Zheng Lei had no idea what he’d done to make Teacher Chen so angry. He was just showing off that his family was rich, capable of treating his teacher to dinner and even paying for home renovations. All that had happened many years ago. ’What is he so mad about?’
Little did he know, he had just shattered Teacher Chen’s pristine image.
"Everyone, I’m so pleased to see how you’ve all changed. You’re each beginning to make a name for yourselves in your respective fields. I hope you continue to work hard and build your own careers. Hmm... Zheng Lei, you should really spend more time with your more sensible classmates. After seeing you today, I seriously suspect you spend all your time playing with kindergarteners."
Zheng Lei glanced around, sulking. ’What’s Teacher Chen’s problem? Other than Lin Yu, who found herself a powerful boyfriend, who here is doing better than me?’
’My dad gave me such a head start, I was already winning at the starting line.’
Sipping his tea, Yang Hui studied Huang Lingyu beside him out of the corner of his eye.
She was dressed very demurely today in a floor-length skirt, an image difficult to reconcile with the sexy woman from the previous night.
Huang Lingyu’s fingertip traced an unconscious circle around the rim of her glass, her nail creating a faint, vibrating hum against the crystal—a sound uncannily like her earring striking his shirt button as it swayed, back when she was straddling his lap at the karaoke bar last night.
As Yang Hui observed her, she was secretly watching him as well.
Beneath the table, her pressed-together knees trembled slightly. The muscles of her inner thighs ached with a secret pain—the phantom bruises from his grip protesting from memory.
Just as her mind began to wander, she suddenly felt Yang Hui’s calf brush against hers. Then, his large, warm hand slipped under the cover of the tablecloth and came to rest on her thigh, kneading it through the fabric.
Huang Lingyu’s breath hitched. Her fingertip scraped halfway around the glass’s rim, creating a jarring sound. She instinctively pressed her legs together, only to tremble at the scalding heat of his palm—the sensation was identical to the one in the karaoke booth last night.
She darted a look at him before snatching her gaze away like a startled rabbit. Every muscle in her body was tense, yet she forced herself to appear perfectly calm, as if nothing at all was happening.
At the same time, she felt an inexplicable thrill.
After finishing his heartfelt speech, Teacher Chen invited everyone to raise their glasses for a toast.
Just then, Zheng Lei piped up again, eager to perform. "Teacher Chen, if you ever need anything in Qingzhou from now on, just come to me. Same as always, I’ll get it all sorted out for you."
"Oh? I heard your family’s business has taken a big hit lately. Are the rumors wrong? Has your influence spread all the way to Qingzhou now?"
Teacher Chen wasn’t being sarcastic, just asking out of reflex.
Zheng Lei declared proudly, "My dad has lots of friends in Qingzhou, so we’re really well-connected there. Take this dinner tonight, for instance. I’m not just bragging, but they charge a fixed price per head here—absolutely no room to haggle. But me? I can get a 10% discount."
"Wow, not bad. This restaurant is pretty famous in Qingzhou. You know the owner well?"
Zheng Lei’s face flushed slightly as he mumbled, "You could say that."
’An indirect connection is still a connection,’ he thought.
Lin Yu had been watching Yang Hui the whole time, but to her disappointment, he hadn’t spared her a single glance since he sat down.
Hearing Zheng Lei’s boast, she scoffed, "You know the owner and he doesn’t even comp your meal? How much are you saving with a ten percent discount? Is that really worth calling in a favor for?"
Because she was wearing a V-neck, the Jade Peace Pendant around her neck was on full display, as if to announce that she was the most financially successful person at the table.
Just then, a knock came from the door, and someone entered.
A young man in a chef’s uniform and toque entered and announced cheerfully, "Hello, everyone! I’m Zheng Lei’s cousin. I heard his teacher and classmates were here today, so I came to offer a toast."
Everyone stood and drank with him. Not noticing the sour look on Zheng Lei’s face, the cousin continued, "Enjoy the meal, everyone. If there’s anything you don’t like, just let me know. By the way, Zheng Lei, I’ll go ask the manager in a minute to get you the employee discount—10% off the bill for today."
Zheng Lei made a few mosquito-like hums of assent, wishing the ground would open up and swallow him whole.
He had just finished bragging about his connections to the owner, only for his own cousin to come and expose him. He glanced over at Huang Lingyu and saw that her face was beet red.
He sighed internally. ’How embarrassing. Lingyu must be embarrassed for me, too.’
Huang Lingyu couldn’t have cared less about his embarrassment. Her face was red because of the errant hand on her thigh. It wasn’t just resting there; it was drawing circles, and it was taking all her willpower to endure it without reacting.
The atmosphere turned incredibly awkward. The cousin’s visit had left everyone at a loss.
Teacher Chen sighed. ’I can’t trust a single word that comes out of this kid’s mouth,’ he thought. ’And I almost asked him for a favor for my family. He’s too unreliable. Forget it. I wouldn’t want him leading my own son down the wrong path.’
Just then, Lin Yu glanced at her phone and said, "Teacher Chen, my boyfriend found out you were here. He’s on his way over now to offer you a toast."
Everyone at the table looked at her. ’Does she have to be so dramatic? Her boyfriend just happens to be free? She probably called him over to show off. Everyone knows he’s rich. She’s just trying to steal the spotlight.’
After all, Huang Lingyu had clearly outshone her in the looks department. By calling her boyfriend over, she could show everyone how outstanding he was. Compared to a clown like Zheng Lei, it would be immediately obvious how capable Lin Yu was—at least when it came to picking men.
"Good, good! How thoughtful!" Teacher Chen said with a smile. ’My students are still so respectful.’
He didn’t think Lin Yu calling her boyfriend over would make things awkward for Yang Hui, either. After all, their thing was back in high school. Calling it "dating" was a stretch; it was more like they were just playing house.
"Ah, this is wonderful," Teacher Chen continued, beaming. "Seeing all of your careers starting to take off... The next time we get together, I hope some of you will be married and have kids. Bring some chubby little ones for me to see! HAHA!"
Zheng Lei quickly jumped in. "What’s so hard about that? As soon as I get back to Qingzhou, Lingyu and I will get our marriage certificate. We’ll try to have a kid by next year! But it might be harder for some people... I bet some people here don’t even have a girlfriend yet."
The words were barely out of his mouth when Huang Lingyu let out a little yelp. All eyes immediately turned to her. Her face was flushed as red as silk as she stammered, "Zheng Lei, what are you talking about?"
Everyone assumed she was just being shy. They had no idea that the mischievous hand under the table had just launched a surprise attack, nearly making her leap out of her chair.
As she spoke, she clamped her legs together, trapping his hand to stop it from moving. Her expression was practically begging him to stop. ’Any more of this and I’m going to make a scene!’
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