Chapter 23: First Meeting

As soon as Su Pingnan walked in, his gaze was drawn to a stunning, femme fatale sitting inside the room.

Li Luoran had been extremely beautiful since childhood, and as she grew up she became even more devastatingly attractive—delicate features, shoulder-length hair, and a quietly mysterious air that added to her beauty.

It was her birthday;. Li Luoran wore a white collared shirt with a pleated hem and very well-fitting trousers, showcasing her long, straight, pencil-like legs to perfection.

“What do you think? She’s as pretty as a goddess, right?” Du Dandan stuck out her tongue, babbling so sloppily, even she could barely hear herself.

“Weren’t you going to the restroom? How did you come back with a handsome guy?” said another girl in a red dress.

“Oh, yeah…oops?” Du Dandan stuck out her tongue cutely.

“I forgot about that. Ah, whatever—this is my fellow townsman, called Su Zhong. Say hello,” Du Dandan announced, patting the table.

The private room was small and held only ten people—eight women and two men. The two men were tall and thin, and looked like the artsy type.

Su Pingnan smiled at everyone and said, “Hello everyone, sorry to intrude.”

Su Pingnan stood upright, and simply by standing there, exuded a natural presence. The female college students smiled politely to welcome him.

The two artsy young men exchanged a look and reluctantly forced out a welcome.

Li Luoran was poised and gracious. She gave a smile that took Su Pingnan’s breath away. “Hello, it’s my birthday today—you’re welcome to join us,” she said.

For the first time, Su Pingnan thought of a swan when he saw a woman’s neck. He smiled and said, “Sorry for being rude, I didn’t know someone was celebrating their birthday today, so I didn’t bring anything.”

“It’s fine, you’re a university student too, right? I’m Li Luoran from Shanghai International Studies University—nice to meet you,” Li Luoran said softly, at the same time asking a girl to make room.

Su Pingnan looked at the jade-like woman before him. In his previous life, he had led a hard, wandering existence and mostly dealt with women in the same state as him. In this life, he had focused all his energy on business, and yet he found himself at a loss for words.

They were all young people and the dinner party was lively. Before long someone even started singing loudly. Su Pingnan stood straight, feeling oddly old-fashioned and out of place.

Seeing that Su Pingnan seemed out of place, Du Dandan realized it might have been rude of her to force him to join the party. Worried that he might feel awkward, she started chatting with him about Wucheng’s geography and scenery.

Su Pingnan’s gaze was calm. Most of his attention remained on Li Luoran, and he made occasional small talk.

He was a veteran of the underworld and knew how to get things done, so it was impossible for a young university student to notice where he was going with his questions. Before long, he had learned her background and everything she knew about Li Luoran.

Li Luoran was from Xiangnan. Her family was well-off and both parents were civil servants in Xiangnan City. She was the eldest and had a younger sister.

Li Luoran had a talent for languages: besides majoring in English she also took Japanese, French, German and several other languages—she was the studious beauty type.

“Have we really never met? Why do you look so familiar? I must have seen you before,” Du Dandan slurred, her face flushed from drinking as she shook her head trying to remember.

Su Pingnan, expressionless, chatted a bit with the people at the table and clarified the relationship between the two young men and Li Luoran.

One was her roommate’s boyfriend—the girl in red—and the other was Li Luoran’s fellow townsman, who reportedly enrolled in the same university to pursue her and was a determined suitor.

When Su Pingnan’s gaze at Li Luoran grew too ardent, Du Dandan couldn’t help nudging him. “Don’t be so pathetic—Goddess Li has had many suitors, but none have succeeded. I don’t want you to get hurt too,” she said.

Su Pingnan thought for a moment and seriously told Du Dandan, “I’m very rich.”

Poor Su Pingnan. He could clobber another person without batting an eye and remained undaunted and defiant even when facing business magnates like Li Changhai—yet across both his lives he was utterly clumsy when it came to winning a girl’s favor.

Du Dandan laughed uproariously, casting a coquettish glance at him. “You’re SO funny,” she said.

Their voices were loud enough that Yang Pu, the one who had chased Li Luoran from Xiangnan to Shanghai, glared at Su Pingnan fiercely.

Li Luoran heard it plainly. She gave a half-smile and glanced over.

“What money could a college student have? My dear brother, let me tell you: the deputy principal’s son at our school brings Luoran flowers every day and she doesn’t even look at him. He’s far richer than you—he even rides a racing motorcycle to school, you know racing bikes? The kind Andy Lau rode in that movie?”

Du Dandan didn’t really understand motorcycles. To her, the one that Andy Lau rode almost represented every kind of bike.

“Oh, then I should be richer than him,” Su Pingnan said calmly.

“Come! I’ll drink with you, rich guy,” Yang Pu couldn’t stand it any longer. He stood up with a whoosh, holding a large, full cup of beer and spoke in an unfriendly tone.

Hostility from others triggered an almost instinctive response in Su Pingnan. All his earlier awkwardness disappeared without a trace. His body immediately assumed a stance primed for attack, and he stared coldly at Yang Pu, his tone icy, “Are you talking to me?”

The atmosphere at the dinner suddenly chilled. Su Pingnan immediately realized he had gone into fight mode and promptly broke into a friendly smile instead. “Alright.”

That moment when he had seemed like a fierce tiger now felt like a drunken illusion.

Du Dandan kept patting her flushed little face with her hand. “Such a familiar look, such a familiar face—why can’t I remember where I’ve seen him?” she murmured.

Su Pingnan picked up his glass and clinked it with Yang Pu’s. At that moment, the private room’s door was pushed open and an arrogant, overbearing voice rang out. “So, it’s Luoran’s birthday—took me long enough to find you.”