Water and Fire~Chapter 44.2: Glamour

 

Chapter 44.2: Glamour

After the group photo was taken, Chu Qianmiao had wanted to talk to Ren Yan, to get close to him, to flatter him and praise his handsomeness. But as soon as the cameraman said, "Okay, everyone, disperse," Ren Yan was half-surrounded by people who came to shake his hand.

Chu Qianmiao tactfully withdrew from the crowd.

She figured, forget it. Ren Yan was destined to be the center of attention tonight, so she decided not to join in the fun. He was oblivious to her flamboyant attire anyway.

After the photo shoot, it was time for the cocktail reception's dinner. Chu Qianmiao returned to her previous seat. As soon as she sat down, Zhang Teng, who was supposed to be sitting at the main table, came over and said, "Qianmiao, Xiaodong's difficult project in Beijing is about to be submitted for application. Only she and Zhou Shuqi can handle it. I won't be staying here any longer and will be heading back to Beijing. Call me if you need anything later!"

Chu Qianmiao immediately stood up and, agreeing, escorted Zhang Teng out of the banquet hall. They went up to the second-floor lobby together.

Zhang Teng didn't bother Zhou Hanhai; he had the front desk call a taxi for him. Chu Qianmiao chatted with him while they waited for the car to arrive.

Only after the car arrived and Zhang Teng got in and left did Chu Qianmiao turn around and walk back.

As soon as the dinner began, everyone was milling around, toasting each other with glasses in hand.

Whether Ren Yan was toasting or being toasted, he dragged Lei Zhenzi along. Lei Zhenzi was miserable. He'd been watched closely by Ren Yan all night, not even a chance to sneak up on Chu Qianmiao and flirt.

Even though Ren Yan was clearly busy and many people were talking to him, he didn't get the chance to slip away.

After sending off yet another toast, Lei Zhenzi became unhappy. He rolled his eyes and said, "You're hiding from Qianmiao and won't let me talk to her. You're so dictatorial, are you a fascist?!"

Ren Yan ignored him and let him ramble on.

Lei Zhenzi tried to leave, but Ren Yan grabbed him. He brought a glass of champagne and led Lei Zhenzi outside to drink and get some fresh air.

Lei Zhenzi stepped in front of him, glaring at him with peach-colored eyes. "Stop right there! No, from what I heard from Xiao Qin, I sense that things between you and Qian Miao have clearly changed. You're so harmonious and close, and you even allow her to call you 'senior' at work. But why are you so cold to her tonight?"

Ren Yan glanced at him and said emotionlessly, "Even if we're closer, that's all we are. It won't be more." After a pause, he said, "I let her call me 'senior' because I truly treat her like a younger sister."

Lei Zhenzi laughed. "But the thing is, she might not need a brother!"

"Even if she had a hundred brothers, they wouldn't be as good as me," Ren Yan replied matter-of-factly, shaking his champagne glass.

"Oh my god, you shameless bastard! Just keep being so annoying! Oh my god, you're killing me! Okay, don't contact me for a while, I don't want to talk to you anymore!" Lei Zhenzi lamented, then walked back into the banquet hall without looking back.

But after a short while, Lei Zhenzi had only taken a single turn in the banquet hall before forgetting his plan. He happily ran outside and approached Ren Yan, who was sitting on a sofa outside sipping champagne. He said, "Ren, I remembered something! Tell me, if you stop at being a brother, can I pursue Qian Miao?"

Ren Yan gave him a cold glance.

"After you transfer all your assets to her name, you can pursue her."

"..." Lei Zhenzi glared in anger. "You're really too biased, aren't you, brother-in-law? Damn it, let's break up!"

He stormed back into the banquet hall. But this time, he was even quicker to leave than before, almost as soon as he entered.

He sat down next to Ren Yan angrily, leaned sideways, and began to question, "No, how do you feel about her?"

Ren Yan didn't even look at him. He said coldly, "Like I said, I just treated her like a junior."

"More than that?" Lei Zhenzi persisted.

"Regardless of whether it's just that or not, you clearly understand my situation. Why did you insist on pairing me up with her?"

Lei Zhenzi hesitated, then said, "It's because I know your past that I hope a good woman can pull you out of it and save you!"

Ren Yan sighed softly. He was convinced by Lei Zhenzi's obsession.

He turned to give Lei Zhenzi a proper look and said, "It's not just me who's not suitable. She's not suitable either." After a pause, he said, "She has a boyfriend."

"Hmm?" Lei Zhenzi was stunned for a moment, then realized, "Well... I did hear Xiao Qin say that. But didn't they break up a long time ago? Isn't the ex-boyfriend living abroad?"

Ren Yan looked at him, wanting to say something but stopping himself.

Lei Zhenzi, seeing his expression, guessed bluntly, "What? They're not really broken up? They can get back together if the guy comes back?!"

Ren Yan looked at him, silent, as if unwilling to discuss the matter even a single word. That look made Lei Zhenzi believe that, yes, it was true.

Ren Yan frowned, a hint of forbearance between his brows.

Lei Zhenzi gritted his teeth, ignoring his forbearance, and continued to ask relentlessly, "No, how did you know they'd get back together?"

Ren Yan chuckled, "Of course I know."

After a pause, he said, "I know her boyfriend, he's a nobody."

Lei Zhenzi uttered a "Huh?" and tried to ask more, but Ren Yan was already impatient.

"Hold all your questions back," he said, turning to look at Lei Zhenzi and saying calmly, "What you should do now is to persuade me not to get too involved, before I fall that deeply in love with her."

Lei Zhenzi raised his hands in surrender, "Alright! Pretend I didn't say anything!" He patted Ren Yan's shoulder, "Alright, I know you're feeling this bad. Next time I meet a beautiful woman who doesn't want to get married, I'll pick you first. That's nice of you, isn't it?"

Ren Yan said nothing. He downed the champagne in his glass, set it down, got up from the sofa, and headed for the stairs. He wanted to go upstairs and get some fresh air near the lobby entrance.

As Chu Qianmiao was walking down from the second floor, her phone rang.

It was Tan Shen, requesting a video call.

When she clicked to accept, she suddenly realized he'd been a bit clingy lately.

After the video call was connected, Tan Shen looked at her, surprisingly silent for a long time.

As she walked down the stairs, she asked several times, "Hey, what do you want to talk to me about? Talk!"

After a long while, Tan Shen finally spoke, but this time he was surprisingly quiet.

He said, "Stand there, don't move."

Chu Qianmiao stood still, not moving.

Tan Shen said again, "Put your phone away so I can see you."

Chu Qianmiao grunted, extending her arms so he could see her full body through the phone.

Tan Shen's eyebrows knitted together.

"I'm angry!" Tan Shen said.

Chu Qianmiao held up her phone and asked, "What's wrong with you, Young Master Shen?"

Tan Shen was so angry he stopped talking. "You've never dressed this nicely for me before. As soon as I left the country, you started dressing up!"

"………………"

Chu Qianmiao was speechless.

"Brother, when I was in school, I was a student. How could I have the chance to dress like this? I'm here for the Hanhai Home Textiles launch reception!"

Besides—

"And whether I'm dressed up or not, why do you mind? We've been apart for five hundred years, okay?"

Tan Shen went into angry, chatty mode.

"Then I don't care. I'm just angry!"

"Can't you be angry after a breakup? Can't you be lenient about a breakup? I'm angry, so what?!"

"Chu Qianmiao, I'm telling you, you have to take responsibility for coaxing me back!"

Chu Qianmiao was very determined: "If you want to be angry, then be angry. Anything else? If not, hang up now."

Tan Shen growled: "Hey, Chu Qianmiao! Don't hang up!"

After a pause, he suddenly looked annoyed: "I'm really angry! I beg you to comfort me, okay?"

Chu Qianmiao, annoyed by his brash temper, laughed: "Brother, how old are you this year? Um, twenty-six, rounding up to thirty. You're not a little prince anymore, okay? Can you wake up?"

Tan Shen still looked annoyed: "I don't care. Go back to your room right now, or put on a coat to cover your shoulders and cleavage! Ah! You're really driving me crazy! Can you please put away your flamboyant beauty?!"

Chu Qianmiao found his expression, which she couldn't tell if it was genuine or fake, increasingly amusing. She laughed as she walked down the stairs, giggling.

Inadvertently, she missed a step, lost her grip on her phone, and sent it flying over the banister. She instinctively leaned forward to reach it, but she leaned too far, too hard, and couldn't stop herself, nearly falling through the banister.

Her blood froze, and her ears buzzed. She imagined she would fall seconds later.

Footsteps echoed behind her, heavy and fast. In just two, a fraction of a second, she carried someone behind her. An arm wrapped around her waist, pulling her back from the brink of collapse.

Chu Qianmiao was spun around by the immense force, then slammed into an embrace.

A hand cradled the back of her head. The man, one arm around her waist and the other protecting the back of her head, pressed her against his chest. He spun her around, moving her away from the potentially dangerous stair railing.

Chu Qianmiao's ears were filled with the pounding of her heart, unsure if it was her own or the chest beneath which her ear was pressed.