"Y-you're leaving already?" Feng Ming froze, watching Bei Wei get up from her seat.
How was this completely different from what he'd imagined?
He'd prepared a whole bunch of heartfelt things to say... How had he not even gotten the chance to say them?
"Um... Gu Jiani?" Feng Ming gave an awkward laugh and looked at Gu Jiani.
"Don't ask me, Senior Feng. This is as far as I can help you. You saw it yourself—Bei Wei and her boyfriend are actually doing just fine," Gu Jiani said tactfully.
She already felt bad enough about meddling in the first place. Now that she'd seen how firm her best friend was about it...
Wouldn't she just end up pleasing neither side and become the busybody who stuck her nose in where it didn't belong?
"Fine, then. Thanks anyway." Feng Ming stood up unwillingly and walked straight away.
After a moment's thought, Gu Jiani picked up her bag and left too.
At the entrance to the pedestrian street, the two of them stopped in spite of themselves.
Feng Ming clenched his fists, staring fixedly at the embracing couple in the distance.
Bei Wei looked blissful as she rose onto her tiptoes and took the initiative to ask a tall young man for a kiss... The two of them—they looked so perfect together.
Nearby, the dazzling blue Bentley looked incredibly sleek after the young man casually shut its door. The winged B emblem stood out so much it practically stabbed him in the heart.
Was that Bei Wei's boyfriend?
He was instantly crestfallen, as if something had been ripped out of him in a flash.
Hollow and empty...
He knew he didn't stand a chance.
"Are you over your cold? Why are you out shopping?" Zhang Yang took the Louis Vuitton bag he'd just bought for Bei Wei out of the Bentley. "Here, I picked this out for you. You can retire your Coach bag too."
"Is this... LV?" Bei Wei froze for a moment, then her eyes lit up with delight. "It's too expensive, Brother Zhang. I can't accept it."
"If I'm giving it to you, then take it." Zhang Yang leaned against the car and glanced at the two figures in the distance.
Gu Jiani, and another guy... Was he the campus heartthrob?
Tall, slender, and fair—probably the type girls liked. But looking back now, those rivals who had once seemed invincible back in school weren't all that impressive.
Was this what they meant by... having crossed countless mountains in a light boat?
"Could you take me for a drive, Brother Zhang?" Bei Wei stood beside Zhang Yang's new Bentley, her black hair falling over her shoulders and the bag in her arms. Her eyes were filled with nothing but tenderness.
"Get in." Zhang Yang smiled and opened the car door, watching Bei Wei become the first... no, the second person to ride in the passenger seat of his car.
Bei Wei, the sweet girl, got into the Bentley Continental GT. Zhang Yang sped off in a blur, driving away in the Bentley.
The two left behind stood in silence for a long time.
Feng Ming's palm was slick with sweat. All he felt was relief and gratitude that he'd escaped disaster.
Where had he gotten the nerve to come try his luck? Had he been planning to get crushed, to humiliate himself and make a fool of himself?
Thank goodness, thank goodness. The other guy hadn't even noticed him.
Feng Ming had always been popular, but for the first time, his face burned while his heart finally relaxed.
"I'm doomed." Nearby, Gu Jiani crouched on the ground and covered her face, berating herself a thousand times over for being such an idiot.
Idiot! Moron!
Gu Jiani, you went to all that trouble for nothing. You really did pick up a rock just to drop it on your own foot!
"Gu Jiani..." Feng Ming rubbed his hands together beside her. He knew he'd caused her trouble, but all he could do now was give an awkward, dry laugh to relieve his embarrassment.
"Just go, Senior Feng!" Gu Jiani buried her face in the crook of her arm without even looking up.
Feng Ming's expression shifted several times. After a moment's thought, he quietly slipped away without another word.
The Bentley tore through the streets of the Magic City. Inside the Bentley Continental GT, everything within reach felt warm to the touch.
All they could hear was the low rumble of the W12 engine and the immersive surround sound from the Bang & Olufsen for Bentley system.
"If I'd been successful and confident when I was young"
"I'd have known what was precious"
Bei Wei hummed softly from the passenger seat. Her sweet face and the Bentley's passenger seat were a perfect match.
Zhang Yang, successful at a young age and driving a Bentley, felt utterly carefree.
He lightly pressed the brakes and pulled over on an empty stretch of road. Looking at Bei Wei, whose cheeks still held a faint blush, Zhang Yang leaned over and gently threaded a hand through her hair before kissing her naturally.
Bei Wei blushed crimson and gently wrapped her arms around the man before her, responding to Zhang Yang again and again.
"Brother Zhang, I'm still getting over my cold. Aren't you worried I'll give it to you?" Bei Wei asked, gently bracing a hand against Zhang Yang's chest. She had no idea how much time had passed.
"Uh... I think my immune system's pretty good?" Zhang Yang hadn't thought of that. With his current physique, surely a little cold wouldn't knock him flat?
"By the way, about what just happened..." Bei Wei bit her lip. Thinking back to the encounter, she hesitated, unsure what to say.
She didn't know whether she should explain that bizarre run-in. Honestly... just thinking about it made her angry. She and Zhang Yang had been getting along so well, yet Gu Jiani had to meddle.
What if Brother Zhang misunderstood?
"You mean the guy beside Gu Jiani?" Zhang Yang said with a laugh. "Let me guess—your school's former heartthrob?"
"Brother Zhang, actually..." Bei Wei grew anxious and wanted to explain.
"All right, all right. You don't have to explain. It doesn't matter." Zhang Yang didn't care.
When you were facing someone you completely outclassed—a so-called... rival? What a joke. Was he supposed to take that guy seriously? Gu Jiani had probably gone to all the trouble to arrange that so-called chance encounter.
The outcome was what mattered. The process didn't.
He really didn't need to know all the details. What did he have to do, waste time on that? Besides, there was no need to believe everything Gu Jiani had said. Who knew whether she'd exaggerated, hoping to make him back off?
Bei Wei was overcome with warmth at Zhang Yang's unconditional trust.
"You gave me a present, so I want to give you one too." Looking into Zhang Yang's clear eyes, Bei Wei suddenly worked up the courage to say it.
"A present?" Zhang Yang blinked and looked at Bei Wei.
The sweet girl's cheeks were flushed, and she looked as if she were ready to be claimed. A thought suddenly flashed through Zhang Yang's mind.
Could it be that kind of present?
To be honest, they'd been together for a month since making their relationship official.
It wasn't very long, but it wasn't that short either—and Zhang Yang hadn't been rushing things, just letting their relationship progress at an easy pace.
"Then... should we go to a hotel?" Zhang Yang asked tentatively.
Bei Wei gave a soft hum and turned her head away shyly.
A short while later, Zhang Yang drove the Bentley Continental GT with Bei Wei to their destination.
At a time like this, there was no need for him to settle for some random hotel, especially since he could afford better. So Zhang Yang checked the address and deliberately chose the Bulgari Hotel by Suzhou Creek.
Most of a person's memories were long and useless. What they remembered were usually the especially important milestones and moments.
So he wanted to make today's memory as perfect as possible, a milestone they would both treasure.
Before you continue