Chapter 207: Sharing the Experience of Bringing Her Home
Chapter 207: Sharing the Experience of Bringing Her Home
Jiang Qin’s casual remark left Cao Guangyu utterly bewildered.
“Is it normal to bring a good friend home for the New Year? That’s the New Year’s Eve dinner we’re talking about, meant to be eaten with family.”
“Bringing Feng Nanshu home for the New Year’s Eve dinner is practically an acknowledgment that you and she are family, right?”
“Moreover, Feng Nanshu must have also accepted you as family, or else she wouldn’t have agreed.”
“You… you always say you’re just good friends, so why are you progressing so much faster than me?”
Cao Guangyu’s envy was so intense he felt like grinding his teeth, mixed with a sense of resentment as if he had been splashed in the face.
If a girl visits your family on the first day of the New Year, claiming her as just a good friend might be plausible, but eating the New Year’s Eve dinner together? Can that still be called just friendship?
What a show-off, a blatant one at that!
Damn, Jiang always returns to school with new stories to boast about, fast and impressive, giving no time to adjust. It’s just too much.“Brother Cao, I suggest you shut up. Don’t talk anymore, just cool it.”
Zhou Chao, returning from the restroom, couldn’t help but interrupt Cao’s rant.
“Why should I? He boasts to me, I want my revenge!” Cao Guangyu still wanted to retaliate.
Zhou Chao sighed helplessly: “Jiang has finished his act, and next, he’s probably going to trick you into a meal. How many times have you fallen for this combo and still not learned?”
“?”
Reminded by Zhou Chao, Cao Guangyu suddenly realized, feeling a wave of fear.
Right, Jiang’s boasting usually involves a combo. He doesn’t just stop at bragging; tricking someone into buying a meal is the usual finale.
Like before the New Year, that bastard was out studying with Feng Nanshu. After returning, he pretended to be laid-back, watching ‘Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf’ every night.
His main tactic: staying calm and secretly being brilliant.
In the end, not only did he not fail his exams, but he also falsely claimed he turned in a blank paper and might have to drop out, prompting me to host a farewell dinner as a tribute to our hard-earned friendship.
Cao Guangyu was both moved and heartbroken, ready to ask his dad for money for a lavish meal. Had it not been for a sudden class reunion, he would still be unaware of Jiang’s true academic standing!
Damn, you never know when Jiang’s words are a trap, casually responding could lead to financial loss.
It’s all schemes!
Cao Guangyu took a deep breath, kept silent, and began tidying his bed, deciding not to respond to anything Jiang said.
“This is no fun, you all see through my tricks. How can I play in the future?”
Jiang Qin cursed under his breath while neatly placing his pillow, then moved a chair to the balcony and began basking in the sun with his eyes half-closed.
Bringing Feng Nanshu home for the New Year’s Eve dinner is tantamount to accepting her as family?
Is that really a thing?
He tested this thought, imagining bringing any girl he knew home, and found he wouldn’t accept eating the New Year’s Eve dinner with any of them.
Except for his silly little rich lady, he just couldn’t bear to let her spend the New Year alone…
Wow, the power of friendship is truly great!
Jiang Qin patted his head, deciding not to think further, and enjoyed the bright warmth of the approaching spring.
When the two guys in the dorm finished packing up, it was already eleven o’clock, and their stomachs were growling.
With a grand gesture, Jiang Qin led them out of the dorm.
Zhou Chao and Cao Guangyu were genuinely astonished, wondering if there really was such a thing as a free lunch in this world.
“Don’t go ahead just yet, come with me to Room 208. I need to open a window in the office to air it out.”
“…”
“Old Zhou, could you help me wipe down my boss’s desk? It’s a bit dusty.”
“…”
“Old Cao, see if the mop is behind the door. Why does this part of the floor look so dusty? Try mopping it to see if it can be cleaned.”
“…”
“Old Zhou, since you’ve already wiped it, why not just clean it all? You could eat a couple more bowls of rice later.”
“…”
“Old Cao, since you’ve already started mopping, why not just finish it? It would look odd with one spot clean and the rest dirty, right?”
Half an hour later, Cao Guangyu and Zhou Chao exchanged glances, both thinking the same thing: what a bunch of crap about a ‘free lunch’. It sounded so pure and simple, yet they ended up doing quite a bit of work!
The key was they didn’t even understand why they were so willingly engaged in these chores.
Cao Guangyu, leaning on his mop, gritted his teeth and analyzed the situation. He realized that Jiang Qin used the lure of a meal to get them to leave the dorm willingly and even gratefully.
Then, under the guise of needing to air out the room, he led them unsuspectedly to Room 208.
What followed was a series of requests for help, like “help me wipe this” or “help me mop that”.
If someone invites you to a meal, wouldn’t it be impolite not to do anything? Offering a little help seemed reasonable.
And so, things turned out the way they did.
No wonder Jiang was successful in his business ventures, with such skill at laying traps, even Forbes would seem insignificant.
“Alright, that’s enough. Let’s go, time for lunch.”
“Damn it, Jiang, you’re unbelievable. Today I won’t leave until I’ve eaten you into tears!”
“Eat up, today you can order anything. If I stop you, I won’t deserve the Jiang surname.”
The three of them left the school and headed to ‘Shiwei Tian’. Cao Guangyu, fueled by resentment, let loose and ordered everything expensive, filling up the table.
During the meal, Jiang Qin stepped aside to take a phone call. When he returned, his face was lit up with a smile, as if bathed in the spring breeze.
Cao Guangyu wanted to see him wince at the expense, but instead, Jiang was smiling, which irked him even more.
“I ordered so much, spending so much of your money, how can you still smile?”
Jiang Qin tossed his phone on the table and poured himself a drink: “Nothing much, just heard some really good news.”
Zhou Chao looked up: “Is it about Feng Nanshu returning to school?”
“No, but it’s just as good. I’m planning to expand my forum and group-buying business to the Polytechnic and Normal Universities. Xi Tian is going to lead the way. Director Li just called to say there’s a shop space available on campus for a milk tea store, and he asked me to check it out.”
Jiang Qin’s business was growing, gradually covering the entire university town. Zhou Chao and Cao Guangyu weren’t clear on the details, so they didn’t understand why this news was as exciting as Feng Nanshu returning.
But they didn’t care to know more; their only focus was on the meal.
Having just finished chores in Room 208, they all had hearty appetites and enjoyed the meal thoroughly, wasting nothing.
During the meal, Cao Guangyu couldn’t help but ask a few questions, all revolving around Jiang Qin bringing Feng Nanshu home for the New Year.
Despite feeling like he was directly facing a boastful onslaught, Cao still wanted to gather some experience for possibly bringing Ding Xue home next year.
“How did you invite Feng Nanshu to have the New Year’s Eve dinner at your place?”
Jiang Qin thought for a moment then shook his head: “I didn’t say anything. She’s very obedient. Wherever I take her, she follows. So, until I brought her to my doorstep, she was clueless, probably never expecting I would take her home for dinner.”
Cao Guangyu felt stifled, as if he had been shown up: “And what about your mother? What was her attitude towards Feng Nanshu?”
“Very affectionate and pampering. She said Feng Nanshu was sweet and pretty, and the more she saw her, the more she liked her. That night, I felt like the only outsider in the house.” Jiang Qin answered while sipping his drink.
“Did she give Feng Nanshu a red envelope?”
“She did, and a thick one at that. I guess my share was included in there too.”
Cao Guangyu stopped asking. He realized Jiang Qin’s experience was of no use to him.
Feng Nanshu was obedient and certainly a favorite among family members, but Cao Guangyu’s Ding Xue was a different story. She was completely alien to the word ‘obedient’. Even the Bull Demon King would bow down to her; if she kicked him, she’d probably play with his nose ring for days, not even sure if she’d return it.
“Jiang, you’re just not human.”
Jiang Qin raised his eyebrows in surprise: “Damn, what did I do to offend you now?”
Cao Guangyu took a bite of his food, feeling sour: “Your life is just too smooth. Can’t you have some setbacks to make me happy?”
Jiang Qin thought for a moment with narrowed eyes: “Like, later when I go to pay the bill, you’ll insist on stopping me? Saying if I pay, you’ll hit me?”
“Forget it, let’s pretend I never said anything.”
Zhou Chao, emerging from his immersive eating experience, glanced at Cao Guangyu: “I told you, eat more, talk less. Look, you almost got yourself in trouble.”
“Old Zhou, I’ll listen to you from now on, no more rambling.” Cao Guangyu said, still shaken.
“Right, that’s better.”
After lunch, the three were stuffed. Cao Guangyu had to go to the train station to pick up Ding Xue, Zhou Chao was off to the bathhouse, and Jiang Qin turned back to Room 208.
Su Nai and Wei Lanlan had arrived and were chatting in the room. Both had changed their hairstyles: Su Nai had a new airy fringe, looking much softer, while Wei Lanlan had opted for big waves, appearing more mature.
“Boss, I’ve made contact with the owner of the Vienna Chain Hotel.”
“The one that covers the entire city? Any chance for collaboration?”
Wei Lanlan pursed her lips: “I’ve tried setting up a few meetings, but they keep stalling, saying they’re too busy, especially after hearing we’re a university startup project.”
Jiang Qin stretched out his hand: “Let me listen to the recordings of your calls.”
“Oh, okay.”
Wei Lanlan handed over her phone to Jiang Qin.
During the past month’s winter break, Jiang Qin had been training his marketing team every night through QQ, teaching them various techniques to extract useful information from potential partners.
The training had clearly paid off.
Although Wei Lanlan hadn’t managed to secure a meeting with Vienna’s Wang Peixiang, she had inadvertently gathered quite a bit of useful information without realizing it.
After a while, Jiang Qin returned the phone: “She said she’s going to Youmanzi Beauty Salon for a facial treatment tomorrow and doesn’t have time to meet you?”
“That’s right.”
“Here’s what you’ll do: go to the beauty salon and find out when her appointment is. A skin treatment usually takes two hours, during which she can’t move and will likely be bored. Having someone to chat with would be nice. Build rapport first, then talk business.”
Wei Lanlan’s eyes widened slightly: “Can I really do that?”
“In business, if there’s no opportunity, create one. But remember to be sincere and compliment her on her looks.”
“Got it, I’ll go check it out right now!”
Jiang Qin watched her leave, then turned to Su Nai: “Anything you need to report to the boss?”
Su Nai pushed up her glasses: “Boss, I accidentally deleted a folder from your account.”
“…”
“Heh, you haven’t been idle over the New Year, huh? Very good, very good…”