Wen Yan and his friends quickly arrived at their destination.
The venue was elegantly decorated, with dimmed lights in the room, and several glass lampshades on the tables with burning candles inside, illuminating the freshly delivered flowers nearby. The whole atmosphere exuded a hazy and romantic vibe, clearly designed to encourage romance.
The attendees were well-dressed, especially the girls, each wearing dresses and light makeup, resembling little fairies in the dim lights.
The trio of Wen Yan immediately caused quite a stir when they entered.
All three of them had good looks. Li Zheng and Jin Yueze were dressed in all black, giving off a cool and aloof vibe. In the middle was Wen Yan, who seemed to glow in white, making them look like they were there for a fashion show, instantly outshining others.
However, they were quickly surrounded by the girls from their class. A group of girls surrounded Wen Yan and Li Zheng, pinching their faces and asking about lipstick shades.
“I don’t wear lipstick,” Wen Yan, with his face being pinched, spoke a bit unclearly, “This is my natural color.”
He just applied some lip balm.
Li Zheng, on the other hand, was even more straightforward and didn’t put on anything.
Jin Yueze was the one who actually wore lipstick. He earnestly said, “I’m wearing Star Dream’s 009 color.”
However, looking at his pitch-black lips, no one seemed interested in having the same shade.
At exactly seven o’clock, the dance began.
People who were chatting together a moment ago quickly found their dance partners and started dancing. Those who were alone searched the room for someone similarly solitary and formed temporary pairs.
Jin Yueze didn’t want to dance, but eventually, Li Zheng and Wen Yan convinced him.
Wen Yan wasn’t keen on dancing either, but sitting on the sofa made him too conspicuous. In just ten minutes, he was approached by four people, bothering him so much that he had to stand up and dance with Li Zheng.
Dancing was indeed a good tool for fostering ambiguity, but once your dance partner turned out to be a childhood friend who had seen you grow up, the effect of ambiguity disappeared without a trace.
Wen Yan stared at the ceiling with a sense of despair. He questioned the heavens, “Why have I descended to the point of dancing with you?”
“Good question. I’m also wondering why I rejected the beauty from the next class and ended up embracing you,” Li Zheng, even more annoyed, said, “You wouldn’t believe it, but starting tomorrow, our entire grade will spread the rumor that I’m gay and pursuing you.”
Thinking about that scene, he wanted to immediately shake off Wen Yan and throw him into a flower bed.
Wen Yan wondered, “Aren’t you demons supposed to be indifferent to gender? Are you the rare heterosexual demon who only likes girls?”
Li Zheng rolled his eyes. “We don’t care about gender, but that doesn’t mean I only want to date guys. I also want to try dating a gentle and cute human girl.”
Wen Yan looked at him sympathetically. “Among humans, there aren’t that many gentle and cute girls. They can all beat you up, so stop dreaming; even if there are, you won’t stand a chance.”
Li Zheng was infuriated by his words.
The friendship boat was on the verge of capsizing.
Despite almost getting into a fight before finishing one dance, they managed to complete three dances before returning to the corner to become wallflowers again.
To avoid being bothered by others, the three of them secretly grabbed a whole plate of snacks, hid behind the sofa, sipped champagne, and lazed around.
The dance turned out to be like this.
Jin Yueze actually enjoyed this atmosphere. He attended the dance purely for inspiration for his novel, as he was essentially a social recluse, feeling safe in the corner.
He stuffed a small cake into his mouth and casually asked Wen Yan, “Why didn’t you bring your fiancé today?”
He knew that Wen Yan recently had someone he liked, according to the version where Wen Yan initially tricked Li Zheng.
He was deeply intoxicated by that story, wholeheartedly believing it, and had been wanting to meet this fiancé.
“He’s busy, so he couldn’t make it,” Wen Yan said with a face full of frustration.
Jin Yueze nodded and continued casually, “How’s your relationship progressing?”
He asked sincerely.
As someone who had been isolated since childhood, he cherished the friendship of Wen Yan and Li Zheng. Following the principle of caring for friends’ lives, he felt it was necessary to inquire about Wen Yan’s love life.
Wen Yan gave him a look full of mixed feelings.
Li Zheng also sighed silently, feeling that Jin Yueze was miraculously surviving, considering Wen Yan’s frustrated expression; he hadn’t succeeded in his pursuit yet.
“I don’t know,” Wen Yan took another sip of champagne and leaned against the back of the sofa, “He’s good to me, but sometimes I feel like he’s only nice to me because I’m still young. He indulges me, and it doesn’t have much to do with romantic feelings.” He slapped his thigh, annoyed, “The last time, I wore a sexy nightgown in front of him for half a day, and he didn’t react at all! I suspect he’s blind!”
Li Zheng, caught off guard by the peachy gossip about Rong Xiao, sprayed champagne again.
He looked at Wen Yan in shock. He admired his brother’s courage, after all, the last demon who tried to seduce Rong Xiao was still locked up!
However, Jin Yueze didn’t find anything wrong. Instead, he looked at Wen Yan’s face and said seriously, “Maybe it’s because he’s emotionally cold. You should think carefully; otherwise, disharmony in your sex life could lead to significant problems in the future.”
Li Zheng, who had just sipped champagne, sprayed it out again.
He wiped his mouth, thinking that if this conversation leaked out, he might be hanged and beaten by his entire family.
Thinking of this, he decisively covered Jin Yueze’s mouth, afraid that he might say something earth-shattering again.
…
Eight-thirty, the top level of the Demon Management Bureau.
Rong Xiao and the Ghost King had just signed a 17-point agreement regarding friendly interactions between the Demon and Ghost realms. Rong Xiao stood up, exchanged a perfunctory handshake with the Ghost King, and finished the formalities.
Demons and ghosts rarely had positive feelings toward each other. Coexistence was the best possible outcome, achieved through reluctant peace.
Moreover, demons were not known for adhering to human hospitality customs. Rong Xiao didn’t even host a dinner; after the handshake, he asked the head of the Demon Management Bureau to see the ghost delegation off.
The Ghost King had no intention of dining with him either. With reserved indifference, he nodded and summoned his attendants to leave.
Before leaving, he suddenly stopped and said to Rong Xiao, “Regarding the favor I just asked for, please take care of it.”
In addition to signing the agreement, he came to find his lost child who had slipped into the human world. Rong Xiao was familiar with this matter.
Rong Xiao nodded; he wouldn’t refuse such a trivial request. “If there’s any information, I’ll have someone inform you.”
The Ghost King didn’t say more and, along with his entourage, dissipated from the Demon Management Bureau like a gust of smoke.
Fortunately, all the staff there were demons, so no one was frightened.
Rong Xiao didn’t linger here. The demons from the Demon Management Bureau were afraid of him, affecting work efficiency as they walked with tails between their legs.
After discussing the arrangements with several responsible figures at the Demon Management Bureau, he left with Yu Bu Wen, taking the car back.
While sitting in the car, he glanced at his watch and found that the hour hand pointed to 8:45.
Vaguely remembering that Wen Yan’s dance party would end at 9:30, he had no intention of going.
He rarely attended significant meetings held in the demon realm, let alone a dance party organized by a mere human. It was unnecessary for him.
However, as he leaned back on the rear seat and closed his eyes to rest, Wen Yan’s disappointed face kept flashing in his mind. Although full of anticipation, Wen Yan didn’t make a fuss, quietly sitting on the sofa and playing games to avoid disturbing Rong Xiao’s important matters.
The shadow made him dizzy and soft-hearted.
Perhaps he was indeed getting old, and it was time to be more tolerant of the younger generation.
When the car passed the next intersection, Rong Xiao, with closed eyes, calmly said, “Don’t go home first, head to University A.”
The surprised housekeeper glanced at him through the rearview mirror but said nothing. A faint smile appeared on his lips as he decisively turned the car around.
Upon entering University A, the campus was no longer as lively as during the day. Groups of young students walked in pairs or threes on the streets, frequently glancing up at him and whispering with suppressed laughter.
Rong Xiao rarely visited human universities, but that didn’t prevent him from keenly sensing Wen Yan’s presence. He easily found the location of the dance party through Wen Yan’s aura.
However, as he prepared to enter, an arm suddenly stretched out in front of him.
Rong Xiao frowned, looking at the audacious human blocking his way.
The security guard, a middle-aged man over fifty, remained unfazed and scrutinized him with the eyes of someone inspecting a potential criminal. “Are you not from our school? Do you have an invitation? Those without invitations from other schools are not allowed in.”
Rong Xiao: “…………”
Well, he was treated like this for the first time.
However, demons had ways to enter human territories.
Two seconds later, the loyal security guard turned around with a bewildered look in his eyes. Mr. Rong, without an invitation, confidently walked in through the main entrance.
Once inside, he furrowed his brow. The dance party had progressed to the second half, losing the initial refined and romantic atmosphere. It had turned into a chaotic scene of disco, with loud and unrestrained music. People, some still wearing high heels and leather shoes, were dancing randomly.
Rong Xiao cast a concealment spell on himself, traversed through the dancing crowd, and accurately locked onto Wen Yan’s location.
He circled around to the back of a sofa and stood in front of Wen Yan.
Wen Yan, who didn’t know where he had gotten a small cushion, sat cross-legged on it, resembling a little cat, not at all refined and elegant. In front of him were two empty glasses.
There was only Wen Yan on the sofa; Li ZhenG had just run off with the beauty from the next class, and Jin Yueze had already returned to the dormitory.
Seeing a pair of feet appearing in front of him, Wen Yan thought it was Li ZhenG returning with a change of heart. However, when he raised his head, he saw Rong Xiao’s face, calmly looking at him, resembling a parent who had caught their child in a questionable place.
He was immediately startled awake.
Blinking his eyes, he tentatively called out, “Rong Xiao?”
Rong Xiao: “Hmm.”
Wen Yan: “………..”