Chapter 1593 — Zhong Yongliang Offers a Toast

It was nearly dinnertime and everyone was hungry, so at Gao Xiaofu's words they rose happily and made their way toward the banquet hall.

Wei Zhao frowned. Zhong Yongliang's behavior struck him as odd. This guy had been quiet for quite a while — why was he suddenly active again? Moreover, his pursuit of Gu Mengyao was surely hopeless now, and he knew it as well as anyone, so why was he still spending money treating everyone?

Could it really be that he had so much money he had nowhere to spend it? It seemed Zhong Yongliang's family was quite wealthy. Just as Wei Zhao had been worrying about lacking funds — now that this kid was so flush, it was only fair that Wei Zhao go to his father, Zhong Fabai, and get his hands on some of that cash!

But when Gao Xiaofu had spoken earlier, he hadn't mentioned Gu Mengyao at all, nor had he glanced in Wei Zhao's direction — which only made Wei Zhao all the more unable to fathom their intentions. Could they really just want to treat everyone to a meal, with nothing else behind it?

Wei Zhao rose to his feet along with Gu Mengyao and Shen Yushu. Although the two girls had no particular fondness for Zhong Yongliang, a meal was a meal, after all!

Earlier, Gu Mengyao had been sitting in a corner, and no one had dared approach her. But now that she stood and headed for the banquet hall, many of the female students who had failed to get into college made a beeline for her, eager to ingratiate themselves. There was no helping it — sometimes things were just that pragmatic!

If Gu Mengyao could remember their bond as classmates and secure a job for them at one of the Gu Group's subsidiary companies, that would be absolutely perfect. In their eyes, going to college was merely a means to a good job. If they could use Gu Mengyao's connections to enter the Gu Group, it would be nothing short of reaching the heavens in a single step!

Although the eldest young lady had a cold temperament, Wei Zhao knew she was cold on the outside and warm on the inside. They had all been classmates for so long — regardless of how close they had been, Gu Mengyao would at least extend some goodwill. Every girl who came up to her, Gu Mengyao dutifully took out her phone, jotted down their names and phone numbers, and planned to send them to Uncle Qing so he could give them a chance!

Whether they could actually perform on the job was entirely up to them. Gu Mengyao wasn't a philanthropist — this was all she could do for them.

Kang Xiaobo's side was much the same: most of them were promised a chance, but if they failed the probation period, there was nothing anyone could do.

Even so, everyone was delighted. Consider this: to land a job at such a major group, you needed either an impressive degree or impressive work experience. For high school graduates who had neither — simply being offered an opportunity was already no small thing!

Over thirty people had shown up for the reunion, and the party was split across two tables. The feast was generous — Zhong Yongliang wasn't short on cash and had ordered all manner of delicacies. They were all classmates, so no one stood on ceremony. After raising his cup and saying, "Please, everyone, help yourselves — eat and drink your fill," Zhong Yongliang didn't waste any more words.

Everyone dug in, cups clinking together in the air. The college entrance exams were over, and whether they had gotten into university or not, they were all overjoyed. The ones who had been admitted needed no explanation — and even those who hadn't had landed jobs from Kang Xiaobo, Gu Mengyao, and Zhong Yongliang alike!

They reasoned that even if one job fell through, they could always go beg someone else for another. Three jobs — surely one would suit them! The classmates who had been worrying about their futures were now positively glowing with good spirits.

"Arrow Bro, this crab is delicious — try some!" Shen Yushu placed a crab on Wei Zhao's plate.

"Arrow Bro, this beef is delicious — try some!" Shen Yushu then gave Wei Zhao a piece of beef.

"Arrow Bro, this pastry is delicious — try some!" Shen Yushu added yet another piece of pastry to his plate.

In no time, Wei Zhao's plate had been heaped into a small mountain of food.

No one envied Wei Zhao this little bonanza. On the one hand, Shen Yushu was someone far out of their league — a girl they could never hope to reach. On the other hand, her formidable brother was not someone they could afford to provoke either!

Some harbored not-so-innocent guesses: when Shen Yushu's brother found out his sister had a boyfriend, might he come beat up Wei Zhao? Little did they know — at this very moment, Chen Yutian was burning incense in the hospital every single day, praying that his sister would marry Wei Zhao. Once that happened, the Chen family would be set for life!

"Wei Zhao, let me toast you!" Suddenly, after three rounds of drinking, Zhong Yongliang rose with his cup in hand and addressed Wei Zhao directly.

The raucous banquet fell instantly silent. Everyone stared at Zhong Yongliang with odd, puzzled expressions. All of them knew that Zhong Yongliang and Wei Zhao were at odds — the two had been locked in bitter rivalry ever since Wei Zhao had transferred in. Although Wei Zhao had later gotten the better of him, Zhong Yongliang certainly harbored no small measure of resentment.

So this toast now struck everyone as decidedly strange.

Wei Zhao too regarded Zhong Yongliang with a guarded look, unsure what game he was playing.

"Xiaofu, pour Wei Zhao a cup!" Zhong Yongliang paid the stares no mind and turned to Gao Xiaofu with a command.

"Yes, sir!" Gao Xiaofu picked up a bottle of liquor from beside him, uncorked it himself, and respectfully presented it before Wei Zhao.

Wei Zhao's brow furrowed slightly, but with the entire class looking on, he couldn't very well refuse. After all, they were classmates — if he turned it down now, everyone would think him petty and narrow-minded. Wei Zhao didn't care what they thought, but he had no desire to ruin everyone's enjoyment over it.

With that in mind, Wei Zhao offered a faint smile, raised his own cup, and let Gao Xiaofu pour the wine, remarking lightly: "Zhong Yongliang, what's suddenly come over you, offering me a toast?"

"Wei Zhao, you and I have had our share of bad blood," Zhong Yongliang said with apparent sincerity, "but we've graduated now. We were classmates once — let's put all those unpleasantnesses behind us. From here on, we're all good classmates. Once we graduate, we'll rarely see each other again, and all that old history is meaningless now. Everything is in this cup!"

"Oh?" Wei Zhao studied Zhong Yongliang's sincere expression, but his suspicion only deepened. He didn't believe for a moment that Zhong Yongliang had such good intentions. Just recently, Wei Zhao had fought Zhang Naipao — one look at that man revealed the depths of Zhong Yongliang's hatred for Wei Zhao. How could all that simply evaporate?

Was it because Zhang Naipao had been crippled that Zhong Yongliang had concluded taking him on was futile and decided to make peace? But that didn't seem quite right either.

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