11: Chen Li, this is Manman

Liu Manman, who had been standing by the side the whole time, was now completely dumbfounded.

She watched as Feng Shijie, the man who held absolute authority in her boyfriend's circle and whom even Yang Bin had to flatter, was now acting so humble as to ask Chen Li for his WeChat?

Feng Shijie's lowly posture and almost fawning tone completely overturned her perception of reality.

Was this ex-boyfriend whom she had loathed in every possible way—the loser she was convinced had deliberately manufactured this 'chance encounter'—

really the same person as the man before whom even Young Master Feng bowed and scraped?

At this moment, she had ten thousand questions she wanted to clear up. After Chen Li left... "Senior Feng, what... what is going on?"

"You mean Brother Chen Li?"

Feng Shijie was still immersed in the joy of having added him on WeChat. "That guy is a real tycoon. The night before last at the Clear Bar..."

He briefly recounted the events of that night, naturally skipping over his own disgraceful little episode and only saying he happened to be there to witness it with his own eyes.

"One... one hundred and forty thousand?" Liu Manman was utterly stunned.

This figure left her dazed for a moment; she simply couldn't believe it, and that string of numbers was the only thing echoing in her mind.

Chen Li? How could Chen Li, who was usually so stingy he'd pinch pennies even for a meal, be so rich?

If he really had this kind of capability, why hadn't he ever shown even a hint of it while they were together?

Her mind instantly became a mess, filled with all sorts of questions, and she was completely unable to think calmly.

"Junior Liu, are you okay? Do you want to come over and sit with us?" Feng Shijie invited her again, seeing her pale face.

"No... no thank you, Senior Feng. I'll be heading back now. Goodbye." She was in no mood to deal with Feng Shijie now.

Only one thought filled her mind—she had to find Chen Li and ask him clearly what was going on.

How could the world have changed so suddenly in just two or three days? She felt as if she had missed something vital... She returned to her table full of doubt, the food before her failing to pique even a shred of appetite.

Seeing her looking unwell, Meng Yu asked with concern, "What's wrong? You're so pale. Are you feeling sick?"

"No... it's nothing," Liu Manman hurriedly lowered her head, avoiding her roommate's searching gaze.

Her fingers tightly gripped her phone. "I'm just feeling a bit unwell. I'll be fine after sitting for a bit."

Liu Manman's mind was a tangled mess, and she instinctively wanted to send a WeChat message to Chen Li to get an explanation.

But when she opened WeChat, she realized that Chen Li had long since vanished from her friend list—only then did she suddenly remember that she had deleted him with her own hands.

This discovery made her so anxious she almost went crazy.

In her desperation, her brain short-circuited, and she forgot how to re-add a friend.

After freezing for a few seconds, she finally snapped out of it and frantically tapped 'Add Friend'.

She found Chen Li's number in her phone contacts and sent a friend request.

In the verification message, she wrote: "Chen Li, it's Manman. I accidentally deleted you by mistake. Please add me back quickly, I have something urgent to talk to you about..."

After sending it successfully, she stared intently at the screen, hoping that familiar avatar would immediately appear in the chat box... Meanwhile, in Chen Li's private room, the atmosphere was in full swing.

Looking at the friend request from Liu Manman and the 'accidentally deleted' line in the verification message, a cold sneer couldn't help but curl at the corner of his mouth.

This excuse was quite pathetic. She had clearly caught wind of things and knew he was rich now, which was why she was so eager to add him back.

What else did this woman have in her head besides money? What did she take him for—an ATM she could call and dismiss at her whim?

Heh, he, Chen Li, didn't recycle trash.

Thinking of this, he found it somewhat laughable. He casually ignored the request and placed his phone face down on the table.

His attention returned to the food before him and his brothers, who were chatting and laughing freely.

He had lived through hard times for so long; now that he had money, enjoying the moment was naturally the most important thing.

As the few of them were drinking and feasting, several moderate knocks came from the door.

Wu Qiang, who was sitting near the door, pulled it open. A strange man was standing at the entrance.

He had a smile plastered on his face, holding a wine glass in one hand and a bottle of white liquor in the other.

Wu Qiang was stunned for a moment and instinctively asked, "You are...?"

The man at the door immediately took half a step forward with a very warm attitude. "Hello, hello. Sorry to disturb you, brothers. I'm Feng Shijie, an acquaintance of Brother Chen Li."

"Oh, oh, you're looking for A Li," Wu Qiang said. Hearing it was an acquaintance, he stepped aside to let him in.

"Brother Chen Li, I hope I'm not disturbing you? I came over to offer you a toast!" Feng Shijie walked in with a smile.

His sudden appearance left Zhang Yixi and the other man at the table somewhat surprised.

Guo Zihong, however, recognized him at a glance. He immediately leaned over to whisper into Zhang Yixi and Wu Qiang's ears, introducing him in a low voice: "This is the 'moonlight celebration' I told you guys about."

Upon hearing this, the two of them instantly showed looks of realization. Both had the mindset of watching a show, wanting to see what he was up to this time.

As the saying goes, one does not strike a smiling face. Although Chen Li was a bit surprised, he politely stood up and clinked glasses with him with a smile.

Feng Shijie was indeed very socially adept. After toasting Chen Li, he didn't leave immediately but proactively circled half the table.

He offered a toast to Guo Zihong, Zhang Yixi, and Wu Qiang in turn, speaking eloquently: "We're all brothers, let's have a drink together. Meeting is fate."

His attitude was straightforward, and after a few drinks, the initial sense of being strangers quickly dissipated.

Chen Li also invited him to sit: "Sit down and have a bite with us?"

"Haha, then I won't be polite."

Feng Shijie sat down smoothly, his gaze involuntarily drawn to the table full of premium dishes—

massive Lobsters, bright red King Crabs, glistening Roasted Duck... He marveled inwardly: This table is full of expensive dishes. They usually just ordered common home-style stir-fries when they came here,

and wouldn't dare order so many premium items. This tycoon Chen Li really wasn't faking it.

After a few glasses of wine, the atmosphere became thoroughly warm, and the conversation flowed more freely.

Feng Shijie introduced himself, saying he was a local whose family ran a small company.

He just had his name registered there but didn't actually do any real work. He just collected some living expenses every month and was purely a man of leisure.

When he got excited, he even poked fun at himself regarding the 'moonlight celebration' incident, mocking himself quite clearly.

This straightforwardness, without any pretense or arrogance, earned him a bit more favor from the others.

When they had drunk enough, Feng Shijie suddenly lowered his body and leaned closer to the middle of the group, asking with a somewhat mysterious smile:

"Brothers, we've eaten enough. Want to change locations and continue? I'll take you to a place... a place we men all understand, where we can completely relax?"

"What kind of place?" Guo Zihong's interest was immediately piqued, his eyes brightening a bit.

"Definitely a good place," Feng Shijie raised an eyebrow, giving a 'you know' look...