Mu Jinyu walked into Seaview Garden with Wen Rou. Though their experiences from childhood differed, they both looked around the luxurious villa district like country bumpkins, glancing left and right.
"Such a big house, and so beautiful..." Wen Rou exclaimed in admiration.
Mu Jinyu glanced at her, hesitated for a moment, and offered, "Do you want to live here? I can lend you my house to stay in, and I won't charge you any rent."
"No need, no need." Wen Rou was startled by his words and quickly waved her hands and shook her head to refuse, "Even if you don't charge me rent, I can't afford it, and I'm afraid that once I get used to living here, I'll become... Better not, really."
Mu Jinyu said indifferently, "It's up to you. I'm not planning to live over here myself, just came to have a look since the house is too big and quite a hassle to clean up."
"Pfft!"
As the two chatted and looked around, their conversation, akin to that of country bumpkins boasting like nouveau riche, caused a passing couple to let out a derisive laugh:
"These two bumpkins are quite amusing."
Mu Jinyu heard their mockery but couldn't be bothered with them. Wen Rou, however, couldn't help but turn back and glare at them angrily.
Staring at their backs, she thought to say something, but Mu Jinyu patted the back of her hand and advised, "Let it be, don't stoop to the level of the poor bastards."
Mu Jinyu didn't really want to engage with them, but he also didn't care about their opinions, speaking his mind directly.
The truth, of course, was not pleasant to hear. The couple felt that Mu Jinyu was insulting them and immediately turned around, rebuking, "You country hick, who are you calling a poor bastard?!"
"You guys," Mu Jinyu shrugged, responding nonchalantly.
The man was about to retort, but when he saw Wen Rou's face, he paused, blurting out in surprise, "Wen Rou?!"
At this moment, Wen Rou also recognized the man. With a faint smile, she said, "Chen Zhiwei, what a coincidence."
Realizing he had encountered an old classmate and his crush, Chen Zhiwei's eyes lit up with both shock and delight, no longer caring about Mu Jinyu calling him a poor bastard moments ago.
His heart bloomed and he beamed with joy, saying, "Such a coincidence indeed. I heard from classmates that you didn't go to university after high school and started working. I've been thinking that you might be facing some difficulties and wanted to help you out. With your grades, it's a shame not to pursue further education. Unfortunately, I couldn't find you and neither did our classmates have your contact information, so it just ended there. How have you been lately? If you're facing any troubles, feel free to talk to me. Although I'm not doing exceptionally well myself, I can still help with some minor issues."
Chen Zhiwei spoke rapidly and eagerly, clearly excited and joyful about the unexpected meeting with his high school idol.
After all, Wen Rou was not only beautiful but also had a pleasant personality. Despite coming from a financially strained background, he thought that only made things better. If he could win her over, she would be easier to control.
That way, he could keep a steady home while fluttering colorful banners on the outside.
Unfortunately, Wen Rou was too proud back then. Even though she didn't have much money, she still refused help from others, leading him to face repeated rebuffs and ultimately, not to hold her in high regard.
But now, Wen Rou had been out in society for many years and surely understood the value of money. It seemed that winning her over should be much easier.
Only...
Chen Zhiwei looked towards Mu Jinyu standing next to Wen Rou.
It was unclear what the relationship between the two was.
Hey, who cares!
Even if he really was Wen Rou's boyfriend, he was just a country bumpkin. She could knock him out with money alone, so why fear him?
Wen Rou had no idea of the various thoughts churning in Chen Zhiwei's mind, but she had never had any fondness for this classmate of hers, not since high school, and especially not after he had just insulted them by calling them country bumpkins.
She had wanted to say something back to the person who had called her a country bumpkin, but upon seeing it was Chen Zhiwei, she couldn't be bothered to say more, "I'm doing alright, I don't have any difficulties in life..."
"What's going on, are you guys having a class reunion or something? Big Bro Wei, don't forget what we came here for."
Before Wen Rou could finish, the woman with Chen Zhiwei interrupted with an unpleasant expression.
The woman was dolled up with garish makeup and quite pretty. Her name was Liu Qingyue, and knowing that Chen Zhiwei's family was well-off, she was currently in hot pursuit of him. Initially, she thought she had the advantage since it's said that women chasing men is like a layer of gauze, but seeing Wen Rou appear and Chen Zhiwei so excited and agitated, she couldn't help but feel anxious.
She interrupted their reminiscing under the pretext of work.
When Chen Zhiwei heard Liu Qingyue's words, he was also reminded of why he was here and his expression became somewhat awkward.
He and Liu Qingyue were here not because they had a house in the vicinity. The mansions around here cost at least a hundred million each, and even if his family had mines, they couldn't afford one.
They were here for work, to contact a client for a collaboration. But the client was a big shot who simply ignored them, and since they needed a favor, they were left to loiter by the door, hoping to catch the client's attention as soon as they came out and show their sincerity.
Now, with Liu Qingyue's interruption, Chen Zhiwei felt that he wasn't doing too well after all, which was somewhat embarrassing.
Wen Rou noticed his awkwardness but didn't make much of it, saying indifferently, "Let's get together some other time. I'm going to check out a house with my friend now."
With that, she turned to signal Mu Jinyu that they could leave.
Chen Zhiwei was taken aback, while Liu Qingyue sneered, "Look at the country bumpkin, putting on airs."
Being ridiculed over and over again would make even the most patient person angry, let alone Mu Jinyu, who already had a short fuse. He immediately turned around and said, "Heh, giving you face? A broke ass, constantly yapping away, what gives you the courage to call me a country bumpkin?"
Seeing Mu Jinyu dare to talk back, Liu Qingyue was furious too, "Walking into Seaview Garden is like Liu Lao Lao entering the Grand View Garden, gawking non-stop. Aren't you a country bumpkin? You have the nerve to call me broke? Take a look at yourself in the mirror first!"
Chen Zhiwei frowned slightly, not because he was dissatisfied with the back and forth between Liu Qingyue and Mu Jinyu, but because he remembered the reason they nearly came to blows in the first place – it was Mu Jinyu calling them broke asses.
Some people are just like this; they start by insulting others, but when they are insulted in return, they feel like it's an act of great disrespect, it's absolutely unforgivable. They think you should just take their insults quietly.
Chen Zhiwei ignored Mu Jinyu and turned to Wen Rou, selectively overlooking what she said about going to see a house. In his view, that was just an excuse from Wen Rou, or perhaps Wen Rou had been deceived by Mu Jinyu, so there was no need to take her foolish words seriously.
There was no need to put Mu Jinyu in his place, to make him realize what he truly was.
Chen Zhiwei said, "Xiaorou, your friend really has low standards. If he's poor, just admit it, but he has to be so tough-mouthed. You should hang out with him less in the future."