Chapter 281 - 276: An Assist from the Wen Family’s Father-in-Law

On a Saturday, any restaurant on Chunxi Road was guaranteed to be packed, with a line out the door, as long as the food wasn’t completely awful.

The winter hot pot meal warmed everyone up, and they all began to shed their heavy coats, revealing the clothes they wore underneath.

The graceful figures and dispositions of the four women, who had been practicing dance for years, attracted the gazes of numerous men in the dining hall.

Wu Yun and his friends were at a square eight-person table in a semi-private booth within the main hall.

The two couples sat across from one another, while the remaining single men and women sat grouped together, making the dynamics at the table clear at a glance.

Several guys at the next table kept staring their way, worked up by the sight of the beautiful women who were laughing so vivaciously.

Eventually, one of them, his face beet-red, was goaded into walking over. He approached Qin Rui and the others from behind, holding a glass and his phone.

"Excuse me, sorry to bother you!" The guy was dressed like a student and looked like he came from a well-to-do family.

Chang Yuanyuan turned to look at him and, playing dumb, asked with a smile, "Something we can help you with, handsome?"

The guy got straight to the point, his eyes fixed on Qin Rui. "I was just wondering if you have a boyfriend," he said with a smile. "If not, could I get your WeChat?"

As soon as he said it, his friends at the next table started hooting and hollering. "Yeah, yeah! Go on, beautiful! Add him! Kong Bo is still single!"

Qin Rui’s first impression of him wasn’t bad, so she smiled and gave her WeChat information to the guy, whose name was Kong Bo.

Kong Bo wasn’t shy at all. Having achieved his goal, he smiled and raised his glass. "Thank you, beautiful Qin Rui, for giving me a chance. A toast to everyone!" With that, he downed the beer in his glass in one go.

After Kong Bo left, it wasn’t long before another reasonably handsome guy came over and got Chang Yuanyuan’s WeChat.

Liu Yongheng teased Li Shiming, who had been so full of himself while gossiping earlier. "Haha! You didn’t dare make a move, Tang Taizong, and now Sister Yuanyuan and the others are getting snatched up!"

Li Shiming, however, was unfazed. He waved a hand dismissively. "It’s all up to fate! Besides, Sister Yuanyuan and the girls probably aren’t into a sissy like me!"

Then, a sly grin spread across Li Shiming’s face. "It’s fine, Yongheng! As long as I have you! C’mere, give us a kiss!"

"Screw you!~"

Li Shiming’s antics easily broke any awkwardness from the girls being hit on.

Wu Yun picked up a slice of fatty beef, dunked it in his dipping sauce until it was fully coated, and popped it into his mouth. He watched them banter, feeling a wave of relaxation wash over him. ’Maybe it’s only when I’m with them that I can be this casual.’

After swallowing the beef, Wu Yun asked, "Yongheng, how’s your shared power bank project coming along?"

Liu Yongheng, who was in the middle of putting a piece of meat on Lai Yi’s plate, answered without missing a beat. "I just finalized the business license and office space. It’s in the same tech park as your Little Red Car, Boss."

"I rented an office, just five hundred square meters."

"As for staffing, the headhunter you suggested found me a general manager, and my dad sent over two people to handle the finances."

"Formal recruitment starts next week. Once the core team is in place, I can start negotiating with manufacturers to produce the power banks!"

Liu Yongheng’s face lit up as he talked about his recent work; he was clearly thrilled.

Ever since Wu Yun had become famous online—especially after Little Red Car’s valuation hit several billion Huaxia Coin—Liu Yongheng had been filled with confidence for his own shared power bank project.

He’d even had dreams where he became a billionaire, being interviewed by reporters under a blaze of spotlights.

"Sounds good. Let me know if you run into any problems. If you’re short on funds—oh, wait. You’re probably not short on funds." Wu Yun recalled his earlier guess about Liu Yongheng’s family. ’They’re probably sitting on a gold mine.’

"Got it, Boss!"

...

After dinner, Liu Yongheng arranged for the whole group to get professional massages before they finally headed back to the university in two cars.

That night, as he lay in bed, Wu Yun felt a biting chill in the air, even with his electric blanket turned on.

It was true what they said: it’s hard to go from luxury back to a simpler life. After getting used to the cozy floor heating at Seaview One, the damp cold of Rongcheng felt especially biting.

Wu Yun turned on the heater. By the time Wen Meng emerged from the bathroom, the room had warmed up to twenty degrees Celsius.

Wearing a robe, Wen Meng waited for her feet to dry completely before she smiled and slipped under the covers.

"Junior! My mom was asking when you’re going to come home to Mianzhou with me." Wen Meng’s robe revealed she was wearing nothing underneath as she quickly burrowed into the blankets, leaving only her head sticking out.

Wu Yun was looking at a report on his tablet. He heard her and said with a smile, "I don’t think I can in the next month. My schedule is pretty packed."

"How about this? What if I visit your family during the New Year?" Wu Yun recalled that Qi Fei had also invited him to her family’s home for the holiday.

’Qi Fei’s family celebrates in Jingyang, so it’s close by anyway. I can just spend one day at each of their homes.’

"Okay, then it’s a date!" Wen Meng happily hugged Wu Yun’s waist, accidentally brushing against "Little Wu Yun" in the process.

Wu Yun kept his eyes on his tablet and asked softly, "So, did your parents ask you anything about me?"

Wen Meng hummed in agreement. "Nothing much. They just asked for details about you. And they told me not to be headstrong or get in the way of your work, that I should put your career first!"

Wen Meng’s tone was tinged with resignation. "After you became famous online, my parents found out. My mom wanted to show off to all our relatives and friends about having such an outstanding son-in-law, but my dad stopped her."

"My dad had only one thing to say: don’t flash your wealth. He said if people found out they had such a rich potential son-in-law, all sorts of unsavory characters would come knocking on their door asking for favors."

"As soon as my mom heard that, she dropped the whole idea of showing off. After all, she knows that even without you in the picture, we always have relatives and friends coming over to borrow money or ask for help."

As she spoke, Wen Meng adjusted her pillow to prop herself up more comfortably. "If they found out about you, there’s no telling what some of the more shameless ones might try to pull."

"In my dad’s words, even after we get married, we should do our best to keep your identity from most people. Otherwise, our family will never have a day of peace. Not unless my parents pack up and leave Mianzhou, which is impossible. They’ve lived there for the better part of their lives."

Listening to Wen Meng, Wu Yun was surprised. ’I can’t believe my future father-in-law’s thinking aligns so perfectly with mine. Thanks for the assist, old man. This approach will save a lot of unnecessary trouble down the road.’

’As long as we wait until Sichuan relaxes its household registration policies, no one will ever know if Wen Meng and I officially get a marriage license. Our kids will have legal registration either way.’

Wu Yun said with a laugh, "Thank your dad for me, for being so understanding. I’ll be sure to give him a big, healthy grandson in the future!"

Wen Meng rolled her eyes at him. "Who said I was going to have your kids!"

With that, she burrowed her head under the covers as well.