Not long after, a steaming plate of lamb spine was served.
The person who brought the dish was Chen Qiang's wife. She came from a poor background but was quite beautiful. She was a bit reserved and spoke little. She merely smiled and nodded at the old customer, Chu Yuxuan.
After a long day, Lao Wu, whose stomach had been growling, picked up a piece of meat and stuffed it into his mouth, mumbling, "Big brother, Lao San loves this dish the most. You should have called him too."
Chu Yuxuan smiled slightly, "Do you think it's convenient for him to come now?"
Just as he finished speaking, a group of people, noisy and boisterous, arrived from outside the tent. The leader was someone Chu Yuxuan recognized – it was his high school class monitor. The monitor, who appeared a bit tipsy with a reddened face, lifted the curtain and shouted, "Chen Qiang! We're here to support you!"
Another person next to him shouted, "Come and see, Goddess Xia is here to support you too!"
Chu Yuxuan kept his head down, eating quietly and remained unfazed.
Lao Wu glanced up and, after a moment of hesitation, looked at Chu Yuxuan with a barely perceptible smile but did not dare to speak.
Chen Qiang, hearing the commotion, quickly went out to greet them. Looking at the seven or eight old classmates, especially the dazzling female star among them, he was both flattered and nervous. He said, "Oh my, what brings you here! Please come in, we have a big table ready!"
The crowd teased, "Boss Chen, your business is booming!"
"Don't forget about us old classmates once you get rich!"
At this moment, Xia Zhu's manager, who was slightly tipsy, jested with Chen Qiang and, when turning back to pull Xia Zhu's hand, noticed Xia Zhu's expression had frozen. Her body was slightly stiff as she tilted her head towards the table of guests by the door.
"Xia Zhu, you..."
The manager trailed off, following Xia Zhu's gaze to see Chu Yuxuan devouring his food with gusto.
As Xia Zhu's close friend, the manager knew about Xia Zhu's secret marriage to Chu Yuxuan and was also aware that they were now divorced.
"Seriously… how unlucky?" The manager had just returned from visiting relatives and attending a matchmaking event back home and, having no clue about Chu Yuxuan's current situation, couldn't help but mock, "Why did we run into this toad?"
The class monitor was puzzled, "What's going on?"
"Nothing, let's go eat. Come on," the manager said, pushing the class monitor inside while pulling Xia Zhu along.
Xia Zhu glanced back frequently, hesitating to speak.
Suddenly, a sharp-eyed classmate recognized Chu Yuxuan and exclaimed, "Hey? Isn't that... Chu Yuxuan?"
The class monitor turned to look at Chu Yuxuan and was also surprised, "Chu Yuxuan? What a coincidence! It's been a long time. Come, join us for a meal!"
Chu Yuxuan smiled politely and waved his hand, "No, you all enjoy your gathering. I'm here with friends."
The class monitor patted his thigh, "Just one more pair of chopsticks won't hurt. Come on, we're old classmates, let's chat!"
Before Chu Yuxuan could refuse again, Xia Zhu's manager sarcastically said, "Forget it, we were only classmates for a year. We're not close to him."
As she spoke, she pointed to the old Skoda parked outside with a look of disdain, "He's now making big money driving for DiDi. We're going to drink later, so let's not delay his money-making, haha..."
"Driving for DiDi?"
"Why don't we take care of his business tonight? Haha..."
"Hey, Goddess Xia, didn't Chu Yuxuan seem to have pursued you in high school?"
Xia Zhu's expression darkened, and she remained silent.
The manager scoffed, "Who wouldn't? It's like those toads don't know their own worth, dreaming of swan meat in broad daylight!"
Lao Wu, chewing on a bone, muttered, "What's that supposed to mean?"
After a moment, Lao Wu realized that the remark was directed at Chu Yuxuan. His expression instantly turned cold, his blue eyes showing a hint of murderous intent. He spat the bone onto the table, tightened his grip on his chopsticks, and was about to stand up.
Chu Yuxuan gave him a warning glance, calming Lao Wu, then picked up a piece of meat and continued eating, ignoring the offensive remarks. Xia Zhu subtly tugged at her manager's sleeve, wanting to reveal that Chu Yuxuan was now the new boss of Qingya. However, unable to speak up, she simply said, "Alright, let's stop talking and go eat."
Chen Qiang also tried to smooth things over, "Yes, yes, we're old classmates. Let's just have a good time."
After settling the old classmates, Chen Qiang hurriedly brought two bottles of liquor to Chu Yuxuan and said, "Yuxuan, don't mind them. They've had too much to drink."
Chu Yuxuan smiled, "It's fine, go and take care of your guests."
Just then, Chu Yuxuan happened to glance outside and saw a white Maserati parked by the roadside. Zhao Yanan, dressed in a black woolen coat, got out of the car. After locking it, she looked up at the sign of Ziyang Building, her beautiful face full of melancholy. She sighed and, as she withdrew her gaze, unexpectedly saw Chu Yuxuan staring at her with a smirk from inside the transparent tent. She was momentarily stunned. At the same time, someone at Xia Zhu's table exclaimed, "Wow, a beauty!"
Everyone looked outside, immediately becoming infatuated. The class monitor, with a gleam in his eyes, said, "This beauty is truly… stunning!"
The manager was also surprised to see her boss here by coincidence and said, "Xia Zhu, go and say hello!"
Xia Zhu glanced at Zhao Yanan, then looked back at Chu Yuxuan, slightly furrowing her brows and remaining silent.
"What's this b*st*rd doing here?"
Zhao Yanan thought about the trouble caused by the Gao family today and felt inexplicably angry. Her gaze toward Chu Yuxuan turned icy as she hesitated to move, as if holding onto a sliver of hope that her so-called ex-husband would not leave her to face this alone.
Two classmates, noticing that Xia Zhu and Zhao Yanan knew each other, teased, "Xia Zhu, do you know this beautiful lady? Introduce her to the monitor!"
"Yeah! Even though we're not great catches, the class monitor is a real talent with a million-dollar salary. Introduce us!"
Xia Zhu's face reddened further, lowering her head.
"Afraid you can't handle it?" The manager joked, then patted Xia Zhu, "What's wrong? You seem a bit off. Let's go say hello to President Zhao."
Xia Zhu wanted to say something but then thought she couldn't ignore the situation. She braced herself and allowed the manager to pull her outside.
"Hey? Still a rich lady?" A classmate winked at the monitor, "What are you waiting for? Seize the chance!"
"You guys… haven't you seen a woman before?" The monitor, though seemingly nonchalant, adjusted his collar and called out to Xia Zhu, "Xia Zhu, if it's convenient, invite her in."
"Yoo..." The other classmates urged.
Chu Yuxuan remained composed, his eyes fixed on Zhao Yanan outside, a hint of mischievousness on his lips, showing no intention of going out.
Zhao Yanan, having silently cursed Chu Yuxuan for ten seconds in her mind, glared at him. Just as she was about to head into Ziyang Building, she saw Xia Zhu and her manager pushing the curtain aside to come out.
"President Zhao..."
"President Zhao, what a coincidence!"
Zhao Yanan was momentarily stunned. After glancing at the two, she looked back at Chu Yuxuan, her eyes filled with mockery as she thought, "Jerk!"
Chu Yuxuan understood her gaze, a smile spreading across his face. He looked somewhat nonchalant as he continued eating.
Perhaps due to the alcohol, the manager, oblivious to the exchanged glances between Zhao Yanan and Chu Yuxuan, continued discussing her reason for bringing Xia Zhu there.
Zhao Yanan nodded in agreement and said softly, "Sure, but keep the photos casual, don't stage them. Let the PR department handle it from a passerby's perspective."
The praised manager beamed, "Okay, President Zhao! Uh... are you dining here too? How about joining us?"
Before she finished speaking, there was a loud crash!
The three beauties jumped in shock, and everyone in the stall was startled. Lao Wu instinctively reached for his waist, and Chu Yuxuan, slightly surprised, turned his head toward the door, frowning before smiling mischievously.
A white Land Rover had crashed into the old Skoda parked by the roadside.