Chapter 310: Escort

The Christmas Eve ended without joy, dissipating the dinner atmosphere entirely. Whether it was Hui Lin or Zhenxiu, they hastily finished their meal, leaving much of the food wasted.

Yang Chen escorted Zhenxiu back to her rented place. Zhenxiu seemed to want to say something but in the end, she just bid, "Goodbye, Big Brother Yang," and went inside.

Returning to the villa, Yang Chen found that the three women had already retired for the night. He went to his room, took a hot shower, and lay on the large bed. His chest felt heavy, his mind cluttered with thoughts, making sleep impossible.

Due to the year-end, there was an exceptional amount of work at Jade Lily International. In addition, with the rotational vacation approaching in a few days, almost all employees, from the headquarters to branches, would be away for half a month to a month. Therefore, many tasks needed to be completed urgently.

As a result, Lin Ruoxi had little time to meet with Yang Chen in the following days, and they didn't even run into each other by chance.

A week passed quickly, leading up to the vacation trip. Lin Ruoxi and Mo Qianni took the finance department staff to Yunnan for a holiday, while Yang Chen accompanied a group from the PR department to Japan, specifically Sakura Motomu.

Before departure, Yang Chen specifically instructed Rose and the Sea Eagle Team to keep an eye on the situation in Yanxia. He couldn't afford to have anything happen to Wang Mama or Hui Lin. Although Hui Lin had impressive skills, it was still possible for enemies to take advantage of Yang Chen's absence.

There were still no leads on Cai Yan's situation. Yang Chen had tasked Macedonia, the bald pirate who excelled in intelligence gathering with worldwide contacts, to search for her, yet there was still no trace. The most likely scenario was that Cai Yan had entered a hidden area beyond Macedonia's reach.

However, amidst the search for Cai Yan, Yang Chen was surprised to find that An Xin, whom he had been keeping an eye on, appeared in a place that felt highly fateful to him.

An Xin had been flying international flights all over the world. Unexpectedly, on the day Yang Chen departed for Sakura Motomu, she was also on the same flight, working as a cabin crew member.

The news of An Xin slightly lifted Yang Chen's mood from the gloom surrounding Cai Yan's situation.

Although strictly speaking, he had only met An Xin twice, the collisions during those encounters left a lasting impression of this rebellious yet charming fairy-like woman on Yang Chen.

Such a woman might not obediently stay by your side; she yearned for independence and freedom, even treating marriage as mere paper. However, once she decided to place you in her heart, she would cling to you relentlessly, refusing to let go as if she couldn't bear to part with herself. Even when not by your side, she would continue to think of you.

Yang Chen enjoyed the time spent with An Xin—relaxing, warm, and stable. Of course, he also savored the intimacy between a man and a woman.

Since they had already started, Yang Chen naturally wouldn't let slip what was rightfully his to end.

Initially, An Xin had hoped to use the word "fate" to decide her and Yang Chen's destiny. Yang Chen felt that after meeting her on the plane, this somewhat wild woman would definitely open her cherry lips wide and not be able to say a word.

On a bright morning when almost all the accumulated snow in the Mediterranean had melted, Yang Chen drove to the parking lot of Jade Lily International. Following the address, he arrived at the parking spot for the travel bus.

The dozen or so women from the PR department of Jade Lily International who had decided to go on the trip were already chattering away inside the bus, touching up their makeup with a lively spring in their step, showing no signs of morning weariness.

In fact, there were more women from the PR department, but some had chosen different travel routes, while others opted to stay home with their families until the Chinese New Year. Therefore, the final number heading to Sakura Motomu was limited to this dozen or so.

As the newly appointed department head, Liu Mingyu naturally joined the trip, accompanied by her close friends Zhao Hongyan and Zhang Cai.

As for the men in the entire group, there was only Yang Chen.

However, due to Yang Chen's extraordinary language skills, including Japanese, he also took on the role of translator during this trip. After all, there were plenty of English speakers, but few who were fluent in Japanese.

Sakamoto was famously disdainful of English; English was even less useful in Sakamoto than in Yanxia.

Liu Mingyu, dressed in casual white sportswear and light-colored sunglasses, with her naturally black hair cascading down, had exceptionally fair and tender skin. When she saw Yang Chen boarding the bus, she immediately picked up a magazine and pretended not to notice anything.

Knowing her shyness, especially considering their secret relationship, Yang Chen understood that Liu Mingyu didn't want others to see them getting too close during this trip. However, Yang Chen didn't mind. He sat down next to the empty seat beside Liu Mingyu and discreetly grabbed her elastic thigh when no one was looking.

"Don't do this, it's not good if someone sees," Liu Mingyu said anxiously. Although she deliberately avoided Yang Chen, she was secretly pleased that he sat next to her.

Women were always so contradictory, even they themselves didn't realize it.

Yang Chen smiled and said, "The more you act like this, the more others will think something is going on between us. Just relax. Didn't you use to be cool about it, saying that after we're done, you're still you and I'm still me? Why lose that attitude now?"

Liu Mingyu took off her sunglasses and gave Yang Chen a white glance. "You're the only one who would say that. Whatever, since I've become the third party, feel free to touch or grab as you please. If we're exposed, I'll just accompany you in ruining your reputation. How about that? I'm quite professional in my 'mistress ethics.'"

Yang Chen chuckled and unabashedly grabbed her thigh again, causing Liu Mingyu to finally lose her temper.

Over an hour later, the group boarded the plane at the Mediterranean International Airport. Everyone had bought economy class tickets, which led to some complaints among the female PR staff. After all, sitting in economy class for over four hours was quite tiring.

Yang Chen wondered if An Xin only served the business class passengers. If that were the case, it wouldn't be as convenient for them to communicate as it was during their last trip to Hong Kong, let alone do something to get his blood pumping.

As the long queue slowly entered the Boeing 747 jumbo jet, Yang Chen took his seat and didn't see An Xin's figure anywhere on the plane.

Fortunately, Yang Chen was seated by the aisle, so he planned to wait until the plane took off before searching for An Xin.

After another half an hour delay, the international flight finally took off. Once the aircraft stabilized in flight, several mixed Japanese and Yanxia flight attendants began serving beverages to passengers in each cabin.

When Yang Chen felt it was time, he unfastened his seatbelt and headed towards the business class cabin. He made a thorough search, even checking the crew service area, but he couldn't find An Xin anywhere.

A kind-hearted Japanese flight attendant, who happened to be the purser on this flight, noticed Yang Chen looking for something. She approached and asked in hesitant Chinese, "Sir, do you need something?"

Deciding to ask directly, Yang Chen switched to fluent Japanese and inquired, "Excuse me, do you have a flight attendant named An Xin on this flight?"

The purser was slightly surprised by Yang Chen's fluent Japanese and smiled as she replied in Japanese, "An Xin? She was originally scheduled for this flight, but she changed to an earlier flight to Tokyo in the early hours of yesterday night due to some personal matter."

"Earlier? Why?" Yang Chen frowned, now understanding why he couldn't find that crazy girl.

Shaking her head, the purser said, "I'm not sure either. It was a directive from headquarters. It seems An Xin was reluctant at first, but she eventually agreed. By the way, it seems An Xin's father was on the same flight."

Yang Chen immediately sensed something unusual. An Zaihuan taking An Xin to Sakamoto? Considering An Xin became a flight attendant to escape her father, her being "escorted" away by him surely meant trouble.

However, the plane had already taken off, and Yang Chen couldn't contact his Macedonian contacts to investigate An Xin's whereabouts. He would have to wait patiently until they landed in Sakamoto.

Despite this, Yang Chen wasn't too worried. After all, An Zaihuan wouldn't harm An Xin; otherwise, there would be no need for such an elaborate escort to Sakamoto.