Chapter 32: Class Reunion

"When Qin Yun arrives, don't bring up sensitive topics, okay?" Shao Yan glanced at Zhang Kang. "Especially you—I know you never got along with Qin Yun in college, but everyone's graduated now; that old business is over."

Zhang Kang was thin but tall, standing nearly two meters. His features were ordinary, his appearance slick and polished, his hair styled like a man in authority.

Hearing this, he sneered: "Divorce isn't a big deal—why not use it as material?"

"You're still talking—"

Zhang Kang immediately fell silent and made a zipping gesture across his lips.

Xia Weiwei, sitting beside Shao Yan, asked curiously: "Why did he divorce Song Ya? Her family's well-off, she's got Beijing hukou—her kid's college admission would be so much easier."

Chen Ziyi shrugged: "Who knows? I asked a few people in Beijing—they just said it was better this way; Qin Yun wasn't happy."

"Hah!" Zhang Kang laughed. "Wasn't that exactly what he chased after?"

Just then, movement came at the door, and soon four figures entered one after another.

Su Huan, Fei Kai, and He Dong were all from Hangzhou and often dined together—nothing noteworthy. But Qin Yun—everyone's eyes lit up; he radiated vitality, utterly unlike the broken-down figure they'd imagined.

"Qin Yun." "Big Handsome Qin." "Qin Yun."

Xia Weiwei, Shao Yan, and Chen Ziyi all greeted him, but Zhang Kang only gave a half-smile and a nod.

Soon everyone sat down and began chatting.

They mostly discussed recent Hangzhou workplace trends or artificial intelligence topics—Qin Yun barely spoke, even when directly asked, offering only brief, casual replies.

His main task today was to accompany Su Huan—to sit between her and He Dong.

He'd accomplished this task perfectly; He Dong now looked at him with clear hostility.

But they were all adults; this alone wouldn't cause a rift.

Gradually, everyone's attention turned to Qin Yun—he was the only one none of them had seen in a long time.

Chen Ziyi first chatted with Qin Yun about recent developments, sharing stories from his Hangzhou career and some amusing incidents with Shao Yan.

"The class monitor said you're going back to Zhoushan. Are you planning to return to Beijing?"

Qin Yun shook his head: "Not for now. I'll go back home first, stay awhile, and rest up."

"Good idea," Chen Ziyi sighed. "Beijing's tough, Hangzhou's no easier—though Hangzhou's more aggressive. Still, now's a good time to buy property. Shao Yan and I already scraped together a down payment near the Olympic Sports Center."

"That's great," Qin Yun gave a thumbs-up. "So you're settling in Hangzhou?"

"Mm," Shao Yan nodded. "Hangzhou isn't bad. Everyone calls it a food desert, but you can find anything you want to eat here."

As they chatted and laughed, the waiters began serving the dishes.

In college, Qin Yun hadn't been close to many classmates—aside from his dorm mates, he'd interacted most with Su Huan.

The others? Only mild acquaintances.

Zhang Kang, especially, had once caused him unpleasantness.

Qin Yun observed carefully and was surprised to find Zhang Kang seemed interested in Xia Weiwei—every time she reached for a dish, he'd rotate the turntable to bring it closer, pretending nonchalance, but Qin Yun saw it clearly.

He glanced at Su Huan; she happened to look back and gave a barely perceptible nod, confirming his thought.

As they ate and talked, everyone had been drinking only soft drinks—but He Dong, for some reason, suddenly said: "Kang, want some alcohol?"

Zhang Kang shook his head: "I drove here—can't drink."

"What's the issue?" He Dong squinted, implying something. "Have a classmate drive you home. Besides, we won't get drunk."

Zhang Kang looked at Xia Weiwei; she smiled: "Sure—if you're not afraid I'll crash the car."

Zhang Kang's heart surged like adrenaline: "Not just crash—give you the car too!"

Everyone burst into laughter.

Soon, the waiters brought two bottles of liquor—both white spirits.

After two glasses, He Dong suddenly stood, stepped over Qin Yun and Su Huan, and sat down to Su Huan's left. Then he said to Zhang Kang: "They don't drink—let's two brothers drink. Here, I toast you."

Zhang Kang understood: "I should be toasting you—if not for you, I wouldn't have closed that deal."

He downed the entire glass of baijiu, then—whether deliberately or not—said to Su Huan: "Class monitor, I recall He Dong's company also partners with Alibaba, right?"

Su Huan nodded: "Yes, just Alibaba Cloud projects. We owe you, Manager He, for pushing the project forward."

Zhang Kang laughed heartily: "He Dong's incredibly reliable—he never slacks off at work. I heard you've got equity in your company too?"

He Dong waved it off humbly: "Just a tiny shareholder—not worth mentioning."

"Tiny shareholder?" Fei Kai enviously said. "Even your tiny share must net you a few million in dividends a year."

He Dong felt proud—these were his achievements, but saying them himself would seem boastful; hearing them from others made him seem even more exceptional.

He casually glanced at Su Huan—but was disappointed to see her leaning toward Qin Yun, whispering, smiling, her fair face flushed with a faint blush that made his chest ache.

Shao Yan watched this with amusement—they all knew He Dong was courting Su Huan, but she always responded politely, never giving him even a chance to get close. Her stance was unmistakable.

To them, He Dong was outstanding—even if he relied on family connections, that too was part of his ability. Tall, handsome, refined—he was truly a gem.

*Crack! *

At that moment, Zhang Kang suddenly slammed his glass onto the table—loud enough to draw everyone's attention.

He stood, fetched another glass, filled it with baijiu, and placed it on the turntable, spinning it to Qin Yun's front.

Qin Yun looked at him, puzzled.

Zhang Kang raised his glass: "Qin Yun, old classmate—I owe you an apology for what I did in college. It's been years, but it's stuck in my throat—I can't hold it in anymore. Today, before you, I say: I'm sorry."

After saying that, he drained the white liquor in his hand in one gulp, then fixed a burning gaze on Qin Yun.

Qin Yun smiled, stood, and picked up a juice bottle from the side: "It's all past. I wish you success in Hangzhou. I won't drink the baijiu—I don't drink, and I'm driving."

Without waiting for Qin Yun to finish, Zhang Kang's face darkened and he sat down abruptly, turning to whisper with He Dong, leaving Qin Yun stranded.

Shao Yan and Chen Ziyi frowned, silently blaming Zhang Kang for his behavior.

Qin Yun paused, then smiled, letting it go. You don't even have the right to make me drink this toast.

A strange silence settled over the restaurant.

But soon, Chen Ziyi steered the conversation elsewhere, and laughter and chatter resumed.

But some people just have no sense of occasion—whether they were drunk or just using the alcohol as cover, who knew.

Zhang Kang suddenly said again: "Oh right, Qin Yun, why did you come back to Zhoushan alone? Where's Song Ya? Isn't she coming back with you?"

The moment those words left his mouth, the whole room fell silent. Shao Yan's expression darkened slightly, and she shot Zhang Kang a glare.

Xia Weiwei, unsure what her own feelings were, watched the scene with great interest and didn't feel the slightest bit of disgust. This gave Zhang Kang, who had already regretted the words the instant they left his mouth, a sudden surge of boldness.

"Zhang Kang, you've had too much to drink." Su Huan's expression wasn't great, and she carefully glanced at Qin Yun.

Qin Yun just smiled, not taking it to heart at all—as if he thought this could embarrass him. Ending that marriage could only be considered a kind of luck for him.

"No, Song Ya and I are divorced. I chose to leave the marriage with nothing, so I came back."

Zhang Kang quickly put on an apologetic look: "Sorry, I didn't know about this. It's all my fault, all my fault—I'll punish myself with a glass."

And hearing Qin Yun say that, He Dong, who had been feeling a bit defeated, instantly felt his confidence return.

How could a woman as outstanding as Su Huan possibly take a fancy to a twice-married man with no money? Wait, no—he did seem to have money, after all, that over-a-million Range Rover he wouldn't even buy for himself.

But just on the condition of being twice-married, He Dong was confident Su Huan would absolutely not consider the guy. He still had a chance.

Qin Yun naturally had no idea that his casual remark had once again ignited He Dong's fighting spirit.

Chen Ziyi quickly said: "Qin Yun, come on, eat up—the garlic-fried pork ribs at this place are really good."

While speaking, Su Huan stood up, walked over to Shao Yan and Chen Ziyi, and handed them each one of the two boxes from her bag.

"Shao Yan, Chen Ziyi, these are for you—I hope you like them."

Shao Yan opened it and immediately gasped: "Wow… this pendant is so exquisite, wooo… class monitor, I love you so much, a kiss, give me a kiss!"

Su Huan helplessly hugged her, then with one palm pinned down Chen Ziyi, who had leaned in wanting a hug too.

"Thank you, Class Monitor, my lord, I really like it. The carving is amazing—was it expensive?"

Su Huan smiled: "Not expensive. I bought the jade, but the finished piece was carved by Qin Yun."

"…"

Everyone was instantly stunned, turning to look at Qin Yun, who was quietly eating his vegetables, their faces showing expressions of doubt.

Qin Yun glanced at them: "Is it that hard?"

"Pfft!"

A few of them crowded in to examine the pendant's finish. None of them could deny how outstanding the carving was—even a layman could see the difficulty involved. That effortless ease was clearly not the work of an amateur.

Xia Weiwei said: "Qin Yun, could you carve one for me too? I'll provide the jade stone."

"Haha, if I were staying a few more days, of course I could, but I'm heading back tomorrow—I'm really sorry."

Xia Weiwei's face fell with disappointment.

Zhang Kang, standing to the side, curled his lip and said quietly to Xia Weiwei: "Weiwei, I'll just buy you one."

"Thanks, but no need. The ones in stores nowadays are all machine-carved—you can't see a trace of craftsmanship in them, and the hand-carved jade pieces are way too expensive."

Zhang Kang's expression stiffened, and he turned back to keep drinking with He Dong.

……

Coming out of the restaurant, Qin Yun said goodbye to Shao Yan and the others, then got in the car and drove off with Su Huan.

Watching that car, the group was somewhat astonished—even Zhang Kang's face darkened.

Damn—a luxury car, the kind I can't afford!

"Who would've thought Qin Yun was that rich. I assumed leaving the marriage with nothing meant he'd fallen on hard times. Looks like 'a starved camel is still bigger than a horse' isn't just a saying."

Xia Weiwei's eyes lit up slightly. A man like this—rich, talented, and good-looking—even if he's been married twice, plenty of people would be thrilled. Hadn't our Class Monitor Su already been unable to resist and taken the initiative to cling to him?

Meanwhile, Su Huan was apologizing to Qin Yun with a face full of guilt: "If I'd known it would be like this, I wouldn't have let you come along. I'm sorry."

Qin Yun burst out laughing: "It's nothing, don't worry about it."

Seeing that Qin Yun truly didn't seem to mind, Su Huan quietly let out a small breath of relief: "So what time are you leaving tomorrow?"

"Around eight or nine, probably."

After dropping Su Huan off at home and returning to the hotel, Qin Yun looked at the two remaining pieces of Xiuyan jade and suddenly had an idea.