Chapter 22: Celebrating a Birthday

The latecomers were none other than Li Shurui, Xu Siyi, and Zheng Jingjing.

Guo Ran did not attend due to some private matters.

Of course, Liang Zhenlun only cared about Li Shurui; whether the others showed up or not was completely irrelevant to him.

Unlike his girlfriend Ai Qian, who had come looking for him on her own, Young Master Liang not only personally went out to greet the three girls upon their arrival, but also made a grand, loud introduction once they entered the room.

"This is the flower of our East University Arts Academy, Li Shurui. These two are her roommates, Xu Siyi and Zheng Jingjing. They are all great beauties of our school!"

"Hello, everyone."

Xu Siyi showed no signs of stage fright, greeting the crowd with grace and poise.

The men and women in the private booth responded enthusiastically.

"Have a seat."

After the pleasantries, Liang Zhenlun invited the three girls to sit down, then shouted for more bottles of Armanì Dom Pérignon.

"Shurui drove, so she can't drink," Zheng Jingjing immediately interjected, having been coerced into coming.

"It's fine, just call a designated driver..."

Halfway through his sentence, Liang Zhenlun sensed something was off and looked at Li Shurui in surprise. "You drove?"

"Yes, Shurui bought a car not long ago," Xu Siyi explained.

"That's great news. In that case, you should definitely have a few more glasses."

Liang Zhenlun didn't think much of it, assuming that with Li Shurui's income as a streamer, she would at most have a common commuter car worth two or three hundred thousand yuan.

"I really can't drink. Let Siyi drink instead, and I'll just have some juice," Li Shurui said.

Since the other party was willing to come, which gave her plenty of face, Liang Zhenlun didn't feel it right to push too hard. He could only nod and smile. "Alright then, Siyi, you can take Shurui's share."

"No problem," Xu Siyi replied generously.

Liang Zhenlun stepped out to order the drinks.

"Shurui, Siyi, look, is that... Ai Qian?" Zheng Jingjing suddenly whispered, her eyes fixed on a certain direction.

"What's the big deal? She and Liang Zhenlun are boyfriend and girlfriend. It's only natural for her to be here for his birthday," Xu Siyi said dismissively.

Li Shurui, however, instinctively glanced in that direction.

She didn't know Ai Qian and had never had any interaction with her, but because of Jiang Chen's erratic behavior in "licking" people, an indescribable connection seemed to have formed between the two of them.

As if sensing Li Shurui's gaze, Ai Qian turned her head and gave a polite smile.

Li Shurui smiled back slightly and nodded.

"She's quite pretty. Jiang Chen actually has decent taste; no wonder Liang Zhenlun wants to snatch his girlfriend," Zheng Jingjing muttered.

Most of the girls here were wearing heavy makeup, but Ai Qian, after washing her face, appeared pure and unblemished, like a white lotus blooming amidst a sea of colorful flowers. Subjectively, she was easy to like.

Of course, Zheng Jingjing knew very well that this senior was no white lotus, but a textbook "green tea" bitch.

"They say East University produces beauties, and it truly lives up to its reputation. To the three beauties, it's our first meeting—let me toast you."

People began coming over one after another to offer toasts.

Xu Siyi accepted them all without refusal, acting very bold. Before long, she had blended in with the men and women in the booth.

After Li Shurui arrived, Liang Zhenlun focused all his attention on her, almost completely ignoring his actual girlfriend.

In the end, it was Ai Qian who took the initiative to walk over with a glass of wine.

"Junior Li, I've heard much about you. Let's have a drink."

"I drove, so I can't drink. I can only substitute it with juice; I hope you don't mind, Senior Ai," Li Shurui greeted her with a smile.

"It's fine."

The two stemware glasses clinked with a crisp sound.

Li Shurui took a sip of juice, but unexpectedly, Ai Qian drained her entire glass in one gulp and walked back.

Both Xu Siyi and Zheng Jingjing felt something was amiss.

"She's feeling a bit unwell, don't mind her," Liang Zhenlun said with a smile.

Hearing this, although she showed nothing on the surface, Zheng Jingjing felt increasing contempt in her heart.

Is this even a man? How can someone talk about his own girlfriend like that?

At that moment, the door to the booth was pushed open.

A group of waiters cautiously entered, carrying several bottles of Dom Pérignon.

Under highly effective marketing, this champagne was now known by almost everyone. The price varied by location; it sold for at least three thousand, but in V-Party, a bottle cost ten thousand.

A few girls had already started taking photos with their phones to post on WeChat Moments, decorating their "exquisite daily lives" and adding to their "goddess" personas.

"Just put them down," Liang Zhenlun waved his hand nonchalantly, displaying the arrogance and grandiosity of the wealthy to the fullest.

*What are you trying to show off for!* Zheng Jingjing complained inwardly.

She had seen many wealthy young masters; some truly treated money as dirt, but Liang Zhenlun clearly hadn't reached that level. His acting was forced, superficial, and heavily marked, which only made him look contemptible.

However, when her gaze inadvertently swept over a certain waiter bending down to set the wine down, Zheng Jingjing froze.

Wasn't that...

"Have fun, bosses."

Just as the group of waiters was about to exit the booth, Liang Zhenlun unexpectedly called out.

"Wait, you. Stay."

The waiters looked at each other, bewildered.

Only the youngest man remained calm, as if he had expected this.

"The rest of you can leave."

After dismissing the other waiters, the corners of Liang Zhenlun's mouth curled upward.

"Tsk, isn't this Senior Jiang? To think we'd run into you here, what a coincidence."

Everyone in the booth began to eye the young man standing alone in his waiter's uniform.

"Tsk, these clothes actually look quite handsome on Senior Jiang, don't you think, everyone?"

The East University students present, even if they hadn't met him, had mostly guessed who this waiter was, and they smiled with ill intent.

"Handsome! Absolutely handsome!"

Others also caught on to the underlying meaning and joined in, laughing along with Liang Zhenlun.

For a moment, the booth was filled with joyful laughter.

After a brief moment of shock, Xu Siyi did not laugh, but she also did not offer any help, choosing to stand by and watch in a way that seemed reasonable.

Zheng Jingjing's eyes showed sympathy.

Li Shurui's expression remained flat as she quietly sipped her juice, as if the matter had nothing to do with her.

"Senior Jiang, today is my birthday. Aren't you going to offer me a toast?"

Liang Zhenlun was beaming, as if the previous conflict by the sports field had never happened.

"We have regulations here; we cannot drink during working hours. I'm sorry."

If anyone else had encountered this situation, they would likely have wanted to find a hole to crawl into, but this young man remained unfazed.

"Senior Jiang, that's not very fair. I'm spending money here; even if I'm not a god, I'm at least a customer. It's just one glass of wine—can't you even give me that much face?"

Liang Zhenlun's expression gradually turned arrogant.

Everyone watched the drama with great interest.

At that moment, the music suddenly started playing.

"Turn off the music!"

Liang Zhenlun said in a heavy voice. Even though he saw that his girlfriend was the one inexplicably wanting to sing at this moment, he didn't give her any face.

"By the way, Ai Qian, aren't you and Senior Jiang old friends? Aren't you going to say hello?"