Section 176 The First Evening Party
"The main event?" Ye Zhong asked, puzzled. In his view, since the meal was over, it should be time for the party to end.
"Mhm, generally speaking, there's usually an evening party after dinner. Of course, this refers to upper-class circles. The purpose of the evening party is also for social interaction among people, but compared to dinner, the methods of interaction at the party are more diverse and free, not as formal as at the dining table.
Here, they often exchange various pieces of information with each other. Most people don’t choose to discuss serious matters at the party. To be precise, it should be considered a leisure activity. However, for young people, this is an important stage to showcase their charm. Mhm, this is also part of the social circle for those noblewomen. Ah, I’ve said so much, but you probably still don’t get it! You’ll understand soon enough!" Shang滔滔不绝spoke incessantly, putting on the airs of an expert.
Ye Zhong replied indifferently, "Whatever!" He understood clearly that this was definitely not the life he wanted. What he needed to do was follow Shang's advice and not stand out too much at this moment. After all, he was completely clueless about these so-called etiquette rules. If he were to cause any embarrassment, it would certainly not be a pleasant experience. He was just curious about why Shang would be interested in such things.
The dining tables were quickly cleared away and replaced with many small tables. These small tables were laden with various cut fruits, wine, and desserts. The center of the hall was emptied, while sofas were arranged around the perimeter. The servants of the Shang family were bustling about swiftly. The advanced holographic audio system on the ceiling provided the highest quality music.
Soothing and melodious music drifted through the hall, and everyone began to step into the central area.
"Leaf, don’t just stand there foolishly. Pick up a glass of wine—even if you don’t drink it, you should at least put on a show," Shang reminded Ye Zhong.
Upon hearing this, Ye Zhong immediately picked up a glass of red wine from a nearby table. Shang continued, "Now, walk around slowly. When you encounter someone, just raise your glass slightly to show your friendliness. If you see someone else raising their glass, you should do the same in acknowledgment! Your movements should be gentle and natural."
"How boring!" Ye Zhong muttered to himself.
"Heh heh, Leaf, you think this is boring? Don’t worry, the real boredom is yet to come!" Shang's laughter carried a somewhat mischievous tone.
At that moment, more people entered the hall. Most men were accompanied by a female partner. Shang Changming, meanwhile, moved around the room, smiling, nodding, and raising his glass to acquaintances whenever he encountered them.
Robert walked over to Ye Zhong, also holding a glass of wine. He raised his glass to Ye Zhong with a smile and said, "Brother Wang, don’t be too reserved. There will be many beauties later! A man should be romantic in his youth—it’s a shame they didn’t get to see Brother Wang’s magnificent prowess. Otherwise, you might have been swarmed by beauties! Haha!"
Ye Zhong had no reaction to this kind of teasing. He imitated Robert's gesture, slightly raising his glass in return, and said calmly, "You flatter me, Boss."
Shang praised, "Leaf, that move just now was pretty good!"
Seeing Ye Zhong's expression, Robert tactfully laughed it off and walked away.
The hall grew increasingly crowded. For this evening party, Shang Changming had invited almost every prominent figure on Liqi Star.
Ye Zhong held his glass and wandered aimlessly. His cold expression meant few people raised their glasses to him along the way, and Ye Zhong was perfectly fine with that. However, he couldn’t help but notice the subtle glances from women drifting his way, which made him quite uncomfortable. Yet, whenever he slightly turned his head, those gazes would quickly dart away like startled little animals, leaving Ye Zhong baffled.
Forget about them—after all, looks can’t kill!
"Mr. Wang, you’re here all alone?" A pleasant voice came from behind Ye Zhong. He turned around to see Shang Xin walking gracefully toward him, holding a glass of wine. Beside her was a young man dressed in a white formal suit. The young man’s silver-white hair slightly covered one of his eyes, giving his gaze a somewhat hazy quality. A faint, elusive smile lingered at the corners of his lips, complementing his fair and smooth complexion, making him exceptionally handsome. Ye Zhong clearly felt that the gazes that had been lingering around him almost instantly converged on this young man.
This made Ye Zhong breathe a slight sigh of relief.
The young man bowed slightly to Ye Zhong, exuding politeness and elegance.
"Ugh, Leaf, this guy is handsomer than you! How annoying!" Shang exclaimed in frustration.
"Handsome? What does that mean?" Ye Zhong asked, hearing the term for the first time.
"Mhm, for men, being good-looking is called 'handsome'," Shang briefly explained to Ye Zhong.
"Beautiful? What's the use of beauty? It can't fill your stomach! If that's a virtue, it's a flashy but useless one!" Ye Zhong said indifferently.
Ye Zhong first gave a slight bow to the young man, then said to Shang Xin, "Miss Shang, do you need something?"
The expressions on the faces of the two people before him immediately turned dumbfounded.
"Wrong, wrong!" Shang was truly exasperated. "Ye Zi, don't apply Mu's methods here! Right now, you're just socializing, understand? Who in the world greets someone at a party by asking if they need something? Good heavens! That's just too exaggerated!"
"Then what should I say?" Ye Zhong asked.
"Say anything! Like, 'Hello, Miss Shang,' or 'The weather is nice today,' or 'Miss Shang, you look enchanting tonight.' Anything would do! Just don't ask, 'Do you need something?' under any circumstances!"
"Aren't those all useless words?" Ye Zhong muttered.
"This is precisely a place for useless words!" Shang accurately summarized.
Despite Shang Xin's adeptness at handling social situations, this was the first time she had been greeted so bluntly at a party. She was momentarily speechless, and the atmosphere became quite awkward. Afraid of saying something wrong again, Ye Zhong simply kept his mouth shut. In the end, the young man broke the impasse. A charming smile spread across his face. "I heard from Sister Xin that Mr. Wang can accurately kill enemies from over sixty meters away using a dagger. Xiao Ling truly admires you for that!"
Shang Xin quickly introduced him. "This is Shang Ling. After hearing about Mr. Wang's exploits, he pestered me relentlessly to bring him to meet you and express his admiration."
"Oh, that time was just luck," Ye Zhong said lightly. To be honest, there had been a bit of luck involved that time. Ye Zhong wasn't sure if he could replicate the action now and achieve such a satisfactory result.
Shang Ling's lips curved into an elegant arc, as if implying something deeper. "Without strength, there is no luck! Mr. Wang is being too modest!"
"You flatter me too much, Mr. Shang," Ye Zhong said, his expression remaining unchanged, neither cold nor warm.
Shang Ling shrugged elegantly. "Sparring with Mr. Wang one day would be a true pleasure in life!" Then, as if realizing his impropriety, he added self-deprecatingly, "Just kidding, just kidding! How could I be a match for Mr. Wang? I wonder, Mr. Wang, are you interested in piloting light mechas?"
Ye Zhong became inwardly wary. "Somewhat," he said curtly.
"I'd really like to see what it looks like when Mr. Wang pilots a light mech!" Shang Ling's eyes revealed a look of intense anticipation.
"Oh," Ye Zhong merely responded. Why would the other party bring up light mechas out of the blue? Was there an implied meaning? Not knowing the other's intentions, Ye Zhong didn't dare speak carelessly.
Seeing that Ye Zhong didn't seem very interested in conversation, Shang Ling and Shang Xin excused themselves and moved to another part of the room.
Ye Zhong simply stayed in a corner, slowly drinking the wine in his glass. No matter how much Shang urged him, he refused to go to the center.
"A Ling, what do you think of this person?" Shang Xin and Shang Ling walked side by side.
"A very strange and interesting person. And very cold!" Shang Ling's eyes showed a spark of interest.
"Yes, he really is a strange person. He seems completely ignorant of social etiquette, but Third Uncle just told me that this Wang Xing occasionally used some 'Dual Knife Etiquette' at the dinner table, though only briefly. Third Uncle suspects he might very well be a noble!" Shang Xin said. "But he doesn't act like any noble I've seen. If he really has received a noble education, then what purpose does such a disguise serve?" Shang Xin's expression showed clear puzzlement.
"Dual Knife Etiquette?" Shang Ling was slightly startled.
"You know about Dual Knife Etiquette too, A Ling?" Shang Xin asked curiously.
"Yes. Dual Knife Etiquette is an ancient dining ritual passed down only among the upper echelons of the nobility with considerable status. Unlike our modern table manners, they used two knives. This dining method is extremely difficult because controlling two table knives deftly is very challenging and can easily injure the mouth without specialized training. That's why it was later changed to one knife and one fork. Those who can skillfully use the Dual Knife Etiquette are very likely descendants of nobility! Even among prominent and aristocratic families, very few people know the Dual Knife Etiquette!" Shang Ling explained in detail.
"If that's the case, he must have received a proper education. So why does he act so boorishly? A disguise? What is his purpose?" Shang Xin fell into deep thought.
"It seems this really is an interesting person!" Shang Ling's expression grew increasingly excited, a strange light flashing in his eyes.
Ye Chong took occasional sips of the wine in his hand. This red wine had an extremely low alcohol content and a slightly sweet taste, drinking more like some kind of fruit juice. It was Ye Chong's first time tasting red wine, and he found the flavor quite pleasant. However, the memory of Mad Guan's drunken state was still too vivid in his mind; he had no desire to become like that—a person who had completely lost control.
Sitting alone in the corner, Ye Chong wasn't lonely. He was casually chatting with Shang.
Unconsciously, the music changed to a dance tune, and soon, people began entering the empty space in the center of the hall. Usually, a man and a woman would enter together, and once they stepped into the central area, they would start dancing to the music.
At first, Ye Chong found it somewhat novel after watching for a while, but before long, the slow rhythm of the dance music made him feel like yawning.
Of course, part of the reason was Shang's doing. Shang had been relentlessly trying to reform Ye Chong's mindset. The effects of such constant bombardment were undoubtedly significant.
"Leaf, you need to learn to enjoy life! This world is relatively peaceful! It's not all about fighting and killing!" Shang suddenly paused, seeming to realize that this line of reasoning completely contradicted Ye Chong's experiences, so he abandoned his peace theory and continued, "Fighting is undoubtedly important, but life is equally important! If you don't have any joy in life, what's the difference between you and a killing machine? Leaf, even I, a virtual intelligence, understand the pleasures of life, you..."
Ye Chong knew that, barring any unexpected interruptions, Shang wouldn't stop anytime soon.
"Excuse me, may I ask you for a dance?" A timid female voice reached Ye Chong's ears.
Ye Chong looked up and saw a girl wearing a light brown-beige dress. Her shoulder-length hair fell naturally, her head was slightly bowed, and her hands were clasped in front of her. With his sharp eyes, Ye Chong noticed her hands nervously twisting the fabric of her dress.
"Are you talking to me?" Ye Chong glanced around.
"Mhmm!" The girl's face flushed as if it could bleed, and she murmured, "May I ask you for a dance?"
"Oh my god! A beauty! So pure! Leaf, quick, say yes, say yes! How does an unromantic guy like you always have such luck with beautiful women? God, this is so unfair! The luck today is just too good, haha, to encounter a beauty even after being online for three hours!" Shang was so excited he could hardly contain himself.
Ye Chong inwardly groaned. Here it comes again! Whenever Shang saw a woman, especially what he considered a beauty, he would immediately fall into this state that Ye Chong viewed as abnormal.
"Why should I dance with her?" Ye Chong said lazily. Enduring Shang's nagging was painful, but if he could annoy Shang a bit, that was quite enjoyable.
"Leaf, you inhuman brute! You beast! Such a pure beauty invites you to dance, and you ask why? Is that even a question a man should ask?" Shang cursed furiously.
The girl, seeing that Ye Chong had suddenly fallen silent again, couldn't help but look up.
Only then did Ye Chong clearly see her face. Her snow-white skin looked delicate and flawless, her exquisite jade-like face still held a touch of innocence, with a small, elegant nose and full, delicate lips. Dressed in a light brown lace-trimmed dress, she stood gracefully, making her look like a princess from a fairy tale.
Her large, watery eyes looked at Ye Chong cautiously, their timid gaze filled with hope. For some reason, Ye Chong suddenly remembered Nannan, whom he hadn't seen for several months.
He remembered Nannan having that same timid look and cautious expression back then. The resemblance in those eyes and that expression was striking! Ye Chong's thoughts began to drift.
"Leaf, quick, say yes, say yes!" Shang kept urging incessantly, with an intensity as if he were the one being asked.
"But, Shang, you know perfectly well I don't know how to dance!" Ye Chong said dismissively.
"Hehe!" Shang, however, detected a hint of hesitation in Ye Chong's tone and continued to vigorously encourage him, "No problem, Leaf, I have a solution!"
"You're sure?" Ye Chong was half-convinced, half-doubting.
"Hehe, don't worry! It'll be fine," Shang guaranteed, though his laughter was full of smugness.