Duan Mingxuan was caught in a dilemma.
On his right was his girlfriend; if he pushed her out to kiss another man, he'd lose face. On his left was Lin Xi, whom he absolutely didn't want to do. Everyone present, except Yu Lang and Mu Shuo, was egging him on.
Normally, Yu Lang would have joined the jeering, but today it was Lin Xi, and he didn't dare. Duan Mingxuan would beat him to death.
"Young Master Duan, choose one!"
"Mingxuan," Zhang Mo tugged at Duan Mingxuan's sleeve, "She's your girlfriend."
Duan Mingxuan frowned, shaking off Zhang Mo's tug. He inwardly resented Zhang Mo: Why did she suggest playing games? Duan Mingxuan stood up and laughed, "How about this, I'll drink five glasses in a row, and that'll be the end of it, okay?"
"Young Master Duan, you're not being fair."
"Yeah, everyone drinks before, it's just a game."
"It's only thirty seconds, you won't lose anything."
"Are you fucking talking nonsense?" Duan Mingxuan cursed, "You think you can just kiss my girlfriend and sister like that?" The jeering group fell silent for a moment, intimidated by the Duan family's power.
The girl at the very edge laughed, "Young Master Duan and Momo are boyfriend and girlfriend, it's easy to choose, it's just a game."
Zhang Mo grabbed Duan Mingxuan's arm, trying to smooth things over, "How about we change it to fries? Bit it off from both sides, keep it within one centimeter, and that'll be the end of it, how about that? I'll take that one, since you drew this card, how can I let you lose face?"
Liang Yutong was utterly speechless. A top-tier, sarcastic, green tea bitch—do all men fall for this? Calling them "brother" or "husband" would make them forget everything. Duan Mingxuan glanced at Lin Xi; she remained silent, her eyes downcast, not even looking at him.
But letting Momo eat fries with another man was unacceptable—it would be a slap in his own face. Duan Mingxuan was caught in a dilemma. Liang Yutong grabbed Lin Xi's arm, looking like she was ready to "make anyone who dares to come near me suffer."
Just as Mu Shuo was about to speak, Lin Xi spoke up: "Duan Mingxuan, let me see the card." Duan Mingxuan awkwardly handed her the card. Lin Xi touched it, examined it from all angles, and said, "This card isn't from here, so I won't follow its instructions."
Duan Mingxuan snatched the card and carefully compared it to the other cards, noticing a slight difference in feel and weight. He asked Lin Xi excitedly, "How did you find out?" Lin Xi replied, "Yu Lang snatched your card just now, and the back of the flash was different from the previous cards."
Yu Lang cursed, "Get me a staff member." Zhang Mo moved her lips but didn't say anything.
A staff member quickly came over, but said, "These aren't our club's game cards. Our cards have a hidden logo on the back, but this one doesn't."
Lin Xi's eyes lit up; she had already noticed the hidden logo on the back of these cards.
When Yu Lang snatched Duan Mingxuan's card, the logo never appeared, even after changing the angle, which made her suspect someone had tampered with it. But she had no proof, only saying the backlighting was different. Actually, both cards had a laser coating on the back and were indistinguishable.
Duan Mingxuan glared at him coldly: "Then tell me, how did I get this card?"
Lin Xi came to the staff's rescue: "Could it have been brought in by a guest?" The staff member replied: "That's possible. For security reasons, we check all items provided to guests before they're brought in."
Lin Xi nodded: "Then please turn on the brightest light in the room and turn off the rest." The staff member complied.
The bright white light was blinding, and everyone squinted reflexively. Suddenly, one of Duan Mingxuan's cronies pulled a card from a gap in the sofa cushion: "What's this?" Yu Lang took it and discovered that this was the real special card.
There was no doubt about it. Duan Mingxuan looked over and asked, "Who switched it?" The woman on the far side stammered, "I...I..." Duan Mingxuan didn't want to argue with a woman and said calmly, "Get lost. Don't let me see you again."
The woman grabbed her bag and ran away in fright. Anyone with a bit of sense could see that she had been brought by Zhang Mo. However, Duan Mingxuan chose to let the matter drop, so no one else dared to say anything more.
"Xiao Xi—" Duan Mingxuan was about to say something coaxing when Lin Xi downed a whole glass of strong liquor that Liang Yutong had poured for her.
"Darling, you drank the wrong thing." Liang Yutong couldn't stop her in time and quickly helped her up. Lin Xi suddenly stood up: "You guys have fun, I'm going to the restroom."
There was clearly a restroom in the private room, but she insisted on going outside. Duan Mingxuan got up to help her, but she subtly avoided him. Liang Yutong was worried and followed her. Duan Mingxuan stood there, stunned, after all, he couldn't go into the women's restroom either.
Lin Xi emerged from the private room reeking of alcohol, tears welling in her eyes, and hid behind a thick decorative pillar. The alcohol took effect, making her dizzy and unable to stand. In the spun world, a nearly cold voice sounded behind her: "Lin Xi."
She subconsciously turned around and, through her tear-filled eyes, saw Duan Yiheng in a suit and tie. The air was thick with the smell of alcohol. Lin Xi forgot to greet anyone and stood there blankly.
Duan Yiheng walked up to her and asked softly, "Are you drunk?" Lin Xi hummed in response, her eyes half-closed.
Without even glancing at his watch, Duan Yiheng said, "It's almost eleven. I'll take you home." It wasn't a question, but a statement. Lin Xi didn't want to return to that dizzying place where the dappled light seemed to divide the room into countless fragments. She nodded groggily, "Okay."
Liang Yutong, who had followed him, was also surprised to see Duan Yiheng. What was this big shot doing here? Duan Yiheng turned around and said to her, "Could you please bring her bag? I'll take her home."
Liang Yutong trusted him completely and hurriedly agreed, running back to the private room to get her bag. Duan Mingxuan was preoccupied with something Zhang Mo was saying and didn't notice Liang Yutong returning to the private room.
Duan Yiheng took Lin Xi's Kelly and asked, "Are you alright?"
Lin Xi immediately demonstrated a serpentine route. Duan Yiheng sighed softly and put his arm around her shoulder.
"Miss Liang, do you need a ride?" Liang Yutong shook her head: "It's alright, my driver is downstairs."
Duan Yiheng nodded slightly and left with the drunk Lin Xi. She clicked her tongue. "Duan Yiheng seems much more reliable than Duan Mingxuan."
Liang Yutong returned to the private room. Seeing she wasn't followed, Duan Mingxuan asked, "Where's Xiaoxi?" Liang Yutong slapped her forehead. "Sorry, I forgot to tell you, she went home."
Duan Mingxuan exploded. "You let her go home alone?"
Liang Yutong glared at him. "What are you yelling for? Your older brother's here."
"What did you say?" Duan Mingxuan abruptly stood up. "Xiaoxi went with him?" Liang Yutong was startled and nodded blankly. "Yes."
"Damn it." Duan Mingxuan cursed under his breath, shaking off Zhang Mo's attempt to stop him, and chased after her.
The people in the private room were confused, but Duan Mingxuan's face was extremely grim. They exchanged glances, and the next second, they all ran towards the door.