Chapter 4
Lost in her own world, Momo didn’t realize she had long since become the center of attention. Everyone was intensely curious about their appearance. In fact, a small gathering like today’s was hardly worthy of this low-key couple’s attendance; the invitation had only been extended out of respect. Their unexpected arrival, along with Naze’s uncharacteristically distant demeanor as he smiled and mingled among the crowd, left everyone so surprised their jaws nearly dropped. If tradition hadn’t forbidden them from acting in ways that defied elegance and faith, they might have even thanked the so-called God for this! Of course, they would have been even more grateful if the goddess in the eyes of the upper echelons would stop scanning the room!
“Momo, are you bored?” Naze finished a brief conversation, turned, and gently wrapped his arm around his wife, who was half-draped over the railing. “Do you want something to eat?”
“I’m not bored at all,” Momo tugged at his sleeve, wrinkling her nose and replying in a low voice, “I’m checking out all the handsome men and beautiful women. There must be a lot of celebrities here, right? But I don’t watch Western movies, so I don’t recognize any of them!”
Naze looked at Momo, who was pretending to be unhappy, and hesitated before saying, “There aren’t many celebrities here, but if you look carefully, you might spot one or two familiar faces-”
“Really? Really? That’s great!” Momo bounced excitedly in his arms. “I’ve never seen a celebrity in person before. I have to find one today, haha!”
“Momo, you-” Naze hesitated, still wanting to continue, but the overexcited Momo had already turned her head, resuming her searchlight-like scan of the room.
“Don’t worry, I won’t embarrass you by randomly asking for autographs or anything, hehe! Oh, and now that you mention it, I am actually hungry,” Momo turned sideways and patted Naze’s shoulder, playfully acting spoiled. “Well, it’s your time to shine-go get me something to eat, okay?” As soon as she finished speaking, Momo realized her words were a bit too intimate. She flashed Naze a grin, then turned away, not daring to look at his reaction. This simple gesture made her miss the sudden depth and complexity in his eyes.
Perhaps tonight was destined to reveal the truth. Naze didn’t hold her any longer; instead, he reluctantly kissed her adorable dimple, then, after a moment, let her go. Standing behind her, he pulled up the corners of his mouth into a perfect gentleman’s smile: “At your service, my dear.”
Momo pretended not to notice, continuing to look around. Only after confirming that Naze had walked a fair distance away did she carefully turn around to sneak a peek at where he was. She saw that he had already reached the center of the banquet hall and was focused on selecting food. She couldn’t help biting her lip, her heart full of sweetness.
Turning to look in another direction, she suddenly noticed a beautiful woman in a long black evening gown. The reason Momo looked at her was because of her graceful walk, which seemed so familiar, as if she had seen it somewhere before. But that was impossible! Momo shook her head vigorously. In her ordinary life, aside from seeing banquet scenes on TV, she had never experienced anything like this in reality-wait, on TV… Oh my god. Momo stared at the woman who was getting closer and closer. Wasn’t this the actress who played the elegant Princess Anne, and that beautiful heiress, and-most memorably-the elegant yet desperate Vampire lady, a role that earned Anastasia the Academy Honorary Award?!
Those were some of the most famous films of the 1930s and 1940s, true classics that even the aunties at the orphanage had seen! Haha, she never expected to meet the real person here. She was so excited. If the actress hadn’t been wearing a black gown, looking almost exactly like she did in those old black-and-white films, Momo wouldn’t have dared to believe it. She never imagined she’d look so young in real life-creak-suddenly, something snapped in Momo’s mind: She looks so young?! Young enough that, after a whole century, she still doesn’t look thirty?!
She must have mistaken her for someone else. Momo smacked her own head-what was she thinking? She must be starstruck. The more beautiful foreign women are, the more they look alike. Momo tried hard to convince herself, but she was still unwilling to give up. Just as she was about to change her vantage point to look for differences, she noticed the woman looking back at her. The woman raised her glass of red wine and offered a mature, elegant smile. Momo dumbly raised her own hand, wanting to return the greeting, only to realize her hand was empty. Embarrassed, she quickly lowered her head, her face flushing red.
“Esteemed lady, would you like something to drink?” An elegant greeting sounded in her ear.
Momo hurriedly looked up and saw a man in a tailcoat smiling politely at her, speaking in Chinese. Embarrassed, she smiled back, “Ah, anything is fine.”
“Waiter,” the man called gracefully, and a server carrying a tray of drinks immediately approached. The two exchanged a few words, then the man took the tray from the server and turned back to Momo with a smile. “Madam, is there a drink here that suits you?”
“Hmm,” Momo looked at the various colored drinks in their exquisite glasses, not knowing where to start. Remembering the red drink in the hand of that beautiful woman earlier, she decided to imitate her and picked up a red wine glass. Looking down, it seemed to be a rather thick watermelon juice. “This one will do.”
The man across from her looked at Momo with a gaze of surprise and respect, but Momo, oblivious as ever, didn’t notice. She was still intent on finding that woman from before-now that she had a drink herself, she should return the gesture. But after searching for a while and failing to find her, she grew a bit annoyed. Turning back, she found the man still standing across from her. “Why are you still here? Is there something you need?”
“In fact, I’m very curious about your experience with childbirth,” the man said, startling Momo so much she nearly choked on her drink.
“What?!” What kind of man asks a woman about childbirth to her face? It’s not like she’s his wife.
“Oh, esteemed lady, please don’t misunderstand. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Nade Jin, and I’m a doctor,” Nade Jin seemed to find nothing inappropriate about his behavior. “I just wanted to ask if giving birth was as painful as the legends say?”
What kind of quack is this? Momo couldn’t help but roll her eyes. If it weren’t for Naze’s sake, she would have thrown her drink at him. “The question you’re asking is impossible for me to answer. It’s basic knowledge for a doctor-no, it should be basic knowledge for any human being.”
“Oh, you’ve misunderstood me. In fact, it’s because you’re a special case that I have to ask about your personal experience.” Nade Jin finally realized that Momo was in a bad mood. Thinking of the possible consequences, he nervously pulled out a white handkerchief and wiped away nonexistent sweat. “I heard you were in labor for three months-”
“I was in a coma for three months after giving birth! For heaven’s sake!” When Momo heard his last sentence, her irritation flared into anger. So that’s why a doctor had come out of nowhere to ask her such a private question! Where did these rumors come from? Even giving birth, she became the subject of such wild stories. Truly, truly, there’s no escaping the drama of life!
Recalling her past of being struck by lightning, Momo was overcome with sorrow. She raised her drink and took a big gulp, only to be hit by a strong, bloody stench that shot straight to her brain. She quickly spat out the drink. “Ugh, ptooey! What is this?!”
“This is Iceland Blood Coffee,” the man answered honestly, producing another handkerchief from somewhere and handing it to Momo. “Madam, does it not suit your taste? There’s also Blue Mountain Blood Coffee. Would you like to try it?”
“Blood coffee? What kind of blood?” Momo’s mind raced. In ten years, would people stop using creamer in their coffee and start mixing in blood instead? “Pig’s blood? Sheep’s blood?”
“Madam, you do love to joke. At such a noble and elegant banquet, how could there be anything so vulgar? This, of course, is human blood.” The man answered ingratiatingly, once again offering the tray to Momo.
Momo’s eyes widened, her gaze dazed and unfocused. She had thought it was watermelon juice or red wine, but now a ring of viscous, blood-colored foam was swirling on the surface, like Pandora’s smile. Unable to bear her inner anxiety and shock any longer, she flipped the tray in front of her with one hand. “Enough! Are you making fun of me?!”