Ye Qiu couldn't stand seeing women cry, and Lan Ying's tearful grievances immediately threw him into a panic.
"Hey, what's wrong with you? You were fine just now, why are you crying?"
"You mind your own business!"
Lan Ying didn't even glance at Ye Qiu, and the tears in her eyes surged even more fiercely.
"Don't be like this..." Seeing Lan Ying cry so sadly, Ye Qiu had no reason to feel troubled. Instantly, he didn't think too much, gently held Lan Ying, and comforted her:
"All right, all right, don't cry anymore. At worst, we can find an opportunity to explain to everyone."
"Hmm..."
Under Ye Qiu's comfort, Lan Ying's emotions gradually stabilized, and the tears slowly stopped.
"Huh? Brother Ye, Sister Lan, you guys are..."
At this moment, a girl suddenly appeared behind them, looking at Ye Qiu and Lan Ying with a face full of confusion.
Ye Qiu had a deep impression of this girl; she was the receptionist at the front desk. Because she's pretty and pleasant, she's quite popular within the group.
However, this girl had one flaw: she had a big mouth and many times couldn't keep her mouth shut.
"Ahem, Brother Ye, Sister Lan, sorry to disturb you. Please continue, you continue."
After speaking, the receptionist girl left hurriedly, almost as if escaping.
The receptionist girl came and went quickly, so fast that Lan Ying didn't have time to react.
It took a long while for Lan Ying to react, and once she did, she went into a frenzy, "Ye Qiu, you bastard! I'm going to kill you!"
"Hey, hey, hey, what's wrong with you?"
Ye Qiu was speechless. People say women change their minds faster than flipping a book, and it's true. Look at Lan Ying's drastically changing emotions this morning; Ye Qiu couldn't keep up with the pace at all.
"That Xu Qing is just a big mouth. Now that she saw us hugging, it won't take an hour before the whole group knows! By then everyone will be spreading stories about us from early morning!"
"Uh..."
Ye Qiu initially wanted to find a chance to explain to everyone, but now, no matter how he explains, no one will believe him.
"Isn't this not my fault?"
"It's your fault, your fault, definitely your fault!"
As she said this, Lan Ying continuously punched Ye Qiu playfully.
Lan Ying's strength wasn't big, hitting Ye Qiu felt like barely tickling him. Ye Qiu naturally didn't protest. Seeing this, Lan Ying began pinching the soft flesh on Ye Qiu's waist, which made Ye Qiu grimace in pain.
"Oh my god, I'm wrong, I'm really wrong, please, don't be crazy!"
Screams from Ye Qiu continuously echoed in a corner of the group.
His calls naturally attracted considerable attention, but this time everyone was sensible enough to avoid disturbing Ye Qiu and Lan Ying.
As a result, they still didn't know that their situation was already confirmed in everyone else's eyes!
...
Ye Qiu was seriously chastised by Lan Ying that day, with many swollen spots on his body, yet he wasn't angry and thought the feeling was rather nice.
"Wow, am I really masochistic? Being scolded and still feeling particularly happy?"
Ye Qiu was startled by his own thought.
Then he shook his head again, saying, "Well, this is considered a way of ordinary life. Since I'm back to living a normal person's life, it's not a bad thing."
It soon reached evening, after sending Bai Lan back to the villa, Ye Qiu returned to his rental room to freshen up a bit.
His attire was simple, still the old worn army clothing and tattered sneakers.
When Ye Qiu arrived at Hyatt Hotel, most of the classmates were already there.
Ye Qiu hadn't seen everyone for quite a few years, but his memory was excellent, and upon seeing familiar faces, he could differentiate who was who.
"Ye Qiu?"
As soon as Ye Qiu walked into the hotel, a stylishly dressed woman came up to him.
"It's me." Ye Qiu nodded, "Song Sisi?"
"Yes."
With confirmation, Ye Qiu started to scrutinize Song Sisi.
Song Sisi, the former beautiful class monitor, had increased in grace—no, to be exact, she was even prettier than before.
Her figure was good, curvaceous, and the designer attire fit well, showcasing her beauty.
"Where's your girlfriend?"
Song Sisi glanced behind Ye Qiu, finding no one else, and asked.
"I truly don't have a girlfriend..."
"Uh..." Song Sisi looked at Ye Qiu's outfit, seeming to realize something, and didn't ask much about it. She said, "Since you're here, let's forget it; everyone's here."
Saying this, Song Sisi led Ye Qiu into the hall.
Once inside the hall, more than forty people were already seated. Half were unfamiliar to Ye Qiu; presumably, they were either boyfriends or girlfriends of his middle school classmates.
Ye Qiu's arrival naturally caught everyone's attention.
"Is he Ye Qiu?"
"He should be; he looks almost the same as before."
"Hmm, it's just that, it seems he's not doing too well now!"
As soon as Ye Qiu entered the hall, everyone first noticed his outfit.
No one knew how many years he'd worn those army clothes, and his sneakers were similar.
"Remember back in middle school he was the epitome of a model student. I expected he'd be doing really well by now. But instead, he turned out to be broke, even poorer than poor!"
Someone immediately whispered a sarcastic comment.
Coming to this gathering, even if one's income wasn't plenty, everyone would at least buy a new set of clothes, sprucing themselves up a bit.
But Ye Qiu? His outfit probably cost only tens of dollars, and it's a style from many years ago!
The murmurs weren't loud, but Ye Qiu heard them crystal clear.
He didn't bother to refute, not because he didn't want to but because he couldn't be bothered.
Money? He just received ten million from Wang Qiang yesterday; could he possibly not afford clothes?
Of course, Ye Qiu wasn't short-sighted about this ten million, having the world's top black card with unlimited credit; money to him was just a bunch of numbers.
Status? As the pinnacle existence within the Huaxia Army, there's no one internationally who could overlook him!
Reaching his level, he was long indifferent to disputing with those who lacked foresight.
Under Song Sisi's guidance, after a simple introduction to everyone, Ye Qiu found a corner seat.