"Sure!"
"Great! I haven’t bought a gift yet. Here, I’ll pitch in 300!"
"Today has just been full of eye-openers. Luo Zi’s suggestion is especially good. 300 isn’t much, so let’s all do the sa!"
"Alright, guys, let’s make an effort and pool our contributions to cover a third of the bill!"
In the blink of an eye, five of the guys agreed. Seeing this, the remaining three could only follow suit.
At this point, they couldn’t care less about possibly offending Han Lie.
"Then let’s just chip in a bit more. Since we don’t have any other expenses today, I’m all in!"
"No, let’s stay within our ans. Zijun isn’t short of our small contributions."
"Right. Everyone should contribute what they’re comfortable with, just a token of appreciation. Otherwise, it would defeat the purpose of Yanfei organizing this gathering."
Luo Zijun smiled and nodded, then suddenly adopted a more aggressive stance, turning to look directly at Han Lie. "God Lie, give a chance, will you?"
The sudden turn of events left Chen Yanfei no chance to interject.
It was only then that she realized what Luo Zijun was aiming for. Simply put—he wanted to have a direct showdown with Han Lie and steal the spotlight.
However, this move wasn’t excessive. At most, it was just a slight, almost imperceptible indication of a division into camps. So, for a mont, Chen Yanfei couldn’t strongly object and could only try to persuade them gently. "You guys, stop ssing around. I’ve already said you don’t need to spend money..."
Unfortunately, young n who were all fired up wouldn’t listen to reason.
"They’re not spending a lot, just offering a token of their sincerity."
Luo Zijun suddenly cut Chen Yanfei off, his next words laced with renewed provocation. "As for , I might not be as capable as God Lie, but honestly, what he earns might not even surpass my New Year’s money. It’s just a al; I can afford it."
Oh my god! Do you even realize what you’re saying? Is this really a matter of whether you can afford it or not?!
In her anxiety, Chen Yanfei stopped arguing with him and hurriedly turned to look at Han Lie.
She was terrified that Han Lie would suddenly retort with sothing like, "Oh? And how much New Year’s money do you have?"
Luo Zijun had no idea about Han Lie’s true accomplishnts, but she was all too aware.
To outsiders, Han Lie was an amazingly talented trading genius who hadn’t yet made his mark. He was currently focused on competitions and, at most, had a few million in pocket money—still far from being a tycoon.
But Chen Yanfei knew his private investnt company was already up and running, controlling hundreds of millions in cash!
Knowing Han Lie’s temperant, coupled with his current achievents, could he possibly tolerate this level of challenge and doubt?
Just as Chen Yanfei looked over worriedly, Han Lie actually smiled.
It wasn’t a cold, sinister, or disdainful smile, but a very natural, calm, and gentle one.
"Alright, I understand you guys want to show your appreciation. So here’s the deal: you all cover lunch. We’ll reciprocate, each doing what we can. Then, no thanks needed from anyone. Let’s just all have fun and work together to give Yan Yan a happy and morable birthday. How does that sound?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the worry vanished from Chen Yanfei’s face, and she couldn’t help but beam.
She was overjoyed.
With Han Lie’s sincere words, the underlying rift that had been forming between the two groups imdiately began to nd significantly.
Not being arrogant when you’re impressive is a rare mark of good character.
Because it’s so rare, it’s particularly comforting.
Luo Zijun’s supporters initially had no real issues with Han Lie. Now, with Han Lie speaking and acting so appropriately, they spontaneously cheered before Luo Zijun could even react.
"Brother Lie is magnanimous!"
"Exactly! That’s how it should be!"
"Thanks, Big Bro, for giving us a chance to shine, haha!"
The atmosphere instantly improved.
Clearly, not everyone wanted to be caught in the middle between Luo Zijun and Han Lie, watching them clash and then being forced to take sides.
If it ca to choosing, they would have had to side with Luo Zijun; after all, they were going to be classmates for four years—that was no small thing.
But the question was, did it really need to escalate to that point?
However, since Luo Zijun had pressed forward, they had felt compelled to follow suit; there was no way around it.
Now that Han Lie had taken a step back, everyone was relieved.
As for Luo Zijun himself, though still unconvinced deep down, he found himself completely stumped, unable to utter a single retort. A sense of dejection even began to creep in.
This guy... is he really my age?!
Luo Zijun hadn’t conceded, but he was already aware that he was indeed inferior in so aspects, which made him feel even worse.
"Fine then. Since you’ve all agreed, let’s do it your way."
Chen Yanfei’s eyes sparkled. She glanced sideways at Han Lie and then, with a radiant smile, said, "But I’ll say it again: don’t try to compete with each other. Live within your ans. We all need to face reality."
This was a normal piece of advice, but also a subtle warning.
Huang Li nodded vigorously. "That’s right. We can’t compare with God Lie’s talent, nor can we compare with Luo Zijun’s family background. But we each have our own strengths. The most important thing is to know ourselves and not be stubborn when we should concede."
Luo Zijun’s body jolted, and he gave Huang Li a complex look.
In fact, many people had noticed that Huang Li had deliberately singled out Han Lie earlier to tease Chen Yanfei.
Now, this statent was even more direct.
She didn’t an any harm; she just wanted to tell Luo Zijun: "Stop playing the ostrich! Face reality. Chen Yanfei clearly regards Han Lie differently. It’s ti for you to give up."
Although this might cause Luo Zijun to lose his composure, the opportunity was too good, and she couldn’t resist.
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