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墨書 Inktalez
"I... can't really say I know him... I've only seen him a few times!" As he spoke, Liu Jian stood up with a burst of energy, as if he had taken a stimulant. He quickly jumped off the bed and said, "If that's the case, I definitely have to go to this gathering! Let's go... change clothes!"
Autumn Wind stared with bewildered eyes, looking at Liu Jian as he busied himself again. However, her initial panic faded after a moment as she realized that given Yao Guanghao's current status, it should be him who was afraid of her. Their past together, along with the story related to Andrew, was enough to be a scandal that could frighten Yao Guanghao.
Thinking of this, Autumn Wind couldn't help but smile triumphantly, so she jumped off the bed and began to carefully groom herself in front of the mirror.
Autumn Wind knew exactly how to present herself for the gathering arranged by Yao Guanghao—delicate, exquisite, and even more exquisite. The biggest feature of Yao Guanghao's gatherings was that there were many "sisters" present; all kinds of women that every man hoped to see would appear. So even though Autumn Wind had already dressed up beautifully, she still felt insecure.
Before entering the private room, Autumn Wind repeatedly warned Liu Jian: "No staring at the beautiful girls, no talking nonsense, don't initiate conversations with Yao Guanghao, and no..."
Liu Jian nodded vigorously in agreement. "Okay, okay, okay... I won't move an inch without your orders!" After saying that, Liu Jian wrapped his arm around Autumn Wind's waist and pushed the door open.
Upon entering, however, they did not see the organizer Yao Guanghao. The entire party had a scattered feel to it; groups of three or five formed their own circles. There were also some women scanning the room with slightly confused looks in their eyes as they searched for suitable targets.
The flickering neon lights cast a soft glow, blending the scents of alcohol, flowers, and various perfumes into an ambiguous aroma. Women with exposed shoulders and flowing hair walked past Autumn Wind one after another.
Autumn Wind glanced around and quickly spotted Leo in a corner drinking red wine by himself. Beside him sat the equally gloomy Ina. Sighing, Autumn Wind pulled Liu Jian to sit on the sofa opposite Leo.
As expected, once Liu Jian sat down on the sofa, several women squeezed in beside him—each one more alluring than the last, looking as if they wanted to devour him whole.
Autumn Wind was undeterred; she firmly sat on Liu Jian's left side. Whenever a girl sat on Liu Jian's right side, Autumn Wind would push closer to him. Liu Jian had no choice but to politely ask the girls to leave. After a few rounds of this, Liu Jian found himself pushed against the wall with no space left on his left side for other women to approach. Autumn Wind triumphantly winked at Liu Jian, who shrugged helplessly but smiled back.
His smile was bright and filled with unmistakable happiness.
However, before Autumn Wind could bask in her triumph for long, Yao Guanghao pushed open the door and walked in. Immediately three women holding red cups surrounded him. Yao Guanghao forced a perfunctory smile as he distractedly engaged with them while his gaze wandered around the room. First landing on Leo sitting quietly in the corner and noticing his low spirits made him shift his attention until he spotted Autumn Wind.
Seeing Autumn Wind dressed so alluringly made Yao Guanghao unable to suppress a slight smile. To someone like him who had seen countless women, Autumn Wind's youthful innocence still exuded a strong allure. Lost in this thought, Yao Guanghao failed to notice Liu Jian sitting next to Autumn Wind.
But when he stepped out from the circle of beautiful women and sat down next to Autumn Wind while attempting to place his hand on her shoulder, he suddenly realized there was another arm resting there.
Yao Guanghao felt a bit startled; he looked up and immediately saw Liu Jian sitting beside Autumn Wind. His hand awkwardly froze in mid-air for a moment before he finally managed to say, "Autumn Wind... long time no see..."
At that moment, Yao Guanghao's startled expression also surprised Autumn Wind. After calming herself slightly, she forced out a smile in response to Yao Guanghao and then instinctively turned towards Liu Jian. Although Liu Jian didn't react immediately, Autumn Wind distinctly felt his hand resting on her shoulder tremble slightly.
Autumn Wind looked at Liu Jian in alarm; her heart raced as every pore seemed to open in fear. It appeared that Liu Jian hadn't noticed her unusual reaction; he stood up and gestured for them to switch places. Eventually, he sat between Autumn Wind and Yao Guanghao. To Autumn Wind's surprise, Liu Jian began chatting naturally with Yao Guanghao after settling down. Listening closely revealed that Yao Guanghao and Liu Jian had some business dealings before—something related to housing contract disputes or similar issues.
Liu Jian looked seriously at Yao Guanghao, with a hint of provocation and a sense of asserting his claim: "This is my fiancée, Autumn Wind!"
Liu Jian's appearance clearly caught Yao Guanghao off guard. His face twitched slightly, he exhaled softly, and then raised his cup towards Autumn Wind: "Congratulations to you both!" After saying this, he shook his cup, feeling the atmosphere was a bit awkward. Without waiting for Liu Jian and Autumn Wind's reaction, he squeezed himself into the crowd of women.
Liu Jian looked at Autumn Wind with a proud smile: "I did pretty well this time, right?"
Autumn Wind let out a gentle sigh, licked her lips with her tongue, raised her cup towards Liu Jian, took a sip, and set it down. However, her gaze drifted towards Leo, who was hiding to the side and drinking red wine by himself. At this moment, Ina had already left Leo and was sitting alone at the bar by the entrance, pouring herself drinks.
Perhaps when people are in a bad mood, they prefer to drink alone, as if only getting drunk is the best way out, Autumn Wind thought to herself.
Autumn Wind gently nudged Liu Jian with her arm, signaling him to go keep Leo company while she walked over to Ina.
Ina noticed that Autumn Wind was standing in front of her and lifted her head to glance at her. Her face was already slightly flushed, and her eyes sparkled for a moment but quickly dimmed under the influence of the red wine, as if covered by a layer of frosted glass. Then Ina reached out her hand to greet Autumn Wind but let it droop weakly instead. Finally, she simply picked up the cup on the table again and drank it all in one go.
Ina looked very pained; her flushed face displayed reluctance and helplessness. Faced with this pain, Autumn Wind couldn't analyze its origin. She watched as Ina's gaze became dazed before she began to tremble.
Seeing Ina like this made Autumn Wind feel even worse. She had never thought another woman could be more pitiful than herself. Ina's eyes constantly revealed her love for Leo, but not everything goes as one wishes; not every sincere love can find its rightful embrace.
There are always too many lovesick men and resentful women in this world who refuse to step out of the walls they have built for themselves, Autumn Wind thought. Fortunately, she was smart enough to free herself early on.
But as this thought crossed her mind, Autumn Wind felt guilty; her pores seemed to open up exaggeratedly. Had she really freed herself?
The clock had just passed eleven o'clock when Leo and Ina were already drunk beyond recognition. Leo staggered up from the corner, weaving through a wall of beautiful women before crashing into the bar at the entrance. Liu Jian nervously followed closely behind him and also approached the bar. At that moment, Ina surprisingly became clear-headed; she propped herself up and suddenly her dazed gaze turned clear before tears began to fall.
Leo had no intention of talking to Ina; he first stared intently at her face but then quickly turned his face towards Autumn Wind. His body swayed slightly as a slurred voice with a hint of Hakka accent came from him: "Darling... take me home... I think I'm drunk..." With that, his body suddenly leaned back sharply. Liu Jian reacted quickly and caught him from behind.
Leo's weight quickly became too much for Liu Jian to handle; he struggled painfully to support him while Autumn Wind wanted to help. At that moment, however, Ina burst into tears. Autumn Wind had no choice but to give up on helping Liu Jian and bent down to comfort Ina. While comforting Ina, Autumn Wind kept an eye on Liu Jian and Leo, trying to spot someone familiar in the crowd who could help.
Yao Guanghao glanced over in their direction; his gaze met Autumn Wind's for a brief moment. She frowned slightly and pondered before deciding to let Yao Guanghao come over to help. But just as she raised her hand halfway to look for Yao Guanghao again, she found that his attention was fixed on Liu Jian with an expression of fear on his face.
Then Yao Guanghao quickly sank into despair. Was he really that afraid of Liu Jian? Autumn Wind found it hard to understand.
Perhaps it was truly because of Liu Jian's presence that Yao Guanghao had not approached Leo all night long. Even when Autumn Wind and Liu Jian took Leo and Ina out of the nightclub at last, Yao Guanghao did not appear.
After a group of people left, the nightclub staff called a taxi. Liu Jian and Autumn Wind quickly helped Leo and Ina into the cab.
Ina seemed to still be holding onto some emotions. After getting in the car, she told the driver the destination, while Leo sat beside her with his eyes tightly closed, appearing completely unaware.
However, when the driver started the car, Leo suddenly opened his eyes as if resurrected from the dead. Mechanically, he leaned his head out the window and said, "I... tomorrow... send me your address..." After finishing, Leo pulled his head back inside and fell asleep again in a daze.
The driver started the car and sped away. Once the vehicle disappeared from view, Autumn Wind linked arms with Liu Jian and headed to the parking lot. Just as they found their car and before Autumn Wind could sit down, it began to rain lightly.
Inside the car, Autumn Wind gazed sadly at the cold curtain of rain. The scenery outside looked strangely familiar, yet she couldn't recall where she had seen it before.
In the drizzle, the lights on the road had already spread out, indicating another busy night. The old brass streetlights had long since lit up, casting a vintage glow.
Autumn Wind rolled down the window, and the playful drizzle blew in. She took out her phone and sent Leo the address of Liu Jian's apartment. When she looked up again, through the rain, she saw Yao Guanghao rushing out of the nightclub with a look of fear on his face!
Yao Guanghao glanced around and quickly spotted Liu Jian's departing car. He let out a long sigh of relief before turning back and re-entering the nightclub.
Seeing Yao Guanghao's somewhat dejected figure, Autumn Wind finally remembered that it had also rained like this when she returned from Beijing. Where were those who once stood by her side now?
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