Romantic Encounters at the 289th Cocktail Party
As Li Wei was packing her things for the day before she was about to leave, her aunt arrived.
It turned out that the city's business community had hosted a reception hosted by the municipal government to welcome a business delegation from the Canadian real estate industry, and her cousin insisted that Li Wei accompany her.
Unlike Li Wei, her aunt had extensive connections in the political and business world, having cultivated relationships over many years. Li Wei's company, while financially strong, maintained a low profile; Li Wei rarely appeared in public, leaving matters to be handled by Shen Tao or Lao Luo.
Many people know that the company's behind-the-scenes boss is the Luo family, but only a handful of people know about Li Wei.
The aunt's family was clearly among those in the know, and they intentionally approached Li Wei, striking a good balance between being close relatives and maintaining appropriate boundaries.
Li Wei herself was unwilling to attend the social gatherings, but her aunt's words were earnest. She did have an assistant, but he had been sick and hospitalized for the past two days. There were some things that she might not be able to understand if she temporarily found someone who was good at foreign languages. Li Wei was, after all, the behind-the-scenes boss of the real estate company and a relative, so she was better than an outsider.
Moreover, the aunt clearly felt her position was threatened, and asking Li Wei to go with her was also a way of showing off, letting Li Wei see that experience counts. Although her family might not be as powerful as the Luo family, Li Wei was far behind in terms of connections and business acumen.
Li Wei was naturally unaware of her ulterior motives. Her aunt was indeed very helpful and quick to lend a hand when needed, never shirking her responsibilities or asking for help.
These days, it's a small matter, and she has nothing to do at home. If we were to refuse her outright, it would indeed be rather unreasonable.
So, left with no other choice, Li Wei had to agree.
Coincidentally, Da Luo also went out this afternoon, saying he was meeting up with some classmates and would be back late, so he told Li Wei to go to sleep early and not wait for him.
So when Li Wei saw that the children were having a great time under Sister Wei's care, she didn't need to worry about them. Aunt Gao was also very skilled at tidying up; she could manage everything by herself with ease.
Since the family doesn't need her help, she decided to leave it at that. She figured there was still time. She rummaged through the room for clothes, shoes, bags, and jewelry. Then she took a bath. Afterward, she applied a delicate layer of makeup.
As for makeup, Li Wei usually only takes good care of her skin, does her hair, and trims her eyebrows. There's really nothing else she needs to do.
She's already young, and her skin is flawless and porcelain-white. All those years of dedicated skincare are no joke; her entire body is so smooth, you can't even see her pores. It's so delicate that even Li Lin is incredibly jealous.
Her lips were red, her teeth white, and her eyes bright and captivating. Her long, jet-black hair was cut in distinct layers in the front, and cascaded down her shoulders and back like silken satin in the back.
So Li Wei only lightly applied some powder and a pearlescent lipstick. She wore a matching pearl-colored, thin-strapped fishtail gown, which accentuated her extremely graceful figure. She paired it with matching high heels, a set of platinum and diamond-encrusted earrings, a necklace, and a bracelet, and a matching embroidered handbag.
After getting dressed, Li Wei stood in front of the mirror and twirled around twice. Oh no, she felt like she was falling in love with herself. Da Luo wasn't home either, otherwise she would have had someone else to admire her. What a pity.
However, Aunt Gao was still quite stunning. Although she didn't say it, Li Wei could tell from her eyes that her vanity had been satisfied, so all her efforts weren't in vain.
Just as Li Wei finished tidying up, her aunt arrived. Li Wei picked up her bag and gave Aunt Gao a few more instructions. Seeing that the three little ones were having a lively time telling stories with Sister Wei in the nursery, she didn't go in. Otherwise, her outfit would have been ruined in no time.
Li Wei got into the car and sat in the back seat with her cousin. Chen Juan couldn't help but be amazed when she saw Li Wei: "Xiao Ming, you usually don't like to dress up, but when you dress up properly, you really look like a different person!"
Now Chen Juan also calls Li Wei Xiaoming, just like Lao Luo's family.
Today, Chen Juan also dressed up in a beautiful evening gown, wearing a generous and well-fitting velvet cheongsam with diamonds, a pearl necklace, and her hair was styled in an updo. It was clear that she had put a lot of effort into her evening makeup. She was also quite beautiful, looking every bit the noble and elegant lady.
He's almost fifty years old, but he looks like he's in his thirties.
Li Wei smiled and praised Chen Juan a few times. The two chatted for a while before arriving at their destination.
It's actually not far; it's in the luxurious banquet hall of a star-rated hotel in the city center.
The guests all entered with invitations, and the comings and goings were quite a sight, with elegant ladies and gentlemen in pairs. It was rather rare to see two women, one older and one younger, like Li Wei and Chen Juan.
To Li Wei's surprise, she saw Shen Tao arrive with his assistant, who also looked very elegant. Li Wei then remembered that Shen Tao had indeed mentioned this matter to her, but she hadn't taken it to heart and had just let him handle it himself.
The two met at the entrance of the lobby and found it amusing. Shen Tao was even more exasperated: "I mean, you dressed up so beautifully, but you're not here for our own company to socialize. I even had to find female companions from all over the place. It's really disheartening."
The assistant, of course, recognized Li Wei and quickly greeted her.
Li Wei nodded and carefully examined the assistant. She was about twenty-six or twenty-seven years old, not exceptionally beautiful, but she was quite attractive. This guy was still not satisfied? He must be too rich, his standards for women are too high.
If no one were around, Li Wei might have teased Shen Tao a bit, but now, in front of her subordinates and with people coming and going, and with her aunt already waving at her from the other side of the hall, she quickly smiled and nodded at Shen Tao before leaving.
As Shen Tao watched her walk away, he lowered his eyes and pondered for a long while before saying, "Let's go in too."
Chen Juan truly lived up to her reputation as a powerful businesswoman. Her social skills and etiquette were impeccable. With Li Wei by her side, she navigated among officials, businessmen, and celebrities from all walks of life with ease and grace. In fact, the number of acquaintances she had was astonishing to Li Wei. No wonder her father-in-law said that her cousin had a wide circle of friends and was quite capable. Today, she had witnessed it firsthand.
Chen Juan also took good care of Li Wei, often introducing her to old friends and acquaintances. She was very considerate of Li Wei, and shared her social skills and interpersonal etiquette without reservation, truly acting like an elder.
Li Wei hadn't really learned these things from her mother and aunt, since both of them were very down-to-earth and quite averse to social engagements, especially her mother, whose father usually handled all the social events at home.
Because Ding Hong was looking after her, there wasn't much trouble with her aunt. Basically, no one in that city bothered her. Therefore, Cheng Fei's willfulness and domineering nature had now been integrated into her management style. She didn't need to be as flexible in dealing with various relationships as Chen Juan was.
To some extent, Cheng Min and Cheng Fei's way of dealing with people influenced Li Wei. Coupled with the influence of her innate environment, Li Wei was not very interested in this kind of so-called high society social interaction.
Her indifference doesn't mean the matter is unnecessary, especially at the level of the Luo and Li families, where certain social niceties are still quite necessary.
Seeing Chen Juan's behavior, Li Wei felt even more that she might have made some mistakes in terms of both personal development and career advancement. Chen Juan could live as she pleased, but what about her children?
Are they going to be like her, just living their own little lives instead of showing the world to them in a better way?
Li Wei accompanied her aunt around the venue, but she was busy all day. Besides socializing, she also had to act as her aunt's translator. What was infuriating was that, not only did everyone speak English, but a Japanese woman and a French woman, the wives of high-ranking executives of a large corporation, also appeared.
Li Wei is quite proficient in English, and Japanese is her second foreign language, which she can also manage. However, her French is still only half-baked after studying it for less than a year. She only audited classes because the professor in the French major was indeed beautiful and had a good demeanor. Now she has to use what she has just learned, which is a bit difficult for her.
Fortunately, the French woman, Sophie, could speak English, so the two communicated reasonably well. However, she was quite nervous and couldn't help but feel annoyed with the organizers. "You're hosting the Canadian real estate industry, how come you've invited the Eight-Nation Alliance?"
After walking for a while, Li Wei felt her feet were sore and her mouth was dry. While her aunt was talking to a few familiar old women, she told them to go to the long table where food and drinks were placed, grabbed a glass of lemonade, and saw that one end of the long table was a huge floor-to-ceiling window with sheer embroidered curtains swaying and the lights outside were brilliant.
Li Wei couldn't help but walk over and stand by the window, sipping her juice and admiring the night view outside. Just as she was enjoying herself, a magnetic baritone voice with a slight rolled "r" sound came from behind her and above her: "This scene reminds me of a poem."
Through the reflection in the glass, Li Wei could already see the person behind her: a very elegant middle-aged man in a navy blue suit, holding a glass of red wine, raising his glass to Li Wei in the glass.
Li Wei didn't turn around, but smiled and said, "Don't say, 'Suddenly I turn around and there she is, in the dim light,' or I'll laugh myself sick. Any woman with a lamp would be just right."
The man paused for a moment: "No, it was like a fleeting glimpse of a beautiful woman, a dream come true."
Li Wei tilted her head, feeling a little uncomfortable. She decided to pretend she was uncultured and that she couldn't understand.
Being with a strange man in a somewhat ambiguous atmosphere made her uncomfortable, especially since this man didn't seem like the slightly naive and straightforward teenagers or young men she had met before.
The man said again, "My name is Liao Kaiwen. I know your name is Li Weiwei. I can tell you're not feeling well. Would you like to sit down on that chair over there?" It was that unique, slightly rolled "r" tone of his voice again.
"My name isn't Li Weiwei." Why does that name sound so childish?
Should I go sit with him? Li Wei touched her left ring finger. Oh my god, how could I forget to wear my wedding ring!
Would it seem ridiculous to say I'm already married now?
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