Chapter 454: The Dance |
The man in front of her wore a sharp, tailored suit. His posture was tall and straight, every detail refined and almost flawless. A Vacheron Constantin watch gleamed on his wrist.
Just the cost of what he wore already surpassed a million.
And he carried the look perfectly.
Elegance and wealth radiated from him with ease. One glance made it obvious—he wasn’t someone ordinary.
The only pity was the mask covering his face, hiding his features from view.
Even so, his presence alone turned heads. Without even seeing his face, just the outline of his body and the aura he carried were enough to make many girls’ hearts stir.
Liu Yue looked him over carefully. Her cheeks flushed, her heart thudded uncontrollably.
The man she had longed for day and night, the one who haunted her dreams, now stood right in front of her.
How could she not feel overwhelmed?
Afraid that her emotions were making her see things, Liu Yue spoke in a soft voice, still unsure whether to believe her own eyes.
“You can’t recognize your own husband’s voice?” That familiar deep tone filled with masculine charm reached her ears again.
The second he spoke, Liu Yue knew—there was no doubt. This was the man her heart had been yearning for.
“Am I dreaming?” Her eyes locked with his through the mask, still unable to shake off the feeling that this was too surreal.
The man stepped forward and gently took her hand. He raised it and pressed it to his chest.
A warm sensation spread from his body. Her fingers trembled slightly, the look in her eyes finally sharpening with clarity.
She no longer questioned it.
The man she missed so bitterly, who crossed mountains and oceans to reach her, was truly here at last.
Her emotions surged, too intense to put into words. The thousands of things she wanted to say all vanished in an instant. She didn’t even know where to start.
Though she was a professor and usually quick-witted, with a strong presence, right now her mind blanked. Her tongue stumbled. She couldn’t even form a proper sentence.
Fortunately, he spoke first.
“Beautiful lady, you still haven’t answered my invitation.”
“It would be my pleasure,” she replied quickly, flashing the alluring smile she had spent the past two days secretly practicing in the mirror.
Wang Haoran watched her expression and couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.
If he hadn’t shown up in disguise, that smile probably never would have existed for him.
He held her hand and led her straight onto the dance floor.
Around them, a dozen or so couples were already swaying to the music, dancing gracefully in the soft lights.
“When I was a student, I practiced ballroom dancing with a classmate for a school competition,” Liu Yue whispered as they prepared to move. “But it’s been years. I’ve probably forgotten the steps. If I mess up, don’t laugh at me.”
“I’m here,” Wang Haoran said softly, reassuring her.
Growing up in a wealthy family, he had taken all sorts of etiquette and skill classes since he was a child. Ballroom dancing was just one of the many things he picked up.
While he wasn’t a professional by any means, he could definitely handle himself well enough in a social setting.
They started moving together, and once they found the rhythm, their steps began to flow smoothly. Wang Haoran leaned in and whispered in her ear.
“I’m kind of jealous of the guy who danced with you back then.”
“It was a girl,” Liu Yue whispered back with a smile. “You’re the first man I’ve ever danced with. And you’ll be the only one.”
“Really?” Wang Haoran blinked in surprise.
“I used to avoid men. I even thought something was wrong with me. But now I know, I’m perfectly normal.”
Her voice was sincere; nothing about it felt forced.
Wang Haoran had no reason to doubt her.
As one of the female leads among the seven goddess sisters, her purity was always part of her setting. Never once had she been close to a man, so it made perfect sense.
“You being my first male dance partner… that’s an honor for me.”
Liu Yue’s eyes softened, and she asked with a hopeful tone.
“Then am I the first woman you’ve danced with?”
“You’re the first woman to ever move my heart while dancing with me.” His voice was deep and steady, every word brushing gently against her ear.
In Liu Yue’s mind, this man worked in finance abroad. A job like that must have involved countless social events, so she would never believe it if he said she was truly the first woman he danced with.
But this answer, though not exactly what she had hoped for, still touched her. Because the moment he spoke, Wang Haoran received a system prompt in his mind.
[Ding! You’ve stirred Liu Yue’s heart. Gained 800 villain points.]
“I want to see your face,” she said softly, her gaze never leaving the eyes behind the mask.
“If I could show my face in public, I wouldn’t be wearing this mask,” he replied calmly.
And it was true. He really couldn’t show his face here.
After all, the five bunny girls were still nearby. If they caught a glimpse of him like this, there would be chaos.
“That was careless of me,” Liu Yue said apologetically.
She assumed that his identity was sensitive, maybe even that he was some kind of celebrity. That would explain the mask.
And the more she thought about it, the more curious she became about who he really was.
As one of the three goddess professors at Qingling University, Liu Yue attracted plenty of attention, no less than the campus belles like Qin Yunhan.
Now that she had shown her face and was dancing with a masked man, they naturally became a focal point on the dance floor.
Some people stared at Liu Yue.
Others focused on the man wearing the mask.
From a distance—
“Doesn’t that masked guy look kind of familiar?” Qin Yunhan leaned close to Xu Muyan and whispered, pointing discreetly at the man in the suit.
“You may as well say it’s him,” Xu Muyan replied under her breath.
“You noticed too?” Qin Yunhan sounded surprised.
“He just looks like him. It’s not him.”
Qin Yunhan nodded and looked around, trying to find the guy with the big bad wolf hat. But he was nowhere to be seen.
“Strange. Where did he go?”
“I was wondering the same thing.”
While they whispered to each other, Mu Zhaozhao and Wen Jing were quietly talking on the side, too.
“Jingjing, doesn’t that guy kind of look like Wang Haoran?” Mu Zhaozhao asked.
“Not at all.” Wen Jing shut it down immediately.
As the one who caused the least trouble among them, even if she thought the man looked similar, she wouldn’t admit it out loud.
Yu Shiqing also noticed the man dancing with Liu Yue. She thought he looked a lot like Wang Haoran, too.
But she had no one to whisper to, so she just kept the thought in her heart.
After watching a bit longer, she convinced herself it was just a coincidence. There was no way that man could be Wang Haoran.
After all, Wang Haoran was wearing a gray wolf hat earlier when he entered.
There was no way he could be the man in the suit.
Besides, Liu Yue was a finance professor. Her status alone placed her in a different world. Rumor said her assets even exceeded ten billion.
How could she possibly have anything going on with someone like Wang Haoran?