"Yeah."
Pei Jiangmu responded and fell silent.
Wiretapping was just the first step.
He had to ensure that he could grasp every detail of their conversation.
Especially... if Yan Qiubai tried to charm her with sweet talk.
But wiretapping alone was not enough.
He needed a bit of "external force" to completely muddy the waters and make Meng Ruozhao's impression of Yan Qiubai hit rock bottom.
And there was one person who was the perfect candidate—Shen Xinyin.
Yan Qiubai's ex-girlfriend, the spoiled young miss of the Shen family.
She had a fiery temper and was domineering in her actions, but she had an extremely strong possessiveness towards Yan Qiubai.
The breakup between them back then had not been amicable.
They were childhood sweethearts, and their families had business dealings since they were young.
Among their group of childhood friends, Yan Qiubai was undoubtedly the most outstanding one.
It was no secret that Shen Xinyin liked him.
In fact, she had publicly stated more than once that Yan Qiubai could only be hers.
Any girl who dared to get close to Yan Qiubai was going against her.
She would never let them off easily.
As for Yan Qiubai, he had always been lukewarm towards her until the summer vacation after high school graduation.
Suddenly, news spread that they were together.
But soon, even before they had been together for a full month, they broke up again.
Shen Xinyin always thought that Yan Qiubai had let her down, and she even left the country in a fit of pique.
Pei Jiangmu had heard the rumors in the town about them "never forgetting each other" and "being full of misunderstandings" when he was investigating Yan Qiubai.
But he scoffed at them.
In his opinion, Yan Qiubai was simply not worthy of Meng Ruozhao.
Even his messy love debts seemed extremely mediocre and unseemly.
Even though in the eyes of others, Yan Qiubai was young and promising, with a top - notch family background, ability, and looks.
He was the ideal son - in - law in the eyes of countless people.
But in Pei Jiangmu's eyes, Yan Qiubai was just a despicable person who had usurped someone else's place.
As for the details of the love - hate relationship between Yan Qiubai and Shen Xinyin back then, he didn't care.
He just needed to use Shen Xinyin as a "knife".
Last night, he had already asked Qi Yu to anonymously send a message to Shen Xinyin's phone.
The content of the message was very simple.
It only revealed that Yan Qiubai would have dinner with a "mysterious lady" in a private room at the "Cloud Realm" restaurant tonight.
The tone was ambiguous, hinting at a special relationship.
With Shen Xinyin's temper and her obsession with Yan Qiubai, she would definitely not remain indifferent after receiving such a message.
Since their breakup, Yan Qiubai had never publicly announced a girlfriend over the years.
Otherwise, people wouldn't have guessed that Yan Qiubai still couldn't forget his ex - girlfriend.
This included Meng Ruozhao's identity.
Although she was nominally his so - called "fiancée", the Yan family had never acknowledged it.
And most people didn't know about it.
Even those who did know didn't dare to pass the news on to Miss Shen—it would mean offending Yan Qiubai.
So Pei Jiangmu might as well be the "villain".
Although Shen Xinyin was abroad, it was highly likely that she would ask her friends in the country or call herself immediately to "check up" on him.
She might even directly send someone to "accidentally run into" them and cause trouble.
Pei Jiangmu's gaze returned to the restaurant entrance.
All he had to do now was wait.
Wait for Shen Xinyin's "fire" to burn.
Wait for Yan Qiubai to show his true colors under the entanglement and questioning of his "ex - girlfriend".
Wait for Meng Ruozhao to see with her own eyes—
That her "excellent" fiancé was not only mediocre in Pei Jiangmu's eyes.
He might even be a man who couldn't handle his relationships well and might be two - timing.
And he would monitor everything that happened in the private room in real - time through the earpiece.
If necessary, he might even "appear at the right time".
Pei Jiangmu sat in the car like a leopard lurking in the dark.
He patiently set up the trap and waited for the prey to step into the scene he had set.
He wanted to see if, after such a night,
Meng Ruozhao would still think that Yan Qiubai was the man worthy of her trust for a lifetime.
The night grew darker.
The lights of the "Cloud Realm" restaurant were bright but a bit cold.
Inside the private room "Water and Cloud Chamber" on the top floor, the environment was elegant and private.
Yan Qiubai had arrived early. He was lazily reclined on the chair, his fingertips unconsciously tapping on the tabletop, waiting for Meng Ruozhao in a rather good mood.
He even took the rare patience to look through the menu, considering which dishes would suit her taste better.
After studying the menu, he thought about what to say when Meng Ruozhao came.
How to express his dissatisfaction while still making her willing to spend more time with him.
He even regretted that his tone had been too harsh on the phone yesterday.
Yes, that was just him. He would always be angry because of her neglect.
But he would quickly cheer himself up.
Sometimes he even sighed that she really had him wrapped around her finger.
Just then, the door of the private room was rudely pushed open from the outside.
Yan Qiubai frowned unhappily and looked up. He thought it was the waiter, but saw an unexpected face.
Shen Xinyin was wearing an expensive limited - edition suit. She looked tired from traveling but her makeup was perfect.
She stood at the door with a look that was a mix of eagerness, scrutiny, and feigned nonchalance.
Behind her were several well - dressed young men and women, all familiar faces of their childhood friends in that circle.
At the moment, their expressions were more or less embarrassed and eager to watch the show.
Yan Qiubai was truly stunned: "Shen Xinyin? What are you doing here?"
He remembered that this young miss should have been abroad continuing her art studies.
Shen Xinyin's sharp eyes quickly scanned the entire private room—there was only Yan Qiubai.
The tight string in her heart instantly loosened by half.
It seemed that the anonymous text message was really a prank, or... was it a smokescreen deliberately set by Yan Qiubai to anger her?
He must know that she still cared about him!
Thinking of this, Shen Xinyin immediately gained confidence and even felt a bit of pride as if she had expected it.
She lifted her chin and tried to look surprised as if it was an accidental encounter and showed just the right amount of aloofness.
Her tone deliberately carried the coquettishness and affectation typical of a green - tea girl.
"Oops, Brother Qiubai, what a coincidence."
She walked in on her high heels.
The childhood friends behind her looked at each other and had no choice but to follow in reluctantly.
"I came back to the country to handle some things, and I happened to make an appointment with some friends to have dinner and catch up here."
As she spoke, her eyes drifted around as if she had just noticed that this was Yan Qiubai's private room.
"Turns out you're here too? I'm really sorry. Did we go into the wrong private room?"
"Or... are you having dinner alone?"
She automatically ignored the expression on Yan Qiubai's face when he saw her just now, which showed only surprise but no joy.
She still felt good about herself and continued her act.
"Look at me. I came back in such a hurry that I forgot to ask if you were free. Do you want to join us?"
"Brother Qiubai, you won't blame me, will you?"
She blinked her eyes, and her tone carried a hint of coquetry.
As if they were still in that relationship where they could joke and play around at will like in the old days.