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The park manager didn’t need to think twice to know who took priority between Bai Yongyan and Noland. Even if Noland paid nothing, the manager would follow his instructions without hesitation.

"So, when would you like the park to close tonight?" the manager asked.

"9:30," Noland replied casually.

"???"

The park manager was utterly baffled. Their closing time was set for 8:30, and it would take until about 8:45 for all the visitors to leave. But Mr. Harris was willing to spend five million just to delay the closing time by an hour? While five million might be insignificant to Noland, for the park manager, it was an entire year’s salary.

The pleasures of the rich were truly beyond understanding.

And there was only one person who might understand, and that was Jin Shiya.

She hadn’t quite recovered from the shock of hearing Bai Yongyan’s name and his intention to rent out the park, but now she was hearing Noland’s plan to spend five million just to delay the closing by an hour.

Her family had some savings, but five million was definitely not a small amount for her. In fact, it made her realize just how poor her family really was.

"Did Mr. Bai say how many people he expected to bring for the private event?" Noland’s seemingly unrelated question grabbed Jin Shiya’s full attention. She had already been speculating about Bai Yongyan’s motives for renting the park, but she had thought it was for a company team-building event or some business-related activity.

The reality, however, was a crushing blow. The park manager answered, "Including Mr. Bai, there are two people. One of them is a young lady. Mr. Bai specifically mentioned that the young lady would be arriving at the main gate at 9:00."

"Oh, how romantic," Noland commented casually.

At that moment, Jin Shiya could no longer pay attention to anything Noland was saying or doing. Her mind had been completely overwhelmed by the manager's words.

A "young lady"? Two people? A private event after the park closed.

In that instant, Jin Shiya nearly lost her balance, her body growing weak. As Noland moved forward, she instinctively followed, but her legs gave out, and she almost fell.

She didn’t hit the ground, though—she crashed straight into Noland’s back.

"Can’t even walk properly now?" The mockery in Noland’s voice was unmistakable, but it was strangely comforting to Jin Shiya. It was as though everything around her had returned to normal, as if she was still in her familiar world, not one where everything seemed to be falling apart.

After a long pause, Noland noticed that Jin Shiya had finally stepped back from him and steadied herself.

He turned and saw her face—pale, lost in thought, eyes slightly red, and her entire demeanor drained of energy.

At that moment, he realized what his own expression had been like when he first realized that Bai Yongyan had feelings for someone else. He could have scoffed and called himself a fool for being so pathetic, but he didn’t. Jin Shiya had loved Bai Yongyan for years, a love that began in childhood. She had been waiting for the day when she could finally stand beside him and confess her feelings.

She had even believed that Bai Yongyan might like her too, that he was waiting for her to make the first move, because for all these years, there had never been another woman around him.

But she had been wrong.

So terribly wrong. She had thought it was just a matter of timing—that Bai Yongyan had simply been waiting too long, and that was why he had fallen for someone else. But Jin Shiya had been mistaken. And this mistake, this one miscalculation, would haunt her forever.