362: Chapter 362: Turn No One Away 362: Chapter 362: Turn No One Away “It’s you, Li Zhencheng.” Tangyu looked at the newcomer.
Li Zhencheng walked over slowly, carrying an admirable presence, and smiled gracefully.
His gaze only lingered on Mo Xiaoqing for a moment, showing a flash of surprise.
The last time he saw Tangyu with Guo Momo and the three great beauties, and today again with another gorgeous woman, such blessings truly made others envious.
However, as a gentleman of the upper echelons of society, his upbringing was very refined.
He smiled and said, “Are you and your friend here for dinner?”
“Yes, but it seems like there are no private rooms available.” Tangyu replied.
Li Zhencheng nodded, then turned to the waitress and said, “Give them one of the reserved VIP rooms.”
The waitress appeared somewhat dazed as she looked at Li Zhencheng, seemingly captivated by his handsome appearance, hesitated for a brief moment, then nodded and said, “Of course, young master, I’ll arrange it immediately.”
“Mhm.” Li Zhencheng nodded, smiled once more at Tangyu, and said, “Then I won’t disturb you and your friend’s meal.
Have fun.”
“Yeah, thanks.” Tangyu smiled in response, not at all surprised by Li Zhencheng’s influence.
After all, his Li family was also one of the five great powers.
Judging by the way the waitress spoke, this five-star hotel was likely owned by his Li family, which was quite a coincidence.
Throughout all this, Li Zhencheng hadn’t looked at anyone else, and it was only after he leisurely left that the others came back to their senses, quite astonished by the event.
Such high-status individuals were not ones they could normally interact with, much less see on a daily basis.
The rest of the crowd looked at Tangyu with surprise and started to speculate.
Zhou Wenkai’s mouth twitched—Tangyu had once again stolen the spotlight, and today, it seemed destined that he wouldn’t be the main character.
Under the warm hospitality of the waitress, they arrived at the reserved VIP room, which was incredibly spacious and magnificent.
The facilities inside were definitely more luxurious than a presidential suite.
Dining in such a room was not just a pleasure; it was an indulgence that made one feel like a king who owned the world.
The luxuriousness of the private room stunned the group once more.
Not to mention that such rooms were generally impossible to book even if one had the money.
Even if one did manage to book it, affording the meals would be another issue.
Those who knew about the grand hotel would understand that the minimum charge for the VIP room was in the six figures.
“Everyone, please take a seat and order whatever you’d like.
Since tastes vary, it’s better for everyone to order for themselves.
Don’t be shy, just order whatever you want to eat.” Tangyu said warmly, inviting everyone as if he was the host for the day.
Tangyu’s warmth earned the appreciation of everyone present.
“Hehe, everyone, please take a seat.
Each person should order at least one dish—ladies may order more,” the monitor also guided the atmosphere, inviting everyone to participate.
Everyone let go of their reservations and ordered dishes freely.
The menu here didn’t display the prices, so there wasn’t much to worry about.
Zhou Wenkai had been here a few times before and knew which dishes were more expensive, so he picked the priciest and ordered three.
If it wouldn’t seem too presumptuous, he would’ve liked to order even more.
After all, Tangyu was the one treating them today, so he was curious to see if Tangyu could actually afford it when the time came.
“What would everyone like to drink?
Please order,” Tangyu suggested once more.
“We’re all gentlemen here, so we should naturally drink white liquor.
For the ladies, let’s go with red wine,” Wenkai said.
“Alright, just order whatever you want to drink,” Tangyu replied with a nod, casting a sidelong glance at Zhou Wenkai—he wasn’t fooled by his petty thoughts.
Spending a bit more money didn’t bother him.
Sometimes, face was more important than money.
“Let’s take it easy, everyone, and not make Tangyu spend too much.
He’s being too polite today, making me feel a bit embarrassed,” the monitor remarked.
Everyone agreed, as it’s common to treat someone as a friend once you’re familiar with them.
Zhou Wenkai smiled and said, “Today is a rare opportunity, no matter what, we must eat and drink well.
Everyone should feel free to order, money is secondary.
This meal, let me treat.” Zhou Wenkai was now trying to steal back some of the spotlight.
“Wenkai, enjoy yourself, but there’s no need to overspend,” the monitor said.
Wenkai shook his head.
“If we’re going to enjoy ourselves, then don’t worry about whether it’s expensive or not.
If we did, how could we truly enjoy ourselves?
Drink to your heart’s content, order what you want to eat.
We can’t have a shortage of dishes to accompany the drinks, can we?
Eating well and drinking well is what’s important.
It’s rare to have such an opportunity every three years, isn’t it?
Money, we can earn later, but our chance to gather together like this is precious, right?” he declared.
With Zhou Wenkai putting it this way, everyone just went along with it.
Zhou Wenkai was indeed curious—he ordered twelve bottles of white liquor and two bottles of red wine directly.
None of them were familiar with this place, so the choice of drinks was left up to him.
But without a doubt, the wines and liquors sold here were all very expensive.
Mo Xiaoqing was indeed very touched today.
She hadn’t wanted to come to this gathering at all, but couldn’t resist after the monitor and several classmates called her one after another.
She saw everything that Tangyu had done for her and was deeply moved.
“Tangyu, you don’t need to fight for the spotlight,” Mo Xiaoqing shook her head, whispering to Tangyu.
Tangyu smiled as he looked at Mo Xiaoqing and said, “This isn’t about stealing the show, this is about people fighting for a breath of pride.
I’m fighting for both myself and you.
Today’s gathering is obviously a trap set by Zhou Wenkai, with the purpose of shaming me.
So, he’s been targeting me from the moment he arrived.
Since that’s the case, why should I back down?
All I’m doing is returning the favor.
In my eyes, your dignity is far more precious than anything else.
Money is a trivial matter.
Besides, I am now your boyfriend, and I must show you off in front of your classmates, give you some face.
Pride is something that should be sought when needed.”
Mo Xiaoqing watched Tangyu, stunned.
To say she had no vanity would be deceiving herself.
It’s just like a girl saying she doesn’t care about her appearance, which is a complete joke.
In this world, there may be girls who don’t love money, but there are definitely no girls who don’t love beauty.
Vanity is something everyone has, only varying in degrees.
Mo Xiaoqing’s vanity might not be strong, but it definitely wasn’t non-existent.
At this moment, she basked in the envious or appreciative stares of her classmates, and she felt very happy, happy to have Tangyu as a boyfriend.
However, the thought that Tangyu was just her temporary boyfriend made her feel somewhat melancholic and lost.
A casual conversation lasted for about ten minutes, and then the drinks and dishes were all served.
Over twenty dishes were ordered, and alcohol filled the table.
The class leader enthusiastically opened the alcohol for everyone, indicating that they should all fill their glasses.
“Come, this first toast, we must offer to Tangyu, no, to Tangyu and Mo Xiaoqing, the little couple, in thanks for their generous hospitality.
We, truly, are happy for Mo Xiaoqing, for finding a good man worthy of her life’s trust, and we also wish that their love will be sweet and lasting, growing old together, and that they’ll soon have a child, haha,” the class leader said, raising his glass.
Everyone echoed in response, and it was clear that Tangyu was the most popular here.
Mo Xiaoqing’s face smiled, but her heart felt like crying.
Could there really be love between her and Tangyu?
Could they really be sweet together, grow old together, and have children early?
She yearned for it but knew it was a luxury.
“Thank you all for your blessings,” said Tangyu and Mo Xiaoqing as they stood up to respond to everyone.
Zhou Wenkai stood up expressionless.
The first toast had been snatched away from him by Tangyu, so all he could do was watch.
After the first toast, lunch officially began, and many came forward to toast with Tangyu and Mo Xiaoqing.
The two of them were clearly the stars of the day, receiving attention from everyone as if surrounded by a constellation of stars.
Zhou Wenkai said nothing throughout, and Ning Xinhua was not in the mood either.
In terms of beauty, she was no match for Mo Xiaoqing, and in terms of stealing the spotlight, her man couldn’t compete with Tangyu at all, leaving her without any confidence.
After everyone had made their toasts, Zhou Wenkai managed to squeeze out a smile, picked up his glass, and stood up to toast Tangyu.
Of course, what his true intentions were remained unknown.
Seeing Zhou Wenkai raising his glass to toast him, Tangyu picked up his glass without a hint of emotion and turned to Mo Xiaoqing, “Xiaoqing, let’s have a drink as well.”
Mo Xiaoqing nodded with a sweet smile, and they clinked glasses, leaving Zhou Wenkai’s glass suspended in mid-air, his face a mask of awkwardness.
He knew Tangyu had done it on purpose, but he couldn’t say anything; Tangyu had made it look like too much of a coincidence.
Zhou Wenkai hated Tangyu deeply in his heart.
“Xiaoqing, let me offer you a toast,” Zhou Wenkai could only say directly.
Mo Xiaoqing was slightly startled but still nodded amiably, raising her glass to Zhou Wenkai.
However, Tangyu showed no intention of raising his own glass and just focused on his food.
The others noticed that the atmosphere between Tangyu and Zhou Wenkai was a bit off.
With a twitch at the corner of his mouth, Zhou Wenkai was irritated that Tangyu had embarrassed him in front of everyone.
Gritting his teeth, he said, “Tangyu, I toast to the two of you.”
Only then did Tangyu deliberately turn around slowly, picking up his glass and casually gesturing to Zhou Wenkai.
The three of them took their drinks, and Zhou Wenkai sat down with a frozen face, wishing he could pick up the bottle and smash it into Tangyu’s face.
“Let’s drink more to honor Mo Xiaoqing and her partner today; they’re the main characters,” Zhou Wenkai suddenly said, aiming to get everyone to toast Tangyu and Mo Xiaoqing.
Since you won’t give me face, I’ll get you drunk today.
Ning Xinhua caught on first and toasted to Mo Xiaoqing.
Everyone took turns making toasts, first to thank Tangyu for hosting today, second to bless Tangyu and Mo Xiaoqing, and third to build a good relationship with Tangyu.
Tangyu, for his part, refused no one.
Knowing Zhou Wenkai wanted to get him drunk, he was fearless.
Facing many, he didn’t shy away, giving everyone enough face and thus intensifying the lively atmosphere.
“Tangyu, you should drink less,” Mo Xiaoqing said worriedly.
The class leader also stood up and said, “Let’s take it easy, everybody.
Don’t get Tangyu drunk.”
“That’s not right, class leader.
Tangyu is known for his drinking capacity, which we have all seen.
He will drink as much as he can handle.
If he can drink, he will; if he can’t, he’ll say no more.
We’re all classmates; it’s okay to be casual.
Here’s another toast to you, Tangyu,” Zhou Wenkai said.
Tangyu replied with a sly, mischievous smile, “Let everyone enjoy the drinks.
It seems Zhou Wenkai is in high spirits today; let’s all drink more with him.”