Trillionaire's Slice of Life

"Chu Mo... you're the last to arrive, I thought you had made it big and were looking down on us old classmates! If you hadn't come, we would've been wrapping up here."

Chu Mo slightly curled the corners of his mouth, looking at the long-haired woman sitting across from him, his voice carried a smile as he said:

"Qian Bingxue, you're joking. I'm just scraping by in the big city! Really sorry, got held up by some things, and on top of that, there was a bit of a traffic jam, so I'm late!"

As Chu Mo's words fell, Qian Bingxue immediately waved him over. There happened to be an empty seat next to her, and without further ado, Chu Mo stepped forward and then sat down next to her.

"Heh, our little town here is nothing like the bustling metropolis, it's even hard to encounter a traffic jam usually. But no matter what, being late is being late. I think, Chu Mo, you went to the same school as us. I'm your senior, two years ahead of you. So, just drink three cups as a self-penalty to show some sincerity!"

Chu Mo had just taken his seat and hadn't even managed to get his bowl and chopsticks ready when a 28- or 29-year-old man with a buzz cut, holding a bottle of white liquor, rose from his seat and came over to Chu Mo with a smile, filled up three cups after he had set them down.

Chu Mo glanced at the buzz-cut man pouring the drinks beside him. The man's face was unfamiliar, completely absent from his memory, and upon hearing that he was two years his senior, Chu Mo understood.

This person was not a classmate of his, so it was no wonder he had no recollection.

A group of people around them started to heckle, regardless of whether they knew him or not, everyone began to forcefully urge him to drink. Chu Mo looked at the disposable cups in front of him. These three full cups of liquor virtually emptied the entire bottle.

If Chu Mo really were to down these three cups, especially since he hardly ever drank white liquor, he would certainly be in for half a death.

Chu Mo gently waved his hand, his voice flat:

"The agreed meeting time was 7 o'clock, and the moment I stepped into the private room, the time had just reached 7 o'clock. From any angle, I shouldn't be the one to drink these, right?"

Chu Mo looked at the buzz-cut man in front of him, his arrival was met with a demand to drink three cups of white liquor, clearly not well-intentioned. Dealing with such a person, naturally, there was no need to show a friendly face.

Seeing the atmosphere at the dinner table grow somewhat tense, a woman in a red dress next to him suddenly spoke up:

"We're all classmates here, there's no need to be so confrontational. Tan, the senior, if you make Chu Mo drink these three cups, he's surely going to be out on the table later, then what's there to talk about? I think let's just have Chu Mo lightly sip one cup, just to give a nod to the sentiment, and that's enough!"

The buzz-cut man slightly curled his lip, but since someone had spoken up, he couldn't be too aggressive, so he nodded in agreement.

Even if it was just one cup, it was still a good two or three shots. Chu Mo couldn't drink that much. He simply picked up the cup, gently touched it to his lips, and then set the cup back down. As the atmosphere at the dinner table warmed up again, Chu Mo turned his gaze to the woman in red who had just helped him out of the awkward situation.

He frowned slightly, and after a moment, a lively and lovely figure emerged in his mind.

With a hint of probing in his eyes, Chu Mo's voice was somewhat hesitant as he said:

"You're Zhou Zilan, right?"

Upon hearing this, the woman in red immediately covered her mouth and giggled, then turned to Qian Bingxue next to her and said:

"Bingxue, I told you, Chu Mo definitely remembers me. Sure, you two were desk mates back in school, but our relationship wasn't bad either. I remember there was one time it was my turn to clean, but I happened to be busy that day, and I asked Chu Mo to clean the classroom for me!"

As the woman in red began to speak with a smile, the vague memories in Chu Mo's mind gradually became clear. He suddenly remembered this girl called Zhou Zilan, who was the class's arts and literature representative. Although her grades weren't top-notch, she was incredibly active in all sorts of activities in the class and the school.

The most memorable moment for Chu Mo was when Zhou Zilan, dressed in a black evening gown, played the piano in the school's auditorium during an event.

For that group of junior high students, Zhou Zilan, who seemed to have an ethereal aura as if she were a fairy, certainly bewitched the hearts of most of the young boys. If Chu Mo hadn't already had Qian Bingxue in his heart, and besides being desk mates with her and quite close, he might have been utterly charmed by Zhou Zilan as well.

Chu Mo nodded slightly at Zhou Zilan and said with a hint of emotion in his voice,

"Zhou Zilan, you've become even more beautiful than before. I remember back in our class, a lot of the boys confessed their feelings to you. I just wonder which lucky guy you ended up with."

Since they were all former classmates, once they began to recall past memories, they quickly became reacquainted. Chu Mo found that there were not many classmates he truly recognized at the dinner table, other than Qian Bingxue and Zhou Zilan, and a few boys he vaguely remembered. As for the others, most were from a different year, and Chu Mo had no recollection of them at all.

Of course, since this gathering was organized by someone else, and Chu Mo was just a guest, he naturally couldn't say much.

"How's it going? You're doing well in the big city, right? I've heard that you've become a big boss over there, Chu Mo. You'll have to look out for us old classmates when you have the chance!"

Zhou Zilan still had the lively and outgoing personality she'd always had. Dressed in a red dress that already made her stand out, coupled with her good looks, she attracted the gazes of the male diners. Chu Mo noticed that during the meal, several of the men in the private room would occasionally glance over at her.

Chu Mo gently curled the corners of his mouth, and although he could put on airs with others, he had no pretenses with his old classmates. He appeared very amiable and casually said,

"Where did you guys hear that? I mean, I'm getting by in the big city, not starving at least."

As Chu Mo finished speaking, Zhou Zilan gently acknowledged him, but the warmth and closeness in her eyes slowly faded. Then she picked up her wine glass, stood up, and, to Chu Mo's surprise as he was about to pick up his own glass, thinking she was toasting him, the woman in red went straight to the crew-cut man, smiling as she said,

"Senior Tan, since we graduated from the same school, you'll have to take good care of me in the future. Here, this is for you, Senior Tan!"

Chu Mo, holding his wine glass, watched as the woman in red cheerfully toasted the crew-cut man. He suddenly realized that the woman before him, and the girl from his memories with pigtails who blushed easily, were completely different. Nearly a decade had indeed changed too much.

"Zilan, your concerns are my concerns," the smug crew-cut man said, raising his glass to Zhou Zilan. "Brother can forget anybody but not little sister Zilan. Don't worry, our company is a key enterprise supported by the city. The benefits and salary are top-notch, easily over a hundred thousand a year including various bonuses.

If you perform well, there's extra prize money to be had, definitely more promising than your current job. People break their heads trying to get into our company, and they don't have the connections. It's only because I have the pull that I can say your place is guaranteed with just one word!"

The man's face was filled with pride as he clinked glasses with Zhou Zilan. They chatted and laughed affectionately, and as Zhou Zilan tilted her head to finish a small cup of wine, the rosy flush on her cheeks became even more alluring.

It was only now that Chu Mo vaguely understood the purpose of this dinner, and he also understood why alumni from the previous year were present. It all came down to this venue.

Of course, all of this was unrelated to him. Chu Mo just quietly observed everything, his gaze returning to Qian Bingxue. The sole reason he came to this gathering was because of the woman before him. If not for the lingering attachment in his heart, he wouldn't have attended any reunion.

Seeing Chu Mo's gaze, Qian Bingxue beside him chuckled and said,

"Chu Mo, I remember you once wrote a love letter to me, didn't you?"