The burly man clutched his chest, staring at the man who was beating him with a calm expression. He roared, "Who the hell are you? How dare you hit me? I'll cripple you today! Your fate, and this woman's, will be far worse than anyone else's."
Just as the burly man was about to get up, the hotel manager rushed in from outside.
He kicked the burly man in the stomach, then said in a panicked voice, "I'm very sorry, Mr. Zhou, to have spoiled your evening."
The burly man looked confused. The manager cursed, "Are you blind? This is the distinguished guest who booked our Emperor Suite."
The man who, moments before, had wanted to make Zhou Jinbai and the others wish they were dead, was now so terrified he almost wet himself.
He scrambled to Zhou Jinbai's feet and kowtowed frantically, "I'm sorry, Mr. Zhou, it was my ignorance, my dog-like eyes that looked down on you. I was just too angry, I'm so sorry..."
The faces of the thugs who had been beating them turned pale with fear. They had never imagined that the distinguished guest they had been waiting for all day was dining in this very room, and they had just beaten up his friends.
This was practically suicidal.
As the burly man knelt and kowtowed to Zhou Jinbai, the thugs followed suit, hoping for the greatest possible leniency.
"We're sorry, Mr. Zhou, we're just rabid dogs. Please consider us a fart and don't hold it against us. Please spare us."
The other four people lying on the ground were completely stunned, maintaining their poses like statues for a long time.
Lin Shirou and Gu Shaoting, in particular, had their eyes wide as saucers. They had never imagined that things would turn around in such a way.
"You... you booked the Emperor Suite? Why didn't you tell us earlier?" Lin Han Hai, clutching his throbbing face, demanded.
Lin Shirou tidied her disheveled clothes, casting a venomous gaze at Lin Xingwan. "Sister, you deliberately let us make fools of ourselves and get beaten, didn't you? You're so heartless."
"Absolutely deliberate!" Gu Shaoting wiped the mixture of blood and saliva from his face, but his face was so swollen it looked like a pig's head, hurting wherever he touched.
"I told you I booked a room, but you didn't give me a chance to explain," Zhou Jinbai said with extreme calmness, but his words were like the sharpest knives, piercing the chests of these people.
Everyone's faces turned crimson with unprecedented shame.
Zhou Jinbai had indeed said he booked a room at Yunhai Hotel, but they had all mocked him for booking a Bronze banquet, even ridiculing him.
Zhong Jingjing, in particular, had vowed never to eat the banquet Zhou Jinbai booked.
But he had booked the Emperor banquet! If she had known earlier, would she have acted like that?
"Then why didn't you add the words 'Emperor Banquet' when you said it!" Zhong Jingjing's words were filled with deep resentment.
Lin Xingwan couldn't stand it anymore. "Grandma, even if Jinbai said he booked the Emperor Suite, would you have believed him?"
Would they have believed him?
Of course not!
How could a man who lived off others afford to book the Emperor Suite?
"Then why didn't you explain when they rushed in and started hitting us?"
"Yes, you had every opportunity to explain, but you didn't! You heartless person, you just wanted us to get beaten."
These people questioned Zhou Jinbai. Zhou Jinbai's lips curved into a smile. "This suite was also booked by a friend of mine. I've never been here before, how would I know it was the Emperor Suite?"
His final question left Gu Shaoting and the others speechless.
Because Zhou Jinbai's explanation was so seamless, even Lin Xingwan didn't doubt it.
A wealthy friend who could casually leave mansions unoccupied and give gifts worth tens of millions would naturally book the Emperor Suite at Yunhai Hotel. It was perfectly normal!
No problem!
The problem was with Gu Shaoting and his group.
The manager stepped forward to mediate. "It seems the person who brought you here recognized Mr. Zhou and thought he had booked the Emperor Suite, which is why they brought you here. It was a misunderstanding. I'll have him fired immediately."
At this point, Gu Shaoting regained his bravado.
He got up, leaning against the wall, and yelled at the hotel manager, "Misunderstanding? Fired? Is this how your hotel resolves such matters so lightly? Four of us were almost beaten to death."
Lin Xingwan looked at Gu Shaoting's pathetic and unreasonable state, frowning and wondering how the young man in the white shirt from before had become this greasy man today.
Especially when compared to Zhou Jinbai, it was like comparing heaven and earth!
"Then, Mr. Gu, how would you like this to be resolved?" the manager asked Gu Shaoting, his initial deference and attentiveness replaced by disdain.
"Refund us the money for the Diamond Banquet, let us enjoy the Emperor Banquet for free once, compensate us for our medical expenses, and issue a letter of apology as a sign of respect."
Lin Xingwan almost burst out laughing. Gu Shaoting really dared to ask for such things!
The staff behind the manager couldn't hold back and directly retorted, "We are employees of Yunhai Hotel, not turtles in a wishing well. You use your brain as a decoration, not a tool. You're worse than those who swindle old ladies on the street. Why don't you just fly to the sky?"
"Mr. Gu, our hotel's policy is that once a banquet is booked, it cannot be refunded; this is clearly stated. As for enjoying the Emperor Banquet for free, our hotel has no such rule. A single clap doesn't make a sound. If you hadn't entered the wrong suite, this misunderstanding wouldn't have happened. We can compensate you one hundred thousand yuan for medical treatment. As for a letter of apology, that's impossible."
The manager answered methodically, infuriating Gu Shaoting to the point of coughing repeatedly. "You think ten thousand yuan can resolve this? I'm telling you, it's impossible."
"Then you can sue us. We'll await your lawyer's letter," the manager said, glancing at Gu Shaoting and thinking to himself: They've offended a big shot without realizing it. How foolish.
"But Zhou Jinbai booked the Emperor Banquet, so we didn't enter the wrong suite," Yang Niyun said softly.
Lin Han Hai said indignantly, "Yes, this Emperor Banquet was also booked by our people."
"Mr. Gu signed for it, so it's booked under Mr. Gu's name. Of course, if you had let Mr. Zhou sign from the beginning, things wouldn't have escalated like this. Furthermore, you consumed the dishes from our Emperor Banquet tonight, and I will have the bill sent to you later."
The manager's words made Gu Shaoting and the others feel like spitting blood.
They had lost 6.66 million, been beaten up, and now they had to pay?
Was there any justice in this world?
"I am truly sorry, Mr. Zhou, for disturbing your enjoyment. On behalf of all our hotel staff, I apologize. Please choose another time to select an Emperor Suite. We will definitely provide you with the most perfect service, and we will also give you a complimentary Diamond Banquet VIP card." The manager bowed and scraped to Zhou Jinbai, his attitude extremely fawning.
"Alright, thank you for your trouble," Zhou Jinbai nodded slightly. What others desperately wanted was of little consequence to him.
"Why don't we send them to the hospital first?" Lin Xingwan looked at Lin Han Hai, whose mouth was still bleeding, and tugged on Zhou Jinbai's arm.
Even though she had no feelings for the Lin family anymore, seeing the four of them covered in blood for the first time was indeed shocking.
They were hateful, but... not deserving of death.
Soon, Gu Shaoting and the others were sent to the hospital for treatment.
It was strange, though, despite being covered in blood, they only had superficial injuries.
Now, all four of them were in the same hospital room, their faces, hands, and legs bandaged.
Zhong Jingjing, receiving an IV drip, leaned against the hospital bed with a pale face, recalling the events of the evening. It was too humiliating.
Those people had made them walk past their banquet, allowing all their friends and relatives to witness their miserable state.
If she met them again in the future, she wouldn't know where to hide her old face.
"Since there's nothing serious, Jinbai and I should be going," Lin Xingwan placed a stack of examination reports on the table, along with the remaining balance of the one hundred thousand yuan medical compensation from Yunhai Hotel.
Unexpectedly, as soon as Lin Xingwan finished speaking, the old lady pointed at her and cursed, "Look at the man you found. He made a fool of us tonight. If it weren't for him, would we be in this situation? You should compensate us for the money from Yunhai Hotel."
Lin Xingwan was so angry she laughed. The story of the farmer and the snake played out daily in the Lin family.
It was just that she was no longer the same as before.
"You secretly planned the banquet. If I hadn't been useful, you wouldn't have notified me this afternoon," Lin Xingwan sneered. "Let me guess, why did you call me? Could it be you want to set me up with Huang Hailong?"
Lin Xingwan wasn't stupid. Inviting Huang Hailong to the birthday banquet and deliberately saying those things was clearly an attempt to match them.
She was only in her twenties, and Huang Hailong was older than Lin Han Hai. They really had the nerve.
Zhong Jingjing was taken aback, her purpose exposed by Lin Xingwan, and she became somewhat annoyed.
"What's wrong with Huang Hailong? At least he's richer than the good-for-nothing next to you," Zhong Jingjing retorted immediately. "Older men know how to cherish people. Besides, if you were with Huang Hailong, you'd have endless wealth and luxury. Do you know the Huang family cooperates with Dongfang Consortium?"
"Older men do know how to cherish people. Since Grandma admires Huang Hailong so much, why don't you just get together with him? A twilight romance isn't bad either."
Zhou Jinbai couldn't stand seeing his wife wronged. He didn't care who Zhong Jingjing was; she couldn't bully his wife in front of him.
These words made Zhong Jingjing gasp, "You... you... what blasphemous things are you saying?"
"Naturally, I'm advising you to enjoy wealth and luxury," Zhou Jinbai said calmly, looking at Zhong Jingjing's angry expression with indifference.
Do not do unto others what you would not have them do unto you. How could she advise others, but others couldn't advise her?
Lin Xingwan looked at Zhong Jingjing's furious state and thought she deserved it. "From the moment Jinbai and I appeared, you've been mocking and ridiculing us. Even when we gave you a wild ginseng king worth tens of millions, you disdained it. When we were eating, Jinbai said he had booked a room, and what was your ugly expression then? Now that something has happened, you're pushing all the blame onto me and making me take the fall."
Her words left Zhong Jingjing with nowhere to hide. She couldn't help but look at Lin Xingwan seriously. The strong woman before her seemed different from the granddaughter she could do whatever she pleased with in her memory.
Lin Shirou cried, "Sister, how can you say that about us? We were just worried you were being deceived by Zhou Jinbai. This man is vicious. He could have explained everything, but he insisted on making a small matter a big one, leading to irreparable consequences. You are at least ninety percent responsible for the compensation."
"Exactly! You two should at least pay ninety percent!" Lin Han Hai gritted his teeth and said.
"Shut up!" Lin Xingwan's voice was stern, her eyes filled with disgust. Talking to these people felt like making wishes at a grave. "Don't use my kindness and generosity as capital for your insatiable greed. There are boundaries to being a person and doing things. Just because I didn't speak before doesn't mean I'm stupid. I just didn't think it was necessary. But now, you have truly chilled my heart. You want me to help you compensate? Dream on! I'd like to see who Yunhai Hotel will trouble when the money can't be paid."
Just as Lin Xingwan finished speaking and was about to leave, Zhou Jinbai grabbed her arm. "Wait—"
Lin Xingwan looked at him, confused. "What is it?"
"Dongfang Consortium is about to announce the cast of 'Immortal Path.' Let's watch before we go."
Zhou Jinbai's words drew everyone's attention to the television that had been on all along.
They had been too busy trying to make Lin Xingwan the scapegoat to pay attention to what was on TV.
But now, it was exactly twelve o'clock, the time Dongfang Consortium was scheduled to announce the cast.