LU CORPORATION – MASQUERADE GALA NIGHT

The Grand Ballroom of Lu Corporation  has always been the best events of the year. Gold chandeliers rained light from above. Walls were adorned with silk banners embroidered in silver threads. Guests mingled in flowing gowns and crisp suits, all masked — but no one truly hidden.

Music swelled — soft violins melting into an elegant waltz.

And then the hush came.

The doors opened.

Yueying walked in.

Wearing a gown of deep black and a speck of red — the color of coals just before they burst into flame. The dress clung to her curves like silk poured over skin, embroidered with tiny flecks of diamonds that glintered as she moved. Her mask was delicate — lace and thin filigree that framed her cheekbones and left her lips bare and plump.

And her red hair swept  up, but with soft tendrils falling down. She was breathtaking.

Not just beautiful.

Mythic.

She stepped into the ballroom like a wind held in satin.

All heads turned.

Even the music seemed to falter.

Across the hall — Li Anya froze mid-step.

Her own gown, icy blue and jeweled, clung to her body in practiced perfection. Her mask, sharp and cold like a crown. She had come to steal the night.

But now…

She was merely watching it being taken away by her rival.

"Who is that?" someone whispered.

"She's the intern from the project team," another murmured.

"Lu Quing's rumoured woman" someone else said.

Anya's jaw clenched.

---

 MINUTES LATER

Lu Quing stood near the terrace doors, away from the noise, holding a glass of untouched champagne.

He had not seen her enter.

Not yet.

Until—

He felt her.

And turned.

His heart stopped.

Yueying was walking toward him — each step slow, deliberate, elegant. Like a queen who had never needed a throne. His eyes didn't flicker. Not once. He drank in the sight of her like a man who had been thirsty for centuries.

She stopped before him.

Their eyes locked.

"You're late," he murmured.

"You didn't ask me to come," she replied, voice cool.

"I didn't think I could handle your beauty." He teased.

"And now?"

His silver gaze burned. "Now I'm not breathing." His eyes were serious.

---

ACROSS THE ROOM – LI ANYA'S POV

She watched them.

Watched how he looked at Yueying.

Like Yueying was sunlight… and he was starving for warmth.

Anya's grip on her champagne glass tightened.

She had never seen him look at anyone like that. Not even her.

 Not even her.

---

DANCE FLOOR

The music shifted — a softer waltz now. The MC's voice echoed.

"President Lu Quing… would you honor us with the first dance?"

All eyes turned.

Li Anya took one step forward.

But so did Yueying — instinctively, like pulled by an invisible string.

She stopped herself — about to turn away.

But Lu Quing was already before her.

Hand extended.

Palm open.

Invitation silent. Waiting for her hand on his. 

Yueying hesitated.

Then slowly placed her hand in his.

Gasps and whispers rippled through the crowd.

Li Anya could only watch.

As Lu Quing pulled Yueying into the center of the ballroom.

And they danced.

Slow. Magnetic. 

Every spin revealed her submission to him.

Every glance revealed his hunger.

And for a moment — the rest of the world simply vanished.

---

BALCONY – AFTER THE DANCE

They stepped out into the night air.

The stars above glittered like shy witnesses.

Yueying leaned on the railing, her breath fogging the cool night air.

"I wasn't supposed to feel like this," she whispered.

Lu Quing stepped behind her. Close. Not touching. Few inches away from her.

"But you do."

She didn't deny it.

He looked at her, eyes soft but full of fire.

"Tonight... you outshone the stars."

She turned slightly. "And made an enemy."

"She was never your equal," he said quietly. "Not in mind. Not in soul."

"But she once had your heart."

He exhaled. "She borrowed it. You — you burn in it. You own it"

And then—

He kissed her.

Not urgent.

Not desperate.

But deep.

Lingering.

Yueying didn't stop him.

Not this time.

---

LI ANYA – EMPTY CORRIDOR

She stood alone.

Face unreadable.

But her eyes…

Full of war.

"She'll regret this," she whispered.

Behind her, the silver-eyed man appeared from the shadows.

"You said you could turn him."

"I will," she hissed. 

---

The house was silent.

Too silent.

Yueying stood by her window again, gown still clinging to her like a memory, makeup smudged softly at the corners of her eyes. Her heart hadn't stopped racing since that kiss on the balcony.

And yet—

Her pendant burned now.

Not warm.

But cold.

She unfastened it slowly and held it to the moonlight.

The fire within flickered… like it was breathing.

No, cracking.

Then—

A paper flew from her window.

Yueying stepped forward and picked it up. Unfolded it carefully.

A letter.

Written in black ink that reeked of copper and ash.

"He'll never belong to you.

You're just the girl who inherited a curse.

We need your blood.

Soon, you'll give it willingly.

The bottom corner of the paper bore a strange seal — an open eye 

Yueying tightened her hands to fist.

---

 SAME NIGHT

"Did she get it?" Li Anya asked, arms crossed, blue velvet cloak trailing behind her.

The silver-eyed man nodded. "She got it."

"She'll come running," Li Anya said confidently. "They always do when they think they're needed."

"And when she does?" the man asked.

"I bleed her. Slowly. Just enough to survive."

"You think Lu Quing will let you?"

Li Anya's lips curled. "He won't see it coming."

She paused.

"I wore kindness like perfume once," she murmured. "He fell for it. That's his weakness. "

The man tilted his head. "And what are you now?"

She turned, eyes glowing faint blue.

"Deadlier."

---

LU CORPORATION – THE NEXT MORNING

The gala was behind them.

But not forgotten.

Whispers filled every corner of the office.

About Yueying.

About the dance.

She ignored it all. Stepped into the elevator with her usual grace — until she saw Aaron Li already inside.

He turned and smiled. "Rough night?"

"You tell me," she said, glancing at the strange bruise on his jaw.

"I got in a fight with a door," he replied, smirking.

She raised a brow. "The door punch back?"

"Harder than expected."

Then his gaze softened.

"You looked… unreal last night."

She didn't answer.

She didn't need to.

Because as the elevator dinged open — Lu Quing was waiting.

Back turned.

Still as a statue.

But when Yueying stepped out, he moved — just slightly.

As if her presence stirred the air around him.

Lu Quing's gaze never left her.

And she felt it again.

That fire.

That pull.

But the letter in her bag reminded her: someone else wanted her not just her blood but her life..

For for power.

---

Yueying stared at the letter again in the restroom stall, heart pounding.

The pendant throbbed.

But this time—

Not alone.

Something inside her pulsed in answer.

Not just the flame.

But something else.

Colder.

Sharper.

She clenched her teeth.

The mirror above the sink fogged—though there was no steam.

And as she walked out…

---

LU CORPORATION – SECURITY HALLWAY – NIGHT

Lu Quing moved through the shadows like a ghost, past the restricted doors, into the hidden wing only he could access.

He stopped before a steel door.

And spoke aloud:

"She's back."

The door unlocked with a hiss.

Inside — an old chamber. Runes across the walls. And a painting — faded, burnt at the edges.

Of Li Anya.

Younger. Smiling. Holding a blood chalice.

Lu Quing clenched his fists.

"She fooled me once," he said aloud.

"But this time…"

---

Li Anya appears at Lu Corporation.

" And you're ?" The receptionist on duty said.

" I'm the new biotech consultant hired by the board"

.

"So you're the one he kissed.

" Have a problem with that ?" Yueying said as she smiled sweetly. With that she walked away.

LU CORPORATION – PRIVATE GARDEN TERRACE – EARLY EVENING

The sky was painted in strokes of orange and red, the golden hour casting soft glows across the city skyline. Yueying stood alone on the garden terrace—an exclusive space nestled on the upper levels of Lu Corporation, reserved only for executives.

Wind tugged lightly at her hair. Her white blouse shimmered slightly under the dying sun, and her black pencil skirt hugged her form like moonlight molded in cloth. The faint glimmer of her pendant lay just above her collarbone—unhidden now, but silent.

She had come to clear her mind. But the quiet only reminded her that Lu Quing hadn't spoken much since Li Anya appeared.

He was hiding something.

And yet, she couldn't be angry. Because when Anya had walked in—with that familiar soft smile and eyes too eager—it hadn't been Yueying who looked surprised. It had been Anya.

Yueying's beauty stunned her. Not because it was loud or manufactured. But because it was real. Deep. The kind that made silence feel worshipful.

Li Anya had blinked too many times. Smiled too tightly. And for the first time, her mask had cracked.

Yueying had seen it. And so had Lu Quing.

---

FLASHBACK – EARLIER THAT DAY

She had walked into the executive floor—heels silent, grace undeniable. And Anya had been waiting.

By Lu Quing's side.

The woman wore a powder blue dress, elegant and soft. Her hair was curled to perfection. Her lips painted just enough to hint at sweetness.

Yueying paused when she saw her. Anya's gaze swept her from head to toe. Then—shock. 

Because Yueying was not what she expected.

Not the helpless, unsure intern. Not the small-town girl with empty eyes.

No. Yueying's presence demanded attention.

And even Lu Quing… had looked up at her like gravity had shifted.

Anya had smiled first. "Hello. You must be Yueying."

Yueying inclined her head. "You have me at a disadvantage."

"Li Anya," she said, offering a hand. "An old friend."

But Yueying didn't shake it. Her eyes simply lowered to the outstretched fingers, then back up to Anya's overly warm expression.

"I see."

Lu Quing didn't speak.

And Anya noticed that too.

---

PRESENT – TERRACE

Yueying exhaled slowly. She wasn't insecure. She just wasn't blind.

The moment had left something behind—a tension threading the office air.

She knew Li Anya was human. Mortal. But she also knew… something about her felt off. As if death had touched her once, but not taken her completely.

She heard the door open behind her.

She didn't need to turn.

"I was hoping you'd follow," she said.

Lu Quing walked to her side. Silent. Hands in his pockets.

"I wasn't hiding her," he said after a moment.

"I didn't say you were."