The Golden Cane and the Wild Rose - Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Backstage at the dance hall.

Miss Peony had yet to arrive, which gave Yun Ran a moment to rest. She had started working as a makeup artist for the dance hall a week ago to save up for university tuition.

She had just finished the stage makeup for Miss Red Rose and Miss White Rose. With the two star performers on stage, she just had to do the makeup for Miss Peony, who was the final act, and then she could go home. The mingled sounds of the two ladies’ enchanting singing and the audience’s cheers reached her ears. Another steady performance tonight, she thought, feeling at ease.

She glanced at the backstage entrance but still didn’t see Miss Peony. Yun Ran rested her arms on the back of the chair and propped her chin on her hands, thinking about her dad.

Her dad hadn’t been home for a month. She wondered what kind of mission his boss had sent him on this time, when he would return, and if he would be covered in blood again. However, it was because her dad was away that she could work here in peace. If he knew about this job, he would tie her up and drag her home, then lecture her fiercely.

He would preach like a monk: “A decent young girl like you should never set foot in a place like a dance hall.” If her dad got really angry, he would ground her and tell her she didn’t need to go to school anymore.

But Yun Ran already had her retort planned. “Dad, you know how terrifying Jiang Musheng is, but you’re still working for him, risking your life every day, aren’t you?”

Just as Yun Ran was rehearsing her imaginary argument with her dad, a bouquet of white roses appeared, their faint scent reaching her nose. The hand holding the roses was as smooth and fair as jade, the hand of a man, making even Yun Ran envious.

“Ah Ran, you were so hard to find.”

Yun Ran looked up at the man’s gentle, smiling voice. She tried her best to suppress her shyness and awkwardness, quickly lowering her gaze. “Senior,” she said simply.

Before the two of them could say anything else, her coworkers backstage began to whisper and tease.

“Ooh-la-la.”

“Our Ah Ran is amazing.”

“I know, right? Ah Ran got flowers before Miss White Rose and Miss Red Rose, the two pillars of our dance hall. And they’re so fresh, with dew still on them! I’m so jealous.”

“What kind of flower is this? I’ve never seen it before, but it’s beautiful.”

“It’s a wild rose, right, Ah Ran?”

Yun Ran didn’t answer her coworkers. Instead, she reached out and pulled on a section of her senior’s dark blue uniform sleeve, leading him outside. He followed her obediently out of the dance hall’s backstage area.

“Senior, how did you find this place? Were you following me?”

“No, no, no…” He repeated “no” three times, shaking his head and waving his hands, looking utterly flustered in front of her.

Yun Ran held back a laugh. “I believe you, Senior. But how did you get in?”

The dance hall’s backstage was off-limits to unauthorized people. Only those with significant wealth and power wouldn’t be stopped.

“It was me who let this handsome guy come in with me.” A colleague’s laugh came from behind the half-closed door.

The senior quickly explained, “I’m sorry, Ah Ran. I know this is a bit sudden, but I want to protect you. I don’t want anything bad to happen to you. Please don’t be mad at me.”

Yun Ran sighed inwardly. She was just worried that he would think less of her after finding out where she worked.

“Senior, I’m not mad at you.”

“Really? Then from now on, I can pick you up and drop you off after work.”

Yun Ran considered his words. He didn’t seem to have a bad opinion of her for working here. In fact, he wanted to protect her. This place was a motley crew of people, and Yun Ran herself was on edge every time she came to work. There was no reason for her to refuse.

“Thank you, Senior,” Yun Ran said with a slight smile.

He looked relieved and smiled back. Hong Kong only had two public universities, and spots were limited. Yun Ran’s grades were only average, so she didn’t qualify and could only attend a private university. However, given her financial situation, that was also difficult. He had subtly offered to pay her tuition before, but Yun Ran politely declined. Thankfully, she hadn’t completely rejected his advances, and he was being careful to approach her slowly. He felt that he would succeed one day. After all, he was the only suitor she hadn’t flat-out rejected.

Just as her senior was about to say something else, Yun Ran saw a car with yellow headlights approaching. It was the car Miss Peony usually took. She wondered which boss was dropping her off tonight.

Yun Ran tugged on her senior’s sleeve, pulling him to the side. The car conveniently stopped right next to them. Miss Peony leaned out of the window, a smile on her face. With her right hand, wearing a black lace glove, she took a cigarette from her lips and blew a puff of smoke toward Yun Ran.

Yun Ran held her breath. The driver got out and opened the car door for Miss Peony. She jumped out and walked closer to Yun Ran. “Ah Ran, you’re going to make me beautiful tonight, too.”

The smell of cigarette smoke hadn’t dissipated, so Yun Ran held her breath and just smiled and nodded. Miss Peony then twisted her body to walk toward the backstage door, only to see Yun Ran’s senior. She twisted back and gave Yun Ran an ambiguous wink.

“Little Ah Ran has a boyfriend now, too.”

Yun Ran smiled and shook her head. “Miss Peony, please don’t tease me. This is my senior.”

Miss Peony looked at them with interest. Yun Ran felt her skin crawl and quickly told her senior, “Senior, you should go listen to the songs in the front. I have to finish Miss Peony’s makeup before I can go home. You can come wait for me after she goes on stage.”

Without waiting for his answer, Yun Ran opened the door and ran back inside.

Miss Peony laughed and blew a puff of smoke at him. “Poor little boyfriend. Please wait a little longer.” He stared at the spot where Yun Ran had disappeared, completely ignoring the elegant Miss Peony. His voice trailed off. “Ah Ran, the wild rose…”

“Give it to me. I’ll take it to Ah Ran for you.” Miss Peony naturally took the bouquet of wild roses from his hands.

When they got to the dressing room, Miss Peony didn’t immediately give the flowers to Yun Ran, and Yun Ran didn’t pay it any mind, getting right to work on Miss Peony’s makeup. But the gossipy colleagues wouldn’t let it go.

“He’s a sweet, innocent boy who blushes easily. I tested him for you, Ah Ran. He seems like a good man, and he looks like he lives a life of comfort. He’s probably from a good family.”

“When are you going to accept him, Ah Ran? Don’t let some other ‘goblin’ steal him.”

“You make it sound so good, testing him for Ah Ran. You just want to steal him for yourself and be that ‘goblin’!”

“I wouldn’t be able to. He’s a lovesick one. He only has eyes for Ah Ran.”

“With a protector this devoted, aren’t you going to accept him, Ah Ran?”

“Hey, is your little boyfriend still on probation?” Miss Peony also asked out of curiosity. She casually placed the bouquet of white roses on the dressing table in front of her.

Yun Ran still didn’t answer. No matter how much they gossiped, they would eventually stop when they got bored.

This high-paying job wasn’t easy to get. She had kept it a secret from her dad and spent a long time looking for it. She didn’t want to lose her job over a mistake. She had to save up enough money for university tuition during the summer. To keep her focus, she just tried to ignore the noise.

“Why give her a wild rose and not a rose for his courtship?” Miss Peony, who was sitting comfortably in her chair, mused. “It sounds like a wild flower, not something very expensive. Be careful, Ah Ran. He might have money, but he might not want to spend it on you. You might not be able to rely on him.”

“Okay, thank you for the reminder, Miss Peony.”

Yun Ran gave her a polite smile, but she knew the truth. Her senior gave her wild roses because he knew she liked them. He had given her expensive gifts before, but she had refused them, as she hadn’t agreed to be his girlfriend yet. But there was no need to explain this to her coworkers.

Miss Peony was completely unaware of what Yun Ran was thinking. She looked at her own beautiful face in the mirror and then at Yun Ran’s naturally beautiful, smiling face and felt a sudden conflict. She remembered the day Yun Ran came to the dance hall to apply for a job. She was also barefaced, just like now. Miss White Rose and Miss Red Rose and she were hiding in a corner backstage, and they saw Yun Ran lightly push the door open and walk in. Her slender, pale wrists had no gold, silver, or jade bracelets, but they were inexplicably beautiful.

Then Yun Ran floated in like a cloud, bringing the outside weather with her. It had been a gloomy, overcast day. Yun Ran’s body also carried that gloominess. Her willow-like figure was so delicate it tugged at the heart, yet her small frame was also resilient and full-bodied. The baggy, gray clothes she wore that day couldn’t hide her graceful curves.

Miss Peony had a keen eye for such things. She had thought this was a poor, beautiful girl who was forced to come to the dance hall to make a living, and that she was there to steal her job. Miss White Rose and Miss Red Rose had the same thought.

Just then, the manager discovered them all hiding and called them out to ask for their opinions on whether or not to hire Yun Ran. Miss Peony wanted to say no and stop the manager from hiring her. The other two star performers, Miss White Rose and Miss Red Rose, who had been overshadowed by her, had the same idea. After interviewing Yun Ran with the manager, the three of them were in a panic. For the first time, the three rivals were united in their worry.

It’s over. Our replacement is here so soon.

This girl, Yun Ran, who came to apply, had a clean elegance that surpassed Miss White Rose’s, and a charm that was different from Miss Red Rose’s captivating beauty. It was… it was like a dangerous flower that she didn’t know yet, blooming in an unknown place, and giving off a strange beauty. No matter how much she tried to hide it, she couldn’t help but be captivating. It was a strange and unsettling kind of beauty.

After talking it over, Miss Peony, Miss White Rose, and Miss Red Rose reached a consensus. They all disagreed with the manager hiring Yun Ran. If the manager didn’t listen, they would all leave. No matter how beautiful Yun Ran was, she couldn’t perform constantly by herself. The manager would have to weigh the pros and cons. The dance hall’s stage needed a hundred flowers to bloom, not just one.

But then the manager broke their worries with one sentence. “Please, my three ladies, I would love for Miss Yun Ran to sing and dance here, but she said she can’t sing or dance. She just wants to be a makeup artist to save up for university tuition. I’d love to drag her down with us, but she’s not interested.”

The three women’s eyes widened. Their sense of crisis had been so strong that they had completely overlooked those prerequisites.

As long as she wasn’t here to steal their jobs, Miss Peony suddenly found Yun Ran much more pleasant. And after seeing Yun Ran’s superb makeup skills, she liked her more and more.

“Miss Peony, your makeup is finished. Please let me know if there’s anything you’re not happy with, and I’ll fix it for you.”

Yun Ran slightly bent over, one hand already in a fist behind her, gently kneading her lower back to relieve the stiffness and soreness. Her job was to do the makeup for Miss White Rose, Miss Red Rose, and Miss Peony. This was the last person for today, and as long as she was satisfied, Yun Ran could go home.

Miss Peony looked up and was immediately captivated by her reflection in the mirror. The fine lines around her eyes and mouth were gone. She looked like she was eighteen again! Miss Peony felt a sweetness like honey in her heart.

“My gosh, Ah Ran, how is your hand so magical? Can you tell me how you do it?”

Yun Ran’s eyelashes lowered slightly, and she pursed her lips, politely and distantly saying, “Practice makes perfect.”

Miss Peony sighed. She didn’t believe it, but she didn’t press for more information. She had observed Yun Ran several times. Yun Ran didn’t seem to use any special makeup techniques, but her hands were like magic, precisely covering every fine line and blemish she didn’t want to show. Such innate talent was probably a gift from heaven.

But… with such amazing skills, why didn’t Yun Ran do her own makeup? Or maybe she did, and it was so flawless that no one could tell?

Miss Peony, still a little suspicious, raised her hand and touched Yun Ran’s cheek, using a little force. In the mirror, Yun Ran’s gaze froze, and her face flushed.

Miss Peony was shocked. Yun Ran was stunned.

Her skin is so soft and delicate. Miss Peony awkwardly pulled her hand back, but halfway through, her hand somehow landed on Yun Ran’s waist and gave it a gentle pinch.

She had wanted to do that for a long time. It really was a slender waist.

Yun Ran’s entire body froze. Her mind stopped working. She had only been on guard against men, but she hadn’t expected to have to be on guard against women, too.

A strange blush also spread across Miss Peony’s face. She turned her head and looked at her own face in the mirror as she spoke to Yun Ran. “With such a thin waist, why do you hide it by wearing such a big, ugly…” Miss Peony paused before finishing the sentence with, “dress.”

The dress did look wide and baggy, and was indeed an ugly dress. But when Yun Ran wore it, Miss Peony felt that the word “ugly” didn’t apply.

Yun Ran took an awkward step back. She was still thinking about Miss Peony’s recent actions—touching her face, pinching her waist, and blushing. It made her think of the female students at her school who openly dated other girls, and she felt a mix of emotions.

The words to respond came out instinctively. “I’m just a little makeup artist. The clothes I wear naturally can’t compare to the dazzling Miss Peony on stage.”

Upon hearing this, Miss Peony slightly frowned, with a look of pity. “I have a few qipaos that Boss Li gave me that I haven’t worn yet. There’s a light green one that doesn’t really suit me, but I think it would be perfect for you. I’ll give it to you.”

Yun Ran was a little taken aback. She had only meant to give a compliment to maintain a good working relationship. Miss Peony had taken it to heart.

As Yun Ran wondered how to refuse, Miss Peony had already taken the brand-new, light green qipao out of her drawer.

“You’re not allowed to refuse.”

Yun Ran, who had just opened her mouth to protest, closed it.

“And if you take my qipao, you have to continue to do my makeup well.”

Yun Ran nodded. That was her job.

“Also,” Miss Peony suddenly lowered her voice and gestured for Yun Ran to lean closer. “Make my makeup the most beautiful, more beautiful than Miss White Rose and Miss Red Rose.”

Yun Ran didn’t dare to answer easily. Miss Peony put her hands on the armrests of her chair, intending to stand up. But her face suddenly got much closer to Yun Ran’s, who had leaned in. Their faces were almost touching.

Yun Ran quickly took a step back again. This time, her reaction was faster than before. Miss Peony awkwardly sat back down, a strange look on her face as she looked at herself in the mirror.

Her parents had died early, and she had raised her sister, who was four years younger than her. She had relied on various part-time jobs to support her sister’s schooling. Her sister was now in high school, around the same age as Yun Ran. It was difficult to make ends meet with part-time jobs, which was why she had come to the dance hall. In a way, it fulfilled her music dream that she had given up years ago. As long as she could feed herself and her sister, it didn’t matter where she sang.

Her sister went to an all-girls school. She had told Miss Peony that some of the girls there were dating.

Miss Peony had asked, “Are they dating boys from the boys’ school next door?”

Her sister shook her head and laughed. “They’re dating girls from their own school.”

Miss Peony’s mind suddenly went blank, and she froze. “You’re such an old-fashioned sister. This is the new thing.”

Miss Peony, who was called old-fashioned but didn’t feel angry, felt a little strange and curious. “How do girls date girls?”

“It’s pretty much the same as straight people.”

“But it’s so much better to date girls. Girls are soft and smell good.”

Miss Peony narrowed her eyes, scrutinizing her sister. “Are you in a relationship? And with a girl from your school?”

Her sister gave her a knowing smile and quickly ran back to her room. This had only happened last night.

Miss Peony’s heart was beating a little faster now, and her face in the mirror was exceptionally red. In the reflection, Yun Ran was standing slightly behind her and to the side. Her face, her waist, and her faint floral scent were indeed soft and fragrant.

She was so much better than the pudgy, big-eared, foul-smelling men she had to entertain.

Just by looking at her, Miss Peony felt as if she had been thrown into a fire. She was burning up.

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