Chapter 20: The Incompetent and Malicious Ex-Boyfriend (20)
Upon hearing this, Manager Li’s face immediately broke into a fawning smile.
“Understood, Young Master Ran. I’ll go make the arrangements right away.”
Having spoken, he led the remaining nine people out of the private room in a silent retreat, making sure to close the door with exaggerated care.
The room was suddenly left with only Shen Ci and Lin Muyang’s group of three. The air was filled with the mellow fragrance of expensive liquor blended with a faint scent of incense, which Shen Ci found quite pleasant.
Lin Muyang’s gaze was practically glued to Shen Ci. It traveled from the shoulder line traced by the wine-red hollowed-out shirt down to the red silk ribbon tied in a bow at his waist. His Adam’s apple bobbed unconsciously, and his voice softened by several degrees.
“What’s your name?”
Shen Ci kept his eyes downcast, trying his best to maintain a flat tone.
“My name is Shen Buyu.” Shen Ci had simply made up a name on the spot. In a place like this, only a fool would give their real name.
He could feel the other man’s scorching gaze, which made him feel uncomfortable all over, but he forced himself to stay calm.
[It’s just drinking and chatting; just treat him like a woman.]
Shen Ci comforted himself in his mind.
“Shen Buyu…” Lin Muyang repeated the name, the smile on his face deepening. “That’s quite an interesting name.”
As he spoke, he picked up the bottle from the table and poured a half-glass of amber liquid into the empty cup in front of Shen Ci. “Come, have a drink with me?”
Beside them, Xiaopang let out a whistle and said teasingly, “Xiao Shen, our Young Master Lin hasn’t been in a very good mood lately. You’d better keep him company and have a few drinks.”
Shen Ci picked up the glass. He didn’t know how to say anything to coax or please people, so he simply said dryly, “I’ll toast to Young Master Lin.”
Seeing this, Lin Muyang’s eyes brightened. He took the initiative to raise his own glass, the rim clinking crisply against Shen Ci’s cup.
“Let’s drink together.”
He tilted his head back and drained his glass first. His gaze never left Shen Ci’s face, carrying a hint of scrutiny mixed with an indescribable, flirtatious playfulness.
Shen Ci took a sip first and thought to himself, Holy crap, this is good stuff. It wasn’t harsh when it hit his throat; it had a slightly sweet aftertaste and the alcohol content didn’t seem too high.
Just as he finished the drink and set the glass down, the door was pushed open again. Manager Li entered with another batch of hosts—twelve this time, each dressed glamorously.
Ran Tao swept a glance over them, then glanced at Shen Ci. He frowned, clearly still dissatisfied.
“Manager Li, is ‘hello’ running out of people? This is the level we’re dealing with?”
It wasn’t that this group was of poor quality; on the contrary, every one of them was very good-looking. It was just that with Shen Ci standing there as a comparison, those who followed seemed much less stunning.
Manager Li explained with a fawning smile, “Young Master Ran, you have high standards. These are all our hand-picked choices… or should I go call over the few we have in reserve?”
“Forget it, forget it…” Ran Tao waved his hand and leaned back on the sofa with a click of his tongue. “Lin-zai just has good luck. He picked the most outstanding one. Xiaopang, you pick first; I’ll just find anyone to make up the numbers.”
Hu Xiaopang rubbed his hands, his eyes scanning back and forth through the remaining people. Eventually, he picked a well-behaved-looking young boy and pulled him over to sit by his side. Ran Tao pointed at one at random, who immediately and tactfully moved over.
Once the selection was finished, Manager Li led the rest of the group out. The music in the room was turned down slightly, making it more suitable for conversation.
Hu Xiaopang chatted animatedly with the boy beside him. Ran Tao also occasionally threw a word or two to the person next to him, though his hands weren’t very honest, brazenly stroking the young boy’s shoulder.
As for Lin Muyang, he focused almost all his attention on Shen Ci.
“Xiao Shen, what did you do before this? You don’t look like the type who works as a host…” Lin Muyang propped up his chin, his eyes full of curiosity.
Shen Ci had a cold, somewhat detached aura that carried a hint of awkwardness—it was completely different from the effortless smoothness of the other hosts.
Shen Ci mentally praised him for his sharp eyes. “I worked at a company before. I wanted to earn some extra money, so I came here for part-time work.”
“Oh? What kind of company?” Lin Muyang pressed, clearly very interested in his affairs.
Shen Ci was vague. “Just a small company, not worth mentioning.”
He didn’t want to talk much about his own business, so he took the initiative to pick up the bottle and top up Lin Muyang’s drink. “Mr. Lin, I’ll toast you.”
Lin Muyang hadn’t expected him to initiate a toast. The smile on his face grew even wider as he immediately picked up his glass.
“Don’t call me Mr. Lin. Just call me Muyang.”
Shen Ci: “…”
After a second of silence, Shen Ci followed his lead and called him “Muyang.” His voice was neither high nor low, perfectly normal, yet it made Lin Muyang’s heart feel strangely tingly.
The two of them went back and forth for several drinks. Lin Muyang couldn’t resist tentatively reaching out to grab Shen Ci’s hand, but Shen Ci unobtrusively dodged it.
Shen Ci placed his glass on the table to mask his discomfort. “Muyang, I’m going to the restroom.”
Lin Muyang assumed he was just being shy. Since it was the guy’s first time doing this, he understood.
“Go ahead.”
Shen Ci stood up and walked quickly out of the room. Standing on the cold tiles of the corridor, Shen Ci took a deep breath and rubbed his brow. Lin Muyang’s overly fervent gaze made him feel uneasy all over.
Fortunately, the man seemed to have some decency. Aside from trying to grab his hand, he hadn’t done anything out of line or said anything inappropriate.
…
Inside the room, Ran Tao looked at Lin Muyang and spoke measuredly.
“Lin-zai, don’t tell me you’ve actually taken a liking to this Shen Buyu? Let me remind you, he’s just a host. It’s fine to play around and treat it like a performance, but don’t get too serious.”
Lin Muyang looked at him, his face full of disagreement. “He’s different from the others.”
Ran Tao: “…”
Why did those words sound so inexplicably familiar?
Before he could speak, Lin Muyang’s phone suddenly rang.
“Young Master Jiang, what are your orders?”
“Lin-zai, help me investigate someone tomorrow.”
Although Ming Yanzhou had said he was looking into Ye Qi’s background, Jiang Ningyuan felt he was being too slow. After thinking it over, he decided to have Lin-zai help him investigate.
“Sure… Send the name and phone number to my WeChat.”
“No phone number, I only know the name.”
“Then it might be a bit difficult to handle… There are so many people with the same name.”
“Is there anything that can stump the great Young Master Lin?”
Lin Muyang arched an eyebrow and gave an “Mm,” then asked Jiang Ningyuan, “What are you doing, Jiang-shao? Want to come out for a drink? It’s been a while.”
“Your gathering?”
“Ran Tao organized it. It’s just me and Xiaopang, no outsiders.”
Jiang Ningyuan was a classmate of Lin Muyang and they had a very good relationship. Ran Tao and Xiaopang had also drunk with them a few times, so they were considered friends.
“Fine. Where are you drinking?”
“hello.”
Jiang Ningyuan guessed they were likely at hello. Lin Muyang was gay and had come out back in high school. As for Ran Tao and Hu Xiaopang, they were typical second-generation playboys who weren’t picky about gender.
“I’ll be there in a bit.”
“Okay, I’ll send the room number to your phone.”
