The agent said a few more words to Ouyang Linlin and told her to keep an eye on Wu Meng. Then she tidied herself up and got off with the invitation that the company gave to her and led them towards the area where red carpet ended.
They entered the hall and handed the invitation to a waiter. After taking photos and signing their names, they were led by the waiter to the ballroom on the second floor.
“Wow, Tian! I saw Tian!”
The moment Wu Meng came in, she couldn’t help but exclaim all the time with eyes full of excitement.
Ouyang Linlin hurriedly pinched her hand to calm her down. She was really disappointed at what just happened.
This little girl was almost perfect, what with her professional acting skills, sweet look and nice character and all. However, she could be really hysterical sometimes, always getting psyched over nothing. A typical fanatical groupie.
After seeing that the agent turned her head back and gave her a warning look, Wu Meng promptly stopped yelling. Nonetheless, she still kept searching for her idol with her big eyes until she finally laid her eyes on a strange person.
All the guests in the hall were well dressed in glamorous outfits. Even the waiters were wearing tuxedos with delicate makeup on their faces. But the young man who was talking with a hotel staff was wearing a short-sleeved shirt and casual pants. He looked very much out of place.
How did that man get in? Was he a guest, too?
She felt it strange, so she couldn’t help but look at their direction.
Having discussed with the person in charge about the streaming of the photos and inspected the location of the big screen on the spot, He Bai was preparing to tell the Jias that he was leaving.
“Mr. He, the lady over there has been watching you for a while. Do you know her?” said the manager while secretly pointing to the direction of the hall.
Surprised, He Bai turned around and followed his finger to look towards the hall. Incidentally, he met the eyes of a girl wearing a yellow gown.
“I don’t know her. Probably she was wondering why I could be here dressing like this.” He Bai replied with a laugh and gave the girl a nod before looking away. Then he followed the manager out from the side exit of the hall.
Hearing what he said, the manager apologized with a smile, “It’s our fault. We forgot to prepare you a proper outfit. Mr. Jia has sent someone on it. He’ll be back in no time.”
He Bai was utterly surprised to hear that as he didn’t actually mean anything by what he had just said. It seemed impossible to leave now since they are preparing his outfit. Clearly, the Jia Family wanted him to stay for the birthday party.
But he was so sleepy…
Half an hour later, with a tuxedo and a new hair style, He Bai was led into the hall by a waiter and he was arranged to sit next to the Jia Family.
The moment He Bai stood next to Jia Zhang, all the eyes of the guests in the hall were fixed on him.
He Bai: “…” He suddenly felt like a frog which was going to be toasted by other’s gaze.
“Bai, I have seen your work. They are so good. Thank you! ” Jia Beilei let go the arm of his brother, ran past her father and held He Bai’s arm. She kept shaking it out of excitement and said, “I’m so happy. I also want you to take photos for my on my next year’s birthday.”
“…” Medium rare to medium well.
“I’m glad you like it.” He Bai gently took out his arm from her hands and distanced himself from her. Then he said hello to the others of the Jia Family with a smile.
Jia Beilei looked at him with a sad expression, “Bai, you promised me that you would never call me Ms. Jia again. Why are you standing so far from me? Is it because my perfume makes you uncomfortable?”
Coughing in a low voice, Jia Zhang was so embarrassed that he turned his head back, pretending that he didn’t hear what his daughter just said.
He smiled in front of them, but in fact, he was rendered absolutely speechless, ‘Ms. Jia, please don’t say more.’ Those who were close to them were gazing at him in an odd way. It seemed that they were picturing something foul in their minds.
Jia Zehang noticed his embarrassment, so he swept a look at his own sister with a sigh. He walked over and reached out to He Bai, saying “Hello, Mr. He. My sister is very born socializer. I hope you don’t mind.”
He Bai shook hands with him, saying that he didn’t mind. Then he commended Jia Beilei for being so cute and honest.
Upon hearing that, Jia Beilei laughed again and tried to hold his arm for the second time.
“Lei.” Jia Zehang quickly grabbed her by the arm and winked at her. “Grandpa and parents are watching you. Don’t make Mr. He feel embarrassed.” said he, while signaling her that all guests were watching her as well.
With a twitch of eyebrows, Jia Beilei paused and finally regained her composure. Then she took hold of his brother’s arm with a smile.
Seeing that, He Bai felt relieved.
“Sorry.” Jia Zehang apologized once more and led him to Mr. Jia who was surrounded by his family. “Grandpa and the others were very satisfied with the photos you took. They want to thank you in person.”
“Thank you very much. It’s my fault. I should have come over earlier to say hello to you.” He Bai replied in a rather courteous manner without appearing to be too intimate, lest people might get the wrong idea. “Besides, I offered to do it, so I should thank you for giving me this opportunity.”
“This is very kind of you.”
Jia Beilei felt nauseous standing aside listening to them exchanging compliments. The conversation between two prim men was as boring as it got.
“Grandpa, Mr. He is here,” said Jia Zehang who stopped in front of Mr. Jia with He Bai on his heels.
The gray-haired old man turned his head back and looked at him with gentle eyes.
He Bai quickly tidied himself up and respectfully bent slightly over to greet him.
“Nice to meet you, too. Come sit over here.” Mr. Jia waved to him. He then looked at his granddaughter and said with a gentle voice, “Your aunt said that Fu has already arrived at the door. You should take Zehang and go greet her.” After that, he looked at his children around him and waved them away, “All right. Leave us. Go entertain our guests.”
Hearing that, they knowingly took their leaves, but not before they greeted He Bai first.
He Bai thanked them one by one, feeling flattered. He felt like they were being way too nice with him. Like he was not a photographer who came to take photos, but a family friend coming over for a get-together.
“Bai, take a seat.”
Mr. Jia was in poor health. Now, he was drinking tea at the head table in front of the main stage.
He Bai came to sit down next to the old man as told… Sitting this close to the family elder was usually a sign of friendship with the family.
After instructing the waiter to serve tea for him, Mr. Jia asked, “How old are you?”
It sounded like a weird way to start a conversation.
“Twenty-one years old.” He Bai answered.
“Hm.” The old man nodded and said, “Thank you for the photos. Yesterday, you said that Xu Yinrong is your photography teacher. How long has he been teaching you?”
“We started taking photography class on the second semester of the freshman year and so he has been teaching me for a year and a half.” He Bai replied with baffled face, wondering inwardly whether Di Qiuhe had said something he didn’t know to the Jias, for he didn’t know why else Mr. Jia will be so nice to him.
“One and a half year. You’re a decent learner.” Elder Jia nodded, looking more amiable. “Xu is a talented and passionate teacher. Keep learning. Don’t let him down.”
He Bai nodded, but he was surprised at the way this old man called his teacher. Did they know each other? He never heard of that in his previous life.
The old man also asked some trifling things, like his performance in school, his previous work, his future plan, his work at Yi Ka and how long he had known Di Qiuhe. He Bai replied one by one in details. As the conversation continued with the old man asking questions in a slow manner, he gradually got relaxed. In fact, he felt so comfortable that he would have told him everything without reserve.