296: Chapter 296 Minor Trouble

The next morning, before Jiang Ye's eyelids had even fully opened, his hand instinctively reached for the phone by his pillow.

Several unread messages were hanging on the screen.

Ye Cheng seemed afraid he'd do something reckless on a whim, so she left even earlier than Lin Wanxing did for work; she had already arrived in Faku by now.

Looking at the selfie she sent, Jiang Ye curled his lip and casually replied: [Why run so fast? Uncle Chen came by this morning and said he misses you.]

Then he opened his mom Xu Man's WeChat and sent a voice message: "Mom, I'll be back tomorrow to spend the Little New Year with you. But Xiao Su and Xiao Ye have both gone home, and Xiao Lin... she's a bit shy. I'll do my best."

Finally, Jiang Ye's gaze stopped on Fang Wei's chat box—the number of unread messages was a staggering "18."

The first dozen or so were a "live broadcast" of last night's KTV session, ranging from an enthusiastic report on how he used the art of language to keep arguing with the Lu Mingxuan, to sourly complaining about which "dog couple" in class had started making out during a game of Truth or Dare, and finally to drunken gibberish...

His fingers slid quickly upward until... the last three messages.

[That grandson of a bitch Lu Mingxuan is so low! He got drunk and started bragging again, saying he's a few steps ahead of the class now and much better than some people who claim to be doing independent internships but are actually delivering food!]

[Damn! He brought up your business again! Saying things like "Jiang Ye was so direct back then, asking someone to a hotel room in the middle of the night without considering his own status"! Those bastards actually laughed along!]

[Cheng Weiwei is also a bitch! She just listened from the side and didn't say a single word for you! No way! This Buddy has to get revenge for you! Just watch me!]

???

Three giant question marks slowly appeared over Jiang Ye's head as an ominous premonition welled up. He dialed the number immediately.

The phone rang seven or eight times, and just as it was about to hang up automatically, Fang Wei's raspy voice came from the other end:

"Hello... who is it... so early in the morning..."

"Me! Your father!"

Jiang Ye asked irritably, "What did you do last night? What the hell was that 'just watch me' about?"

"Ah... my dear son... I didn't do anything..."

Fang Wei's voice was dazed: "Just singing... drink... drinking... and then... Holy shit!"

A sudden rustling sound came from the other side of the phone, as if he had suddenly sprung up from the bed:

"Um... Brother Ye... no, Father... I think I fucking..."

Hearing that "Father," Jiang Ye's heart skipped a beat, and his forehead was instantly covered in black lines.

Damn it!

This grandson of a bitch definitely didn't do anything good! He's absolutely caused trouble for me!

"Stop dawdling! Spit it out! Did you cause some trouble for me?"

"Well, this matter... depends on how you look at it..."

Fang Wei stammered, trying to quibble: "A 'trouble' usually refers to something unexpected, so in a sense, it's not actually a trouble..."

"Stop beating around the bush! Tell me straight! What exactly did you do?"

"It's just... tonight's gathering... you might have to... splurge a bit, spend a little more money."

Hearing this, Jiang Ye immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

He thought this guy had pulled some crazy stunt, but it was just spending more money.

He figured the silly kid had been provoked by the Lu Mingxuan last night and bragged about making a grand scene, booking some incredibly expensive place to take photos for moments to slap the Lu Mingxuan's face.

But... that really wasn't a big deal.

Whether it was ten thousand, thirty thousand, or a hundred thousand, it made no difference to Jiang Ye, who had already achieved 'small-scale financial freedom.'

"Oh..."

Jiang Ye's tone relaxed: "You gave me a fright, I thought it was something serious. Alright, I got it. Just find a place tonight and send me the County..."

"Wait! Brother Ye!"

Fang Wei hastily interrupted him, his voice getting weaker: "There's more..."

"More?"

The heart Jiang Ye had just put at ease rose again: "What else? Can you finish it all in one breath?"

"Also... it's just... maybe... maybe not just the two of us... there will be more people..."

"More people? What do you mean? Who else did you invite? Lao Si? Fatty?"

"No... more than that..."

Fang Wei seemed to be scratching his head on the other end: "Um... about... seven or eight people..."

"How many?!"

"Seven or eight..."

"Wait, have you ever seen people go to that kind of place in a group?"

"Cough... and... Cheng Weiwei and Jiang Shuang... the two of them... also said they're going..."

...

Jiang Ye held the phone and remained silent for a full five seconds.

His superior ability to fill in the blanks allowed him to instantly reconstruct the scene at the KTV last night—

Fang Wei likely couldn't stand the Lu Mingxuan's posturing and, fueled by both alcohol and anger, made a public "grand declaration" that Jiang Ye would treat everyone. He had roped in the Lu Mingxuan's group, along with Cheng Weiwei and Jiang Shuang, aiming for a "face-to-face confrontation" to show everyone who was truly "incompetent."

This grandson of a bitch...

"...Fine, pick a place in Dadong District."

"It's almost New Year's anyway, and I have a friend who's a bit short on performance targets..."

"I'll... I'll fucking round you all up in one go!"