Chapter 61: Rules of the Martial World

A quarter past six.

Inside a private dining room for eight at Pinyuan.

Two men and two women were engrossed in a game of Guandan. Zhao Yuanqing sat on the sofa, a silly grin plastered across his face as he stared at the photos of a Continental sent by the car sales representative.

"Who are you flirting with? Why are you smiling so wretchedly?"

After entering the room, Wei Lin crept over on tiptoe and abruptly slapped Zhao Yuanqing, who was still staring down at his phone.

"Damn! You scared the hell out of me!"

Zhao Yuanqing put his phone down, grinned broadly, and said, "Unless something unexpected happens, the car will arrive soon. Wei Lin, you'll have to accompany me to pick it up, and you'll be the first one to test drive it!"

The moment he secured the car, he had informed Wei Lin right away, making it clear that the very first press of the gas pedal belonged to him.

—This was to thank Wei Lin for his guidance and support.

Wei Lin didn't stand on ceremony with him at all, readily replying, "Alright, I've never driven a car like that before!"

"Ah, Wei Lin is here."

The former class monitor, Liu Maojun, had been so focused on the card game that he only just noticed him enter. Waving with a smile, he said, "I'm just getting tired. Come on over and play a couple of rounds."

Though he was only thirty years old, his protruding belly and deeply tanned skin made him look much older than his actual years.

Working at the shipyard was grueling, and after toiling all year round, his income was only around one hundred thousand yuan. Yet, he still complained discontentedly, "Wei Lin, what have you been so busy with lately? I've asked you to come over for dinner several times, and you always brush it off by saying you have no time!"

"Brother Jun, I really have been busy lately!" Wei Lin explained with a wry smile, then added cheerfully, "Hello, Sister-in-law! Fan Jun, I haven't seen the young lady with you before. Won't you introduce us?"

Liu Maojun's wife, Zhang Cuicui, put down her cards and smiled. "Is it because you think our place is too small and won't give you all enough room to move around, which is why you refuse to come over for dinner?"

"Sister-in-law, you're talking nonsense now." Before Wei Lin could speak, Zhao Yuanqing cried foul. "If the two of us were that kind of people, we wouldn't have remained friends with Brother Jun all these years."

The former monitor, Liu Maojun, smiled and said to his wife, "Over the past few years, have the times Wei Lin and Yuanqing come over for dinner really been that few?"

"I know, I was just joking with you!" Zhang Cuicui stood up, walked over, and said, "I'm done playing cards."

"Wei Lin, this is my girlfriend, Lin Yaqin." Fan Jun stopped playing as well, pulling over a woman holding a Gucci bag and wearing exquisite makeup to introduce her. "This is Wei Lin, and like Zhao Yuanqing, he's my high school classmate. We've been hanging out together for many years."

"Hello," Lin Yaqin greeted politely.

Dressed in a cashmere overcoat, she was about 1.65 meters tall, with a clover necklace hanging around her neck. Her six-out-of-ten appearance, elevated by skilled makeup, barely reached the seven-point mark.

"Wei Lin, I just saw Wu Qianqian, right in the private room opposite ours," Zhao Yuanqing said with a light cough. "She came over to our room to say hello and even knew you were coming later."

As soon as these words were spoken, Liu Maojun, Zhang Cuicui, and Fan Jun all cast meaningful glances at Wei Lin.

"Why did you mention that to her?" Wei Lin felt a headache coming on.

"If I didn't mention it, would she not find out anyway? Brother Jun is here, Sister-in-law is here, and Fan Jun is here too—how could you possibly be left out?" Zhao Yuanqing said nonchalantly. "You two broke up so long ago; can she still boss you around?"

"Was that the woman just now?" Lin Yaqin asked Fan Jun in a low voice.

Fan Jun answered bluntly, "Wei Lin's ex-girlfriend. Back when they were still together, Wei Lin used to bring her along to have dinner with us a few times."

Lin Yaqin nodded to show she understood.

Right at that moment.

"Screech!"

The heavy door of the private room was pushed open.

Mu Lanyan, dressed in a classy tweed outfit and wearing noticeable makeup, poked her head inside.

Exquisite facial features, fair skin, a well-tailored outfit, coupled with her demure demeanor of a young lady from a good family and eyes that seemed veiled in mist, instantly overshadowed Lin Yaqin.

Teacher Mu wore no accessories whatsoever to set her off, yet she effortlessly radiated an aura of noble elegance. Both her temperament and appearance were a cut above Lin Yaqin.

"Sit here."

Seeing her scanning the room with her eyes, Wei Lin waved her over, seated her right beside him, and then instructed Zhao Yuanqing, "Everyone's here, bring out the dishes."

"Waiter, bring out the dishes!" Zhao Yuanqing shouted.

After Teacher Mu sat down somewhat constrainedly, Wei Lin briefly introduced everyone and said, "This is Mu Lanyan, my mom's colleague, and a regular friend of mine!"

Hearing him deliberately emphasize "regular friend," everyone exchanged knowing smiles.

"Hello, everyone."

Mu Lanyan greeted them politely.

Wei Lin raised an eyebrow and asked with a smile, "White or red?"

"Red, I suppose. My alcohol tolerance isn't very good, so I can only drink a little." Teacher Mu, who was filled with curiosity about Wei Lin, looked apologetically at the crowd and stated in advance, "Please, nobody drag me into drinking rounds."

"Rest assured, our gathering has only seven words!" Wei Lin said very earnestly.

"Civilized drinking, no forced toasts!"

Except for Lin Yaqin, everyone else laughed and chimed in.

The wine was poured, the dishes were served one after another, and the group chatted casually as they drank.

Teacher Mu didn't talk much. Whenever someone invited her for a drink, she would just take a tiny sip.

"High school classmates whose current social status and wealth are worlds apart, yet they can still get along so harmoniously."

"Wei Lin and Zhao Yuanqing, the two guys from wealthier backgrounds, don't look down on old classmates who are less well off, and they treat their friends' wives with great respect and courtesy."

"It really is rare."

Listening to their conversation, Mu Lanyan nodded gently to herself.

Naturally, she had attended similar class reunions before.

Yet every single time, it was a chaotic mess of sycophants and showoffs, filling her with disgust from the bottom of her heart.

She could hear and see that the living standards of Liu Maojun, his wife, and Fan Jun were quite ordinary.

Under such circumstances, both sides could still get along so cordially without the slightest gap between them—truly a rare thing.

"Sister-in-law, why didn't you bring little Ranran over today?" Two carafes of white liquor down, Wei Lin's face was already flushed as he smiled and said, "I haven't seen our goddaughter in ages, I miss her a lot."

"Yeah! Where's little Ranran? I splurged on Pinyuan today specifically so little Ranran could eat something good. Why didn't you two bring her along?" Zhao Yuanqing also asked with some dissatisfaction.

"Ranran has a slight cough, so we didn't bring her out." Seeing the two of them mention their precious daughter, Liu Maojun beamed with smiles. "If she weren't feeling under the weather, I'd definitely bring her along to bleed you two rich guys dry!"

"Haha! Then next time, next time you must bring little Ranran! Next time it'll still be Pinyuan, still this private room, and I'll still treat!" Zhao Yuanqing raised his glass and smiled, "Old monitor, sister-in-law, let me propose a toast to you both. May you stay together for a hundred years in perfect harmony!"

Slapping his forehead, Zhao Yuanqing remembered something and said, "No! Next time it's Wei Lin's turn to treat. He's made quite a bundle recently too!"

Wei Lin also stood up to play along. "Next time it'll be my treat. I really do miss little Ranran."

"What do you mean made quite a bundle?" Lin Yaqin asked curiously.

"In the stock market." Zhao Yuanqing, having had some wine, couldn't help showing off. "Under Wei Lin's guidance, I bought two stocks. In 26 days, 4 million turned into 14 million! Friday morning, I just went to the provincial capital to order a Bentley."

Liu Maojun and the others knew his family background and were well aware of his character, so he wasn't afraid of coming across as too boastful.

Just as he expected, Fan Jun and the Liu couple, alongside their shock, offered him sincere congratulations.

Lin Yaqin was startled, then suddenly chimed in, "I work at a securities firm myself. I never expected you guys to be so skilled, multiplying your money 2.5 times in such a short period?"

"Wei Lin taught me everything," Zhao Yuanqing said with a smile.

Lin Yaqin, who had barely spoken during the meal, hesitated for a moment upon hearing this, then abruptly stood up with a smile. "President Zhao, President Wei, would it be convenient to add you on WeChat? I'd love to consult the two of you about some stock market questions."

As soon as she said this, Zhao Yuanqing was the first to frown.

Lin Yaqin was Fan Jun's date; asking another man for his WeChat at the dinner table was an extremely impolite behavior.

Fan Jun kept his head down, his expression turning quite ugly.

"It's not convenient," Wei Lin said, holding his wine glass with a smile. "Yuanqing and I value brotherhood codes the most. We never add contact information of our brothers' women."

"To be honest, up until now, even Brother Jun's wife isn't on our WeChat, just in case Brother Jun goes out for wild nights with us one day and gets bombarded by her voice messages demanding answers."

Sensing the awkward chill in the air, Zhang Cuicui chuckled and said, "No wonder you two scoundrels stubbornly refused to add me on WeChat!"

She even deliberately pinched Liu Maojun and said viciously, "Liu, you better honestly tell me, have these two ever taken you to a nightclub?"

The devoted husband and father, the former class monitor, broke out in cold sweat as he frantically protested his innocence.

"What do you mean 'brothers' women'? Don't talk nonsense! Fan Jun and I are still just regular friends, not what you guys are thinking!" Lin Yaqin hurriedly clarified.

With her pulling this stunt, Fan Jun's expression darkened even further.

No matter how clueless Fan Jun was, he could now see that the signs she was showing were not quite right—she clearly had some interest in Zhao Yuanqing and Wei Lin, completely disregarding his own face.

Wei Lin and Zhao Yuanqing exchanged a glance, and said with lukewarm indifference, "My girlfriend is strict; she doesn't let me add other women on WeChat, nobody's."

At that moment, Mu Lanyan, who had maintained a certain distance from him all along, quietly shifted a little closer to him.

Wei Lin chuckled and asked with a smile, "Right?"

Drinking her water, Teacher Mu nodded gently.

"My girlfriend is the same way!" Zhao Yuanqing snapped back to reality and hurriedly declared, "She's even stricter! Lin Yaqin, if you have anything you want to ask, you can have Fan Jun relay the questions to us! As for adding WeChat, forget about it. Don't go disrupting the harmony of our households!"

With that, he cast a suggestive glance between Wei Lin and Mu Lanyan.

"Screech!"

The door was pushed open abruptly.

This time it wasn't a waiter serving dishes, but a man and a woman walking in together, both looking a bit intoxicated.

"Wei Lin, long time no see. I heard you got divorced?"

Wu Qianqian walked in openly, holding a carafe of white liquor in her hand. But when she saw an exceptionally pretty woman sitting right next to Wei Lin, the smile on her face instantly vanished.

Beside her.

A tall man in a tailored suit saw Lin Yaqin, and the smile on his face vanished just as quickly.