Chapter 8: Invitation

Chapter 8: Invitation

"Minhui, have you heard? Shen Yuan was dumped by his senior girlfriend," Chen Ling said in a lowered voice to Fang Minhui.

"What? When did this happen?" Fang Minhui was somewhat surprised. In her impression, they had been together for three years already. How could they suddenly break up out of nowhere?

"Just yesterday afternoon! Many people at school saw it. I heard it from others too."

Shen Yuan used to drive a BMW 4 Series and date a senior girl, which gave him a certain reputation at Shewai University. Everyone knew him as a rich second-generation heir.

Yesterday at the school gate, many people witnessed Zhou Wanting dump Shen Yuan and get into the passenger seat of an Audi A7.

Chen Ling had always been a gossip lover, and she particularly enjoyed this kind of campus drama, especially since Shen Yuan was in their class.

"I see," Fang Minhui nodded thoughtfully. She actually used to have feelings for Shen Yuan. He was tall and handsome, and when he smiled, there was a kind of casual charm that attracted many girls.

Not only was he good-looking, but crucially, he was wealthy. Being able to drive a BMW 4 Series to school meant his family must be extremely well-off.

Unfortunately, back then, Shen Yuan only had eyes for his senior girlfriend.

"Shen Yuan always seemed like the type to squander money. He used to drive such an expensive car to school, but now his family is bankrupt. No wonder his senior girlfriend left him, there's no sense of security there."

"Mm-hmm." Fang Minhui nodded, agreeing with Chen Ling's point. Now that Shen Yuan's family was bankrupt, his senior girlfriend wasn't foolish enough to stay with him.

"It's good that you didn't end up with him back then. Otherwise, you would have wasted three years of your youth for nothing."

As Fang Minhui's best friend at Shewai, Chen Ling knew that she had liked Shen Yuan before.

Fang Minhui pressed her lips together, not knowing how to respond.

In truth, Shen Yuan had always occupied a place in her heart. During her freshman and sophomore years, she had harbored a sliver of hope, waiting for the day when Shen Yuan might break up with his senior girlfriend, giving her a chance to get close to him.

However, now that this day had actually arrived, Fang Minhui felt rather indifferent.

She even thought: if his senior girlfriend dumped him, why should I still pine for him? It proves that apart from his good looks, he doesn't have many merits. His senior girlfriend probably liked him mainly because his family was wealthy.

Moreover, his family had no money now. Rumor had it that they had sold their cars and houses to pay off debts.

Across from them, Shen Yuan was looking at the favorability rating displayed above Fang Minhui's head, feeling a bit excited inside.

Counselor Li Xiao's favorability toward him was only 65, but unexpectedly, Fang Minhui's was at 72. It seemed the class beauty had never really gotten over him.

But in the next second, Shen Yuan was stunned because the favorability rating began to change!

The 72 rating was slowly decreasing: 71... 70... 69...

At first, Shen Yuan thought he might be seeing things because he hadn't fully sobered up, but even after rubbing his eyes, the number continued to drop.

What the hell?

Shen Yuan instantly became anxious. If it fell below 60, this NPC Fang Minhui wouldn't be able to generate benefits for him anymore!

"I can't just sit back and do nothing," Shen Yuan stood up. Although he didn't know why Fang Minhui's favorability toward him was dropping so quickly, if he let it continue to fall, he would truly miss this opportunity.

"Third Bro, what are you doing?" Huang Haibao was slurping his noodles when he noticed Shen Yuan suddenly stand up. Cao Shunjin looked up as well, equally confused.

"Old Huang, let me ask you: if Fang Minhui and I got together, would you mind?" Shen Yuan asked.

Before Huang Haibao could speak, Cao Shunjin cut in: "Third Bro, it's not about minding or not. The key is that you can't win over the class beauty right now."

"Do you really think you're still that rich second-generation who drives a BMW 4 Series?"

Cao Shunjin was merciless in his criticism. Shen Yuan was speechless but didn't bother to explain, continuing to look at Huang Haibao.

Huang Haibao firmly stated: "I don't mind. As long as the class beauty isn't with Li Zhanpeng, I don't care which guy she's with."

"Good, that's all I needed to hear." Shen Yuan dropped the subject and without further ado, walked straight to Fang Minhui and Chen Ling. "Morning," he greeted.

Both Fang Minhui and Chen Ling were a bit startled, as they weren't actually close and had barely interacted before.

In their class, the boys and girls rarely mingled, especially since they had split into several small groups.

If Fang Minhui had ever chatted with Shen Yuan on WeChat, it would have been three years ago. They hadn't really talked since then.

"Good morning. Is there something you need?" Fang Minhui asked softly. Though she didn't know why Shen Yuan was approaching them, basic courtesy was still necessary.

"Are you free tonight? I've reserved two seats at Star Sushi Kaiseki. Would you like to join me?"

"...?"

Fang Minhui was stunned. Shen Yuan is asking me to dinner?

Star Sushi Kaiseki? That Japanese restaurant where the average cost per person is over a thousand yuan?

Chen Ling was also confused. Didn't Shen Yuan just break up with his senior girlfriend yesterday? And today he's already asking Hui Hui out to dinner? To such an expensive restaurant, no less.

Star Sushi Kaiseki was well-known to her; she often saw videos about it on Douyin and Xiaohongshu. It was one of the most high-end Japanese restaurants in Star City.

And wasn't Shen Yuan's family bankrupt? How could he afford to take Hui Hui to dinner?

Seeing that Fang Minhui hadn't reacted yet, Shen Yuan added: "After dinner, would you mind accompanying me to the second floor of the International Finance Center? I want to pick out a birthday gift for my sister."

"Tonight?" Fang Minhui looked up at Shen Yuan, hesitant after processing his request. After all, everyone knew about what had happened to Shen Yuan's family.

With your family in such a state, you still want to take me to such an expensive restaurant?

"Yes, think about it. If you're available, let me know before noon." Shen Yuan smiled and pointed at her phone on the desk. "You have my WeChat anyway."

"Mm," Fang Minhui nodded thoughtfully.

"I'll be going then."

Watching Shen Yuan walk away, Chen Ling couldn't help but whisper: "My goodness, Shen Yuan is inviting you to eat at a top-tier Japanese restaurant!"

"The key question is: does he have the money?"

"Hmm..."

Fang Minhui also realized the seriousness of this question and pondered carefully: "Shen Yuan's family went bankrupt a few months ago. In business, you can make money one day and lose it the next. Maybe his family's situation has improved again."

"That's possible. Otherwise, he wouldn't invite you to such an expensive restaurant. At least a thousand yuan per person, that's almost my entire month's living expenses!" Chen Ling exclaimed, truly feeling that the gap between people can sometimes be greater than the gap between humans and pigs.

"But what about Li Zhanpeng? Didn't you just go to the movies with him yesterday?"

Chen Ling turned to look at her friend. After all, going to the movies with one guy yesterday and then having dinner with another classmate today, was that appropriate?

Chen Ling's inner gossip tendencies were starting to flare up. This kind of love triangle drama was quite exciting! And all three people were in the same class, just thinking about it felt thrilling!

"Minhui, was that Shen Yuan just now? What did he want from you?" At that moment, a displeased voice came from not far away. Fang Minhui and Chen Ling both turned to see Li Zhanpeng.

"Um... he was asking me about today's classes," Fang Minhui awkwardly tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, making up an excuse.

Li Zhanpeng frowned: "Isn't the class schedule in the group chat? What a pointless question!"