Chapter 96, No Choice
After waiting for half an hour, Qi Yao came out of the study and was immediately taken aside by Qi Yuan who was guarding the door.
"Sister, sister, let me tell you something!"
"Keep your voice down." Seeing her sister's anxious expression, Qi Yao glanced into the study. After making sure that she did not alarm her father, she pulled Qi Yuan back to the room.
"What's wrong?"
"Look at this." Qi Yuan handed the phone to his sister, "That guy asked you to meet him tonight."
Glancing casually at her phone, Qi Yao corrected her: "It's not about me, it's about you."
"Oh my, it doesn't matter who you ask out. You're the one going to the appointment tonight anyway."
Qi Yao: "..." Rubbing her temples with a headache, "Can I not go?"
"No." Qi Yuan said, "If you don't go, he will definitely go to Dad and complain about you. Maybe Dad will force you to spend time with him day and night to cultivate feelings..."
The more you talk, the scarier it gets.
Qi Yao sighed: "I know, I will go."
"Sister, not only do you have to go, you also have to pretend to be like me in front of him, otherwise he will be exposed the next time he sees me."
Qi Yao had an even bigger headache: "I know."
Pretending to be Qi Yuan's character... is even more terrifying than letting her face a group of business rivals.
"Come on, sister, let's practice smiling first. This time, you must smile more naturally, not as stiff as last time."
“…”
…
That night, the moon was bright, the stars were sparse, and the wind was warm and gentle.
After greeting his father and a group of uncles he knew, Qi Yao changed for a glass of champagne and wanted to go to the lounge to have some quiet time.
"Ayao." Father Qi called her, his eyes fixed on one place, and spoke to her in a low voice, "Your uncle Chu is sick and didn't come, but Chu Yuan is here, go talk to him."
"Father, I..."
"Qi Yao, don't be willful." Seeing her reluctance, Father Qi said coldly, "The marriage with the Chu family is imperative. Now is not the time for you to act like a child."
“…Yes, father.”
Throwing a tantrum?
The girl walked along and greeted different people gracefully.
When had she ever had the right to act like a child?
Putting the champagne glass on the waiter's tray, the girl walked towards the back garden.
From childhood to adulthood, she has never had the power to choose what to like, what to desire, what path to take, and what kind of person to spend her life with... From the day she was born, her future has been arranged by her elders.
Unable to refuse or resist, I could only passively accept it, being pushed by countless invisible hands, stumbling forward without even a chance to stop and take a breath.
——The life that seemed gorgeous to outsiders only brought her a feeling of despair and suffocation.
Perhaps she was more emotional at night. When she saw the man waiting in the Wisteria Corridor, Qi Yao completely ignored what her sister had told her. She had a cold face and acted indifferent, as if she was keeping him at a distance.
"Nice to meet you again." Naturally noticing the girl's indifference, Chu Yuan kept a polite distance from her and greeted her politely, "I thought you wouldn't come."
"Didn't you send a WeChat message?" The boy's greeting seemed to her like a knowing question, and Qi Yao sneered, "Mr. Chu personally invited me. Do I have any choice?"
"Um, you mean that WeChat message?" Chu Yuan just smiled helplessly after being confronted by the girl. "My invitation is based on your attendance. Of course, you can choose not to come."
"I wish I could choose!" Qi Yao sneered, "If I could choose, I wouldn't come to a place like this!"
Chu Yuan was stunned: "Does this place refer to tonight's banquet? Or... here?"
Qi Yao blurted out: "It's all the same!"
Chu Yuan: "..."
After the man fell silent, the atmosphere suddenly became more awkward.
In the silence, Qi Yao suddenly remembered her identity and the purpose of coming here tonight.
Still... I can't do it.
She couldn't be as carefree as Qi Yuan and transform herself into another person—she couldn't smile as innocently as her sister, nor could she express her thoughts and demands as naturally as she did...
Compared to the perfect heir of the Qi family, she is more like a complete loser.
Exhaling, Qi Yao was about to apologize and leave when she heard the man say calmly, "Actually, I don't really like attending social gatherings either. A friend of mine just opened a bar. If you don't mind, why don't we go check it out together?"
Qi Yao: "..."
In this way, two people who were equally unwilling to attend the party sneaked out of the manor while no one was paying attention.
If her father knew about this, he would definitely scold her severely, right?
Along the way, this thought kept haunting the girl.
She even thought about turning back halfway.
But in the end, I couldn't say the words of regret.
When she arrived at the bar, heard the exciting music, and was bathed in the ambiguous lights, she completely forgot the idea of returning.
The girl who grew up following her family's requirements had never been to a bar. It was her first time in a completely unfamiliar environment. She was not timid at all. Instead, she felt that her heart, which had been imprisoned for a long time, was completely released.
Here—dim lights, loud music, bustling crowds—no one cared who she was, and no one would tell her whether what she did was right or wrong.
She finally had some time without being disturbed, even if it was very short.
"Why aren't you drinking?" The girl leaned over the bar, clinking her glass against the man next to her. "You're drinking... Are you drunk?"
"I'm not drunk, you are." Looking at the girl who spoke incoherently, Chu Yuan found it funny, "You are drunk, Qi Yao."
"I'm not drunk!" The girl rolled her eyes ungraciously. "I've been practicing my drinking capacity since I was a child. How could I be drunk?"
"Practice?" Chu Yuan was curious, "You, the Qi family, also want to practice your drinking capacity?"
"Of course." Qi Yao took a sip of the wine in the glass and curled her lips. "If you can drink well, you don't have to worry about being plotted against at the table... That's what my father said."
"So, what else have you practiced?"
"Piano, violin, painting, modern dance, calligraphy...hiccups...I've practiced a lot of things."
Chu Yuan gave sincere praise: "...Amazing."
"Haha, let me tell you something in secret." The girl swayed closer to him, looked up at him, and said loudly in a whispering manner, "Actually, I don't like anything I practiced."
Chu Yuan lowered his eyes and looked at her, smiled slightly, and said softly: "What do you like?"
"I like photography..." The girl's eyes brightened as she spoke of her hobby. "I like to freeze beautiful things into a moment, so that I can preserve happiness."
"Hmm." He chuckled, "That's a good idea."
"Right? Right?" She was happy to get recognition. "You think it's good too, right?" After being happy, she patted his chest cautiously. "This is my secret. Don't tell anyone else, understand?"
The girl said this and slid into his arms drunkenly.
Chu Yuan raised his hand and hugged the man, said hello to his friends, and led him out of the bar.
"Where are we going?" The girl walked unsteadily, but was in high spirits. "How about we go have barbecue? Chu Yuan! Let's go have barbecue!"
"...I'll take you home."
"Going home? No! I'm going to have a barbecue! I can't have barbecue if I go home... Barbecue, barbecue!"
"Next time I'll take you to eat barbecue..."
"Next time? When is next time?"
"After you sober up."
“…”
…
Because of the hangover, Qi Yao woke up at noon the next day.
The girl sat on the bed, her mind was a little blank, and she couldn't remember what she did last night.
"Sister~" Qi Yuan came in from the doorway and saw that his sister had woken up. He immediately threw himself on the bed and shouted excitedly, "Sister, you are so amazing. You actually dragged Chu Yuan out for a drink and got drunk. You have my style. I give you a thumbs up!"
(End of this chapter)
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