章 20: 1.1.20: Rejection
"Brother, did you see that woman?" Zhou Lang whistled as he kept looking at the beautiful person on stage. For the amount of time he had been going to Riverside, he never expected to see someone more talented that Ni Ming. Someone more beautiful than Ni Ming. And he felt a desire to add her to his list of conquests.
His brother, Zhou Feng, coldly sipped on the whiskey in his hands. Surprisingly, his brother had agreed on going with him this time. He didn't understand why, but he had a feeling that it must have been because of his brother's newly arranged fiancée.
Even though his brother was cold, he still was a person at heart. Who wanted to get arranged to marry a complete stranger? Especially when the person arranged is said to be the infamous Kang Yiyi, the bratty second granddaughter of the Kang family?
Zhou Lang didn't understand why his grandfather thought that it was a good idea to arrange such a marriage. But even when he pitied his brother, he was still relieved that it wasn't him suffering through his ordeal.
His eyes fell to the beautiful woman again but was shocked to notice that she disappeared! He noticed a swift figure trying to get away from the crowds, so before he could think about it, he chased after the girl.
He didn't notice that his brother's usual cold eyes held a predatory glint in them. In fact, even Zhou Feng himself blamed the alcohol for making him surge with a new feeling as he glanced at the gorgeous woman. He felt like her voice and she herself intoxicated him more than the alcohol he kept on drinking nonstop. For the first time in his life, Zhou Feng decided to be impulsive and drink away his sorrows.
Hearing the news of his sudden marriage, he couldn't help but feel helpless. Even though the marriage wasn't going to happen until a few years later, he still didn't like the idea of him being bound to someone; a stranger nonetheless.
Speaking of impulses, he had a spark of desire to find that woman again. So like his brother, he stood up and followed where she sneaked off. He paused and hid when he heard his brother's voice, "Miss, wouldn't you accompany me to drink this night away?"
Hearing his brother's cringey pickup lines, Zhou Feng didn't know whether to laugh, to feel sorry for woman or feel embarrassed on behalf of his brother. But Zhou Feng knew that it was these dumb words that tricked women into his brother's bed and added themselves to his brother's long list of conquests. Zhou Feng felt like this woman was going to be like every other, especially when everyone in his family, including his brother and him, were born exceptionally handsome.
But to his shock and surprise, the woman coldly uttered, "No."
Zhou Feng peeked and saw that his brother's eyes widened and it seemed like he was in a daze. It seems like his brother had never gotten rejected before. Suddenly, as though a fire is lit inside of him, he smirked and said, "Miss, playing hard-to-get is one of my pet peeves. I assure you that I'm interested without you having to pretend and drag this on. Let me accompany you like a gentleman."
"No, who said I'm playing hard-to-get?" The woman harshly rebuked, "Being a gentleman makes you lose your brain and have crazy delusions? Stop following me and acting creepy or else I'll call security."
When Zhou Feng heard her harsh response, his lips tilted upwards and he heard a foreign sound. Surprisingly, this sound was the sound of his laughter!
Both the woman and Zhou Lang froze and turned their attention to him. When Zhou Lang saw his brother, his face paled. He didn't think his brother would see and hear his embarrassment! But such a stubborn woman who dared to insult him, he never expected it!
Zhou Feng cleared his throat and pretended that he wasn't embarrassed from being caught peeking at their conversation. He strode forward and apologized, "Miss, I hope you don't mind my brother too much. He's genuinely confused as no woman has rejected him before."
"His ego is hurt? Poor man!" The woman's tone was supposed to be sympathetic, but the sarcasm was evident to all three of their ears.
Zhou Feng ignored her snark and he, for the first time in his life, decided to invite a woman, "Now I politely ask you if you want to join us?"
Zhou Lang turned even more dumbfounded. His brother was inviting a woman out of his own accord? Goodness, how drunk was he!?
But what surprised him even more that the woman rejected his brother as well! Seeing both of the men frozen, the woman quickly scurried away and disappeared. They couldn't locate her no matter how much they tried to look for her.
"I can't believe that just happened." Zhou Lang mumbled a few hours later. He turned to his brother, only to see his usual cold eyes even colder. One could metaphorically see three black lines on his forehead because of his disappointment mixed with his anger.
Seeing his brother's silent brooding, Zhou Lang couldn't help but chuckle. "You know, I'm the one who is supposed to be offended. After all, this is the only woman out of many women who rejected my advances. On the other hand, you shouldn't fret too much. There are many fish in the sea."
Zhou Feng didn't say anything and only furrowed his eyebrows. His chest still felt heavy—a result of the excessive drinking of alcohol—but Zhou Feng had a feeling that it wasn't because of the alcohol no matter how much he tried to pin it on there. Seeing that woman, he felt a sense of familiarity. In fact, he felt somewhat disgusted for a few seconds yet suddenly attracted.
The disgust was most likely the result of him not courting women for so long and finding them slightly repulsive. The attraction was completely justified because the woman was so charming. Now the familiarity? It was odd and he couldn't discover why.
Thoughts about the woman consumed his mind as he allowed his driver to drive home. Zhou Lang sat besides him, staring out the window in silence. Seeing his brother so quiet, Zhou Feng was surprised but didn't try to interrupt the quiet atmosphere.
Meanwhile Xiao Yunhua was pleased with herself. So pleased that she couldn't help but keep a smile everywhere that she went. She smiled because: she was no longer a cleaner, she had successfully performed her first performance in front of an audience, and she managed to reject two of the Zhou brothers. It was a good way to dose down their arrogance.
But even if she did it to be petty, she still remembered her goal. She knew that one of the brothers would crack. Which brother? This was a question that would need to wait to be answered.
She strode forward and sat on a chair by Wang Yaowan and Ni Ming. Both were startled but didn't push her away.
"Can I perform often?" She asked with sparkling eyes. It seemed like a kid was asking this, but a newly-turned adult.
"Really? I expected for you to want to maintain that mysterious façade, but who knew..." Ni Ming paused and looked at Wang Yaowan, silently asking him permission for something. When he nodded, she smiled and said, "Alright dear. Looks like you can. The owner just confirmed." Her teasing yet lightheaded tone made all of them chuckle.
From that moment on, Xiao Yunhua would appear with Ni Ming occasionally. In a way of profit, and knowing how much the people enjoyed seeing Xiao Yunhua perform her first time, Wang Yaowan made sure to advertise that there was going to be the mysterious temptress performing. On those days, the nightclub would be packed with endless people and business would explode.
Xiao Yunhua purposely asked for Wang Yaowan and Ni Ming to not expose her and keep her identity a secret.
To her disappointment, Zhou Feng didn't show his face after that day. The one that showed his face was Zhou Lang. And every time, he would persistently pursue her and ask if she would give him her number. Of course, her reply was a 'no' each and every time.
-- 贈り物
が届きました 
-- 推薦
ランキング 
-- 推薦
チケット