Chapter 12: Treating Someone

Shen Xingzhuo's expression turned grim in an instant.

He was known for his word being law within the circle, and nobody had ever doubted him, especially when it came to money matters.

Yet, Lu Ran did just that.

Frustration flared, and he looked at Lu Ran, asking, "What do you mean? You don't trust me?"

Lu Ran chuckled, his tone laced with mockery. "Think about what you've done. Why should I trust you?"

Shen Xingzhuo was left speechless.

Seeing that Shen Xingzhuo didn't promptly transfer the money, Lu Ran didn't mind. He put away his phone and returned behind the counter.

Just then, a customer arrived, and Lu Ran skillfully took their order from behind the counter.

The frustration in Shen Xingzhuo's heart grew heavier.

This indicated that Lu Ran not only didn't believe him but also didn't take his words seriously at all.

Shen Xingzhuo gritted his teeth and walked straight to the counter.

"Hand over your phone," he said.

Lu Ran blinked, not expecting this guy to actually play the role of a sap.

He promptly pulled up the QR code for payment.

Shen Xingzhuo quickly transferred the salary.

"Alright, come with me now," Shen Xingzhuo said.

Lu Ran glanced at the incoming payment and remained behind the counter. "Sure, I'll inform the boss later."

Shen Xingzhuo frowned. "Later? Are you playing games with me?"

More customers entered the shop.

Lu Ran waved him away with an annoyed gesture. "Do employees at your Shen family's company just leave without any work handover?"

Of course, Lu Ran could have left right away.

But he had no intention of offending the cafe owner just to satisfy Shen Xingzhuo's whim.

Shen Xingzhuo sulked for a moment before sulking off to sit aside.

After speaking with the owner, Lu Ran continued working until evening.

Shen Xingzhuo remained seated there the whole time.

Already short-tempered, his frustration grew after being ignored despite paying. He nearly exploded, "Are you leaving or not?"

Lu Ran wasn't in a hurry. As he packed his belongings, he looked up at Shen Xingzhuo and asked, "Have you never worked at your own company?"

The question hit a nerve with Shen Xingzhuo.

Shen Xingzhuo promptly clamped his mouth shut.

As the two were conversing, a voice echoed from outside the shop, "Brother Zhuo!"

A flamboyantly dressed young man entered, clearly one of Shen Xingzhuo's acquaintances.

Upon entering, he walked straight to Shen Xingzhuo's side and said, "Bro, it really is you? I knew I recognized you from outside."

In a foul mood, Shen Xingzhuo didn't even bother lifting his eyelids. "Scram, I'm not in the mood."

The newcomer wasn't bothered by this.

He glanced at Lu Ran behind the counter and then back at Shen Xingzhuo, seemingly piecing together something. He leaned close to Shen Xingzhuo's ear and whispered, "Bro, this must be the illegitimate child Ran Ran was talking about, right?"

Shen Xingzhuo was taken aback.

Instinctively, he wanted to clarify, but he refrained from debunking Shen Xingran's story out of habit.

Wiggling his eyebrows at Shen Xingzhuo, the young man declared, "Leave it to me! I'm good at handling these situations!"

After saying this, the man walked up to the counter and politely addressed Lu Ran, "You must be Brother Zhuo's friend, right? We were just about to play billiards. Care to join us?"

Shen Xingzhuo had initially thought that the man was up to no good and was about to intervene, but he stopped when he saw the situation.

With Shen Xingzhuo by his side, they would be in familiar territory.

It was certainly better than staying here and being treated like a waiter by a bunch of strangers.

Lu Ran studied the newcomer for a moment.

Having just received double pay and settled his wages with the boss, he was in a rather good mood.

"Sure," Lu Ran replied with a grin.

They all drove together to a club located on the outskirts of the city.

The club consisted of two interconnected twin towers, but only one was open to the public.

When Lu Ran arrived at the private room, he recognized quite a few acquaintances from his previous life.

In fact, Lu Ran was familiar with all of Shen Xingzhuo's friends.

In his previous life, after returning to the Shen family, he had been striving to integrate into their lives. Even when Shen Xingzhuo's friends had traits that made Lu Ran uncomfortable, he had tried hard to accept them.

However, due to his connection with Shen Xingran, any efforts he made were only met with rejection.

The person who had invited him today, Chen Sheng, Lu Ran also knew.

In his past life, this man had caused him quite a bit of trouble in an attempt to please Shen Xingran and Shen Xingzhuo.

Lu Ran felt a twitch in his fingers, eagerly awaiting an opportunity to settle scores.

As Shen Xingzhuo entered the private room, a few people inside rushed over to greet him.

"Brother Zuo, Yellow-hair's business is in trouble. He asked me to inquire if you have any solutions," one of them said.

Lu Ran sipped his water, his ears perking up at the mention of "Yellow-hair."

Shen Xingzhuo also seemed troubled by this topic.

He replied irritably, "Doesn't he know who he offended? What can I do about it?"

The others agreed to some extent.

Some sighed wistfully, while others seemed to take a certain pleasure in his misfortune.

Only Lu Ran didn't quite understand.

Who had the yellow-haired guy offended?

No wonder his video caused such a stir online.

Sure enough, someone was out to get this guy.

There was a moment of silence in the private room before someone couldn't resist gossiping, "That's odd. How could the yellow-haired one know someone from the Ji family?"

The tone wasn't mere curiosity but also held a hidden sense of envy and admiration.

It seemed that knowing the person they were talking about was a matter of great prestige.

Upon discussing this topic, many people in the crowd perked up.

Chen Sheng lowered his voice mysteriously, "On the day of the incident, I ran into Yellow-Haired. He claimed it was just a simple accident."

"An accident? He's quite lucky then." Someone scoffed.

"Don't doubt me," Chen Sheng said. "You all know how reckless Yellow-Haired is when driving. He can't help but bump into something."

"So, did he hit a Ji family car this time?"

"He wouldn't dare even if you gave him eight hundred courage!"

"Hey, listen to me!" Chen Sheng continued. "It was said that he was spotted by that person."

As Lu Ran listened, he froze for a moment.

He slowly realized that the car accident they were talking about was the one he had encountered.

Someone was skeptical. "No way, right? Just because he witnessed it, he meddled? Are the Ji family that kind-hearted?"

"Tsk!" Chen Sheng slapped his thigh in frustration. "Have you all forgotten how that person's leg ended up?"

A moment of silence fell upon the private room at the mention of this.

None dared to continue gossiping.

Shen Xingzhuo felt uncomfortable listening to this as well.

That day, the yellow-haired guy had been acting on his behalf, and the matter he had handled... He didn't want to confront or recall it just yet.

Moreover, the incident involving the yellow-haired man had dealt a significant blow to his studio.

"Alright, stop clustering here. The billiards table is free," Shen Xingzhuo said, and the group gradually dispersed.

After his gossip session, Chen Sheng returned to the matter at hand.

He looked at Lu Ran and asked with a meaningful tone, "Oh, so you're the one from the Shen family..."

"Wait," Lu Ran gestured to stop him. "I'm not part of the Shen family. My surname is Lu, and I was hired by Second Master Shen."

With such a confident statement, Chen Sheng was taken aback, his thoughts swirling in confusion.

Upon hearing that Lu Ran was not a member of the Shen family, Shen Xingzhuo also froze.

Chen Sheng glanced alternately between Shen Xingzhuo and Lu Ran, unable to discern whether they were on good or bad terms.

Should he still play this prank or not?

But then he remembered his friendly relationship with Shen Xingran and how Shen Xingzhuo always deferred to her.

Standing up for Shen Xingran couldn't be wrong.

"Sigh, why be so formal? We're all brothers now that you're here."

Chen Sheng sat down beside Lu Ran, narrowing his eyes. "So, Brother Lu, how about treating us to this meal?"

This was a common tactic used by Chen Sheng and his group.

For someone like Lu Ran, a illegitimate child, they would usually strive to integrate into their circles, even if it meant stretching their budget beyond limits.

In their circle, this was considered a "mild" approach.

Shen Xingzhuo sat on a sofa nearby, holding a glass of wine in his hand.

He had heard Chen Sheng's words and was aware of his intentions.

Yet, he didn't intervene.

Shen Xingzhuo still remembered how Lu Ran had left him hanging at the store for an entire day, which had made him somewhat unhappy.

When Shen Xingran annoyed him, she knew how to say the right things to cheer him up.

He planned to wait for Lu Ran to seek his help before making a move.

Out of the corner of his eye, Shen Xingzhuo observed Lu Ran.

But Lu Ran spoke, "Sure, go ahead and eat whatever you like, order any drinks you want!"

He agreed without any hesitation.

Chen Sheng was stunned.

He glanced at Lu Ran suspiciously and then signaled for the waiter. "I'll take that as a yes, then?"

As he spoke, he hesitantly picked out two bottles of wine.

The club's wines didn't have any price tags.

There was no need to label them either.

Chen Sheng was unsure about Shen Xingzhuo's attitude toward Lu Ran. Although he was a spoiled second-generation heir, he wasn't stupid. He just chose two bottles casually to avoid making a scene.

To his surprise, Lu Ran was displeased with his "cautious" gesture. He grabbed the electronic menu and ordered more than ten bottles without even looking at it.

Chen Sheng watched, his mouth slowly dropping open.

After Lu Ran finished ordering, he patted Chen Sheng on the shoulder and said, "Call the rest of the guys over and let them pick out what they like too."

Chen Sheng's gaze toward Lu Ran had shifted dramatically.

From initial scrutiny and disdain, it now held respect.

Shen Xingzhuo was clueless about what was going on.

Seeing that Lu Ran didn't turn to him for help, Shen Xingzhuo held back for a moment before he couldn't resist anymore.

He taunted deliberately, "Treat us? Do you even earn enough to buy a bottle of water with your salary?"

Lu Ran looked at him innocently, biting the rim of his cup, "I'm treating, who said I'm paying?"

Shen Xingzhuo was puzzled.

Lu Ran smiled at him, "You brought me here, so naturally, it's Young Master Shen number two who foots the bill."

In his previous life, Lu Ran had fallen into this trap before.

Upon returning to the Shen family, he had no concept of the spending levels of Shen Xingzhuo and his ilk.

Chen Sheng had offered to treat everyone, hoping to make everyone happy, so he had agreed without much thought, even prepared to spend all his savings.

Yet, when it was time to settle the bill, he realized that his entire fortune wasn't even a fraction of what Shen Xingzhuo would spend on a single meal for others.

He was thoroughly ridiculed that day.

This time, he wasn't going to be that naive.

Upon hearing Lu Ran's words, Shen Xingzhuo almost laughed out of frustration.

Although he was annoyed, a small corner of his heart secretly admired the cunningness.

Lu Ran was quite clever, knowing how to play petty tricks.

However, Shen Xingzhuo had never been outsmarted like this before.

He was about to lash out, but when he lowered his gaze, he found himself locking eyes with Lu Ran.

The teenager was casually sipping water from a cup, his intake intermittent.

Looking up at him, there was still a trace of mischief in his eyes that hadn't faded away.

From the angle of his upward gaze, the slight downward slope of his eyelids gave him an endearing and charming appearance.

His usually dark and somber eyes now seemed much more pleasing to the eye.

Shen Xingzhuo's anger dissipated significantly upon seeing this.

Chen Sheng approached Lu Ran, attempting to get closer to him.

He sat down on the sofa next to Lu Ran and reached out to place his hand on Lu Ran's shoulder.

Shen Xingzhuo lifted his eyelids, fixing his gaze on Chen Sheng's hand.

Without much thought, a menacing warning slipped from his lips, "Keep your hands to yourself, don't touch him."