As night fell over the city, three figures appeared in front of the Wangzha Bar, the hottest hang - out for young people.
Li Duo slung his arm around Xie Bingxia's shoulder like a buddy and said, "Goddess, I know you've been really tired lately. I specially brought you here to relax."
Qin Feng moved Li Duo's arm off Xie Bingxia and glared at him. "The Thai massage parlor next door is more relaxing." The bar was a mixed - up place with all kinds of people. Qin Feng was really afraid that Xie Bingxia wouldn't like it.
Xie Bingxia raised her chin. "Great. I feel like having a drink today. Li Duo, you're treating."
"Sure thing!" Li Duo led the way for them. They found an empty table in the bar and sat down. He skillfully ordered a bottle of blended whisky from the waitress. The drinks were quickly served. Li Duo picked up a glass and clinked it with Xie Bingxia's. "The goddess is truly a goddess. She's always at the forefront of public opinion. A person of the moment, just like that."
Li Duo was obviously referring to Xie Bingxia's cheating in the unified exam yesterday and her voluntary withdrawal from school. Qin Feng gave him a light knock on the head. He was really bringing up the wrong topic. Xie Bingxia waved it off casually and downed half a glass of wine in one gulp. "It's okay. I did it voluntarily."
Qin Feng quickly comforted her. "It must be Yuan Yiyun's doing! The Yuan family is on its last legs. She's just jealous and used her connections in school to frame you. Don't be afraid. Leave this to me. I'll definitely clear your name."
"No need." Xie Bingxia turned and clinked her glass with Qin Feng's. "I got into school through the Yuan family's connections. I didn't really want to stay there anyway. Now it's just right. I'll withdraw and owe them nothing."
"You've been in school for almost half a year..." Qin Feng felt quite sorry. Seeing that Xie Bingxia really didn't care, he asked, "What are you going to do next?"
Xie Bingxia thought for a while. "I'll go to Xie Shuwen's company."
"Wow, the goddess is going to be a boss ahead of time! Congratulations!" Li Duo refilled Xie Bingxia's glass. "Cheers!"
"Cheers!" Xie Bingxia tilted her head back and finished a whole glass. Qin Feng quickly advised, "Drink slowly. This wine has a strong after - effect."
Rarely free from thoughts, Xie Bingxia let the alcohol numb her nerves. She was extremely happy. She played finger - guessing games and drank with Li Duo. After several glasses, her face was as red as a tomato. Qin Feng was worried and snatched the glass from her hand. "Have some fruit. Don't just drink."
Xie Bingxia pointed at the colorful dance floor and shouted excitedly, "I want to dance!"
"I'll go with you..." Qin Feng was about to stand up when he was grabbed by the half - drunk Li Duo. "Don't... go. Stay and drink with me." He then looked for Xie Bingxia, but she had already disappeared into the dance floor.
On the dance floor, the writhing bodies were like burning flames, going wild unrestrainedly to the deafening rock music. Xie Bingxia felt that everything in front of her was shining. She moved and swayed to the music, as if she could shake off all her troubles like this.
"Beauty, are you alone?" Two young and handsome guys came over while dancing. "Do you mind dancing with us?"
"Not at all!" Xie Bingxia smiled at them. The guys immediately came up for a close - contact dance, sandwiching her between them. Xie Bingxia was really drunk and lost herself in the deafening music. She didn't notice at all that the two guys were planning to take advantage of the chaos and grope her.
Just as they were about to make a move, they were suddenly stared at by a pair of cold eyes. An invisible sense of oppression hit their brains. They glanced at each other, swallowed hard, and silently backed away and fled from Xie Bingxia.
Xie Bingxia felt that the space around her was empty. She wondered, "Hey, where did they go?" Then she bumped into a strong body and fell into a familiar embrace.
Gu Bei was like an immovable Buddha, standing out conspicuously in the crowd of revelers. Xie Bingxia struggled out of his arms and found another place to continue dancing. Gu Bei quickly followed and stuck close to her. Everyone around saw this "Buddha" and gave them a wide berth, throwing strange looks.
Xie Bingxia deliberately avoided looking at Gu Bei. She said irritably, as if talking to herself, "What a strange guy! This is a dancing place. If you don't dance, why just stand there stupidly?"
"Go back to school. I'll handle the cheating thing for you." The "Buddha" finally spoke.
"What? What did you say? The music is too loud. I didn't hear you!" Xie Bingxia pretended to be stupid on purpose. She had no intention of being obedient at all.
Gu Bei suppressed his temper and grabbed her. "Stop dancing. Let's go outside and talk." He didn't use much strength, and Xie Bingxia easily shook him off. "Hey, watch your behavior. Molesting someone in public will land you in jail."
Just then, Qin Feng found her. Xie Bingxia put her right arm around Qin Feng's and said to Gu Bei, "My boyfriend is here. Why don't you leave quickly?"
"Boyfriend?!"
"Boyfriend?"
Qin Feng and Gu Bei said in unison, one in a surprised tone and the other full of suspicion.
"Yeah. If it's not him, is it you?" Every word of Xie Bingxia was full of provocation. Gu Bei glanced coldly at Qin Feng and said, "Okay. Have a good time."
Xie Bingxia was a bit surprised that Gu Bei gave in so easily. Qin Feng took his hand back from hers and said unhappily, "He's gone. You don't need to act anymore." Then he walked out of the dance floor. Xie Bingxia followed and apologized repeatedly, "Sorry, Qin Feng. I shouldn't have used you."
"I'm not angry that you used me. I'm angry that you only want to use me!" Qin Feng was extremely annoyed. Xie Bingxia didn't understand the meaning for a moment and tilted her head to look at him.
"Ah, forget it. Let's drink." Qin Feng also filled his glass. He swallowed the words "When you were using me, didn't you have the slightest feeling for me?" with difficulty.
Li Duo was observant. He immediately saw what was on Qin Feng's mind and quickly ordered another round of drinks. He insisted on getting drunk tonight.
The three of them played until late at night. They stopped only when Li Duo and Xie Bingxia couldn't drink anymore. Qin Feng had also drunk a lot, but he was still relatively sober. After Li's family secretary picked up their young master, Qin Feng helped Xie Bingxia out of the bar.
There was a G - class Mercedes parked by the roadside in front of the bar. Gu Bei was leaning against the car door, smoking. Had he been waiting outside all this time? Qin Feng walked over. Gu Bei met his gaze and said, "Give her to me."
Qin Feng hesitated. Gu Bei added, "I'm her guardian."
"She's very drunk. You can't take advantage of her." Qin Feng's words were full of warning. Gu Bei smiled faintly. "Don't worry. I'm not a hot - headed teenager like you in puberty."
"A gentleman's word is final." Only after Qin Feng stared at Gu Bei and saw him nod did he feel relieved and hand Xie Bingxia over to him.
Back home, Gu Bei took Xie Bingxia to her room. Seeing that she was drunk and still making finger - guessing gestures with her hands, she looked extremely cute.
Heh, who said I'm a gentleman? I've taken advantage of people plenty of times before. One more time won't hurt. Gu Bei took off his coat, untied his tie, leaned over Xie Bingxia, and whispered, "Silly girl, you're unique. No one can replace you."
The next morning, Xie Bingxia woke up with a splitting headache. Her body felt as if it had been run over by a wheel repeatedly. After getting drunk in the bar last night, her memory was fragmented, but she remembered the burning heat all over her body and the name that had been repeatedly called in her ear.
It was "Bingxia".
Gu Bei was standing in front of the dressing mirror, tidying up his suit. Seeing that she was awake, he said, "I told Xiaomei to make some hangover soup. Drink it and then go to school. I've taken care of everything."
"I'm not going!" Xie Bingxia refused. "There's no room for negotiation about dropping out. And I don't need your help."
Gu Bei glanced at his watch and didn't argue with her anymore. "I have an important meeting this afternoon. I won't be able to accompany you tonight." He originally wanted to kiss Xie Bingxia on the forehead before leaving, but she hit his hand away with a pillow.
"Beast!" The little white rabbit seemed to finally remember last night's passion. Her face blushed to the roots of her ears. Gu Bei smiled proudly and contentedly. Under Xie Bingxia's angry gaze, he left the "crime scene".
In the afternoon, there was a hastily - called general meeting of shareholders to discuss the investment in the North American market. After Gu Bei's repeated setbacks, he had made a fortune from the Yuan family's incident and raised a considerable amount of funds. As long as more than half of the shareholders passed the investment resolution today, he could make another comeback.
Gu Bei walked into the meeting hall confidently. All the major shareholders had already gathered. He scanned the whole room and found that one seat was empty - Xie Shuwen hadn't come yet.
"Uncle Xie isn't here yet. Let's wait for him." Gu Bei pulled out the chair at the main seat. Just as he sat down, a petite figure rushed in. "Sorry to keep you all waiting."