After Li Ran went upstairs, Zhang Juan looked at Tang Wanqing with an apologetic expression and said, “Wanqing, Xiao Ran has been spoiled by me since he was little, so please don’t take his words too seriously.”
“How could I?” Tang Wanqing replied with a gentle smile.
How could she possibly be angry with Li Ran?
In her eyes, Li Ran was only temporarily bewitched by that woman, Mu Bingxuan. The reason he was so deeply infatuated with her, unable to forget, was simply because they had spent so much time together day and night. Moreover, Li Ran had barely been exposed to other beautiful women, so naturally, he had become obsessed with Mu Bingxuan.
If the two of them were separated for a while, his feelings would slowly fade on their own.
Meanwhile, if she and Li Ran spent time together day and night, their initially distant relationship would gradually grow closer and deeper.
Tang Wanqing had already made plans in her heart. When the time came, she would arrange for Li Ran to live with her. Then, she would casually play a movie or two in the living room, something like “The Kind Little Aunt,” and let him slowly accept her. It was not impossible.
…
After going upstairs, Li Ran shut himself inside his room.
He truly could not understand Tang Wanqing’s move this time. However, he did not dwell on it.
No matter what Tang Wanqing said or did, he just needed to find an excuse to refuse.
What truly mattered was tonight’s freshman welcome gala. That was the main event he had to face.
On the surface, it was a scene where he would be humiliated by Lin Ming.
In reality, it was the beginning of his path toward darkness.
In this scene, after being slapped in the face by Lin Ming, a seed of darkness would be planted in his heart. After that, following a series of failed attempts at revenge against Lin Ming, he would gradually descend into darkness.
And once he turned dark, his fall would begin.
That also meant he was not far from losing his virginity.
So this scene had to be performed perfectly.
As usual, Li Ran reviewed the plotline once more.
In the original novel, after being humiliated twice by Lin Ming and learning about Lin Ming and Mu Bingxuan’s duet, he could not suppress his anger.
Thus, on the night of the welcome gala, he arrogantly brought his bodyguards to the auditorium.
Then, he had them knock out a performer who was about to go on stage and dragged the person away, taking their place himself.
Naturally, this act drew ridicule and disdain from the audience.
Yet for Mu Bingxuan’s sake, Li Ran shamelessly went through with the performance.
After finishing, he even stayed on stage and confessed his feelings to Mu Bingxuan with exaggerated devotion, fully embodying the role of a desperate licking dog.
Then, when Lin Ming and Mu Bingxuan’s duet appeared, it completely overshadowed him and crushed him beyond comparison.
That was roughly how the plot went.
However, because of Bai Weiwei, there was no longer any need for him to impersonate someone.
So tonight, how should he provoke the audience’s dissatisfaction and ridicule?
That was the question Li Ran needed to solve.
Soon, he came up with an idea.
He would deliberately be late.
As a notorious playboy young master, many people were already unhappy that he was participating in a performance. If he added deliberate tardiness on top of that, it would certainly spark dissatisfaction and mockery from the audience.
The effect would be the same.
Perfect.
As evening approached and the time drew near, Li Ran changed into a white formal suit before heading downstairs.
After confirming with Uncle Fu that Tang Wanqing had already left, Li Ran finally let out a sigh of relief.
…
Inside the grand auditorium, the lights converged brilliantly.
The seats below were filled with students, and quite a few people were already holding cameras, waiting expectantly.
“Next, please enjoy the first performance…”
With the host’s passionate voice, the freshman welcome gala officially began.
Backstage, many students waiting to perform wore slightly nervous expressions.
“One group, prepare to go on stage.”
As the announcement for the previous performance ended, the supervising teacher began urging the performers forward.
At that moment, Mu Bingxuan, who was scheduled as the finale, seemed to be searching for someone.
“Where is Li Ran? Didn’t he also sign up to perform? Why hasn’t he arrived yet?”
After looking around and still not seeing him, a trace of anxiety appeared on her delicate face.
Could it be that he forgot? Or did something happen to him?
At that moment, Lin Ming, dressed in a tailcoat, walked over.
Today, Mu Bingxuan was wearing a sky-blue evening gown. She looked like a fairy stepping out of a dream, graceful and breathtaking.
Even Lin Ming was stunned by her beauty.
“Senior Mu, what’s wrong?” he asked gently, though a hint of satisfaction flickered in his heart. So she finally felt nervous.
Putting on a caring expression, he said softly, “Relax, everything is under my control.”
The moment others saw this scene, many cast envious glances toward Lin Ming.
“So that’s Lin Ming? He’s so handsome.”
“Damn, proximity really does help. He got close to the campus goddess so quickly?”
“Sigh, practicing piano together every day… feelings naturally grow.”
“But honestly, Lin Ming does look like a good match for her. Much better than that licking dog Li Ran.”
Hearing these discussions, Lin Ming smiled faintly at the crowd, as if to say they were absolutely right.
However, only he knew the bitterness behind it.
On the surface, he and Mu Bingxuan were performing together, envied by countless people.
But in reality, things were completely different.
Privately, he had never practiced with Mu Bingxuan even once.
She had not paid him any attention at all.
Of course, he would never admit something that would damage his pride.
What he wanted was exactly this kind of misunderstanding.
After all, only he, Lin Ming, was worthy of Mu Bingxuan.
Sooner or later, Mu Bingxuan would be his woman.
Mu Bingxuan frowned slightly, casting a look of disgust at Lin Ming.
If she were not worried that taking action might damage her image in Li Ran’s eyes once the news spread, she would have already slapped Lin Ming twice.
Ignoring him completely, Mu Bingxuan stood up, walked aside, and took out her phone.
“Li Ran, where are you? The performance has already started… your slot is the seventh… You didn’t forget? Good.”
Relief washed over her as she hung up.
Beside her, Lin Ming’s confident smile gradually faded, his face turning gloomy.
Li Ran, is it?
Tonight, I will make you understand that Mu Bingxuan and I are destined to be together!
Time passed, and Li Ran’s performance slot drew closer.
Mu Bingxuan lifted her skirt slightly and ran to the entrance of the auditorium to wait.
Seeing this, Lin Ming’s expression darkened even further.
After the previous performance ended, the two hosts stepped onto the stage.
“Next, please welcome Li Ran to bring us a violin solo…”
They waited for a while, but no one appeared on stage.
Murmurs began to spread among the audience.
What’s going on? Where is he?
“Isn’t this Li Ran that playboy from the Li Family?”
“Why hasn’t he come up yet?”
“He probably knows he’d embarrass himself, so he doesn’t dare show up.”
“Hahaha, that’s hilarious!”
“He signed up but doesn’t dare perform. Might as well let me go up and play a saxophone solo.”
At that moment, the auditorium doors suddenly opened.
Everyone turned to look.
A young man in a white formal suit walked in.
“That’s Li Ran?”
“Damn, that outfit is flashy as hell!”
“He even brought bodyguards. Does he think this is his personal concert?”
“Seriously, this is a welcome gala. He’s acting way too arrogant, like he’s some big star.”
“So ridiculous!”
Many people mocked and laughed as they watched Li Ran, treating him like a clown.
The young master of the Li Family had no achievements to speak of. No talent, no virtue.
Yet when it came to flashy nonsense, he was quite skilled.
But soon, their laughter froze.
Behind Li Ran, a woman appeared.
A sky-blue gown radiated a dreamlike aura. The crystals embedded in the fabric shimmered brilliantly under the lights.
Her breathtaking beauty made her seem like a princess straight out of a fairy tale.
Mu Bingxuan!