Chapter 54: Annual Scion Gathering (2)
The car stopped in front of the foyer. The Annual Scion Gathering was being held at the government-owned Country C Arena built by the Chang Architectural Firm.
Xu Wei went down first before offering his hand towards Li Nuxie. Glancing at the hand in front of her, Li Nuxie placed her hand over his. Warm hand, cold heart? she thought as she went out of the car.
Xu Wei just smiled before linking his arm with hers. The sounds coming from the orchestra reached her ears as they walked towards the main entrance leading to the ballroom.
A butler was standing in front of the door. He bowed when he saw Xu Wei and Li Nuxie approaching. The butler has been the one announcing the arrival of guests for the last ten years and it was his first time to see Li Nuxie. He saw a lot of beautiful women in his life but the woman approaching him looked like an empress from ancient dynasty.
In fact, Black Empress was a fitting description the way the woman walked and maintained her back straight. He glanced at the man. The man who wore a mask was a frequent guest for the last six years. The butler heard that the masked man was a powerful figure in the business world.
Xu Wei pulled out a black envelope from inside his suit and put it on the hand of the butler. Opening the envelope, the butler nodded before pushing the door open.
"The President of Empire Systems Corp. and Young Miss Li!" the butler's booming voice overpowered the music coming from the orchestra.
"The hell!" Li Nuxie cursed under her breath. She didn't know there was this announcement effect thingie in this party. Xu Wei patted her arm gently.
"Relax," he whispered.
The ballroom was designed like those ballrooms in medieval period. The door leading to the area was on the loft. One needed to go down the stairs to mingle with the other guests.
That also meant being on the spotlight for three minutes or more, depending on how long it took to walk down the stairs.
Li Nuxie wanted to run out but Xu Wei grasped her hand. "Don't even think about it." The two of them slowly descended on the stairs. The blinding lights made it impossible for Li Nuxie to see the people around. This was better this way, she thought, sighing in relief.
She inclined her head and smiled sweetly towards him. "This will be the last time I am going to a party."
"Noted, babe," Xu Wei said. This was the only party he ever attended for the last six years. But as Li Nuxie said that, he would honor her wish.
The guests who were engrossed in their own conversations stopped talking when the announcement reached their ears. The people glanced towards the stairs. Some caught their breath as the vision slowly descended on the stairs.
'What did the butler say? The Young Miss Li?'
'I love her gown. Damn, are those ruby stones real?'
'I think so. She's the Young Miss Li. She can afford it.'
'Oh my. Is the Black Emperor her boyfriend?'
'Stop assuming. Maybe, they're just friends.'
Xu Wei and Li Nuxie reached the end of the stairs. The Head of the Scion Board, a woman in her late fifties welcomed them.
"Black Emperor, it was nice seeing you again," the woman said, extending her hand.
Xu Wei shook her hand, a smile was visible on his face. "Same here," he glanced at Li Nuxie. "This is my date for tonight, the Young Miss Li."
The woman's mouth formed an 'O'. "Nice to meet you, Young Miss Li," the woman smiled warmly as she extended her hand.
Li Nuxie grasped the woman's hand firmly. "The pleasure is mine, Madam."
"Your grandmother is here, too," she said, looking left and right.
Li Nuxie just gave her a tight smile. The Old Madam Li has been attending the Annual Scion Gathering since then. This year was no different.
"She's with CEO Liu," the woman further added.
Li Nuxie nodded. "It is expected."
Sensing the change in Li Nuxie's demeanor, Xu Wei gently pressed her arm. "We'll meet some friends first."
"Oh sure. I hope you enjoy the party," the woman left them.
Xu Wei leaned closer. "Smile. No need to stress over insignificant things," he whispered.
Normally, Li Nuxie would feel butterflies flying in her stomach when Xu Wei does that. However, her mood was totally dampened by the news.
"I'll kiss you if you continue frowning," he said, his eyes were twinkling with mischief.
Li Nuxie rolled her eyes. "I'm sorry but I'm not really into public display of attention. You can do it when we're alone," she watched as Xu Wei's eyes became darker. Serves him right for teasing her in the middle of the party, she thought.
"Let's search for my cousin, shall we?" she pulled him towards the crowd, her eyes were darting among the guests.
Liu Lanzhi has been watching Li Nuxie and her date as they went down on the stairs. She wore the latest collection from Chanel, a pastel pink colored tulle gown. It hugged her figure the right way, emitting an alluring aura.
When she and Li Jiayie went down the stairs, all eyes were on the new CEO of Li Textile. Women threw her envious glances while men stared at her like a predator would do to its prey.
But Liu Lanzhi doesn't care. For the last twenty minutes, her eyes had been roaming around the venue, looking for the First Young Master Xu. However, she was still unsuccessful.
Based on the information she gathered, Xu Wei would attend the party. Her hopes were still up. She had not seen Second Young Master Xu yet. Maybe they would come together. Until Li Nuxie arrived at the party.
Liu Lanzhi could not be wrong. That was the First Young Master Xu! She clenched her teeth. How come Li Nuxie's date was Xu Wei?
"Oh, wow. They look good together. The guy is the person behind the Empire Systems Corp., right?" a woman asked someone near her.
"Yeah, I heard he took The Ridge by storm. His company took over a lot of IT companies for the last six years."
"That's cool. It was a good thing that the Xu Corp. is in different league with the Black Emperor."
"Yeah, I don't want him to go against the Second Young Master Xu. I mean, both of them are my ideal men," another woman said, giggling.
Liu Lanzhi cleared her throat. "Uhm, excuse me. But doesn't that man looks like the First Young Master Xu?"
The woman glanced at Xu Wei before looking back at Liu Lanzhi. "Girl, have you met First Young Master Xu?"
Liu Lanzhi raised her chin. "Of course, I have. Already met him in US," she informed them. Proud of the fact that she met him overseas. Of course, they wouldn't know that Xu Wei gave her food while she was running late for her class.
The woman nodded. "Then, was he smiling when you met him?"
Liu Lanzhi stayed still. Going back on that day, Xu Wei didn't smile at her although he appeared concern about her. Even in the library, he looked serious.
During the meeting for the proposal of the Octagon Hotel, Xu Wei remained poker face throughout the negotiations.
"I bet the answer is not," the woman said, curling her lips. "Girl, look at the Black Emperor. He was literally shining with happiness. And look at that smile. That's something First Young Master Xu does not have," the woman nodded, agreeing with her own description.
Liu Lanzhi stared at the man wearing a mask. Lines appeared on her forehead. Was she mistaken?
On Liu Lanzhi's side, Li Jiayie stayed silent near her. Li Jiayie was expecting that Li Nuxie would attend the party but not as someone else's date. She thought her youngest granddaughter would be Li Chanying's date. But Li Chanying was nowhere to be found.
Li Jiayie was happy when she saw Li Nuxie with a guy. It would be nice to tell her about her gift to the youngest daughter of her son. She glanced at Liu Lanzhi. "Come, Lan, let's meet your cousin," she held Liu Lanzhi's hand while the other held her cane, supporting her weight as they took a step towards the oblivious couple.
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Yuinavarro
Yuinavarro Hi guys! Hope you enjoy the chapter! Sorry I can't mass release yet. My time is limited still limited due to busy schedule. I hope I can find time in the future. Please continue supporting my story. Thank you! :)
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