Chapter 6: The Good Guy Card (Part 1)
After they got inside, there were four people in the backseat. Although it was a little crowded, this was still far better than taking a bus.
If this was before she got into her current situation, Jiang Bao couldn’t have imagined such a scenario.
Cao Xing, the one driving the car, smiled and said, “You guys are acting like strangers. You must’ve never been in such a nice car.”
He was driving a BMW X series.
Jiang Bao: “……”
The car she usually rode in was an extended Rolls-Royce Phantom. After she realized how eye-catching it was, she then switched to a more discreet and affordable Lincoln SUV. She had a few sports cars, but they all sat in the garage and she rarely ever drove them.
Zhao Yuanqing laughed awkwardly and uttered in her heart that this guy’s words were really obnoxious.
The two girls didn’t open their mouths, but the few men in the car kept fawning all over them, which very much irritated Jiang Bao.
It turned out that humans are very adaptable. In less than a week, her tolerance had improved by lots.
Forget it. Seeing as the other party was paying for the meal. She also hadn’t eaten properly for ages.
The elevator arrived at the restaurant on the third floor, where they settled down in the lobby.
After ordering the food, Cao Xing came back and said smugly, “You guys must have rarely been to such a high-end restaurant, right? Today is your lucky day, haha!”
Zhao Yuan Qing smiled, “Thank you, Mr. Cao.”
Jiang Bao also said, “Thank you.” She normally prioritized her privacy more and so chose private rooms to avoid the boisterous dining halls. However, this hotel’s private rooms required an additional service charge and wouldn’t accept the discount coupons Cao Xing had prepared.
Actually, this situation was better. Eating in the hall was much more reassuring.
Jiang Bao remembered her purpose for tagging along. After the dishes were served, she didn’t talk and busied herself with the food. Despite eating as quickly as possible, she kept up her elegant manners.
The taste here couldn’t hold a candle to her family chef’s cooking. It was about the same level as her nanny’s cooking at best.
Many middle-aged men, who had some success in their careers, loved to force others to drink as if it is a symbol of their status.
‘Look, you must drink when I tell you to!’
Cao Xing raised his wine glass.
“Good work everyone, let’s have a shot, especially the two beauties. If you don’t drink, that means you aren’t giving me face.[1]”
Zhao Yuan Qing was a bit troubled. “Mr. Cao, this wine must be over 40 proof. I really can’t drink, or I won’t make it back home later.”
“There’s no need to worry about not making it back. Don’t you still have us?”
After a male employee said this, the several men at the table started laughing ambiguously.
“……”
Jiang Bao put down her chopsticks, as she had already eaten enough. If she stayed here any longer, she would get indigestion.
She turned her head to Zhao Yuan Qing and said, “I want to go shopping for something. Accompany me.”
“Oh, of course!” Zhao Yuan Qing also stood up, quite peeved about coming here.
“It hasn’t been that long and you guys are already leaving? This is not giving us any face.” Cao Xing was surprised and stood up as well.
———
Xie Ru Fan came down from the hotel room to look for something to eat. In one glance, his gaze locked onto the two little beauties in the lobby.
Especially the girl in white on the right, the pure and innocent type, who contrasted with the woman from last night.
Xie Ru Fan walked right over to strike up a conversation with her.
“Hello beautiful, I was just about to eat. Do you want to eat with me?”
Zhao Yuan Qing shook her head. “No, thank you. We just ate.”
“Don’t refuse so soon, I’m actually ……”
If he gave out his name and family, these women would normally suck up to him. But Xie Ru Fan was halfway through his sentence when he was suddenly interrupted.
Cao Xing said in excitement, “Mr. Xie, it’s you! What a coincidence!”
“Who are you?” Xie Ru Fan asked with slight irritation.
“I’m Lil’ Cao from ‘So Hot Technology’! The last time you met me, you said you would consider investing in our company. Now, what do you think? Our company has a promising future, right?” Cao Xing spoke passionately.
Jiang Bao: “……”
Xie Ru Fan was not interested. He sized Jiang Bao up, not bothering to conceal his gaze, and asked, “These two must be employees of your company. Not bad.”
“They’re colleagues working with us.” After a moment of welcome, Cao Xing urged them, “Aren’t you going to greet Mr. Xie. Don’t you know who this is?”
Jiang Bao: “……”
She hardly ever returned to China, so the people she knew here were very few. She had never thought the first acquaintance she would meet would end up being this person.
At first, her elder brother wanted to introduce Xie Ru Fan to her as a marriage partner. But the two of them only spoke a few words in public, and Jiang Bao wasn’t interested in him.
Xie Ru Fan had a poor reputation. He liked to play with women and was a good-for-nothing.
Her elder brother and second brother had been at odds for years. While her elder brother had lost in the power struggle, he still reminded others of his presence from time to time. Her second brother, however, had no children, so the elder brother believed his children must be the ones to inherit the company after Second Brother retired.
Contrary to his expectations, Second Brother highly valued her instead… Which lead to the eldest brother always trying to get rid of her by marrying her off.
Xie Ru Fan was infamous. Whatever he did wouldn’t be unknown to the people in the social circles they ran in. He dabbled in finance and real estate after graduating from college; in the beginning, he invested in a company based in Hong Kong. The financial industry, to put it bluntly, was a place where the smart earned from the stupid. Xie’s Young Master unsurprisingly paid the ‘stupid tax’[2] and was scammed, losing more than a billion.
The following year, he didn’t give up and invested in real estate, then lost another two billion…
However, the most incredible feat was the fight between Xie Ru Fan and his father during the meeting with the board of directors. Everyone was stunned, but it was also this incident that lead the old Xie to be completely disappointed in his oldest son, for who he had such high hopes. The second son then succeeded in ascending to the top.
In fact, the second son had been her high school classmate and had always had a good relationship with Jiang Bao.
China’s birth control plan was quite interesting. Many rich households could only have a maximum of two children, and many of them had an only child. If they were raised twisted, that would be the family’s end.
This was unlike her father, who ended up siring five sons. There was an absolute advantage in numbers. He was also laid back about letting his sons compete for power.
Jiang Bao didn’t want to bother with Xie Ru Fan. She turned her head, about to walk away, but ended up blocked by this man. He smiled and said, “I just arrived here. Why are you in such a hurry? Let’s talk.”
Cao Xing also promptly said, “That’s right. Mr. Xie is favoring you!”
Jiang Bao didn’t expect this guy to be so brazen in private. She was stopped in her tracks several times when she tried to leave. Her face immediately darkened as she lowered her voice and said, “Please get out of the way.”
“I don’t want to. Come drink with me. When you come to eat or have an open party in this hotel in the future, you can put it on my tab.”
Jiang Bao: “I’m friends with Xie Liao Yuan. Please show some respect.”
She had no other choice against this scoundrel, she could only use his younger brother’s name, hoping he would be more rational then.
Xie Ru Fan was stunned for a moment and laughed. “You’re Xie Liao Yuan’s friend? Have you climbed into his bed? It just so happens that he’s also here. I’ll call him out.”
Jiang Bao: “…”
Sure enough, he was a mad dog.
Xie Ru Fan shot a look to Cao Xing next to him to keep an eye on them. Two minutes later, he came back again bringing along a young man.
Jiang Bao did not expect Xie Liao Yuan to even be in this hotel.
They had a passable relationship with each other, but now Lin Can’s face was a stranger to him.
Xie Ru Fan didn’t mind stirring things up as he giggled and asked, “Do you know this woman?”
It was as if he had caught the other side’s weakness and was very proud of it.
But Jiang Bao was one step faster and said, “Hello, Jiang Bao and I are friends… I’ve seen you before.”
Footnotes:
[1] Giving face: To show respect often to one’s superior or senior
[2] stupid tax/IQ tax: the price paid for one’s foolish behavior
