Yan was at a loss for words. After listening to Su Jiu’s honest remarks, she felt butterflies in her stomach. Coincidentally, Han Qing turned to focus on Yan across the crowd at that moment. Their gazes met in silence.
“Go ahead.” Su Jiu pushed Yan’s back lightly as a signal for her to continue forward.
Yan was rooted to the spot, as though she lacked the courage to move forward. Then, she glanced at Su Jiu in hesitation. Su Jiu responded with a smile. “What is it? President Han is waiting for you in front. He might enter the venue himself if you take any longer and you’d have wasted a trip tonight. Would you throw away this chance too?”
After Su Jiu’s gentle reminder, Yan realized that since she promised Han Qing to attend the banquet as his date, she should be brave enough to take the first step forward. I don’t want to leave. I have nowhere to go, but forward. “Thank you.”
Yan inhaled deeply while cheering for herself in her mind. Then, she walked toward Han Qing. Han Qing was tall and handsome while radiating a calm and steady aura. Thus, it felt like he had a halo around him as he stood there. The crowd kept turning toward him for a double take.
Those who attended the banquet today were mostly members of the upper class society. There were lots of parents who brought their daughters along for more exposure while getting to know some important figures—it was almost like a blind date. Parents with daughters naturally focused on Han Qing.
Many women already stared at Han Qing before they even entered the venue. Some parents commented with a sigh, “Stop looking. That man is a log and nothing will bloom out of it.”
Other parents, who heard that, added, “That’s right. I heard that he’s rejected countless women. He has never brought any women aside from his secretary to attend these banquets. However, I heard that the secretary has been married for years and she even has children.”
“Is it possible that he doesn’t fancy women? Maybe he likes men.”
“I don’t think that’s plausible because there’s no man around him. What’s scary is that he’s extremely disciplined in his work, rest and life schedule. I heard that President Huang invited him to a private room previously and had many beautiful women attend to them. They tried everything to seduce President Han, but he didn’t even pay any attention to any one of the women… ”
Someone hesitated before commenting, “I suppose there’s no hope after all.”
Then, there were women who refused to give up. One of them even tugged on her father’s sleeve. “Dad, somehow I feel like he hasn’t met the love of his life, which is why he’s been acting that way. If he is a heterosexual, that must be the reason. If he is not responsive, it shows that he has never encountered anyone in the past who was able to touch his heart. Why don’t we try our luck?”
The father was at a loss for words after listening to his daughter’s claims. She had tugged at his sleeve, but he felt that she sounded silly. Nevertheless, I must have spoilt her and that is why she’s saying such a foolish thing. He was about to reprimand his daughter, but the person in front of them turned to her suddenly. “What she said makes sense. What kind of men do not like women? The only plausible reason is that the woman is not pretty enough! Why don’t you go with her to try your luck? You will both accompany each other!”
The two young women exchanged glances as a trace of disdain flashed through their eyes. However, they acted as though they were best friends in the next second.
“Well, let’s go together.”
“Sure!”
Han Qing had his eyes glued on Yan all along. At first, he seemed indifferent, but he frowned gradually because a man had blocked Yan’s way suddenly when she was walking over. After that, the man smiled at Yan and it looked as if he spoke to her.
Han Qimg was extremely uncomfortable when he saw the two of them standing together. He pressed his lips together tightly, causing the temperature surrounding him to drop rapidly. He was about to march forward when two women blocked his way abruptly.
“President Han.”
“Good evening, President Han. I am Su Yaoyao from the Su Group. I saw you standing all alone from afar. I wonder if you’re waiting for someone.”
After seeing Su Yaoyao making the first move, the other woman didn’t want to be left behind and took several steps forward to stand beside Han Qing. She asked with a smile, “President Han, are you waiting for someone? Can I do anything for you?”
Looking at the two women, who currently blocked his way, Han Qing scowled while staring at them. “What is it?”
The two of them were stunned to silence because they never expected him to be so ruthless, hence, they were at a loss for words.
“Make way if there’s nothing.” Han Qing was usually polite and courteous, but the situation was slightly different now. He did not have the patience to be courteous with these two boring women.
Su Yaoyao’s expression changed slightly, but due to Han Qing’s strong and forceful presence, she had no choice but to take a couple of steps backward timidly. After that, she did not comment further.
The other woman called Yu Shan couldn’t help but mock at how useless Su Yaoyao was to back out so easily. She doesn’t have patience despite trying to seduce a man. She tried to flirt and retreated after she was told to move away. I can’t believe she has the audacity to flirt with her limited capabilities. She was determined to see through it, so she marched forward to put an arm around Han Qing’s shoulder. “Hey, President Han! I notice that you’re here alone. I’m here by myself today too. Can I invite you to be my date for tonight?”
Su Yaoyao’s expression changed drastically when she saw the sudden turn of events. She was slightly horrified while thinking to herself, Oh, damn it! Yu Shan got there first just because I was distracted. Nevertheless, Su Yaoyao swiftly calmed down because Han Qing’s expression had darkened instantly the moment Yu Shan wrapped an arm around him. In fact, his veins throbbed visibly against his temples and he radiated an intimidating aura.
“Let go of me.” Han Qing tried to maintain his last shred of chivalry.
Seeing that he didn’t push her away despite his anger, Yu Shan assumed that he didn’t dislike her. Hence, she tried to get closer to him, but the next thing she knew, he pushed her away.
“Ah!” a woman screamed suddenly. Su Yaoyao helplessly stared at Yu Shan, who had just smiled gleefully to her a second ago, being flung away. As a result, Yu Shan slumped on the ground in an embarrassing state. No one in attendance expected such a sudden turn of events. Some were even bewildered since they had no idea what just happened, while some were gleeful about it since they observed everything from the very beginning. Su Yaoyao was obviously one of those gloating over the incident. She was the one throwing herself at him. Luckily I retreated in time.
However, Han Qing never bothered to check on Yu Shan because he had already warned her to let go of him. Hence, she was responsible for whatever happened after.
On the other side, Yan never expected to be stopped by someone. The man wanted to invite her as his date for tonight since he saw her arriving alone. Initially, she stated politely that someone was already waiting for her. However, when the man asked who it was, Yan stammered, and so he refused to believe her.
“There is no one waiting for you in reality, is there? To be honest, you don’t have to be afraid of me. I’m not a bad guy. I just noticed that you’re too beautiful, which is why you caught my attention. I’ve never had someone attend a banquet with me. In fact, you are the first one.” After he said that, the man seemed pleased with his flawless compliment, figuring that Yan would be moved.
However, a deep and gravelly voice interrupted suddenly, “Is that so?”
