Chapter 190: Qianqian and I Aren’t Going Anywhere
Ji Yanjun realized the gravity of the situation. He turned to the others with an apologetic look. "I’m terribly sorry. It seems there’s been a small misunderstanding. Let’s move to another private room."
Li Bo was exceptionally good at reading people. In a flash, he understood the situation. ’President Ji’s connections must not be strong enough. Or maybe, President Ji doesn’t have any connections at all.’
What was there to say?
All they could do was give up the room.
Li Bo stood up and, smiling, tried to smooth things over. "I remember there’s an all-glass private room on the top floor. You can overlook the entire Provincial City’s nightscape and also see the stars."
Ji Yanjun shot Li Bo an approving glance. ’That’s our Chief Li,’ he thought, ’cleverly diffusing the awkward situation.’
"Yes, there’s a Starry Sky Private Room on the top floor with a 270-degree view of the nightscape. Old Tan, can you arrange that?"
Tan Jie nodded. "Of course!"
Ji Yanjun didn’t want to make an enemy for no reason. He turned to Zhu Chao, his face wreathed in smiles. "President Chu, I hope you and your friends have a pleasant meal. If it’s convenient, Old Tan and I will come over to offer a toast later."
Unfortunately, in the face of Ji Yanjun’s deliberate attempt to curry favor, Zhu Chao was very cold. "Forget the toast. You’re not on our level."
Ji Yanjun almost choked, but he didn’t dare to lash out. He could only suppress his anger, turning to Cheng Yuan and the others. "Let’s go. We’re going to the Starry Sky Private Room."
The children were disappointed at first, but when they heard they could get a 270-degree view of the nightscape, their interest was immediately piqued. They all stood up cooperatively.
Zhang Jing and Li Yankui stood up nonchalantly. It didn’t matter to them where they ate; either way, it was a meal they couldn’t afford on their salaries.
Seeing that everyone had stood up, Ji Yanjun breathed a small sigh of relief. ’Good, everyone’s being considerate.’ At least he had managed to save a little bit of face.
Just as Ji Yanjun was breathing that sigh of relief, a discordant voice suddenly cut in.
"I’m sorry, but Qianqian and I aren’t going anywhere. We’re staying right here."
Huh?
Everyone froze, staring blankly at Cheng Yuan. They couldn’t understand why Cheng Yuan, who had been silent the whole time, had suddenly stepped up.
Zhu Chao’s expression instantly turned ugly. He said coldly, "Tan Jie, are you planning to go up against Brother Yunhu?"
WHOOSH!
Tan Jie’s face instantly paled, and his back was soaked with sweat. He quickly turned to Ji Yanjun. "Old Ji, hurry up and talk some sense into your friend! Tell him not to do something foolish!"
Ji Yanjun felt like he was going to lose his mind. ’What the hell is wrong with this Cheng guy? Is he insane?’
’Is he trying to get me killed?’
Ji Yanjun shouted, "Cheng Yuan! Stop messing around! I’m the one who arranged this celebration banquet! Get over here and follow me to the Starry Sky Private Room now!"
Cheng Yuan gave Ji Yanjun an indifferent glance. "My apologies, President Ji, but I don’t eat meals where I have to swallow my pride. I am absolutely not going to the Starry Sky Private Room."
Ji Yanjun’s face turned red, and he choked on his words. Suppressing his humiliation, he said, "Cheng Yuan, stop making a scene! I’m doing this for your own good. There are people in this world we can’t afford to provoke! Some people can ruin your family with a single sentence! Even if you aren’t afraid to die, you have to think about your younger sister and your parents, don’t you?"
Cheng Yuan said lightly, "The other day, someone also threatened me with my family. Now, their own family is in pieces."
"You!"
Ji Yanjun was so angry he could feel his teeth grinding. ’This damn Cheng,’ he thought, ’he’s so full of himself. Who the hell does he think he is?’
Seeing that he couldn’t persuade Cheng Yuan, Ji Yanjun gave up and chose to draw a clear line between them.
"President Chu, as you can see, I’m not familiar with this person. His actions have nothing to do with me."
After speaking, Ji Yanjun looked at the others. "Chief Li, Teacher Zhang, Teacher Li, kids, let’s go!"
Li Bo followed Ji Yanjun without hesitation. Zhang Jing and Li Yankui had a good impression of Cheng Yuan and wanted to say something, but they couldn’t find the words.
Cheng Yuan could see what the two teachers were thinking. He said with a smile, "Teacher Zhang, Teacher Li, as long as you don’t want to leave, no one in the entire Provincial City can make you! As for the others, if they want to go to the Starry Sky Private Room, I won’t stop them."
Li Yankui and Zhang Jing suddenly realized something, a flicker in their eyes.
’Mr. Cheng isn’t just making a scene!’
’He’s staying in Presidential Suite Number One. He really has the confidence to back this up!’
’The choice between President Ji and Mr. Cheng was crystal clear!’
"President Ji, our apologies. We’re here for Mr. Cheng’s celebration."
With that, the two of them sat down with firm resolve.
Ji Yanjun’s brain short-circuited. He stared at Zhang Jing and Li Yankui, completely bewildered.
’He could understand Zhang Jing choosing Cheng Yuan, but Li Yankui was a sycophant who was great at reading people. Why was he suddenly kissing up to Cheng Yuan?’
’This doesn’t make any sense!’
Zhu Chao’s expression was grim. However, Cheng Yuan was too calm, which made Zhu Chao feel uncertain. He had already played the Brother Yunhu card, but this young man still wasn’t backing down. What gave him this confidence?
For a moment, Zhu Chao was at a loss.
Tan Jie shrewdly spotted an opportunity to repair his relationship with Zhu Chao and quickly "exposed" Cheng Yuan’s background. "President Chu, this guy is just some poor bastard from Luocheng. I can handle him easily. With just one word, I can make it so he has nowhere to stay and has to go crawling to some other hotel."
Hearing this, Zhu Chao shot Tan Jie an approving glance. ’Since Tan Jie is making a show of goodwill,’ he thought, ’I’ll just treat him like a dog from now on and toss him a bone every now and then.’
Li Yankui had already chosen to side with Cheng Yuan, and he launched a counterattack without hesitation. "Director Tan, you don’t really think you can push Mr. Cheng around, do you? Mr. Cheng is staying in the presidential suite—Presidential Suite Number One of your very own Sofitel Hotel!"
Presidential Suite Number One?
Of course, Tan Jie didn’t believe it. He sneered, "Stop bullshitting, will you? Presidential Suite Number One? Not even President Chu has the authority to book that room. Only President Zhu has the clearance to arrange it."
Cheng Yuan said nonchalantly, "You’re right, Zhu Qishan did arrange it. It’s a hundred yuan a day. Pretty expensive, huh?"
Arranged by Zhu Qishan?
A hundred yuan a day?
Tan Jie and Zhu Chao laughed so hard their sides hurt!
"Kid, you actually know Zhu Qishan’s full name. Looks like you did your homework! But you don’t even know the room rate! People who stay in Presidential Suite Number One either don’t have to pay, or they pay three hundred thousand a day. As for a hundred yuan? I’ve never heard of such a price! Next time you decide to bullshit, at least get the price right!"
Cheng Yuan shrugged. "If you don’t believe me, you can ask Zhu Qishan."
Zhu Chao curled his lip in disdain. "Let’s not even talk about whether you know Zhu Qishan. Even if he really is your backer, do you think Zhu Qishan can afford to offend Brother Yunhu? In front of Brother Yunhu, Zhu Qishan isn’t even as good as a dog! Believe it or not, with one phone call, I can have Zhu Qishan come over here and throw you out himself."
Cheng Yuan calmly shook his head. "When Zhu Qishan gets here, he will indeed throw someone out. But I’m sorry to say, it won’t be me. It’ll be you."
"You just won’t give up until you’re staring defeat in the face! Fine, I’ll get Zhu Qishan over here right now!"
Zhu Chao immediately pulled out his phone and dialed Zhu Qishan’s number. "Old Zhu, I’m at the Duke’s Mansion. Get over here right now. I need you for something."