Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Daniel[Daniel]?

The other party was clearly coming for Jiang Yicen.

The manager also smiled and said, "Master Jiang, have fun."

It was evident that the manager didn't know that he wasn't meeting this group today.

Before the manager left, he asked first, "Has Nan Shuyi arrived?"

The manager was taken aback, "You mean Master Nan?"

The manager moved in these circles, so he knew about the marriage alliance between the Jiang and Nan families, but he didn't know which young master of the Jiang family had married Master Nan—they definitely wouldn't be invited to the wedding.

"Sorry, Master Jiang, I haven't seen Master Nan today." Since the Jiang and Nan families were now in-laws, he could drop a hint; with anyone else, he'd just say he didn't know—he knew how to tailor his answer depending on who he was talking to.

Jiang Yicen nodded, "Alright, you go ahead with your work."

The manager instinctively gave a slight bow and left. Wow, what's with Master Jiang? He seems different than last time. Last time he came, he seemed like a clueless ABC, but now he looked like a real young master, and the manager couldn't help but feel an urge to serve this eldest young master.

Jiang Yicen glanced at his phone; Nan Shuyi hadn't sent him a message, probably still on his way to the club.

He looked up at the white-haired young man walking toward him, confirming that these people were "Jiang Yicen's" friends. He had also seen the English name Daniel in "Jiang Yicen's" books, so he was sure the other person was calling him.

But he wasn't the real Jiang Yicen after all, so he didn't react much. He didn't know these faces at all, nor did he particularly want to get to know them—he was indifferent.

Jiang Yicen hadn't thought that after changing his number, "Jiang Yicen's" old friends wouldn't recognize him; he just didn't expect it to happen so soon.

Before the wedding, Jiang Yiting had asked him for the invitation list, but he had no idea who "Jiang Yicen's" friends were, so he hadn't invited anyone. Now, he hoped they wouldn't ask—hopefully not.

From the tone, it was clear that this person was fairly familiar with "Jiang Yicen," possibly a close friend in China or someone from studying abroad. After figuring out how to use the phone, he'd gone through the chat history. After coming back to China, two people messaged him a lot: one named Wei Mingzheng and the other Alan.

Wei Mingzheng had only chatted with him twice after his return, both times with "Jiang Yicen" inviting him to dinner, but Wei Mingzheng refused. This Wei Mingzheng hadn't shown up yet.

Alan was easier to recognize; his WeChat Moments had selfies, including his profile pic, but he was wearing sunglasses so you couldn't see his face. Jiang Yicen had spotted a photo on his Moments that showed his face clearly, and that white hair was a distinctive feature.

From the chat history between Alan and "Jiang Yicen," Alan mostly invited him to parties—basically eating, drinking, and having fun, nothing else.

During the wedding, Alan was overseas with a group of guys and girls surfing and diving. In short, Alan lived large. Jiang Yicen felt that "Jiang Yicen" and Alan were just surface-level friends; their "friendship" was just about having fun, without any heartfelt conversations. The one who really got "Jiang Yicen" was probably still studying abroad. After returning to China, their chats had decreased, and the old chats had a lot he didn't get, with all sorts of special terms—regular Chinese-English chats mixed with weird, hard English words. It wasn't a showy, deliberately pretentious kind of chat; it was more like a secret code.

"Jiang Yicen's" years abroad seemed anything but simple. Jiang Yicen didn't want to just hang out with his friends and risk causing problems.

Alan didn't know that the Jiang Yicen in front of him wasn't the Daniel he knew. He laughed and approached, "Hey, Daniel, why didn't you come with me to Southeast Asia? The islands there are so much fun, and the seafood is great. You really missed out this time."

He reached out to put a hand on Jiang Yicen's shoulder. Jiang Yicen brushed his arm aside, "Sorry, I don't really like physical contact."

Alan: "OK, OK, I know you're a clean freak. But I couldn't get ahold of you lately; why haven't you been replying to my WeChat messages?"

Jiang Yicen knew that Alan was just a fair-weather friend of "Jiang Yicen's" from abroad, and he likely only asked casually, so he didn't need to take it seriously.

He took a look at Alan's face—guy didn't look good. He was young but already had dark circles, a yellowish complexion, and was really skinny. The loose sporty hoodie and oversized jeans made him look like a child wearing adult clothes.

Jiang Yicen had seen many young masters who partied all night, eventually blowing all their family money, going broke, and ending up homeless.

He didn't associate much with such people. If work required it, he kept interactions to a minimum.

"You've got plenty of friends, you don't need me. I lost my original phone and got a new number. I don't remember the password for my old WeChat, so I couldn't log in."

Whether Alan was satisfied with this explanation or not, Jiang Yicen didn't care. He just needed an excuse not to keep in touch, letting him save face.

Alan was quite considerate: "Yeah, recovering a forgotten WeChat password is a pain. I've forgotten mine too. If you can't get it back, no big deal; we can just add each other again later. We're going shooting; want to join?"

Jiang Yicen shook his head, "I won't go. I'm waiting for a friend."

Alan looked around and didn't see anyone, "Do you have another friend?"

Someone chimed in, "Fourth Master, come play with us! Didn't you say you had a gun license back in the US? Show us what you've got!"

Jiang Yicen said, "Having a gun license doesn't mean my aim is good. I won't go—you guys have fun."

Alan couldn't figure out why Jiang Yicen was being so modest all of a sudden. He remembered this guy loved to show off and never missed a chance to prove himself.

He had met Jiang Yicen at a Chinese party in the US, and they'd played together a few times. After returning to China, he had invited Jiang Yicen to a friend's birthday party. At that time, Jiang Yicen kept talking about his experiences in the US, being flamboyant and eager to show off, with an elite American demeanor. He'd throw in fancy English words nobody else got. Alan knew it was intentional—as a returnee with a solid academic record, he looked down on these rich kids who were just coasting abroad. But today, he was different, as if he had changed into a different person—his demeanor was restrained. If it weren't for that same striking, delicate face, Alan would have thought this person was Jiang Yicen's twin brother.

Alan and "Jiang Yicen" were just surface-level friends: "Why not come? We rarely get together. We really want to see your shooting skills!"

Others echoed, "Yes, yes! Show us what you've got! Guns are illegal here, you know."

Jiang Yicen hadn't expected the original "Jiang Yicen" to be so ostentatious. He naturally wasn't willing to play with people he didn't know.

Just then, three people walked in from outside. Jiang Yicen found one voice particularly familiar.

"What are you all doing here? What's going on?"

Someone called out the newcomer's name, "Oh, Brother Ken!"

Jiang Yicen looked up and saw a face he recognized. He thought, he should've checked the calendar before leaving today—he kept running into people he didn't want to see.

It was Cao Ken, a friend of Jiang Yiting's. They had met once before at Old Master Chen's birthday banquet and left a deep impression.

At the same time, he wondered, didn't the wealthy kids in the neighboring city have any other place to play? They all crowded into this club, making it highly likely to bump into each other.

When Cao Ken saw Jiang Yicen, he was grinding his teeth in hatred. Last time at the Chen family banquet, he had made a huge fool of himself by getting drunk and causing a scene. His father had canceled his credit cards, and he hadn't dared to go out for a long time. Today, he finally got a chance to go out, and who did he run into? What a small world.

"Oh, it's little bro Yicen. What are you doing here?" Cao Ken was already plotting ways to teach Jiang Yicen a lesson—he had to get back at him for that drunk embarrassment last time.

Jiang Yicen really couldn't stand this guy Cao Ken, "I'm meeting someone."

Alan clearly knew Cao Ken as well, "Brother Ken, what brings you here today?"

Cao Ken had no time for small-time rich kids like Alan. He laughed with a sarcastic tone, "Does Nan Shuyi know you're out here playing with them?"

If Jiang Yicen had been the real "Jiang Yicen," this remark might have provoked him. It was also the truth. The Jiang family, including He Nuanqing, were quite strange—they hadn't even asked how he and Nan Shuyi were getting along. What a cold and indifferent family.

Jiang Yicen replied, "That's none of Brother Cao's concern. This is a family matter." In other words, mind your own business.

Cao Ken said, "Ha, as an older brother, I naturally need to help out a younger brother, after all, your eldest brother is my friend."

Jiang Yicen said dryly, "My eldest brother is truly fortunate to have a friend like you." Jiang Yiting's taste in friends was really poor.

Cao Ken caught the sarcasm, and his anger, already smoldering, flared up!

Alan's group didn't know Jiang Yiting very well and weren't aware of the feud between Jiang Yicen and Cao Ken.

Someone suddenly said, "Did you guys check the group? Master He is hosting an event today. Anyone want to participate? If you get the highest score in ten events, you win a million bucks. Anyone up for it?"

Alan said, "Let's do it! Let's check it out."

Alan's Chinese name is Lan Yan. He also comes from a wealthy family in Lin City, but compared to the Jiang and Nan families, the Lan family is considered "small and modest" and doesn't rank high.

Everyone started signing up in the group chat, and it was quite lively.

Jiang Yicen didn't want to join in the excitement—he didn't even know who this person surnamed He was.

He turned to leave, but Cao Ken grabbed him, unwilling to let him go. "Where are you going?"

Jiang Yicen shook off Cao Ken's hand. This guy was incredibly rude.

"Sorry, I don't like being touched."

"Oh, married to Nan Shuyi and now you're putting on airs? You faggot, I don't even want to touch you." He shook his hands as if he'd touched something dirty, dropping even the hypocritical tone of calling him "good little brother."

Jiang Yicen said firmly, "What do you intend to do?"

Cao Ken's drinking habits showed his bad temper—how a man drinks reveals his character. He used to fight often, but in recent years, Jiang Yiting had repeatedly warned him to keep a low profile, so he had held back a lot. The Cao family cared about face, so he had been suppressing his temper. But last night, he lost a lot of money playing cards and was in a foul mood.

Just his luck, he ran into Jiang Yicen, and they were going to have a good "talk."

"You think marrying Nan Shuyi means he'll have your back? Come on, little brother, let's go have a chat in the boxing ring." Cao Ken, of course, knew the inside story of the two families' marriage alliance.

Jiang Yicen flexed his fingers, suddenly changing his attitude from refusal. He dropped his gentle demeanor, and his eyes grew fierce.

"Fine. Whatever you want to talk about, I'll see it through today."

"Of course, I want to talk about things only we know." He said to his friends, "Sign Yicen and me up for the competition today too!"

With that, he pointed Jiang Yicen toward the boxing area. "Over there. Let's have a match. You up for it?"

Jiang Yicen didn't back down from trouble. Once someone like Cao Ken latched onto you, it was hard to shake them off, unless you beat them until they didn't dare to provoke you again.

He replied, "Why not?"

The people who had just been buddy-buddy with Jiang Yicen laughed and said to others, "Can Daniel beat Ken? Ken has trained in boxing and even fought in amateur matches."

"Let's go, let's go. Let's watch. Is Daniel going to get beaten up?"

"Damn, this is intense."

"I'm kind of worried for Daniel. He actually agreed."

Alan ran after him and grabbed Jiang Yicen. "You've never trained in boxing, have you? Cao Ken is a professional. He's fought in amateur boxing matches."

Jiang Yicen thought for a moment. "Um, what are the rules for boxing matches here?"

Alan: "..."

-

Nan Shuyi specifically went to the apartment he lived in before marriage, took a shower, and changed clothes before coming over.

As soon as he entered the club, he ran into Zhou Yi, who was looking down at his phone.

Zhou Yi: "Holy shit!"

Nan Shuyi: "What's all the shouting about?"

Zhou Yi: "He Mingshuo is hosting some gaming competition here today with a prize. He just added me to the group chat, and Cao Ken dragged Jiang Yicen to the boxing ring!"

Nan Shuyi's face darkened as he strode toward the fighting area. "Tell him to cancel this crappy event!"

Zhou Yi chased after him. "Hey, don't you want to watch the video of him and Cao Ken in the ring?"

Nan Shuyi didn't even acknowledge him.

Zhou Yi saw this usually laid-back friend of his actually start running and muttered behind him, "My god, it's completely one-sided."

Nan Shuyi caught Zhou Yi's words, and his heart not only burned with anxiety but also ached. He wished he could throw that Cao guy into a deep fryer right now.