Read Online Shanghai Redemption by Qiu Xiaolong - Free Book Online Page B

you could, please sign my personal copy now, Director Chen. Wuting, please send all the other copies to his home so he can sign them at his leisure.”
    Chen heaved a sigh of relief. It would break his wrist if he were to sign five hundred copies at one sitting. And that wasn’t to mention the rest of the copies that others wanted signed. Chen walked over to the table where a line was quickly forming.
    He took up a position in the middle of the table, and two of the girls in cat costumes came to squat beside him, one on each side. The one on the right, Red Coral, opened each book to the signature page, while the other, Green Jade, wrote down the buyer’s name on a piece of paper. Sandwiched between the two, Chen scribbled his name on one book after another, brushed on the cheek by Red Coral’s long hair, and tickled by the tail dangling from the bare buttocks of Green Jade.
    â€œThe party’s a huge success,” Wuting said, wandering over to Chen’s side again to comment. “People are snatching up copies like potato chips. We’ll sell almost as many copies as a memoir of a celebrated movie star.”
    The assistance of the two cat girls helped keep the signing line moving. Several customers bought a bundle of copies, “giving face” to Rong, and some of them didn’t even bother asking Chen to sign their copies. The cat girls carried their books out for them.
    In the room the girls come and go, / talking about anything but Michelangelo .
    After another tall pile of copies was gone, Chen looked up to see Rong sidle up to Wuting and whisper something before heading out of the room.
    â€œRong had to leave for an urgent business meeting,” Wuting said, coming over to speak to Chen. “He asked me to pass on his regrets.”
    Chen nodded. It made sense that a busy banker would have to leave early, having delivered what he’d promised.
    People began to leave. They’d come as a favor to Rong, and with the host gone, there was no reason for them to stay. Some of them might continue to enjoy themselves at the club, but they were done with the book launch party. A couple of them even left with a cat girl on their arm.
    There weren’t many copies of book left, and Wuting looked pleased.
    Then Wuting got a phone call and stepped aside to take it in relative privacy. It was a fairly long call, and by the time he finished, the last Big Buck was limping out, leaning heavily on the bare shoulder of a slim cat girl.
    â€œSorry, I can’t stay,” Wuting said, closing the phone with an embarrassed smile. “I have an emergency conference call with the City Propaganda Ministry. I have to hurry back to the office. But please stay. Rong will be back around ten for a celebratory banquet. Some other Big Bucks will be coming as well, and if the conference call doesn’t last too long, I’ll be back here for it. Everything has been arranged. So please, for the sake of Eliot, stay. It’s essential for the success of the book.”
    Once again, Chen felt he had no choice but to comply.
    After Wuting left, Chen was the only one remaining—except for the two cat girls who had helped him with the signing.
    The lights was starting to dim again, suspiciously.
    â€œMr. Rong thought you might want to take a break in the inner room before the banquet,” Red Coral said.
    â€œIt’s much more comfortable there,” Green Jade said.
    They dragged him through a side door into the inner room, which turned out to be a bedroom furnished with a large bed, a leather sofa, and an antique dresser with a large mirror on top. As soon as they entered the inner room, the two girls started shedding their remaining clothes.
    â€œNow you can enjoy a break in privacy,” Green Jade said.
    â€œWhy don’t you relax on the bed?” Red Coral added.
    Chen retreated to the sofa.
    â€œLet’s sit and talk,” he said in a hurry,
    Red Coral moved in beside