Chapter Twenty-Two: Who Is the Honored Guest

The waiter left.

Lai Gaojun’s voice was filled with undisguised smugness, yet he forced a look of feigned humility onto his face. "Manager Huang is truly too kind. I merely gave their restaurant a bit of publicity in the magazine and shared a meal with him once, and yet he sends over a bottle of red wine worth over a hundred thousand without a second thought."

He looked at Lin Chen, mocking him, "Kid, you’ve probably never had this kind of red wine, right? Romanée-Conti. I doubt you’ve even heard of it; after all, your salary for several years wouldn't even be enough to buy this one bottle!"

Lin Chen replied calmly, "I’m not interested in red wine."

Lai Gaojun sneered, his tone dripping with sarcasm. "If you don’t understand it, just say so. Don’t pretend to be indifferent. It’s so hypocritical to care so much about your pride! It’s a waste to let you drink this wine; I’d say you’re only fit for that cheap beer that costs a few bucks a bottle."

Lin Chen shrugged, seemingly accepting the fact that he was ignorant of wine, appearing entirely indifferent.

"You can't polish a turd!" Lai Gaojun scoffed.

Lai Gaojun poured himself a glass, took a sip with affected elegance, and wore an expression of pure enjoyment. In truth, he didn't know the first thing about tasting wine, but perhaps because of the exorbitant price tag, he convinced himself it tasted magnificent.

Even though he was clueless, he pretended to be a connoisseur. "Clear color, pure taste, excellent balance, and a long finish. As expected of such a vintage—ha! It’s truly worth the six-figure price tag."

He then looked at Su Yiran, smugly asking, "Miss Su, have you ever had the 1995 Romanée-Conti?"

Su Yiran shook her head. "No."

While she hadn't tasted it, she was well aware of its market value—a rare item that was often impossible to find despite its high price. She was genuinely surprised by the extent of Lai Gaojun’s influence.

Lai Gaojun beamed. He picked up a glass from the table, poured some wine for Su Yiran, and smiled. "Since you haven't, why not try it today? Red wine and a beautiful woman—only someone as stunning as Miss Su is worthy of such a vintage. Honestly, I really don't understand how someone as ethereal as you could ever settle for a guy like that."

He cast a look of disdain toward Lin Chen.

Lin Chen remained silent, but Su Yiran grew annoyed.

"Mr. Lai," she said coldly, "our affairs are none of your concern. I know exactly what kind of person Lin Chen is!"

"Err... fine. Let's not talk about that then. Since we’ve had the good fortune to meet today, and we have such excellent wine, why don't we have a few drinks?"

Lai Gaojun hadn't expected Su Yiran to still be defending Lin Chen at this point. Though irritated, he quickly suppressed his anger. Seeing Su Yiran sitting still, seemingly unwilling to drink, he grew frustrated. "Miss Su, regardless, I have quite a few collaborations with your company. If you won't even give me this much face, aren't you looking down on me a bit too much? If you look down on me, fine—our magazine will stop doing business with your side from now on!"

Su Yiran was indignant. This man was far too arrogant. To threaten to cut off their business collaboration just because she wouldn't drink his wine—did he think work was a joke? Still, despite her anger, she reasoned that it was just a glass of wine; having one wouldn't change anything.

Just as she reached for the glass, a smile spread across Lai Gaojun's face. He felt triumphant, thinking that once a man had power, women were easy to come by. Truly, no matter how beautiful a woman was, she eventually had to yield.

However, Lin Chen spoke up coolly: "Don't drink his wine."

Su Yiran pouted, looking at Lin Chen with a pitiful expression. She didn't know why he was being so overbearing and unreasonable today; she didn't actually want to drink the man's wine, she was just trying to be polite. Yet, hearing Lin Chen's assertive command, she felt a strange sweetness and happiness in her heart.

She put the glass down like a wronged little wife and teased, "Fine, I won't drink it. Why are you so angry?"

Lin Chen didn't reply. He simply downed his own glass of ordinary wine in one go, as if to prove that he truly didn't care about the expensive vintage. Even though the wine wasn't as pricey as the one Lai Gaojun held, there was likely no one else in the entire restaurant drinking wine the way he was.

Lai Gaojun finally snapped. "Kid, don't get too cocky! Who do you think you are to act so arrogant in front of me? I'm warning you, get out of this restaurant right now, or I’ll call Manager Huang and have him throw you out personally—that won't be a pretty sight!"

It was truly laughable that a man trying to seduce someone else's girlfriend right in front of them could act as if he were the one being wronged—it only served to highlight his extreme arrogance and hubris.

Lin Chen raised his head. His icy gaze made Lai Gaojun shiver; he swallowed hard and took a step back. He felt as if he were being stared at by a ferocious lion, and a chill ran down his spine.

"What are you doing? Are you trying to start a fight here? How barbaric! How ridiculous!" Once Lai Gaojun regained his composure, he felt embarrassed by his earlier reaction and lashed out in a fit of shame and anger.

Lin Chen said coldly, "If you disturb our meal again, do you want to see if I’ll throw you out myself right now?"

As he spoke, his aura turned sharp and fierce, startling Lai Gaojun, who felt as if he were facing a desperate criminal.

"Y-you..."

Lai Gaojun was too stunned to speak. Just then, he saw a slightly plump, fair-skinned middle-aged man approaching. Delighted, he shouted, "Manager Huang! You’ve come at the perfect time. There’s an ignorant brat here; please help me deal with him. He’s completely out of line—he doesn't even know where he is, and he’s actually threatening to lay a hand on me!"

Manager Huang seemed to have been heading toward that table all along. Acting as if he had only just noticed Lai Gaojun, he smiled and said, "Haha, Boss Lai, why are you here? Has someone offended you?"

Suddenly, Manager Huang caught sight of the grim-faced Lin Chen. His expression shifted, and he narrowed his eyes. "Wait, Boss Lai, who did you say you wanted to deal with? Don't tell me it's this gentleman here."

Lai Gaojun didn't catch on. "Haha, Manager Huang, you're joking with me again. How could you have only just realized I was here? Didn't you just send me a bottle of '95 Romanée-Conti? You’re truly too kind. In the next issue of the magazine, I will definitely feature your restaurant again with a prominent, front-page promotion."

Manager Huang didn't answer. He simply looked at Lai Gaojun, then at Lin Chen and Su Yiran.

Lai Gaojun pointed at Lin Chen with resentment. "Manager Huang, please do me a favor and throw this brat out of your restaurant. He is utterly disrespectful, wearing clothes from a flea market, yet he dares to challenge me! I suggest you blacklist him so he can never step foot in this Green Western Restaurant again."

Su Yiran said indignantly, "What right do you have to do that? Where is the logic in this? We’ve paid for our meal and haven't caused any trouble—on what grounds are you kicking Lin Chen out?"

Even as she spoke, she felt a surge of panic. She knew it was entirely possible for this manager to have Lin Chen thrown out. After all, if he were willing to give away a bottle of wine worth over a hundred thousand to Lai Gaojun, it wouldn't be strange for him to toss out an ordinary person.

Lin Chen’s eyes glinted with danger. If anyone actually tried to kick him out, he wouldn't mind breaking their limbs.

However, Manager Huang said something that stunned everyone.

He looked at Lai Gaojun with an amused expression and asked, "Who said that wine was a gift for you?"

Lai Gaojun froze, as if he had been slapped across the face. "The waiter said the wine was a gift from the boss to an honored guest. If it wasn't for me, then who else here could be considered an honored guest?"

He looked at Lin Chen and Su Yiran, utterly bewildered. One was a model with no background, and the other was obviously a penniless nobody. Could it be that he wasn't the guest of honor, but they were? What a joke!

Even Su Yiran was completely confused. Only Lin Chen paused, a suspicion beginning to form in his mind.