201 Beauty and the Beast

As New Year’s Eve approached, Lin City became even colder.

The howling wind rustled the trees. There were no more kids playing in the neighborhood anymore, and even fewer residents came in and out.

Lin Jiao got up from the bed and walked to the entrance with sleepy eyes under the urging of the doorbell.

The moment the door opened, the cold wind blew in, making her shiver.

“Didn’t you go back to the old mansion?” She rubbed her arms and asked Pei Yilan and Lin Jiao to come in quickly.

“We’ll go back tomorrow.” Jiang Ye put his arm around Pei Yilan and walked towards the living room.

They took off their down jackets and sat side by side on the sofa.

“Jiaojiao, have you had lunch?” Pei Yilan held the cup to warm her.

“I have.”

“I’ll help you dress up.”

Tonight, Chu Yuzhou was having a party at the villa. The theme was “Beauty and the Beast”.

Although they did not understand why he chose this theme, they had no objections to it and were surprisingly enthusiastic.

“I don’t know which one to wear.” Lin Jiao was choosing among the evening gowns.

“The one with champagne color or the one with sapphire blue color?”

“The end of the dress is not puffy enough.”

Pei Yilan took out a black gown. “This is puffy.”

This evening gown was graceful and sexy. Lin Jiao had yet to wear it since she bought it.

She walked behind the curtain and changed into it. She stood in front of the mirror while lifting up the hem and looked satisfied. “Help me get my gloves.”

Pei Yilan opened the second drawer.

She found a pair of black gauze gloves that matched the evening gown and slowly put them on her. “Jiaojiao, do you have a crown?”

“I don’t think so.”

“Then I’ll comb your hair like a princess.”

“Okay.” Lin Jiao opened the jewelry cabinet and took the opportunity to choose an accessory while Pei Yilan was doing her hair.

At Pei Yilan’s suggestion, she put on a floral necklace and earrings before sitting in front of the dressing table to put on makeup.

When Pei Yilan was done doing her hair, Lin Jiao put down the makeup brush and proceeded to the last step.

She put on lipstick. “How is it?”

“You are simply gorgeous.” Pei Yilan brushed her curly hair away from her shoulder, her eyes filled with smiles.

After leaving the apartment, the three of them wrapped in down jackets headed to the parking lot and arrived at the party before six o’clock.

A black SUV drove past the golf course and stopped outside the elegant European-style villa.

Melodious music came from inside the house, covering the sound of the wind and the rustling of the trees.

“Hey!” A man in a big-mouthed monkey mask poked his head out from behind the door, scaring them.

Lin Jiao was taken aback.

She sized up the man in the suit in front of her and could tell who he was from his figure and voice, “Chu Yuzhou?”

“It’s me.” Chu Yuzhou leaned against the door and touched the hair on the monkey mask. “Am I handsome?”

“Ugly!” Pei Yilan was so frightened by him that she almost screamed.

“How am I ugly? Are you blind?”

“You’re the blind one.”

“Are there any more masks?” Jiang Ye looked interested and wanted to try.

“Of course.”

As soon as they walked to the sofa, they saw many ‘animals’ looking up.

Zhou Yanshen, who was wearing a demon rabbit, played with a dagger with his legs crossed.

There was a circle of blood on his lips, making him look terrifying.

Sitting next to Zhou Yanshen, Shen Yi was wearing a black rhinoceros mask. His eyes were half-closed, and his long mouth was slightly open, revealing two fangs.

On the other side, Qu Shao was wearing a pig mask. There was a long scar on the pig face, and the skin around his eyes and mouth was festering. It was so realistic that it gave people goosebumps.

“Jiang Ye, which one do you want?” Qu Shao pointed at the masks and headgear on the coffee table and asked him to choose.

“The Demon Panda is not bad.”

“Panther is pretty cool too.”

In the end, Jiang Ye chose the Demon Panda.

He put it on and looked at himself in the mirror. He wanted to take a photo with them when he realized that not everyone was here yet. “Is Uncle still on the way?”

“He’s here way before you.” Zhou Yanshen raised his hand that was holding the dagger and pointed in the direction of the washroom.

The moment he looked up, he happened to catch Qian Yue’s gaze. “Do you want to play with the dagger?”

“No.” Qian Yue whispered into his ear, her warm breath brushing past his skin, “When does it start?”

“After dinner.”

“Is everything ready upstairs?”

“Yes.” Zhou Yanshen lowered his head, his gaze landing on her fair collarbone. “Are you cold?”

“It’s not cold. The heater is on.”

Qian Yue picked up her glass and chatted with Lin Jiao. When she saw Pei Zhi come out, she raised her chin to remind Lin Jiao.

A shadow loomed over her. Lin Jiao turned around and met that dark gaze.

“Jiaojiao, you are beautiful today.” Pei Zhi’s fingertips ran across her shoulder and landed on the black veil, as if he was helping her tidy it up.

He was wearing the suit he bought in Paris last time. His hair was carefully styled, and his shirt was buttoned to the top. There was a simple silver collar pin on his tie, making the suit look very formal.

On his straight nose was a pair of silver-rimmed glasses. Under the light of the chandelier, they shone with a dazzling metallic luster.

From his glasses to his cufflinks, they were all to Lin Jiao’s taste. She smiled. “Why are you suddenly thinking of wearing a tie?”

“It looks good on this suit.” Pei Zhi walked around the sofa and sat beside her. “Does it look good?”

“It does.”

“I don’t believe you.” He held her hand tightly through the gauze gloves. “Unless you kiss me.”

He wanted to trick her into kissing him again.

Lin Jiao stuffed the candy into his mouth and asked him to choose a mask. “We’ll take a group photo after you put it on.”

Pei Zhi glanced at the coffee table.

He picked up the fierce-looking gray wolf mask and slowly put it on. Then, he led his little white rabbit to the middle.

The selfie stick that had been adjusted stood in front of the window. They stood in front of the camera, laughing and joking.

“Cluck—”

The shutter clicked.

Jiang Ye brought the camera over to show them.

Laughter filled the villa. They each saved the photo to their phone and went to the dining room to eat.