Green Plum, Green Plum (19)
“Did I offend you?”
The entrance to the club required ascending a flight of stairs. Below the steps, there were glowing strips serving as decorative lights, currently shining in a golden hue, imparting a sense of opulence and extravagance.
Xu Jiao ascended the steps gracefully. As she approached Shen Yelan, she casually closed her umbrella, causing the water droplets on the transparent umbrella surface to gather at the white tip, tracing a long arc on the dark tiled floor.
Shen Yelan’s outfit was in stark contrast to hers. She wore a white, hip-hop style short-sleeve top adorned with large English letters and graffiti-like designs, paired with tight black jeans.
Their styles were similar, yet their color schemes were reversed, making it easy for an outsider to mistake them for close friends.
Xu Jiao’s gaze briefly brushed over Shen Yelan before she quickly looked away, not lingering for a moment longer than necessary. She slightly raised her eyes and greeted her, “Long time no see. Are you here to have fun too?”
As she spoke, Xu Jiao’s eyes traveled upwards to Shen Yelan’s head. It dawned on her that Shen Yelan seemed to be a bit taller than she remembered.
However…
She never really paid much attention to Shen Yelan’s height before.
As she recalled their past interactions, Xu Jiao realized that Shen Yelan was always falling for one reason or another. She was either looking up at Xu Jiao from a lower position, bowing her head, or awkwardly unsure where to place her gaze. In any case, her expressions always drew more attention than her height.
Unlike now.
Shen Yelan looked directly at Xu Jiao, hearing her familiar voice utter those four words right by her ear: “Long time no see.”
Indeed, it had been a long time.
Though their classes were next to each other, sometimes fate works in mysterious ways—
When she wanted to see Xu Jiao, it was as if she had an invisible radar. A casual glance up, and she could spot Xu Jiao within a ten-meter radius, silently sighing in her heart, “There she is again.”
But when she decided to sever this connection unilaterally…
She truly never saw Xu Jiao again.
No matter if it was between classes, during P.E., in the cafeteria, or coming and going from school. Shen Yelan even deliberately took different routes, choosing to walk in the opposite direction of Class 1’s restroom. Yet, inexplicably, they never even had a chance encounter.
It was as if fate sensed her wishes and snipped this ill-fated connection in line with her desires.
Thinking of this, Shen Yelan pressed her lips together, meeting Xu Jiao’s eyes head-on. Her voice fell, not too light, not too heavy, carrying a hoarseness it never had before:
“Long time no see.”
“It was Su Xi who invited me, saying we should celebrate your great achievement.”
Xu Jiao was momentarily stunned, then broke into a laugh. “That guy…” What’s going on? Inviting the top scorer to celebrate with the second highest in the province—what kind of messed-up logic is this?
Shen Yelan could hear the helplessness in her tone. Her eyes flickered slightly, like ripples disturbing a calm lake, and with a slightly hoarse voice, she spoke again:
“Actually, I wanted to congratulate you too, so I came over.”
Xu Jiao raised her eyebrows, then extended her right hand to her with a relieved smile, “Alright then, let’s celebrate together. Congratulations to you too; your score is incredibly high, really impressive.”
Shen Yelan lowered her gaze to look at the hand Xu Jiao had extended—
Her fingertips were still as white as if they could glow, tender and slender like fresh green bamboo shoots, with long, elegant fingers.
Perhaps because it hadn’t been long since she transitioned from a school troublemaker to a top student, she hadn’t spent much time holding a pen. Thus, her hands had no calluses, not even faint ones, making them enviably beautiful.
Seeing Shen Yelan not responding, Xu Jiao thought she had been too abrupt. Just as she was about to laugh it off and find a way to retreat gracefully, she felt a warm palm against hers.
It was much warmer than her own.
There was even… a very thin, almost imperceptible layer of moisture.
Was it sweat from the heat, or rainwater accidentally caught?
Shen Yelan released her grip just as quickly as she had taken it, with a politeness that felt as insincere as two politicians going through the motions. Xu Jiao blinked slowly, too lazy to overthink it, and withdrew her hand before taking the lead. “I’ll take you inside. You probably don’t know the room number, right?”
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Hearing her words, Shen Yelan answered silently in her heart:
No, I wanted to wait for you.
I wanted to see you as soon as possible.
But outwardly, she simply responded with a brief, “Mm.”
Xu Jiao shook her head with a smile, silently chiding Su Xi for being so careless. She led Shen Yelan inside. As soon as they walked through the door, they were greeted with enthusiastic welcomes, and a well-dressed manager approached to ask if they had a reservation.
……
The manager led the two of them to the elevator, and they noticed him pressing the button for the top floor.
Xu Jiao recalled some memories, quickly extracting details about Su Xi’s family from the original character’s inherited memories. These were settings that the author, herself, had never described, but were automatically filled in by the world’s system.
The owner of this club had a good relationship with Su Xi’s parents. When they were too busy to pick her up from school, they often had her brought here to stay in the office under supervision. So, most of the senior staff who had been around long enough recognized Su Xi and knew she was someone the owner favored.
These unfamiliar memories were like that—impossible to recall on a normal day, only surfacing under specific conditions, like keywords in a search bar.
Xu Jiao pressed her temple lightly, pondering the name of this club. She felt there was more to it than just this.
The system chimed in with a reminder: “Friendly reminder, the male lead Ouyang Hao is a regular at this club. When the male and female leads are in the same scenario, it is highly likely to trigger the plot.”
Xu Jiao’s face lit up with realization just as the elevator dinged, indicating they had reached the sixth floor.
The manager, still friendly, led them inside. Because it was an entertainment venue, the club’s hallway lights were dim. The light mainly came from wall sconces and hidden ceiling light strips, casting a hazy, dreamlike glow.
In this dim atmosphere, even if a turtle walked toward you, you’d think it looked rather charming.
Xu Jiao remembered the system’s reminder and glanced at Shen Yelan out of curiosity, wondering under what circumstances she might encounter the male lead.
Unexpectedly, as soon as she looked over, Shen Yelan’s eyes met hers.
Xu Jiao heard her ask softly, “What’s wrong?”
Completely unprepared for Shen Yelan’s sensitivity to others’ gazes, Xu Jiao paused for a moment before finding an excuse. “Nothing, I just wanted to ask, are you experiencing a late voice change? Your voice… it sounds quite different from before.”
Her question was met with a profound silence.
Shen Yelan hadn’t realized the change in her voice was so noticeable. She couldn’t help but touch her throat, her hand lingering around her Adam’s apple before she lowered it again. She didn’t tell the truth, merely responding vaguely, “Hmm.”
The lighting was too dim for Xu Jiao to see the subtle changes in Shen Yelan’s expression, but from the reply alone, she felt Shen Yelan was lying.
Strange.
They had only avoided each other at school for a little over a year. Why did it feel like Shen Yelan had changed so much?
It was as if she was surrounded by layers of mysteries.
How could a student give off such a vibe?
Just as Xu Jiao felt a spark of curiosity, the door to a nearby private room suddenly swung open with force, about to slam into her—
At the critical moment, Xu Jiao, who hadn’t had a physical altercation with anyone in a long time, realized she needed to dodge, but it was already too late!
Just when she thought she was bound to get hit, a force suddenly pulled her to the side. The door, swinging open with a fierce wind, missed her face by a hair’s breadth.
Xu Jiao’s heart pounded violently in her chest, but she didn’t blink. Her first instinct was to look in the direction behind the door, her eyes cold and devoid of any emotion.
She didn’t even notice how Shen Yelan managed to pull her away so swiftly and deftly.
Shen Yelan, feeling the slender waist under her grip, had eyes as dark as ink. Her fingers twitched slightly before she quickly withdrew her hand, turning her gaze towards the room.
A man dressed as a waiter had fallen heavily in front of them, the tray and wine glasses scattered across the carpet. He clutched his stomach, looking pained as he stared in the direction of the private room.
Inside stood a man with a cigar in his mouth, wearing a jacket with leopard print patterns, his expression arrogant and overbearing.
The situation was clear at a glance.
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The waiter had been kicked out.
The man with the cigar lazily unbuttoned his cufflinks, his voice dripping with sarcasm even through the muffled tone. “Take your fake wine and get lost. If you try to fool your grandfather again, it won’t end as mildly as today.”
The manager leading Xu Jiao and her group spoke up at this moment, “Oh my, Mr. Zou, what kind of misunderstanding has gotten you so worked up?”
As he spoke, he casually positioned himself in front of Xu Jiao and Shen Yelan, discreetly nudging the shoulder of the waiter on the ground with his toe, signaling him to leave quickly.
Hearing the voice, Mr. Zou, dressed in his leopard-print suit, lazily lifted his eyes to look. Then, he removed the cigar from his mouth and smiled at the manager, “Ah, Manager Zhou, just in time. Let’s get to the bottom of this. I’ve been a loyal customer here for years. I asked for a bottle of your finest red wine, and look at what they brought me. Is this something fit for human consumption? Who do they think they’re messing with?”
“Manager Zhou, if you don’t give me a satisfactory explanation today, I’m not letting this go. I have important guests inside discussing business. Just look at this.”
Mr. Zou flashed a rogue-like grin at the manager.
Manager Zhou feigned anger at the waiter, “You really don’t know how to behave. How dare you upset Mr. Zou? Get out of here right now—Mr. Zou, calm down. Let me take a look at this wine.”
He bent down to pick up the wine bottle and sniffed it lightly.
This was a bottle of red wine from the Romanée-Conti vineyard in Burgundy, averaging at 110,000 yuan per bottle. It’s known as one of the most expensive wines in the world and never sold individually. Typically, one bottle is included only when purchasing twelve bottles from other vineyard areas.
Some even call this wine the drink of billionaires.
Manager Zhou maintained a polite smile on his face, but in his heart, he cursed Mr. Zou as a “fool.” Based on his worth, Mr. Zou didn’t even deserve this wine. What was he throwing a tantrum for?
With a smile, he asked, “This wine… I can’t see any obvious problems. Mr. Zou, what exactly are you dissatisfied with?”
Mr. Zou waved his hand dismissively, “Everyone knows that an ’82 Lafite is the most valuable. Don’t try to fool me with this inferior stuff and dare to charge 150,000 yuan for it. What, do you think I’m just a rich fool?”
Manager Zhou: “…”
He was rapidly thinking of a way to resolve this issue caused by a client’s sheer ignorance.
Before he could come up with a solution, Mr. Zou’s gaze shifted past him and landed on a strikingly beautiful profile. The girl’s skin was so tender it seemed like you could squeeze water from it, yet her expression was icy cold. She looked just like those unattainable actresses he’d seen at high-society parties with Ouyang Hao a few days ago.
An idea struck him, and he immediately said, “Ah, but considering our long-standing relationship, we can make a big issue into a small one. Manager Zhou, did you bring any newcomers recently? How about introducing them to me?”
As he spoke, Mr. Zou’s eyes constantly darted towards Xu Jiao and Shen Yelan behind him.
Manager Zhou knew exactly what this lecher was thinking. There was no way he could let Mr. Zou mess with Su Xi’s guests. He immediately put on a fawning smile and said, “I don’t have any newcomers to introduce. Mr. Zou, you’re joking. These are our VIP guests.”
“Come on, they clearly look like minors. How could they be VIPs? You’re just trying to fool me. How about this: if you can get those two to have a drink with me today, I’ll forget this ever happened. What do you say?”
Manager Zhou: “…” He really wanted to curse out loud.
He had a big grin on his face, but inside he was cursing up a storm. Just as he was about to raise his hand and say something more, the two young girls behind him stepped forward. Xu Jiao leaned in and took a look at the wine in his hand, then commented fairly:
“The wine is not bad.”
Shen Yelan, afraid that Xu Jiao’s kindness might lead her to help Manager Zhou out of the mess, continued with a frosty expression:
“Drinking this wine isn’t out of the question.”
“But if I do, this matter won’t be up to you to decide anymore.”
Xu Jiao was quite surprised to hear Shen Yelan’s words. She turned her head to look at her, not expecting that the same girl who used to crumble at the slightest push was now spouting such harsh words without hesitation. She wondered who Shen Yelan had been learning from.
……
Inside the private room.
Ouyang Hao sat with his eyes closed, trying to relax, but his brows were slightly furrowed.
If it weren’t for the fact that his family had dealings with this Mr. Zou’s family, he wouldn’t want to spend even a second in the same place with him. He had no good habits, just a pile of bad ones.
He heard Mr. Zou making things difficult for someone outside and shifted his expression slightly. Turning to the person next to him, he said, “Dong Qing, go see what’s going on.”
Dong Qing heard the command but, unusually, did not follow her employer’s instructions. Instead, she curled her lips into a slight smile and said softly, “It’s nothing.”
“I know the people outside. Mr. Zou can’t stir up much trouble.”
After all—
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That was her best apprentice, personally trained by her.
Hearing the rare emotion in his bodyguard’s words, Ouyang Hao slowly opened his eyes, carefully discerning the meaning behind Dong Qing’s statement. He realized there was a hint of schadenfreude.
He furrowed his brows. Regardless of who Dong Qing’s schadenfreude was directed at, it was inappropriate. After all, he didn’t want any additional complications tonight. After a moment’s pause, he emphasized, “Go check it out.”
This meant it was an order that couldn’t be ignored.
Dong Qing wasn’t about to turn down her bonus, so she silently walked towards the door, ready to greet her apprentice.
“Mr. Zou, our President asked me to inform you that you might not know, but that was indeed the most expensive wine just now, far more valuable than the average price of an ’82 Lafite.”
While speaking, she inadvertently met Shen Yelan’s gaze, gave her a light wink with her right eye, and then shifted her scrutinizing look to Xu Jiao. With her eyes, she silently asked:
Who’s this?
Shen Yelan subtly moved to shield Xu Jiao from view.
Dong Qing raised an eyebrow, intrigued. Interesting, she thought.
No one noticed the subtle exchange between them. Manager Zhou secretly breathed a sigh of relief, while Mr. Zou’s face alternated between shades of green and white, clearly unsure who to vent his anger on. Xu Jiao, meanwhile, was still focused on the red wine.
Taking advantage of the momentary distraction, Manager Zhou quickly bid farewell to Mr. Zou and led the two women toward their reserved private room——
Mr. Zou, unwilling to let the opportunity slip through his fingers, stared at the door of the private room they entered for a while, clearly frustrated.