After saying his piece, Lin Jiang left.
Zhou Fan and the others stood frozen in place.
Zhang Qianfang and Liu Yihan were fine. Although the idealized image they had of Lin Jiang had shattered moments before, it was restored the instant they saw him again.
For the men, however, it was a completely different story.
Beyond defending Wang Jia from Lin Jiang, they had also wanted to flaunt their superiority over him.
Back in school, Lin Jiang had been bathed in a powerful limelight. Being a good student was useless—as long as you were handsome, you were adored.
After graduation, they had all done very well for themselves, much better than Lin Jiang. They had wanted to use this opportunity to show off and make him realize the gulf between them.
They had even fantasized that upon seeing them, Lin Jiang would speak to them with deference. Then, they could offer him a bit of "guidance," flaunt their success, and make him understand the vast disparity between their lives.
But reality, it seemed, wasn’t following the script they had in their heads.
’We’ve done so well for ourselves, and he’s just some guy who runs a noodle shop. How dare he curse at us!’
Their pride took a massive blow, and they were too stunned to even think of a response.
"All right, let’s not just stand around out here. Let’s go back in."
Zhang Qianfang called out, pulling them back to reality. They reluctantly filed back into the private room.
If the men were upset, Wang Jia’s expression was even uglier.
Although she hadn’t left the private room, she had heard every word from Lin Jiang loud and clear.
A librarian’s salary isn’t even enough to pay for his gas—that line had stung her to the core.
What Wang Jia took pride in wasn’t her income, but the sense of respectability her job afforded her.
When people asked about her job, she would say she was a teacher at the university, leading them to assume she taught classes and form a high opinion of her.
It was like those wannabes online studying for the civil service exam who call themselves public officials; Wang Jia just wasn’t as shameless about it.
After all, the university students did call librarians "teacher," so it was close enough.
But a moment ago, Lin Jiang had mercilessly ripped away that fig leaf, causing her to lose all face in front of her classmates. She clenched her fists, so furious she could feel her teeth grinding.
"Go on and eat. That’s just Lin Jiang’s temper. Don’t let it ruin our dinner," Liu Yihan said.
"He was like that in school, too—always sharp-tongued. Even now that he’s beneath us, he refuses to lose a war of words. That’s why we shouldn’t pay him any mind," said Cao Yufei.
"I have a proposal," Zhou Fan said. "Why don’t we go check out his noodle shop tomorrow? Grab a bite to eat or something."
"Heh... I’m actually quite curious to see just how ’well’ he’s doing now."
"There’s no need for that, is there? We’re all classmates, at the end of the day. We can just not see him again. Let’s leave each other with a little dignity," Zhang Qianfang said, trying to smooth things over.
"Heh..."
Zhou Fan sneered, a cigarette dangling from his lips.
"I gave him a chance to save face, but he didn’t take it. You can’t blame anyone else for what happens next."
"Come on, let’s have a drink. No need to let him ruin the mood."
Everyone raised their glasses and downed their drinks in one go.
Gradually, the atmosphere livened up, and the incident with Lin Jiang was pushed to the back of their minds.
"Jiajia, when are you and Zhou Fan going to make it official? We’re all waiting to celebrate at your wedding!" said Liu Yihan.
"We’re just friends from school, what’s all this about a wedding? Stop being so gossipy."
"Ooh, listen to you, getting all shy," Liu Yihan teased.
"Every time we have a get-together, you two either come together or you don’t come at all. When you’re here, you always sit next to each other, always whispering. Do you really think we can’t see what’s going on?"
"They’re just putting on an act for us. For all we know, they’ve already kissed each other senseless in private," Zhang Qianfang said with a grin.
"Class Rep, can you please put a filter on that mouth of yours?"
Wang Jia said with a laugh, but didn’t offer much of a rebuttal.
’It’s true we haven’t gone all the way yet, but we have held hands and kissed.’
Zhou Fan sat beside her, smiling silently. He was thoroughly enjoying this.
It was as if he had defeated Lin Jiang and emerged the victor of this war.
"You two should stop being so secretive. Hurry up and set a date! We’re all waiting to celebrate with you and get some of that good luck."
"Don’t rush us, don’t rush us. You’ll be notified when the time comes. Just get your wedding money ready—none of you will be getting away with not giving any!"
"Haha..."
The mood at the dinner table was congenial; no one was giving Lin Jiang a second thought.
Wang Jia especially had found a way to console herself with a mental victory.
’So what if my salary is a little low? I’m a woman. A stable, respectable job is all that matters.’
’Lin Jiang is just jealous. He’s lashing out because he can’t have me, saying those nasty things to hurt me.’
’A guy like that is an absolute loser! A total deadbeat!’
After a few rounds of drinks and several courses...
Just as everyone was feeling pleasantly buzzed, Zhou Fan picked up his phone and said:
"Hold on, my dad’s calling. Keep it down, everyone."
The others fell silent, waiting for Zhou Fan to take his call. After all, he and Wang Jia were the stars of tonight’s dinner.
"No way... What a coincidence."
"Alright, I’ll go wait outside the hotel."
All eyes fell on Zhou Fan. When he hung up, Wang Jia asked:
"What happened? Do you have to leave?"
"No, I’m not leaving," Zhou Fan said.
"Didn’t I mention my dad was eating here too? Well, it just so happens that a shareholder from his company and the president’s daughter are also here. My dad wants me to go over and say hello."
"But you have your own company now. Is there really a need to go say hello? They’re not your direct supervisors, and you don’t even know them. Won’t it be awkward?" said Song Yajie.

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