Chapter 281 - 229: Tipping and Toasting

Chapter 281: Chapter 229: Tipping and Toasting

POP! POP! POP!

Countless colorful ribbons burst and rained down from above the T-shaped stage. Eight singers were scattered across it, their voices filling the venue once again.

At the same time, numerous waiters carrying flower garlands hurried to the front of the stage and began tossing them directly onto it.

Again and again, one after another.

Countless flower garlands were tossed onto the stage by the waiters.

Eventually, the entire stage was nearly buried under a mountain of them.

It was a scene that stunned not only the crowd, but even singers like Liu Yurou, who were signed with Xingchuan International Group. They had never witnessed anything like it.

"What are they doing?"

Hu Xiaoxuan had just heard Gu Heng say a single word—"Reward"—before this scene unfolded. Confused, she turned to Luo Zixuan beside her and asked.

"Tipping..."

Luo Zixuan felt his throat go dry.

"Tipping?"

"What do you mean?"

Hu Xiaoxuan still didn’t understand what the flower garlands had to do with tipping.

"Xuanxuan, all these flower garlands you’re seeing now."

Luo Zixuan said with a complex expression, "Each of those garlands is worth 400 yuan. Count how many are on the stage right now, then multiply that by 400. That’s the total amount Xu Mo’s boyfriend just tipped these singers."

"Oh my god!"

"Just looking at them, there have to be hundreds!"

Once Hu Xiaoxuan understood what the garlands represented, her eyes widened. "Doesn’t that mean Xu Mo’s boyfriend just spent hundreds of thousands of yuan with a casual wave of his hand?!"

"Pretty much."

Luo Zixuan stared at the countless garlands on stage. For the first time, the phrase "splurging a fortune" took on a tangible meaning for him.

Soon, their rendition of "I Was Once a Boy" came to an end.

This concluded the second round of performances at Sound Wave for the night. The singers left the stage, replaced by a sexy and alluring female DJ who came on to warm up the crowd. The ambient music softened considerably as well.

"Hello."

"I’m Xu Mo’s boyfriend, Gu Heng."

"I had a work engagement tonight, so I was held up a bit."

"Thank you all for keeping Xu Mo company and making sure she didn’t feel lonely."

Gu Heng turned his gaze from the stage, raised his glass, and offered them a warm smile. "It’s a pleasure to meet you all. I hope you have a great time tonight."

Faced with Gu Heng’s toast, Luo Zixuan and the others hastily raised their own glasses. Seeing him act so pleasant and approachable, the sense of distance they felt toward him began to fade.

"Gu..."

Hu Xiaoxuan was an optimist by nature. Seeing Gu Heng break the ice, she mustered the courage to speak to him, but after starting, she realized she didn’t know how to address him and trailed off, finding herself in a bit of a bind.

"They call me Chairman Gu because I’m their boss."

Gu Heng saw her predicament and said with a smile, "You’re Xu Mo’s friends. You can just call me Gu Heng."

"Gu Heng, we’re all good friends with Momo," Hu Xiaoxuan said, mustering her courage. "We’re happy to have her with us on New Year’s Eve, so there’s no need to thank us."

"Alright."

"Then let’s have a drink together."

Gu Heng extended his glass toward the center of the table. Seeing this, Hu Xiaoxuan and the others followed suit, including Xu Mo.

"Hiss..."

"It’s so strong!"

Xu Mo had only taken the tiniest sip, but it was still so strong that she couldn’t help but stick out the tip of her delicate pink tongue.

Gu Heng couldn’t help but smile faintly at her reaction.

"Whiskey is pretty harsh, and the alcohol content is very high."

Gu Heng picked up a champagne flute and placed it in front of Xu Mo. "Since this is your first time drinking, stick to some champagne with lower alcohol content."

"It’s sweet and a little tart. Much easier to drink."

No sooner had Gu Heng placed the champagne flute down than a waiter appeared, holding a bottle of Dom Perignon Champagne with both hands, and poured it into the glass.

"Okay~"

To relieve the burning taste, Xu Mo had just stuffed two pieces of pineapple into her mouth, making her fair cheeks puff out like a little hamster’s. Paired with her clear, blinking eyes, she looked absolutely adorable.

As Gu Heng and his friends were talking, the eight singers who had just gotten off stage, flanked by security guards, walked directly toward his table.

However, they didn’t walk right up to him, stopping about five meters away.

"Chairman Gu, our group’s signed singers have admired you for a long time. With the New Year just around the corner, they’d like to come over and offer you a toast. Would that be alright?"

The manager, Liang Chengyu, approached Gu Heng’s table, bowing slightly with a fawning smile as he asked.

"Let them."

Gu Heng gave a slight nod.

"Yes, of course."

Upon hearing this, Liang Chengyu immediately waved to the group. Only then did Liu Yurou and the others dare to continue walking toward Gu Heng.

Soon, the eight singers from Xingchuan International Group were standing in a line before Gu Heng’s table.

At the same time, the waiters standing around the booth immediately brought them glasses and poured each of them a drink.

The waiter poured for the other singers without hesitation, but paused slightly when he reached Liu Yurou.

It was a well-known fact within the Sound Wave brand division that Liu Yurou never drank.

Just as the waiter was hesitating with the bottle, Liu Yurou reached out, took the bottle from his hand, and filled her own glass to the brim. Her expression remained perfectly calm and natural.

"Chairman Gu, a toast to you."

"I hope you enjoy your night at Sound Wave."

Liu Yurou took the lead, bowing slightly as she offered her glass and gave a respectful toast to Gu Heng.

"Chairman Gu, Happy New Year!"

"Chairman Gu, may everything go smoothly for you in the New Year!"

"Chairman Gu, may you always be blessed with peace and joy!"

...

After Liu Yurou offered her toast, the other seven singers followed suit, respectfully offering their own New Year’s wishes to Gu Heng.

"Happy New Year."

Gu Heng raised his glass but didn’t get up from the booth.

No one present found anything wrong with this.

Seeing this, Liu Yurou and the others instinctively lowered their glasses, dipping the rims far below his in a show of respect.

After they clinked glasses, Gu Heng took a small sip before setting his glass back down. In contrast, Liu Yurou and the others tilted their heads back and downed their entire glasses of liquor.

"Sister Yu Rou, can I get a picture with you?"

Hu Xiaoxuan looked at Liu Yurou, who was right in front of her, her expression filled with excitement. "I’ve been a fan of yours ever since you were on Voice of China back in ’19!"

"Of course, you can."

"Tell me what song you’d like to hear, and I can sing it for you later."

Toward the girl who could share a table with Gu Heng, Liu Yurou was remarkably friendly and accommodating.

Meanwhile, at the S2 booth just a few meters away from S1, Lu Ziang watched Liu Yurou toasting Gu Heng, so furious he could have ground his back teeth to dust.

’So this is what she calls having principles?’

’This is her so-called ’never drinking’?’

’Then what was that you just drank!’

’Damn it!’

’Playing favorites, that woman!’

Even though Lu Ziang had already learned Gu Heng’s identity from Xia Siyao, he was still seething with resentment.

Lu Ziang couldn’t even begin to imagine how amazing it would feel to be in Gu Heng’s shoes, receiving the kind of treatment he had from the moment he stepped into Sound Wave.

"Brother Ang, I’m heading over."

The voice suddenly speaking beside him snapped Lu Ziang back to his senses.

He saw Xia Siyao, who had retouched her makeup and tidied her hair, standing up with a glass in her hand. Her intention was clear.

"You..."

"Are you coming back?"

After struggling for a moment, Lu Ziang finally managed to force out the question.

"We’ll see."

Xia Siyao replied after a moment of serious thought.

’Work always comes first.’ That was the creed she lived by, and right now, Gu Heng was her entire career. If he needed her to stay, she certainly wouldn’t refuse.

Lu Ziang’s face turned livid at her answer, but all he could do was say weakly, "Fine. Go on, then..."

"Okay."

With that, Xia Siyao picked up her glass and walked toward Gu Heng’s table.

Lu Ziang watched Xia Siyao’s retreating back and was suddenly struck by the scene. He felt like one of those pathetic husbands in the opening scenes of a debt-repayment porn film—powerless, watching his woman walk over to another man.

’Fuck!’

’What have I done to deserve this?!’