Zhou Wei enthusiastically introduced these people to his friends.
There were young masters from state-owned enterprises, scions of multinational corporations, heirs to various listed companies, and if nothing else, junior masters from this or that corporate group.
Every single one of them possessed a prominent background.
Until it finally came to introducing that one person.
Xu Qiduo noticed that Zhou Wei was exceptionally attentive toward that person, practically bowing and scraping right in front of him.
“Brother Jiang, I probably don’t need to introduce him much! He’s as upright and red-blooded as they come! As everyone knows, his father was just transferred from City B to our City N last month. From now on, we’ll all be counting on Brother Jiang to look after us brothers here in City N.”
Truth be told, Xu Qiduo had not caught the underlying meaning in Zhou Wei’s words at first.
It was only later, upon hearing the discussion among the friends beside him, that he understood.
The Brother Jiang in Zhou Wei’s mouth was named Jiang Shun.
The reason Zhou Wei was so bootlicking toward him was mainly because among this group of rich second-generation young masters, he was the only political second-generation.
And not just any ordinary political second-generation; his family background was rock-solid. The so-called transfer of his father to City N to lead operations meant he had directly become the top official of City N.
Right now, Jiang Shun was the hottest commodity in City N’s business circles. Everyone wanted to cozy up to him just to catch a whiff.
Thus, Zhou Wei had some genuine skill to be able to know him.
Zhou Wei introduced them one by one to Jiang Shun. To be fair, Zhou Wei’s actions could be considered extremely conscientious.
When it came to introducing Xu Qiduo, Jiang Shun suddenly spoke up.
He asked Xu Qiduo directly, “We ran into each other at the back school gate last night, do you remember?”
Wang Shuo turned his head to look at Xu Qiduo.
Everyone else in the private room simultaneously turned their gazes toward him as well.
Before Xu Qiduo could reply, however, a young man sitting beside Jiang Shun pointed a finger at Xu Qiduo and said with a look of sudden realization, “Oh! It’s you! I was wondering why you looked so familiar! Right when we came back from getting midnight snacks yesterday, you and your classmate were just heading out, weren’t you? We ran into each other when swiping through the access gate at the back school gate, remember?”
Jiang Shun glanced sideways at the speaking young man, who immediately lowered his hand, though his gaze remained eagerly fixed on Xu Qiduo.
It was as if an ordinary chance encounter was being deliberately styled into a long-awaited reunion.
Xu Qiduo noticed the young man’s gesture and now fully understood Jiang Shun’s standing among that group of people.
If he said he remembered, there were tens of thousands of students in a university, and countless people brushed past each other on the road every day; going out of one’s way to remember a specific person seemed a bit abnormal.
Yet if he said he did not remember, the other person had remembered him while he had forgotten. Although this was the normal reaction of an ordinary person, saying it out loud right now would make things extremely awkward.
Xu Qiduo pressed his lips together, hesitating, and just as he was about to say he remembered,
Jiang Shun on the opposite side spoke up: “Looks like you don’t remember.”
Well, anything he said now would be too late.
Xu Qiduo gave Jiang Shun a forced, polite smile and simply kept his mouth shut.
Seeing that their conversation had concluded, Zhou Wei continued introducing the friends in their circle to Jiang Shun.
However, just past Wang Shuo, Jiang Shun interrupted him again and spoke.
Neither music nor lighting was turned off in the private room at the moment.
The bright overhead lights illuminated everyone’s expressions with absolute clarity.
“That classmate you were out with last night, is he the same guy from the post today?”
Xu Qiduo looked at Jiang Shun with some bewilderment.
Seeing this situation, Zhou Wei, who was sitting next to Jiang Shun, immediately waved at Xu Qiduo and called out, “Duo, why don’t you just come over here and chat with Brother Jiang.”
He really wanted to refuse.
Could he reject the request of an NPC who did not exist in the original plot?
Could he just ignore NPCs who didn’t exist in the plot?
Besides, no matter how you looked at it, he was also the third young master of the Xu family! His status and standing were top-tier! There was no need for him to act so servile just to cozy up to a political second-generation!
A rebellious urge gradually bubbled up, and Xu Qiduo replied indifferently, “No.” Then he told Zhou Wei, “I’m not coming over, you sit there where it’s easy to talk.”
There were still half of the friends left unintroduced; why on earth would he go over there, to play Zhou Wei’s sidekick?
“Fine.” Zhou Wei also understood the implication in Xu Qiduo’s words: “Then Brother Jiang, you two can chat privately later anyway since the drinks haven’t been served yet.”
The implication was that the night was still young, and there was no need to rush into gossip.
“I’m not done asking yet.” Right after Zhou Wei finished speaking to Xu Qiduo, Jiang Shun spoke up again.
Only this time, Jiang Shun’s tone was noticeably colder.
Seeing this, the young man sitting on Jiang Shun’s other side hurriedly chimed in, “My Brother Jiang has a rather straightforward personality; whenever there’s something on his mind, he likes to get a clear answer all at once.”
Zhou Wei moved his lips, but ultimately said nothing, only looking toward Xu Qiduo with a pleading expression.
Did they call this having a straightforward personality?
Jiang Shun’s behavior caused Xu Qiduo a moderate sense of discomfort.
When his friends gossiped, that was just gossip.
But for a total stranger to barge in and start interrogating him with such private questions could hardly be called gossip anymore. Xu Qiduo could not imagine how he should handle this situation if he strictly followed the original body’s persona.
Aside from stubbornly clinging to his unrequited feelings for Wang Shuo, Xu Qiduo seemed to possess no other distinct personality traits.
Therefore, Xu Qiduo simply chose to handle it his own way.
He mirrored Jiang Shun’s posture, leaning back against the sofa with a relaxed demeanor, and countered with a question: “Are you that gossipy? What is it you want to know?”
“Come sit over here?” Jiang Shun asked once more, completely refusing to play by the rules.
“I’ll just sit right here, can’t you hear me talking? Besides, everyone is quite curious about my business anyway, so I might as well say it all at once.”
Xu Qiduo already harbored enough grievances just transmigrating into a book to complete tasks and grind through plots; he had no intention of letting some random NPC boss him around.
He possessed a pretty large young-master temper of his own.
“I have nothing to do with him, but he is pursuing me. I love Wang Shuo, and my feelings for him will never change no matter how many years pass.”
Wonderful! The simp meter was maxed out, wasn’t it? His character persona had instantly reached its peak!
Outwardly calm, Xu Qiduo felt immensely proud and triumphant on the inside over what he had just said!
Wasn’t he an absolute genius?
Taking advantage of this opportunity to confess! This was even more affectionate second-lead behavior than an actual affectionate second lead.
“Hmph, I think your liking him is probably a bit mismatched.” Jiang Shun let out a sneer.
“That’s just your opinion.” Just as Xu Qiduo finished speaking, the string in his mind suddenly pulled taut!
It was a mystical sensation; the memories in his mind flashed clearly before his eyes like a passing reel of film…
Until the image froze.
Inside a car, that person sat with his back to the setting sun as the scenery outside the window sped backward.
The sound of the two conversing inside the car seemed to ring directly in his ears.
[It’s just… I like him, and he doesn’t like me back.]
[Your liking him is probably a bit mismatched; his judgment and brains aren’t all there, he isn’t suited for you.]
Xu Qiduo, who had been leaning against the sofa, bolted straight up.
Seeing this, Zhou Wei on the opposite side hurriedly raised his hand and pressed down, attempting to placate Xu Qiduo’s emotions from across the room.
Instead, Xu Qiduo said, “Zhou Wei, I want to swap seats with you.”
Following that, he pointed at Jiang Shun: “You, sit there.”
With that, he told Zhou Wei, “You, hurry up and finish the introductions.”
Right now, he urgently needed to speak with Jiang Shun. The absurd notion in his heart demanded verification.
Zhou Wei looked at the two of them in bewilderment, but ultimately sought permission from Jiang Shun with a glance.
Once Jiang Shun gave his consent, Zhou Wei swiftly finished introducing his friends to Jiang Shun.
The moment Xu Qiduo sat down beside Jiang Shun, neither of them spoke a word.
It wasn’t until people and drinks began entering the private room, the overhead lights went out, and the dim pendant lights turned on while music started playing from the nearby speakers,
that Xu Qiduo quietly reached out and grabbed Jiang Shun’s wrist.
He exerted a slight bit of force, and Jiang Shun cooperated with his movement, standing up alongside him.
He led the person off to the corner of the private room.
There was a bar counter there, along with a few chairs.
Seeing that no one else was curiously looking over, Xu Qiduo cornered Jiang Shun between the bar counter and the wall.
Although it was slightly strange for someone of his height to be cornering Jiang Shun, he couldn’t afford to care about such details now.
After carving out their own little corner within the private room, Xu Qiduo impatiently demanded, “Do you know He Jin?”
“Who?” Jiang Shun asked with a puzzled expression.
Unlike the visual impact of Zhou Mengxing’s alluring face during his acting, Jiang Shun’s unruly, rebellious face possessed an even stronger deceptive quality.
The other person’s look of genuine confusion did not seem fake, leaving Xu Qiduo somewhat dazed and hesitant: “You… you don’t know him?”
“Should I know him?”
Clearly, Xu Qiduo’s direct pitch had missed the mark. At this point, he could only circle back around: “Are you that curious about my affairs?”
“Of course, I’m very interested in you.” Now it was Jiang Shun’s turn to throw a direct pitch.
Xu Qiduo wore a strange expression. “So, you think Wang Shuo and I are a mismatch?”
“Of course, he’s not worthy of you. You and I are the ones who match.”
The lighting in the private room was dim and murky, making it difficult to make out the expression on the face of the person across from him.
Suddenly, a pair of large hands supported his waist. Jiang Shun applied pressure, gently drawing him forward so their bodies pressed closely together.
Xu Qiduo instinctively raised his hands to resist, only to find that he couldn’t push the person in front of him away no matter what.
“Didn’t I tell you before, his judgment and brains aren’t all there, he isn’t suited for you.” A soft whisper rang right beside his ear, making the hairs on Xu Qiduo’s arms stand on end.
He tried to shake off Jiang Shun’s restraint, but it seemed completely futile.
Xu Qiduo’s struggles were negligible in Jiang Shun’s eyes. To subdue Xu Qiduo, a single hand was more than enough.
Jiang Shun leaned down, bringing his face close to Xu Qiduo’s: “Do you know where the first time I ever saw you was?”
After struggling for a while, Xu Qiduo grew tired. Besides, the two of them were standing so close right now that any further movement might cause their faces to brush against one another.
Unable to break free, Xu Qiduo simply abandoned the struggle and stopped moving.
Anyway, they were inside a private room with so many people just behind them; Jiang Shun surely couldn’t actually do anything to him here!
“Where? I don’t remember ever seeing you.” Jiang Shun’s face felt entirely unfamiliar to him. He genuinely did not remember ever seeing Jiang Shun anywhere before.
“Downstairs in Building 4, inside the big public bathhouse.”
Jiang Shun’s deliberate approach and embrace made their actions look intimately close, just like lovers whispering sweet nothings.