An Incident at the Cocktail Party

The sound of the glass smashing onto the ground was not particularly loud.

But at that instant, the laughter throughout the entire observation hall seemed to be brutally choked off by someone.

Zhou Ziqian crashed against the edge of the card table, his fingers deathly gripping the rim, while the remaining alcohol in the glass flowed down along the corner of the table, dripping onto the expensive carpet.

He Xingzhou was closest to him; he had originally been smiling lazily, but seeing this, he reached out to support him.

The moment his hand touched Zhou Ziqian’s arm, his expression changed.

“Why is your body so burning hot?”

Zhou Ziqian seemed to want to speak, but a fit of acute coughing rolled out from his throat first.

That was not choking on wine.

It was a cough that could not be suppressed, could not be stopped, as if something were pressing upward from the depths of his chest cavity.

The coughing caused his entire body to bend completely downward, his face red to the point of being nearly purple.

The smiles on the faces of several young men nearby froze.

“Young Master Zhou?”

“What is going on?”

“Call the ship’s doctor!”

Someone finally reacted, and the observation hall instantly fell into a mess.

Some people retreated backward, some went forward to support him, and the waiters stood on the spot with their trays, not knowing whether they should approach.

The female guests were frightened by Zhou Ziqian’s coughing and subconsciously dodged to the side, bumping into the champagne tower so that it swayed for a moment, the walls of the glasses clinking against each other and emitting a string of piercing, crisp sounds.

Xia Mianyue stood not far away, her fingertips turning slightly cold.

This was not having too much to drink; this was clearly the onset of an illness.

He Xingzhou was still supporting Zhou Ziqian, a large patch of his sleeve soaked wet by the spilled alcohol. He furrowed his brow, rarely withdrawing that flippant smile of his.

“Don’t crowd around, step back.”

Just as he finished speaking, he lowered his head and let out a cough himself.

It was very light.

But Xia Mianyue heard it.

She raised her eyes to look over, just in time to see He Xingzhou raise his hand to press his temples, his face looking a few degrees paler than moments ago.

Xia Mianyue subconsciously took a step forward, wanting to remind the supervisor standing by the card table, but her wrist was suddenly clasped by someone.

“Don’t go over.”

Pei Jin’s voice fell by her ear, cold and short.

As soon as Xia Mianyue raised her head, she saw that he had already stood up beside her.

The man’s profile was stretched very tight, and that bit of original lazy indifference in the depths of his eyes was entirely gone in an instant.

The place where Xia Mianyue was gripped by him felt hot.

She instinctively wanted to pull her hand back, but the surroundings were too chaotic, and Pei Jin did not release her very quickly, only bringing her half a step behind his back.

The movement was sharp and also very natural.

As if he merely disliked her blocking the way, or perhaps did not want her to add to the chaos at this time.

Xia Mianyue’s heart, in the final analysis, still unworthily skipped a beat.

Up ahead, Zhou Ziqian was already unable to stand steadily.

The ship’s doctor had not arrived yet, and his entire body suddenly and violently pushed away the people beside him, staggering as he crashed toward a row of tables and chairs on one side.

Wine glasses and chips were overturned into a mess on the ground, and someone shrieked aloud.

“Everyone back away!”

Pei Jin dropped a low sentence and bypassed the crowd to walk toward the card table.

Xia Mianyue did not follow him.

She knew she would not be of help by going over now, and would only turn into another trouble.

She forced herself to stand steadily, but her gaze suddenly swept toward the entrance.

That mixed-race man from just now was gone.

The entrance, the bar, the outer hall—there was no sign of his shadow anywhere.

The people around were all panicking, yet he alone was missing, as if he had long since calculated that this chaos would occur and took advantage of the very first moment to extricate himself and leave.

A chill surfaced along Xia Mianyue’s back.

Just as she wanted to chase over to see clearly, someone suddenly bumped into her from behind in a panic.

The tray in her hand tilted, and several wine glasses smashed to pieces one after another.

She was stumbled by the impact, her foot stepping on the spilled alcohol as her entire body fell backward.

The expected pain did not arrive.

A hand clasped her waist from behind, steadily pulling her back.

The scent of cold wood brushed past the tip of her nose, and Xia Mianyue crashed into Pei Jin’s embrace, her breathing abruptly falling into disorder.

With one hand supporting her, his other hand pressed against the edge of the bar, his force very steady.

It was just that this posture was maintained for a very short time—so short that before she even had time to react, he had already released his hand and pushed her behind his back.

“Stand properly.”

His tone was still cold, without comfort, and without extra concern.

Xia Mianyue could still feel, however, that for that moment just now, he had turned back from the chaos.

She squeezed the edge of the tray tightly and said in a low voice:

“Thank you.”

Pei Jin did not respond; his attention had already returned to the card table area.

Zhou Ziqian was pinned down by several people, his throat already hoarse from coughing, and his gaze also began to scatter.

He Xingzhou stood beside him, supporting himself against the edge of the table, the blood color on his face draining away bit by bit.

“Xingzhou,” someone called him, “are you unwell too?”

He Xingzhou pulled at his lips, still wanting to force a smile.

“It’s nothing, just stuffy.”

The moment his words fell, he let out another cough; this time, it was distinctly noticeable compared to before.

The last shred of luck within the observation hall completely dissipated.

“Don’t anyone run around blindly.”

A gentle yet extremely overbearing voice traveled from the entrance.

Pei Xubai had arrived.

Behind him followed two security guards and the ship’s doctor. Outside his white shirt, he wore a dark vest, and the gaze behind his thin-framed glasses was very cold, yet his tone remained steady.

“Isolate the card table area. Those who have come into contact with Zhou Ziqian and He Xingzhou will register on the spot, and the remaining people will retreat to the outer hall. Do not crowd, and do not touch the spilled wine glasses and tableware.”

He did not raise his voice.

But every single sentence was clear, clean, and carried a weight that brooked no negotiation.

The security immediately went forward to pull out the isolation tape, and the ship’s doctor put on gloves.

First examining Zhou Ziqian’s body temperature and breathing, they then had someone bring He Xingzhou to one side to sit down.

Someone questioned with dissatisfaction:

– What on earth is going on here? Is there some problem with the ship?

There were also people anxious to leave.

Pei Xubai swept a glance over, his tone still steady.

– Leaving now will only expand the risk. Please cooperate, everyone. The Pei family will give everyone an explanation.

These words were spoken politely, yet they suppressed the majority of the scene.

Pei Jin stood by the card table, looking down at He Xingzhou.

“Are you running a fever as well?”

He Xingzhou leaned against the back of the chair, his face ugly, yet he did not forget to be flippant with his mouth.

“Wish me some good luck, will you?”

Pei Jin looked at him coldly.

“Shut up and let the doctor take a look.”

He Xingzhou did not talk back this time, merely raising his hand to rub his temples.

Xia Mianyue stood at the back, finally finding an opportunity to walk a few steps closer quickly.

“Mr. Pei.”

Pei Jin glanced sideways at her.

Xia Mianyue lowered her voice, trying her best to speak quickly and clearly.

“The mixed-race male guest who entered just now is gone. After entering the venue, he did not speak with anyone in the inner field; he merely looked around first, and then exchanged a look with Miss Qin. After Young Master Zhou suffered the incident, he was the first person to retreat toward the door.”

Pei Jin pondered for a moment.

“Are you certain?”

Xia Mianyue nodded.

“I am certain. He did not look like he was frightened, but looked more like a premature retreat that had long since been prepared.”

Pei Jin did not question further; he turned around to walk toward Pei Xubai, and the two exchanged a few words in a low voice.

After listening, the gentleness on Pei Xubai’s face completely receded.

“Seal the top-deck exits,” he instructed the security. “Investigate a male guest with a mixed-race face, focusing on verifying the temporary late-boarding roster and the cocktail party admission records.”

“Yes.”

The security turned and left.

Xia Mianyue stood on the spot, her palms already slick with sweat.

She did not know if her few sentences had caught the key point, but she could feel that tonight’s matter was absolutely not an ordinary guest falling ill.

Someone was setting up a plot, and she seemed to have inadvertently seen a corner that she should least look at.

Right at this time, Qin Shuyao’s voice suddenly intervened.

– Pei Jin, it’s already a complete mess now, and you still let this kind of person with clumsy hands and feet stay here?

Xia Mianyue was startled.

Qin Shuyao stood not far away, a corner of her skirt hem stepped on and creased, and her makeup was not as exquisite as before either.

The gaze with which she looked toward Xia Mianyue was still cold and contemptuous.

– Just now, if she hadn’t been clumsy and knocked things over, the scene wouldn’t have become even messier.

Xia Mianyue’s face turned slightly pale.

Just as she was about to speak, Pei Jin had already turned his head to look over.

“Which of your eyes saw that she was the one who knocked it over?”

His tone was very hard, instantly causing the surroundings to quiet down a few degrees.

Qin Shuyao’s face froze.

– I just find her suspicious. She’s a waitress, why does she keep pressing over toward this direction?

“There are many suspicious people right now.”

Pei Jin looked at her, his gaze cold without temperature.

“Should we start investigating from you?”

The color of Qin Shuyao’s lips changed slightly.

She looked as if she had been stung by this sentence, failing to catch on with words for a long while.

Pei Jin did not pay her any more heed either, merely saying coldly to Xia Mianyue:

“Retreat.”

Xia Mianyue pursed her lips and retreated to the side.

She knew Pei Jin was not intentionally protecting her; he was merely annoyed by Qin Shuyao adding to the chaos at a time like this.

But that sentence of “Should we start investigating from you” still caused a certain place in her heart to lightly tremble.

Right at this moment, He Xingzhou suddenly bent his waist, pressing his chest as he coughed violently.

This single sound seemed to tear away the final layer of disguise.

The female guests shrieked, some people pushed aside the security wanting to rush outside, and the outer hall followed with a commotion as well.

– Don’t run around wildly!

Just as the security was about to block people, the lights above the observation hall suddenly flickered once.

Once, twice.

Subsequently, the lighting of the entire floor abruptly went out.

Darkness crashed down with a roar, and shrieks instantly exploded out.

Tables and chairs were overturned, and glass fragments crunched as they were stepped on upon the ground. Some people crowded toward the exit, some fell down, and some cried out while shouting their companion’s names.

Just as Xia Mianyue was about to retreat, her shoulder was suddenly clasped by a hand.

Pei Jin’s voice fell almost pressing against her ear.

“Don’t move.”

In the next second, she was pulled in front of his body by him.

He did not embrace her, but merely used his arm to block by her side, separating her from the messiest flow of people.

Almost simultaneously, a figure slammed fiercely against Pei Jin’s back.

Pei Jin let out a muffled groan, yet he did not release his hand; instead, he brought her along to turn his body and dodge.

In the darkness, Xia Mianyue could see nothing at all.

She only smelled that cold wood scent on his body, and also heard his voice which was pressed very low.

“Follow me.”

When these three words fell, her heart, which was panicking in disorder, actually steadily settled by half.

She subconsciously gripped his sleeve.

A few seconds later, the emergency lights turned on.

The dim red light illuminated a floor of wreckage.

Zhou Ziqian was firmly pinned down by security, and He Xingzhou sat on a chair, his face pale.

Pei Xubai stood in the center, raising his head to look toward the extinguished dome lights, the gaze behind his lenses cold to the extreme.

“It is not an accident,” he said.

Xia Mianyue’s breathing tightened.

She suddenly discovered that Qin Shuyao, who had still been standing not far from the door just now, was gone.

The power outage was only a matter of tens of seconds, yet the person seemed to have vanished into thin air.

Pei Jin looked over along the direction of her gaze, his eyes deepening bit by bit.

The emergency broadcast soon rang out, a mechanical voice echoing within the observation hall.

[Would all personnel on the top deck please remain on the spot to undergo temporary lockdown and investigation.]

[Repeating once more, would all personnel on the top deck please remain on the spot—]

Everyone knew that it was already too late.

That first batch of people who came into contact with the card table area were all exposed to the risk.

Zhou Ziqian, He Xingzhou, and Pei Jin, who had personally supported them just now.

Xia Mianyue lowered her head and saw that she was still gripping his sleeve.

She was startled for a moment, hurriedly wanting to let go.

Pei Jin did not look at her, however, only staring at the observation hall that had turned into a complete mess, his voice cold and sinking.

“From now on, don’t wander around blindly.”

Xia Mianyue’s fingertips curled slightly, and she lightly nodded her head.

The muffled sound of waves striking the hull of the ship traveled through the glass.

At this moment, she finally clearly realized.

After tonight, everyone was trapped.