In the next private room, Qin Chuan was bragging with everyone, talking nonsense.
The door of the private room was suddenly pushed open, and Yan Weiwei's delicate and pretty face poked in.
Qin Chuan, who had been paying attention to the movement at the door, was the first to spot Yan Weiwei. He immediately stood up and said to everyone, "I'm going out for a bit, you guys keep drinking."
Except for Li Ya, no one noticed Qin Chuan's unusual behavior, as everyone was already drunk. Even the most observant Zheng Chengdao was intoxicated.
Watching Qin Chuan's retreating back, Li Ya had a feeling that her boyfriend had done something. However, since Qin Chuan didn't want her to get involved in this matter, Li Ya didn't want to pry too much, as that wouldn't be the act of a clever woman.
"Boss Qin, I've found out a lot of things."
At a secluded corner on the second floor of the lamb restaurant, Yan Weiwei immediately shouted excitedly upon seeing Qin Chuan appear.
"Shh!"
Qin Chuan quickly made a gesture for silence, then put on a gentle smile and said, "Weiwei, what did you find out? Tell me in detail."
Yan Weiwei's little mouth chattered, and she immediately told Qin Chuan everything she had seen and heard in the private room.
After listening, Qin Chuan's expression grew increasingly grim. Things were indeed exactly as he had predicted; those people were here for profit.
But what angered him was that to achieve their goals, these people were preparing to get his mother drunk by forcing her to drink, and then achieve their despicable aims. A drunk person often cannot remember what happened at a drinking party; this is a common trick used by many in the business world.
But business is business, and using such tactics among close sisters is rather despicable! It was completely treating kinship as a tool for exploitation, resorting to any means to achieve their goals.
And they actually believed that since their family had become rich first, they had to help them. What kind of logic is that? Who made the rule?!
"Weiwei, from what you said, my... Aunt Jiang Cuihua hasn't returned after going to the restroom, right?"
Qin Chuan suddenly seemed to recall something and quickly asked.
"Yes, Auntie hasn't returned yet."
Yan Weiwei instinctively called Jiang Cuihua "Auntie," as she had already guessed Jiang Cuihua's identity.
"Oh no, Auntie has been gone for so long, could she have passed out in the restroom?"
As soon as she finished speaking, Yan Weiwei's face suddenly changed.
"Go quickly and check the restroom!"
Qin Chuan was also startled and urged Yan Weiwei to go to the restroom.
Just then, footsteps were heard from the stairwell. They both looked up and saw Jiang Cuihua coming upstairs.
She seemed to have truly drunk too much. Her face was flushed red, and a strand of her hair was sticking to her forehead, which she seemed to have washed with cold water to stay awake.
Seeing his mother coming upstairs, Qin Chuan could no longer hold back and shouted, "Mom!"
"Xiao... Xiao Chuan, what are you doing here?"
Seeing her son, Jiang Cuihua's eyes widened, full of surprise, as if she never expected to run into her son here.
"I... my elder brother, second brother, and a few friends and I came here to eat roast lamb."
Qin Chuan said, then instinctively asked, "Mom, why are you here?"
"I... I'm also here to eat with friends!"
Jiang Cuihua answered somewhat flusteredly. However, compared to her son, her composure was far inferior; she couldn't lie as calmly as him.
Only after speaking did she suddenly realize something and exclaim, "Your elder brother, your second brother are also here?"
"Yes, we're in this private room!"
Qin Chuan pointed to the private room where he was eating. Seeing this, Jiang Cuihua's face turned pale. The private room was only separated by a wall from the one they were eating in. If they spoke loudly, they could hear each other's conversations.
"How could this happen? How could it be such a coincidence?"
In that instant, Jiang Cuihua's drunkenness completely sobered up, and her heart was filled with anxiety. This was because she knew very well her three sons' attitudes towards her relatives. If her sons found out those people were next door, she didn't know what would happen. A tragedy might unfold immediately, which was what she least wanted to see.
Looking at his mother's worried and uneasy eyes, Qin Chuan sighed deeply. To be honest, his mood was also very complicated at the moment. He wanted to use this rare opportunity to go over with a bottle of wine and toast his mother's "friends," but he was worried that the situation would become uncontrollable. Another reason was that Qin Chuan deeply disliked those people and didn't want to see those ugly faces. Of course, the most difficult situation was for his mother, who was caught in the middle.
After much deliberation, Qin Chuan finally decided to remain inactive. He would find an opportunity to subtly hint to his mother, urging her to keep some distance from those people. Family ties, blood relations, are not so easily severed. As someone who had been through it, Qin Chuan understood the complexity of these emotions too well. It was impossible, as depicted in some movies and novels, to completely sever ties in anger; that was almost unrealistic.
"Mom, looking at your expression, it seems you've had enough to drink."
"It just so happens that we're finishing up here too. Why don't we go home together?"
Finally, Qin Chuan said.
"Okay... Okay!"
Jiang Cuihua hesitated for a moment after hearing her son's words, then immediately agreed. Perhaps this was the best way to prevent her son from meeting her relatives. Although it was somewhat unfair to her maternal family, it was the only way for now.
"Alright, I'll go in and tell them. You go downstairs and wait for me."
After Qin Chuan finished speaking, he strode into the private room.
"Big Brother, Second Brother, I just received a call from Dad, asking the three of us to go over!"
"Dad is calling us?"
Qin Yang and Qin Gang, who were drinking with everyone, turned their heads and looked at their third brother with surprise.
"Yes, I just received the call."
Qin Chuan said.
"Boss, has something happened?"
Bai Xiaoguang, with a face full of flushed red from drinking, asked loudly.
"Yes, Boss, if something's up, just say it. We brothers are all here. As long as you give the order, we'll go through fire and water without hesitation."
Yao Dong was also drunk, and his voice was very loud.
Qin Chuan's mouth twitched slightly, and he quickly shook his head, "It's nothing serious, you guys keep drinking!"
"I'll settle the bill, everyone drink to your heart's content."
"Thank you, Boss!"
"Boss is generous!"
Amidst the clamor, the three Qin brothers and Li Ya walked out of the private room. Qin Chuan called his elder and second brothers along because they also recognized those relatives. If they were to encounter them later, given how drunk everyone was, a minor incident could escalate into something major. To be safe, Qin Chuan decided to call his elder and second brothers back, completely eliminating this potential cause of unease.
"Weiwei, thank you for tonight!"
When they reached the first floor, they didn't see the owner or his wife of the lamb restaurant; they were likely busy in the kitchen. Qin Chuan smiled gently at Yan Weiwei at the counter.
"Here's five hundred yuan, for our consumption tonight. If it's not enough, I'll make it up to you another day."
"Boss Qin, that's enough! More than enough..."
Yan Weiwei said quickly.
"It's alright, the extra money can be kept at your lamb restaurant for now. When I come to eat again next time, it can be used as a credit."
Hearing Qin Chuan say this, Yan Weiwei didn't refuse the money anymore. Instead, her expression became one of cheerful delight.
The four of them walked out of the lamb restaurant together.
"Huh? Mom, what are you doing here?"
Qin Yang and Qin Gang finally saw their mother standing in the snow outside.
"Hello, Auntie!"
Li Ya greeted obediently, acting as if she knew nothing.
Jiang Cuihua first glanced at Qin Chuan, then smiled a bit awkwardly, "My friends and I just finished eating nearby and were about to go home when we ran into Xiao Chuan."
"That's perfect, let's go home together!"
Second Brother Qin was quite drunk and intimately put his arm around his mother's shoulder.
"Ouch, you rascal, you reek of alcohol, get off me!"
Jiang Cuihua instantly regained her authoritative demeanor as a mother at home and scolded loudly.
"Hehe! Hehe!"
Second Brother Qin stumbled from being pushed, almost falling into the snow, but he didn't seem to mind. Instead, he shamelessly crept closer to Jiang Cuihua.
Qin Yang, however, had sobered up a bit. He looked at his mother, then at Qin Chuan, a thoughtful expression on his face.
"Let's go, get in the car. It's freezing cold, be careful not to catch a cold!"
At this moment, Qin Chuan urged.