Guests and "Foreign Guests"

With the other party having put it that way, repeatedly refusing him to his face would have seemed rather disrespectful.

Left with no choice, Li Yun could only nod slightly and accept the other man's enthusiastic invitation. If there was a chance next time, they could have a meal together. As for anything more than that—best forgotten.

Yet even after getting his agreement, the enthusiastic Boss Yuan showed no intention of leaving. Instead, he struck while the iron was hot and pulled over a Boss Zeng who had been "discussing business" nearby, introducing them to each other.

He also got to know the friends beside "Brother Li" in turn, smiling as he handed each of them a business card. He even patted his chest and made a bold promise.

"My Old Yuan's name still carries a little weight in this province. If any of you run into trouble out there in the future and need a hand, just say the word! Of course, if you get the chance to patronize Yuan's business, that'd be a favor too. Yuan certainly won't be stingy!"

It was clear that Boss Yuan, whose nouveau riche air was written all over his face, was at least willing to humble himself. In particular, he had put plenty of effort into keeping up appearances.

After all, there were quite a few people who clearly understood that the value between users had nothing to do with their former place in the wealth hierarchy.

But there were far fewer who could truly cast aside that superficial concern for "face" as completely as Boss Yuan had.

As the saying went, never strike a smiling face. The few people who had been eating when they ran into one another set down their "tools" for the moment and started chatting.

More precisely,