Chapter 381 - Side Story 1: If We’ve Broken Up, Then We Should Act That Way
Chapter 381: Side Story 1: If We’ve Broken Up, Then We Should Act That Way
The September weather in the Imperial Capital was like a steamer, hot and stuffy.
A young girl was standing on the street, not even holding an umbrella under the hot sun. Her face was snow-white, and her fingers were long and slender, her overall appearance beautiful. She was nibbling an ice cream cone.
After eating the last of the crispy biscuit, she wiped her hands with a napkin, walking towards a trash can and throwing it away.
Just as she was doing so, a royal blue sports car stopped beside her with a ‘woosh’.
Shoving both hands in her pockets, Tan Yongsi stood in the place she was at, her eyes fixed on the vehicle quietly.
The car of the sports car opened, and a tall woman dressed in red stepped down. She took off the sunglasses on her face, her high heels clicking against the pavement as she walked. She came to a stop in front of Tan Yongsi, a condescending look on her face as her posture screamed arrogance. Her upturned eyes swept Tan Yongsi from head to toe, before contempt flashed through them.
“You’re Tan Yongsi?” The woman’s nails which were painted with nail polish reflected under the sunlight, a mocking smile curling on her lips. “This is an invitation to my and Yan Han’s engagement. I hope that Miss Tan… you’ll be able to attend.”
Tan Yongsi looked at the girl in front of her whose delicate features were painted on with makeup “Miss Wen, are you sure you want to invite me?”
Wen Qing resisted the urge to smile wider. “Of course, how could the engagement between me and Yan Han lack your blessing?”
“Oh, then, I give you my blessing.” Tan Yongsi raised an eyebrow.
“Tan Yongsi, you better understand the difference and gap between me and you. Don’t chase after someone who you shouldn’t chase after.” Wen Qing took out the red envelope, giving Tan Yongsi a glare. “Yan Han is the only heir to the Yan family. You should be well aware of the Yan family’s status in the capital nowadays. Yan Han is just fooling around. With your position, Aunt Yan will not let you take even half a step towards the Yan family.”
Tan Yongsi snatched the envelope from Wen Qing’s hand, impatience getting to her when she heard the other girl’s words. “Fine, the venue for the engagement? I’ll be there. Miss Wen, I’d like to point out that driving in heels can easily cause an accident.”
Wen Qing paused in her steps, also losing her footing. She turned her head, giving her a vicious glare. Initially she had been planning to see Tan Yongsi’s dejected face when she handed over the invitation, but she didn’t expect to be the one to get angry!
Seriously!
The sun shining in the sky was just too glaring as Tan Yongsi looked at the red envelope in her hands with a cold look in her eyes.
Her phone chose to ring at this moment, letting out a melodious tone.
“Xuan Xuan, are you missing your queen?” Tan Yongsi’s expression eased, her tone relaxed as she picked up the call. Ye Xuan, the person on the other end, was her roommate and best friend. They had been friends since junior high school till the present.
“Miss your freaking ghost head!” A roar came from the other side. “What the heck is happening? Why is the entire department making a fuss, asking you to break up with Master Yan the moment I come back?!”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
“Mother f*cking! sh*t!” Ye Xuan roared again. “You both are basically the epitome of lovers, how is it possible for you two to break up?”
Tan Yongsi watched the cars passing her on the road, her voice calmed as she said, “Xuan Xuan, Yan Han is getting engaged. If you just browse the net, it’s all news about his engagement.”
There was a moment of silence on the other end, before Ye Xuan’s more cautious voice came through again. “So, my dear, are you alright?”
“Extremely so.” Tan Yongsi covered her eyes with one hand, feeling the warmth spreading in her heart. “It took me five years to see the reality of the world, that’s my loss.”
“Silly girl,” Ye Xuan said quietly. “Come on back to the dorms, then we’ll talk.”
“Ah, you’d have to wait a while more. I haven’t found the right person for my daily fortune telling yet!” Tan Yongsi said suddenly.
“You still want to do that at this time? You really have such a big heart…”
Tan Yongsi hung up the phone and was just about to leave, when she caught sight of a young man. He had a tall build, and a handsome face. He was exactly what modern society would presently term as a ‘popular pretty boy’ with that face and dressing of his.
The young man was holding a phone in his hand, and he looked towards Tan Yongsi. “You also play the Nine Heavens online game?”
Tan Yongsi was startled for a moment at being addressed suddenly, before recalling that her phone ringtone was from the Nine Heavens game. “Yeah, I played with my mom since I was a kid.”
“I was dragged to play this game by my mother too.” Tang An had been there since the beginning, when Wen Qing started talking to Tan Yongsi, and had watched the entire interesting drama that unfolded in front of him. “Do you think I’m that ‘right person’ that you’ve been looking for?”
“What?” Tan Yongsi was confused.
“Weren’t you talking about fortune telling?” Tang An brushed a hand through his hair, pushing back the few scattered strands of hair that had blown into his face.
“Isn’t it better to have things go your way, instead of forcing it? So, would you want to do a fortune-telling for me?”
Tan Yongsi shoved her phone back in her pocket, then stretched out three fingers.
Tang An understood her gesture, pulling out his wallet from his own pocket. He took out a wad of cash and handed it to Tan Yongsi.
Tan Yongsi took it, taking out three pieces before returning the others to him.
“What do you want read?” Tan Yongsi put away the money she received, raising her head to look at Tang An.
“Up to you, just do whatever you want.” Tang An didn’t expect her to do any real fortune-telling, he just thought that she was an interesting person.
Tan Yongsi knew that this person probably didn’t believe her, as she was so much younger if you were to compare her to those other masters who did fortune-telling. However, Tan Yongsi didn’t take this to heart. She leveled a serious look at Tang An, and at the same moment, she saw a man who had a faint purple breath of aura above his head.
She felt the shock at the bottom of her heart. This purple aura…
“The fortunes in your life are smooth, and your birth was greatly celebrated. But from your face, there should have been a calamity in your life when you were eight years old. In general, no one would have been able to escape this.” Tan Yongsi was more shocked and frightened, the more she saw. She had thought that this was just some ordinary rich young heir, she didn’t expect to see such things from him. “Someone must have resolved that for you and released you from that fate, and this person is very very strong. So, the life you have after will be good. Though there’ll be some bumps on the road, there won’t be anything serious enough to hurt you.”
Tang An himself was taken aback as he heard her speak. He hadn’t expected her to be able to divine anything accurate, but everything she said was as he had experienced!
Forget about everything else, since that information could easily be found, but the matter that happened when he was eight years old, only a few were privy to the knowledge. Even his grandparents didn’t know about the incident, let alone any detective would be able to find out. This girl in front of him seemed like she really did have the ability to fortune tell.
“If you believe my words, then don’t touch any cars for the remainder of the day.” Tan Yongsi checked the time, seeing that it was almost four in the evening. It would be almost five by the time she got back to the dorms. She had dinner with Ye Xuan and the others, and she hurriedly rushed off after imparting that last sentence, flagging down a taxi to leave.
“Master, wait, leave me some contact information!” Tang An finally managed to react after she had left, and just as he was about to stop her, his phone rang.
The taxi left quickly, and Tang An had no other choice but to stop in his pursuit and answer his phone. “Sister Yin… I know he’s back today. Forget it, come and pick me up… No, the great master said I can’t touch any cars today.”
***
In a pink sports car, Yin Aoxue glanced to the side at Tang An. “When did you meet a great master?”
“You don’t know the person, it’s a pretty girl.” Tang An shot her a disgusted look, more towards the car. “I say, Aunt Yin, the car is beautiful when no one was driving it in the house, why does it feel weird to me when I see you driving it?”
“Please call me Sister Yin, thank you.” Yin Aoxue shot him a look. “I like to drive the same car as her, why do you care?”
“Fine, fine, fine. I can’t control what you do.” Tang An leaned back in the chair with a smirk on his lips. “I heard that Uncle Youlin went on a blind date today…”
Screech!
The sharp sound of the breaks being slammed on, then Yin Aoxue’s cold voice followed. “We’re here, get down!”
Tang An knew that it wasn’t a good time to provoke this weirdly strong woman at this time, and so he got out of the car obediently. When he stepped out, he saw his group of childhood friends standing in front of him, and he raised his eyebrows in surprise. “Qiming, what are you guys doing outside?”
Wang Qiming put away his phone, a smile on his face as he looked at him. “We just saw the news that a major car accident had happened on the highway from Tang Enterprise to here. It so happened that we couldn’t get through your phone at that time, but it seems that you’re still alive.”
Tang An and Yin Aoxue exchanged looks with each other, both seeing the shock in the others’ eyes as they did.
“Tang An.” Just when the two were still in their shock, a deep voice came from behind them.
Some of them turned their head, seeing a young man walking from the direction where the sun was shining, He threw the car keys to the doorman, and slowly walked over to them. He was dressed in a white shirt and beige slacks, the clothes fitting his body snugly and making him seem extremely slender. His eyebrows were a beautiful arch, his facial features exquisite and the most outstanding was his exquisite eyes. Though they were cold and hard, they were unable to hide the amorous feeling they gave out when you looked into them.
Countless people walking pass on the street couldn’t help but stop in their tracks. This young man was even hotter than the most popular actors by three times, no, ten times!
“Yo, Fatty, you’re back!” Tang An hadn’t seen his brother for so many years, and he couldn’t help the nickname that slipped out from his mouth in excitement.
Jiang Yirui’s face was indifferent, but he arched a delicate eyebrow, his words slow and punctuated, “Dog Sis, are you sure you want us to hurt each other?”
Wang Qiming and the others didn’t dare to be so flippant like Tang An and joke around like this, and greeted him respectfully, “Young Master Rui.”
As for the nicknames that they called each other, they actually really wanted to burst out laughing, but they had to hold it in. Everyone knew how much Jiang Yirui could hold a grudge!
***
Not far away, Wen Qing had gotten down from a taxi, seeing Madam Yan in a purple cheongsam. “Auntie, why are you standing outside?”
“Look at that.” Madam Yan gestured to a direction.
“That’s Prince Wang…” Wen Qing was shocked to see him. Both the Wen and Yan family were first class families in the Imperial Capital. If they were to use the pyramid hierarchy to divide them, they would still be almost at the top, but, above them, there were still several mysterious people.
This Prince Wang was the son of their commander in chief. He had been talented in ancient martial arts since he was young, and there were rumors that he had been accepted as a disciple by one of those mysterious and powerful people. Everyone on the internet knew about this pretty boy, a man who kept his word, and he was the real man who has reached the peak of the world and has touched the skies.
Unexpectedly, they saw this prince, Master Wang, bowing over for someone?
Who is that person? Wen Qing searched her memories, but she drew a blank as she looked at the handsome figure.
“When did another prominent figure appear in the capital? Go back and ask your father.” Madam Yan said, turning away from the scene.
“I understand.” Wen Qing touched her chest, trying to calm the raging beating of her heart. The Yan family were a merchant family, and had only emerged in the recent ten years. It had recently gotten a collaboration with Nine Heavens, which allowed them to have a jump in their status in the Imperial Capital. The Wen family has been in the military for generations, and with an important prominent figure appearing, they needed to make sure to inquire clearly.
“By the way, why did you come by taxi?” Madam Yan asked Wen Qing.
Wen Qing frowned when the topic was mentioned. “It’s all because of that woman, Tan Yongsi. She jinxed it, causing my car to get into an accident!”
“Tan Yongsi? That b*tch is the one that made you angry?” Madam Yan’s brows furrowed together, a look of disgust on her face. “That b*tch has been pestering my son, and now she’s even pestering you?! Qing Qing, don’t worry, I will teach her a lesson!”
“Thank you, Auntie.” Wen Qing looped her arms around the older woman’s, giving her a sweet smile as she did so.
***
On the other side, Tan Yongsi had returned to A University. Along the way, she received countless looks from the people around her. There were all kinds of looks, curious, spectating, mocking…
Her phone vibrated, and she pulled it out to see it was a message in their WeChat group, ‘The House Of Green Delight[1]’.
Ye Xuan: Silly girl, where are you?
Xiao Yichen: Wu Xuan, Sisi’s intelligence is higher than yours, okay?
Ye Xuan: My boobs are big, I’m not scared!
Xiao Yichen: …
Meng Yunzhao: Is Sisi back yet? I’m still in the labs. Remember to give me a call when she’s back.
Tan Yongsi: I’ve arrived safely at uni.
Xiao Yichen: 😱😱😱
Ye Xuan: Hold your horses! When the heck did you come back? Did anything happen on the way?
Tan Yongsi: Well, I may have gotten quite famous?
Ye Xuan: … It’s not even ‘may have’…
Ye Xuan: Tan Yongsi, get your a*s back here, your egg just moved! Moved!
Egg? Seeing this word, Tan Yongsi picked up her pace, running towards the dorm room at a speed that ordinary people didn’t have.
When she was about to go downstairs, she saw a figure standing not far from the entrance of the female dorm.
He was holding a jacket suit in one hand, and a cigarette in the other. Leaning against a luxurious Maserati, he took a slow drag of the cigarette. People who were able to get into A University to study were people that were basically outstanding in all aspects. There had been countless famous people that had come out from A University in its history, but for those who were still here studying, they were people who were relatively young and had yet to experience society.
They couldn’t compare to the person in front here, whose entire person screamed elite.
There were many girls who were hiding at the sidelines, sneaking glances at him. There were also some who were brave enough to come forward to strike up a conversation with him, but were all politely turned down by the man.
“Sir, why don’t you leave your contact information?” A charming girl, with a face that was pretty as a picture smiled as she waved her phone in her hand. She was from A University’s Faculty of Medicine, and she had a beautiful appearance. The people who chased after her were numerous, and could make a line from the dormitory to the school gates. Her tastes were high and picky, and this man in front of her screamed elite and rich, from the tips of his hair to the keychain he held, to his car. She was naturally moved, and thinking that he wouldn’t be able to reject her if she were to make the first move.
However, the man in front of her completely ignored her. Instead, he extinguished the cigarette in his hand, turning his eyes to look behind her.
His gaze had changed slightly, and Xi Hua couldn’t help but look behind her, where the man was looking. At first glance, she saw a bright, clear face. It was the prettiest girl at the top of the list in school, the campus belle—Tan Yongsi!
When Xi Hua saw the man walking towards Tan Yongsi, her expression darkened, and finally sneered. “I thought he was some noble, elite man. Turns out he’s just a typical rich young heir?”
“I apologize, Mr. Yan. I don’t have time to talk to you right now.” Tan Yongsi was anxious about her egg, and it wasn’t like she wanted to talk to Yan Han in the first place.
Yan Han grabbed her arm, his eyes dark. “You haven’t answered my call for the past two days. Sisi, you’re avoiding me.”
“We’ve already broken up, Mr. Yan.” Tan Yongsi shook his arm off easily, freeing herself. She was extremely calm, and the people gathered around them were getting more. “You want to talk, fine. Let’s go somewhere else.”
Yan Han was silent for a while, before following Tan Yongsi to a more deserted car park, one where there were seldom people who came by.
“Sisi, breaking up was just something I said in my anger. Don’t make a fuss over it, okay?” Yan Han looked at Tann Yong as he said that, feeling a headache coming on.
Tan Yongsi was calm, and she pulled out the invitation that she had received, giving it to him. “I’m not making a fuss, Yan Han. If we’ve broken up, then we should act that way. I’ll pay you back the money I owe you by this month.”
Yan Han looked at the bright, red invitation, clenching his fist. “If you’re concerned about this matter, then I’ll have someone call it off immediately.”
“You know it’s not only because of this.” Tan Yongsi shook her head.
“Tan Yongsi!” Yan Han pursed his lips tightly, then lowered his eyes. “I only see Wen Qing as a sister…”
The corner of Tan Yongsi’s lips curled up, and this was the first time Yan Han was seeing a hint of mockery on her face. “Do people take their sisters to a love hotel?”
As soon as she said that, Yan Han was stunned speechless. It was as though there was lightning striking in his mind, she… she knew about that?
[1] (T/N: 怡红院 ‘The House Of Green Delight’, is a place in the Chinese novel, ‘Dream of the Red Chamber)