102

“Lifeng, look over there. Who’s that handsome guy? Why are so many beauties crowding around him? Damn, I’m getting jealous.”

Ximingxuan’s gaze swept the room as he spoke to Yelifeng half in jest, half in earnest.

Following his line of sight, Yelifeng saw a flock of brightly dressed women fawning over a single man. Their smiles were so syrupy they seemed ready to drown someone, and the light in their eyes was like that of treasure hunters who had stumbled upon a priceless hoard. The man sat on the sofa with his back to them.

At the moment, Yelifeng had absolutely no interest in such flirtatious scenes. In his younger, reckless days, he had once lingered in places like this, once enjoyed being surrounded by women, feeding his vanity and indulging his desires. But now, seeing it as an outsider, he found it meaningless.

Only then did he realize that not one woman here had a truly innocent look in her eyes. After he had fallen in love with someone, he finally understood that being with other women was nothing but a waste of time.

He turned back, a faint, mocking smile tugging at his lips. “Xi Mingxuan, only someone as heartless and shameless as you would get jealous over a man you don’t even know. Utterly boring.”

“Yelifeng, I’ll let it slide, since you’ve already become some kind of love sage.” Ximingxuan shot back without mercy. He had given up a whole sea of flowers for the sake of one single bloom—what sort of lunatic behavior was that? And he had the nerve to call him boring first. Truly, there was no justice in this world.

Just then, a fiery beauty walked over to him. Ximingxuan smiled with wicked charm, his gaze hooking hers as his hand slid to the woman’s bare waist, rubbing lightly, almost absent-mindedly. Their eyes locked; they understood one another at once and quickly grew heated. He ordered two hot whiskey toddies from the waiter, and the two of them began to drink.

Yelifeng smiled and went to the restroom.

When he came back, a familiar silhouette caught his eye, and he could not help looking twice. The moment he saw who it was, he froze.

The man Ximingxuan had been “jealous” of was none other than Lu Yichen.

The handsome youth held a crystal-clear wine glass in his hand, moving through the crowd with abandon, one woman on each side, plainly enjoying himself. The faint, cool smile at the corner of his mouth alone was enough to captivate anyone. And the elegance that surfaced in his gestures, along with the air of effortless refinement he carried about him, made it obvious at a glance that he was the young master of an exceedingly wealthy family. A man like that was the most popular kind here, because his youth meant the women around him could all dream of marrying into a rich household.

Shaking his head, Yelifeng walked out of the darkness toward Ximingxuan. The beauty beside him was already gone.

“Since when did your little beauty disappear?” Yelifeng asked.

“After the drinks, she left.”

“And you let her go?”

“Damn it, I’m here to drink with you today, not to keep her company.” After saying that grandly, Ximingxuan lowered his voice. “Relax. I’ve got her number. She’s not going anywhere.”

Yelifeng shook his head again and smiled.

“Yelifeng, you’ve become much more brooding lately. Why all the head-shaking and smiling? You were doing that just now too. Don’t tell me you’ve suddenly turned into some moral crusader because you can’t stand this place.”

Ximingxuan was deeply dissatisfied with Yelifeng’s indifferent attitude. In the past, the two of them had often haunted nightclubs, proud of nothing more than seducing all kinds of beautiful women. Now, he was the one feeling lonely.

“It’s not that. I just saw Lu Yichen earlier. The one you’re jealous of.”

“Oh, I’ve heard of him. Seen him too. That kid drew plenty of female attention, so how could I not know about him? He looks so innocent, but he’s surprisingly good at charming women.”

“He likes Yuwei,” Yelifeng said with a faint smile. Now he felt the pleasant satisfaction of having beaten a rival in love. Fortunately, Xiayuwei had not chosen Lu Yichen.

Had she, she would have been choosing a boy like that—a delinquent, just like he himself had once been so absurdly reckless. Perhaps he came from too privileged a background and was bored out of his mind. If he truly loved someone, he would not be spending his nights drinking and chasing pleasure. In that case, he could not possibly be in love with Xiayuwei. At most, it was only a liking.

“Now that’s explosive!” Ximingxuan let out a whistle. “Then you’d better watch out. Keep your fiancée under close guard. Women fall for bad boys like that very easily. Good men like you aren’t fashionable anymore, got it?” He thumped Yelifeng lightly on the chest as he spoke.

“Worry about yourself!” Yelifeng laughed and punched him back.

At that moment, every last trace of guilt he had felt for taking advantage of the situation with Xiayuwei vanished completely. He had discovered that Lu Yichen could never give Xiayuwei happiness. He could.

Because Xiayuwei had agreed to Yelifeng’s proposal of engagement, and because her departure for further study in Switzerland was only half a month away, time was extremely tight. So even though the Global Horticultural Expo had already closed, her parents had not yet left. Both families simply followed the normal procedures and began preparing for the engagement ceremony.

Because the schedule was so rushed, the Ye family hired a professional planning company to handle the entire event.

The list of invited guests, the ceremony sequence, the venue arrangement, the couple’s attire—everything proceeded in orderly fashion.

A week later, the engagement ceremony was held as planned in the top-floor restaurant of the Cardon Hotel.

Nearly five thousand square meters of space had been transformed into an elegant yet solemn engagement setting.

In the dressing room, Xiayuwei changed into a luxurious ready-made gown. The white dress, with its long hem nearly brushing the floor, was paired with gold high heels. Her long hair, curled up, added an extra touch of allure. Her face, normally bare of makeup, had been transformed by a top-tier makeup artist into something almost unreal.

She looked like a princess stepped straight out of a fairy tale.

Sitting alone before the huge mirror, Xiayuwei studied her reflection.

To many, many people, she was nothing more than Cinderella who was about to become a swan.

How many noble young ladies, celebrities, and models were jealous that she had become the fiancée acknowledged by the Ye family?

Xiayuwei, why aren’t you happy?