The Vanishing Beauty - Chapter 3 - 7

Chapter 3 - 7

The VIP lounge was packed with people. They were all prominent figures. The Xin family's eldest son had already gone backstage to prepare; having played the violin for over a decade, he enjoyed a modest reputation within the circle.

Yu Meng entered the hall, swept her gaze across the room, and assessed the general situation. Then, with a resolute look and a light step, she walked straight up to Mrs. Xin's seat, bent down, leaned close to her ear, cupped her hands, and whispered a few words. Mrs. Xin giggled, repeatedly saying good, good, good—she was extremely satisfied with Yu Meng's arrangements.

Yu Meng straightened up and stood aside with a beaming smile. Everyone had witnessed her relationship with Mrs. Xin; who would dare look down on her? Yu Meng pulled Haoyu over and introduced him to Mrs. Xin, "My son." Then, turning to Haoyu, "Greet Madam." Haoyu obediently greeted Madam. Mrs. Xin praised him for looking quite spirited, but had nothing more to say. There were simply too many people wanting to speak with her.

An elderly woman grasped Mrs. Xin's hand the moment she walked in. Yu Meng held her in somewhat low regard, seeing right through her act. People were just like that—fawning over the powerful and trampling the weak—yet this old woman, despite her advanced age, still insisted on coming to hustle for a piece of the excitement. She simply couldn't stand being left out.

"Mom." Haoyu tugged at Yu Meng. Caught up in socializing, Yu Meng didn't notice. He tugged again. Yu Meng turned her head, looking at her son in bewilderment.

Haoyu wore a gazing-into-the-distance expression. Following his line of sight, through the gaps between several heads, Yu Meng caught sight of Luan Chengyun's face.

Disgusting! What is going on?! What?! Right beside him was Di Liren.

It had to be Yu Jia. Yu Jia must have given the tickets to Liren, and Liren had brought Luan Chengyun along. Those two were thick as thieves.

Luan Chengyun spotted Yu Meng as well. The corners of his mouth twitched upward into a wicked smile.

Yu Meng hurriedly averted her gaze. Yes, just like that—treat him like air. As she stood there lowering her head in thought, a pair of black leather shoes appeared before her eyes. Looking up again, Zu Liangcai was standing right in front of her. When had he arrived? She hadn't seen him at the entrance.

Oh, looking travel-worn and dusty, he must have just rushed in. She had been too busy attending to the Xin family to notice. Liangcai stood so close that she felt his arm was practically brushing against her side breast.

No, this wouldn't do—there were children around. Not to mention Luan Chengyun's pair of prying eyes. She hastily stepped aside.

Di Liren walked over and drew close to Mr. Xin, only to be preempted by a refined middle-aged man who chatted with Mr. Xin, punctuated by dry chuckles. Unable to wedge himself into the conversation, Liren could only stand off to the side like a clothes hanger. Near the curtains, Haoyu had gathered once more with the girl named Xiqian. Pouting her lips toward Yu Meng's direction, Xiqian asked, "That's your mom, right?"

Haoyu said yes.

Xiqian asked again, "The guy next to her, your dad?" She pointed at Zu Liangcai.

Haoyu denied it. A brief silence followed before he countered, "What makes you think that?"

Xiqian folded her arms across her chest. "Forget I said anything."

Liangcai's eyes flashed with a bright light as he gazed at Yu Meng.

Yu Jia hurried in, searching for Yu Meng.

Seeing her husband was also present, Liren looked slightly surprised. Unaware of his presence, Yu Jia simply trotted along after Yu Meng.

Backstage, the moment Yu Meng stepped in, she began rummaging through the cases. "Impossible! I put them in with my own hands, they were all finished items, how could they be missing?" She searched back and forth, but they were simply gone. Rubbing her temples, Yu Meng tried to retrace her steps. She had brought them; the items were definitely brought. Without the sheet music, how was the young master supposed to perform? That would be tantamount to directly declaring the performance a failure?! With an anxious look on her face, Yu Jia chimed in that she had confirmed the music sheets were there upon arrival and had seen them upon entering backstage.

She understood now—someone must have sabotaged it. And it wasn't targeted at the Xin family; it was aimed directly at her, Yu Meng! She had sensed that the few hags in the Women Entrepreneurs Association were smiling too weirdly at the entrance. Something was fishy!

No, no, no, no, Yu Meng forced herself to remain calm. Glancing at her watch, she had twenty minutes left. She had to solve this problem, she had to solve it...

Noticing the panic of Yu Jia and Yu Meng, Bai Yuankai walked over to inquire about the situation. The two could only tell him the truth. Bai Yuankai suggested, "Why don't we use my iPad and just download a digital copy of the music?" Yu Meng deemed that unviable; page-turning was inconvenient. As instructed, all the sheet music had to be laid out open, with every single page propped up. "Is there a print shop nearby?" Yuankai asked a staff member, who replied that there was one in the basement outside the concert hall.

There were sixteen minutes left. Yu Meng immediately issued orders: "Xiao Bai, download the music sheets and send them to me. Sister Jia, let's go print them." With that, she broke into a light jog.

Seeing their two elder sisters sprint out from beside the emergency exit, Yu Shuang and Yu Rui were left completely bewildered. Yu Rui looked back, but Jia and Meng had already vanished. Scanning the surroundings again, she still couldn't find Kang Long.

Yu Shuang tugged at her arm. "Stop looking. Whether he comes or not, who cares."

"He might have run into something. Let me ask Old Bai."

"Don't ask!" Yu Shuang flared up. She had come here aiming for a reconciliation, yet he chose this moment to pull a no-show. What was the meaning of this? Was she really that insignificant to him? An empty seat remained right beside her, and the performance was about to begin. On stage, the main overhead lights had already been turned off, leaving only side lamps to dim the entire hall and build the atmosphere.

Through the emergency exit, the Xin family and their entourage entered the hall. They didn't sit in the front rows, opting instead for the exact center. Liren, Chengyun, Liangcai, Haoyu, along with Han Xiqian and her father, also filed in. Deliberately distancing himself from his father, Haoyu went to sit in the back row.

Di Liren and Luan Chengyun's seats were skewed toward the right.

Zu Liangcai walked up to the front row and took the seat right beside Yu Shuang and Yu Rui. Turning her head inadvertently, Yu Rui was so startled she nearly jumped to her feet.

It was a small world indeed. To encounter such an old acquaintance and end up sitting just an aisle apart during a performance—though considering they were all holding complimentary tickets and receiving special treatment, it made sense. Seeing Yu Rui, Liangcai didn't seem overly surprised.

Without a word, he picked up the program booklet, held it at arm's length—his presbyopia acting up—and read softly under his breath, "The Butterfly Lovers, Salut d'Amour, Memorial Piece..." Annoyed by his presence, Yu Shuang glanced at Yu Rui and pinched her nose.

Liangcai emanated a distinct scent of agarwood, to which Yu Shuang was entirely unaccustomed.

Yu Rui felt as though her face were on fire, though thankfully the dim lighting concealed it. Liangcai was seasoned; seeing Yu Rui accompanied by a female companion, he pretended not to know her and focused his entire attention on the stage.

When Yu Meng returned, she sprinted toward backstage at a near-sprint. Bai Yuankai's opening remarks had already exceeded five minutes, and even Mrs. Xin had checked her watch several times from the audience. Lacking regular exercise, Yu Jia was out of breath by the time she jogged backstage.

Yu Meng laid out the sheet music and breathed a silent prayer of gratitude to the heavens. Everything was in place, and the young master of the Xin family prepared to take the stage. Standing behind the backstage curtains, Yu Meng had the lighting technician set the lights, while Bai Yuankai received the signal, cracked a humorous remark, and stepped off. The performance commenced.

Seeing that Bai Yuankai was sweating profusely, Yu Jia hurriedly handed him a tissue. Yu Meng pressed her palms together, repeating apologies. At the height of her excitement, she couldn't help but give Yuankai a hug.

Wiping away his sweat, Bai Yuankai chuckled self-deprecatingly, "Two more minutes and I wouldn't have known what else to say."

The violin began to play, striking the melodies of The Butterfly Lovers. The three of them stood silently by the side of the curtain, watching the child's performance. Yu Jia didn't understand the violin terribly well. Neither did Yu Meng, but she still occasionally offered soft words of praise—one had to fake expertise. Yuankai, on the other hand, was completely immersed in the music.

The solo was followed by a quartet, then an orchestral piece, another solo, and finally a grand ensemble. Everything proceeded smoothly without a hitch. The intermission featured the child presenting flowers. As the performance concluded, the young master of the Xin family bowed on stage, and Yu Meng stepped up on behalf of friends and family to present a massive bouquet of fresh flowers.

It was over. It had been a complete success. Yu Meng felt an overwhelming sense of relief. She had accomplished a major feat for the Xin family, earning herself a personal favor from them. That was a level of prestige and connection money simply couldn't buy. She believed her glowing presence tonight—witnessed even by her ex-husband—would make him view her in an entirely new light.

In the past, she had been a dragon trapped in shallow waters, a tiger falling to the plains; now, with just a tiny flash of her prowess, she shone brilliantly.

Divorce was the most damn right decision she had ever made!

Surrounded by a throng of people, the Xin family departed. Yu Meng seized a brief moment to greet them. Mrs. Xin grabbed Yu Meng's hand to express her gratitude, adding that she would still need to rely on her hard work later. Yu Meng hastily replied that she could rest easy. Since she was already helping them to the end, she could handle the final dispersal single-handedly.

Han Xiqian was leaving with her father. Haoyu bid her farewell.

"See you back at school," Xiqian said.

Haoyu flashed a dashing hand gesture.

Searching around for her son, Yu Meng spotted Haoyu and issued her instructions: "Head back first with your dad." Haoyu called out "Mom," hesitating as if he had more to say. Still intoxicated by the success of the concert, Yu Meng didn't want to drag things out. "What is it, spit it out?"

Haoyu pulled her slightly to the side.

"What's the matter?" She realized something might be seriously wrong.

"You and Dad..." He trailed off without finishing.

He knew. Had Luan Chengyun told him? Was he doing this out of malicious spite? Striking while the iron was hot to cause trouble! Luan Chengyun wasn't a man at all!

"We'll talk about it later." She could only resort to stalling tactics.

"It's fine." Those were Haoyu's second words.

Yu Meng froze for a second. "We'll talk later." She still felt the timing wasn't right. Luan Chengyun waved in her direction, and Yu Meng hurriedly turned her back so she wouldn't have to look at him. Haoyu followed his dad toward the exit.

Yu Jia found Yu Meng and asked if there was anything else needed. Yu Meng repeatedly expressed her thanks and told her to head out first, saying there wasn't much left to do and she should hurry back to rest after such an exhausting few days. Having finished greeting the Xin family, Bai Yuankai turned back to look for Yu Jia, hoping to invite her once more for a video shoot.

Maintaining appearances for the grand occasion, Liren also approached the front of the stage, offering a few words of praise to Yuankai and complimenting Yu Meng's capability.

The concert hall manager called out to Yu Meng, and she rushed off to handle the remaining loose ends. Yu Shuang and Yu Rui also stepped down from their seats and stood talking with Yuankai.

Seeing the crowd thin out a little, Yu Jia whispered to her husband Liren, "Did you come here with Old Luan?" She meant to ask whether he didn't know that Luan and Yu Meng were on bad terms. Yu Jia held Luan in low regard, thinking his behavior toward Yu Meng was utterly unprincipled, including the divorce and the division of assets. Therefore, she didn't want Liren getting too close to Luan Chengyun.

Liren didn't utter a word. Without even sparing Yu Jia a single glance, he turned on his heel and strode toward the exit. Unaware of which remark had displeased him, Yu Jia called out "Old Di," but his pace only quickened. Hastily nodding a farewell to Yuankai, Shuang, and Rui, Yu Jia hurried out after her husband.

Before Yuankai could get his words in, eager to chase after Yu Jia to speak further, he was intercepted by Rui and Shuang. "He still hasn't shown his face," Yu Rui couldn't help speaking up on Shuang's behalf, referring to Kang Long. Understanding what she meant, Yuankai said he needed to make an excuse for Old Kang, explaining that an emergency had cropped up today, a leader had summoned him, and he had no choice but to stay, though he should be arriving about now.

Yu Shuang cursed, "Accompanying whom? Accompanying them to eat chestnuts? Did he even come for the concert? He only shows up after it's over?"

"He came to see someone, and seeing that person makes it worth it."

Yuankai certainly knew how to talk. Yet Yu Shuang remained unappeased. She felt this was unequal; Kang Long didn't respect her. Throughout the entire event, with the squeaking of violins grating against her ears, Yu Shuang hadn't taken in a single musical note. Between Yu Rui's words, Yu Jia's earlier remarks, Bai Yuankai's comments, Kang Long's actual conduct, and most importantly, her own feelings—she realized that her relationship with Kang Long, including this stint of living under the same roof, felt uncomfortable precisely because marriage was looming on the horizon.

The mere thought of getting married and having to adapt to a man in such a short span of time filled Yu Shuang with immense mental pressure, making her hyper-critical as well. Did she like Kang Long? Hand on heart, her first impression had been quite good. His overall background was suitable, and he was relatively simple-natured. Yet she simply hadn't figured out whether she wanted to marry him or not.

As the three of them were talking, Kang Long squeezed his way in against the outgoing crowd, waving and calling out from afar. Yu Shuang turned her face away and told them to ignore him. Yu Rui helped pivot her back around. Yuankai and Yu Rui exchanged a glance with mutual understanding.

It was time to retreat; they had to leave some space for Shuang and Kang Long. Yu Rui tugged at Shuang's hand. "Talk it over properly." Yu Shuang hurriedly told her not to leave. Walking over to Kang Long, Yuankai told him to offer a proper apology.

Kang Long said, "I didn't even do anything wrong."

Yuankai said, "Tell me the truth. Do you actually like her or not?"

Kang Long said, "I like her." Then added, "We're both abandoned souls."

Showing a trace of impatience, Bai Yuankai dismissed it. "Cut the melodrama," he said, placing a hand over his own heart. "Ask right here—if you like her, hold your ground, grit your teeth and stick with it. She's a good person."

Heading toward the exit, Yu Shuang met him head-on.

Kang Long closed the distance. "I'm sorry, something genuinely came up."

Yu Shuang said, "We're even now."

Kang Long gave chase.

Stopping in her tracks, Yu Shuang turned back. "I smashed things, you showed up late—we're even."

Kang Long stammered, "Actually..."

Yu Shuang cut him off. "Spare me the 'actually'. Since you're here, perfect timing—I have something to say to you." Kang Long let out an acknowledging hum. Waving her arm, Yu Shuang said, "Let's go outside to talk."