Allen booked a table at “Heart of China,” the best Chinese restaurant in M City. Since it was New Year’s Eve, almost all Chinese people would gather together for a good meal, so the Chinese restaurants on this day were exceptionally busy. It seemed like Allen had reserved a spot early.
When they arrived at the restaurant, it was indeed bustling with activity, and there was a constant stream of people waiting for tables. Su Bin glanced at the crowd coming to have their New Year’s Eve dinner and noticed many were international students. He even recognized a few familiar faces.
Because the restaurant would have lion dance performances in the evening, Allen had reserved seats in the main hall.
After sitting down, Su Bin looked over and saw… Oh! The table next to them was occupied by Cheng Ang’s group. The studded shoe girl and several other familiar faces were there, but Su Bin didn’t see Sun Yujie!
“Hey, Ang Da Tou?” Jin Fei obviously noticed Cheng Ang.
Cheng Ang glanced at him, unwilling to engage.
Jin Fei didn’t let it go. “Where’s your little sweetheart? It’s New Year’s Eve. Why didn’t you bring him along for dinner?”
Cheng Ang’s face darkened, glaring at Jin Fei. “What nonsense are you talking about?”
Jin Fei chuckled sarcastically. He didn’t want to cause trouble on New Year’s Eve, so he stopped there. But discerning people could sense the tension between the two sentences he uttered.
“Leo, who’s that person?” A soft female voice came from beside Cheng Ang.
Su Bin was closest to them, so he could hear what they were saying back to back. He turned his head and found the long-haired girl he had seen in the steakhouse sitting next to Cheng Ang, asking the question.
Cheng Ang didn’t answer, and someone nearby explained, “That’s Boss Jin, a celebrity in M City’s social circle. Didn’t you know?”
The long-haired girl coquettishly said, “I’ve never heard of him~”
Jin Fei was sitting diagonally across from her. Although they were at different tables, they could still see each other.
Su Bin saw Jin Fei gritting his teeth and wrinkling the cigarette box in his hand. He probably was thinking: Damn it, you’ve never heard of my name? Alright, I’ll remember you!
Su Bin heard the girl ask Cheng Ang, “Who’s the ‘little sweetheart’ he mentioned?”
Cheng Ang’s expression remained unchanged as he calmly said, “It’s something from the past.”
Su Bin was stunned. What does ‘something from the past’ mean? Did Cheng Ang and Sun Yujie break up? Or was it a lie he was keeping from his friends?
Su Bin remembered the conversation he had with Sun Yujie after the exam today. He had planned to invite Sun Yujie to his place for the New Year’s Eve dinner, but considering today was New Year’s Eve, Sun Yujie might be with Cheng Ang. Cheng Ang and Jin Fei weren’t on good terms, so he didn’t ask. He just casually asked Sun Yujie if he had any plans. He only remembered Sun Yujie vaguely saying “yeah” at the time.
But now, seeing Cheng Ang not with Sun Yujie, did he leave Sun Yujie alone at home?
The girl adjusted her position, leaning close to Cheng Ang, whispering in his ear, then feeding him food from her plate from time to time. It didn’t look like they were just ordinary friends.
The more Su Bin watched, the more annoyed he felt. He couldn’t help but send a text to Sun Yujie: “What are you doing?”
“Playing games,” Sun Yujie replied quickly.
Su Bin paused for a moment and asked deliberately, “Playing games on New Year’s Eve? Where’s your man?”
Since they started dating, Sun Yujie no longer referred to Cheng Ang by his name but as “my man” to avoid suspicion. At first, Su Bin felt disgusted hearing this nickname, but after a while, he got used to it and started using it too.
Sun Yujie replied, “He said he’s busy tonight… I ordered takeout. There’s an event in the game, and I made plans with some online friends.”
Busy? Busy being intimate with another woman!? Su Bin was furious.
Seeing Su Bin’s expression change, Jin Fei asked, and Su Bin told him about Sun Yujie being alone at home. Jin Fei’s eyes lit up, “Ask him to join us for dinner.”
“Is that your former classmate?” Yang Chengzhe, upon hearing the story, also warmly said, “We have space at our table. Let him join us. The more the merrier.”
Su Bin glanced at Allen. Seeing no objections from him, he immediately called Sun Yujie, “Come to Heart of China and have dinner with us.”
Sun Yujie: “Huh? Now?”
Su Bin: “Yeah, hurry up and take a cab over here. Table B8, we’ve added seats, and the food hasn’t arrived yet!”
After hanging up the phone, Jin Fei asked, “What did he say?”
Su Bin: “He’s coming.”
Earlier, from Sun Yujie’s tone, it seemed like he didn’t know that Cheng Ang was also dining at Heart of China… Su Bin wondered if he would feel awkward when he arrived.
However, even so, Su Bin didn’t want Sun Yujie to spend New Year’s Eve alone in the dorm. Sun Yujie’s excitement when he answered the phone just now was too evident. On New Year’s Eve, who would want to be alone when they could be with family and friends?
Just as they were served two dishes, Sun Yujie arrived.
“Happy New Year!” he greeted Su Bin’s roommates with a smile. But as soon as the words left his mouth, his smile froze—he saw Cheng Ang at the next table.
Cheng Ang’s face also turned pale the moment Sun Yujie approached, and he didn’t come to his senses until Sun Yujie sat down with Jin Fei and the others.
“Oh, isn’t this Jason?” the studded shoe girl noticed and exclaimed loudly, attracting attention from Su Bin’s table. It seemed like she wanted to assess who the people dining with Sun Yujie were.
However, her gaze lingered on Allen the longest, with undisguised interest, which annoyed Su Bin in various ways.
“Why didn’t you tell me he’s also here?” Sun Yujie asked Su Bin in a low voice, sounding a bit embarrassed.
Jin Fei poured a glass of wine for Sun Yujie. “I asked you to come. What, he can come, but you can’t?”
Sun Yujie remained silent with a pale face. Su Bin picked up a piece of ribs for him and whispered, “Let’s focus on our food. Don’t mind them.”
Yang Chengzhe added, “We’ve ordered a lot of dishes. Let’s eat more.”
Fortunately, the atmosphere in the restaurant was still festive. Although it was awkward at first, as they ate, everyone minded their own business.
After a few rounds of drinks, the lion dance troupe arrived, and the restaurant became even livelier. Su Bin asked Allen, “Do you like it?”
Allen countered, “Do you?”
Su Bin nodded excitedly, and Allen smiled back, as if to say, “As long as you do.”
Watching their interaction, Sun Yujie looked envious. He drank a lot of alcohol, seemed to forget his worries, and laughed along with everyone else, raising his glass and wishing everyone a “Happy New Year.”
By nine o’clock, they had eaten and drunk their fill, and it was time to leave. Gradually, people started to leave the restaurant.
Su Bin and the others had also finished their meal. “Boss Su” was opening the next day, and Su Bin had to go to the store early. He decided to go back and get some rest.
However, as soon as they got up, Cheng Ang also stood up, looking at them with a flickering gaze and asked, “Any plans later? Want to hang out together?”
The studded shoe girl chimed in, “We’re planning to go to the KTV in Chinatown. We’ve already booked a room. Join us!” As she said this, her eyes kept glancing at Allen.
“I’m not going!” Su Bin stood in front of Allen, regretting not being burlier to block Allen completely.
The studded shoe girl smiled and said, “Just because you’re not going doesn’t mean others don’t want to. Right, Xiao Jie? Hey, we were a bit biased against you before, but Ang Ge recently enlightened us… Let’s go, let’s go.” She tried to grab Sun Yujie’s hand as she spoke.
Sun Yujie was a little dizzy from the alcohol, but he was articulate. He pushed the girl away and echoed Su Bin’s sentiment, “Who cares? I’m not going!”
Su Bin almost wanted to applaud Sun Yujie. It was rare to see him so resolute!
The studded shoe girl stumbled back, furious. “Are you even a man? You dare to touch a girl? Oh, I almost forgot you’re gay. You’re willing to be topped by men, so you can’t even be considered a man. As for me…”
“Enough!” Cheng Ang suddenly spoke up. Almost simultaneously, the studded shoe girl received a slap across her left cheek. Sun Yujie held up his hand, his eyes red as he glared at her. Everyone was shocked. They didn’t expect Sun Yujie to resort to violence…
“Do you dare to hit me?” The studded shoe girl covered half of her face, tears streaming down instantly.
Su Bin stepped forward to explain for Sun Yujie, “He’s had too much to drink!”
Sun Yujie was also bewildered. He moved his lips hesitantly, about to apologize, when his face was slapped twice. Su Bin, standing beside him, could feel the wind as the studded shoe girl swung her hand. The crisp sound of the slaps made everyone’s hearts skip a beat.
Someone from Cheng Ang’s group pulled the studded shoe girl back to protect her. She cried as if she had suffered a great injustice. The sympathies of the people leaned towards the weaker party, listening to the girl’s crying, and they looked at Sun Yujie with critical eyes.
“What’s the meaning of this?” Jin Fei couldn’t stand it anymore. “Before you suspect others of being male or female, why don’t you take a look in the mirror and see if you look like a man or a woman? Someone hits you once, and you hit back twice, acting as if you’ve been wronged like you’ve been deflowered…” Jin Fei sneered at the girl with disdain while shaking his head. “If you’re a girl, didn’t your mom teach you how to behave properly? Look at her,” Jin Fei pointed at the long-haired girl next to Cheng Ang, “she’s gentle and graceful. Learn from her.”
The long-haired girl shyly glanced at Jin Fei, who winked at her and showed an “interested” expression.
The studded shoe girl was infuriated, and Cheng Ang’s face kept changing colors.
Jin Fei wanted to say more, but Yang Chengzhe pressed his shoulder and advised, “It’s New Year’s Day. Don’t stoop to the level of children. Let’s go.”
Everyone: “…Children…”
Allen’s expressionless face further confirmed the one-sided failure of Cheng Ang’s invitation.
Before parting ways, Sun Yujie looked at Cheng Ang with a complex gaze, a hint of resentment, a touch of melancholy, and something indescribable that made Cheng Ang inexplicably frightened.
He wanted to call out to Sun Yujie, but after moving his lips, he ultimately didn’t say anything.
On the way back, Su Bin couldn’t help but comfort Sun Yujie. If it weren’t for Su Bin and Jin Fei’s enthusiasm in inviting him, he wouldn’t have been subjected to such humiliation.
Sun Yujie shook his head. “I had a good time eating with you guys today… The problem between me and Cheng Ang has nothing to do with you.”
Su Bin sighed, feeling helpless. He turned to Jin Fei with a sense of indignation. “Jin Fei, don’t tell me you’re really interested in that long-haired girl. She’s nowhere near Lena!”
Plus, that woman clearly had something going on with Cheng Ang. Su Bin suspected Cheng Ang was playing both sides!
Jin Fei chuckled softly. “With that kind of quality, heh…”
Su Bin: “Then why were you giving her flirty looks?”
“I was sowing discord,” Jin Fei replied casually. “Didn’t you see that shrew also liked Cheng Ang? She looked at that long-haired girl the same way she looked at Xiao Jie, treating them both as rivals…”
Su Bin paused for a moment, sighed, and said, “Ah, people who study psychology… their hearts are truly dirty.”
Jin Fei: “…”
