The manager excused the sales associate and led Lin Xian into an interior room.
"Mr. Lin, please come in."
After entering the room, Lin Xian noticed that it was brightly lit, with European-style wooden furniture arranged all around the room, giving it a sense of history.
And in the center of the room, there were several glass cabinets, each displaying a neatly hanging suit.
"Mr. Lin, since you have to attend the banquet tonight, it's definitely too late to handcraft a suit from scratch. The suits displayed here are all standard models. Take a look at these suits, choose the one you like, and I'll take it out for you to try. Your figure is quite standard, so a little alteration by the tailor, and you can take it directly to wear."
"Personally, I recommend the set on the left; its style isn't as formal, and its pairing is a bit more vibrant."
Listening to the manager's introduction, Lin Xian turned his head to look at the glass cabinet on the left.
It was a dark blue suit, and Lin Xian could tell... this suit was a notch higher in quality than those outside.
"Then let's go with this one, I'll give it a try."
Lin Xian had only worn a suit once in his life and, rather than choosing for himself, he trusted the professional's opinion more.
After trying on the suit, Lin Xian looked at himself in the mirror.
Indeed, clothes make the man... The top-notch suit really did make a difference once worn.
"Let's go with this one then."
"Alright, Mr. Lin, please come this way, and I'll have the tailor take your measurements and make the alterations. By the way, do you need me to recommend you a tie?"
"Uh-huh, you do the pairing."
...
After a while, Lin Xian left the store carrying a suit box.
It was his first time learning that such top-tier suits were usually kept in boxes.
The manager told him that after getting home, he should take the suit out of the box, hang it up to prevent wrinkles. The purpose of the box was to protect the suit during transport.
"Quite delicate indeed..."
Carrying this suit box, Lin Xian felt like he was carrying a box of gold.
He was quite curious about how much this so-called top-tier suit was worth... but there were no prices listed on the three glass cabinets, and the manager had directly charged it to Zhao Yingjun's account, so in the end, Lin Xian had no idea how much it cost.
7 PM.
Lin Xian took a taxi to the banquet venue.
This was the most luxurious mansion in Donghai City. After the car stopped, there was a dedicated greeter to open the door, shielding the top of the door frame with their palm.
"Sir, please mind your step getting out."
Lin Xian walked towards the hall of the mansion, nodding and smiling back at several guests who were approaching and doing the same.
The entire mansion was decorated in a European style, its bricks and tiles exuding elegance and gravity.
As he entered the hall, the banquet had not yet officially begun.
The guests were all holding wine glasses, scattered around chatting, while melodious violin and piano music played from the second floor. This atmosphere... reminded Lin Xian of a scene from "Titanic."
Lin Xian soon found Zhao Yingjun.
Today she wore a dark red evening dress with her hair piled high in a formal style.
Lin Xian noticed that she had switched her earrings from silver in the morning to a crystal red, which matched her evening dress well.
Different from the Zhao Yingjun who usually wore business attire, today's Zhao Yingjun... seemed more feminine and had the beauty of a high-blooming rose.
"Lin Xian, you're here."
Zhao Yingjun noticed Lin Xian and gave him an appraising look, nodding her head:
"Good eye, that suit suits you well."
She walked over, pinched Lin Xian's tie knot, and tightened it:
"Lin Xian, a suit is a man's armor, and the tie is his sword at hand. Remember to tie it tighter next time."
"Oh, okay..."
Lin Xian opened his mouth to respond.
After patting Lin Xian's collar, Zhao Yingjun picked up her glass again and led Lin Xian further inside, saying,
"Today's science fundraising dinner is organized by the chairman of the Donghai Chamber of Commerce... Chu Shanhe."
She pointed to the towering man at the bottom of the great hall's stairs, chatting merrily with a group of tycoons,
"That's Chu Shanhe, Donghai City's most famous big shot."
"I've heard of him," Lin Xian nodded.
Chu Shanhe's name was known to everyone in Donghai City. He was the man no one dared to provoke or even wanted to provoke.
As an international metropolis, Donghai City was rife with complex overt and covert operations. How could an ordinary person firmly hold the position of chairman of the chamber of commerce, a role so full of verbal authority and actual power?
"When I was in college, I would often hear legendary stories about Chu Shanhe, it's hard to tell whether they were true or not. There are also rumors... that he is a doting father to his daughter?"
Zhao Yingjun chuckled softly,
"That's not false."
"He spoils his daughter a lot?"
"Spoils her? He holds her in his hands for fear of her falling, and cherishes her in his mouth for fear of her melting."
Zhao Yingjun looked around and shook her head,
"Chu Shanhe used to bring his daughter to every banquet, but today I haven't seen her. She's a very pretty girl."
"Oh,"
Lin Xian responded noncommittally.
He wasn't interested in such gossip; it was a world completely disconnected from him.
"Lin Xian, look over there," Zhao Yingjun said, pulling Lin Xian's arm and pointing to another side.
There stood a man alone in a corner of the hall, sticking out like a sore thumb from the rest of the dinner.
He was dressed in a casual shirt, his face spotted with unshaven stubble, and he wore thick square glasses that were now fogging up...
"That's Professor Xu from East Sea University, Professor Xu Yun. Did you know him when you were studying?"
"I don't know him," Lin Xian said frankly.
East Sea University was so large, with so many schools, and so many professors that Lin Xian couldn't even recognize all the teachers in his own school, let alone others...
"Professor Xu Yun is the only scientist in the country who is researching the Hibernation Pod. He's never had much luck with his research, hasn't even nailed down the basic theory, let alone made any substantive progress."
"Someone in our country studies that? Sounds too sci-fi."
Zhao Yingjun smiled, lowering her head,
"Just him alone."
"Because he's researching such a far-fetched topic, no research institute wants him. His former teachers and students have all left him; everyone thinks he's gone mad."
"After all these years, he's only managed to become an associate professor through seniority, without any achievements in scientific research. He can only huddle up in the university, teaching classes and tinkering with his research in the lab."
"But then," Zhao Yingjun focused on the swirling red wine in her glass and continued,
"perhaps that's just how fate works, when it has declined to its extreme, it rebounds the other way."
"A while ago, he again failed in his research on the Hibernation Pod Filling Liquid, but accidentally discovered a new chemical compound."
"When this substance binds with water molecules, it forms a monomolecular film that allows the passage of gases but completely isolates water molecules, and it's also harmless to the skin."
Zhao Yingjun set her wine glass on the table, then took a new glass of red wine from the tray held by a passing waiter,
"This chemical compound, for Professor Xu's hibernation research, is undoubtedly a failure. But Lin Xian..."
"Do you know what this substance means to our skincare industry?"