Chapter 3301

Due to Tawana·Svet's immense fame, her concert in Tokyo attracted not only many members of Japan's upper class but also numerous top-tier domestic Japanese celebrities.

Thus, Xiao Churan and Dong Ruolin quickly recognized many of the invited Japanese celebrities on site, including well-known singers and actors.

Seeing Ye Chen and Xiao Churan list off the names of these celebrities with ease, Ye Chen found himself with nothing to do.

Ye Chen never follows celebrities, so whether it was these Japanese stars or the soon-to-arrive Tawana·Svet, he had little interest; as for the Japanese upper class present, he had even less interest, as he himself is not one to flatter the powerful or enjoy networking with the elite—moreover, even if these Japanese nobles were extraordinarily impressive, they would not enter his field of vision, after all, even the Rothschild father and son must watch his expression and mood, so these Japanese tycoons naturally appeared insignificant in comparison.

Interestingly, although most people at the venue were Japanese, everyone had unconsciously agreed to speak English; even those with heavy Japanese accents spoke English upon opening their mouths, hardly uttering Japanese, which somewhat surprised Ye Chen.

But he soon understood the reason: Japanese people have long admired the West, especially America, since the Meiji Restoration—wearing suits, ties, eating Western food, and speaking English became the favorite of the aristocracy, so speaking English at such an event was understandable.

Sasaki Sachiko led the three through the venue, greeting acquaintances with a smile and introducing Ye Chen's group to them.

Ye Chen noticed a small detail: the people Sasaki Sachiko brought them to meet seemed to be outside the party's core, while the core area hosted about a dozen people chatting; Sasaki Sachiko hesitated several times but ultimately did not bring the three there.

Ye Chen speculated that Sasaki Sachiko herself might not even be able to access those core figures—her greeting them already counted as awkward small talk, and bringing a few unfamiliar faces would only make the atmosphere more awkward.

At that moment, a young woman in a haute couture evening gown saw Sasaki Sachiko, smiled, and approached, saying: "Sachiko, I see you running around like a headless fly—are you handing out business cards everywhere?"

Hearing her voice, Sasaki Sachiko turned and replied somewhat unnaturally: "Miki, I'm introducing my friends to some familiar guests."

"Your friends?" the woman called Miki glanced at Ye Chen, then at Xiao Churan and Dong Ruolin, and said: "These friends of yours probably aren't Japanese, are you?"

Although Japanese, Chinese, and Korean faces are similar, observant women can tell the difference at a glance; each nation's men and women have distinct styling traits, and careful observation reveals them quickly—Xiao Churan and Dong Ruolin wear light makeup in an OL style, whether in hairstyle, makeup details, or even nail style, they differ from Japanese girls', while Ye Chen never wears makeup, not even shaping his eyebrows, so to Japanese women, he immediately appears non-local—local men, whether handsome or ugly, carefully design their hairstyles and eyebrows.

Sasaki Sachiko didn't want to linger with Miki, so she replied: "That's right, these few friends of mine are from China."

Miki looked at Ye Chen and asked curiously: "May I ask how this gentleman should be addressed and where he works?"

Ye Chen casually replied: "My surname is Ye, given name Ye Chen, unemployed, so I can't really say where I work."

Miki looked surprised at Ye Chen, then at Xiao Churan, who held his arm; though their attire wasn't extravagant and they wore no obvious high-end jewelry or watches indicating wealth, their demeanor was indeed quite remarkable, so she assumed they were prominent figures from China—she never expected Ye Chen to say he was unemployed, which made her doubtful.

Thus, she smiled and said: "Mr. Ye, you're being too modest—this party, Sachiko and I each have only three invitations; our families told us to use these three invitations to invite people of considerable ability and status, so Sachiko gave hers to you, implying you must have an impressive background—how could Mr. Ye possibly be unemployed?"

Ye Chen was slightly surprised by Miki's bluntness—shouldn't such thoughts stay in one's heart? How could Miki just say it outright?

But Ye Chen also didn't want to overthink it, so he said: "I really am unemployed—I usually do occasional feng shui readings for others and earn some fees; if Miss Miki has related needs, feel free to consult me."

Miki then realized Ye Chen wasn't being modest.

She furrowed her brows slightly, smirking playfully: "I've heard of feng shui—it sounds like Chinese feudal superstition; similar feng shui masters exist in Japan, but they're mostly low-class, unrefined types; Japan's upper class doesn't believe in these foreign imports."

After saying that, she turned to Xiao Churan beside her and asked: "May I ask where this lady works?"

Xiao Churan replied: "I run my own design studio, just started recently."

Miki followed up: "A design studio? Where? In China?"

"Yes," Xiao Churan said: "In Jin Ling."

Miki still thought Xiao Churan was a renowned Chinese designer, never expecting she merely ran a design studio in Jin Ling—a second-tier city in China; even if it were a famous Tokyo design studio, she wouldn't pay it much mind, let alone Xiao Churan, a newly established, obscure female designer from Jin Ling.

Thus, she chuckled: "Today's party invited a top-tier designer, personally invited by the head of the Mitsui family; I originally wanted to introduce you two, but seeing how vast the gap is, I'll skip it—better this way, so you won't feel uncomfortable inside."

After speaking, she glanced at Sasaki Sachiko with a hint of mockery, pouting: "Sachiko, you've wasted three precious spots by inviting these low-class friends—have you thought about how to explain this to your grandfather?"

"Nothing to explain," Sasaki Sachiko said calmly: "Since my grandfather gave me three invitation quotas, inviting whom I choose is my freedom."

After saying that, Sasaki Sachiko added: "Besides, you have no right to judge my friends!"

Miki snapped: "Fool! Your grandfather gave you three quotas to invite people with presence and who could help the family's future development—not to randomly bring some low-class friends to show off! Do you know Tawana has always been extremely picky about her social circle? If she learns the Mitsui family's carefully prepared party for her actually mixed in some low-class stray cats and dogs, where would you put the Mitsui family's face?"

Dong Ruolin's expression instantly turned angry—she hadn't expected Miki to keep making sarcastic remarks about them, especially Ye Chen and Xiao Churan, whom she herself had invited; she had called them to see celebrities, but instead of seeing stars, she was first insulted by this crazy woman.

Xiao Churan's nature is not easily angered; in this situation, she merely felt somewhat embarrassed, and according to her personality, she thought it best to quickly avoid this aggressive woman.

As for Ye Chen, over these two years he's grown accustomed to people who love to show off and belittle others, so he had no intention of engaging with Miki's cold mockery.

From Miki's attitude toward Sasaki Sachiko and some of her remarks, Ye Chen inferred they were likely cousins, their grandfathers the same person, and that some kind of rivalry existed between them—hence Miki deliberately tried to belittle Sasaki Sachiko in this setting.

Facing Miki's provocation, Sasaki Sachiko momentarily didn't know how to rebut; she didn't want to argue with Miki, nor let her good friends Dong Ruolin, Ye Chen, and Xiao Churan fall into embarrassment, so she quickly said: "Let's go over there for a drink! Come, this way!"

Seeing Sasaki Sachiko trying to leave, Miki instantly sneered: "What? You're running because I hit the mark? I tell you, Sachiko, I'll inform my grandfather the moment we return—you'd better pray these low-class friends you invited won't make Tawana uncomfortable, otherwise, you, as his granddaughter, will be the disgrace of the Sasakawa family!"

After saying that, Miki didn't wait for Sasaki Sachiko's reply, turned, and left, walking toward the central circle.

Sasaki Sachiko hurriedly apologized to the three: "Really sorry, Ruolin, Mr. Ye, Madam Ye! Miki is my cousin, always domineering, her words often offend people—please don't take it to heart!"

Xiao Churan and Dong Ruolin both said it was nothing, while Ye Chen's attention remained on Sasaki Miki.

At that moment, Sasaki Miki had just reached the outskirts of the core circle; her earlier arrogance vanished completely, replaced by a humble smile; after repeatedly bowing to several people, she completely reversed her earlier nonstop talking attitude, standing smiling beside the crowd, listening to others chat, saying nothing herself.

At that moment, Ye Chen noticed that amidst this party full of strangers, there was actually a familiar face.

So he pointed to the woman in the crowd and asked Xiao Churan: "Wife, do you know who that person is?"

Following Ye Chen's finger, Xiao Churan looked and exclaimed: "Good heavens, it's Carrie!"

The Carrie Xiao Churan referred to is the world-renowned female designer, and one of the world's top designers, Carrie·West.

When Xiao Churan was able to attend the masterclass at Rhode Island School of Design in the U. S., it was Carrie·West who specially allocated a spot for her.

And Carrie·West's kindness toward Xiao Churan wasn't due to personal affinity—mainly, it was out of respect for Fei Ke Xin.

Fei Ke Xin is now formidable—she is the head of the Fei family; though the Fei family's strength doesn't match the An family, nor even the Rothschilds, its overall strength surpasses the Ito family and can even go toe-to-toe with the entire Mitsui family.

Know this: the Mitsui family now equals a large federal government; to the federal government, although they nominally control the nation, each state holds significant power—the Mitsui core family may lead the Mitsui conglomerate, but the various states beneath them are not subject to their whims.

But Fei Ke Xin is different—everything in the Fei family belongs to her; although other Fei family members also bear the surname Fei, the assets they control legally belong to the Fei family; if anyone disobeys, Fei Ke Xin can simply have them roll away.

At that moment, Xiao Churan clearly hadn't expected to see Carrie·West here; surprised, she suddenly recalled what Sasaki Miki had said earlier and sighed: "So that top designer Sasaki Miki mentioned was actually Carrie..."

Ye Chen laughed: "Come on, let's go say hello to an old acquaintance!"

Xiao Churan quickly said: "Too many people—better not, old man; I guess Carrie's busy talking with someone, let's wait until she's alone to say hello."

Ye Chen shook his head: "What could Carrie be discussing that's more important than your face? Never mind her—even if Fei Ke Xin were here today, she'd still have to serve as your foil!"