Chapter 155: Hosting a Banquet

By the time the six girls finished showering and changed into fresh clothes, it was already time to leave work. Since they had specifically chosen the Yangzhou Restaurant, which was within walking distance, Cheng Xiaoyu had to first head to his car to fetch his wallet.

Just as he stepped out of the practice room, he ran into Li Ping'an, who was also interning in the Planning Department. Li Ping'an was very enthusiastic upon seeing Cheng Xiaoyu, immediately stepping forward to make small talk. Cheng Xiaoyu held no ill will toward Li Ping'an, so the two of them chatted casually as they walked toward the elevators.

When they reached the elevator lobby, Li Ping'an received a call from Ma Guoli, announcing that to celebrate his promotion from intern to full-time employee today, he was treating everyone and wanted Li Ping'an to invite a few close intern friends. When Li Ping'an mentioned that Cheng Xiaoyu was also right here, Ma Guoli told Li Ping'an to wait as he was coming right over.

Although Ma Guoli had greeted Cheng Xiaoyu earlier that afternoon and couldn't tell whether Cheng Xiaoyu had ignored him intentionally or simply hadn't noticed, he still intended to befriend Cheng Xiaoyu. After all, associating more with someone as capable and well-connected as Cheng Xiaoyu could only be beneficial. As it happened, Ma Guoli had just stepped out of his office and was heading toward the elevators, so it didn't take him long to reach the lobby.

Cheng Xiaoyu was pulling on Li Ping'an's arm, saying, "I really have things to deal with today. Can I treat everyone another day instead? Please apologize to Ma Guoli for me and wish him my congratulations."

Slowing his pace and steadying his breathing to pretend he had just arrived at that exact moment, Ma Guoli walked over and patted Cheng Xiaoyu affectionately on the shoulder. "Xiaoyu, Brother Ma is officially a regular employee today and is treating us to dinner. Come on, we're not stopping until we're drunk."

Cheng Xiaoyu gave a bitter smile and said, "Brother Ma, I'm truly sorry, but I really do have matters to attend to today. Please let me off the hook this time, and I'll treat everyone to a meal another day, alright?"

Pretending to be displeased, Ma Guoli said, "You kid, you promised to treat us during the last gathering of our cohort, and now you're pulling the same trick again. Brother Ma won't fall for it this time."

Li Ping'an also smiled and chimed in, "Come on, Xiaoyu, you never hang out with us normally. Even I, working right here in the Planning Department, rarely get to see you. With such a great opportunity today, you should at least give Brother Ma some face and join us for a get-together."

Ma Guoli quickly told Li Ping'an, "Then round everyone up. Brother Ma is going to treat you all to a proper feast at the Yangzhou Restaurant tonight."

The consumption at the Yangzhou Restaurant was considered fairly standard for Cheng Xiaoyu—excluding alcohol, it would cost around two to three hundred per person, and that was without ordering extravagant items like bird's nest, shark's fin, abalone, or giant lobster. However, for a fresh graduate, it was already extremely lavish. Yet, it was clear that Ma Guoli's family background was quite decent; otherwise, he wouldn't be treating people to a place ordinary white-collar workers avoided.

Li Ping'an sent out a group text announcing a gathering at the Yangzhou Restaurant that evening, courtesy of Ma Guoli. Seeing that it was also the Yangzhou Restaurant, Cheng Xiaoyu didn't refuse any further and simply said, "Alright." He figured he would just drop by, say hello, and then leave. Little did he know that Ma Guoli hadn't originally planned on taking them to the Yangzhou Restaurant, but had broken the bank and splurged precisely because he saw Cheng Xiaoyu was attending.

Making the excuse that he needed to see a friend first, Cheng Xiaoyu left Ma Guoli and Li Ping'an to wait for the other cohort members while he headed down to the underground parking garage to get his wallet.

After retrieving his bag, Cheng Xiaoyu texted Su Yuqi to let her know he would wait for them in the private dining room. Figuring he wouldn't want to bother coming back here later to fetch his car, he drove his Ferrari to the Yangzhou Restaurant.

The Yangzhou Restaurant was just over a ten-minute walk from the Global Financial Center. The reason Cheng Xiaoyu chose it was because it was close not only to his workplace but also to the dormitory of Cheng Xiujing, Bae Suzy, and the others.

Driving there took about as much time as walking, considering the traffic congestion, traffic lights, and the considerable amount of time spent looking for parking. By the time Cheng Xiaoyu found an inconspicuous spot to park his car, Su Yuqi had already texted to say they had all arrived. Cheng Xiaoyu hurriedly grabbed his bag and walked toward the Yangzhou Restaurant.

When the usher led Cheng Xiaoyu into the private room he had reserved, the six girls were already seated. Su Yuqi, acting as the semi-host, was currently ordering food, while Xu Qinning, displaying the domineering spirit of executing local tyrants and dividing their land, told the waiter, "Bring us whatever is most expensive."

Just as he entered the private room, Cheng Xiaoyu received a call from Li Ping'an saying that they were sitting in the main hall. The private rooms at the Yangzhou Restaurant charged an additional service fee, dishes were not discounted, and the main hall offered many discounted dishes one could order.

Cheng Xiaoyu told Li Ping'an he would be right there and hung up. Not dwelling on it, he waited in the private room while the girls finished ordering, adding an Australian giant lobster and a serving of abalone in rich sauce for everyone. Xu Qinning talked a big game, but she only ordered a dessert of golden crisps with diced cod and a hairy crab meat broth with Pingqiao tofu. Knowing that Xu Qinning was an absolute carnivore, Cheng Xiaoyu added a dish of braised pork with black truffle and radishes. He urged the waiter to serve the food quickly and said, "This is our only indulgence for this month. If you all behave well in the future, Brother Xiaoyu will treat you to a grand feast once a month, and I guarantee each time will be better than the last."

"Wow, do you really think you can bribe us into working our lives away for your family with just that? I'm not falling for it! At the very least, you should provide a private jet, a luxury yacht, and a mysterious private island to make it worthwhile! Having a grand feast just once a month doesn't match your status as the young master of Shanghe at all."

Su Yuqi didn't hold back at all against Xu Qinning. "Xu Qinning, who was the one who insisted on joining the Idol Project in the first place? Now that you see my brother is easy to bully, you pick on him every day, and you even claim you want to be my sister-in-law. If my family actually married you off, we wouldn't be able to live our lives anymore."

The other girls burst into loud laughter. It was the first time most of them had seen Su Yuqi make fun of someone, so their laughter was particularly exaggerated. Xu Qinning's face turned beet red—not because she was being laughed at, but because of the latter part of the remark. Wanting to put up a stubborn front and retort by asking who wanted to be her sister-in-law, she only dared to mutter quietly to herself, not brave enough to actually say it out loud.

Knowing Xu Qinning's eccentric personality, Cheng Xiaoyu naturally didn't take her seriously. With a smile, he said, "I'll step outside for a moment. I have another table of friends out there. I'll just go say hello and come right back." With that, he stood up and walked toward the door of the private room. As soon as Cheng Xiaoyu left, the atmosphere inside the room became even more lively and chaotic.

Cheng Xiaoyu glanced around the main hall. It was currently peak dining hour, and the hall was almost at full capacity. Before he could spot Li Ping'an and the others, Ma Guoli caught sight of him and called out his name, prompting Cheng Xiaoyu to look over.

The round table was small and barely large enough to squeeze everyone in. Aside from Ma Guoli, Li Ping'an, Qin Senmei, and a girl named Yang Lanlan, Cheng Xiaoyu had forgotten the names of the rest, so he didn't bother greeting them individually. Instead, he gave a general greeting to everyone and took a seat where Ma Guoli directed. Ma Guoli had purposely reserved a prime seat for Cheng Xiaoyu, right between himself and Li Ping'an.

As soon as he sat down, Cheng Xiaoyu congratulated Ma Guoli on successfully promoting to a regular employee. By this time, the dishes were being served one after another. Ma Guoli had ordered a bottle of beer for everyone. Remembering that he had to drive later, Cheng Xiaoyu declined, saying, "Brother Ma, I only just graduated from high school this year, and I really can't drink alcohol. Besides, I won't be able to stay here for long; I have friends waiting for me."

The people at the table were slightly stunned. Only then did they remember that during the evaluation, Cheng Xiaoyu had mentioned he was only seventeen years old, and the atmosphere suddenly felt a bit awkward.

Li Ping'an and the others weren't much older themselves. Li Ping'an immediately poured a glass of beer for Cheng Xiaoyu and said, "Then today calls for a double celebration: celebrating you getting a great score on your exams, and celebrating Brother Ma successfully becoming a full-time employee. Having a single glass of beer definitely won't hurt you, and judging by the look of you, you'll definitely be able to hold your liquor in the future." Although Li Ping'an didn't know whether Cheng Xiaoyu's exam scores were good or bad, based on his calm expression, he deduced that Cheng Xiaoyu hadn't messed up his exams. Plus, since the artistic exam cutoffs for the Shanghai Theatre Academy were low anyway, he felt confident enough to make that assumption.

Everyone stood up and raised their glasses to offer congratulations. With no other choice, Cheng Xiaoyu picked up his glass and said, "I really can't drink much, so I'll just take a small sip. You guys go ahead."

After taking a tiny sip, Cheng Xiaoyu sat back down while everyone else finished their drinks in one go. Putting down his glass, Qin Senmei asked, "Cheng Xiaoyu, what was your exam score?"

Cheng Xiaoyu smiled and replied, "It's passable—633 points."

Realizing it was a thoroughly unremarkable score, the group didn't ask any further.