33: Chapter 33 A great Confucian scholar will debate the scriptures for me.

Wang Peng, a wealthy second-generation classmate from high school whose family made some money in the building materials business, was always showing off.

Ignoring everyone's reaction, he sat down brazenly and slapped his BMW keys onto the table with a "clack."

"Sorry everyone, just picked up a new car, a top-spec 5 Series. Parking took a bit of time."

His two female companions sat down on either side of him, and one of them curiously sized up Jiang Jing: "And this is..."

"Our high school classmate, Jiang Jing." Wang Peng pursed his lips. "He used to be a nobody in class, but now..." He deliberately drew out his tone, "I heard you're still a programmer? Are you making over ten thousand a month yet?"

The atmosphere in the private room turned awkward. Zhang Shuo frowned: "Wang Peng, you..."

"Being a programmer is fine." Jiang Jing calmly interrupted Zhang Shuo, raised his glass toward Wang Peng, and said, "Congratulations on the new car."

Wang Peng was clearly dissatisfied with this reaction. He narrowed his eyes, looking Jiang Jing up and down: "Yo, this cashmere sweater looks pretty good. What brand is it? Don't tell me it's from Taobao?"

"No particular brand," Jiang Jing replied casually. "As long as it's comfortable to wear."

"But I'm not a coder anymore."

"Oh? Changed careers?" Wang Peng's eyes lit up, as if he had found some dirt. "What are you doing now? Delivering food or driving for a ride-hailing app?" After he finished speaking, he laughed to himself, and his two female companions covered their mouths and giggled along.

Wang Hao frowned: "Wang Peng, are you drunk?"

"I'm perfectly sober!" Wang Peng waved his hand, snorted, and his gaze landed on Jiang Jing's wrist: "This watch looks familiar. Is it a fake Vacheron Constantin?"

Jiang Jing smiled without saying a word, gently rotating his watch. The dial shimmered with a subtle metallic luster under the lights.

"Let me see." Wang Peng grabbed Jiang Jing's wrist without asking and examined it closely.

Everyone's attention was immediately drawn to the watch. The dial shimmered with a subtle metallic luster under the lights, and the complex mechanical structure was clearly visible through the sapphire crystal case back, showcasing exquisite watchmaking craftsmanship everywhere.

As he observed it more closely, Wang Peng's expression gradually became strange: "This... this workmanship..."

"What is it, Brother Peng?" one of the female companions asked curiously.

Wang Peng let go of his wrist and took a sip of wine, feigning composure: "It's a pretty decent fake."

"A fake?" Wang Hao suddenly interjected. "Wang Peng, what kind of joke are you making! This is an authentic Vacheron Constantin 4500V/210R-B705, priced at four million! I checked it this morning!"

"Four million?!" The private room was in an uproar.

"Is that for real?"

"A single watch can buy several BMW 5 Series?"

"Jiang Jing, you're too rich!"

Wang Peng's face turned extremely ugly: "Nonsense! How could Jiang Jing possibly afford a watch like this!"

"Why don't you check for yourself?" Zhang Shuo handed over his phone with schadenfreude, "I just looked it up, it's exactly the same."

Wang Peng took the phone, looked at the information on the screen, and his face turned from red to white.

The watch model, reference number, price... everything matched.

Especially when he saw the price, his hands began to tremble slightly.

"This... this..." He stammered, unable to speak a complete sentence.

"By the way, Haozi," Zhang Shuo deliberately raised his voice, "Didn't you record a video of Jiang Jing's car this morning? Show everyone!"

Wang Hao immediately understood and pulled out his phone to bring up the livestream replay: "Come, come, everyone look! It's a lamborghini Veneno Roadster, limited to 8 units worldwide. Someone offered 75 million, but you can't even buy it—it's priceless!"

The classmates gathered around, looking at the supercar on the screen that looked like a futuristic war machine, letting out bursts of exclamation.

In the video, Jiang Jing stepped out of the driver's seat, his composed demeanor perfectly matching the low-key young man sitting before them.

"And the license plate is Rong A 99999!" Wang Hao added. "A five-digit consecutive plate like that costs over a million just in the auction price!"

Wang Peng's face was now as ugly as it could get. He had just been showing off his BMW 5 Series worth a few hundred thousand, and in the blink of an eye, he had been crushed in every aspect.

What made it even more embarrassing for him was that Jiang Jing hadn't actively shown off anything from start to finish; it was all brought out by others. This low-key luxury only made him look even more high-class.

"Jiang Jing," Lin Xiaoyu asked curiously, "Is that car really yours?"

"It's just a way to get around," Jiang Jing said nonchalantly.

"Besides, it's not as comfortable to sit in as a BMW. After a while, my body gets stiff, and there's no space. If I'd known, I would have just bought a BMW." Jiang Jing continued to twist the knife.

Wang Peng finally couldn't take it anymore. He stood up abruptly, his chair scraping against the floor with a harsh sound.

"I... I suddenly remembered I have something to do... I'll go first..." He stammered, grabbed the BMW keys from the table, and rushed toward the door, not even bothering to take his two female companions with him.

"Take care, Brother Peng!" Zhang Shuo shouted from behind, "Remember to bring your BMW to the next gathering so everyone can feast their eyes on it!"

The private room door slammed shut with a "bang," and immediately, a burst of laughter erupted.

"My god! Jiang Jing, you're too awesome!"

"Wang Peng's expression, it killed me!"

"Let him show off all day. Now he's kicked a steel plate!"

Jiang Jing shook his head with a smile and called the waiter to open a few more bottles of fine wine.

Although that farce just now was satisfying, he didn't really care about a small character like Wang Peng.

With the system, his horizons were no longer what they used to be.

Perhaps he had thought about how he would slap him in the face before, but later he felt—it really was meaningless.

The topic quickly turned to everyone's lives.

Chen Zhiqiang had become a civil servant and worked at the tax bureau; Li Ming went to Shenzhen and worked in R&D at a tech company; Lin Xiaoyu had become a primary school teacher...

Everyone had embarked on different life paths.

After a few rounds of drinks, the atmosphere became lively again. The awkwardness brought by Wang Peng had long been thrown to the nine heavens, and everyone returned to the atmosphere of their high school days.

"Do you remember that spring outing in our third year of high school?" Lin Xiaoyu's cheeks were slightly flushed, clearly having drunk a bit too much. "Jiang Jing carried three people's bags all by himself and walked over ten miles of mountain roads!"

"How could I forget!" Zhang Shuo slapped the table. "I said back then, Brother Jing is the real deal—when things happen, he really steps up!"

Jiang Jing shook his head with a smile. Back then, he was strong and used to hardship, so carrying a bag for a classmate was nothing.

"Jiang Jing," Lin Xiaoyu looked at him suddenly and earnestly, "Honestly, seeing you doing so well now, we are all very happy."

The other classmates nodded in agreement. A warmth filled Jiang Jing's heart—this was what true friends were like; they wouldn't be jealous of your success, but would only be genuinely happy for you.

"Thank you." He raised his glass. "To friendship."

"To friendship!" Everyone responded in unison, the sound of glasses clinking crisp and pleasant.

(If you have any female characters you would like to see, you can tell me their names, appearances, and backgrounds, and I will arrange for them to appear if the opportunity arises!)