A Zhong felt he couldn't stop his mind from wandering if things continued like this.
Fortunately, the arrival of a group of people interrupted them.
Luxury cars are luxury cars; you could hear the roar of their engines from miles away.
Under the collective gaze of everyone, several sports cars, roaring their engines, lined up and stopped by the roadside.
Then, a group of flamboyantly dressed men and women walked over.
The boss seemed quite familiar with them, exchanged greetings, and everyone found seats.
Zhou Jinbei kept her head buried low, wishing she could burrow into Ah Zhong's embrace.
However, with her outstanding appearance, she was spotted at a glance.
"Who is this? So familiar. Isn't that Sister Bei? Long time no see. We guys thought you'd gone abroad, but you're here!"
"Sister Bei, you don't even say hello when you see us. Have you forgotten your brothers?"
Recognized, Zhou Jinbei pretended to be drunk and turned her head vaguely.
"Gao Sheng Hu? Er Kai? Hi, so it's you guys. I was drunk and didn't recognize you. What have you been up to lately?"
It turned out to be a group of old acquaintances.
Carrying plastic stools, they "whooshed" and sat around the table, pulling Zhou Jinbei to talk about their recent experiences.
The feeling of being high vanished instantly.
Ah Zhong also lost the desire to peel shrimp and sat quietly, watching Zhou Jinbei brag to them.
"I haven't been busy with much, just helping my cousin out at his company and investing in a beauty salon."
"Oh dear, business is tough these days. We're not like you; we can't afford to play around anymore."
Others: "Tsk, a starved camel is still bigger than a horse. You shouldn't be so modest with us. If we don't borrow money from you, and you cry poverty as soon as we meet, what's that supposed to mean?"
"Exactly. My mom heard she went to your beauty salon. I thought your mom opened it, but it turns out it was you."
"Boss, bring us another ten dozen beers!"
They chattered and chattered, as if they hadn't seen each other in ages, spitting with excitement.
Ah Zhong grew bored listening. While everyone was engrossed in their bragging, he quietly slipped away, settled the bill with the boss, and returned to the hospital.
When Zhou Jinbei finished appeasing these vain people and came to her senses,
She found Ah Zhong gone.
Asking the boss, she learned he had left long ago, which infuriated her.
How many shrimp had he peeled for her? He left without even a word!
What a scumbag!
While everyone else had designated drivers or rides, Zhou Jinbei was in a predicament.
When asked how she arrived, she said she came with a friend.
"Your friend seems to have already left. Would you like a ride?"
"No need. He'll be back to pick me up soon. You guys go ahead."
But who would come to pick her up?
With her current circle of acquaintances, not even a ghost would.
The street was mostly deserted, and the boss was packing up to close shop.
She felt like someone abandoned by the world, suddenly feeling so desolate.
She couldn't help but take out her phone and call Chen Jiaojiao.
Upon hearing her voice, still groggy from drinking, Chen Jiaojiao perked up.
"Where are you? Weren't you going to the hospital? Did you sneak out to drink without me?"
"Don't even mention it. Zhong Jiaming, that scoundrel, is back, and I got drunk, but he ran off ahead of time. Come pick me up."
Chen Jiaojiao, her head still half-drunk, drove to find her.
When they met, standing on the curb, Zhou Jinbei raised her voice as high as she could.
"What is he? For this Miss Zhou to condescend to fancy him, to be willing to be with him, isn't that a blessing he's cultivated over lifetimes?"
"Ignoring me? Running away? He's a coward! A scumbag!"
Chen Jiaojiao pulled her towards the car.
"Alright, didn't you marry someone else and abandon him first? And now you're blaming him."
"But I got divorced later! I gave him another chance! Why didn't he chase me?"
"You're asking me? I don't live in his heart, how would I know? When I wanted to tell him things clearly back then, who was it that mumbled and stopped me from speaking?"
Zhou Jinbei buried her head on Chen Jiaojiao's shoulder and started crying.
"That's because I was too proud! He never said he liked me, the child was something I stole, do you know I was afraid to say it!"
"I slept with him secretly, Jiaojiao, do you know what it feels like to get a man drunk and sleep with him secretly?"
Chen Jiaojiao was speechless: "Big sister, we're on the street, maintain some image!"
"He's about to go on a blind date with someone else, his father is so eager to have a grandson, why should I care about my image? I'm a castaway now!"
Zhou Jinbei shook her head, swaying.
"A castaway with no one to love or care for, a castaway, do you understand?"
Chen Jiaojiao had initially told herself not to think too negatively.
"I'm young, beautiful, and rich, with plenty of men who like me. Why should I be living or dying for a crooked tree?"
But now, hearing Zhou Jinbei say it, she also felt a pang of sadness.
"No man is any good, to hell with them! Don't think about it too much, they spend money, why can't we?"
"With our figures and looks, it's just that we don't want to. If we wanted to, we could captivate every man on this street!"
"Stop thinking about him. We're not going home tonight until we're drunk. I'll treat you to a bar and order two male escorts for you! No, ten!"
"One to dance for you, one to sing for you, one to give you a massage, one to kneel and serve you! Whatever we tell them to do, they have to do it, to put men under our feet!"
"Yes! We'll put men under our feet!"
The two went to a bar, acting wild and crazy.
Chen Jiaojiao threw out a stack of cash and told the bar manager to clear out the central VIP booth for them.
Then, she called out all the male escorts, lining them up for her friend to choose from.
The music was deafening, the lights dazzling and strange.
The men's seductive dance moves and alluring glances were captured clearly on video and flowed into Zhou Jinbei's Moments feed.
"Friends, let's get high! Let's all put those damn men under our feet and get high!"
Ah Zhong had spent over two thousand yuan without even having a bite to eat or drink.
Returning to the ward on an empty stomach, his father was sleeping soundly.
He couldn't sleep.
Zhou Jinbei sitting with a bunch of rich second-generation kids, acting as if she belonged, her effortless bragging, kept replaying in his mind.
He didn't understand Zhou Jinbei, truly didn't.
Sometimes he felt like she liked him, her gaze sincere and full of feeling.
But other times...
Ah Zhong had to admit he had no talent in matters of the heart.
Being led around by a girl nine years younger than him.
He couldn't sleep.
While cursing himself in his heart for being useless, he couldn't help but dig out her WeChat.
Looking at her profile picture, her Moments feed.
As it turned out, it was better not to look, but once he did.
Heh, Miss Zhou was off to a happy time at the bar.
And she had ordered male escorts.
Here he was, feeling dejected and lost in thought, worrying about her, while she was indulging in debauchery.
Zhong Jiaming, Zhong Jiaming, could you be any more pathetic?