Chapter 350 - 196: "Farce" 3
Raymond had mentioned during their earlier chat that these gatherings were always on April 1st. Su Chen hadn’t thought much of it at the time, but he never expected a stunt like this.
From the sound of Raymond and John’s conversation, it seemed they’d pulled plenty of pranks before, just never one quite like this.
"Su Chen, are you all right!?" Arthur asked hurriedly.
Su Chen patted Raymond and Chen Fei, who were standing in front of him. The two quickly moved to stand behind him.
"I’m fine." Su Chen’s tone was a little cold. For a moment there, he’d genuinely thought he was about to get shot.
Fun and games are one thing, but you don’t joke about someone’s life. Su Chen didn’t appreciate that kind of humor.
Arthur could see Su Chen was displeased, which was understandable. Who could be happy after having a gun pointed at them the moment they arrived?
Arthur blamed himself, too. He should have given Su Chen a heads-up beforehand, but he had been too focused on chatting with him and building a rapport.
"Arthur, who’s this?" Just then, John and the others noticed Su Chen and gathered around.
"This is Su Chen, from Huaxia." Then, he turned to Su Chen to make introductions. "This blond man is John, from the United Kingdom. His father is the current heir to the Duke of Grosvenor."
"The handsome guy beside him is Abdullah, from the Middle East—or as they say, one of those oil-rich tycoons."
The other two also came from impressive backgrounds as top European nobles, though they were still a step below John and Abdullah.
After Arthur’s introductions, the chilly expression on Su Chen’s face softened slightly. After all, Arthur was being so welcoming; it wouldn’t be right not to be gracious in return.
"Hello," Su Chen said, briefly getting acquainted with everyone.
John and the others hadn’t expected Arthur to bring a friend today, which made the earlier stunt a bit awkward. As a result, they were all exceptionally warm when they shook Su Chen’s hand.
This caused the last trace of iciness on Su Chen’s face to melt away.
Once everyone was acquainted, they headed into the villa, talking and laughing as if the earlier incident had never happened.
Upon entering the villa, Su Chen saw that quite a few people were already inside, holding glasses and chatting in small groups.
When they saw Arthur, John, and the others come in, they all smiled and called out greetings. A flicker of curiosity passed through their eyes when they noticed Su Chen.
Arthur instantly became the center of attention, with many people flocking to him. Seeing this, Su Chen grabbed some fruit and a drink and found a corner to sit in.
Just as he was getting into his food, John came over.
Acting as if they were old friends, he sat down next to Su Chen and asked, "Su, you’re from Huaxia. I don’t suppose you know Ye Feng?"
"Hm? Ye Feng? You mean the Ye Feng from Yangcheng City?" Su Chen was taken aback for a second when he heard the name, and he looked at John in surprise.
But Su Chen quickly put two and two together. ’Wait, wasn’t the melo pearl I salvaged a while back the one Ye Feng took to the United Kingdom as a gift for some powerful old duke?’
’Could it be John’s family, the Grosvenors?’
"Not only do I know him, we’re actually very good friends. He took a trip to the United Kingdom a while back, said he was going for some big-shot duke’s birthday celebration. It wasn’t your family, by any chance?" Su Chen asked, feigning confusion.
"Hahaha! That’s right, it was my family!" John laughed, clearly delighted. He hadn’t expected Su Chen to be friends with Ye Feng.
He had only asked as a way to test the waters. John knew about the Ye family’s background in Huaxia; for Su Chen to be his friend and know about the birthday celebration meant his own background was just as impressive.
With just that simple exchange, he had a basic understanding of Su Chen’s standing.
With the connection to Ye Feng established, Su Chen finally let go of the earlier unpleasantness. He found chatting with the group much more enjoyable now.
Su Chen also learned a few confidential details from John, like the real reason for Arthur’s friendly attitude. It turned out his initial guess was more or less correct: Arthur was after the massive market Su Chen represented.
Both John’s family and the Abdullah family had established excellent relationships with Huaxia over certain affairs, and they had been raking in massive profits over the past few years.
Arthur’s family, the Morgan family, however, hadn’t engaged in the same level of comprehensive cooperation for various reasons. While they had invested in many companies in the country, it was strictly limited to just that—investment.
This information made Su Chen more cautious. He knew he had to think things through more carefully and not agree to just anything, lest he invite unnecessary trouble for himself down the line.
A sudden round of applause rang out.
The chatting crowd fell silent, turning their attention to Arthur, who was clapping his hands.
"My friends! It’s getting late, so it’s time we get down to business!"