"Zhao Hong, I'm sorry. We're in the middle of something right now. Could you please sit somewhere else?" Ning Qingxue was already frustrated that her hard-earned courage had been interrupted.
Zhao Hong gave Ye Mo a puzzled look. This guy looked poor—how had he even gotten in? There was no way he could be associated with Ning Qingxue.
"Hi, I'm Zhao Hong. Just got back from studying at Cambridge in the UK. I'm currently working at the Ninghai City Government Office. If you run into any trouble here in Ninghai, feel free to come to me. I can handle most things." Zhao Hong didn't leave right away. Instead, he smugly extended his hand to Ye Mo. In his mind, it was already a courtesy to offer a handshake to someone like Ye Mo—for Ning Qingxue's sake, of course.
To Zhao Hong's surprise, Ye Mo didn't even look at him. Instead, he reached over to a passing waiter's tray and grabbed a plate of fruit, completely ignoring the outstretched hand.
Zhao Hong's face flushed red, then green. Embarrassed, he awkwardly pulled his hand back and glared hard at Ye Mo, inwardly cursing himself for even trying. Just as he was stewing, Wang Xu appeared.
"Brother, I gotta hand it to you. That trick of yours even fooled me. Impressive! Here's my number—we definitely need to talk sometime." Wang Xu clapped Ye Mo on the shoulder and handed him a card with only a phone number.
Ye Mo's first impression of Wang Xu had been a good one. He seemed like someone worth befriending. So when Wang Xu spoke to him so warmly, Ye Mo smiled and said, "Sure. I'd be glad to."
Ning Qingxue quietly observed the completely different ways Ye Mo had treated Zhao Hong and Wang Xu. She was clearly deep in thought.
"Xu-ge, you're here! Hehe." Zhao Hong tried to smooth things over when he saw Wang Xu, forcing a smile.
"You fake foreigner, back already? Weren't you in the UK?" Wang Xu's words were blunt as ever.
Zhao Hong coughed awkwardly. "I graduated. I'm now working at the Ninghai City Government Office. I didn't expect to see you here, Xu-ge."
"Just passing through," Wang Xu replied, then turned back to Ye Mo. "Ye-bro, don't forget to give me a call sometime. Oh, and give me your number too."
"He doesn't have a phone," Su Jingwen chimed in at just the right moment.
Ye Mo forced a bitter smile. No matter where he sat, people kept coming over. He wasn't fond of noisy gatherings like this. He made up his mind to give Su Jingwen his gift and leave quietly.
"Jingwen, happy birthday! This diamond pendant is something I brought back from the UK. Hope you like it," Zhao Hong said quickly, realizing he was being pushed aside and eager to win back some attention.
"Thank you, Zhao Hong. That's very kind of you," Su Jingwen replied. She accepted the pendant but immediately handed it to a maid behind her without even opening the box. Zhao Hong's eyes dimmed with disappointment.
"Jingwen-jie, I brought something too—happy birthday!" Su Mei squeezed her way forward to present a set of cosmetics.
More and more people came forward with gifts, though most had already handed theirs over at the entrance. The ones presenting them in person were usually close friends of Su Jingwen.
Even Ning Qingxue gave her a delicate brooch.
Ye Mo noticed then how his gift—though the most meaningful in his eyes—looked utterly out of place among the luxury items. Still, Su Jingwen looked at him with anticipation. With a wry smile, Ye Mo pulled the bracelet from his pocket and handed it to her.
"I made this myself. It's a bit rough… didn't have the money to buy anything fancy."
The bracelet was indeed rough. Just six pea-sized jade beads spaced sparsely along a simple string. The jade was clearly low-grade. Frankly, it wasn't even very pretty.
Everyone nearby stared in disbelief. Seriously? Even if you're broke, you could've bought some generic trinket. This looks like it's made of fake jade—maybe worth a few bucks at most.
"Pfft…" Someone finally couldn't help but laugh aloud. This guy was a masterpiece—dressed like a peasant and giving a gift like that?
"What a unique gift. Must be a priceless treasure," Zhao Hong snickered sarcastically.
Su Jingwen shot him a glare, then beamed as she accepted the bracelet. With a smile, she slid it onto her wrist and said joyfully, "Thank you, Ye. I love it. Did you give it a name?"
Ye Mo smiled slightly. "I call it Six-Fortune Peace."
"Six-Fortune Peace? That's a really creative name." Su Mei glanced at the delighted Su Jingwen and had the urge to mock Ye Mo, but held back.
Ning Qingxue quietly observed the whole scene. Ye Mo, despite offering such a humble gift, remained perfectly calm—unbothered, unashamed. Meanwhile, Su Jingwen's genuine joy surprised her. A strange, indescribable feeling welled up inside her.
Just then, soft music began to play. The first dance of the evening was about to start.
Everyone watched, curious who Su Jingwen would invite for the first dance. But to their surprise, she turned to Ye Mo and asked, "Ye Mo, would you dance the first song with me?"
He's Ye Mo? Zhao Hong's face twisted. Of course he'd heard of Ye Mo and the whole Ning Qingxue situation. His expression turned complicated.
Everyone could tell now—between the gift and the dance invitation—that Su Jingwen was deliberately pushing Ye Mo forward. To the uninitiated, it might look like she was using Ye Mo as a shield against unwanted advances.
But Ning Qingxue didn't think so. She could sense that Su Jingwen genuinely wanted to dance with Ye Mo. Although she didn't understand why, it made her strangely uneasy. And that unease annoyed her even more.
Ye Mo hadn't expected this at all. A little embarrassed, he said, "But I don't know how to dance…"
Su Jingwen was momentarily stunned. She had considered everything—except this. How could Ye Mo not know how to dance? Even if he's a cast-off from the Ye family, he was once a young master. And he's a university student! How could he not know?
Only Li Mumei knew the truth: Ye Mo probably really didn't know how. He wasn't the type to go to clubs or parties, and he didn't have many friends. He wasn't antisocial—just overly proud and absurdly aloof.