Chapter 446: A Chance Encounter
Tang Xiu then received a phone call from Zhang Xinya. The phone call was ten minutes long. Appointing the time and place to encounter, they soon met on the concrete road near the grove inside the campus.
“Hey, idol!” Zhang Xinya called out and looked at Tang Xiu with a smile hanging on her mouth, her eye sparkling.
“Are you joking me? How did I become your idol?” Tang Xiu couldn’t help laughing.
“Well, your zither play and song are certainly unprecedented until now. It’s simply unmatched.” Zhang Xinya said with a smile, “Though I had some idols before, the feelings I have toward them are not as strong as my admiration for you. Anyways, can you teach me how to play the zither if you have some spare time later?”
“Well, we can discuss it later.” Tang Xiu said, “So, where are we going now?”
“I have booked a place in the Purple Aromatic Garden. Let’s have supper there and then go shopping. How about it?” Zhang Xinya said.
At this time, Tang Xiu felt somewhat vexed inside. He actually had no opinion after hearing Zhang Xinya’s suggestion. Maybe his mood would turn for the better after having a bite, shopping and strolling around.
“All right!”
Because Zhang Xinya didn’t drove her car, she was wearing a mask and a pair of black-rimmed glasses to disguise herself. Then, she asked, “Do you have a car?”
While pointing at the Land Rover, Tang Xiu forced a smile and said, “My car’s keys were taken by my classmate. Let’s just walk for a while and then call a taxi!”
After hesitating for a moment, Zhang Xinya then nodded and said, “Okay! But the place I picked is a bit far from here. You might not be able to come back here tonight.”
“It’s all right. I still have a house off-campus.” Tang Xiu said.
“Shouldn’t you be a freshman this year?” Zhang Xinya was surprised. “You don’t have a problem living inside the campus, do you?”
“It’s nothing, really.” Tang Xiu said. “I usually live inside the campus. But I stay outside if I have something to do, either Saturday or Sunday.”
“Alright then!”
Nobody recognized Zhang Xinya as the duo walked under the dim street lights. Quickly, the duo caught a taxi and rushed toward the Purple Aromatic Garden.
The Purple Aromatic Garden was located in Shanghai’s outskirts. The place encompassed a very large area. There was a great surging river running through the Purple Aromatic Garden going straight to the vast sea. When the taxi drove over the bridge and came to the classical style building in the sea of lights, Zhang Xinya then hurriedly paid the fare, as they both got off and walked to one of the classic pavilions.
“This place is really nice.” Tang Xiu glanced around and praised.
“Well, the Purple Aromatic Garden is considered as an outdoor restaurant. If you have to rank it, it can definitely enter the top three. However, they only accept members here, so there’s no way one can come to patron this place without becoming a member first.” Zhang Xinya said with a smile.
“If so, you’re a member here, yes?” Tang Xiu chuckled.
“Yup, when the Purple Aromatic Garden first opened for business I was invited to cut the ribbon.” Zhang Xinya laughed and said, “Thus, it’s only natural that they gave me a Diamond Card. In fact, for one to dine here, it’s actually divided into various grades and ranks. Each membership card has different grades, and its holder is treated differently. There are also great disparities and differences in the menu list.”
“What are the grades, exactly?” Tang Xiu was amazed.
“The membership card is divided into four different types. The lowest one being the Silver Card, you can apply for it after spending 100-thousand-yuan deposit for the card,” Zhang Xinya said with a smile. “Then, from low to high are: the Golden Card, the Diamond Card and the Kaiser Card. According to the owner, the patron who wants the Golden Card must spend 1-million-yuan in accumulation; 10-million-yuan accumulation for the Diamond Card; and at least 100-million-yuan accumulation for the Kaiser Card. Hence, only the riches and powerful can have a Golden Card. Yet, it is said that a holder of the Kaiser Card have not appeared yet.”
“So, in order to dine here one must become a member first, and the first time one must spend here is up to 100 thousand yuan.” Tang Xiu said with a smile, “This is way too difficult, I think. No wonder no one has ever gotten a Kaiser Card so far. Actually, I myself think that paying a deposit of 10 million yuan is a bit unrealistic in itself.”
“You’re mistaken, Tang Xiu.” Zhang Xinya shook her head. “As far as I know, the number of patrons who hold Diamond Cards have exceeded 100.”
“More than 100? Are you kidding me?” Tang Xiu was amazed. “Could it be that they don’t take money seriously? How many times do they have to spend and dine here until they are able to spend 10 million yuan?”
“Well, you’re thinking in the wrong way.” Zhang Xinya smiled tenderly. “There are many listed companies holding annual events every year, and they pick this place to hold their events. Thus, one event would result in hundreds of thousands and even millions of yuan. Sometimes, it’s even possible for one event to reach millions of yuan in consumptions.”
Tang Xiu suddenly understood, “No matter what, it’s not worth dining here with such high-level membership card if you ask me. Nevertheless, different people have different outlooks and philosophies toward life, to begin with. To me, it’s not worth it, but perhaps to them, it is quite valuable! Anyways, let’s go. I’m kind of profiting from you, and I also want to have a glimpse of what level of high-class treatment a Diamond Card holder has.”
“Ah, it seems like you want to make me bleed tonight!” Zhang Xinya smiled.
Tang Xiu showed a faint smile in response. Just as he was about to stride inside, his mobile phone rang. After he took it out and saw the caller, his brows slightly furrowed.
“Who’s calling? Are you not going to answer it?”
Zhang Xinya, standing next to Tang Xiu, was able to see his frowning and hesitant expression and quickly asked.
“Please wait for a while. I’ll pick up this call first.” Tang Xiu shook his head and answered.
Having said that, he turned around and walked outside. After walking outside, he then pressed the answer button and said, “Is there something you need?”
From the cell phone, Han Qingwu’s weary voice came out, “Tang Xiu, you… you played well.”
“I know!” Tang Xiu said lightly.
Han Qingwu was silent for a moment before speaking, “Tang Xiu, the ‘Fairy Dream’ you played and sang … I feel like it’s very familiar. But I’m sure that I’ve never heard it before. Also, after listening to your play and singing, I… I fell into a certain state.”
“What state?” Tang Xiu frowned.
“There are some fuzzy, strange pictures in my mind.” Han Qingwu said, “They are like the scenes from Xianxia movies. People able to control and fly with swords; some others able to produce clouds and rain and change it to another with the flip of their hands; and some engaging in combat and fighting at close quarters. But in short… I seem to know those people, yet I don’t know them either. I seem to be familiar with those scenes, yet they also feel bizarre to me. Tell me, what’s going on with me?”
Tang Xiu’s body shook, as a light burst in his eyes. He then said in a deep and heavy voice, “Apart from those, is there anything else? For example, is there someone you feel important in those pictures, or is there anything in those pictures that are important to you?”
Han Qingwu hesitated for a moment before she replied, “Yes. But I can’t see what the person looks like. The person was like a shadow amidst the flashes of lightning and the rumbling thunders. A-and… the woman there, she looks very much like me. Yet she looks like she was in deep pain, despairing and hopeless. She wasn’t willing to do it, but she still forced to do something. That was, to assault the person amidst the flashes of lightning and rumbling thunder.”
Memory fragments?
Through Han Qingwu’s description, Tang Xiu understood that he had triggered her past incarnation’s memory by playing ‘Fairy Dream’. Moreover, what she said about the person who she couldn’t see clearly, that very person amidst the flashing lightning and thunder, who might be himself.
“What do you think of when you recall it?”
“I can’t seem to recall any of it.” Han Qingwu said, “The more I think about it, the more I feel like my head is going to crack. I don’t know what’s going on. It seems… there is a voice in my heart that’s telling me not to recall it.”
Sighing inside, Tang Xiu lightly said, “I know. I hope you can think about it clearly. When you’ve fully remembered it, we should be able to solve some things as well.”
"What?" Han Qingwu was confused.
His complexion turning cold, Tang Xiu indifferently said, “It’s nothing. If there’s nothing else, I’ll hang up first.”
Having said that, he pressed the end-call button and put the mobile phone away. There was a complex look on his face. He felt somewhat guilty regarding the state Han Qingwu was in. After all, for a past incarnation’s memories to appear again in this lifetime, it was a probability that was very difficult to happen in one of hundreds of billions of people. Even the immortals in the Immortal World, regardless of being strong or weak, one couldn’t see their previous incarnation’s memories so clearly.
Unless! That person had reached Godhood!
But then again, that probability was one in a billion.
Tang Xiu took a deep breath as he drove away those distracting thoughts. Although he did care about whether Han Qingwu could restore all the memories of her past incarnation, since she only got fragments, it proved that it was not yet the time to solve the problems with her.
Since the time had not yet arrived, he didn’t want to worry about the troubles of his own thoughts untimely.
“Is it done? Anyhow, I made a lot of jokes and finally made you feel better. But how did your mood turn like it was like falling deep into the valley after you got the call? Tell me, who has made you unhappy? I’ll go smack her.” Seeing Tang Xiu come back with a cold and detached expression, Zhang Xinya immediately commented with a forced smile.
“I’m sorry about that. But I’m fine now.” Tang Xiu smiled faintly. “Since I’ve agreed to come out with you, I should put the other problems away then. Besides, I have a beautiful belle treating me tonight, so I gotta make sure to make her bleed as well.”
“Well, if you eat so much that you make me destitute, it will be your turn to support me in the future.” Zhang Xinya smiled.
Tang Xiu revealed a faint smile in response. Just as he was about to enter the front door, he heard some familiar voices.
“Old Jin, I told you that you don’t need to impress the others anymore. I’ve really found a good project now. If we can handle this IP network well, we can definitely earn a lot of money. Besides, my company’s technical team has already built the best applications in China. In due course, we’ll focus our resources on promoting the platform, and we’ll definitely be bursting with popularity.”
“Brother Gu, I also know that the popular IP is very flourishing now. But the key point is that I know nothing about it. You can’t abruptly tell me to invest in something I’m unsure of, no? Besides, I have a big project that is about to launch. While it goes without saying that I don’t have ample funds, I’m also afraid of a situation occurring where I’ve to invest more funds.”
“Old Jin, an opportunity seldom knocks twice. If you don’t take this chance, then I… I’ll have to find someone else to cooperate with.”
“Let me consider it again, Brother Gu.”
“Alright then!”