"I wonder how Mr. Fraunnder has been lately?"
"He's very well, and asked me to convey his greetings to you."
"If I have the opportunity, I will consider continuing my studies."
Randy's blue eyes immediately showed disappointment, and he added unwillingly, "He later dated a few other Chinese people, but I still think you're the most charming!"
Gossip at social gatherings always spreads quickly, and since Randy was the star of the banquet, this commotion immediately attracted the attention of many people.
"No way, Bai Yi and Fraunnder?"
"Is this a meeting of old flames? Or a gathering of brothers?"
"I remember that Astray only came to China for an exchange year? I didn't expect him to have such a good relationship with Bai Yi. It seems that Huanya has a good chance of winning this collaboration."
...
"Isn't this Bai Yi? Long time no see."
"Second Young Master Qian?"
Blocking Bai Yi's path was none other than Qian Jin, the second young master of the Qian Family in A City. Speaking of which, today's banquet was being held on his family's property. They had been classmates before, with Bai Yi playing the unattainable beauty and Qian Jin being his playboy. They had almost no interaction.
However...
His hand was on the waist of the person beside him. The young man tilted his head slightly, resting it on his shoulder.
Qian Jin made no secret of his preferences, nor did he refuse the flattery of others.
"Mr. Bai."
The young man spoke, and Bai Yi then noticed a hint of familiarity.
Was he the red-haired guy from the bar? The guitarist who ran away with Qian Jin, according to Qin Sheng? Had he dyed his hair back to black? It seemed he was determined to rely on this big tree, but Qian Jin changed people too quickly. His eagerness to change himself might easily make the other party lose interest.
"Hello." He greeted politely, not missing the probing in the young man's eyes.
"Does President Bai know him?"
Bai Yi didn't want to reveal that he went to the bar, so he made up a reason: "Huanya still has to rely on the Qian Family's support. I have indeed heard of the Second Young Master's companions."
"Hiss..." The young man suddenly hissed softly. Qian Jin glanced at him lightly, and he quickly shut his mouth, clenching his fist when no one was paying attention.
"President Bai must be a very busy man. It must be that Randy has a lot of face." Qian Jin shook the wine glass in his hand and made a toast to Bai Yi in the air. "I don't see President Bai often, but I didn't expect him to be so clever, making a good impression at the first meeting. A Qing, hurry up and offer President Bai a drink?"
"Second Young Master is joking, it's just that my family is strict."
Qian Jin stared at the ring on his finger, the corners of his lips curling up in an ambiguous smile, and gave the young man beside him a push: "Is Mrs. Bai not here today? That's perfect. Go ahead, get President Bai a drink."
The young man, called "A Qing," obediently let go, a flash of unwillingness flitting across his eyes. He took a tray from a waiter and quickly returned to the crowd. "Mr. Bai, please."
A burst of fragrance entered his nostrils. Bai Yi lowered his eyes and scanned the tray. There weren't many choices, so he selected a sparkling wine with a relatively low alcohol content: "Thank you, President Qian."
"When we were in school, President Bai never attended these kinds of social gatherings. Now that Astray is developing in the country, shouldn't the young master consider old friends?"
Randy was stunned for a moment, then nodded in agreement: "I've heard something about it. If you need it, I can persuade my father."
Bai Yi tapped his glass against Randy's, and the sparkling bubbles splashed out in small waves: "We're at a party, why talk about business? Let's be seated."
After all, it was a banquet held in the country, and this banquet hosted by Randy was a joint effort with the Qian Family, featuring mainly Chinese dishes. A Qing, having received Qian Jin's hint, proactively placed a set of knives and forks next to Randy, but Randy raised his hand to stop him. Instead, he directly picked up the chopsticks, twirled them in his palm, and said to Bai Yi, "You taught my brother before, and he taught me."
A Qing immediately blushed and looked helplessly at Qian Jin.
"Mr. Randy is truly knowledgeable and versatile."
Randy said earnestly, "When in Rome, do as the Romans do. I really like Chinese culture, including your customs of placing chopsticks horizontally or vertically. Fraunnder learned a lot from Bai, and I learned a lot from Fraunnder."
Noticing the gazes of the crowd, Bai Yi had no choice but to straighten his back a little more. The chopsticks that had been reaching for the eight-treasure meat changed course and landed on the jade white soup, and he chewed a leaf of the vegetable like a rabbit.
There was no choice. There were too many acquaintances, and he couldn't let the "detached from worldly affairs" image that he maintained collapse.
"Mr. Randy is too kind."
A melodious piano sound eased Bai Yi's embarrassment.
On the side stage, a pianist had sat down unnoticed. He was dressed in a tailored white swallowtail coat, which set off his jade-like skin. His slender fingers flew between the black and white keys, leaving behind a string of melodious notes.
What was even more eye-catching was the furry rabbit mask on his face, with its ears half-erect. Paired with the lively melody, he looked like a rabbit flitting through the forest.
Bai Yi suddenly recalled the blond figure who had saved the day when the string broke at the bar, and immediately matched him with the person in front of him.
It seemed that the news of Randy's return to China was earlier than the time he had released. He wasn't sure if there were other considerations behind this time difference. And...
Did he like rock music?
Was that new guitarist on stage? He could also play the piano?
Qin Sheng's little bar was truly full of hidden talents. A Qing had followed Qian Jin, and the new guitarist had hooked up with Randy. It had to be said that although Qin Yu was a coward, his eye for picking employees was indeed good.
But the bar had been acquired by Zhuo Shen, otherwise he could have created some hype.
Between changing the subject and gossiping, Bai Yi chose to do both. He elegantly wiped his mouth and looked at the music stage with admiration. "This pianist seems to be a new face in the industry. I wonder where Mr. Randy found him?"
"I met him by chance. I thought he played the piano well, so I invited him."
Qian Jin beckoned a waiter and whispered a few words. The movement ended and the waiter left a bouquet of golden sunflowers on the piano cover.
The pianist was first stunned, then saw the card in the center of the bouquet. He slowly stood up, bowed to this side to express his gratitude, but didn't take the bouquet. Instead, he sat back on the stool and began to play another song.
This was a song with vocals, and as soon as the first line of the lyrics came out, Bai Yi felt as if he had been electrocuted.
For no other reason than that he was too familiar with this song.
Any exchange program was sure to have a "welcome party" and a "farewell party." In the latter half of the program, Bai Yi had been intentionally avoiding contact with the Astray young master to avoid suspicion, but he had no reason to let go of his prey, so he shut himself up for three days, with the purpose of setting off the performer's perfection and creating a transcendent image. He wrote a song with a gorgeous and stacked melody as a performance item for the farewell party.
For him, this song was firstly to leave a mark, and secondly, to show off his skills and pretend to be something special.
The past pretense had turned into a boomerang and stabbed him at the class reunion, grandly bringing his early naive behavior to the forefront.
——Although the video from back then had already been widely circulated.
This was his song, and he was extremely familiar with every part of it. Bai Yi sorted out his thoughts and opened his mouth as the movement ended. "Mr. Randy truly has an eye for talent. This gentleman on stage..."
"Bravo!"
Qian Jin interrupted Bai Yi with a loud shout. He took the lead in applauding. "As expected of someone Mr. Randy has taken a fancy to, this is indeed a delightful performance."
Randy was somewhat pleased: "All the beauties in China are very excellent."
"The combination of vocals and piano is too beautiful, using the piano sound as rain, and the vocals as the friendship washed by the heavy rain. This concept is indeed brilliant."
"Friendship is priceless, I toast to everyone!"
"I'll drink to that!"
Amidst a series of compliments, Qian Jin's words were particularly special: "Yes, to be able to have President Bai create it himself, the friendship between Mr. Bai and Mr. Fraunnder is truly enviable."
Bai Yi's smile froze. What was coming was still going to come. The consequence of being in the limelight was that it was easy to be exposed.
This Qian Jin, had he offended him?
He originally just wanted to change the subject, but in the end, it had circled back to himself.
Bai Yi folded his hands and put on a nostalgic expression, but in his heart, he had already started chanting Buddhist scriptures: "...I didn't expect Mr. Randy to like it."
He was indifferent, as if those pretentious behaviors had nothing to do with him.
"So it was your work." Randy's eyes lit up. "No wonder I couldn't find the source for so long. Bai, you're really full of surprises."
"...Mr. Bai played this very song at the farewell party of the previous exchange program. It has come full circle and appeared at Mr. Randy's welcome party. Isn't that a special kind of fate?"
"Speaking of which, this pianist and President Bai have a bit of resemblance."
"Only someone with President Bai's temperament can play this kind of song and still be so refreshing."
Qian Jin supported the compliment, "Don't give President Bai sparkling wine. Bring my collection."
Bai Yi's small glass of wine was quickly emptied, and he declined with a hand to his forehead, "The star of the banquet is here. President Qian, please don't make fun of me."
Randy, however, was quite interested and said, "I've long heard that Second Young Master Qian has gotten a bottle of good wine. Could it be this one?"
"Not bad, I blindly purchased a ruined manor a few months ago, unexpectedly there were some good things hidden inside."
"Purchased?"
"Yes, the economy is sluggish, and some manors are being sold blindly as packages. I blindly purchased a few." Qian Jin's words were a bit regretful, "Only this one barely broke even. Speaking of which, it's still related to President Bai."