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The annual college entrance examination had come to an end. Jiang Chen had taken a leave of absence and did not participate, while Lin Jingzhu and Qin Huansha both took the exam and performed well.
Half a month later, news arrived that Lin Jingzhu had been accepted into a university in the capital. She decided to treat everyone to a celebration. Despite their breakup, Lin Jingzhu still invited Jiang Chen.
Jiang Chen remembered that in his previous life, this gathering was the last time he saw Lin Jingzhu. During that final dinner, he had been harshly ridiculed by her close friends and their homeroom teacher. Afterward, Lin Jingzhu stopped contacting him during her time at university, which left Jiang Chen heartbroken. Coupled with his financial struggles, he soon fell into deep depression and passed away.
The venue for Lin Jingzhu's celebration was the Chamber of Commerce Hotel. It wasn't because she was particularly wealthy now; rather, it was Jiang Chen's suggestion since she had celebrated there in her previous life. This time around, Lin Jingzhu's circumstances had changed, and she wouldn't have chosen such an upscale place on her own. After Jiang Chen promised to cover the bill, she naturally agreed.
Jiang Chen thought about how Lin Jingzhu's father, Lin Shihui, had already faced consequences for his actions, and since he had ended things with her, he decided to extend one last courtesy.
He deliberately arrived a bit late. When he entered the private room 306, Lin Jingzhu and the others were already seated. There was only one poor seat left by the door, clearly reserved for him.
Lin Jingzhu sat at the head of the table with two men beside her. On her right was their homeroom teacher, Teacher Zhu, whom Jiang Chen recognized. On her left was a young and handsome guy whom Jiang Chen didn't know; he guessed he must be Lin Jingzhu's new boyfriend! The other four were girls whom Jiang Chen couldn't name but recognized as Lin Jingzhu's close classmates.
Seeing Jiang Chen enter, Lin Jingzhu awkwardly smiled and said, "Jiang Chen, you're late; you can only sit in that spot by the door. I don't need to introduce you to Teacher Zhu and my classmates. But let me introduce this one on my left; this is my boyfriend, Zhao Xiaolong."
"Xiaolong, this is my classmate from next door, Jiang Chen!"
"Nice to meet you!" Jiang Chen shook hands with Zhao Xiaolong casually.
Then he greeted Teacher Zhu and the other female classmates before sitting down calmly.
Zhao Xiaolong assumed Jiang Chen was just another classmate of Lin Jingzhu's and didn't pay him much attention. After all, someone like him who had won Lin Jingzhu's approval must have something going for him. It wasn't surprising that he felt a sense of superiority in front of these "students."
Teacher Zhu and the other four girls didn't know much about Jiang Chen; they only knew he had worked as a dishwasher at school, which was the only thing that left an impression on them. Later on, they learned that Jiang Chen had become a chairman but assumed he merely took over his father's position. When they heard that the company he took over was heavily in debt, they thought he must be quite poor now.
As a result, they looked down on Jiang Chen somewhat and left him with the worst seat at the table. In contrast, they praised Zhao Xiaolong enthusiastically.
To them, Zhao Xiaolong as Lin Jingzhu's new boyfriend must be superior to Jiang Chen because they believed Lin Jingzhu had broken up with Jiang Chen due to dissatisfaction with him. Now that she had found Zhao Xiaolong, it seemed logical that he would be better off than Jiang Chen!
Only Jiang Chen understood that Zhao Xiaolong would soon be dumped by Lin Jingzhu. In her university years in his previous life, she ended up with a foreigner; it was likely to happen again this time.
From Lin Jingzhu's decision to celebrate at the Chamber of Commerce Hotel because of Jiang Chen's offer to pay for it, it seemed that Zhao Xiaolong's family was either not very wealthy or not generous enough.
Since Jiang Chen arrived late, everyone decided to toast him as a form of punishment. He didn't refuse and started drinking from Teacher Zhu onward.
Lin Jingzhu was somewhat surprised; when did Jiang Chen become such a heavy drinker? How had she not noticed?
After finishing his toasts, no one paid him any further attention or returned his gestures. It felt as if he were an unnecessary addition to the table.
The others were unaware of Jiang Chen's true background and looked down on him somewhat. As for Lin Jingzhu, it seemed intentional; perhaps it was her way of getting back at him for not accepting her devotion!
Jiang Chen didn't care much and quickly dug into the food, seemingly as if he hadn't had a good meal in years. This only drew more disdain from others.
Zhao Xiaolong felt even more pleased with himself! As the only male guest invited by Lin Jingzhu, he couldn't help but speculate about their relationship. What if Jiang Chen was a rival? Discovering that Jiang Chen was just a foodie, clearly someone who had never been in high-end situations, put Zhao Xiaolong at ease.
"Xiao Jiang, I raise a toast to you!" Zhao Xiaolong suddenly toasted Jiang Chen for reasons he couldn't quite understand. Being a few years older than Jiang Chen, he followed Teacher Zhu's lead and addressed him as "Xiao Jiang."
"Thank you!" Jiang Chen responded, welcoming the drink and clinking glasses with Zhao Xiaolong.
"Xiao Jiang, how did you do on the college entrance exam?" Zhao Xiaolong originally intended to probe into Jiang Chen's background but suddenly wondered if Jiang Chen would end up at the same university as Lin Jingzhu. It was strange that Lin Jingzhu hadn't introduced him properly! After all, neighboring classmates were also taking the exam.
"Oh, I took a leave of absence early, so I didn't participate in the exam!" Jiang Chen replied while eating.
Zhao Xiaolong felt a secret joy upon hearing this.
"Oh, what was the reason? Did something happen at home? If so, my pharmacy is actually looking for an assistant; you could come work with us. The pay is quite good!"
Hearing this from Zhao Xiaolong, Lin Jingzhu quickly shot him a look. Unfortunately, it was a bit late; Zhao Xiaolong wasn't that perceptive.
Fortunately, Jiang Chen didn't seem to mind Zhao Xiaolong and promptly asked, "What pharmacy do you work at? I'm planning to find a good one."
Jiang Chen spoke sincerely. However, he wasn't looking for a job; he needed a pharmacy to procure spiritual herbs for refining pills in preparation for his upcoming cultivation.
"Jishi Pharmacy! So, are you interested?" Zhao Xiaolong proudly announced the name of his pharmacy.
Jishi Pharmacy? Teacher Zhu and several female classmates were taken aback! That was the most famous pharmacy in Nangang! Especially since the pharmacy's owner, Zhao Xianyi, was the highest-level Master of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Nangang; almost no difficult cases could stump him. Zhao Xianyi not only ran the pharmacy but also operated a clinic that was connected to it.
Not only was Zhao Xianyi skilled in medicine and knowledgeable about pharmacology, but he was also well-respected. He often waived medical fees for patients who truly faced financial difficulties.
Thus, Jishi Pharmacy and its clinic were well-known throughout Nangang.
"So Mr. Zhao Xianyi is your father?" Teacher Zhu looked at Zhao Xiaolong.
"That's right!" Zhao Xiaolong answered proudly. Lin Jingzhu also showed visible delight, clearly feeling proud as well. The other four female classmates looked on with envy and jealousy.
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