Ning Li went over to Gu Siyang.
“What a surprise to see you here.”
“Me too!”
Gu Siyang put his phone away. He was slightly disappointed that he had not received the message he had been waiting for.
He grinned. “Ji Shu finalized his contract today, right? I’m here for the party as well.”
Ning Li raised a brow at him.
“Do they know that you are…”
Gu Siyang gestured with a glance. “Shhh… They don’t know my real identity. We only just met each other at Xiaosong Hill’s race the other day.”
Ning Li understood.
Gu Siyang had come to the party as a fellow racing enthusiast, not the boss of LY.
Ji Shu and friends came over and curiously sized both of them up.
“Hey, Sister Lili, do you guys know each other?”
Gu Siyang excitedly said, “Sister Lili, right? Her reputation precedes her. We ran into each other once before, the other day.”
Ning Li nodded and played along to help him keep his identity a secret.
“Yeah. Once.”
Delighted, Ji Shu said, “Great! I thought you would be uncomfortable around someone new, Sister Lili. But since you guys know each other, shall we go in together?”
Ji Shu and Gu Siyang had only met a few times, but they were both racing enthusiasts. One was even an up-and-coming racer.
Gu Siyang might suck at racing but he had clicked with Ji Shu pretty well.
Ning Li nodded.
…
Ignite was a club run by Ji Shu and his friends. Both floors of the club were designed with a post-apocalyptic concept.
There was already a crowd in the club at this hour and a band was playing music at the stage on the first floor, boosting the already present liveliness of the place to the next level.
Ji Shu led the group up to the second floor. They were able to see the downstairs view from the railing from the second floor which was relatively quieter.
Ning Li sat on the single-seater couch while the others crammed together on the longer one.
Ji Shu and Gu Siyang sat on either side of her.
Ji Shu ordered some beer and a glass of lemonade just for Ning Li.
The waiter served a platter of mixed fruits to Ning Li.
“This has been prepared specially for Sister Ning Li. None of you monkeys are allowed to have any of it.”
Gu Siyang was impressed. He had heard that Ji Shu and Ning Li were close, but had not expected such special treatment.
He had actually competed in several races with the group and they had socialized a lot. These were outwardly proud and short-tempered young men, but in front of Ning Li, they were like obedient little lambs.
It felt strange because the last time Gu Siyang had met Ning Li, she had given him the impression of being a quiet and obedient girl.
If not for the racing clip, he would have thought that they were different people.
“Come on guys, relax.”
Gu Siyang leaned back against the couch.
“We are friends, just relax! Order whatever you want!”
Ji Shu and his friends looked at him strangely.
This was their club, not his.
Gu Siyang ignored their stares and turned to Ning Li.
“So Ning Li, today’s a Friday. It’s rare to see you out on a weekday.”
Ji Shu uncorked a bottle of beer with a pop.
He cackled. “Of course Sister Lili is here! She’s here to celebrate my big day! She’s here because of me!”
He raised the bottle to perform a toast for Ning Li.
“Sister Lili, I couldn’t have done it without you.”
If not for Ning Li’s advice, he would have signed on to FN and LY would not have happened.
FN was a great place but after considering all aspects, his heart leaned towards LY.
He was glad that he had taken Ning Li’s advice.
Ning Li raised her glass of lemonade to clink with his bottle.
Her lips formed a smile as she looked at the happy boy. “Congratulations, Ji Shu.”
The wheel of fate had been deflected since a certain point in time.
Ji Shu was over the moon.
“Bottom’s up! Sister Lili, just do the best you can.”
He drained the bottle of wine to the last drop while the others cheered him on.
“Ji Shu, one bottle is not enough! You’ve signed with LY and Sister Lili is here! I think you have to finish a dozen!”
“I know, right? You are the best out of all of us!”
“Sister Lili can’t drink, but she can watch you drink! Am I right, Sister Lili?”
The others stared at her, waiting for her permission.
Gu Siyang found it strange but amusing at the same time.
“Why do you guys have to ask for Ning Li’s permission to drink?”
They were like children begging for permission from their guardian.
The young men shot a wry look at him.
This dumb new guy from Jingcheng knew nothing about the custom here.
Ning Li grinned. “It’s Ji Shu’s big day, you guys go ahead and have fun. But, no one is allowed to get behind the wheel for 3 days.”
The boys were over the moon with her permission at first, but then they froze after a fraction of a second.
“Three days?! Three days are enough for a bird to nest in my car!”
“I’m still young and my metabolism is still strong. How about one day? Or two?”
“Sister Lili!”
Ning Li glanced at them.
They were silenced together as they slowly retreated.
“Hmm, three days sounds okay.”
“I stayed up late recently. I’ll be able to sleep at home for three days now! Thank you, Sister Lili!”
“Sister Lili, you are the best!”
Ji Shu opened the other bottles of beer with the opener and joked, “Three days? You guys are a bunch of wimps!”
Ning Li turned to him.
The glare from her made him sit up straight instantaneously.
“I’ve called my driver! He will fetch me around for the next week!” Ji Shu surrendered almost instantly.
The other boys ganged up on him.
“You wimp!”
Gu Siyang was impressed.
The Ning Li he was seeing tonight was unlike the Ning Li he had seen when she was with Lu Huaiyu.
He could not put his finger on what the difference was, but something was definitely different.
He then finished half a bottle of beer in one go.
The flashy lights shone across Ning Li’s face. She leaned back with her glass of lemonade and relaxed with a lazy smile.
Gu Siyang accidentally caught a glimpse of her and a thought came into his mind.
‘Hmm? Ning Li looks a little familiar… she’s like…like…’
Buzz!
His phone on the table suddenly buzzed and the caller ID gave him a moment of epiphany.
Lu Huaiyu!
Ning Li resembled Lu Huaiyu when she was laid-back and relaxed! The similarities were uncanny!
He grabbed his phone, put his finger to his lips, and hushed the others.
“Quiet! Quiet! I have a call coming!”
Ji Shu and the others quieted down.
One of the boys teased, “At your age, do you still have someone checking up on you?”
“Shoo!” Gu Siyang gave a look of disgust.
“It’s a call from my God of Prosperity! Shut up and everything will be on me tonight!”
There were only a few people that Gu Siyang called the God of Prosperity.
Ji Shu and his friends exchanged a quick look before zipping up their mouths.
Ning Li took a sip of lemonade.
Gu Siyang answered the phone and said eagerly, “Second Master Lu!”
Ning Li almost choked on her lemonade.
