Feng Yao grinned at Ru Qiang. He watched warily as she casually glanced around the room before picking up one of the bracelets the employee had left from earlier.
"Here, this one seems nice. It's all sparkly and pretty."
Ru Qiang stared at the bracelet she had placed in his hand. Whether by coincidence or on purpose, she had managed to pick out the one with the best quality.
"I'll help you. But you'll have to give me an hour to prepare, okay?" A mischievous smile appeared on her lips as her eyes twinkled.
Ru Qiang looked at her blankly as he silently handed the bracelet to Li Yue to checkout. "An hour? What do you need an hour for?"
But Feng Yao didn't respond. She had already begun to sprint out of the shop. As she disappeared from his view, she shouted, "I'll meet you there, kay? Look forward to it!"
Ru Qiang stood there dumbfounded. It was only with Li Yue's hesitant poke on his shoulder that he finally snapped out of his daze.
"Li Yue...this may be the scariest night in my life."
"Young Master, should I call the Young Miss back? I'm sure she'll have some way to soothe your fears."
"...No. That's even scarier."
When Ru Qiang arrived at the front gates of the Chu residence, he felt a shiver go down his spine at the thought of having to meet his admirer without Feng Yao.
Without turning around, he asked, "Li Yue, has the little devil arrived yet?"
Li Yue looked slightly confused before understanding dawned upon him.
"You mean the Young Miss? Master, you know girls dislike being called names like devil, right?"
Ru Qiang shook his head adamantly. "I didn't call her a devil. I called her a little devil. It's a much nicer name."
Li Yue sighed, but he was used to his master's strange moments by now. "The Young Miss hasn't appeared yet. I will keep an eye out though."
At that moment, a familiar voice excitedly shouted out from the other side of the courtyard.
"My beautiful goddess! You have arrived!"
Ru Qiang wanted to run away but alas, it was already too late for that. The Young Master Chu appeared right in front of him with a bright flush in his cheeks.
"Miss Hui Yi, did you have a good trip? Are you feeling hungry? Would you like me to get you anything? Do you feel okay? Can I help you get settled in? Are you feeling nervous? What about needing help getting introduced? Or what about--"
Ru Qiang wearily rubbed at his own forehead as he held up a hand to stop the bombardment of questions.
"No...I am fine."
The Young Master Chu sighed at Ru Qiang's fake feminine voice.
"Ah, Miss Hui Yi. Even the sound of your voice is like the heavens calling for my soul to return back to the land of bliss~"
Ru Qiang gave up on trying to make him be quiet. Without another word to the Young Master Chu, he walked towards the building where all the other guests were seated inside.
"Ah, wait for me! Miss Hui Yi!"
Ru Qiang's pesky admirer was just about to follow him when Li Yue stepped in.
"Young Master Chu. Your father sent me to look for you. He requires some assistance in the main residence."
The Young Master's face showed confusion as he looked Li Yue up and down.
"Whose guard are you? I don't recognize you."
Li Yue bowed and lowered his face before answering.
"Answering Young Master Chu, I was newly hired to keep guard outside of the Chu residence. It is highly unlikely you have seen my face before."
Li Yue secretly glanced behind him to see Ru Qiang safely slipping inside the building. As soon as Ru Qiang was out of sight, Li Yue let out a sigh of relief and began speaking to the man in front of him again.
"Please follow me, Young Master Chu. I will show you the way."
"Hmph! Fine then! This had better be worth leaving behind my beloved goddess though."
"Of course, Young Master."
When Li Yue finally finished herding him away, he quickly returned to the building where Ru Qiang had entered. Since he was a male guard and Ru Qiang was currently dressed like a female, Li Yue could only stand in the shadows and watch over from afar.
Ru Qiang sat alone at a table. The seats directly near him were left empty as if everyone was intimidated by his impressive aura and beauty. On the other side, the men secretly cast glances over and ogled his graceful appearance.
On the outside to everyone watching, Ru Qiang seemed perfectly calm. His impassive face was beautifully cold while each of his movements were elegant and purposeful.
"Sigh...the Young Miss of the Jun Clan truly is on a whole different level than us..."
Whispers from the women floated around as they gazed at him with a mixture of admiration and jealously. But Li Yue, who was silently watching his master, heaved a heavy sigh.
Young Master...You do realize that you're holding your chopsticks backwards right? There's really no need to be so nervous...
Ru Qiang, who was currently the object of Li Yue's disappointment, continued poking at the plate of snacks in front of him with his backward chopsticks. Although many people were watching him intensely, he acted oblivious to it all as he kept his head lowered.
All of a sudden, there was a wave of gasps. The hall was swept up into an unusual flurry of murmurs. But Ru Qiang still didn't lift his head. His sole attention was in front of him as he set down his chopsticks and picked up the tea cup in front of him.
He felt someone sit down next to him but ignored it as he raised the cup to his lips and took a small sip.
Suddenly, a familiar, ominous laugh softly sounded out.
"Fu fu fu..."
Ru Qiang's eyes widened as he abruptly choked on his tea. The hot liquid spilled all over his mouth forcing him to violently cough.
"Oh deary dear. I've only just left you, and you've already caught a cold! Maybe you should try drinking some tea. They say tea is good for getting rid of coughing, you know?"
Ru Qiang, still coughing, quickly turned to look at the person sitting next to him. But in the next instance, he was stunned into silence.
A woman, who could only be described as an otherworldly beauty, watched Ru Qiang with laughter dancing delicately in her sparkling eyes.
She was dressed in an eye-catching bright red robe with makeup that brought out every single feature of her lovely face. Her eyes were piercing, yet still managed to be as pure as glass. The glossy hair that framed her milky skin was pinned up with exquisite ornaments and pins. And her red lips seemed to literally steal the attention of anyone looking.
Ru Qiang studied her with a blank look in his eyes.
Isn't this woman the one I met at the Red Lantern? Wait. Wasn't that woman...
"You...?" Ru Qiang stared in shock at the bewitching woman who was now chuckling at him. Her light laugh that twinkled like wind chimes made everyone listening desire more.
Feng Yao gave a dramatic sigh as she took out a silk napkin from within her sleeve. The movement was flawless and left spectators sighing at the sight of two beautiful beings together.
She casually reached over and began dabbing at the spilled tea all over Ru Qiang's lips.
In a scolding tone, she said, "Look at you! I've only been gone for one hour, and you've already begun spilling tea over yourself."
Ru Qiang noticed the grin beginning to form on her pretty lips as she continued to baby him. His face unconsciously morphed into a scowl.
"It's actually been two hours."
Feng Yao laughed at his accusation before removing her hand away from his now clean face. Meanwhile, the entire hall had gone into a frenzy. They couldn't believe that the aloof and mysterious Hui Yi was actually willing to talk with such a beautiful stranger.
"You know," began Feng Yao as she sat back and reached out towards one of the snacks in front of her. "As I was getting ready, the thought of something suddenly hit me. Why didn't you just get Xi'er to come with you?"
Ru Qiang's face darkened as if remembering a bad memory. "She told me that I was pitiful. Apparently a man should always be tough like a man. Even if he's a cross-dressing one."
Feng Yao looked at him in pity. Shaking her head, she replied, "That Xi'er. Tsk tsk, saying such mean words. Even if they're true, how could she let her beautiful master come to such a scary event like this alone."
Ru Qiang's eyes were completely serious as he nodded at her. He'd already forgotten her earlier teasing in favor of seeing her take his side against Xi'er. "Right?"
At that moment, two young ladies from the other end of the table came over to greet Ru Qiang and Feng Yao. Seeing that Ru Qiang was suddenly so talkative seemed to have made them pick up the courage to come and speak with such awe-inducing people.
"Greeting to Miss Hui Yi and the beautiful Young Miss. May we impose upon you two and accompany you during the rest of this event?"
Feng Yao sweetly smiled at them. "Sure, I don't mind. Do you, Hui Yi?"
Ru Qiang's face had already returned back to his usual aloofness as he offered a curt response. "No."
"Then it's all settled." Feng Yao motioned for the girls to take a seat. "Come join us!"
The two young girls seemed slightly surprised at how easy it was to speak with them. But they soon snapped out of it as they realized Feng Yao had already gone back to eating.
As they sat down, the one on the right timidly asked, "Beautiful older sister, forgive me for not knowing. But which family are you from? I have not seen you before."
Feng Yao paused in the middle of bringing another bite of candy to her lips.
"Me? Well, I prefer not revealing my identity. However," She leaned over and hugged Ru Qiang's arm with a grin. Ru Qiang didn't even blink at her actions as he continued calmly sipping his tea.
"You can rest easy knowing that the great and respectable Hui Yi approves of my friendship!"
The two girls watching were taken aback. They glanced at each other before bursting out into laughter.
"Hahaha! Miss, you really are too funny! No wonder Miss Hui Yi likes you."
"Yep, yep. I'm quite awesome."
The two girls instantly seemed much more at ease as they excitedly chatted with Feng Yao about mundane things. Ru Qiang listened quietly, taking a sip of tea every once in a while.
"Oh! Miss Hui Yi! Have you heard about that rumor concerning your brother?"
Ru Qiang removed the cup away from his lips as he turned to glance at the girl who had just asked him the question. Feng Yao saw him reach out to set his cup on the table.
"No. What are you talking about?"
The two girls looked at each other before giggling. "Apparently, the Young Master Ru Qiang has a secret lover and is now engaged!"
Ru Qiang froze in place with his hand still in midair as the girl continued excitedly talking.
"Do you know who his fiancee is? All of the women in the city have gone green with envy! From where I live, I can practically hear every female, from servants to noble woman, sobbing at the stolen chance of marrying him. Even my mother was a blubbering mess!"
Feng Yao inwardly was crying from laughter at seeing how Ru Qiang had just transformed into a living statue. Even his eyes had stopped blinking as he stared blankly at the girl as if he couldn't process what he had just heard.
How about I add fuel to this fire? Fu fu fu~
"I completely understand!" Feng Yao chimed in as she slapped her hand on the table. Her animated eyes were glittering mischievously. "The Young Master Ru Qiang is such a delightful man after all! For such a pretty man, his muscles are quite well-developed too!"
"Right, right? Oh how I would love for him to glance at me for even just one second. His eyes are the most mesmerizing thing I've ever had the fortune of seeing in this lifetime!"
The two girls sighed as they fantasized about Ru Qiang not realizing that the very man they were gossiping about was literally sitting right next to Feng Yao.
Feng Yao elegantly covered her mouth with her red sleeve like a young lady as she lightly giggled, but what she really wanted to do was roll around on the floor and let out a rapid string of mwahaha's.
She turned to glance at Ru Qiang and noticed that his ears were turning pink. Feng Yao decided to poke some more fun at him.
"Ah Hui Yi, you should've introduced me to your brother sooner! I missed the chance to call him my hubby. Sigh...We could have had many great nights together~"
Ru Qiang's eyes opened wide as saucers as his mouth slightly dropped open. Feng Yao laughed as she noticed his cheeks beginning to redden underneath his makeup.
"Hahaha! What are you thinking, Hui Yi? It's not like I'm a monster about to jump on your brother and rip off his clothing." She reached out and gently patted his chin to remind him to close his mouth.
Ru Qiang immediately scooted away from her. His cheeks flushed even more when he noticed her mischievous grin.
Luckily, he was quickly saved from anymore teasing as the servants came by and delivered a few plates of fruit dessert on their table. Each dessert was a mixture of all kinds of exotic fruits woven together to form a blooming flower. Feng Yao was instantly enamored with hers and completely forgot about the flustered mess she had abandoned Ru Qiang in.
"Oooo~ What a delightful treat!" Quicker than anyone at the table, Feng Yao took the first bite of the dessert in front of her.
One of the girls watching laughed. "Is it good?"
"Mhm. It's quite, quite delicious!" Feng Yao answered with a smile, but it didn't quite reach her eyes as she quickly finished off her entire plate. In the next instance, she had already reached over and snatched Ru Qiang's plate in front of him too.
Ru Qiang was still recovering from the heart attack Feng Yao had given him earlier and wasn't able to react in time to protect his food. His gaze darkened at the cheeky grin she gave before she began digging into his fruit dessert.
"That's--"
But his words were cut off as someone frantically ran into the large room. Immediately, everyone's conversation hushed into silence as the servant's voice echoed into the air.
"The party has been cancelled! Someone has poisoned the food causing the Young Master and several others to fall unconscious in the other hall!"
Instantly, an uproar went up.
"How did this happen!?"
"What if they poisoned the food in this hall too!?"
Suddenly, one of the noble woman collapsed at the front of the entrance. Right after, another two people fainted along with several of the food tasters.
"Hurry! Call the doctors! These people have also been poisoned!"
The servant quickly ordered the maids around him before bowing to the remaining guests.
"My deepest apologies. Apparently, the fruit in the fruit dessert was not prepared correctly. The party will not continue. The old master sends his sincerest apologies and urges everyone to return to their respective manors. Please seek medical treatment if nausea or signs of lightheaded-ness appear."
The people who had not yet fallen victim to food poisoning quickly exited the hall in a flurry. Soon, only Ru Qiang and Feng Yao remained.
Li Yue finally stepped out of the shadows and walked towards his master.
"Young Master, are we also leaving?"
"En. We're going--" Ru Qiang turned to look at Feng Yao, but paused when he noticed that she was leisurely finishing off the last bite of his fruit dessert.
"Young Miss, that's poisoned--!" Li Yue began, but was cut off by Feng Yao's satisfied expression as she patted her stomach.
"Thank you for waiting as I finished this meal. It was so tasty that I couldn't quite resist. It's such a shame that you weren't able to eat it though..."
She stood up and casually dusted off her robes while ignoring the stunned looks from Li Yue and Ru Qiang.
"Well then, shall we go?"