16 | Sixteen Roses
During the kiss, Tang You's hands remained hanging by her sides, shaking uncontrollably.
She was very nervous.
So nervous that when Xiao Zexing let her go, her heart was still beating uncontrollably violently.
Compared with the sudden kiss last time, this one was perfectly in line with her teenage fantasies.
Tender and loving.
Of course, it would be better if she knew the identity of the person before her.
After a short period of breathlessness, Tang You's cheeks were all red. They were not only red, but also hot.
She was indescribably flustered.
Something made a “beep” sound.
It broke the silence in the room.
Tang You took a step back and spoke with a shaky voice, “……you have to keep your word.”
Xiao Zexing smiled, “I’ve never gone back on the promises I make.”
Tang You felt dizzy; she nodded and was just about to leave, when he called out to her, “Youyou.”
She turned around.
Xiao Zexing stood still under the warm glow of the light, smiling, “We’ve not eaten yet, aren't you hungry?”
Tang You wasn’t feeling hungry just now.
After a series of twists and turns, she felt like she was already full.
But now that Xiao Zexing reminded her, she felt that it would be fine to have something to fill her stomach too.
She properly sat back down, and Xiao Zexing pressed a button.
Within five minutes, the waiter immediately pushed in a room service trolley and started serving up the dishes respectfully.
One after another, the dishes filled up the entire table; each dish was not particularly large, but there were 18 dishes, each showcasing a different flavour.
As for the tuna sashimi that Deng Jue had lavished praise on, Tang You only tasted a little bit before putting down her chopsticks.
She was still not used to eating raw food; it was also because of this that she rarely had steak.
Although gourmets have always advocated for medium-rare, to Tang You, as long as it wasn’t fully cooked, she did not dare to eat it.
However, the other dishes tasted pretty good.
Tang You ate to her heart's content.
She asked, “There are only two of us, why did you order so much? It’s not part of some scheme, is it?”
Xiao Zexing poured a glass of wine elegantly, smiled and raised his eyebrows. “Then, what do you think I might be scheming?”
Tang You thought about it. “Maybe you don't want me to figure out your taste preferences, so I can't determine where your hometown is?”
Xiao Zexing asked nonchalantly, “Have you figured it out yet?”
No.
Xiao Zexing didn't seem to have moved his chopsticks much.
Tang You squeezed her chopsticks and hesitated, “Aren't you hungry?”
Xiao Zexing gazed at her and smiled: "There’s a beauty to feast my eyes on.”
Boom.
Tang You thought she was no longer a young girl of 17 or 18, but she still flushed at this sudden remark, and was at a loss for words.
Even when she went back to her room, the temperature of her face had not gone down.
Tang You hugged the pillow, tossing and turning, unable to sleep.
She suddenly realised.
She hadn’t managed to figure out that person’s taste.
But the other party had been able to completely ascertain her preferences in food and drink.
Tang You suddenly realised that she didn’t seem to have the slightest chance of winning the game they were playing.
The next day, many people invited Tang You to join them, but she refused them all.
She didn’t have a mobile phone now, and she didn’t have a list of the invitees either. At this point, she had reached a dead end. They were leaving the island by boat this evening, and she was about to lose the bet. Tang You was glad that she had not agreed on any penalty for losing.
But she still couldn't resist having a video call on QQ with Miao Jiaxi.
Miao Jiaxi was still bewildered when she had finished speaking, “Say, that man spent so much time playing with you, why is that?”
Tang You thought about it, and replied, “At first, I thought he wanted to sleep with me.”
Miao Jiaxi asked anxiously, “Then? What happened?”
“Later, I found out he didn't seem to have such intentions.”
Xiao Zexing only asked for a kiss in the end.
However, Miao Jiaxi became excited at this, and went straight to the heart of the matter, “He's not trying to woo you, is he?”
Tang You denied the possibility decisively, “It shouldn’t be the case.”
Looking back on it carefully, she had been acting rather two-faced all this while. Putting everything else aside, Xiao Zexing was privy to the way she changed her behaviour according to who she was dealing with. Unless he had a special fetish, there was no way he would like her.
Miao Jiaxi assumed Ikkyu-san’s1 pose and rapped on her head, “Although I still can't quite figure out the situation, but Youyou, it somehow feels like you've gotten into a load of trouble.”
Tang You remained silent.
She still didn’t know that man’s identity.
As his eyes were similar to Xiao Weijing's, he must be related to the Xiao family.
And since he had said so, he definitely wasn’t Xiao Weixi. Next, she could rule out the elders: Xiao Zeyan, Xiao Zezhi, Xiao Zexing, etc.
He said that he could help her to break off the engagement, so his status shouldn’t be too low.
Juding from his appearance, he wasn’t that much older than she was, and was probably about the same age as Xiao Weijing.
Not in China in the past few years…
The conditions were listed down one by one; Tang You sat on the sofa, looking at her notes despondently.
She began to regret not paying much attention to the Xiao family's network of extended relatives before, which led her to being at a loss for clues now.
Tang You was still listless when she boarded the yacht to leave the island.
She wandered about in the crowd, but didn't catch any sight of Xiao Zexing.
Why wasn’t that person here?
It seemed that he hadn't looked for her again all day either.
In the midst of her daze, Deng Jue smiled and asked, “Little Tang You, what are you looking at?”
He was finally not addressing her as ‘sister-in-law’.
Tang You retracted her gaze and said coldly, “Nothing much.”
“You're looking for my brother, right?”
“No!”
Deng Jue grinned, revealing a mouthful of big white teeth, “Something cropped up and he left early in the morning. He asked me to take care of you before he left, but I didn't expect that you didn’t come out at all the entire day… What's wrong? Are you not feeling well today? Why didn’t you go swimming either?”
Tang You said, “I'm afraid of the water.”
Deng Jue froze, completely taken aback, “Afraid of water? Didn't you win the Xijing Junior Swimming Championship when you were in junior high?”
“It was just an amateur event,” Tang You explained. “There was an accident, and I haven't been in the water since then.”
Deng Jue studied her expression as she spoke.
During the whole conversation, except for the slight agitation at the mention of Xiao Zexing, she was very calm otherwise, as if she were only talking about something extremely ordinary.
The sea breeze was salty and carried a faint fishy smell.
The new mobile phone was delivered only when it was almost time to leave the island. Tang You couldn’t help but suspect that Xiao Zexing had tampered with it.
Immediately after logging on to WeChat, Tang You received a message from him.
She tucked her wind-swept hair behind her ear and looked carefully.
She had forgotten to change the nickname she had given Xiao Zexing; it was still ‘Xiao Trash’.
Xiao Trash: [ Still haven't found the answer? ]
Tang You thought for a while, then carefully typed out the clues she had found so far.
At the end, she remarked, “I don’t know who you are. Since I’ve lost, I won’t ask anymore. There’s just one thing—I hope you can abide by the agreement and keep my secret.”
Tang You no longer had the time to mull over who on earth he was anymore, nor the spare leisure to investigate his true identity.
Tang You also didn’t pin much hope that this person could help her successfully break off the engagement. She only hoped that he wouldn’t reveal what had happened recently.
Anyway, she didn’t intend to marry Xiao Weijing, so there shouldn’t be much contact with the Xiao family in the future.
There shouldn't be any more interactions then.
The message was sent, and in less than a minute, Tang You received a reply.
Xiao Trash: [ Don't worry. ]
Xiao Trash: [ Maybe we will meet again soon. ]
Tang You stared at this message for a long time, and politely replied:
[ I would like to never see you again. ]
Tang You didn't manage to make it home.
After getting off the yacht, Elder Xiao had instructed the chauffeur to drive her to pick up Xiao Weijing, stating that they must go back to the old mansion for dinner that evening.
Tang You didn’t know whether to laugh or cry after hearing this command.
He was really doing everything in his power to set her up with Xiao Weijing.
Tang You called Elder Xiao as requested.
Elder Xiao's voice was resounding and full of vitality, “Youyou, I've already taught Weijing a lesson. This bastard was just confused for a moment, so for grandpa’s sake, forgive him one more time, okay?”
Tang You replied, soft and docile, “Grandpa, I'm not angry.”
“Ahh,” Elder Xiao sighed. “Our Youyou is a good child. Weijing is just blinded for the time being; don't worry, in another year or so, when Weijing gets bored, he will naturally come back for Youyou.”
Tang You listened with some discomfort.
She gripped the phone and hesitated, “Grandpa, since Brother Weijing he has a sweetheart, why don't——”
“Youyou!” Elder Xiao's tone changed, and he spoke grandly, “Stop thinking about such nonsense. Come over tonight, we will have a proper discussion about your wedding date.”
Having said that, his tone softened, “Don't worry, no matter how much Weijing fools around outside, you are the only one that can be his wife. Grandpa knows you are a good child, don't do things that will make grandpa unhappy.”
Tangyou's smile gradually faded, before finally changing into a cheerful voice “Alright then.”
After being depressed for only five minutes, Tangyou rubbed her face and silently cheered himself up.
Don't be discouraged!
She would just consider the previous attempts to make the wrong person disgusted with her as part of accumulating experience.
Who knows, maybe if she did it a few more times, she would be able to force Xiao Weijing to break off the engagement on his own initiative!
Xiao Weijing was currently placed in one of the group’s branch companies to gain experience.
But problems had cropped up with the very first project he was tasked with. After all, Xiao Weijing was still young and inexperienced. He had no choice but to request Xiao Zexing, who was on vacation, to come.
The meeting had just ended, and the two were chatting in the office when they suddenly heard a knock on the door.
“Enter,” said Xiao Weijing.
His personal assistant hurriedly pushed open the door and came in. She glanced at Xiao Zexing before saying hesitantly, “Miss Tang You is here, saying that Elder Xiao asked her to invite you back to the old mansion.”
Xiao Zexing was sitting in an upright posture; he drank his tea without any haste.
Xiao Weijing frowned; his face took on a terrible expression. “Let her wait. I’m working, how can I go back now?”
The assistant probed, “Then, shall I ask Miss Tang You to come——”
“Since she is so free, let her wait at the front desk,” Xiao Weijing was very unhappy. “If I don’t let her suffer a little, she would really start thinking that this is a place where she can do as she pleases.”
The assistant obeyed obsequiously and was just about to leave when Xiao Zexing turned slightly and said to Xiao Weijing, “To make a young lady wait there, it's not good to bully her like that.”
Xiao Weijing’s writing hand paused.
The pen nib froze on the paper’s white surface, leaving a deep ink stain.
Xiao Zexing lifted the porcelain lid of his teacup and blew away the burst of hot air; he looked down and said casually, “Isn’t there a cafe next to the building? Since you think it's not appropriate to invite her into the office, please tell Miss Tang You to wait there.”
The assistant looked at Xiao Weijing, who said, “That's fine.”
After the assistant left, Xiao Weijing couldn't hold back his curiosity and asked, “Second Uncle, why haven’t I ever seen you be so compassionate before?”
Xiao Zexing took a sip of tea.
Xiao Weijing did not like to drink tea, nor was he good at tea tasting; Xiao Zexing was just the opposite, he was enjoyed liquor, and enjoyed tea.
There was always good tea in the office. Xiao Weijing couldn't taste the subtle differences. More than once, he self-depreciatingly likened himself to a bull chewing on peonies, recklessly wasting Heaven’s good gifts.
Xiao Zexing said, “The engagement was made by the old man; if you’re angry about it, you should direct it towards the old man. Tang You’s innocent, you shouldn’t take it out on her.”
“Who doesn’t claim to be innocent? If she hadn't gone and made a scene, Wen Ling wouldn't have quit the city’s swim team.”
Xiao Zexing put down his teacup, folded his hands, and smiled. “Wen Ling told you that?”
“How’s that possible?” denied Xiao Weijing flatly. “Wen Ling never speaks ill of others behind their backs.”
“What you hear may not necessarily be true.”
Xiao Weijing did not think that way.
Back then, Wen Ling had desperately rescued him from the water, not even caring about her own safety. This was a girl who would sacrifice her life to save others, who had such a candid personality, and never made a scene with her tears nor behaved pretentiously, much less gossip and tell tales.
How could such a straightforward girl ever lie?
After listening to the assistant, Tang You was a little surprised.
She thought Xiao Weijing would make her wait downstairs! She didn't expect that he would be so kind as to ask her to wait in the cafe.
Tang You smiled and thanked the assistant. She sat by the window and ordered a cup of coffee, casually took a book and started to read, slowly killing time.
After waiting for nearly half an hour, she suddenly heard a familiar female voice, “Tang You?”
Tang You raised her eyes and frowned when she saw who it was.
The sportswear-clad Wen Ling stood directly across from her, with a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “From the outside, it seemed to be you, but I didn't expect it to really be you.”
Tang You had no desire to see her at all.
Seeing that Wen Ling was about to sit opposite her, Tang You frowned. “Sorry, I feel like vomiting when I see you, so please go away.”
Wen Ling ignored her verbal assault and sat down grandiosely, rested her cheek in her hand and smiled. “What’s wrong? Is the grand Miss Tang so bad keeping a hold on herself?”
Tang You couldn't help but burst out, “I just don't want to waste my time on idiots.”
She hated Wen Ling to the point that the mere sight of her caused her to lose her appetite. Seeing that she still refused to leave, Tang You closed the book, preparing to change seats.
However, Wen Ling grabbed her arm at that moment.
The instant her skin was touched, Tang You’s entire body broke out in goosebumps. Her disgust meter reached its peak; she shook her off forcefully, her voice tinged with rage, “Let go of me!”
Tang You's didn’t use much strength, but presently, Wen Ling seemed to be as fragile as paper mache. Together with the chair, she fell straight to the ground; her fingers held her stomach as she screamed in pain.
Tang You was stunned; she then saw a livid man push open the door and stride in.
Without a glance at Tang You, he anxiously helped Wen Ling up, his voice sombre, “Tang You, you are really too much!”
Tang You, who was carefully observing his appearance, brightened up at these words.
This time, it was definitely Xiao Weijing!
Having finally found her real fiancé, Tang You could hardly control her excitement. Fortunately, she still kept her white lotus persona in mind, and she began to defend herself meekly, “No, Brother Weijing, let me explain——”
“What’s there to explain?” questioned Xiao Weijing coldly as he carefully helped Wen Ling up. “Tang You, I didn't expect that you’d be so vicious. Knowing that Wen Ling just had an operation, you still took advantage of this opportunity to beat her—do you have even a bit of compassion? When we go back tonight, I will make it clear to the old man that our engagement——”
He finally looked at Tang You's face.
Xiao Weijing momentarily stunned, and let go of his hand.
Caught off guard at the loss of his support, Wen Ling crumpled to the ground. She clutched her abdomen; this time, her cry of pain was much more genuine than just now.
Xiao Weijing just looked at Tang You, his eyes not even blinking.
The fact was, he had never seen Tang You’s face from such a close distance before.
Previously, he only heard his friends mention that Tang You was beautiful. Xiao Weijing had scoffed at this; after all, his impression of her was a chit of a girl that wasn’t fully grown.
He only saw her from afar at the old man’s birthday, and she didn’t leave any impression. The last time he saw her on the polo field, the sun was blinding, and he only remembered that she was quite fair and that she had rather nice-looking eyes.
As for the photos of Tang You that Zhao Manlan had been sending him for the past four years——
They had been touched up to the point that it was impossible to discern the original appearance; the photos were full of the air of those of internet celebrities, like a beauty created from an assembly line, and the facial features were like templates from a plastic surgery hospital.
Every photo looked the same; Xiao Weijing even suspected that his fiancée went for plastic surgery every now and then.
And now, Tang You was standing no more than a step away from him; she was so close he could even see her fluffy baby hair.
A small face, teary eyes, wet eyelashes, snow-white skin flushed faintly red from excitement…
It is completely different from the memory of the skinny, straw-like little girl of four years ago.
Delicate and beautiful, capable of moving the hearts of all who saw her.
The four words, “must be immediately annulled”, were in his mouth, but Xiao Weijing looked at her blankly, unable to say anything.
Footnotes:
1 Ikkyu-san: a Japanese historical comedy anime series, based on the recorded early life of Zen Buddhist monk Ikkyū.