Around eight that evening, Qin Heng had already arrived at the academy gates. The other three guys from his dorm seemed to have gotten there even earlier.

When he saw the sleek black supercar behind them, Qin Heng felt a little excited, but not exactly shocked. He was used to this by now.

Feng Xun seemed to switch to a different sports car every week. At first, Qin Heng had thought it was ridiculous. Now he was used to it—unlike the passersby, who were either taking pictures or shouting in amazement.

Big Slacker was a very different person now. These days, he could say with complete confidence—

Qin Heng: “Not to brag, but I’ve ridden in more sports cars than all of you have seen in your entire lives.”

╮（╯▽╰）╭

Su Chen was still chewing gum nearby when he spotted Big Slacker from a distance.

Su Chen: “Old Qin, what took you so long? Off chasing after some cute girl again?”

“Well, well. That suit looks sharp, kid. Not bad!”

Qin Heng straightened his back and tugged at the tie in front of his sleeve, looking thoroughly pleased with himself.

“Come on. I’m the one who’s handsome. What’s that got to do with my clothes?”

Zuo Xi, who’d been looking at his phone, raised his head and glanced at Qin Heng.

“He’s right. You look pretty handsome. Do our dorm proud tonight—bring back a few rich, gorgeous, long-legged older sisters.”

Qin Heng: “Hey, Colonel Zuo knows how to talk! I’ll show you all what ‘looks are justice’ means tonight. Those rich beauties will be easy pickings!”

Qin Heng was only talking big. He’d sneaked out today without Ning Muxuan knowing. If she weren’t going to be home tonight, would he even have had the chance to leave?

And if that Ice Snake back home found out he was going to some banquet tonight—and planned to hit on other cute girls while he was there…

Yikes!

Just thinking about it sent a chill down Qin Heng’s back. But then again, he was going to the banquet with Young Master Feng to take care of business. Even if some cute girl did approach Big Slacker, he’d definitely hit her with the full three-part “average-looking, overconfident guy” routine and turn her down.

Come on, he might be Big Slacker, but he hadn’t sunk so low that he needed to live off someone else. Besides, that Ice Snake at home was already more than enough trouble. He didn’t want to get tangled up with any of those spoiled young ladies, either.

“All right, handsome guys, can you get in the car already? Have you seen what time it is? We’re almost late.”

Feng Xun sat in the driver’s seat, looking at the three clowns in front of him. He was starting to wonder if bringing them along had been a colossal mistake.

Feng Xun sighed helplessly, looking like a father worried about his kids.

“We’re leaving. Hurry up.”

When the three heard Feng Xun urging them on, they stopped fooling around and hurried into the car.

“Coming, Young Master Feng!”

Zuo Xi: “Hey, Su Chen, get in the back. How many times have you taken the front seat? Don’t you have any self-awareness? Let me have it.”

Su Chen: “Hey, next time. Next time for sure.”

Qin Heng: “Forget it, Colonel Zuo. Let him embarrass himself up front. Makes the rest of us look better.”

At that, Zuo Xi smacked Su Chen on the head, annoyed.

“Next time I’ll glue you to that seat with Super Glue and let you sit there forever.”

“Just you wait!”

…………

Feng Xun usually liked a quiet ride, but unfortunately, he was surrounded by three clowns who wouldn’t stop yapping. Before long, they’d drawn him into the conversation too…

Feng Xun: “Colonel Zuo, didn’t you apply for that technical consultant job at some company? How’d it go?”

Zuo Xi: “I left after a few days.”

Qin Heng: “What happened, Colonel Zuo? The pay and benefits no good?”

Su Chen: “Not enough pretty girls?”

The moment Zuo Xi thought about it, he got annoyed.

“Pretty girls? There weren’t many who made me feel like flirting. But there were a whole bunch who made me want to kill someone.”

“They were glued to their computers all day, and those people had one mess after another. I stopped dealing with it.”

“Hahahaha! Nice. That’s so Colonel Zuo.”

“Sick.”

“We’re here. Get out.”

Feng Xun turned off the engine, found a parking spot, and called out to the trio to get ready to leave. (He was mainly calling out to Su Chen.)

Su Chen, who’d been asleep in the passenger seat, cracked his eyes open and blinked groggily. Then he looked completely lost.

“What the hell? Weren’t we supposed to be going to a hotel?”

“What is this huge castle?!”

Su Chen turned to look around. Everywhere he looked, under the bright lights, there were luxury cars and supercars. He’d been prepared for something impressive, but seeing it with his own eyes still left him stunned.

Actually, Qin Heng and Zuo Xi had also been pretty shaken when they saw the castle, gardens, and luxury cars everywhere as they drove in…

The three of them came from fairly well-off families, all of which had businesses of their own. They enjoyed a comfortable, middle-class life, at the very least.

But compared to a young master like Feng Xun, whose assets ran into the billions, they were living in a completely different world…

What made Feng Xun especially admirable was that he didn’t keep his distance from them despite the huge class divide. Quite the opposite—he did his best to fit in as their roommate, treating them as friends and brothers. He also shared whatever resources from his own world could help them. For this top-tier banquet, where they could make valuable connections, he’d gone all out to get invitations for the three of them.

Now, seeing the three of them fall quiet…

“All right, quit standing around. Come with me.”

“There’s nothing to be nervous about. They’re all pampered young masters and young ladies. When it comes to real ability, they might not even measure up to you.”

Feng Xun was a practical guy. He’d noticed the trio’s misgivings, so he gave them a passive buff beforehand and put their worries to rest.

It wasn’t that the trio felt inferior. But the huge class divide brought its own pressure, and bowing and scraping almost seemed like human nature…

Feng Xun had told them earlier that this banquet was for business networking. The people there weren’t just little princesses and young masters. They were capable, formidable people, just like Feng Xun.

But since Feng Xun, their backbone, had spoken up, what did they have to be nervous about? They straightened their clothes, and this time Su Chen was the first to speak.

“Exactly! With Young Master Feng here, what’ve we got to be scared of? We’d better start figuring out how to bring a few rich beauties back with us!”

“Hahahaha!”

“He’s got a point. It’s a rare chance. We’d be wasting it if we didn’t show off a little.”

The trio started hyping each other up again, all talking at once.

……

Heh. Those guys.

Seeing the trio quickly return to their usual selves, Feng Xun relaxed. A smile spread across his face.

He picked up the jacket beside him and thrust his left arm into the sleeve with a sharp swish. Then he spoke in a clear, magnetic voice.

“If you guys are ready, then get ready to—”

“Show them what we can do!!!”

“It suits you perfectly. You look absolutely beautiful. You’ll be the crescent moon all eyes turn to at tonight’s banquet.”

Qing Nianyi smiled warmly and brightly, tenderness softening her willow brows and the corners of her eyes.

Her cherry-red lips parted, and her clear, lilting voice rang out again.

“Thank you, Steward Ling. I’m really looking forward to tonight’s banquet.”

The steward beside her paused, then spoke.

“Director Wei has an urgent meeting today. Judging by the timing, I’m afraid she won’t be able to make it…”

Qing Nianyi gently shook her head to show that it was all right.

“It’s fine. Steward Ling, please give my regards to my aunt.”

“Of course.”