Chapter 94: Dare to Arm-Wrestle Me?

Chenxian and Zhang Xin arrived a little late; only ten minutes remained before the dance was due to begin. Many of the students who had come to the ball had already trickled into the dance hall. Some, like Chenxian and Zhang Xin, arrived in pairs with a partner, while others came alone.

“Hi, Xin, you’re finally here,” said a clear, bright voice as the two stepped into the hall.

Looking toward the sound, there stood a girl with her hair in a neat bun, dressed in a blue floor-length evening gown. Her features were pretty, though still far from the charm of Zhang Xin.

That girl was Nana, one of Zhang Xin’s friends.

“Nana!” Zhang Xin greeted her with a smile.

“Hi, handsome Chenxian!” Nana smiled at him after greeting Zhang Xin.

At Zhang Xin’s last birthday party, she had already introduced Chenxian to her friends.

“Nice to meet you, Nana,” Chenxian replied with a polite nod.

Nana tugged Zhang Xin to the side and whispered in her ear with a playful little laugh: “Heehee. Who would have thought this country bumpkin, after you gave him a makeover, would still look so handsome?”

Though her voice was soft, it still did not escape Chenxian’s sharp hearing. He just smiled faintly.

“Look, Young Master Li is here!”

“Young Master Li!”

At that moment, a handsome young man with thick brows and strong eyes walked through the entrance. He wore a white formal suit and seemed even more aristocratic. The instant he appeared, everyone’s attention turned toward him.

This was the “Young Master Li” the girls had been talking about.

“Li Jun, it’s been so long,” a young woman in a white gown, with meticulous makeup and elegant beauty, stepped forward to speak first.

Chenxian recognized her. She was Guijing Xiang, one of the four top campus beauties at H State Polytechnic University. The list was well known: Zhang Xin first, then Lin Meiqi, then Guijing Xiang, and last Lan Meier.

On hearing her voice, Li Shaoqiang replied, “Miss Guijing, long time no see.”

His voice was steady and deep, with a faint magnetic warmth.

“Li Jun, may I have the honor of being your dance partner tonight?” Guijing Xiang said, her face bright with a sweet smile and her eyes shining as they fixed on him.

The young man in white had been about to answer, but at that instant his gaze moved to a stunning girl in a red gown. His eyes brightened.

The red-gowned beauty was Zhang Xin, the foremost of the four.

“To be truthful, Miss Guijing, pardon me,” Li Shaoqiang said.

And with that, he walked straight toward Zhang Xin.

Guijing Xiang’s dark brows curved slightly in annoyance as she watched him go. Anger flickered in her eyes as she looked at Zhang Xin: a little imp, indeed.

Among the four beauties, a quiet rivalry never really slept.

“Miss Zhang, it is a joy to see you again. May I invite you to be my partner tonight?” Li Shaoqiang said, his eyes aflame with intensity.

“Li Jun,” Zhang Xin said, “I’m sorry. I’ve already come to the ball with my boyfriend. He is my partner, and he’ll be with me in the contest as well.”

She rejected him gently and motioned toward the young man standing at the side. “Darling, come here!”

When Li learned this, a shadow crossed his face before he forced a quick smile. He glanced toward the crew-cut young man approaching and, deep in his eyes, a glint of hatred surfaced.

Li Shaoqiang had long pursued Zhang Xin. He had never imagined the goddess in his imagination could be claimed by another.

When Chenxian reached him, Li Shaoqiang concealed his hostility and extended his hand.

“Hello. I’m Li Shaoqiang, the young master of the Li Group.”

“Chenxian,” he said, shaking hands.

He knew the Li Group well—it ranked among the top three conglomerates in H City, with family assets over a trillion, nearly matching the Baishan Group of Mo Baishan.

Li Shaoqiang, as a name, was one Chenxian saw on the internet often; he was the heir apparent of the Li family fortunes.

As their hands met, he suddenly felt the pressure in Chenxian’s grip increase ever so slightly.

Still, even that little pressure was not enough to even make him chuckle from discomfort.

For a moment, Chenxian considered a possibility: Li Shaoqiang had probably matched force with him to put on a show because he liked Zhang Xin as well.

But the smile stayed on Li’s face.

If you want to play, I’ll play too.

“I’m all in, Young Master Li,” Chenxian said with a bright smile, adding just a touch more strength.

At once, Li Shaoqiang’s smile hardened. Beads of cold sweat the size of peas appeared on his brow; clearly, he had taken a hard hit.

He had been a black-belt taekwondo fighter in his own mind, proud of his grip, and sure he had more than enough force to handle the boy before him. He had not expected to strike iron.

Li Shaoqiang withdrew his hand sharply, his whole arm trembling involuntarily. He gave Chenxian one hard look and turned away.

Zhang Xin glanced at Li’s retreating back, then at Chenxian. “Xian, are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” Chenxian said with a slight upward curve at the corner of his mouth.

How could anything happen to him on this Earth? Few had the power to do so.

He had only used a fraction of his strength in that test. If he had applied a little more, Li Shaoqiang’s arm might have gone red and ruined.

He didn’t do it. Zhang Xin had come to the ball happily; a bloodshed would have ruined her mood.

Most people said Zhang Xin’s boyfriend was a violent man, broad in limb and simple in mind.

“What’s wrong with you, Li Jun?” Guijing Xiang asked quickly, seeing that his face had gone pale.

“Miss Guijing, I’m fine,” Li Shaoqiang waved off the concern. “Tonight, my partner is you. Let’s dance it together and take the championship.”

He had lost the hand test, but in dancing he felt certain he would win.

Guijing Xiang blinked, then brightened, and a sweet smile spread over her beautiful face. “Of course, Li Jun.”

Guijing Xiang knew well that Li Shaoqiang was famed as a dance prodigy, once a solo champion in the national dance competition. To dance with him that night and dazzle countless girls—that would be a great honor indeed.

The party began soon. First came open dancing, warming everyone up. Only after that would the dance competition begin.

Chenxian held Zhang Xin’s soft waist and stepped lightly through the floor, dancing in the midst of jealous, envious, and resentful glances from other young men.

“Darling, do you feel honored to be my boyfriend tonight?” Zhang Xin teased into his ear in a soft, fragrant voice.

“My instinct is full of warning,” Chenxian replied. “So many wolves are eyeing you.”

“Then you’d better be kind to me,” she said with a laugh. “Protect me properly, or I may be taken by someone else.”

They continued talking and dancing as the melodic music flowed.

Half an hour passed quickly. The free dancing ended, and the dance competition was about to begin.