Chapter Forty: Learning to Dance

After a whole day of shopping, I was so exhausted I could barely catch my breath. Yet Hua Jingjing remained full of energy, as if nothing could tire her. No wonder people always say that when women go shopping, they turn into athletes. The world’s most seasoned men have warned: never accompany a woman on a shopping spree, or else...

The strangest thing was that everything we bought was for me, but Hua Jingjing was as excited as if she were buying gifts for herself, tireless and delighted. Meanwhile, I, the supposed beneficiary, was dragged from one shop to another, my brow furrowed with worry. We were so busy that for lunch, I barely had time to wolf down a hamburger.

At last, when Hua Jingjing had bought every conceivable item for a man, filling up the back seat of her Ferrari, she was finally satisfied and drove me home.

Just before I got out of the car, Hua Jingjing said, “Go to bed early tonight and get up early tomorrow. I’ll come pick you up.” I was taken aback. “Tomorrow? More shopping? Isn’t this enough? Can’t you let me rest for a bit?”

She replied, “No, tomorrow is something else entirely. Since you agreed, you have to follow my lead—no changing your mind. It’s settled. I’ll come get you in the morning.”

Watching the Ferrari speed away, I cursed Hua Jingjing under my breath as I dragged myself home. I’d barely sat down when my mother joined me, speaking earnestly about how I was no longer young and should start thinking about settling down and so on. I immediately realized my little sister must have been telling tales again, and I shot her a glare. Tang Ying, who had been watching TV in the living room, quickly coughed, jumped up, and dashed into her room, leaving behind a trail of giggles.

I could only explain helplessly to my mother that the woman my sister saw that morning was my boss, which was impossible, and I solemnly promised to find a real girlfriend soon and introduce her to the family. My mother finally let me off the hook.

Back in my room, I thought that once these bothersome days were over and things with Qiu Jieqin settled down, it really would be time to bring her home to meet my family.

I closed the door and dialed Qiu Jieqin’s number. “Hello, it’s me! What have you been up to today?”

“Hmph! I stayed home all day waiting for your call. And you, only calling now when it’s nearly dark. What were you doing all day?”

With a sigh, I told her the whole story of how Hua Jingjing dragged me around shopping. After listening, Qiu Jieqin protested, “And you still say your boss couldn’t possibly like you? Look at all the money she spent just on clothes for you—tens of thousands! If she didn’t like you, would she be so willing?”

I had to explain again about Hua Jingjing’s rivalry with an old classmate, how this spending spree was just about showing off—nothing but a rich person’s eccentricity.

But Qiu Jieqin just kept laughing coldly, unconvinced.

After a few more words, she insisted, “I don’t care—I waited for you all day. You can’t just leave me hanging. I want to see you tonight.”

“I want to see you too, but I’m truly exhausted and need to rest. And tomorrow, Hua Jingjing has more mysterious plans for me. I feel like I might collapse.”

“What? You have to be with her again tomorrow? Why? I’m your real girlfriend!”

“Jieqin, I promised her—I can’t get out of it. Just bear with it for these two days. After her friend’s birthday party, I won’t have anything to do with her anymore. Then we can be together every day, and I’ll make it up to you.”

“Hmph! I hope so. Since you’ve decided, there’s nothing I can do. But you have to call me every day and tell me what’s going on. I don’t trust you being with that woman.”

“All right, I’ll keep you updated. Is that okay? I’m going to have dinner and get some rest tonight.”

“Okay, but you’d better dream of me tonight!”

I laughed and hung up, then went out for dinner.

The next day was Sunday, and sure enough, Hua Jingjing came to pick me up early. After she called, I told my parents I was leaving and went downstairs. Her Ferrari was parked in its usual spot.

I got in, grumbling, “Where are we going today? Don’t tell me we’re shopping again?”

Hua Jingjing grinned at me. “No more shopping. We’re going to the office.”

I was puzzled. “But it’s Sunday—no one’s at the office. What for?”

As she started the car, she said, “That’s exactly why we’re going.”

We soon arrived at the office and took the elevator to the twelfth floor. The planning department was empty because of the weekend. Hua Jingjing opened her office door and beckoned me in. “Come in.”

Still baffled, I asked, “Do we have work to do? Why come in on a Sunday?”

She replied, “Work? No, I’m here to give you a lesson!”

“A lesson? What kind of lesson? You’re not a teacher, and I’m not a student. What can you possibly teach me? Can’t you let me rest during the holidays?”

Hua Jingjing’s eyes sparkled. “What can I teach you? Plenty! Do you know basic social etiquette? Do you know what to say and what not to say in conversation? Can you dance the tango or the waltz? No? Aren’t these enough for you to learn in a day? Don’t show up dressed like the elite but open your mouth or lift your leg and reveal yourself as a country bumpkin. All my efforts would be wasted!”

I was speechless. All this just to pretend to be her boyfriend for a while? Now I had to learn etiquette and dancing—tango? Waltz? Good heavens, this would be the death of me.

Before the dance lessons began, I tried my best to protest, but Hua Jingjing glared and snapped, “My boyfriend not knowing how to dance? Who’d believe that? Enough talk—come here and hold my waist. I’ll call out the beat—when I say go, you go; when I say stop, you stop. Ready? Start…”

The morning passed...

Then the afternoon...

And by late evening, even though I was strong and it was the dead of winter, I was drenched in sweat and utterly spent. Hua Jingjing, too, was exhausted. At last, she plopped down on the floor and, gasping for breath, said, “Honestly, Tang Qian, you’re the slowest learner I’ve ever met. Such simple dance steps, and you’re still stepping on my feet after all this time. Oh, my poor toes! Today you really suffered—who knows how many times you stomped on me!”

I protested, “Whose fault is that? You’re the one who forced me to learn. If I can’t pick it up, what do you expect?” I pulled out a pack of cigarettes and tried to smoke away my fatigue.

We rested for a while. Then, like a magician, Hua Jingjing produced a small tape recorder from her desk, popped in a cassette, and beautiful waltz music filled the room. She turned to me, “You’ve spent the whole day learning. Even if you’re slow, you’ve more or less got the steps down. Let’s try it once more, with music, from start to finish.”

I sighed, “Can’t we rest a bit longer? I’m really out of energy…” Before I could finish, she dragged me up, and we started dancing again.

It wasn’t until after midnight that I finally passed her test. I collapsed onto the floor, mumbling, “Yesterday’s shopping was exhausting enough, but today was ten times worse! I swear, I’ll never pretend to be anyone’s boyfriend again—not even if my life depended on it!”

Wiping sweat from her forehead, Hua Jingjing crouched in front of me, smiling, “Now you know what real suffering is, right? Will you bully me again? If you do, I’ll make you dance every day until you drop.”

“So this is revenge! You’re doing this on purpose. Luckily, there’s only one day left. Tomorrow—no, today, really—once it’s over, I’ll be free from pretending to be your boyfriend. Ah, freedom is sweet!”

Hua Jingjing stood up to pour herself some water, thinking as she drank, Freedom? Hmph! You’re not free at all. From now on, I’ll be glued to you for life—let’s see how you handle that! Now that’s real revenge.

She drove me home, and before I got out, she reminded me, “You don’t have to go to work tomorrow. Sleep in as long as you like. After lunch, I’ll pick you up. Spend the afternoon at the spa, get yourself cleaned up, then we’ll get your hair cut and your beard shaved. At four, we’ll pick up your suit, and at five, we’ll go to my classmate’s birthday party. It’s late—you look exhausted. Go get some rest.”

When I got home, I didn’t even take off my shoes before collapsing on the bed, dead tired. But then I remembered I hadn’t called Qiu Jieqin to report in. It was so late—she was probably asleep, right?

After some hesitation, I dialed her number anyway. The phone barely rang once before she picked up. “Jieqin, you’re still awake?”

“I won’t sleep until you call.”

“Don’t be silly. You have work tomorrow—get some rest!”

“You haven’t told me about your day yet. Where were you two? Why are you calling so late?”

“I nearly died of exhaustion today. Hua Jingjing taught me ballroom dance all day. I have no talent for dancing, and only just barely managed to learn. Don’t you think that’s pitiful?”

“Dancing? So you spent the whole day holding each other? That’s not right! She must have planned this all along, using dance lessons as an excuse to get close and achieve her ulterior motives. And why do you have to learn to dance anyway? It’s just to pretend to be her boyfriend for a bit—why take it so seriously? Or are you starting to like her, since she’s a young heiress? Hey! Are you listening to me? Why are you snoring? Hey…”

My phone slipped from my hand onto the bed. Lying face down, I had already fallen into a deep sleep…