At this thought, Yuan Jing felt a surge of confidence.
Since the man had already met Bai Xiaoxiao
and hadn't asked her out again,
it meant the loli type held no appeal for him.
If he wasn't interested, everything became much simpler.
As though struck by inspiration, Yuan Jing sprang up in excitement.
The sudden movement sent her red slip-dress sliding off one shoulder,
baring a patch of fair skin.
She egged Bai Xiaoxiao on with a conspiratorial grin.
"Look, he never takes the initiative, so you go after him—ask him out."
"Think about it: he tossed you a hundred grand without blinking. Meet him offline, act cute, play the baby-girl,"
"and next month's new bag is in the bag. If he's in a good mood, he might even throw in a down-payment on a condo."
From Bai Xiaoxiao's description, the man had to be a young master from some powerful family.
After all, he'd casually tipped ten thousand yuan without making any demands.
For a borderline Streamer like Bai Xiaoxiao,
begging her top supporter to cough up a gift worth a thousand meant coaxing for an entire night.
A hundred-thousand-yuan tip was already astronomical.
Even after several "private meetings" with her top supporter, she'd only cleared a few tens of thousands.
Yuan Jing draped an arm around Bai Xiaoxiao's shoulders and rocked her gently.
Her perfectly shadowed eyes stayed fixed on her phone.
Bai Xiaoxiao's grip tightened around her own handset.
"But you saw—just now in the stream I asked him out and he logged off without a word…" her voice trailed off.
Seeing how easily discouraged Xiaoxiao was,
Yuan Jing felt indignant and let out a soft snort.
She fished a seduction-red lipstick from her pouch and began touching up with elegant strokes.
"Hah, some big brothers are like that—won't spell it out, just wait for you to seize the 'chicken' chance."
Bai Xiaoxiao stared at the gold veins on the lipstick tube and swallowed.
"Really?"
Sensing a crack in Xiaoxiao's resolve, Yuan Jing curved her lips.
She pinched Bai Xiaoxiao's chin and tilted it side to side,
cooing, "Of course. Who's the expert here? Just say, 'Big bro, I want to thank you in person.' Trust me, he'll show up in a suit and tie."
The words were a spark to dry tinder, igniting the faint flutter in Bai Xiaoxiao's heart.
"Come on, send it—get him out here."
Meanwhile, Jiang Cheng stepped out of the bathroom,
towelled off, and flopped straight onto the bed.
He scooped up his phone for a glance.
Just as he was about to switch it off and sleep,
a wechat from Bai Xiaoxiao popped up:
Bai Xiaoxiao: "Mr. Jiang, are you free these two days?? I'd like to buy you dinner."
Bai Xiaoxiao: [photo]
During the stream, Little Crispy had asked him out in front of everyone;
he'd figured it was just a bit.
Turned out she was serious.
Normally he avoided eating with colleagues whenever possible,
but she'd delivered herself to his door.
Looking at that soft, pink photo, Jiang Cheng couldn't refuse.
He agreed in a heartbeat.
After setting the place, he tossed the phone aside.
Dozens of unread private messages still waited—
Yu Xiaoxiao, Wang Yuyan and the rest were asking about the party video in moments.
He replied to them all with one line: "Already drunk, can't talk tonight."
The next evening Jiang Cheng drove his bentley continental toward Chunxi Road.
Little Crispy had wanted Taikoo Li,
but it was too close to Zhou Ying's apartment—
Zhou Ying and Fang Yuan might spot them from their balcony.
He parked the Continental in the mall's underground garage
and headed for the Starbucks on the first floor.
Compared with last year, Chengdu seemed to have more Internet Celebrity this year.
Along Chunxi Road, phone- and camera-wielding girls posed for videos everywhere.
Three girls with gimbals were shooting the shop-windows diagonally ahead of him.
The hems of their short skirts revealed glimpses of safety shorts.
Jiang Cheng slid his sunglasses down.
A figure in black raised a camera and moved toward him.
Before the man could get close,
Wang Sheng materialised like a ghost, slipping silently between them.
Seeing that Jiang Cheng travelled with a Bodyguard,
the fellow blinked in surprise
but still pressed, "Sir, want a street shoot? Your outfit would look amazing—"
Jiang Cheng shook his head.
The internet was hostile to decent men like him;
luckily he had a Security Team.
Otherwise a Handsome Guy like him would end up viral, like that PetroChina guy.
He reached the Starbucks in no time.
From a distance he saw a girl in loli dress, head lowered, playing with her phone.
Bai Xiaoxiao sat on a rattan chair outside the café.
Sunlight turned the stray hairs at her temples translucent honey, bright against her pale skin.
She wore a modified Lolita dress,
legs together, angled against the chair.
As Jiang Cheng approached, he caught her biting the straw of her milk tea,
pink lips pursed,
baby-fat cheeks puffing slightly with each sip—adorable.
Sensing his gaze, she jerked her head up.
Seeing Jiang Cheng, she scrambled to her feet.
The tiny bells on her skirt jingled.
"Mr. Jiang!"
She stood too fast, knocking over the coffee.
Light-brown liquid bloomed across the white fabric.
"Ah…"
Her mouth drooped at once,
eyes fixed on the lace-trimmed disaster.
From his taller vantage point Jiang Cheng looked straight down on the top of her head
and noticed her hair was elaborately styled: twin tails tied with ribbon bows,
ends curled into playful spirals, a fluffy bear clip tucked above her right ear.