…What was this situation? Zhuang Chi fell into a state of minor confusion. Why? Why had she suddenly received a designated number from Gu Ximian? Had she already broken free from the crowd surrounding her? If so, maybe she should just go over and ask her—
With that thought, Zhuang Chi looked up. She saw that Gu Ximian had indeed left her previous spot and was now talking with Olivia.
“…”
That won’t work. Zhuang Chi once again dismissed the idea of striking up a conversation. How on earth did Gu Ximian find the time to send her a message? Could it be that she had taken out her phone on the way to meet Olivia? She was really racing against the clock—that phrase always felt a bit strange, as if they were doing something behind everyone’s backs…
What strange things was she thinking! Zhuang Chi shook her head hard in alarm. The movement caught An Chen’s attention, and he asked her quizzically, “What’s wrong? I’m going to get a number tag now. Aren’t you going yet?” Trying to cover her tracks, Zhuang Chi went along with it and replied, “Th-Then let’s go together,” and hastily stuffed her phone into her pocket.
…So. On the way to the long table, Zhuang Chi finally got her thoughts in order. Should she do as Gu Ximian said and take number 49?
Regardless, Zhuang Chi could only think of one possibility for Gu Ximian’s sudden instruction.
…She must have rigged the lottery. Zhuang Chi thought silently. Something like making sure number 1 would definitely draw number 49…?
Although she felt this was the case nine times out of ten, if it were true, wouldn’t Gu Ximian have explained it to her? This made her a little unsure, wondering if perhaps there wasn’t enough time to explain in a short message… Speaking of which, it seemed like An Chen was hiding something from her earlier, too. Didn’t his family also help organize this banquet? Could it be that he had also made some extra preparations? What if their tampering conflicted with each other…
…Ugh, it was all just baseless speculation anyway. Zhuang Chi closed her eyes with a headache and simplified the problem: Let’s just assume for now that 49 was the lucky number that would be drawn to dance with Gu Ximian. In that case, should she take it or not?
If Gu Ximian had done this, the reason was easy to understand—among the banquet attendees were many Alphas she didn’t know, or even had a bad relationship with (namely, Ling Jing). Of course Gu Ximian wouldn’t want to leave her dance partner to chance, so it was only natural that she would want to designate someone she could trust.
This was bad. Once she thought of this, the scales in her mind, which had been wavering, immediately tipped heavily in favor of “taking it,” as if silently asking: Are you going to betray Gu Ximian’s trust?
But, but… another small weight was placed on the other side of the scale, bouncing as if to say: Even setting the plot aside, dancing with Gu Ximian at a banquet like this would definitely be super eye-catching. It might make the three Alphas present—each more difficult to handle than the last—see her as a rival by default… No matter how she thought about it, it would invite a lot of trouble!
The scale wobbled slightly, but its tilt didn’t change.
Ah, this was terrible. The short walk was over in an instant. Zhuang Chi stopped in front of the long table and closed her eyes, disappointed in her own weakness. Even if she came up with ten more reasons not to, the outcome would probably be the same. She was really…!
Temporarily giving up on reflecting on her own spinelessness, Zhuang Chi resolutely opened her eyes and looked toward the middle of the long table—
Ah, the spot for number 49 was already empty.
“…”
…Well, that’s reasonable. Zhuang Chi thought calmly. After all, so many people had rushed over just now; a somewhat special number like “the one in the very middle” would naturally be one of the first to be picked. How perfectly logical.
She was capable of thinking about it this rationally, but… why did she still feel…
“Hm? You haven’t chosen yet?” An Chen, who had already picked his number, walked over to her side and raised an eyebrow. “Didn’t you just say it doesn’t matter which number you pick? Why are you hesitating now that it’s your turn?”
“…Yeah, you’re right.”
What was she daydreaming about? This was the logical course of events. After all, she wasn’t Gu Ximian’s Official Match, so it was perfectly normal not to get the lucky number.
With that thought, Zhuang Chi let out a soft breath. She finally reached out and took number 50.
The lottery would begin in half an hour. This time was for them to mingle freely, and everyone was enthusiastically chatting about the dance partner selection and their own numbers.
Zhuang Chi, on the other hand, found another corner and idly watched the lively crowd.
Ling Jing had gone to get her number tag by herself and hadn’t returned to their group. As for An Chen, he had suddenly said, “I have something to do, please excuse me,” and left a short while ago. A few glances revealed that he was over there, conversing with banquet attendees Zhuang Chi didn’t recognize. It seemed he had already spoken with quite a few people, probably some sort of social networking among the children of wealthy families.
…How should she put it? Zhuang Chi thought. She now had a feeling that whatever happened, it didn’t matter anymore.
Whether the subsequent events followed the plot or not, it was no longer something she could control. She hadn’t managed to get number 49, so all she could do now was be a detached observer. She had no high expectations for who her dance partner would be. It felt like she was steadily settling into the role of a bystander, which actually aligned quite well with her original goal. She had seen the new character, Olivia, and had distanced herself from the center of the plot. Logically, she should have been happy…
Sigh, what was she to do with this wishy-washy feeling?
She still hadn’t dared to tell Gu Ximian that she hadn’t gotten it. Just the thought of what Gu Ximian’s mood might be when she drew number 49 and discovered it wasn’t her made Zhuang Chi a little anxious.
But she really should tell her in advance. For what felt like the umpteenth time, Zhuang Chi took out her phone, and once again found herself struggling as she opened the chat window. Just sending a simple message like that… it felt too casual, as if she wasn’t taking the matter seriously. She wanted to tell her in person, but Gu Ximian had been with the princesses the whole time, and there were always people around them. It wasn’t an atmosphere Zhuang Chi could break into.
…So she really could only send a message. Zhuang Chi typed and deleted, and the final message she sent was a simple “Sorry, number 49 was already taken when I got there.” It took her nearly ten minutes to send it, and the moment she did, she immediately turned off the screen and shoved the phone into her pocket, very much in a state of escaping reality, unwilling to face the consequences.
“Why are you standing here alone again? Not going to chat with anyone? You’re actually quite conspicuous like this.”
It was An Chen. He had walked over at some point and gave Zhuang Chi, who had just put her phone away, a knowing look. “I’ve been noticing you for a while. Actually, people have been wanting to talk to you from time to time, but you were so preoccupied you probably didn’t notice. You looked so worried, you scared them all away.”
She thought to herself that this was a blessing in disguise. The somewhat socially anxious Zhuang Chi breathed a secret sigh of relief. Her gaze shifted, and she noticed that An Chen was now holding a black leather bag, which he seemed to cherish, holding it carefully with both hands. She hadn’t seen this bag on him before they separated. Half out of curiosity and half to change the subject, she pointed to the bag, “What’s that? Did you go get something?”
“Hmph, you noticed so quickly? As expected of you.”
…Wouldn’t anyone have noticed that right away? Zhuang Chi looked at An Chen, who had suddenly broken into a mysterious smile, and felt that he had been waiting for her to ask. An Chen then lifted the bag, carefully turning his back to the crowd in the hall, and slowly unzipped it with a very solemn posture. In an instant, a brilliant golden light spilled from the bag’s opening—
“…” Zhuang Chi was dumbfounded, and it took her a long moment before she stammered, “N-Number tags—”
“Shh. Keep your voice down, don’t let anyone else hear.”
She had only said three words before An Chen stopped her with a grave expression, then deliberately unzipped the bag containing dozens of number tags a little more—it was hard to tell if he was trying to be secretive or wanted everyone to notice—so that Zhuang Chi could see more clearly.
“I wonder if you still remember what I said earlier,” An Chen said, quite pleased with Zhuang Chi’s speechless expression as he lifted his chin smugly. “In this event, luck is the main factor, but you don’t have to rely on luck alone.”
“For example, by gathering all the number tags into your own hands like this,” he said, looking happily at the neatly arranged number tags in the bag, “it doesn’t matter what number Ximian draws.”
“…”
Stunned into silence by this excessively domineering cheating method, it took Zhuang Chi a while for her stalled thoughts to slowly start moving again. She had a million things to say, but decided to urgently ask if his method of obtaining so many number tags was legitimate: “You, you got all these number tags from other people? How… how did you do it?”
“Bought them,” An Chen said succinctly. “Some were through social connections… All in all, it went smoothly, but unfortunately, I only managed to get 73…”
And he still thought that wasn’t enough?! Zhuang Chi was so taken aback by his genuinely regretful tone that she didn’t know what to say. She first snapped his bag shut, then rubbed her temples, which were starting to ache, and tried to reason with him: “…Isn’t this a bit wrong? It’s like you’re scheming against Gu Ximian…”
“How could that be? I have no ill intentions,” An Chen retorted, unmoved. “She could have drawn my number normally anyway. This doesn’t hurt anyone, does it? I didn’t steal them, and I’ll return the other numbers after Ximian makes her draw. Besides… I’m not the only one doing this.”
“Didn’t I just say I only got 73?” An Chen explained, looking at Zhuang Chi’s astonished expression. “Excluding Gu Ximian, the two princesses, and you, the remaining 11… seem to have been collected by someone else before I could approach them.”
“To be able to get ahead of me… I wonder who it was. I only heard it was a girl, a fierce-looking one. Is there really someone like that at this banquet? It’s so hard to guess…”
“…”
Was it really that hard to guess? Zhuang Chi thought. How did it feel like the case was already solved? She could even faintly hear that person’s voice in her ears—
“…Zhuang Chi! What are you spacing out for! Come look!”
Ah, crap, it wasn’t a hallucination.
Zhuang Chi stiffly turned toward the voice and saw Ling Jing running toward her excitedly. She had lifted a layer of her fluffy, multi-layered, magnificent skirt, holding it up like a makeshift bag. Then, she triumphantly showed Zhuang Chi the contents she was carrying in her skirt—a dozen or so glittering gold number tags.
Witnessing such a golden light for the second time in a short period, her vision blurred for a moment, and she felt dizzy. Zhuang Chi took a deep breath and closed her eyes.
How should she describe this? Zhuang Chi thought. Eighty-four… plus her own made eighty-five. The grand spectacle of eighty-five number tags gathered in this inconspicuous corner.
…Her stomach ached.
Huge thanks to Bouchet for the support!
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