Read Novel Full Extra 2 Part 1 – His Little Cutie (I)
Extra 2 Part 1 – His Little Cutie (I)
After all the paper airplane love letters were prepared, Xia Mian checked the time and said, “Let’s go to the hotel”
The wedding was the day after tomorrow. Since Xia Mian still had to attend her graduation ceremony tomorrow, today they needed to head to the hotel for the full rehearsal.
“The legendary Yuejun Hotel!” Sun Yuexin looked eager with anticipation. “I heard it has everything—food, entertainment, all kinds of stuff, right?”
Li Lizhen sighed emotionally. “If it weren’t for riding on Xia Mian’s coattails, I feel like I’d never be able to go there in my whole life.”
Xia Mian laughed. “Don’t say that. Life is long. Maybe you’ll become a regular there someday.”
Ma Yingying smiled. “I don’t need to be a regular. I’d already be satisfied just going there once in a while.”
After three years operation, Yuejun Hotel had positioned itself as a luxurious high-end establishment in Yan City. Almost like a private club, it used membership system, targeting the local upper class as its clientele. Its facilities and services were top-tier for the era, and the overall experience was indeed exceptional.
In an incredibly extravagant gesture, Ning Shaobai had directly booked the entire hotel for their wedding.
The invitations had gone out a month ago, and the news had spread wildly throughout their social circles. Young Master Ning, who was usually so low-key he could hardly be more discreet, was holding an unbelievably lavish wedding. It completely shattered the assumptions of those who had cynically believed Young Master Ning was only fooling around with his girlfriend; it also made everyone realize just how much importance Ning Shaobai placed on Xia Mian.
When Xia Mian drove her bridesmaids to Yuejun Hotel, Ning Shaobai and Rong Xin had also just arrived. The two groups happened to run into each other at the staircase entrance.
The moment Ning Shaobai saw her, he smiled and opened one arm toward her.
Sure enough, Xia Mian pounced on him like a fledgling bird returning to the forest. “Dr. Ning!”
Ning Shaobai wrapped an arm around her shoulders and rubbed the little tuft of hair sticking up on her head. “Finished already?”
To prepare a surprise for him, Xia Mian had lied that she had school matters to deal with, and had stayed overnight in the dormitory with her friends last night.
“All done! I didn’t delay the rehearsal, did I?” She said with a grin.
“No,” Ning Shaobai said. “We’ll eat first, then start afterward.”
Beside them, Rong Xin grinned mischievously. “Hey, Xia Mian, how many trials did you prepare for the groomsmen? Give me a little hint so I can mentally prepare the guys.”
As he spoke, he looked deeply relieved. “Good thing I got married early. Otherwise, being Brother Bai’s groomsman would’ve been terrifying.”
Xia Mian teased him. “Relax. It won’t be worse than when you were the groom.”
When Rong Xin and Tang Miaomiao got married, Xia Mian had given Tang Miaomiao tons of hilarious ideas, tormenting Rong Xin and his groomsmen badly.
And the sly Ning Shaobai, having anticipated everything in advance, had seized the emcee role from the start, thus avoiding embarrassing himself.
Rong Xin had strongly protested at the time, but Ning Shaobai shut him up with a single sentence: “How can a groomsman steal the groom’s spotlight?”
Facing Ning Shaobai’s overly handsome face, Rong Xin had no way to refute even though he clearly saw through the guy’s schemes, leaving him perpetually frustrated.
Remembering the tragic scene now, Rong Xin immediately changed his tune. “Actually, you should really go all out.”
“Maybe this is the only chance in our entire lives to see cool guys like Brother Bai and Brother Dong embarrass themselves. It’s an extremely rare opportunity, so you absolutely can’t miss it!”
Xia Mian instantly thought about the “threats and seductions” Ning Shaobai had subjected her to and couldn’t help glancing up at him. Ning Shaobai was also lowering his head to look at her, the corners of his lips slightly raised. No matter how she looked at him, he radiated improper intentions. Even the hand resting on her shoulder shifted slightly, turning what had originally been an affectionate gesture into something suddenly sensual.
Ever since expanding his “territory,” Dr. Ning had stopped bothering to hide his lustful nature very much anymore.
Blushing, Xia Mian secretly pinched his waist in warning.
“Absolutely can’t miss what?” A clear voice with a metallic crispness rang out. Everyone turned around to see three striking young men walking in through the entrance. All of them had broad shoulders, slim waists, and long legs, while their hair and eye colors each differed.
The one who had just spoken was the “Brother Dong” Rong Xin had mentioned. He wore gold-rimmed glasses over a high nose bridge, adding a touch of refinement and sharpness to his serious temperament.
Most people around Ning Shaobai’s age were already married, some even with children, so he had gone through considerable effort to scrape together six unmarried groomsmen from his already small circle of friends.
There was Mo Feiguang and He Jianming from Mohe, Zhu Jiadong, who was the eldest son of the family who owned Yuejun Hotel, and then Zheng Dong along with two other friends who had flown in from abroad.
Zheng Dong had been Ning Shaobai’s roommate while studying overseas. He was also a genius from a prestigious university who worked in finance. Many of Ning Shaobai’s assets were managed by him.
Rumor had it he was an extreme workaholic.
Rong Xin, who had just secretly encouraged Xia Mian to mess with Zheng Dong, immediately turned a bootlicker the moment he saw the person. “I was saying the project Brother Dong brought back this time absolutely can’t be missed!”
The blond-haired, blue-eyed young man behind Zheng Dong shrugged and said in English, “This is also my first time seeing a groomsman busy preparing to discuss projects on the side while attending the wedding. He spent the entire flight doing risk assessments. Dong is seriously terrifying.”
Ning Shaobai laughed helplessly and stepped forward to hug them in greeting. “Thanks for making the trip.”
Zheng Dong punched his shoulder lightly and smiled. “Congratulations. I thought an ancient iron tree like you would never bloom in this lifetime.”
Then he turned to Xia Mian and gave her a thumbs-up. “Hello, Sister-in-law, I’ve heard so much about you.”
Xia Mian laughed. “Likewise.”
Before long, Zhu Jiadong and the other three groomsmen also arrived on time. Ning Shaobai said, “Let’s eat first. We’ll rest a bit after the meal and then start the rehearsal.”
Zheng Dong said, “Just something simple. Didn’t you say the rehearsal would take around four hours? I arranged for the project leader to come here. After rehearsal we can discuss the project directly.”
“Once we settle the general direction, you can start the evaluation process after the wedding.”
Everyone who knew him covered their faces in unison, and even Ning Shaobai sighed. “Alright then.”
Then he turned to Xia Mian. “Why don’t you and your friends take a meal in a private room instead? We can rehearse first either way, and you girls can take your time eating.”
Li Lizhen immediately tugged Xia Mian’s hand, sounding excited. “No need, let’s all eat together.”
Seeing her sparkling eyes, Xia Mian instantly understood. She glanced over her bridesmaid group and saw everyone shared the same opinion, so she smiled and said, “Then let’s all go together.”
“It’ll be good for everyone to get familiar with each other in advance too.”
So the whole group headed to the third floor buffet together.
Xia Mian and the others lagged behind at the end. Ma Yingying whispered, “Do handsome guys only make friends with handsome guys? Your Dr. Ning’s groomsmen are ridiculously good-looking!”
Sun Xiaoxue pretended to sigh regretfully. “If I’d known earlier, I would’ve waited longer before getting a boyfriend. Maybe I could’ve gotten myself a foreign boyfriend.”
Xia Mian waved a hand in front of Li Lizhen’s eyes. “Hey, snap out of it. Your eyeballs are about to fall out.”
Li Lizhen grabbed her hand excitedly. “Xia Mian, I’ve seen my destined soulmate. I feel like everything I’ve studied my whole life can finally be entrusted to someone.”
Right—this girl’s academic goal had always been to pursue a top scholar.
Sun Yuexin said, “Then you probably still have a lot more studying ahead of you. Didn’t you hear? Genius investor and super workaholic. He probably won’t even have time for a girlfriend.”
Li Lizhen replied, “Isn’t that perfect? Then there’s no need to worry about him cheating.”
Xia Mian burst into laughter. “Alright then. I’ll tell Dr. Ning to arrange for you two to spend time together. Whether anything works out afterward depends on you.”
The rest got excited and enthusiastically started helping her come up with strategies.
The afternoon rehearsal became much more interesting. Watching Li Lizhen actually take the initiative to hold Zheng Dong’s hand while dancing, Ning Shaobai raised an eyebrow and said to Xia Mian, “Your friend is pretty brave.”
Xia Mian smiled. “No matter the outcome, at least she won’t regret it.”
Ning Shaobai rubbed her head and smiled. “True enough.”
By the time rehearsal ended, it was already five in the afternoon. The whole group was exhausted and wanted nothing but rest.
Then Zheng Dong glanced at his wristwatch and said, “Perfect timing. That project leader should be arriving soon. Shaobai, come meet him with me.”
Rong Xin patted Ning Shaobai’s shoulder sympathetically. “Brother Bai, hang in there.”
Xia Mian also felt a little sorry for him and grabbed his hand, about to say something, when Zheng Dong had already begun explaining, “It’s an internet marketplace project.”
“I’ve analyzed it. Since last year, the internet has been developing at a geometric rate. In just a few years, we’ll likely enter a fully networked era. The investment cycle for this project is a bit long, but the returns are extremely considerable.”
An internet marketplace—isn’t that basically the early version of Taobao?! Holding Ning Shaobai’s hand, Xia Mian suddenly looked as if she were entrusting him with a heavy responsibility. “Dr. Ning, I’ll leave it to you!”
Ning Shaobai naturally noticed the shift in her attitude. He lowered his head and lightly bumped his forehead against hers. “So you only care when there’s money involved?”
Xia Mian giggled to herself. This isn’t just any amount of money, alright!
Over there, Zheng Dong received a phone call, and soon four people appeared in their line of sight.
Sun Yuexin let out a small “Huh?” and Xia Mian tilted her head in confusion.
Li Lizhen said, “Han Haoyan and Zhao Cheng? Are they here as bodyguards or something?”
Zheng Dong looked over. “You know them?”
Li Lizhen immediately replied, “We know the two in the back. One grew up with us, the other was our good friend in high school.”
By then, the guys had also spotted them. Ning Shaobai’s arm, which had been resting on Xia Mian’s shoulder, suddenly slid to her waist and gave a light squeeze. Xia Mian looked up and shot him a glare.
Fortunately, no one noticed their little exchange. Sun Yuexin said in puzzlement, “One’s a police academy student and the other’s a liberal arts student. I’ve never heard them mention starting any business.”
The four had already approached. The man leading them looked around thirty, not very tall but refined and scholarly. He had just overheard their conversation. As he shook hands with Zheng Dong, he explained smoothly, “This is my cousin and his friend.”
He smiled openly. “They heard you’d arranged to meet at Yuejun Hotel and insisted on tagging along to broaden their horizons.”
So the ones truly here to discuss the project were Han Haomin and his assistant.
Han Haoyan’s gaze rested on Xia Mian’s face. He smiled lightly in greeting.
Zhao Cheng, however, looked surprised. “Why are you guys here too?”
Sun Yuexin said, “Didn’t you see the invitation Xia Mian sent you? Her wedding’s being held here. We’re the bridesmaids.”
Zhao Cheng froze. “Xia Mian’s wedding is today?”
He hurriedly asked Han Haoyan, “Today’s the eighteenth, right? Did we remember the wrong date?!”
“Damn! I even prepared the gift money…”
Sun Yuexin rolled her eyes. “We’re here for the rehearsal today!”
“Are you dumb? Wouldn’t there be a wedding dress if it were the actual ceremony?”
Zhao Cheng clutched his chest and let out a huge sigh of relief. “Oh my god, that scared me to death. I thought I’d messed up the date.”
“Then again, even if I forgot, you would’ve reminded me. I just completely panicked for a second.”
His silly expression made everyone burst into laughter. Zheng Dong smiled and said, “This works out nicely.”
“Since your cousin and my sister-in-law are classmates, that makes us acquaintances too. We can skip the small talk and get straight to the business.”
“Let’s save some time so our groom-to-be can get a proper rest.”
Ning Shaobai smiled. “Let’s go up to the fourth floor.”
Then he lowered his head and asked Xia Mian, “Are you tired? Do you want to come with us, or go rest for a while?”
Although she was a little interested, she didn’t want to neglect her bridesmaids. Besides, she trusted Ning Shaobai’s investment judgment. “We won’t go.”
“I’m starving. The girls and I are going to eat first, so you guys go ahead and get busy.”
She was about to say goodbye, but Ning Shaobai kept his arm around her waist and didn’t let go. His gaze subtly drifted toward Han Haoyan, his eyes signaling something.
Xia Mian found it amusing. That was ancient history—what kind of random jealousy was this?
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