Face to (Half) Face?

His voice was calm as he stared at Chu Yao. Releasing his hold on the random woman's wrist he stepped back even farther away but in front of her to protect her from some of the eyes. He could not see the woman behind him but her stiff wrist showcased her discomfort with the situation. From the corner of his eye he did see her hand move as she kept her head tilted down. Though he did not pay much attention, his care for her discomfort was negligible. She was just a tool to emphasize how much he was disgusted with Chu Yao, judging by the expensive bags at her side he knew she enjoyed shopping. He could let her buy a couple of things on his tab or some other sort of compensation.

Staring back at Chu Yao there was a vicious expression on her face as it contorted in anger. There was a brief pause after his words as he watched her take in his meaning. Not even to mention the audience they had that lay with bated breath on what was going to happen next. It was herd mentality, he could not even find anything wrong with the situation other than the disgust he felt towards their popcorn eating. There was the option of just having the women dragged out and blacklisting Yao Industries but he'd rather not extend any more effort on her. He could see the hatred circling in Chu Yao's eyes and found it ridiculous that she was directing it at the other woman. It seemed that every second he spent here in this argument he lost brain cells from how how her mind worked. He felt irritation inside him at the memory of his grandmother threatening to attend this 'date.' It was obvious that his grandma had wasted her breath, the next time he visited her he would have to re-educate her on what standards to uphold. While she knew that this woman was conniving, the shamelessness and ability to create a scene was outside of her calculations.

Though, the logical side of him knew that this situation could still turn favourable. His irritation lessened as he planned out how to use Chu Yao and break off these 'dates' for the time being. As soon as he had turned 27 his grandmother had made it her mission to find him a 'wife' or at minimum a girlfriend, neither of which he wanted at this time. This was the fourth date he was forced onto and would be the last, he couldn't bare to deal with another white lotus. His grandmother preferred the 'lady-like' characters, all of whom had ulterior motives and no brain cells to accomplish their motives.

Tired of this interaction, he spoke up once more but directed it at the staff standing on the side. "I'm placing the money for the coffee cup and this lady's meal on the table, if its not enough talk to the mall director and have him pay. Anything further, is not my responsibility." He pulled out a couple of bills from his wallet and laid it down on the table behind him before bending whispering again to the woman next to him.

"I suggest you follow me outside now, unless you would like to stay and enjoy this attention." He did not notice the first time he spoke to her but the woman he had chosen was a lot more pleasing to the eye. While he was speaking to her he was able to pick up a lot more details this time around. There was a pleasant scent emitting from her body, it was a clean and free of unnecessary chemicals. His nose had always been a bit sensitive when it came to scents so he knew that the one she was wearing was not commonly used. Her hair was healthy and black but pinned back slightly to frame her face. Though she was almost a head shorter than him so he could only see the top of her head and her pale skin tone. 'Hmm seems like I accidentally picked up a little miss from a rich family.' Without bothering to see if she had heard him or not, he turned back around and started walking out towards the door. There was a pause before he felt rushed steps follow behind him. Thankfully Chu Yao had chosen to stay silent and let him leave peacefully.

He quickly walked out the restaurant and headed down the hall silently, hearing the steps follow him further. Once they were a fair distance away from them he turned around to finally face her...to half face? He was amused by the handkerchief used to block half her face and wondered when she even had time to cover her face. Based on his calculations the movement he saw from the corner of his eyes was her doing this and was almost impressed by her quick thinking. Regardless, he was not curious of how she looked behind it. "Thank you for your help just now, I have paid for your meal and if you require any compensation just let me know." There was no reason for him to thank her at all but it was the bare minimum he could do. He was well aware that if she had not complied and spoke up to distance herself at that time, the situation would have escalated further. However, everything had worked within his calculations, even if she had disagreed he could have still made it work.

"12 million, can you give that?"

There was a period of emptiness in his mind as he processed her words. His eyebrows furrowed at the exuberant amount. 'Was this woman out of her mind?' It was the first time he had met someone who had spoken so outrageously from the get go. 'Did I by chance chose the wrong woman?' From afar she seemed decent enough and now he was doubting his own analysis.

"I think you seem to have something confused here, I am offering compensation out of the ....." There was a sneer on his face as he continued his sentence, "kindness in my heart. You really think you are worth 12 million?"

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Author's Corner:

*Sometime in the future*

ML: I just want to say, even then, 12 million was a lot of money to ask

FL: So you're telling me I'm not worth 12 million ....?

ML: ....I didn't say that.....

Author: Sorry bud, you're digging your own grave.