Yan Cong watched her run off until she was out of sight, and did not leave himself; he stood waiting by the door, awaiting the exit of the two people inside.
"Wen Changling won't hold a grudge, right?"
"So what if she holds a grudge?"
"What if she—"
The two pushed open the door and froze simultaneously.
The youth's eyes were cold, and even though his face was pale, it did nothing to diminish his imposing air.
"Don't talk about Wen Changling behind her back in the future." His features were often praised for their delicacy, resembling a carefully adorned doll in a display window—if one could ignore his eyes, which were as ferocious as a wolf's.
"I've stayed in your hospital for quite some time; you should have heard, I have a bad temper and I hit people."
The two ladies looked dreadful.
Yan Cong didn't even glance at them, taking a call and speaking as he walked away.
"I'll be back later."
"Going out to have fun?"
"What's there to worry about? I'm with Changling."
The call was from Yan Cong's grandfather, Grandpa Yan, who was concerned about him and called frequently.
Yan Cong didn't have a driver's license, and Wen Changling hadn't bought a car, so they took a taxi there. Since it was Yan Cong's first time going to a bar, Wen Changling chose one that was highly rated for safety online.
The bar had a distinctive interior, it was a sunken design with the ceiling featuring irregular arched structures. The uneven micro-cement embedded with various ceiling lamps, combined with the exposed black trusses and the strikingly placed downlights and spotlights, brought the ambiance to its peak.
This bar was booming, and during this time it was at its peak occupancy, absolutely packed with customers.
"This place is buzzing; I like it."
Leading the way, Yan Cong, on his first visit to a bar, found everything novel. He pushed through the crowd, glancing back and calling out to Wen Changling, "Follow closely, it's chaotic in the bar."
But it wasn't chaotic here.
Wen Changling had done her research in the car; this bar was owned by some rich and influential young master from the capital, and no one dared to cause trouble here.
The entire wall behind the bar, displaying prestigious alcohols, was testament enough to the fact that the owner was no ordinary person.
There were seats available at the bar, and Yan Cong pulled two stools together, gesturing for Wen Changling to join him. He sat next to her.
"Two drinks, please."
The cabinet was filled with uniquely shaped, exquisite bottles, more resembling works of art, which Yan Cong had never seen before and found intriguing. His family was essentially a sports dynasty, he had been trained in hockey from a young age, and his family was strict with him, never allowing him to drink and not storing alcohol at home.
The bartender asked, "What would you like?"
Yan Cong couldn't be bothered with choosing specific drinks: "One that gets you drunk, and one that doesn't; you decide."
The bartender, being professional, didn't just mix something randomly. He first took a polite observation of both patrons, trying to get a sense of them, before following his hunch to prepare the drinks.
One was a fiery liquor that burned the throat, and the other was a mild and sweet drink upon entry. The sweet drink was not intoxicating, and the tiny bubbles bubbling up from the bottom of the glass stirred the blue liquid in motion, like a deep blue, mysterious sea.
The non-intoxicating drink was given to Wen Changling, who took a sip and said to the bartender, "It's very nice."
The bartender smiled.
After draining her drink, Wen Changling saw a very familiar figure within the crowded dance floor; she dared not confirm it at first but then took a closer look.
"That seems to be Dr. Jhiang." Still somewhat uncertain.
Yan Cong had good eyesight: "It is her."
Wen Changling was once again shocked by Jhiang Youyou.
Last time was in the hospital's parking lot, when Wen Changling bumped into Dr. Jhiang Youyou kissing her new beau in the car, who happened to be a somewhat famous artist. After noticing Changling, Dr. Jhiang Youyou, who usually dressed conservatively, calmly wiped off the smeared lipstick from her kiss and, through the car window glass, communicated with her lips, "Don't tell anyone, okay?"
Changling had a tight lip and never discussed others' private affairs. Perhaps because of this, Dr. Jhiang Youyou would offer Changling a ride whenever they ran into each other waiting for cars at the entrance.
Dr. Jhiang Youyou also saw them, but didn't immediately come over to greet them. Instead, she finished dancing through the climax of the music before pushing away the male dance partner who was very close to her. While catching her breath, she walked toward the bar area.
She found an empty seat to sit down. Her skirt was too short, drawing countless male gazes to her beautiful long legs. "You two come to a club just to drink?"
"We also watched you dance," Changling sincerely complimented, "You dance really well, the best." Moving more flexibly than a snake.
Dr. Jhiang Youyou tossed her curly hair suggestively and enthusiastically invited Changling, "Join me?"
A hand intercepted in front of Changling's face. It was Yan Cong. He positioned himself between them, eyes full of distrust, like a hen protecting her chicks, "Don't lead people astray."
In the dance floor, there were too many taking the chance to cop a feel, and Yan Cong was worried.
Dr. Jhiang Youyou was, actually, a bit closer to Yan Cong than to Changling. She could speak with Changling, but she also had a connection with Yan Cong. Her mentor was Yan Cong's chief surgeon. Moreover, her mother and Yan Cong's second aunt were cousins, so the two of them were also distant relatives.
Fine, Dr. Jhiang Youyou won't be a bad influence on the innocent nurse any longer: "You two take your time drinking, I'm going to play."
Not long after Dr. Jhiang Youyou left, the lights suddenly dimmed. A few seconds later, an orange spotlight fell on the DJ booth.
The orange light was too dazzling. Changling subconsciously squinted her eyes and saw fleeting double images because of her glasses. Slowly, the double images overlaid each other, forming a clear outline.
Changling thought she was having hallucinations, so she reached under her glasses and rubbed her eyes.
"Good evening, I am Xie Shang."
With a simple introduction, as his words ended, the music began. It was very loud and raucous music, dynamic, rebellious, urging one's heartbeat to quicken. If you listened closely, you could detect a nursery rhyme melody hidden within the dance beat.
It was Little Star.
Completely different from the Guqin version.
Changling remembered yesterday when Xie Shang was teaching Granny Zhu's granddaughter Tongtong to play Guqin.
Boss Xie from Ruyi Pawnshop quickly made a name for himself on Lotus Pond Street, which wasn't surprising, after all, he had that kind of face with that kind of aura.
After all, a visage so ethereal, like a fruit that tempts Pan, who wouldn't admire?
Granny Zhu's four-year-old granddaughter Tongtong also liked Xie Shang a lot, calling him "brother" in her soft, sticky voice.
"Brother, why do you wear this?"
"To protect the hands," Xie Shang replied, bending down and carefully affixing tape to the child's hand, "And with it, the Guqin will sound nicer."
Tongtong was still too young to fully understand.
But Xie Shang taught earnestly and with patience.
"This is the point to pluck the string, the best place is one-eighth along the sounding segment of the string." He pointed to another spot, "This is where you press the string."
He explained a lot, though whether Tongtong followed remained unclear. Changling, listening around the corner in the next room, definitely didn't understand. Right, the houses on Lotus Pond Street had no sound insulation, so that meant she wasn't eavesdropping, right?
"Guqin is based on the pentatonic scale, without the fourth and seventh notes, which are sequentially Gong, Shang, Jue, Zhi, and Yu."
Tongtong plucked at the strings a few times, "Brother, I still can't do it."
"I'll teach you."
He guided Tongtong's hands, showing her how to play the strings.
Changling recognized the tune - it was Little Star.
Tongtong recognized it too: "It's Little Star!"
Right, it was Little Star, the milk name of Xie The Fourth.
There he was at the DJ booth, not even having taken off his formal attire, only loosening his tie.