Chapter 11: Landai Club
Translator: May Wiggins Editor: Efydatia
Soon, the weekend came again. It was time for Qin Guan's tutoring session. Taking the materials he had prepared, Qin Guan headed to Huang Jiajia’s home. When the door opened, Qin Guan was so scared, he nearly plopped down on the ground.
There was an angry bird with dark eye-circles standing in front of him. In order to welcome her Prince Charming, Huang Jiajia had meticulously put on smokey-eye makeup, the most popular makeup trend at the time. She was wearing low-rise jeans and a batwing-sleeved blouse that let her bellybutton show. With her silver-colored lips and dark eyes, Huang Jiajia believed that she was Miss Beauty herself.
Qin Guan calmed himself down. It was certainly hard to please the good customers. Lightening his mood, he began his tutoring for the day.
Huang Jiajia was getting impatient, but for the sake of Qin Guan’s good looks, she held her temper in check and tried to be a good student.
Finally, after half an hour’s class, she gave up. She put her jaw on Qin Guan’s arm and pouted like a spoiled child. “Mr. Qin, how about we study tomorrow? It’s Saturday! It’s girls’ night at the Landai Club. Let’s go and have some fun!”
Qin Guan lifted her jaw up and gently moved it away from his arm. Huang Jiajia felt like her jaw had been broken. Seeing that Qin Guan had gone on tutoring as if nothing had happened, Huang Jiajia rubbed her aching jaw. Her eyes had started to water. Irritated, she plumped out her cheeks as she thought to herself, “So you don’t like shy girls. Just wait and see how naughty I can be then!”
Huang Jiajia smirked and told Qin Guan. “Look at me, Mr. Qin.” Qin Guan was puzzled. He turned to her and saw Huang Jiajia put her hands on the lower hem of her blouse and lift it up, the pink bra she was wearing underneath showing.
Huang Jiajia was a minor still going through puberty. Her breasts were partly visible through her pink bra, giving off a smell of youth and vigor.
Qin Guan almost choked on his own drool. “Jesus! What are you doing? Pull your shirt down!” He hastened to cover his eyes with his hand, but there was still a gap left between his fingers.
Hearing Qin Guan’s scolding, Huang Jiajia felt satisfied. She moved closer to him and said, “I can pull it down, but you have to promise me one thing.”
Qin Guan shook his head as he said righteously, “I have my principles. Don’t you think I’ll promise you anything without careful consideration!”
Huang Jiajia smirked again. She moved forward, and Qin Guan was forced to back up until he reached the door. He'd been planning on leaving the room, but he was too afraid of being mistaken for a rascal by the girl's mother and being turned over to the police. He was caught in a dilemma.
Huang Jiajia went on, trying to persuade Qin Guan, “I promise you that I’ll be a good student, just not today. I have somewhere to be, so you have to listen to me and help me get out.”
Qin Guan was getting furious. He scolded her in a low voice, “I can’t find any excuse to convince your mom that you should go out! It’s too late!”
Huang Jiajia blinked at Qin Guan and pulled her blouse down. Clapping her hands, she said, “No need to worry about that. It’s a deal!” Then she ran to the living room merrily and pouted to her mother, “Mom, I’ve finished my class for today, and Mr. Qin said I was really a quick learner. It’s Saturday. I promised Li Lin that I would sleep over at her house tonight so we could review the class together. Can I go out, mom? Please!”
The mother hesitated before turning to Qin Guan. Noticing that Huang Jiajia was still holding the lower hem of her blouse, Qin Guan was quite clear that he was being threatened by the young girl. He gave a forced smile and nodded, suggesting that he agreed with Huang Jiajia.
The mother was quite shrewd, though. She made a phone call to Li Lin’s before agreeing. “Oh, okay. No worries.” When she hung up the phone, she expressed her approval with a nod.
“Yay!” Huang Jiajia jumped up from the couch and picked up her handbag from the table, ready to go. Suddenly she went back and told her mother, “It’s getting late. Can I ask Mr. Qin to walk me there?’
Her mother thought it was a good point, so she asked Qin Guan to take her daughter to Li Lin’s.
Qin Guan and Huang Jiajia left the house. Qin Guan walked quietly ahead, feeling very annoyed. He could not believe that he was being threatened by this little girl, who was so much younger than him.
Huang Jiajia stared at Qin Guan as she walked behind him. She was drooling as she watched him walk fast with his long legs. Wiping her mouth, she said, “What’s the hurry? Let’s take a cab.”
Confused, Qin Guan turned back to her and asked, “Doesn’t your classmate live nearby? Why take a cab?”
Haung Jiajia looked proud of herself as she replied, “Oh, Li Lin’s parents are traveling abroad. Her cousin answered the phone. I’ve promised to go to Landai Club tonight with the girls. Come on, don’t be stupid. Let’s go!”
Qin Guan did not come to his senses until he was inside the cab. Why am I taking her to Landai Club? I could have gone back to my dorm!
Huang Jiajia took no notice of his facial expressions. She took out her compact mirror from her handbag and made her eye circles even darker.
The little yellow cab drove for over 20 minutes before they arrived at Landai Club.
Landai Club was one of the most famous clubs in Beijing between 1997 and 2003. It was close to the Beijing Film Academy, so it was always packed with people at night.
Every Saturday, women would come to the club and have fun for free. That night, a small dance band had been invited to perform an opening show, giving even more life to the small club.
As they got off the cab, Qin Guan and Huang Jiajia saw two girls in the distance wearing even heavier makeup than Huang Jiajia. The three girls got together and hugged, chatting and laughing excitedly. The girl named Li Lin even came over and said hello to him.
Qin Guan felt great pressure being surrounded by these fashionably dressed-up girls. In his past life, he had always dressed simply. It was cool in October, and he was wearing blue jeans and a pair of brown leather shoes made of sheep skin. He felt like a square peg in a round hole around those girls.
Qin Guan decided to seize the opportunity and get away. He was about to turn around when Huang Jiajia dragged him closer and said, “Come have fun with us!”
Qin Guan frowned. He took on a serious tone as he told Huang Jiajia, “I only promised you one thing, and I kept that promise. Take care of yourself. I gotta go.”
Huang Jiajia wanted to add something, when she realized that her friends were being harassed by some strange guys.
Since ancient times, there had been a lot of terms referring to guys flirting with girls. In some areas, it was called chasing girls, while in other places they called it picking up hot chicks. In Beijing, people would call it courting.
Clubs were usually filled with both good and bad people, and they were the perfect place for people with excessive hormones, who did not know what to do with them. People went there to have fun, court girls, or get into a fight, which was pretty common for people in clubs.
Qin Guan knew that he could not just pretend he hadn't seen anything and leave. He walked up to those guys and stood in front of Li Lin, facing them as he said, “Lin Lin, your dad has asked you to get back home.”
The guys left the girls alone. After all, the girls were too young for them, and they seemed like good students, despite the fact that they were dressed attractively.
The guys laughed and walked away. The girls were too young to protect themselves, and Qin Guan was worried about them. Fine. I’ll stay with them, just in case.
Fun time started at 8 p.m. The moment the doors opened, the ladies in the two queues all swarmed in for a warm-up dance. Huang Jiajia and the other two girls did not move. They were still waiting for Qin Guan by the counter.
By the time Qin Guan had forced his way through the crowd, almost all the ladies had already gone into the club. Tickets to Landai Club were not expensive. The price from Monday to Friday was 10 yuan per person, and on the weekends it was 15 yuan.
Qin Guan escorted the girls into the club. The atmosphere inside was really different from outside. The club was like a big melting pot full of hormones. In the dim, flickering lights, men and women jostled against each other, the hot dancing on the stage making everyone restless.
Before Qin Guan could stop them, Huang Jiajia and the other two girls had pushed their way to the center of the club joyfully.
The club was playing Captain Jack-Sir Yes Sir, a popular song in 1996, and everyone was shaking their heads and butts crazily on the dancing floor.
Qin Guan got out of the crowd and took a seat by the bar. He turned to a waiter and said, “ A Corona, please.”
The waiter served him his beer. Qin Guan took a sip, and leaned against the counter as he watched the people dancing in front of him.
He was about to take a second sip when two girls sat down next to him. They both had red lips and were wearing leather skirts. They were not wearing any silk stockings, and their high heels swayed slightly with their legs.
The girls tugged at Qin Guan’s shirt and drew circles on his chest with their fingers. One of the girls pouted at him. “You here alone, hottie?”
Qin Guan gently pushed them away as he looked towards the dance floor. Then he smiled and told them, “No, I have a girlfriend.”
Upon hearing that, the two girls immediately stopped flirting with him. They just gave him a charming smile and walked away.
Yes, local girls were indeed straightforward.
There were two more stages by the side of the club, which had been prepared for the big show at midnight. The dancers on the stage had been invited from dance clubs, or were students of the Beijing Dance Academy who were working part-time jobs at the club.
A couple was currently standing on the stage, dancing to the music. Their every move showed their bare desire. It was like all their cells were urging people, Follow us! Let’s dance!
Qin Guan stared at the stage. His amazing memory helped him memorize every move of the leading dancer. He took a glance around the whole club and kept everyone’s moves in mind.
With so many people dancing, the club was getting even warmer than usual. Qin Guan felt a wave of heat, and undid a button on his shirt. Suddenly, he saw Huang Jiajia quarreling with the others.
Qin Guan let out a sigh. Fretted, he scratched his head and forced his way through to her.