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Chapter 89: Banquet, Complaining to Hubby
“Qi Sheng?”
He Qing’s first reaction was suspicion. For a hotel hosting this level of business, how could they casually look for inexperienced college students? It sounded unreliable.
Xu Zhiyuan hurriedly explained that it was a connection from their direct senior. His dad was the senior’s advisor; could fellow disciples scam their own people? Besides, the Lu family was a family of scholars with quite a clean reputation in the city, just usually low-key, so there was nothing to worry about.
Alright, it’s just that for a banquet hosted by Qi Sheng, that guy surnamed Zhou would definitely attend. Who knows if at that time… He Qing’s eyes flickered, showing a hint of difficulty. It wasn’t just him; Jiang Yunian, who had been resting quietly, had the exact same thought.
“Oh come on, it’s just going as a waiter, carrying some plates.” Xu Zhiyuan said this while turning to shake Jiang Yunian at the other desk. “Three hundred a night, are you really not going?”
Upon hearing the reward of “three hundred a night,” Jiang Yunian’s eyes lit up, and he slowly lifted his head. This number was quite attractive to him; it was enough to cover his expenses for many days.
Jiang Yunian blinked, licked his somewhat dry lips, and asked, “Is it reliable?”
“The senior guaranteed it, it’s definitely reliable.” Xu Zhiyuan patted his chest.
After a moment’s hesitation, he still bowed to the power of money and softly agreed.
Seeing him compromise over three hundred bucks, and thinking of the senior Xu Zhiyuan mentioned, He Qing’s wariness lessened a bit. He thought that in such a huge setting, as an inconspicuous waiter, he wouldn’t necessarily be so unlucky as to bump right into a certain someone… In the end, he was half-persuaded, half-dragged by Xu Zhiyuan into agreeing as well.
The three of them had agreed nicely, but when the day of the banquet arrived, plans couldn’t keep up with changes. On the day of the banquet, Xu Zhiyuan wailed in the group chat that relatives had suddenly arrived from his hometown, and he was urgently summoned home by his mother to help out, so he couldn’t go.
Already prepared, Jiang Yunian and He Qing had no choice but to bite the bullet and go on their own. The hotel was a renowned domestic hotel located in the most prosperous district of Pingjing. It was majestic; just the gilded signboard and the gorgeous greeters at the door exuded a sense of distance. The two followed the information to find the staff channel and met Manager Li.
Manager Li was around forty years old, with sharp eyes, a shrewd person. She glanced at the two boys who were dressed simply and completely exuded a student vibe. She didn’t say much, just officially led them into the staff lounge.
Several male waiters had already arrived in the male lounge, but their appearances were entirely different from Jiang Yunian and his friend. Every single one had their hair styled perfectly, their faces seemingly wearing makeup, and even the waiter uniforms were worn by them to give off a different flavor.
Manager Li had clearly seen it all. She issued a warning: “Listen to me well, the ones coming today are all VIPs. Reel in all those improper thoughts you shouldn’t have, behave and do your jobs, and don’t cause any trouble for me!”
A flamboyant guy with dramatic eyeliner and two unbuttoned shirt buttons immediately clung to her, hooking her arm and flattering: “Sister Li~ How would we dare cause trouble for you?”
Manager Li unceremoniously pulled her hand back, waving her hand in disgust: “Reel in your fox stench. This is a hotel, not those unrated gigolo clubs outside! And your lipstick is too bright, wipe it all off!”
She pointed to the two silent figures at the door. “Follow their standard.”
The flamboyant guy immediately swept his gaze over, circling around Jiang Yunian’s plain, clean face and neatly buttoned uniform. He curled his lip in dissatisfaction and muttered, “Acting so pure and noble…”
The people coming here were either rich or noble. People like them were all brought in through connections to catch some coattails. Who wasn’t harboring thoughts of clinging to a sugar daddy? Everyone had the same goal, who was nobler than who?
Inside the banquet hall, the lights were dazzling, filled with fine clothes and beautiful people. Elder Qi sat in his wheelchair and gave a short speech, then specifically introduced the young man beside him.
This heir to the Qi Sheng Group, who had frequently appeared in the financial pages recently, was already the focus of the venue. Who in the industry didn’t recognize this surefire successor to the Qi Sheng Group? This banquet was nothing more than to add a bit more prestige to this future helmsman.
Jiang Yan stood under the spotlight, a well-tailored black suit accentuating his tall and straight posture. His handsome face carried a faint detachment. He calmly dealt with the gazes from all sides, his speech and demeanor showing an innate nobility.
Jiang Yunian held a champagne tray, completely inconspicuous as he hid in the crowd. Looking at the young man on the stage surrounded by stars, handling everything with ease, it was very hard to overlap him with the memory of the guy who would laze on the old sofa and rub against his neck like a large dog asking for a hug.
For a moment, he actually felt a bit dazed.
The flamboyant guy was slacking off, wanting to pull an honest guy over to help him work. Glancing around and seeing him standing there foolishly holding the tray, he walked over.
“What are you spacing out for? Trying to slack off?” The flamboyant guy followed Jiang Yunian’s gaze to the crowd surrounding Jiang Yan, and sneered. “Even if you stare a hole through him, it won’t be your turn. See that? That one is the main character.”
His hand gestured toward the wealthy heiress who was following her father in conversation with Jiang Yan. Dressed in an exquisite evening gown, her appearance was gorgeous, looking exactly like the photos on Weibo.
A mocking smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. “Hurry up and work!”
Jiang Yunian received a not-so-light shove from him. He steadied the tray in his hand that almost tilted, pursed his lips, and silently followed him to shuttle among the spacious and magnificent banquet tables.
At a corner, two pulling figures caught their attention. They only saw He Qing being half-forced by a man in a suit, pushed into a hidden private room door. Though only a glimpse, the helpless expression on He Qing’s face was obvious. However, falling into the eyes of certain people, it was perfectly read as playing hard to get.
“Tsk tsk~” The flamboyant guy raised his eyebrows, revealing a playful smile. “Looks like I really underestimated you two. You managed to hook Young Master Zhou. You brothers have quite the methods. Looks like Sister Li was wrong; you two are the real vixens.”
As someone who was stuffed in here through pimping, what he hated the most was this pure and innocent white lotus type like Jiang Yunian, whose methods behind the scenes were trickier than anyone else’s. They snatched up all the diamond bachelors, leaving them with crooked melons and cracked dates that weren’t even enough to fill the gaps in their teeth. Wasn’t this disrupting the market?
From the corner of his eye, he caught a figure approaching their side, and an evil thought instantly took shape. He leaned close to Jiang Yunian, his malicious voice sounding eerie: “Don’t you want to cling to Young Master Qi? Let your big brother here help you out.”
Jiang Yunian’s heart tightened, instinctively retorting: “I don’t…”
Before he could finish his sentence, his lower back received a forceful shove from behind! He completely lost control and pitched forward, the tray slipping from his hands. Champagne and wine glasses smashed into the floor together, emitting a harsh crash. Shards and liquor splattered everywhere. He thought he would fall miserably onto it, but unexpectedly crashed into a sturdy, warm embrace.
A crisp, cold fragrance wrapped around him, extremely familiar.
The banquet hall was huge. Even though the commotion here wasn’t small, it wasn’t enough to attract the entire venue’s attention, but many people around still looked over, whispering amongst themselves.
The flamboyant guy was clearly a veteran with immense belief in his act. He immediately put on a frightened expression and fake-cried out: “Why did you fall all of a sudden? Are you okay?”
As he spoke, he raised his head, as if only just clearly seeing Jiang Yan’s face. He feigned surprise, widening his eyes and posturing to help support his arm, his voice sickly sweet: “Young Master Qi, you aren’t hurt, are you?”
Jiang Yan didn’t even glance at him. That freezing gaze made his extended hand stiffen in mid-air, and he resentfully pulled it back.
Jiang Yan’s arm was still steadily wrapped around Jiang Yunian’s waist, making half his body practically embedded into his chest. It looked incredibly intimate, appearing completely deliberate under the watchful eyes of the crowd. Jiang Yunian, however, was completely oblivious to the scrutiny analyzing his intentions. His cheeks rapidly burned, and embarrassed, he struggled slightly: “Let go of me…”
Jiang Yan let go with a dark face, steadying him: “What happened?”
The flamboyant guy interjected quickly: “He just accidentally twisted his ankle, he didn’t mean it, Young Master Qi, please don’t…”
“I’m asking him.”
The flamboyant guy awkwardly fell silent, secretly glaring at Jiang Yunian, a threat in his eyes.
Jiang Yan looked down at the person beside him. His deep pupils were devoid of ripples, seemingly unbiased toward anyone, just waiting. Yet, this single glance gave the other party immense encouragement.
Jiang Yunian’s heart drummed. He had no grudges with the other party, and couldn’t understand why this person would frame him like this. Looking at Jiang Yan’s face so close at hand, and feeling the probing gazes around him, grievance and anger surged up intertwined. He took a breath, unconsciously starting to complain to him: “He pushed me, and scolded me… and He Qing too.”
The flamboyant guy simply couldn’t believe his ears. This little white rabbit actually dared to complain? Did he really think playing innocent worked on everyone? He immediately cried foul: “You’re the one who fell into Young Master Qi’s arms. What benefit is there for me to push you?”
How would he know that?
Anyway, he had pushed him.
Manager Li, hearing the news, hurried through the crowd. Seeing the mess on the floor and the two waiters opposite her, her brows knotted together, regret filling her heart. Without asking for the reason, she immediately apologized respectfully to Jiang Yan, “Young Master Qi, it’s my poor management, I hope you will be magnanimous…”
Jiang Yan ignored her. His gaze never left Jiang Yunian, only faintly spitting out two words: “Kick him out.”
Jiang Yunian’s heart skipped a beat. He looked at the other party, his lips pressed white. Was it because he messed up that he was being expelled?
Hearing this, the flamboyant guy lowered his head in secret delight, feigning sympathy: “Ah? Fired? Isn’t that a bit too severe… He probably really didn’t mean it…”
How astute was Manager Li? She instantly understood Young Master Qi’s meaning. She turned to the flamboyant guy, rolling her eyes in exasperation. “Please leave.”
The flamboyant guy’s smile froze. He pointed at himself in shock: “Me? No… Sister Li, you must be mistaken, right? He’s the one who broke the things…”
Restless and brainless. Fool.
Manager Li was too lazy to waste words. She directly waved her hand to summon security. The security guards stepped forward and, brooking no argument, dragged away the shouting flamboyant guy.
The farce came to an end. The bystanders observed their noses and their noses observed their hearts, silently withdrawing their gazes as if they had seen nothing. Jiang Yunian stood frozen, his hands and feet cold, staring at the shards on the floor in embarrassment. When all was said and done, it involved him. He still had to clean up this mess on the ground… “Then I’ll go down first.”
Saying that, he wanted to go grab some tools, but his wrist was caught from behind. Jiang Yunian turned his head in astonishment, meeting Jiang Yan’s eyes.
Jiang Yan looked at him, his face expressionless, his voice deep and steady, yet exuding a natural sense of control: “Did I permit you to leave?”
Jiang Yunian stiffened, the temperature transmitted from his wrist scalding his heart with panic. He tried to break free, but that grip wouldn’t budge an inch. The surrounding gazes seemed to gather again. His cheeks burned hotter, his voice trembling slightly: “…Is there something else?”
Jiang Yan merely stared at him darkly. His eyes were complex and hard to decipher, seemingly scrutinizing, and there was also a trace of… something he couldn’t understand. After a few seconds, he slowly spoke, his voice pressed extremely low, audible only to the two of them:
“The things that were broken, you don’t need to compensate for them?”
Jiang Yunian’s pupils shrank slightly, his heart suddenly sinking. That set of wine glasses didn’t look cheap either… Whether he could afford it was another matter, but he hadn’t broken them on purpose, so why should he pay?
He hesitated over whether to call the flamboyant guy back, unsure if that person would pay.
Watching his face instantly turn pale and his eyes widen slightly, his fur standing on end like a little kitten, a trace of amusement, difficult to catch, flickered in the depths of Jiang Yan’s eyes. He loosened his grip. His fingertips, seemingly unintentionally, gently brushed against the inner side of Jiang Yunian’s wrist bone, sending up a faint tremor.
“Come with me.”
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