Mu Jinchen merely listened and frowned ever so slightly. He took a long drag of his cigarette and felt the taste of nicotine flow throughout his body. His lips curled as he then changed the subject, "Have you dealt with that family incident of yours?"
They were lifelong friends; even their ancestors were close to one another. They all knew about that particular incident that happened in the Tang family.
"It's impossible to solve this historical problem in a short time. I've worked at being indifferent these past two years abroad. I'll try to persuade the elders and deal with the problem from a different angle. What about you? Since you're back for good, are you preparing to come out swinging?"
Mu Jinchen had been conducting business abroad for the past ten years and had now returned triumphantly to the family dynasty. It was natural for a new contender to shake up the competition. It would not be long until S City's market share's complete redefinition.
Mu Jinchen nodded. "Although I've seen much of the ostentatiousness of the world, I still feel a sense of belonging in S City. On the other hand, the structure of S City has changed much these past years. It'll take some time to pick up."
A thought then occurred to Jun Xiang and he teased, "I heard that you went on a match-making session this morning?"
Mu Jinchen supported his forehead with his hand. They were billed as the most eligible bachelors by the outside world. In the eyes of their elders, they were the remaining unmarried men in the family. They all faced the pressure of marriage.
"Where did you hear this rumor?"
Jun Xiang took out his cell phone and pulled up a video clip. "Bawling S City princess's failed match-making session. How's that for a headline?"
In the short video clip, a tear-stained woman wailed at an imposing male figure. "No, no. I won't leave. Our genders are incompatible? I'll go for a sex change, okay? I'll be anything you want me to be." A bodyguard-like figure extended his arms out to his side in a 'this way please' gesture. The other boss-like figure remained silent and did not once glance at the woman. The woman had her face toward the screen while the two men had their backs facing away.
It was obvious that the man and woman in the video clip were Li Lisha and Mu Jinchen from their match-making session in the cafe that morning.
Jun Xiang would not waste the rare opportunity to take a jibe at his buddy. "How did it feel to have the princess of S City confess her love to you?"
Mu Jinchen blew a smoke ring, glared at his friend and spat out, "Boring."
"Everyone within this social circle knows that Li Lisha has been obsessed with you for years, yet you still had the courage to serve yourself up on a silver platter."
"It was my sister's idea."
"Sister Lan? Even the elders in your family know that you'll only listen to Sister Lan."
Mu Jinchen thought about how overjoyed his sister was when she heard he would return to the old manor. He was a little stifled. "I'll only listen to myself from now on."
Tang Mubai raised the whiskey glass in his hand. "We finally got together after all this time, let's not talk about the unpleasant topics. Come on. Cheers."
The other two men raised and clinked their glasses with his and instinctively downed their entire glass.
Jun Xiang refilled everyone's glasses and continued to gossip, "Mubai, I heard from my grandfather that you're getting married? You've kept your fiance so well hidden that even we haven't seen her." He was not aware where his grandfather received the news that Tang Mubai was getting married. His grandfather came home one day and gave him an earful out of nowhere.
They had been living In the same compound for years. When any other family's child was getting married, his grandfather would give him an earful. This drama had been played out too often recently, to the point that he sometimes wanted to curse his family. What was the big deal? He had been engaged for twenty years anyway.