The College Admission Banquet
Ye Feng frowned. He had disliked his eldest maternal aunt-in-law ever since he was little. She was a mean, cutting, and snobbish woman who was always putting others down to make herself look better.
"Xiao Feng, I didn't expect you to be back too. You're graduating soon. Are you planning to come back, or stay in Demon City to build your career?" The speaker was Ye Qiang, the eldest son of Ye Feng's eldest paternal uncle.
Father Ye was one of six siblings and ranked fourth: eldest brother Ye Yuanshan, second brother Ye Yuanhe, third brother Ye Yuanhu, Father Ye himself, Ye Yuanhai, younger brother Ye Yuanxing, and youngest sister Ye Mo.
Unlike the relatives on his maternal grandmother's side, the Ye family had always gotten along well. There were no conflicts between them; on the contrary, they were close.
"Big brother, I happened to have nothing going on, so I came back. I'm planning to leave after Xiao Lin's college admission banquet, and I plan to build my career in Demon City from now on."
"Fourth brother, I haven't seen you in over half a year. You've gotten more handsome! Hehe."
Ye Feng looked at the newcomer. It was Ye Ting, his younger paternal uncle's younger sister. The girl might usually look gentle, but if anyone crossed her, she really would chase them all the way home with a brick in her hand.
"Tingting, when has your brother ever not been handsome? Let's stop chatting at the entrance and head upstairs."
Seeing everyone head upstairs one after another, the three of them went to the Chaoyang Hall as well. A small table and a hotel employee had appeared at the entrance. The employee was probably there to collect gift money, arranged by the hotel. After receiving the twenty million Ye Feng had transferred to her, Mother Ye had originally planned not to accept gift money at the banquet, but she had reluctantly agreed after the relatives persuaded her. By now, everyone in the hall had taken their seats, and the host onstage was lavishing praise on Ye Lin for her hard work at school. Even Ye Feng felt embarrassed listening to him, while Ye Lin listened with an air of smug satisfaction.
After a long wait, the host finally finished speaking, and the servers promptly brought all kinds of delicious dishes to each table.
At that moment, Ye Wuhen entered the hall holding Niuniu's hand. Ye Lin ran over, took Niuniu by the hand, and brought her to the reserved table. Then she said to Ye Feng, "Brother, I invited Niuniu. We'll sit at this table and eat with Brother Ye and Niuniu."
Over at Mother Ye's table, Li Fengxia was stirring up trouble again. Looking at the table laden with fine wine and dishes, she was consumed with jealousy. What right did Wang Meijuan have to put on such a grand spread?
"Oh, Meijuan, I heard you moved. Did you sell your house? Really, it's only a college admission banquet. If you didn't have the money, you could have found a more ordinary place. There was no need to sell your house, was there? This table alone must cost at least ten thousand. Look, the liquor is even Moutai. We all know each other well enough, don't we? She only got into college. College graduates can't even find jobs these days, so what good is it? Unlike my Wang Jiadong. He never went to college, but he's doing quite well for himself now. He's currently doing supporting renovation work for the Yuanda Group and earning a million a year. Oh, server, how much does this table of food cost? I'll arrange a few tables here someday to discuss the wedding with Jiadong's girlfriend's family. You aunts can come too. After all, you rarely get a chance to eat at a hotel of this class."
"Madam, the food at this table costs 88,888 Huaxia Currency, not including drinks. If you'd like to make a reservation, you can pay part of the deposit first, and I'll book it in advance for you."
Everyone at the table stared at Mother Ye in disbelief. The whole college admission banquet must have cost 800,000 Huaxia Currency.
"Meijuan, have you gone mad? Spending so much money-did you really sell the house? How are you going to live from now on?"
"Big sister, don't worry. Xiao Feng made a little money in Demon City, and he arranged this whole banquet. Neither Old Ye nor I paid anything, and we didn't sell the old house either. In fact, Xiao Feng bought us a new one."
"How could that be? How could a student who hasn't even graduated afford a house and such an expensive college admission banquet? He must have gone down the wrong path. I've heard lots of students get brainwashed as soon as they graduate and join pyramid schemes. You'd better be careful. Maybe he'll come over in a minute and try to get us to buy products and make investments, then run off with the money." Li Fengxia spoke with utter certainty, as though she had seen it with her own eyes. In her view, no one but her son Wang Jiadong could possibly make a fortune.
Mother Ye's expression turned cold. She hadn't wanted to stoop to her sister-in-law's level, but the woman kept pushing her luck. Just as she was about to erupt, the doors were pushed open, and two middle-aged men walked in, each carrying a case.
The newcomers were none other than Qian Zhongwen and Zhang Zhiwei.
"Brother Ye, the two of us aren't late, are we? Haha, it's all Old Zhang's fault. He insisted I wait and come with him. Otherwise, I'd have been here ages ago."
"Brother Qian, Brother Zhang, come and sit down. Our table hasn't started yet," Ye Feng said, going up to greet them.
"Brother Ye, wait a moment. Let us give our gift money first. You absolutely mustn't refuse—it's proper etiquette. Otherwise, we won't sit down at the table."
The two men opened their cases and set them on the table, revealing cases packed full of cash for everyone to see.
"Zhang Zhiwei, chairman of the Yuanda Group, gift money: 888,888. Qian Zhongwen, chairman of the Fuyu Group, gift money: 888,888."
Every guest present was stunned to hear their names. These were two of Jin City's big shots, especially Qian Zhongwen, whose reputation was widely known.
"Brother Qian, Brother Zhang, your presence alone has given me tremendous face, and you've given so much gift money too. Come and sit down. I happen to have something to discuss with you both."
Li Fengxia, who was standing nearby, was terrified. She had offended Mother Ye plenty of times. Now she forced an awkward smile and tried to curry favor. "Meijuan, I had no idea Xiao Feng was so capable. Don't take offense at the nonsense I said earlier. Xiao Feng seems to have a good relationship with Boss Zhang of the Yuanda Group. Could you put in a good word for Jiadong? He is your own nephew, after all."
Mother Ye went on eating without paying Li Fengxia any attention. She knew the woman too well. Even if she helped her, Li Fengxia would still curse her behind her back. In that case, she might as well not help at all.
At the other table, Ye Lin obediently greeted Brother Qian and Brother Zhang, then began eating with Niuniu.
"Brother Qian, Brother Zhang, I'm planning to establish an investment company, with Ye Wuhen here beside me in full charge. I'll be counting on you two for help."
Qian Zhongwen looked over at Ye Wuhen. Their eyes met, and Qian Zhongwen felt his body jolt. Fine beads of sweat instantly appeared on his forehead. He knew there was more to Ye Wuhen than met the eye; he was very likely a martial artist of considerable rank. There really was more to Brother Ye than met the eye.
"Brother Wuhen, I'm Qian Zhongwen. If you ever need any help, just say the word. I, Old Qian, definitely won't hesitate."
Zhang Zhiwei looked at Qian Zhongwen in confusion. Since when had Old Qian become so easy to talk to? And with someone he was meeting for the first time, no less.
"President Qian, it seems you're also a fellow practitioner. There's no need to be nervous. I've already left that circle far behind. Now I'm just an ordinary person."