After leaving the main hall, Ning Ran stopped in her tracks. “We don’t even share any mutual friends, so why did you claim that we made plans with a friend?”
“Well, you did,” replied Nan Chen.
“I didn’t! Which friend are you referring to?”
“The friend who sent you his location earlier. He even reserved a spot at the restaurant! It’ll be so disrespectful if you don’t show up. I’ll accompany you there.”
Ning Ran’s greatest fear had come true. Nan Chen is indeed planning to meet Ouyang Qi!
“Don’t you have anything better to do? Besides, I’m not friends with Ouyang Qi. If you insist on going, go alone. I’m not coming with you!” snapped Ning Ran furiously.
“Are you sure you want me to go alone?”
“Go ahead. It’s got nothing to do with me,” scoffed Ning Ran.
“If I go alone, won’t you be worried that I’ll start a fight with Ouyang Qi?”
“That’s none of my business. If a mighty CEO like you starts fighting others like an uncivilized hooligan, there’s nothing I can do. You can do whatever you want.”
“Fine! I’ll go alone and break Ouyang Qi’s nose then!” yelled Nan Chen.
“Why are you doing this? Are you trying to threaten me?”
“No. Breaking his nose is my genuine wish,” replied Nan Chen.
“You don’t have to do that at all. It’s completely unnecessary!” Ning Ran was starting to panic.
“I think that it’s unnecessary too, that’s why I asked you to tag along. If you come with me, I might be satisfied with just a little chat with him. But if you don’t, I might actually fight him.”
“What for? Why are you doing this?”
“If you’re willing to come with me, it means that there’s nothing going on between the two of you. Conversely, if you refuse, it means that you’re hiding something. My company signed you as an artiste, hoping that you’ll advance in your career and earn more profits for the company. However, if Ouyang Qi suddenly barges into your life and causes you to be mired in scandals, it means that he has something against me! In that case, I’ll break his nose!”
Ning Ran was astounded. What kind of absurd theory is this! He’s forcing this ridiculous theory to sound logical.
But why does it still sound slightly reasonable?
Ning Rang understood that Nan Chen was forcing her to concede.
“Mr. Chen, have you forgotten about your identity? Don’t you think that it is unbecoming of your status to fight with a mere hooligan?”
Ning Ran decided to change her tactic. If she tried to resist him by force, things would not end on a good note.
“Ouyang Qi is not a mere hooligan. He’s the only son of Ouyang Duo and the heir of Sunshine Bank. Although he’s pretty useless, his family is rich. There are many female celebrities willing to throw themselves into his arms, thinking that they could use him to climb up the social ladder…”
Ning Ran could not stand it anymore. Is he trying to imply that I want to curry favor with Ouyang Qi and rise to the top?
“Mr. Chen, are you insinuating that I’m one of the female celebrities that you just mentioned?”
“I’m not. I’m merely stating a fact,” denied Nan Chen coldly.
“I’m not trying to suck up to him just to rise up the ranks. I’m not even close to Ouyang Qi! In fact, you’re even more familiar with him than me, right? If I’m not wrong, he’s Ouyang Qing’s brother, and by extension, your brother-in-law! In that case, you’re even relatives. Well, both of you should meet up and get to know each other better then.”
Ning Ran finally found a counter-attack. When she saw the icy expression on Nan Chen’s face, she was thrilled.
“Fine. Since we’re both acquainted with him, it means that he’s our mutual friend. All the more reason that we should go together!”
With that, Nan Chen grabbed Ning Ran’s hand and dragged her towards the car, leaving her no opportunities to resist.
“Fine! Let’s go, then. It’s no big deal!” retorted Ning Ran angrily.
This time, Ning Ran’s phone rang. Once again, it was a call from Ouyang Qi.
Ning Ran felt exasperated. Why is he so goddamn persistent? Won’t this make things blow up even further?
“Well? Pick it up. He’s urging you now. I can see that he’s only doing it because he’s certain that you’ll show up,” said Nan Chen coldly.
“Why don’t you pick it up instead? Isn’t he your brother-in-law? Since you’re relatives, it’s better for both of you to talk instead.” Ning Ran passed the phone to Nan Chen.
“Why should I pick up a call that was meant for you? That’s ridiculous.”
Ning Ran was so furious that a laugh escaped her. “That’s ridiculous? So you peeking at my phone is not ridiculous? Yet, when I told you to pick it up now, you kept refusing!”
As Nan Chen could not be bothered to respond, he twisted his head towards the window.
Ning Ran suddenly realized why Nan Chen refused to accept the call.
If Nan Chen picks it up, won’t Ouyang Qi escape?
So, what is Nan Chen planning to do? Is he really intending to go there and break Ouyang Qi’s nose?
That doesn’t sound too plausible. Nan Chen isn’t the type to act rashly without considering the consequences.
This means that he has an alternate motive. But what is it?
He’s such an unfathomable man.
“I know what you’re thinking about,” blurted Nan Chen all of a sudden.
“What?”
“You’re wondering why I want to meet Ouyang Qi.”
“Yeah. Why do you want to meet him?”
“I’m not telling you.”
Ning Ran was rendered speechless.
“Fine, I don’t want to know either. Don’t tell me then! Even if you do, I won’t listen.”
Once again, the driver was struck by an urge to laugh. Why is Mr. Chen, who is normally so cold and haughty, acting in such a childish way when he’s with this lady?
Soon, they arrived at the restaurant Ouyang Qi had made a reservation at. After asking the staff, they found his private suite.
When they pushed open the door and entered, they discovered that Ouyang Qi was not the only person there.
There were around six beautiful ladies crowding around him. All of them were young, with seductive figures and gorgeous looks.
What’s going on?
When Ouyang Qi saw Ning Ran, he was so surprised that his jaw fell agape. “You didn’t pick up my call or reply to my messages, so I thought that you’re not coming. The last time I called you, I was intending to inform you that we can meet another day if you’re busy. I didn’t expect you to appear out of the blue…”
Ning Ran understood the implicit message. Ouyang Qi wanted to ask her out at first, but since she did not respond to his calls or messages, he assumed that she was not coming.
However, he had already reserved a spot in the restaurant. A playboy like him would naturally be reluctant to dine alone. Hence, he summoned all these pretty girls to eat with him.
It seemed that Nan Chen was right. There were a lot of women desiring to ride on Ouyang Qi’s coattail and climb to the top.
However, it was not an easy feat. Otherwise, there would be too many rags to riches stories to count.
The women, who so longed to shoot to the top, revealed an unhappy expression when they spotted Ning Ran.
The reason was simple—Ning Ran was much prettier than any of them.
After all, women loved to compare. No matter it was their looks, husbands, accessories—everything could be used for comparisons. It was as if such competition was integral to their survival.
At the same time, women were unwilling to lose in such comparisons. Initially, the atmosphere was quite harmonious as all the girls there were of a similar caliber. However, now that Ning Ran suddenly appeared, the rest of them instantly paled in comparison. Naturally, they were upset to see her.
Just then, another person walked through the door.
It was a dashingly handsome man.
After seeing the man, the girls were no longer interested to compete with Ning Ran anymore. Their eyes simultaneously landed on him.
They finally got the chance to see the legendary man!
It was an exhilarating moment for them.
“Sir Chen? Are you Sir Chen? Oh my God, it’s really you!” shrieked one of the girls.
She was so overcome by the excitement that she could barely hold herself back from leaping to her feet.
