Chapter 1682: Leisurely Street Moments

"Old Wang, you must treat Yang Xue'er well in the future; do not let her suffer grievances, and even less let her come to harm!"

Jiang Yunming spoke words that lacked a sense of participation.

Wang Yan responded gently: "Get lost, I am innocent."

Jiang Yunming looked dejected: "But Yang Xue'er slept on your shoulder the whole way, and you even hugged and held her. Do you think others don't know? Old Wang, if you want things to remain unknown, you must not do them yourself; if you don't believe me, ask them."

"I saw it," Ma Jun echoed.

Luan Mengyu also nodded and said, "I saw it too."

"You are overthinking it; she leaned on my shoulder, and I put my arm around her shoulder; this is fair and square, not all the things you are imagining," Wang Yan said with a chuckle. "What era is this? It's normal for men and women to have some contact; just because they get a bit intimate doesn't mean they are together, and touching someone doesn't cause pregnancy."

"So you two aren't together yet, Old Wang?" Jiang Yunming asked, seeming to breathe a sigh of relief.

"Of course we aren't together; we just get along fairly well."

"That's great; Yang Xue'er hasn't sentenced me to death yet. I knew there was actually a place for me in her heart," Jiang Yunming said, shifting gears. "On the car ride, we only heard Yu Hao and the others reciting dish names; let's have a proper feast and drink heartily to celebrate the fact that military training is finally over and our wonderful university life has finally begun. What do you say?"

"Sure, their reciting of dish names made me starving."

"I've even lost weight."

Both Ma Jun and Luan Mengyu agreed with this statement.

"I've already made plans to go out and eat in a while," Wang Yan said. "You three go ahead and eat; anyway, we'll be together for four years, so one meal more or less makes no difference."

Jiang Yunming suddenly had a bad feeling: "With whom did you make plans?" His voice even trembled.

Wang Yan smiled apologetically: "Lin Luoxue asked me to go eat steak with her."

"Old Wang, why? Why do you give me hope only to disappoint me? You are so cruel!" Jiang Yunming pouted, looking as if he were about to cry at any moment. "Then the three of us brothers will go drink; right now only alcohol can numb me, and I intend to get thoroughly drunk."

Returning to the long-missed Dormitory 618, the four of them cleaned up together and washed some clothes, after which Jiang Yunming and the other two went out together to bathe and drink.

Although there was a bathhouse on campus, obviously at this time a huge crowd of freshmen was returning from military training, and the bathhouse would be exploding with people.

Wang Yan wasn't dirty anyway; during military training, he had been dousing himself with cold water every day...

By the time he had finished cleaning up, Lin Luoxue sent a message giving him the address of the Western restaurant and telling him to come over on his own.

The university was in the Development Zone, while the Western restaurant was in the main urban area, quite some distance away. Just as well; Wang Yan simply took his Hasselblad film camera, brought several rolls of film, left the campus, took the subway over, and planned to take some photos along the way.

Even after so many years, whenever he had a camera, he was always willing to carry it around to record things through photography. Over and over again, tirelessly, he watched the changes of the era reflected in the photographs: reflected in architectural forms, reflected in people's spirit and demeanor, reflected in people's clothing and style, reflected in the flow of traffic, reflected in the roads; one photograph is an instant, a stack of photographs is a period of time...

At the Lanwei Western Restaurant, after confirming the address and door number were correct, Wang Yan opened the door and walked in.

The air conditioning was running strong; he told the waiter who approached him Lin Luoxue's name, and was then led to a large private room upstairs.

Along one long table, a mature man with short hair, a slicked-back oily hairstyle, a powdered face, and a floral shirt sat at the head seat; on both sides of the long table sat Lu Qiaochuan and his group along with Ren Bao Yifan, and Lin Luoxue and her group.

"Hi~" Ren Bao Yifan greeted Wang Yan enthusiastically.

Wang Yan nodded with a smile: "Sorry, I arrived a bit late."

"You even bring a camera to a meal? It's understandable that you're late, Mr. Big Photographer?" Lin Luoxue smiled, showing eight teeth.

The man in the floral shirt rested both elbows on the table, clasped his hands together, and exuded an air of mature dignity.

He said, "You aren't late; we are just ordering. See what you would like to eat; please do not stand on ceremony. Since you are Luoxue's friends, you are my friends; you must eat and drink well."

"Thank you; I am the most straightforward person and never stand on ceremony," Wang Yan said, sitting in the last seat next to Li Shuci, picking up the menu to browse. "What have you all ordered?"

Just as Xiao Haiyang was about to speak, Yu Hao said in a languid tone, "One order of French escargot, two orders of French grass-fed Limousin beef, and one bottle of 1985 Lafite."

Lu Qiaochuan shrugged: "Same as him."

Ren Bao Yifan: "Hehe, same for me too."

"I'm different; I ordered one portion of pork and cabbage dumplings and one portion of tomato and egg dumplings," Bi Shisan said, with a pride in his words akin to a gentleman harmonizing without conforming.

Li Shuci said, "Luoxue ordered French steak cooked medium-well; we ordered the same as her."

Yu Hao propped his chin with both hands, blinking his eyes: "Old Wang, so what are you going to order?"

Wang Yan chuckled as he opened the menu, exclaiming in mild surprise, "So expensive?"

The man in the floral shirt still maintained his dignity at this moment: "Order whatever you like; no need to stand on ceremony."

"Pan-seared foie gras with red wine pears, cream of mushroom soup, black truffle pasta, French escargot, Wellington steak medium-rare, Limousin steak rare, and another fully cooked black pepper tomahawk steak; the steak should be pre-cut. I won't need wine; I'll just share a few sips with them. Also, bring me a bottle of Coca-Cola, thank you."

Wang Yan said to the man in the floral shirt, "Sorry, I have a relatively large appetite."

"No problem; when eating, one must certainly eat until full. Eat as much as you like; if it's not enough, order more. I'll go to the wine cellar to get wine for you all," the man in the floral shirt said as he stood up.

Lin Luoxue said softly, "You've spent too much."

"No problem; for your sake, it is very worth it!"

Seeing the man in the floral shirt leave, everyone became lively.

Lin Luoxue said, "Brother Hao, well done."

"Beauty and wisdom coexisting, obviously," Yu Hao said tsundere-style.

Xiao Haiyang leaned on Yu Hao's shoulder: "Didn't expect it; you know quite a lot."

"And you have the nerve to say that? You ordered steak well-done," Yu Hao said disdainfully, slapping Xiao Haiyang's hand away.

"But isn't that tomahawk steak Old Wang ordered also fully cooked?"

"Old Wang also ordered rare and medium-rare; besides, his teeth are good, and he just loves eating fully cooked meat," Yu Hao said, then looked irritably at Wang Yan, who was whispering with Li Shuci over there. "Old Wang, you too; how obvious was my reminder? You were supposed to keep formation; ordering so many things costs less than two glasses of their wine."

Wang Yan chuckled: "I came to eat; as long as I'm full, that's enough. Although this guy is indeed a bit of a show-off, he hasn't shown off at my expense; you guys have already stirred up trouble, so I won't cause any more. Let's all just eat in peace and leave the man some room."

Although Lin Luoxue did not follow the rules of the jianghu, knocking over the big shot's meal bill and running without continuing to the next program, this big shot in the floral shirt was no good either, so the two of them were essentially even.

Wang Yan came along to mooch a meal, allowing everyone to strengthen their relationships, and that was enough; why stir up even more trouble?

Hearing Wang Yan speak of leaving room, Lin Luoxue gave a coquettish glare; those were words the two of them had spoken while chatting earlier...

"Glutton! No matter the time or place, you can't forget about eating!" Gu Yixin launched another attack.

"Nonsense, don't you eat? Do you want to become a hungry ghost?"

"The hungry ghost is clearly you!"

"No matter the time or place you forget about eating; if you aren't a hungry ghost, then who is?"

Lin Luoxue laughed: "Alright, say less. Why do you two start arguing as soon as you're together?"

Wang Yan chuckled: "He loves me but cannot have me, so love turned to hate."

"Scram!"

"See, you admitted it."

"Today Luoxue brought everyone here; I don't want to ruin the atmosphere, otherwise I'd scratch you to death." Gu Yixin exhaled deeply, then actively changed the subject: "Lu Qiaochuan, you just said you were the same as Brother Hao; you pretended so convincingly."

So the group happily chatted again about making the show-off bleed money; this was also a famous scene from this drama.

Although the floral-shirted man failed to show off and suffered a heavy financial loss, everyone still maintained decorum while eating together, chatting with him about various things abroad, how unforgettable studying overseas had been for him, how he learned advanced lifestyles abroad, and how he returned to open this Western restaurant, and so on—all somewhat worshiping foreign things and belittling Chinese ones.

At this point, no one attacked the floral-shirted man excessively anymore; at most, when hearing something unpleasant, Yu Hao and others would jab a few remarks. The floral-shirted man did not invite humiliation upon himself either; afterward, he just chatted with Lin Luoxue.

The other classmates chatted among themselves, giggling and talking about military training. Lu Qiaochuan and Zhong Bai both had good recovery abilities; although there had been unpleasantness with Wang Yan earlier, they did not dwell on those unpleasant memories now and could still chat and talk together, though it was impossible to say they had any good relationship.

Wang Yan was very quiet; apart from eating voraciously, he only whispered with Li Shuci and bickered with Gu Yixin, yet he was quite happy...

Arriving outside the shop, Wang Yan took the cigarette handed to him by Ren Bao Yifan and inhaled and exhaled comfortably.

"Old Wang, you really can eat," Ren Bao Yifan sighed. "You made me feel a bit hungry even after two steaks."

"A false illusion; it just doesn't come as fast or as fully as carbohydrates do." Wang Yan waved his hand. "It's just that seeing me eat so appetizingly whetted your appetite."

"We two should eat together more often in the future; look how thin I am—I feel I could gain weight eating with you."

Gu Yixin said: "A scumbag and a rice bucket; your styles don't match at all."

"Yixin doesn't want to see me playing with scumbags; she's afraid I'll learn bad habits from being with you." Wang Yan took two steps, then, under everyone's gaze, grabbed Gu Yixin's hand. "Yixin, rest assured, no matter when, I will never forget you, my old and bitter wife."

This sudden intimacy left Gu Yixin somewhat at a loss, yet the words "old and bitter wife" made her gnash her teeth in rage.

"A kick to cut off your descendants!"

Wang Yan casually caught her leg that had kicked empty, pulled her toward his chest, and said: "Look at this, so eager to jump into my arms? Extending your leg to tempt me? Should I yield or not?"

Gu Yixin's face instantly turned red: "Get lost! You vile rogue!"

Under her shoving, Wang Yan released his hand, feigned retreating several steps, and said: "Look at you, pushing me before I've even steadied myself; what if you fell and became paralyzed? If I retreated like this, fell and bumped my head, what then? You care not one bit for yourself, nor do you consider me."

"Why didn't you fall to your death?" Gu Yixin cursed angrily, her face still red.

"Hitting is affection, scolding is love; it's understandable. Don't mind us showing off; later I'll just deal with her." When Wang Yan acted shamelessly, he was truly shameless.

"You're really something, Old Wang; even she you can tame." Ren Bao Yifan gave a thumbs-up.

Gu Yixin let out a shriek of "Ah!" and rushed over to scratch Ren Bao Yifan to death; then, after Ren Bao Yifan said, "Don't come at me, go find Wang Yan," she swung her Wang Ba fists and went off flirting and fighting with Wang Yan.

Li Shuci stood there fixedly watching, her hands fidgeting back and forth.

Lin Luoxue watched this scene, then looked at Bi Shisan standing beside her with arms crossed, examining his fingernails, and let out a soft sigh.

Lu Qiaochuan and Zhong Bai stood together, listening to Ren Bao Yifan analyze Gu Yixin's psychology, giggling. Behind them stood Xiao Haiyang, watching silently.

Yu Hao adjusted his hairstyle, his breaths filled with the fresh scent of melon...

One by one, everyone left, leaving only Wang Yan and Lin Luoxue.

"Do you like Gu Yixin?"

"Why isn't it that Gu Yixin likes me?"

Lin Luoxue smiled brightly: "Shuci also has some fondness for you."

"Could it be that you have no fondness for me?"

"I have fondness for many people, and many people also have fondness for me. What do you think of that sea turtle from earlier?"

Wang Yan laughed: "Quite foolish."

"Why do you say that?"

"His conditions are actually quite good; he sought you out merely to sleep with you, not to pursue any real relationship. There are so many young, beautiful girls, many even more beautiful than you; he should have found someone easier to fool. Just the money we spent on this single meal today would be enough for him to sleep with someone for half a year, and with several people at that."

"But he stubbornly sought me out anyway, thinking he could control me?"

"More likely, you pretended to be fooled by him and were actually toying with him."

Lin Luoxue laughed coquettishly: "So how do you view me then?"

"Normally. Everyone lives their own life; if toying with men makes you happy, then that is enough. There is no need to care about Ren De Kan Fa, nor to listen to those unpleasant words. Conversely, if you are tangled up in whose opinion matters, then in reality you are unhappy. So, are you happy or not?"

Lin Luoxue took a few seconds before answering with a brilliant smile: "Very happy!"

Her tone even intensified, attempting to prove thereby that she was truly very happy.

"Words not from the heart." Wang Yan raised his camera. "Give me a smile from deep within."

Lin Luoxue held her small bag with both hands in front of her, smiling as she looked at Wang Yan.

"Too fake." Wang Yan found an angle, framed the cars and pedestrians behind her, and pressed the shutter with a click.

"Then why did you still take my picture?"

"Later, when it's developed, I'll let you look at it properly and reflect upon your own heart."

"Then I'll thank you in advance."

"No need for such politeness."

Lin Luoxue kept pace with Wang Yan: "In weather this hot, do you still plan to shoot all afternoon?"

"There's one roll of film left; might as well shoot everyone's heat."

"Anyway, I have nothing else to do; I'll walk with you for a while."

"Are you sure it's you walking with me, and not me walking you?"

"Either works." Lin Luoxue smiled brightly as she stepped forward and linked arms with Wang Yan. "Anyway, it's still the two of us walking together, isn't it?"

"Look at you, tempting this innocent boy again."

"Then did you fall for it?"

"Addicted and unable to extricate myself."

"Liar~" Lin Luoxue casually let go of his arm, as if playfully teasing.

The floral shirt wasn't wrong; Lin Luoxue truly understood...

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