Chapter 23: Race on Fragrant Tea Mountain

Ye Chen instantly flared with anger. Never mind this shabby BMW—he once drove a Batmobile, for heaven’s sake. But a tiger fallen to the plain is hounded by dogs; now, with enemies lurking everywhere, he was only alive thanks to that little minx, Demon Moon. If not for her, the general’s men would have finished him off long ago. Thinking it over, Ye Chen decided it was best not to bring up his painful past. He nodded helplessly. “Fine, I’m just a farmer, a bumpkin. I’m not worthy to ride in your precious BMW.”

With that, Ye Chen turned and walked away.

“Come back!” Li Ruo seemed to realize she’d gone too far, but pride kept her from apologizing. Instead, she called after him in a tone that was neither soft nor hard. But Ye Chen had no intention of turning back. Fuming, Li Ruo leapt from the car and pointed at him. “Idiot, get back here or else—”

“Or else what?” Ye Chen turned, a sly, enigmatic smile on his lips.

“Or… or I’ll have the HR director chase you down!” Li Ruo stamped her foot, still not satisfied, and climbed back into the driver’s seat. Ye Chen shuddered. Good grief, that woman from HR? Her hips were like millstones—she’d crush his little frame in an instant. He hurried back, bracing his hands on the car and poking his head through the window. “I’ll come back, but you have to promise not to race!”

“Hmph!” Li Ruo gave no reply, but with studied indifference, she reached into the glove compartment, drew out a pack of strawberry-flavored lady’s cigarettes, and lit one. Taking a drag, she looked at Ye Chen’s astonished face and said, “What I do isn’t yours to control.”

“Fine, you win.” Ye Chen shrugged and slid into the car.

“To the summit of Fragrant Tea Mountain. There’s a racing club up there—every night around this time, they hold races.” Li Ruo glanced at Ye Chen. “From the way you talk, you know how to drive?”

“A little.” In truth, Ye Chen was stunned. This woman was the goddess in every man’s eyes in Jianghuai City. Her title as CEO alone cast an aura over her; add to that a devilish figure and an angel’s face, and the day she appeared in the media as president of Tianya Group, she instantly captured the hearts of countless men.

“Let’s go then—let’s have some fun.” Li Ruo smiled faintly, exhaling a light strawberry-scented smoke. She opened the exhaust system and rolled down the window, flicking her cigarette out with practiced ease. She started the engine, stepped on the accelerator, and eased through the triple bends at a gentle pace before racing toward the summit. The night was beautiful, and Ye Chen found himself increasingly curious about the woman beside him. By day, she was a prim and proper CEO; by night, she transformed into a dark enchantress—he couldn’t quite make sense of it.

Roaring sounds reached them before they arrived at the summit—the cheers and shouts from the Fragrant Tea Mountain platform, the guttural roar of sports cars, the screech of tires on asphalt, all blending together in the night air.

As Li Ruo’s red BMW Z4 sped up the mountain path, the crowd turned and instantly recognized her car. Silence fell. Li Ruo smiled, coordinated hands and feet, and with a masterful balance of throttle, brake, and clutch, drew a graceful arc across the plaza before coming to a steady halt.

A burst of applause rose from the onlookers as a flamboyantly dressed young man emerged from the crowd—two sparkling earrings in his ears and golden-tipped hair. One hand in his pocket, he strode to Li Ruo, opened her car door himself, his eyes lingering shamelessly on her chest. “President Li, you’re here again?”

“Of course!” Li Ruo pouted. “Tonight, I’m here for revenge!”

The crowd roared with excitement. Most were men—female racers were rare, and those who did appear were usually arm candy for the drivers. But none possessed Li Ruo’s killer body and angelic face. The city’s rich kids and officials’ sons whistled and cheered, thrilled by her arrival.

“Alright!” The man nodded, opening her car door. “Tonight, I’ll give you a chance. But…”

“But what?” Li Ruo’s brows arched.

“Heh, let’s make it more interesting.” The man’s smile was sly, his gaze strange.

“Wasn’t it a million last time?” Li Ruo asked, puzzled. “You want to up the stakes?”

“No.” The man shook his head with a weary air. “Money means nothing. You’re wealthy, President Li. My family doesn’t rival Tianya Group, but my father’s a well-known auto dealer in the province. Money is meaningless to us.”

Li Ruo folded her arms, leaning against the car, pulling a strawberry cigarette from her back pocket and lighting it with a zippo. She tossed back her waterfall of black hair. “So what’s your wager?”

“A kiss from you, President Li. How about that?” The man’s lips curled in a faint smile.

“And if you lose?” Li Ruo’s face darkened.

“If I lose, my Ferrari goes to you as a gift.” He nodded at the black Ferrari parked nearby.

Ye Chen followed his gaze and drew a cold breath. Damn, a 599! Wasn’t this bullying? Using a Ferrari 599 to trounce a BMW Z4. Surely Li Ruo knew the odds.

She glanced at the car, about to agree, when Ye Chen leapt from the car and waved his hand. “Wait!”

All eyes shifted from Li Ruo to Ye Chen. His plain black security uniform, the Tianya Group badge gleaming on his chest, made him stand out. The crowd burst into laughter. “President Li, you’re too much—bringing a dog to a private race?”

“Yeah! Don’t you know beggars and dogs aren’t allowed on Fragrant Tea Mountain platform?”

Li Ruo froze, nervously glancing at Ye Chen, worried their crude words would anger him. The golden-haired man quickly gestured for calm. “Gentlemen, show some respect for Young Master Wei!”

“Fine, for his sake,” the crowd grumbled, finally falling silent.

“And this is…?” Young Master Wei looked at Ye Chen, puzzled.

“Oh, he’s my bodyguard,” Li Ruo replied coolly.

“A bodyguard, eh?” Wei smiled.

“Wrong!” Ye Chen peeled off his jacket, revealing a white shirt beneath, tossing the jacket aside. “I resigned this morning. Now, I’m Li Ruo’s friend.”

Laughter erupted again, even from Wei, who hadn’t expected Ye Chen to try so hard to save face. He’d intended to spare the man some dignity, but now Ye Chen seemed bent on humiliating himself. Wei sneered. “How amusing. A little security guard wants to be friends with President Li? Take a look in the mirror!”

“I know exactly what I am,” Ye Chen shot back. “But at least I don’t hide behind a pretty face, using racing as an excuse to take advantage. I’m ashamed for you.”

“You—” Wei’s face twisted with annoyance at being exposed.

“Ye Chen!” Li Ruo quickly cut him off. “Enough! I agreed to this.”

Ye Chen shrugged helplessly. Wei sneered, “That’s right. Even a dog knows to obey its master.”

“Get in!” Li Ruo hurriedly stopped Ye Chen, her eyes flashing a warning. Ye Chen’s eyes darted, and with a swift stride, he jumped into the driver’s seat. Li Ruo was startled and hurried over. “What are you doing?!”

“This time, let me handle it!” Ye Chen’s gaze was stern. “If you don’t want to lose to him, do as I say!”

Li Ruo hesitated, glancing at Wei and the others, but seeing they weren’t paying attention, she climbed into the passenger seat. With the doors closed, the outside world vanished. Li Ruo fixed Ye Chen with a glare. “Idiot, what are you up to? Can you even race? You’ve never driven this route or this car—”

“Shut up!” Ye Chen snapped. “Fasten your seatbelt!”

With that, he started the car, but immediately sensed something was off—the engine’s vibration was unusual. Li Ruo, seeing his confusion, explained quickly, “This isn’t an ordinary BMW Z4. I had a friend in America buy it for me. It’s actually a Z4 GT3. Its performance is nothing like a stock Z4, so be careful!”

Of course, Ye Chen thought, his heart suddenly bursting with excitement. He’d been worried about losing to the Ferrari with a regular Z4, but the souped-up GT3 version gave him a fighting chance. He slammed the gear into neutral and floored the accelerator, the engine’s roar making the whole car tremble and drawing all eyes to them.

“Relax. With me here, you’ll be fine.” Ye Chen flashed a confident smile. Li Ruo watched him curiously. If he hadn’t saved her from a gun once, she’d never have brought him here, let alone let him race in her place.

Both cars moved onto the track. The club’s crew had already closed off the mountain road with red glow tape and “Emergency Construction” signs at every junction. The entire Fragrant Tea Mountain road was sealed. The race would cover thirteen kilometers from summit to base, with three main bends, each containing multiple consecutive curves—a setup that drew amateur racers from across the province.

The start was managed by a young man in green, waving two yellow flags. He coordinated constantly with the finish line judge via his earpiece. When everything was ready, he stood on the yellow center line, waving the flags.

“Nervous?” Li Ruo’s eyes sparkled with excitement.

“Not really.” Ye Chen stared straight ahead. The road before them was almost pitch black; the streetlights were dim, and only the cars’ headlights illuminated the way.

Whoosh!

The starter dropped both yellow flags. Ye Chen floored the accelerator without hesitation, the black Ferrari leaping forward at the same instant, like an arrow shot from a taut bow.