Chapter 147 — The Long-Awaited...

Wang Mei had not told her parents that Zhang Bin had been treated as a murder suspect, afraid they would worry. When they got back to the hotel, her parents were in their room watching television.

"Mom, Dad, you must be hungry. Let's go get something to eat together," Wang Mei said.

"No, you go on without us. Nothing's the matter—we'll just head home. We're not used to staying in hotels," Wang Mei's father said.

"You're not coming with us?" Though Wang Mei knew her parents' minds were hard to change, she still asked with regret.

"No, we're used to it here," Wang Mei's father said. "When you have time, just come and see us."

"All right." Wang Mei was helpless, knowing that saying anything more would be useless.

Just as they were talking, Su Ya's call came in. Yang Lanxu's heart stirred; he made a gesture to Zhang Bin, then turned and left the room to answer. "Xiao Ya, are you done with things on your end?"

"Yes. Come find me in a bit—I'll have Xu Li come down to get you," Su Ya said.

"All right, I'll head over now." Yang Lanxu sighed softly. With Su Ya there was always an inexplicable impulse, or rather an agitation. Every time he received a call from her, his heart pounded violently—a feeling like first love, and yet not entirely.

Yang Duoji could not say clearly what kind of feeling this was; all he knew was that whenever he thought of Su Ya's name, images of that second year of junior high, of every little moment spent with her, rose unbidden in his mind.

Beautiful memories are always hard to forget. Yang Ce reined in his thoughts, said a word to Zhang Bin, and hurried out of the hotel. His trip to Macau, with Su Ya's departure, was drawing to a close as well.

He hailed a taxi and went straight to the hotel where Su Ya was staying. Yang Ce called Su Ya, and she agreed to have Xu Li come down to meet him—but in the background on the other end of the line, Yang Ji Yan heard a man's voice.

So there was still someone in Su Ya's room. Yang Ce was not a petty man, but at this hour, another man in Su Ya's room could not help but make him a little uncomfortable.

Before long, Xu Li came out of the hotel, spotted Yang Ce, and waved to him.

"Mr. Yang, come with me." Xu Li smiled and nodded cordially. She had long since received Su Haikuo's instructions to treat Yang Ce with the utmost deference.

In fact, once she learned Yang Juehuan's identity, Xu Li immediately realized this was Su Ya's young boyfriend from back then, and her warmth toward Yang Shuoxuan became utterly genuine.

Xu Li knew a great deal about the Su family's affairs, and Su Haikuo treated her as one of his own, so Su Ya's identity had not been kept from her either. Only she did not know the details—she knew only that Su Ya had learned disguise under the guidance of some master.

Of course, the so-called "disguise" in her understanding amounted to nothing more than makeup applied with certain auxiliary cosmetics; she had never imagined it could be done directly through the power of the mind.

"Is there someone else in Xiao Ya's room?" Yang Ce asked tentatively.

"Yes, the young master of Macau Flying Eagle Entertainment, and also the organizer of Shu Ya's Macau concert this time." Xu Li nodded and made the introduction.

"I see." Yang Ce assumed it was a matter of business and thought no more of it.

Going upstairs, they came to the door of Shu Ya's room. Xu Li knocked, and from inside came Shu Ya's clear voice: "Come in."

Xu Li pushed open the door, and she and Yan entered the room together.

In the room, Shu Ya and a man of about twenty sat facing each other on the living-room sofa, while two other men stood to one side, clearly companions of the man. Seeing Yang Ce arrive, Shu Ya rose to her feet and said with a smile to the man, "Mr. Li, a friend of mine has come."

This Mr. Li was Li Jialiang, the young master of Macau Flying Eagle Entertainment Co., Ltd., whom Xu Li had mentioned.

"Oh, that's fine. If you two have business, go ahead and talk—I'll just wait here for you." Li Jialiang seemed not to have caught the hint of dismissal in Shu Ya's words at all.

"It's already quite late. How about we talk another time?" Shu Ya's brows knitted slightly, though she kept a faint smile as she spoke.

"It's all right, I'm not sleepy," Li Jialiang said upon hearing this.

"Then let's talk first. My friend and I have matters that won't be settled in a moment—I'm afraid I don't know how long I'd keep you waiting," Shu Ya said, somewhat helplessly.

"Very well, let's continue our discussion." Li Jialiang showed not the slightest inclination to yield, and said shamelessly, ignoring Yang Ce entirely. "What did you think of the proposal I made just now?"

"I'm sorry, but as I said, I have no intention of changing agencies." Shu Ya smiled faintly.

"I've already told you—if you come to Flying Eagle, you'll be our number one. With me backing you, it wouldn't be hard for you to be famous the world over," Li Jialiang said.

"I'm flattered by Mr. Li's regard, but I think it's better to take solid steps and establish the Asian market first," Shu Ya said.

"Xiao Ya, don't you understand how I feel?" Li Jialiang's tone suddenly shifted, turning ardent. He stepped forward as if to seize Shu Ya's hand, and his way of addressing her changed to "Xiao Ya."

Shu Ya had seen plenty of men like Li Jialiang; how could she fail to understand that his ulterior motive in urging her to sign with his company was merely an excuse to court her?

Shu Ya quietly dodged Li Jialiang's hand and said coolly, "Mr. Li, please conduct yourself with some propriety."

"Xiao Ya, I've said all this only to prove how much I love you." But Li Jialiang reached out again to seize Shu Ya's hand.

"Are you out of your mind?" Yang Puqi grabbed Li Jialiang by the collar and hauled him to his feet, glaring at him. "Are you trying to get fresh with her?"

Declaring his love for another man's woman right in front of him was something he could let slide—after all, these days everyone talked about human rights, and a man had the right to fancy whomever he pleased. But making a public spectacle of himself like a thug was beyond toleration.

"You're the one who's out of his mind!" Li Jialiang had been in the middle of showing off his passion when he was so abruptly cut off, and he was instantly furious. "Get your fucking hands off me! Mind your own fucking business!"

Three "fucking"s in a single sentence left Yang Ce not knowing whether to laugh or cry. This fellow carried his mother around with him wherever he went—did he have some kind of Oedipus complex?

Yang Ce swore sometimes too, but never at such a rate.

"She's made it perfectly clear she's rejecting you, and you're still here making a nuisance of yourself. Do you have a death wish?" Yang Puqi's eyes blazed as he shouted.

"Are you two idiots? Pull this guy off me! Fucking hell, is everyone a fucking lunatic these days, meddling in another man's love life?" Li Jialiang snapped impatiently at the two men.

The two men had held back earlier only because they had no orders from Li Jialiang. Anyone who could be here was certainly no small fry; they had no idea who Yang Ce was, and so naturally did not dare act rashly. Now that the young master had given the word, there was no problem—if anything went wrong, the young master would answer for it anyway.

The two men moved at once, trying to pull Yang Ce away from either side. Xu Li grew anxious and cried out, "What are you doing? Your young master was disrespectful to our Miss Shu, and Miss Shu's friend was only stopping him!"

But what did the two bodyguards care for any of that? Their duty was to follow Li Jialiang's orders, and they turned a deaf ear to Xu Li's voice.