Despite all the anxiety bottled within himself for a punctual arrival, he quickly returned home to grab a tuxedo before heading towards the venue of the party. Nonetheless, he was already noticeably late.
Watching the dispersing foreign crowd and their staff, Yang Chen painstakingly facepalmed, as he awkwardly held onto his phone before he dialed Lin Ruoxi’s number.
Before the phone could connect, the call was hung up immediately!
Yang Chen was stiff and immensely uneasy, once again in the realization that he messed up big time. The only remedy he could think of was to dial Zhao Hongyan’s number. She was Lin Ruoxi’s right-hand woman. He was certain that she was by her side.
After a long, hesitant delay, Zhao Hongyan ultimately picked up. “Is there anything, Yang Chen?”
Yang Chen chuckled. “Quit beating around the bush, where’s Ruoxi?”
What came right after was a raspy voice from a close distance. “Hongyan, hang up. We have better things to tend to!”
Zhao Hongyan, caught in the middle, could only fake a laugh. “Yang Chen, there will be more guests coming by later this afternoon. Go to the meeting hall now alright, your seat has been vacant the entire morning now.”
Finally getting a grasp of where he was needed, Yang Chen then proceeded to inquire about his whereabouts from several passing staff but eventually making his way to the center convention hall.
Right at its core was an enormous, circular table more or less fully occupied by men and women in a variety of clothing and outfits. Yang Chen recognized none of them.
Lin Ruoxi sat at the far end by a commanding position, shifting her gaze at her husband anxiously barging into the scene. He even grinned stupidly at her! She suddenly wished at that very moment that she had no ties to that revolting man.
Just the night before, she perceived a change in his attitude. But less than a day later, he was back to his impulsive, ignorant self.
Yang Chen adjusted his slightly disarrayed tuxedo, disregarding the scornful looks from across the room.
Nonetheless, once he made himself comfortable and sat down, a quick glance instantly brought about a distasteful frown.
In a sky-blue Armani suit and a tie, resonating a vibe nothing less of suave and masculinity, was Li Jianhe from the class reunion!
Li Jianhe seemed to be in a rather jolly mood as he engaged Yang Chen with a smile. “Director Yang has finally arrived I see. I was about to say how much a pity it would be if I didn’t get to meet you again.”
After picking up on Yang Chen’s title of ‘director’, as called by Li Jianhe, everyone finally took to realize that the corny-looking fellow who came late was actually the director of Yu Lei Entertainment.
Yang Chen squinted his eyes without a word before he focused his gaze on Lin Ruoxi.
Lin Ruoxi seemed rather nervous, afraid that Yang Chen would misunderstand. She quickly clarified, “Mr Li is here as a representative for BMW’s Asian division, which explains his attendance today.”
Yang Chen gave a rather unenthusiastic glance at Li Jianhe before he smiled relaxedly. “Oh I see, but I guess introductions aren’t necessary. My memory is rather bad after all, I can’t for the life of me seem to remember him.”
“Mr Yang must be joking.” Li Jianhe awkwardly smirked. Nonetheless, with Yang Chen’s superior background in mind, he had to swallow his pride as he gracefully added. “Don’t mind if I reintroduce myself. I guess we did meet once before Mr Yang, at President Lin’s campus reunion.”
Yang Chen was hardly bothered by his remarks as he turned towards a fat, bald, middle-aged man by his side. “Nice haircut you have there sir. I’ve always wanted to shave my head bald, but my wife wouldn’t let me. It sucks to be born with this simple face of mine. But I guess she’s right, if I actually did shave, I guess only nuns would fall for me.”
The intentional change of conversation blatantly left Li Jianhe hanging, as he froze to his spot.
The bald man replied in a deep, growling tone as he burst into laughter. “It gets pretty hot these days. The bald head really comes in handy. Oh yeah, Director Yang, I heard you’re President Lin’s husband, aren’t you? Your lasting and affectionate relationship sure is an envy to us all, but President Lin is also renowned to be a perfectionist.”
Everyone else started giggling at their seats. As people in the business, they knew right off the bat what Li Jianhe’s goal was. Despite his aggressive approach, he ultimately fell flat, which indirectly gained praise for the Yang couple.
Lin Ruoxi was rather unprepared for the fiasco, as she cleared her throat before announcing the commencement of the meeting.
Li Jianhe sat idly by his seat, with an unwavered smile, like a man behind a mask.
It was instead Yang Chen who was comparatively reckless and impudent. People started gossiping about how mismatched he and Lin Ruoxi were.
But obviously, it was nothing but factless assumptions.
As the meeting progressed throughout the afternoon, lines after lines of business terminologies were passed from one end to the other, which unsurprisingly led Yang Chen catching himself dozing off from time to time. It was only until Hannya arrived at the venue did she record important notes on Yang Chen’s behalf.
At long last, dusk crept up to the party and the meeting had finally come to a close. The crowd subsequently dispersed to their own five-star accommodations courtesy of Yu Lei International, awaiting nightfall for the most crucial event of the entire schedule. It was at the banquet when the A-listers finally made their appearance.
Lin Ruoxi shook hands with the most significant of the meeting guests, and only after did she ultimately depart from the venue herself. As host, courtesy was one thing she would not slack upon.
Yang Chen carefully waited by the side as Lin Ruoxi went through her formalities. He was preparing himself to shower her with songs of praises. But after Lin Ruoxi assigned several tasks to Zhao Hongyan, she made her way straight towards the VIP waiting room.
Yang Chen frustratedly tailed behind her as they both entered into her private break room. Lin Ruoxi, on the other hand, gave no attention to him as she hurried into the fitting room, carefully swapping her work attire for an adequate ball-gown.
Yang Chen who was left in the dust sat dispiritedly by the couch, moaning and yawning on what he should do next.
After some cold, hard contemplation, Yang Chen turned to Lin Ruoxi in the fitting room. “Wifey, why aren’t you talking to me? Are you still mad? I mean I did say I would do anything to break the ice, but I didn’t mean you should test that out!”
His remarks prompted hardly any response from the fitting room, not until three long minutes later, a tiny peep crack revealed from within as the door creaked open.
The first to follow was a crystalloid pair of red heels paired to a fair, supple pair of legs, before Yang Chen’s eyes were blessed with a breezy lace dress, elegantly shielding much of her poignant legs as it shied away from the limelight.
Barely half of Lin Ruoxi’s silhouette made its way past the door, but Yang Chen was mortified beyond belief.
Her tiny waist paired with those voluptuous curves made for curvature resembling that of Greek goddesses. The vibe she resonated with was unparalleled to anything he had witnessed before.
In the eyes of the beholder, she was akin to that of the holy mother, sacred and pure, while simultaneously eluding a tinge of exoticism.
Lin Ruoxi noticed Yang Chen’s bewitchment as she was filled with glee, but nonetheless still kept a sense of caution as she confronted from mere embarrassment. “How do I look?”
Yang Chen stiffly nodded, before he then shook his head.
Lin Ruoxi frowned upon his mixed response. “That’s it? What’s that supposed to mean?”
“A nod is when you’re pretty, a shake of the head is when…” Yang Chen took a huge gulp before he continued, “Is when it exceeds what could possibly be defined by the word ‘pretty’…”
Lin Ruoxi let out a sigh of relief. Her silky-smooth hair fluttered ever so slightly in the wind as she hop-skipped her way out of the fitting room. She then took an elegant spin as the fabrics on her body glided with the air like an orchid blooming in full glory, the air scented with sweet jasmine.
“There’s going to be a good number of A-list celebrities attending tonight. There will be some renowned directors and writers, even an internationally acclaimed legend would be in attendance today.
“That is why as host I need to at least put in some effort to look presentable. I might not be from the entertainment industry, but I have Yu Lei’s image on my back, and I have to be nothing but stunning today.” Lin Ruoxi took a deep breath.
“It might be slightly tight by the waist but there isn’t time left for me to fit into another, besides, I’ve spent the better half of this afternoon deciding on this dress—Ahh!”
Lin Ruoxi’s sudden shriek was from Yang Chen’s impulsive embrace as he clung onto her body!
“What… are you doing?! You’re messing up my outfit!” Lin Ruoxi perplexingly pushed Yang Chen’s face away.
But Yang Chen, on the other hand, was unfazed as he went straight to her fair, alluring neck and gave it a few smooches. “Darling, I think you should get a new dress. I’m worried about those superstars out there who would be intimidated to hell with how stunning you are right now!”
