```

Mo Qi was quite chafed by Wang Xiaoqiang's sarcasm. Seeing the other four women covering their mouths and giggling, a flush of red swept across Mo Qi's pale face. Nevertheless, he still diligently queued up that classic Cantonese song for Wang Xiaoqiang—"A Chinese Ghost Story." Mo Qi felt this Cantonese version of "A Chinese Ghost Story" was incredibly hard to sing. By choosing to sing this song, Wang Xiaoqiang was obviously biting off more than he could chew. Humph, just wait and make a fool of yourself!

Wang Xiaoqiang cleared his throat and began to sing.

"The journey of life is like a long dream,

Where frost and cold winds harshly beam.

In this world of red dust, how many directions can dreams take,

Chasing foolishly in the midst of dreamlike love,

The road wanders aimlessly as do men,

Life is a dream mixed with fervent desires…"

Wang Xiaoqiang sang with True Qi, his voice deep and magnetic, filled with emotion, echoing throughout the private room. It was as if time had reversed, and that pop star giant had come back to life!

It was so alike, too alike!

The four girls stared at Wang Xiaoqiang, listening to the music, and were immediately petrified. His voice was too perfect, too melodious, too emotional, and instantly transported everyone into the world of the old movie "A Chinese Ghost Story."

And Mo Qi, who was waiting to laugh at Wang Xiaoqiang's expense, had a smile half mocking and half amused on his face which immediately froze upon hearing Wang Xiaoqiang's first notes. His eyes were glued to Wang Xiaoqiang with an incredulous expression. Clearly, he couldn't believe that the young man before him could render this Cantonese song so perfectly—it was as if Zhang Guorong had come back to life!

"In dreams there flickers, flickers a light of tears,

Uncertain of where to go to seek the direction in my heart,

The wind seems to sigh softly in dreams,

Both the road and people are vast and boundless,

In this world, the road is full of happy lads,

The path is rough and rugged, lacking the sunlight's grace,

Amidst the dust, how many directions does happiness face,

A thread of dreamlike storms it weathers,

The road wanders aimlessly as do men…"

None of the people present, including Wang Xiaoqiang himself, could speak Cantonese, yet under Wang Xiaoqiang's voice, this Cantonese song didn't sound stiff at all but was very authentic.

When the song ended, there was a silent pause for a few seconds, then a burst of warm applause followed. The four girls looked at Wang Xiaoqiang, their eyes filled with undisguised admiration and fervent worship, particularly Li Chunmei, who was truly taken aback. She had only known of Wang Xiaoqiang's exceptional medical skills, but she had never imagined that Wang Xiaoqiang's singing was also top-notch, comparable to those A-list stars. Just before Wang Xiaoqiang sang, she had been worried about him embarrassing himself and giving Mo Qi a chance to laugh. Now it seemed, her worries were needless. Wang Xiaoqiang's wonderful voice completely overshadowed Mo Qi. Compared with Wang, Mo Qi's recent performance sounded like a child babbling away.

Mo Qi's face turned shades of red and white, filled with a sense of defeat. At this moment, he did not applaud or cheer for Wang. In a critical moment, Mo Qi's true nature was fully exposed, showing none of the grace one would expect from an artist. But then again, what kind of substance and propriety could one expect from a third-rate painter?

Just as the four girls were excited and imploring Wang Xiaoqiang to sing another song, Li Chunmei's phone rang. Everyone fell silent, and Li Chunmei took out her phone, pressing the answer button without looking. "Hello, Jiang Wei. Have you arrived?"

"Ah, Spring Plum, I'm at the entrance of Glorious Splendor. Which private room are you in?"

"Wait there, I'll come down to meet you!" Li Chunmei immediately stood up, greeted everyone, and went downstairs to fetch her friend Jiang Wei!

Shortly after, Li Chunmei returned with a tall girl in denim, striding into the private room. Wang Xiaoqiang followed everyone's gaze and looked over. He saw a very attractive girl, a bit taller than Li Chunmei, with a well-proportioned figure. Her delicate face, with a pair of large, intelligent eyes, had no makeup—but perhaps due to just coming off a plane, she appeared slightly travel-worn and a touch weary. However, this did not affect her appearance and aura, especially the knowledgeable and feminine beauty so vividly on display.

Such a girl dazzled the men present and left the women feeling inferior. Perhaps already accustomed to being the center of attention, Jiang Wei's gaze was remarkably composed, her face wearing a friendly smile.

```

"Uh... let me introduce, this is my good friend, the famous beauty and talented lady of River City, Jiang Wei."

This girl isn't half bad. It looks like tonight's visit won't be in vain. Let's get to know her first, and once we're familiar, I'll make my move! It'd be such a waste not to hit on such a beautiful and poised girl, especially when there are coveted conversion points waiting for me to claim!

Just as Wang Xiaoqiang was silently ecstatic, Li Chunmei had already brought Jiang Wei over to the group, first introducing Jiang Wei, then one by one introducing her to everyone else.

"This is Mo Qi." Li Chunmei seemed to do it on purpose, introducing Mo Qi first.

Mo Qi immediately extended his hand with great enthusiasm and gentlemanliness to Jiang Wei, "Hello, I'm the local artist, Mo Qi. It's a great pleasure to meet you..."

"Nice to meet you!" Jiang Wei extended her delicate white hand and shook his gently. Seeing Mo Qi's gaze grow fixed on her, she responded briefly and politely, then withdrew her hand and turned her face away, looking unwilling to engage further.

Li Chunmei disrupted the introduction order and skipped over Wang Xiaoqiang, who was standing next to Mo Qi, to introduce her three girlfriends instead.

This detail didn't escape the eyes of Mo Qi, Wang Xiaoqiang, and Jiang Wei. Mo Qi immediately got jealous, wondering why she introduced him first, only to neglect Wang Xiaoqiang afterward?

It was obvious that Li Chunmei's decision not to introduce Wang Xiaoqiang was not out of disrespect for him, but rather out of fear that the bachelor and the unmarried beauty would hit it off. Li Chunmei's actions clearly indicated she had ulterior motives.

And Wang Xiaoqiang, of course, realized this as well, but he was not as lecherous as Mo Qi. Although he planned to pursue Jiang Wei, haste would not bring success. From Jiang Wei's reaction to Mo Qi just now, it was clear that she was a very proper girl.

Jiang Wei was quite the person; she'd written novels of hundreds of thousands of words. How could she not notice the boy whom Li Chunmei had ignored? This roused her curiosity, but she immediately surmised that Li Chunmei must be interested in the boy, given her attitude that suggested she wanted to save him for herself, not allowing any other girl to interfere.

What kind of person was he to have captured the interest of someone like Li Chunmei, who was usually so aloof?

At this point, Jiang Wei also became quite curious about Wang Xiaoqiang. After shaking hands with the other three girls, and seeing that Li Chunmei truly didn't intend to introduce Wang Xiaoqiang, Jiang Wei couldn't resist her curiosity and half complaining, half teasingly said to Li Chunmei, "How come you won't even let me meet your boyfriend?"

What?

Boyfriend!

Everyone was stunned.

Li Chunmei's pretty face flushed instantly, and she immediately replied, "Jiang Wei, don't talk nonsense. He's not my boyfriend; we've just recently met."

Li Chunmei cast a shy glance at Wang Xiaoqiang then quickly averted her gaze, trying to dissociate herself from any relationship with him.

"If he's not your boyfriend, why won't you introduce me?" Jiang Wei whispered to Bai Lu, putting an arm around her shoulder, "You might fool the whole world, but not me. Have you forgotten what I do for a living? Keep arguing, and I'll write you two into my romance novel!"

"He... he really isn't..." Li Chunmei's face turned even redder, knowing she couldn't clear things up just by speaking, she then said to Wang Xiaoqiang, "Little Qiang, you tell her, what's our relationship?"

Wang Xiaoqiang feigned seriousness and said perfunctorily, "We have a colleague relationship." Since Wang Xiaoqiang planned to woo Jiang Wei, he couldn't admit his relationship with Li Chunmei.

Jiang Wei smiled meaningfully and said, "Ah, no wonder, huh?"

Li Chunmei immediately put on a sulky face, picked up a large glass of red wine from the table, and offered it to Jiang Wei, "You came so late, you owe three drinks as a penalty!"

"All right, I'll take the penalty," Jiang Wei cheerfully accepted the glass but then added, "However, I really can't drink three glasses. So, how about this? There are two gentlemen here, each of you drink one for me, okay?"

Wang Xiaoqiang was not interested, but he didn't refuse outright. Mo Qi, however, was very eager to oblige and immediately volunteered, stepping forward, "That's only fair. Tell you what, I'll drink both glasses for you, and in return, you perform a song for us, deal?"

"No problem." As River City's talented lady, Jiang Wei was skilled in many arts - from music, chess, calligraphy, and painting to dancing, singing, and writing. She was proficient in each.

Seeing Jiang Wei agree, Mo Qi was visibly excited, promptly picking up two glasses of red wine from the table and downing them in one go. Jiang Wei, true to her word and seeing Mo Qi drank for her, decided to sing a song.

She sang a song for which she had written the lyrics and composed the music. Although it wasn't very polished, it was still quite smooth to hear, and with her sweet voice, it drew applause from the crowd. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for it at Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)

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