Chapter Thirty-One: The Petite Woman

Fine beads of sweat had unknowingly formed across Li Mengfei’s forehead, and under the bright lights, his face appeared even paler, as if he were on the verge of collapse. Wetting the bed at the age of ten had always been a source of deep pain for him. His childhood companions had never let him forget it, mocking him relentlessly and casting a shadow over his heart. When Zhang Wei suddenly brought it up, it was as if a sharp dagger had been plunged into his chest—painful if left in, fatal if pulled out—leaving him trapped between agony and death. Unnoticed, his clothes had already been soaked through.

"Li Mengfei, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?" Lin Hongwen noticed Li Mengfei standing there dazed, unsure what Zhang Wei had said to shock him so, and approached to ask.

"It's none of your business. Step aside," Li Mengfei snapped, pushing Lin Hongwen away without the slightest courtesy.

"Li Mengfei, should we continue discussing what we were talking about just now?" Zhang Wei took a step forward, exuding a subtle pressure.

"Shut up! Stop making things up! None of it's true—you're just spouting nonsense!" A twisted look flashed across Li Mengfei's face as he threatened Zhang Wei.

"I scare easily, you know. If I accidentally let something slip, don't blame me!" Zhang Wei, annoyed that Li Mengfei still tried to act superior despite having his sore spot squeezed, snorted coldly.

"Are you threatening me?" Li Mengfei clenched his fists, veins bulging on his arms, barely restraining himself from striking Zhang Wei.

"If that's how you want to see it, there's nothing I can do," Zhang Wei replied nonchalantly.

"Fine, you win. We'll see about this," Li Mengfei, terrified that Zhang Wei might expose his humiliating secret, spat out a harsh retort and turned to leave.

"Stop right there. Did I say you could go?" Zhang Wei barked.

"What else do you want?" Li Mengfei stopped abruptly, like a snake caught at its vital spot, and turned back.

"Didn't your teachers ever teach you basic manners when you were in school? Don't you know you should apologize when you've done something wrong?" Zhang Wei demanded, poking a finger into Li Mengfei's chest. "You'd better be sincere with me. Right now, you have no right to put on airs or make demands. Do you understand?"

Faced with Zhang Wei's cold, merciless gaze, Li Mengfei truly feared that the shameful secret would come out. Reluctantly, and determined not to suffer further, he bowed to the assembled guests and said, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have caused a scene at the banquet and wasted everyone's time."

Li Mengfei's bow and apology astonished the entire gathering. No one knew what Zhang Wei had said to him, but to see the once arrogant Li Mengfei bowing and apologizing like a chastened schoolboy was beyond belief.

Murong Xuan had just returned from the kitchen, having checked on the next course, and was startled by the sight of Li Mengfei bowing to the guests. She blinked her beautiful eyes, wondering if the kitchen smoke had muddled her vision. But upon a second look, she realized she hadn't been mistaken: Li Mengfei was actually bowing and apologizing.

"What's gotten into him? Is this another of his tricks?" Murong Xuan muttered to herself, hurrying over. Noticing Zhang Wei standing beside him, she couldn't help but ask, "Zhang Wei, what happened just now? Why are you with Li Mengfei?"

"It's nothing, just a little misunderstanding between us. It's all settled now," Zhang Wei replied with a cheerful smile.

"Zhang Wei, may I go now?" Li Mengfei, seeing Murong Xuan approach, grew even more uneasy. He dared not meet her gaze and instead stared fixedly at Zhang Wei, his handsome face twisted in suppressed fury.

"Go on," Zhang Wei waved him off indifferently, as if dismissing a trivial matter.

With Zhang Wei's permission, Li Mengfei fled the hall as if granted amnesty, leaving Murong Xuan bewildered. Covering her mouth in astonishment, she whispered, "That boy fears nothing and no one. Why would he listen to you?"

"Perhaps he was overwhelmed by my charm and charisma," Zhang Wei joked.

Murong Xuan circled Zhang Wei with a scrutinizing gaze, her bright eyes taking in every detail before fixing on his face as though he were a stranger.

"Is there something on my face? What are you looking at?" Zhang Wei asked nervously, rubbing his cheek.

"I'm searching for the charm and charisma you just mentioned, but after looking you over, I can't find anything remotely related to those words," Murong Xuan replied seriously, her lips pursed.

"That's because you're looking at me with tinted glasses. Naturally, you can't see my strengths," Zhang Wei countered.

"So, you're saying I should take a black-and-white photograph of you and then look at that instead?" Murong Xuan retorted sarcastically.

"Alright, there's no point in a grown man like me bickering with a little lady like you. You'd best go and attend to the other guests," Zhang Wei said, waving her off and turning away.

"Wait. Why do you call yourself a 'grown man' and me a 'little lady'? Are men from the mainland still so prejudiced against women?" Murong Xuan stepped in front of him, blocking his path and confronting him.

"I didn't mean anything by it. It was just a figure of speech. What exactly do you want?" Zhang Wei explained, silently thinking to himself, "People from Hong Kong really are particular about words, always playing these semantic games, acting superior to mainlanders, yet they can't even speak Mandarin properly."

"A figure of speech? So if I call myself a 'great woman' and you a 'petty man,' would that be alright?" Murong Xuan pressed.

"Hmph, I see what this is about." Zhang Wei smirked coldly. "Now that Lin Hongwen and Li Mengfei have been put in their place and won't be bothering you tonight, are you finding me—your 'fake boyfriend'—an eyesore and trying to make me leave?"

"That's not it. I just thought your choice of words was a bit inappropriate, so I pointed it out," Murong Xuan replied, a blush creeping onto her cheeks, her composure faltering as Zhang Wei saw through her intentions.

Murong Xuan had only asked Zhang Wei to act as her shield; she had no wish for others to think they were truly involved. With more guests paying attention to Zhang Wei, she was afraid someone would ask about their relationship, which would make things awkward. So she deliberately argued with him, hoping he'd take offense and leave on his own.

"Murong, when you lie, your cheeks turn as red as an apple—it's really quite charming," Zhang Wei said with a playful smirk.

"You—hmph! I'm going to attend to the other guests. Suit yourself!" Murong Xuan snapped, clearly not taking his remark as a compliment. Her expression frosted over, and she swayed away, her slender waist twisting in indignation.

Zhang Wei watched her graceful retreat, catching glimpses of her shapely figure with each step. A surge of desire flickered within him. To say he felt nothing for such a beautiful and accomplished woman would be a lie. Yet the gulf between their backgrounds and status was an unbridgeable chasm—one he knew he could not cross, at least not now.

He quickly put aside these idle thoughts. After all, he hadn't come to this banquet just to be Murong Xuan's unpaid shield. His real purpose was to find potential homebuyers among these wealthy guests and prepare for his next sale.

Zhang Wei surveyed the crowd, considering whom to approach. Every guest here was someone of status—he'd noticed luxury cars parked out front when he arrived: Jeeps, Ferraris, Bentleys. With such distinguished clients, he couldn't resort to ordinary community promotion tactics like handing out business cards or flyers; that would only cheapen his image and win their contempt. Instead, he needed a targeted approach.

"Mr. Zhang, good evening!" Just as Zhang Wei was scanning the guests for an opening, a coquettish female voice sounded in his ear, startling him so much it seemed his very bones grew lighter.