Chapter 618 — Shen Yushu's Brother

The moment Chen Yuxuan heard Qiu Lingshan's words, he nearly dropped the phone. Late Yellow-rank? Qiu Lingshan was actually that formidable? The Song family had produced a genius like her? Chen Yuxuan drew a sharp breath.

If Qiu Lingshan could advance to late Yellow-rank at such a young age, then the Song family's standing would certainly soar, and her marriage prospects would be taken all the more seriously. Who knew what match the old master of the Song family would arrange for her then?

Perhaps, once word spread that Qiu Lingshan had broken through to late Yellow-rank, even the Yu family would come courting her.

"All right, I'll do my best!" This time Chen Yuxuan was truly a little despairing. The gap between them was no small matter at all — refusing to accept it would do him no good.

"I've got work to do. I'm hanging up." Qiu Lingshan wasted no words and simply ended the call. Deep down, she actually felt nothing for Chen Yuxuan, which was why she had deliberately claimed she was about to break through to late Yellow-rank. In truth, she had only just reached the peak of mid-Yellow-rank; there was still a considerable distance between her and the next stage.

The reason Qiu Lingshan said all this was that she wanted Chen Yuxuan to give up hope. She did not care for his temperament. Her own nature was forceful enough, yet what she wanted was a man even more forceful than herself — only with a man like that would Qiu Lingshan be willing to let him take her, for otherwise she would feel uncomfortable herself.

After his attempt to see Qiu Lingshan came to nothing, Chen Yuxuan finally thought of the friends he had once run around with: An Liwen and Su Taizao, the other two of the Four Young Masters of Songshan. The fourth of the Four Young Masters was seldom in Songshan City, so he was rarely seen.

An Liwen and Su Taizao had called before, wanting to host a banquet to welcome him back, but Chen Yuxuan had not agreed right away. Instead, he had first asked whether Qiu Lingshan was free. The identity of a former Young Master of Songshan now seemed to Chen Yuxuan to be nothing but a joke — a few children, relying on their families' influence, full of themselves, with nothing worth boasting about.

Since he had chosen another path, it was inevitable that the distance between him and An Liwen, Su Taizao, and the rest would grow ever greater. Though they had once been playmates, they had grown considerably estranged, and the old feeling of drinking and raising hell together was gone.

The Chen Yuxuan of today was far steadier than before — and it was precisely Qiu Lingshan's rejection that had forced him onto this path. Back then it had seemed truly bitter, but having walked it, he found his choice had been the right one.

Only what he was doing now could be called the work of a true, upright man. The former Four Young Masters of Songshan might have sounded impressive, but what use was it? Those empty reputations were not his own — and even if they were, they were reputations of infamy.

It seemed the gap between him and Qiu Lingshan was only growing wider. Chen Yuxuan smiled bitterly. In his heart he understood quite well that Qiu Lingshan's temperament was not something an ordinary man could handle; in sheer fighting skill alone, he was no match for her. Even if family pressure forced her to be with him reluctantly, Chen Yuxuan believed he would never be able to master Qiu Lingshan in the future — and, as she had said, he would not even be able to satisfy her in bed.

The phone rang. Chen Yuxuan glanced at it: An Liwen. He had already turned down his banquet the day before, yet An Liwen was still so tireless. Of course, Chen Yuxuan knew perfectly well what An Liwen was after.

If An Liwen hosted a meal for him, then he would surely bring his sister Shen Yushu along; and if his sister went, Gu Mengyao would naturally go too. As one of Gu Mengyao's suitors, An Liwen would then have his chance to lavish attention on her.

He himself was nothing but a stepping stone. Chen Yuxuan was well aware that his life had already drifted far apart from An Liwen's; they were no longer people on the same road, and their relationship now could hardly be called close.

"Hello, Second." Chen Yuxuan answered the phone, still addressing An Liwen warmly as "Second," for he ranked second among the Four Young Masters of Songshan.

"Tian, how about it? Are things sorted out? Do you have time tomorrow night — do us the honor at the Starlight Splendor, and let us brothers get together?" An Liwen asked with a smile. Yesterday Chen Yuxuan's reason for declining had been that he did not yet know his schedule or whether he would have time.

"Ha ha, all right, tomorrow night then. We'll be in touch!" Chen Yuxuan agreed. Since meeting Qiu Lingshan had proved hopeless, he accepted An Liwen's invitation.

"Great, see you then!" An Liwen was overjoyed. So long as Chen Yuxuan was coming, Shen Yushu would surely come too; and if Shen Yushu came, how could Gu Mengyao not come?

He had never had a chance to get close to Gu Mengyao, and Gu Mengyao had never wanted to give him one. But now it was perfect — he could invite Gu Mengyao and Shen Yushu openly and properly.

"How about it, An? Did you pull it off?" Su Taizao asked, a little anxiously, from the side.

"Pulled it off. Now let's go pay a visit to Gu Mengyao and Shen Yushu and get them to come to our banquet tomorrow night!" An Liwen nodded with a smile.

"An, this is a golden opportunity. I think you should take this chance to confess your feelings to Gu Mengyao!" Su Taizao said. "Such a chance won't come twice!"

"You have a point. So do you have any good ideas? It wouldn't be quite right to just confess out of the blue, would it?" An Liwen frowned. "But you're right — Gu Mengyao's attitude toward me seems rather hard to read, not nearly as warm as when we first met at the amusement park. Could she be blaming me for not pursuing her hard enough? Should I prepare some flowers and propose to her tomorrow?"

"That's possible!" Su Taizao said. "But forget the flowers-and-proposal idea. Girls care about their dignity; if you're courting her, you can't show no gesture at all, but you can't be too intense about it either, or you'll put her on the spot. In many cases, a girl likes being pursued, but she doesn't want you pressing her too hard. What she enjoys is the process of being courted, not being made to give an answer on the spot. So tricks like kneeling with flowers are practically forcing someone to decide. Unless the girl is head over heels for him, she'll definitely turn him down — and even if she likes him a little, she can't just say yes right away!"

"You have a point!" An Liwen had to admit the logic in that. He was not even sure whether Gu Mengyao had any feelings for him at all, and even if she did, they certainly fell far short of anything like real affection!