignant people lingered outside the venue’s entrance.
Although this aquarium, named Dream of the Sea, had announced yesterday on its official website, Official Account, and other media platforms: "Due to emergency equipment maintenance, we will be temporarily closed on July 8th," the vast majority of people hadn’t noticed the notice in time.
"What is this? We finally make the trip out here, and it’s temporarily closed!"
"Exactly! If they can’t afford to run it, they shouldn’t open at all. What a joke!"
Zhang Yan quietly pulled the junior away from the crowd, signaling her to keep quiet, and walked toward a back door of the aquarium. Although she didn’t understand what was going on, she trusted him completely and followed him into the deserted alley without a second thought.
A door in the corner of the alley suddenly opened. A middle-aged man poked his head out, looking left and right. His face suddenly lit up. "Mr. Zhang, you’re finally here! Hurry up and come in before anyone sees you!"
The two of them slipped inside like thieves.
The boss of the Dream of the Sea aquarium had eventually been moved by Zhang Yan’s "sincerity" and agreed to let him book the entire venue for the day, serving only this young couple. However, they still had to consider their public image and didn’t want to draw attention to the matter. They had arranged for Zhang Yan to avoid the crowd and sneak in through the back door upon arrival.
In fact, if today wasn’t a Monday—a regular working day—the boss might not have agreed to this at all. After all, if too many excited guests ended up leaving disappointed and stirred up trouble on social media, it could negatively impact their future reputation. That would be a classic case of being penny-wise and pound-foolish.
CLICK. The iron door shut, and the middle-aged man let out a long sigh of relief. He immediately put on an enthusiastic smile. "Mr. Zhang, would you like to explore on your own, or should I arrange a guide for you?"
"We’ll explore on our own for now. If we need anything, I’ll give you a call," Zhang Yan said, casually pulling his gaze away from a text message on his phone.
"Of course, of course. I’ll tell the staff along the way to stay out of your way as much as possible. We will definitely ensure you enjoy a perfect private world."
After finalizing the booking yesterday, Zhang Yan had paid the full amount upfront, but Brother Tongzi’s reimbursement hadn’t triggered at the time. Zhang Yan had suspected then that Brother Tongzi was playing games with him again! After all, he could have booked the venue with his own money for anyone. It was entirely based on his own intent, and he could have brought any girl along. Given Brother Tongzi’s pragmatic habit of withholding rewards until he saw results, it probably wouldn’t count until Zhang Yan actually brought the junior here to play.
Indeed, the moment he brought her inside, he received a text message confirming a deposit of 350,000 yuan. Yes, to book this medium-sized aquarium for a single non-holiday weekday, Zhang Yan had spent a full 350,000 yuan! Generally speaking, even if the other party accepted such a reservation, it would require a buffer of one to two weeks for preparation. But since Zhang Yan was in a rush, he naturally paid a hefty premium.
But now, this massive aquarium belonged entirely to the two of them.
The junior’s eyes were already misty. How could she not understand by now? To give her a perfect date, Zhang Yan had rented out the entire venue! Although she didn’t know exactly how much it cost, it had to be an absolute fortune.
Zhang Yan had just sent the aquarium manager away when he turned around and was hit by a gust of fragrant wind. Then, something soft pressed against his lips. Zhang Yan was a solid 185 centimeters tall, while the junior was only 168 centimeters. She had tiptoed and practically thrown herself at him. He instinctively caught her, his hands cupping her bottom as he pulled her into a tight embrace.
This was the first time she had been so proactive.
In the past, it was always Zhang Yan who waited for the right moment to strike—whether it was a sudden, fleeting peck or a deeper, more aggressive advance. She had always been the passive one. There always seemed to be some hesitation in her heart. But at this moment, the junior displayed a fiery passion she had never shown before. Like a blazing midsummer fire.
The two of them had finally arrived at the aquarium they had been longing for, yet neither was in a hurry to admire the breathtaking underwater world. Instead, they completely immersed themselves in each other’s warmth.
It wasn’t until Zhang Yan felt that things would spiral out of control if they continued that he gently lowered his slightly aching arms. He knew all too well that these small aquariums had surveillance cameras everywhere, and he had no desire to put on a live broadcast for anyone.
"Let’s go. I’ll take you to see the penguins."
The fact that Zhang Yan remembered every little wish she had casually mentioned made her feel like she was melting.
"Look, one’s walking over. Why does this little guy look so goofy?"
However, the junior merely cast a fleeting glance at the penguins she had been so eager to see before fixing her gaze back on her boyfriend standing closely beside her. Right now, all she wanted to look at was him.
It wasn’t that Zhang Yan minded her clinging to him; to be honest, the physical closeness felt pretty great. But he had paid a lot of money to book the place.
"If you don’t even look around, wouldn’t that be a waste of money? You have to explore everything here so we can get our money’s worth."
She clearly took his words to heart. Finally, she reluctantly pulled away from his embrace and began to earnestly admire the magnificent underwater world.
"Senior, Senior, look! There’s a huge shark over there!"
"Look at that flat fish! It has a funny face on its body!"
"Are these jellyfish? They’re so beautiful!"
Watching her become lively again, Zhang Yan smiled in satisfaction.
Chi Xinyue was truly a simple person. She was pure and adorable, unable to hide anything in her heart. She knew a few little tricks to flirt and had just a tiny bit of vanity. She never took gifts for granted, wouldn’t lie to herself with unfair double standards, and definitely didn’t accept things with the shameless entitlement of his ex-girlfriend, Cheng Lu.
Zhang Yan had once wondered: if he had met Chi Xinyue instead of Cheng Lu, even without the system awakening, could he have lived a relatively wonderful life?
The old Zhang Yan might have been able to, but the current him absolutely could not. He used to be a man with few desires—content with average grades and a mediocre life. But was it really because he didn’t want more? No. It was because he recognized the talent gap between himself and the top students. It was because he saw the chasm between his starting line and everyone else’s. It was the resignation of knowing he couldn’t achieve it, so he stopped trying.
Now that everything was within his reach, he finally realized that his desires were actually terrifyingly strong. Wealth, partners, a career—he wanted it all.
And the junior was also just the beginning.
He thought, "You really are despicable, Zhang Yan." He walked over and wrapped his arms around her from behind.
The junior tilted her head up, rubbed her cheek affectionately against his, and said with deep emotion, "Senior, take me to your place."