28: Chapter 28 Let's see how awesome you are today.

A sweet smile appeared on Li Mengyao's fair face; if Su Ye hadn't almost fallen for her tricks before, he would surely have thought she was a sunny, cheerful, and pure girl—just look at how Marketing Manager Chen Cong, standing beside her, was staring at her with wide eyes.

"Hey, Su Ye, long time no see. Where are you working these days?"

Li Mengyao glanced over and noticed that Su Ye was holding six or seven bags; she knew that Ralph Lauren clothes weren't cheap, averaging two or three thousand each. Buying ten or twenty thousand worth of clothes at once would make even Marketing Manager Chen Cong, who was standing next to her, wince. Then, she looked at Li Yi, who was beside Su Ye, and combined with Su Ye's handsome looks, she suddenly realized—could it be that Su Ye was living off a woman now?

Su Ye smiled indifferently and said:

"Oh, I wouldn't call it a high-paying job. I'm just an unemployed wanderer right now."

Li Yi, standing nearby, rolled his eyes; yes, yes, you're an 'unemployed wanderer' who just happens to own a hundred-square-meter shop at the prime location of Chunxi Road, drives a two-million-plus Mercedes-Benz, and can summon dozens of elite lawyers with a single phone call.

Meanwhile, Marketing Manager Chen Cong, who had felt his alarm bells ringing upon seeing Su Ye's appearance, didn't lower his guard even after hearing that Su Ye was unemployed. There was no other reason than the fact that Su Ye's face was simply too lethal; just look at how Zhang Ling was still stealing glances at him.

Marketing Manager Chen Cong gently nudged Zhang Ling and then shook the clothes she had chosen in his hand.

Zhang Ling looked conflicted as she glanced at Su Ye's face and then at the two pieces of clothing she had just selected in Marketing Manager Chen Cong's hand, which cost four or five thousand. She could only sigh inwardly, 'Forget it, being handsome doesn't mean you can wear him as clothes, and besides, he's not my type.' She quickly spoke up:

"Oh, Su Ye, if I remember correctly, you're already twenty-five or twenty-six, right? How come you still don't have a proper job? Being handsome doesn't put food on the table. Look at Li Mengyao's boyfriend, Marketing Manager Chen Cong. Not only did he open a Chagee here on Chunxi Road, but he's also a marketing manager at Chaoyang Group. It's definitely hard to find a job in Chengdu with just a college diploma. How about I let Brother Cong pull some strings for you and get you set up as a team leader at Chaoyang Group? You'd at least make seven or eight thousand a month."

Listening to Zhang Ling's rapid-fire output, Marketing Manager Chen Cong couldn't help but puff out his chest, while Li Mengyao pursed her thin lips and remained silent. What Zhang Ling said was the truth, but... she glanced at Li Yi, who looked as conflicted as if he were constipated, and thought that being handsome really could put food on the table, especially in Chengdu.

Su Ye, meanwhile, sized up Marketing Manager Chen Cong, feeling a wave of confusion:

"There's only one Chagee on Chunxi Road, and the owner isn't Marketing Manager Chen Cong. And a marketing manager at Chaoyang Group? How come I've never seen him? Is he from the real estate side?"

Marketing Manager Chen Cong spoke up then, wearing a warm but somewhat condescending smile:

"Since we're all friends of Li Mengyao, how about this, Little Su? Come find me at the Chaoyang Group real estate department tomorrow. I'll arrange something for you. It wouldn't be appropriate to make you a team leader right away, so let's start you off as a staff member to transition, and I'll make further arrangements later."

Although Su Ye and Li Yi were holding over a dozen shopping bags, Marketing Manager Chen Cong didn't believe they belonged to Su Ye, who was dressed in cheap clothes.

Just then, Sister Li finished calculating the price of the clothes Marketing Manager Chen Cong and the others had bought and packed them up.

"Hello, your total for this purchase is twelve thousand three hundred. Will you be paying by card or WeChat?"

Even Marketing Manager Chen Cong's face twitched slightly when he heard this number. Despite his bragging about Chagee and being an executive, the truth was his family only held a 20% stake in the Chagee shop, which only yielded a little over a hundred thousand a year in dividends. As a marketing manager at Chaoyang Real Estate—not the sales department—his fixed monthly salary was only a little over ten thousand. This single purchase had wiped out an entire month's salary.

However, with Su Ye, his great rival, standing right there, Marketing Manager Chen Cong naturally couldn't show any weakness. He pulled out a Gucci wallet with an air of great generosity, took out a credit card, handed it to Sister Li, and said:

"Charge it to the card."

After handing the card to Sister Li, Marketing Manager Chen Cong said in the tone of a superior:

"Little Su, life in Chengdu isn't easy. You're not young anymore, so you should really consider your future. After all, in a few more years, no company will want to hire you."

At this point, Li Yi couldn't hold back any longer after hearing Marketing Manager Chen Cong's words. He had stayed quiet earlier because he wanted to see the fool make a clown of himself, but he hadn't expected Su Ye to remain silent for so long without fighting back.

"Oh, which zoo left its gate unlatched and let this big bad wolf out? Seriously, you're old, and on top of that, you love to act all high and mighty. You never stop, do you? A manager? I think you're just a small-time official who loves to puff himself up all day long."

Marketing Manager Chen Cong's face turned green; Li Yi's words had hit his sore spot. He was actually only twenty-eight years old, but he looked older, which made him appear to be around thirty. Still, he was an adult. Furthermore, he was certain that the clothes Su Ye and Li Yi were holding had been bought by Li Yi, and even the cheapest items would cost ten or twenty thousand. Not knowing Li Yi's background, Marketing Manager Chen Cong didn't dare to speak recklessly.

"I don't know, where does this brother work?"

Hearing Marketing Manager Chen Cong's words, Li Yi rolled his eyes:

"High-paying job? Someone who didn't know better would think you're some big shot. The way you talk is so pretentious. Were you born with complications? Did you stay in your mother's womb too long?"

"What the f*ck did you say, you dead cross-dresser!"

Hearing Li Yi start bringing up his family history, Marketing Manager Chen Cong finally snapped. Ignoring whether Li Mengyao was present or if he needed to maintain his gentlemanly demeanor, he started swearing and pointed his right index finger at Li Yi.

"Ah! F*ck!"

Just as Marketing Manager Chen Cong raised his right index finger, Su Ye, who was standing to the side, grabbed it and bent it upwards. Instantly, Marketing Manager Chen Cong doubled over in pain, howling.

The only reason Su Ye hadn't lashed out earlier was that he was in Li Yi's shop and didn't want to cause trouble for him. But now that Li Yi had stood up for him, if he still didn't do anything, what would be the difference between him and a coward?

"Su Ye, what are you doing?"

"Su Ye, let go!"

Seeing Su Ye suddenly explode into action, Li Mengyao and Zhang Ling were stunned for a moment before hurriedly speaking up.

"What am I doing? I just came out to buy some clothes and had to listen to you two idiots mock me for ages. I don't know where you get your sense of superiority, and you dare to point your finger at my brother? Come on, keep going. I want to see if you still want to keep that damn hand of yours today."

As he spoke, Su Ye bent it upwards with force again. Marketing Manager Chen Cong felt as if the skin on his right index finger was about to split open, and the words that had just reached his lips were replaced by howls of pain.

A cold glint flashed in Su Ye's eyes as he pulled out his phone and said:

"Speaking of which, you've just run right into my crosshairs. Chagee, is it? Owning a shop, is it? Marketing manager at Chaoyang Group, is it? An executive, is it? Let's see just how awesome you are today."