Couldn't Care Less

Tonight was destined to be anything but peaceful.

Su Rui was in high spirits. With one hand, he played through World Famous Music, thoroughly crushing Deng Hao and Bai Yanyun beneath his feet. Their previous pride had been ground into dust.

Crushing an opponent with an unbeatable stance in the field they excelled at most.

How could such exhilaration and satisfaction possibly be expressed in words?

At that moment, Deng Hao's expression had turned uglier than ever. He had agreed to the bet earlier, and before so many prominent figures from Tongzhou, backing out was naturally impossible.

But if he had to sing "Where is the Road?" with Bai Yanyun in front of so many people, he would be utterly humiliated.

"You... if you were this good, why didn't you say so earlier? You deliberately set us up!" Bai Yanyun's face shifted from pale to red as she clenched her delicate fists and demanded through gritted teeth.

Looking half-drunk, Su Rui turned back to her and said, "Playing the piano is meant to cultivate one's temperament and nourish one's character. It isn't some skill for competing and fighting. Thinking that learning a little music and achieving a little success means you have to show it off to the entire world... that's something foolish people do. I wouldn't."

The corners of Li Ruobing's lips lifted silently.

Bai Yanyun felt dizzy, and beneath the bright lights, she even seemed to hear a faint ringing in her ears.

Su Rui's words were even more devastating than his act of playing through World Famous Music.

"The Bai family's granddaughter is just too immature and arrogant. Now she's really embarrassed herself..."

"She couldn't beat Li Ruobing years ago, and this time, her boyfriend has thoroughly lost to Li Ruobing's boyfriend in front of so many people. I'm afraid Bai Yanyun will never be able to erase this shadow from her heart."

"Can't be helped... Li Ruobing's unknown boyfriend is simply too outstanding. Bai Yanyun and Deng Hao practically ran straight into his gun barrel. Tsk, tsk..."

"Hey, does anyone know Li Ruobing's boyfriend's name? What does he do?"

Among the crowd, some quick-witted people had already begun asking around for Su Rui's personal information.

Bai Yanyun and Deng Hao stood blankly across from the crowd, like two isolated quails.

"A bet's a bet! Hurry up and sing!" someone in the crowd shouted, eager to stir things up.

"Where is the Road? Hahaha, Li Ruobing's boyfriend really knows how to torment people!"

"I haven't heard this song in ages. I'm getting a little impatient now..."

The hall buzzed with voices.

Looking miserable, Bai Yanyun turned pleading eyes toward the host, Hu Yuhua. To her surprise, he casually turned his head away and pretended not to see her.

Deng Hao's heart sank completely.

"Sing, or you can choose to welch on the bet. After all, in front of everyone, there's nothing I can do to you... But you should consider what that would do to your reputations in Tongzhou." Su Rui smiled. He did not remain there to keep pressuring them, instead turning around and sitting beside Li Ruobing.

He quietly closed his eyes and rubbed his brow, as though easing his drunkenness.

Silence.

Countless pairs of eyes watched Deng Hao and Bai Yanyun in the center of the hall, some amused, some mocking, some sympathetic. Their gazes were like sharp razors, making the two feel as though they were sitting on pins and needles.

After sitting down, Su Rui seemed to genuinely no longer care about what was happening in the hall. He closed his eyes and rested.

Suddenly, an intoxicating fragrance drifted beneath his nose.

Before he could react, Su Rui felt a pair of slender hands rest on his shoulders, gently massaging his somewhat sore arms.

"Tired?" It was Li Ruobing's voice.

"A little." Su Rui smiled silently and quietly enjoyed the Beautiful CEO's massage.

Even Su Rui was somewhat surprised that Li Ruobing would make such an intimate gesture in front of everyone.

Still, it felt rather nice...

Li Ruobing's gaze was cool and clear. Rather than looking at the two people in the center of the hall, she lowered her head and spoke softly with Su Rui.

Silence.

Dead silence.

Ten seconds later...

"You... carry the load... I'll lead the horse..." Deng Hao's heavily suppressed voice, low and carrying a trace of angry resentment, slowly rang through the hall.

A burst of laughter erupted from the crowd.

"Welcoming the sunrise, sending off the evening glow..." Bai Yanyun forced the lyrics out through clenched teeth.

"Hahaha!" The laughter grew louder.

Three minutes later, when the final word of the song fell, Deng Hao and Bai Yanyun fled in defeat without looking back.

They left behind only two desolate figures and a hall full of laughter.

Hu Yuhua silently shook his head, then walked over to Su Rui again and said with a smile, "The auction is about to begin. Little Su, we still need your help with the Opening Ceremony performance..."

Su Rui opened his eyes and nodded with a smile. "I'd be delighted to help."

After the shock of Su Rui freely playing through World Famous Music earlier, the piano piece for the Opening Ceremony was beautiful as well, but it did not trigger another major uproar.

When the five-minute opening piano piece ended, the main event of tonight's Wen Feng Gala finally began.

As the chief host, Hu Yuhua took the stage and gave a speech. Then, the auction proceeded as scheduled.

Gentle music played through the hall. As the spotlights came on, exquisite works of art were placed one after another on the auction platform. Bids quickly began, and the amounts offered were clearly far higher than the items' actual value.

Su Rui did not sit in the auction seats. He left Li Ruobing there while he silently went to sit in a corner, setting down the plate in his hand and looking entirely detached from the gala.

"Hehe, young man, why aren't you bidding? Why come hide in a corner like an old man such as myself?"

As soon as he sat down, a weathered voice came from nearby. An old man was seated in the corner as well.

He was fifty-seven or fifty-eight, with graying hair and a plain Zhongshan Suit. His voice was strong and resonant.

"This sort of performative bidding is meaningless... Everyone knows it's just a process for giving money to those at the top. No truly valuable collectibles will appear." Su Rui spoke casually, without any attempt to hide his thoughts.

"You're rather blunt." The old man did not deny it, merely smiling as he said, "Most people here may be shouting bids, but inside, they're cursing. They know perfectly well that what they buy isn't worth the price, but they still have to pay a high price, because it is a chance to show their faces before those at the top. If you don't want it, plenty of others do."

"Capital will always serve power." Su Rui shrugged.

"You're right." The old man gave Su Rui a meaningful look and asked, "Since you understand that, why did you still offend the Bai family, with its official connections, so severely?"

After tonight, Bai Yanyun would become famous throughout Tongzhou, and the Bai family would lose all its face.

"If I said I simply couldn't care less about the Bai family... would you think I was bragging?" Su Rui asked with a half-serious, half-joking smile.