Graduation Gathering

While Jiang Qin was taking Feng Nanshu around to eat and shop, in the Top Scholar Hall of Dragon Might Hotel, midway through City Within a City.

The students of Class 2, Grade 3 arrived one after another and took their seats.

This gathering had been organized by Qin Ziang. He had demanded the best private room and booked the finest banquet.

Back then, teenagers whose values had yet to fully form learned how to conduct themselves by imitating their parents. Qin Ziang's father was a real estate developer, so despite his young age, Qin Ziang already carried the air of a high-quality man: slicked-back hair, a powdered face, a suit, and a gold watch on his wrist.

"Everyone, three years of high school were neither short nor long, but I feel honored to have had the chance to be in the same class as all of you."

"Starting today, we're adults. So I propose that we raise our glasses together. But no one is allowed to drink soda—we have to drink alcohol, because what we're drinking today isn't wine, but maturity."

"I once wrote this in my QQ Zone: Drink to half a lifetime of drifting and hardship, drink to a lifetime of solitude and loneliness. For this glass, I'll drink first as a sign of respect."

Qin Ziang raised his glass and downed the beer in one gulp.

Then, imitating the way his father discussed business at dinner tables, he turned the glass upside down to show everyone that not a single drop remained.

At that sight, the Top Scholar Hall erupted in applause.

"Brother Qin, you really don't seem like a student at all. Everything you do is so mature."

"That's right. Compared to you, we seem especially childish."

"Someone like Ziang will definitely become an elite the moment he enters society. So handsome."

"Drink to half a lifetime of drifting and hardship, drink to a lifetime of solitude and loneliness. That's the most domineering status line I've ever seen."

Qin Ziang humbly waved his hand and said he had merely been speaking from the heart, while discreetly glancing at Chu Siqi across from him.

A peacock spread its tail to attract the opposite sex, and high school students acted mature for the same reason.

2008 was the peak era of non-mainstream culture, and its quotes were all the rage. Qin Ziang felt that he truly possessed Dominator's Aura, so the corners of his mouth always remained tilted upward.

But Chu Siqi's expression was indifferent, and she looked utterly uninterested.

She was looking at her phone. Jiang Qin had not come, and his QQ avatar was gray too, which made her worry about whether Jiang Qin even knew about the gathering.

Just then, the private room door was suddenly pushed open by a pudgy hand. Guo Zihang hurried in, repeatedly apologizing.

"I went to the wrong place earlier and spent ages finding my way here."

"Hey, Guo Zihang, why did you come alone? Jiang Qin didn't come with you?"

"Oh, he went off to do business. He's been too busy lately, so he isn't coming."

Guo Zihang had originally wanted to mention that Jiang Qin had gone out to have fun with a girl, but for some reason, the words changed direction as they reached his lips.

Upon hearing that, Chu Siqi immediately bit her lip, and the fist beneath the table clenched tight.

Ever since they had run into each other on Central Street, she had been waiting for Jiang Qin to regret it, come find her, admit his mistake, and beg her for another chance.

Yet in the blink of an eye, a week had passed. Not only had he shown no remorse, he had not even sent her a single QQ message.

She felt that Jiang Qin had truly changed. He had become so good at enduring it. Before, he would feel awful if he went even half a day without talking to her, but now he could endure an entire week.

The thought irritated her.

How had Jiang Qin, who used to cater to her every whim, become like this?

She had clearly only wanted what was best for him. She had been so considerate of him, and had even encouraged him...

She had not originally wanted to attend this gathering, because Chu Siqi did not like this sort of atmosphere. But she had wanted to see whether Jiang Qin was truly as carefree as he claimed.

In Chu Siqi's eyes, Jiang Qin had to be suffering terribly as he endured it all, and the moment he saw her, he would surely be unable to stop himself from apologizing.

But she had not expected that Jiang Qin clearly knew about the gathering, yet did not even come.

"Jiang Qin is doing business?" Qin Ziang looked at Guo Zihang, visibly surprised.

"Yeah."

"What business is he doing? Opening a shop?"

Chu Siqi came back to herself, then gave a soft laugh. "What ability does he have? He's just selling boxed lunches over on Central Street. Hui Ru and I ran into him while shopping last time."

"Huh? Selling boxed lunches counts as doing business now?" Qin Ziang laughed. He did not say much more, but the disdain on his face was obvious.

The other students nearby could not help snickering as well. They felt that Jiang Qin was fortunate not to have attended the gathering, or he would have been humiliated to death.

Although people said no profession was inherently noble or lowly, even Kong Yiji could not take off his long gown. These high school students naturally looked down on low-end jobs. In their eyes, as soon-to-be college students, they were society's talent and the pillars of the nation. Selling boxed lunches was simply too embarrassing.

Guo Zihang wanted to curse after hearing that.

Do you people know that my Brother Jiang made a move today worth six hundred and fifty thousand?

My Brother Jiang is a regular at Foot Massage Parlors. Can you manage that?

But in the end, he did not say any of it aloud, because Jiang Qin had told him something just two days ago: some people laughed at you not because of what you did, but because they had wanted to laugh at you from the start.

Damn it, could Brother Jiang have been hinting at this?

Then doesn't that make him ridiculously perceptive? Holy shit.

Worthy of being my godfather! But at that thought, Guo Zihang suddenly glanced at Chu Siqi across from him. He had always thought Goddess Chu was like White Moonlight incarnate, but today, that filter suddenly shattered a little. So goddesses talked badly about people behind their backs too. Could she still be called a goddess then?

It seemed Jiang Ge had had a reason for turning around and leaving that day.

But Guo Zihang wanted to smooth things over, while the others had no intention of letting the topic of Jiang Qin go so easily.

Besides Wang Huiru, Chu Siqi had another close friend named Yu Shasha. She usually loved making snide remarks, so the moment she heard Jiang Qin's name, she immediately jumped in.

"By the way, Siqi, didn't Jiang Qin confess to you on the last day of the National College Entrance Examination?"

Chu Siqi became furious at the memory of that day. "Don't mention that day. It makes me angry every time I think of it. After his confession failed, he asked for the love letter back and even said he didn't really like me. He made it sound like I was being self-indulgent. What kind of person does that?"

Yu Shasha pursed her lips. "He probably realized he couldn't win you over, and was afraid of losing all his pride and being laughed at, so he just stubbornly refused to admit it."

"Mm, Hui Ru said the same thing."

"Maybe it's the same today."

"What do you mean?" A flicker of confusion passed through Chu Siqi's eyes.

"He knows he'll be laughed at, so he doesn't dare come today." Yu Shasha spoke as she refilled her own cup with water.

Upon hearing that, the tightly furrowed space between Chu Siqi's brows suddenly eased.

Right, how had I not considered that possibility? Jiang Qin wasn't actually that carefree, and he didn't truly not want to see me. He was just afraid of being laughed at! Hmph, serves him right.

Who told him to treat me like that? It would do him good to suffer a little. Let's see who ends up crying with regret in the future.

As Chu Siqi's haughty temper rose, she clenched her small silver teeth tightly together.

Just then, the private room door was pushed open again. Wang Huiru hurried in, apologizing just as Guo Zihang had.

"Something delayed me on the way here. I'm really sorry. What were you talking about just now?"

"We were talking about Jiang Qin. He was afraid of embarrassing himself, so he didn't dare come. Isn't that funny?"

The moment Wang Huiru heard that, her expression stiffened, and even her motion of sitting down paused slightly.

The reason she had arrived so late was actually because she had run into Jiang Qin outside.

And it had not just been Jiang Qin she had run into...