Chapter Eight: Drinking Wine or Water

After Lu Zijun first came to Starlight Cipher a month ago, he returned every night to spend money there. On the generous nights he would burn through ten or twenty thousand; on the quieter ones, never less than five thousand. In the space of a month, he had already spent nearly three hundred thousand there, not counting the women he called for. Although Lu Zijun himself rarely chose one, the men who came with him would always pick one or two to take outside, and of course all the expenses were on Lu Zijun.

Seeing Yang Yilin walk out alone, Zhuo Nan could not put his mind at ease. He said to Long Kun and the others, "I’m going out to have a look."

Since Zhuo Nan was leaving, the gathering naturally had to be put on hold. After all, he was the real boss here; without him present, the others could not truly enjoy themselves.

Long Kun said, "Brother Nan, let us go with you. If that Lu Zijun dares lay a hand on our sister-in-law, the brothers will cripple him on the spot."

Wu Jianguo chimed in from the side, and the moment he spoke, one could tell he was a quietly lewd man at heart. "Brother Nan, if he dares get handsy, I’ll drag him back and slap a rape charge on him."

Damn, was that really necessary? He was only trying to invite someone for a drink, and now he was being turned into a rapist. That Lu fellow had better not make any move tonight, or there would be plenty of trouble waiting for him.

Zhuo Nan smiled at everyone and said, "No need for so many people. I’ll go myself. Just wait outside."

"Don’t worry, Brother Nan. We know what to do."

Zhuo Nan took the lead and headed for private room 666. When he reached the door, he did not go straight in. Instead, he paused and used his super brain to check the situation inside. In the room, two men and three women were packed together on the sofa. One of the guys was even handling two women at once, his two hands quite literally unable to keep up. Yang Yilin was seated at the far end of the sofa with another man. She had deliberately kept some distance from him, but the man, glass in hand, shifted closer to her and stared at her chest with lustful eyes, smiling as he said, "Vice President Yang, come on, let’s have a drink."

Yang Yilin politely took the glass and moved back a little more before saying, "Young Master Lu, I’m not much of a drinker. I’ll just have a little."

Young Master Lu did not get angry. Smiling, he said, "Sure, just a little. As long as you drink it, you’re giving me, Lu Shao, face."

Though Young Master Lu was a bit lascivious, he was still within the bounds of tolerable behavior. After all, what man came to a bar without some desire to chase beauty?

Yang Yilin took a small sip and was about to set the glass down when Young Master Lu was displeased. "Vice President Yang, why are you being so stingy tonight? You weren’t like this last time. Drink a bit more, just a bit more."

As he spoke, he reached out and gripped Yang Yilin’s hand, forcing the glass back to her lips.

"Young Master Lu, don’t do this. I really can’t drink any more. How about I find you a pretty girl instead? I’ll cover all the expenses myself." Though Yang Yilin was very unwilling to face Lu Zijun, she still maintained a professional smile.

Lu Zijun snorted coldly and slammed the glass onto the coffee table with a sharp crack. "Vice President Yang, what’s that supposed to mean? Do you think I’m that kind of person?"

The moment Lu Zijun lost his temper, the two attendants beside him immediately stopped what they were doing and turned to look at Yang Yilin. One of them threatened her, saying, "Vice President Yang, Young Master Lu is inviting you to drink out of respect. Don’t be so ungrateful."

Lu Zijun leaned back on the sofa. One of the attendants beside him quickly picked up a cigarette, flicked one out, and lit it for him. After taking a pleasant drag, Lu Zijun said, "Vice President Yang, I spend a lot of money here every day. I’m only asking you for one drink, and you still won’t give me that face?"

Pressed hard by Lu Zijun, Yang Yilin pleaded, "Young Master Lu, it’s not that I don’t want to give you face. I truly can’t drink any more."

Lu Zijun slapped his thigh and declared grandly, full of swagger and confidence, "Fine, Vice President Yang. As long as you’re willing to give face, that’s enough. Just this one glass. Once you finish it, I definitely won’t make you drink again."

Yang Yilin stared at the glass in front of her, thinking of Zhuo Nan’s look from earlier. In the end, she made a decision. Looking at Lu Zijun with great seriousness, she asked, "Young Master Lu, if I drink this glass, I won’t have to drink any more, right?"

Hearing that there was a chance, Lu Zijun hurriedly thumped his chest and said, "Relax. I, Young Master Lu, keep my word. As long as you drink this glass, I absolutely won’t make you drink again."

At that, Yang Yilin lifted the glass, tipped her head back, and drained it in one gulp, not leaving a single drop. She drank so fast that she was clearly choked by it, coughing violently several times. Taking the chance, Lu Zijun reached out to pat her on the back.

Yang Yilin covered her mouth, her expression one of obvious pain, but she still shook her shoulder to stop his hand. After coughing twice more, she stood up and said to Lu Zijun, "Young Master Lu, I’ve had my drink. Are you satisfied now? How about I go find two more girls to keep you company?"

Lu Zijun only smiled without speaking, but one of the attendants beside him stood up. "Vice President Yang, let me toast you with another glass."

With that, he filled Yang Yilin’s glass again.

Watching his movements, Yang Yilin’s beautiful eyes gradually filled with anger. "Young Master Lu, what is the meaning of this?"

Lu Zijun burst out laughing and said, "Vice President Yang, I said I wouldn’t make you drink anymore. As for everyone else, that’s not my concern."

At this point, the attendant beside him held out the glass toward Yang Yilin. "Vice President Yang, how about it? Give us some face."

By now, it was time for Zhuo Nan to make his entrance. He gently pushed open the private room door and walked in. The moment Yang Yilin saw him, she felt as though a savior had arrived.

A look of displeasure crossed Lu Zijun’s face. One of the attendants immediately stood up and asked fiercely, "Kid, who are you?"

Zhuo Nan smiled faintly and walked to Yang Yilin’s side, pulling her into his arms. Yang Yilin had never expected him to do that, and so she simply stood there in a daze, letting him hold her. When Lu Zijun saw this, if he still did not understand, he would be no different from a pig.

He raised a hand to press the others down, and the two attendants sat back.

Smiling, he asked, "Vice President Yang, what kind of performance is this? Bringing in a half-grown child..."

At his words, the two attendants burst out laughing.

Zhuo Nan did not care in the least. Instead, he said, "You must be Young Master Lu. Yang Yilin is my girlfriend. She’s not feeling well these past couple of days. How about I drink the rest for her?"

Yang Yilin stared at Zhuo Nan with wide eyes, unable to believe it. Though she knew his words were only an excuse, she still felt a surge of excitement and nervousness. Her body began to tremble involuntarily, and Zhuo Nan tightened his arm to steady her.

"You...?" Lu Zijun looked askance at Zhuo Nan. He drew out the word for a long moment, wearing a contemptuous expression. Then his tone suddenly changed, turning cold as he said, "Why should I let you drink? Who do you think you are?"

No sooner had Lu Zijun finished than the two attendants stood up and advanced toward Zhuo Nan step by step. Just then, Long Kun and the others outside the door rushed in.

"Young Master Lu, let’s talk this through. Let’s talk it through..."

Seeing Long Kun arrive, Lu Zijun’s expression improved somewhat. Still dissatisfied, he said, "Brother Kun, is your place somewhere just any cat or dog can walk into?"

Long Kun thought to himself, You’re the cat or dog here. But outwardly he still smiled and said, "Young Master Lu, you’re joking. My place is so upscale—how could anyone barge in recklessly?"

"Oh, really?" Lu Zijun asked in a strangely singsong voice. Then he pointed at Zhuo Nan and said, "Then what is this person supposed to be?"

Long Kun glanced at Zhuo Nan and said with a smile, "Young Master Lu, this is Vice President Yang’s boyfriend. He’s here to take her home after work. Vice President Yang hasn’t been feeling very well these last couple of days, so I already gave her permission to leave early." Then he turned to Zhuo Nan and said, "You can take Vice President Yang with you now..."

Zhuo Nan smiled and nodded, then held Yang Yilin close and started toward the door.

Lu Zijun shouted, "Stop!" Then he turned to Long Kun and said, "Brother Kun, you’re obviously siding with these two. That’s not how things are done."

True enough, Long Kun had opened the doors for business, and the customer was king. Let alone a generous customer like Lu Zijun—if Long Kun did not give him an explanation, it would clearly be hard to justify.

Long Kun stared at Lu Zijun for a long while before asking in a low voice, "Then what does Young Master Lu think would be proper?"

Lu Zijun chuckled. "Brother Kun, since you’ve stepped in, I’ll give you face. Wasn’t this kid just saying he’d drink for Vice President Yang? Fine. There are three bottles of Hennessy here. As long as he drinks them, we’ll let this go."

Long Kun was startled. Damn it, three bottles of hard liquor—even a wine immortal would drink himself to death. And Zhuo Nan’s body was only that of a teenager. How could he possibly withstand so much poison in the form of alcohol?

Zhuo Nan had long anticipated this trick. But with his super brain, three bottles of liquor were nothing at all, perfectly manageable as if they were soda. Looking at Lu Zijun, he said indifferently, "No problem. As long as I drink them, I hope you won’t bother my girlfriend again."

"Heh... no problem... of course no problem..." Lu Zijun felt a little uneasy under Zhuo Nan’s gaze. Instinct told him that this young man was not as simple as he looked, but he still concealed his inner unease very well.

Zhuo Nan let go of Yang Yilin and reached for the bottle, only for Yang Yilin to seize his arm at once. With a pitiful expression, she pleaded with him, "Zhuo Nan, don’t listen to him. Don’t drink."

Long Kun and the others stood to the side, anxious beyond measure. They wanted to speak up and stop him, but Zhuo Nan held them back with a glance. Seeing how confident he looked, Long Kun finally relaxed. Brother Nan never fought battles he was unprepared for. Presumably, these three bottles would be nothing to him.

Zhuo Nan removed Yang Yilin’s hand and said softly, "Don’t worry. Nothing will happen."

He then walked to the coffee table, picked up a bottle of Hennessy, popped it open with a crack, and without another word lifted it to his mouth and poured it down. Not even the slightest frown crossed his face. He gulped it down like water.

Lu Zijun stared wide-eyed. What kind of human being was this?

The first bottle was finished in no time. Zhuo Nan did not pause at all; he opened the second bottle immediately. His movements were exactly the same as before.

Long Kun watched from the side, and slowly a smile spread across his face. No wonder Brother Nan had looked so certain. Had he been raised in a wine vat since childhood? Ordinary people could drink one bottle of foreign liquor at best, and that usually had to be mixed with something else. But Brother Nan was truly extraordinary. If the others here had not known it was alcohol, they would have thought it was cola.

The second bottle was soon empty as well. Zhuo Nan picked up the third and continued pouring it into his stomach. Not a single word passed his lips, not even a crease appeared between his brows.

With a slap, he set the empty bottle back on the coffee table, then lifted an arm to wipe his mouth. The whole motion was smooth and effortless, impossible to imagine that he had just downed three bottles of Hennessy.

"Young Master Lu, the drinks are finished. It’s time for you to keep your word," Zhuo Nan said with a smile, wearing an expression that looked utterly harmless.

Lu Zijun was furious inside, but what could he say? It had been his own idea for Zhuo Nan to drink three bottles. If he went back on his word now, Long Kun and the others would certainly not let him off so easily.

Lu Zijun smiled faintly and said, "I underestimated you. Since that’s how it is, I have nothing to say. I won’t bother Vice President Yang again after this."

"Then many thanks, Young Mas... ter Lu..." Zhuo Nan stretched the last three words out on purpose, clearly taking the stance of a victor.

Lu Zijun fixed him with a cold stare and snorted. "Let’s go."

Long Kun stepped forward at just the right moment. "Young Master Lu, allow me to see you out."

As he reached the door, Lu Zijun could not help glancing back at Yang Yilin one last time. Then, in a voice as cold as the north wind in the depths of winter, he said to Zhuo Nan, "Kid, we’ll meet again."

Zhuo Nan wore a carefree, almost insolent expression. "Sure. I’ll be waiting."