Chapter 8 : Jiang Churan’s BFFs
Over the phone, Auntie Tang told him that it was not just any dinner; it was a dinner party for one of Jiang Churan’s girlfriends.
He wagered that he would just show up at the party and leave when no one was paying attention. So thinking, he dialed Jiang Churan’s number.
“Hello? Is this Ran-ran? This is Chen Fan.”
“What is it?” Jiang Churan’s cold voice drifted out of the phone without any trace of enthusiasm.
Chen Fan continued, “Auntie Tang invited me to join your friend’s birthday party.”
“Ok. I am at the downtown Starbucks. Why don’t you come over?” It seems Jiang Churan had received word from her mother.
“Who’s that, Ran-ran?”
A girl in all Gucci and LV asked Jiang Churan curiously.
She was Jiang Churan’s WRB (white-rich-beautiful) girlfriend, Zhang Yumeng: The birthday girl.
There was another tall and glamorous girl sitting right next to Jiang Churan; both of them were Jiang Churan’s BFFs since childhood.
“Just a loser. He is my mom’s friend’s son. I have no idea what got into my mom’s mind, like, seriously? Guess what she had been doing? She wanted to set me up with that dude. Can you believe that? Me and a country hillbilly? Eew!” Jiang Churan put her phone away and said with a heavy frown.
“So, he has met your parents.” Zhang Yumeng jested. She was too curious not to press Jiang Churan with more questions, “How’s his look? Is he rich? Is he as good as my boy Yang Chao?”
Yang Chao was Zhang Yumeng’s boyfriend; he was tall and handsome, a charming captain of the school basketball team. His family owned the ‘Tiansheng Grand Hotel,’ one of the top five five-star-hotels in Chu Zhou City.
Although the basketball team captain never lacked admirers, he had always been very proud of being able to date the popular girl Zhang Yumeng.
“You are such a gold digger! Is money all you care about?” The tall and more distant looking girl rolled her eyes at Zhang Yuemeng.
“What’s wrong with that? I don’t date fat losers who are poor; you know,” Zhang Yumeng put her hands on her hips, elbows up and pointing out, as she shot back at the other girl.
“Fine, fine, we all know you have high standards” Jiang Churan put in. “His name is ‘Chen Fan,’ and he is from Si Shui County. He is from an average family and looked... ok, I guess? But my mom insisted that he is the Mr. Right because he is honest.”
“Honest? How much is that worth nowadays?” Zhang Yumeng burst out laughing.
The tall girl next to Jiang Churna shook her head and said in a serious voice, “Don’t listen to her. However, he does sound very much out of your league. Even if you think you like him, your relationship will be doomed. ”
“I didn’t say that I liked him. Stop worrying your pretty head about it, girls. I am just annoyed with my mom.” Jiang Churan said helplessly.
“If you don’t like him, maybe I can offer you a helping hand. I will teach him a lesson.” Zhang Yumeng snorted.
Jiang Churan’s rolled her eyes, and she felt so annoyed with her mother and her friends that she didn’t even know what to say.
After a while, they saw Chen Fan walking toward the Starstruck.
In 2007, when Starbucks first entered the Chinese market, it was extremely popular among the middle class and white-collar workers. They would meet with their friends to spend a relaxing weekend afternoon.
Even at Starbucks and among her kind, Jiang Churan had caught many customers’ attention. Her beauty was exceptional even among a group of well educated white collar women.
The two girls that accompanied her were also of exceptional beauty. One was tall and glamorous, the other petite and cute. The three women had slowly become the center of attention at the coffee shop.
Therefore, it wasn’t hard for Chen Fan to spot Jiang Churan. He waved a hand at her and walked toward her table.
He sucked at talking to girls; however, he didn’t want to disappoint Auntie Tang and so he better press on.
“Hi.” Jiang greeted him back polity. However, she remained a distance away from Chen Fan.
Chen Fan noticed the girl with a hot body and a glamorous look did not even spare him a look as he approached their table. Carrying a cup of coffee, she peered out of the window but was looking at nothing. Her face lacked any emotion, but the message was clear: Do not talk to me.
“You are Chen Fan?” Zhang Yumeng looked around at him as disdain flickered in her eyes.
Her clothes, shoes, and the entire outfit was worth over a hundred thousand yuan. The purse she carried was the collector’s edition of LV. She was in a pink Chanel dress and a pair of shoes from Mauro Leone, which her father had bought for her from Milan.
Meanwhile, Chen Fan was in a pair of twenty yuan jeans and a five yuan t-shirt. The two stood face to face, looking like from two different worlds.
“Hey, dude! Do you know how many people wanted to date her? Ok, let me see: the super smart kid who already got admitted to Qin Hua University, the super rich one whose dad could buy half of the city and the one whose dad was going to be the new mayor! Guess who did she chose? NOT-YOU!” Zhang Yumeng lashed out at Chen Fan.
“Meng-Meng!” Jiang Churan glared at the girl, willing her to be quiet.
“Don’t worry; I am not interested in her. Her mom wanted me to come here to join her for a party.” Chen Fan said as he glanced at Jiang Churan.
“Meng-meng did not mean what she said; I hope you don’t mind.” Jiang Churan said faintly.
“Yea, right...” Chen Fan thought to himself.
He quickly plastered on a smile and shrugged it off.
Seeing that Jiang Churan was only given Zhang Yumeng a perfunctory glare, Chen Fan knew that Jiang Churan had acquiesced to her action.
Chen Fan’s mind was set on Xiao Qiong, so he didn’t care what the other girls thought of him. Like him or not, it was their own problem, and he didn’t have to kiss their asses.
Feeling satisfied with Chen Fan’s silence, Zhang Yumeng buried her head into a fashion magazine and pretended as if Chen Fan was not there.
Chen Fan went to the counter and ordered a cup of cappuccino and sat down at the table.
Ever since he came in, his attention had always been on the tall girl who still ignored him.
She was Xu Rongfei! One of Jiang Churan’s best friends.
If Chen Fan’s memory served him right, they even had a little crush on each other.
The glamorous girl was wearing a black crop top that accentuated her ample bosom and left her tenacious waist bare. Below the waist, she wore a pair of tight denim shorts, revealing a pair of long legs that could steal a boy’s breath away. Her porcelain-like skin was almost luminescent under the sun.
Although she did not wear luxury brands, her body and exquisite beauty made a supermodel out of her even in those ordinary clothes.
Chen Fan knew that underneath her aloof appearance, she was actually a nice person. She used to give Chen Fan the heads up about Jiang Churan’s real love interest and urged him to give up on her and find someone else who would love him back.
She was different than Zhang Yumeng, who was a spoiled brat through and through. Zhang Yumeng had a pretty face too, but also a vacuous brain, and she had always looked down on Chen Fan.
“I recall that Xu Rongzhen was a fine arts student. She was going to Yanjing Film Academy next year. Later she became a popular actress, “Chen Fan reflected the details of his past life while he sipped the coffee.
When he first took over the Splendid Real Estate group in his previous life, he had met the actress again, and the two quickly hit on each other.
They met at a reception of a fashion show organized by a large company in the entertainment industry. After so many years, the high school friends had both changed. One had become a multibillion-yuan high roller, and the other a dazzling actress. They both fell for each other that night, and it was beautiful.
However, beautiful things were not meant to last. Chen Fan’s life fell apart quickly after that fashion show. Besieged by his business rivals, he had no time to rekindle old flames, so the two slowly drifted away.
Later, when he was abandoned by everyone and returned to Chu Zhou City. He accidentally heard from a friend that Xu Rongfei had ruffled some wrong feathers and had since never shown up on TV again. After a while, her reputation was tarnished by negative news and scandal in the media. Unable to bear the stress and bouts of depression, she killed herself at the young age of thirty.
The memory gave Chen Fan a chill. Here they were, two innocent young souls before the cruel world bent them against their will until both decided to take their own lives.
“Life is a bitch!” Chen Fan lamented.
As if she felt Chen Fan’s gaze on her face, Xu Rongyi finally turned around and asked with a frown:
“Do I know you?”
Unlike her cold appearance, her voice was soft if not cutesy.
Her voice reminded Chen Fan of another famous actress in her previous life.
When Xu Rongfei made her debut appearance, she was dubbed as the protege of that actress. However, she had met a much more gruesome end that her illustrious predecessor.
“I don’t think so... But may I introduce myself? You see, I am not from a rich family, but I can see things that even the richest can’t. I am a fortune teller by birth.” Chen Fan jested.
“Ah- You don’t believe me, no? Let’s see... You are a fine arts student, and your last name is Xu.”
“Oh? Really? What else do you see in me?” Xu Rongfei’s interest was piqued instantly.
“Let me see.” Chen Fan paused and pretended to ponder, “You will be admitted to Yanjing Film and Television College in the future, become an actor, and finally become a big star.”
“How do you know that I am going to the Yanjing Film and Television College? And you are right. I always dreamed of becoming a TV star!” Xu Rongfei answered incredulously. Her mouth gaped open in sheer surprise as if inviting a kiss.
Zhang Yumeng laughed out loudly.
“Are you dumb, Miss Xu? You are one of the most famous bitches at the Ivy League High. He must have learned everything about you from people at school.” Zhang Yumeng explained.
She then turned to Chen Fan with a contemptuous look.
“What a loser. Are you switching your target already?”
Jiang Churan also furrowed her brows and felt disappointed.
She had never thought Chen Fan to be such a slicker.