Chapter 147 — The Long-Awaited...

Take Huang Lin, for instance—both in how he conducted himself and in his character, he was of the highest caliber, and he carried none of the usual bad habits. And from the look of things now, most of the people attending this gathering were the same: dressed with taste, and many already accompanied by their female companions. They had not come to pursue Huang Yan; they simply wanted to use the gathering to catch up with friends.

But in every stratum of society there are black sheep. Much of the time, people resent the rich precisely because certain wealthy individuals behave too ostentatiously—though these are, after all, only a minority. Yet because of who these people are, even a minority, once exposed, is enough to breed a general disgust for the wealthy.

Looked at from another angle, if the wealthy wrongdoers' identities were swapped for those of poor people, the public probably would not react much even if they learned of it.

This, too, was a conclusion Yang Ce had reached through dealing with people. Take Wang Lin, for instance—he was ostentatious in everything he did. Yet Tian Yan, whose family background was no less distinguished, was far more mature and never showed off for no reason.

Suddenly, Yang Juehuan's gaze came to rest on one person—Li Jialiang, that thoroughly unwelcome individual. Yang Ce had given him a good scare only yesterday, and who would have thought he would be out flaunting himself again today.

Judging by that lecherous look of his, he was almost certainly here for Huang Yan. And as for the greasy, powder-faced fat man beside him, he was probably no good either.

To be continued.

881. Two Troublemakers

881. Two Troublemakers

Birds of a feather really do flock together—these two fellows had found each other, and seemed to hit it off remarkably well, chattering on and on about their experiences playing around with minor starlets.

Of course, though they were far away, every word of their conversation fell without omission into Yang Juehuan's line of sight.

"Boss, how did you come to know Huang Yan's second brother?" The moment Huang Lin had gone, Zhang Bin could not wait to ask. He was intensely curious how Yang Ce had managed to get on good terms with Huang Yan's second brother.

"Heh, it was pure coincidence, actually. A while back, on Valentine's Day, Chen Shutang and I went out to a casino ship on international waters, and there we ran into Second Brother Huang, who was traveling with Tian Yan. Your arm still wasn't healed yet, so I didn't call you along for Valentine's Day." Yang Hengye recounted it thus: "Tian Yan got to gambling with Second Brother Huang, and the result was, naturally, that he lost several rounds in a row."

"That goes without saying. Second Brother Huang's family runs a casino—how could he possibly lose to the likes of Tian Yan?" Zhang Bin nodded in wholehearted agreement.

"So I went up and played a few rounds with Second Brother Huang, and the result was—" Before Yang Ce could finish, Zhang Bin cut him off.

"The result was that you won, of course, Boss—haha, no need to even think about it!" Zhang Bin laughed.

"All right, enough flattery. I know what I'm like," Yang Ce waved a hand and went on: "So that's how we met. The two of us got on rather well. Later, a friend of Second Brother Huang's named Ji Xiaohe ran into some trouble, and I stepped in to help sort it out, so we grew a bit closer. A few days ago I ran into Second Brother Huang at a café near the hotel. He said he was holding a family gathering this weekend—today, that is—and invited me. But since I'd already promised Huang Yan, I had to decline. Little did I expect that in the end I'd come here anyway, and that Huang Yan's second brother would turn out to be him."

With that, Yang Ce took the invitation out of his overcoat pocket and handed it to Zhang Bin.

Zhang Bin opened it and saw that it was indeed an invitation for Yang Ce to attend a family gathering today, signed by Huang Lin.

"No way—such a coincidence?" Zhang Bin could not help exclaiming.

"I thought it was quite a coincidence too. I didn't expect it at all." Yang Ce took the invitation back and tucked it into his pocket, though it was of no further use now.

"But if Second Brother Huang saw what happened between you and Chen Shutang, why would he still agree to let you be with Huang Yan?" Zhang Bin asked, puzzled.

Yang Ce broke out in a sweat. Some things were fine to tell Huang Lin, but to Zhang Bin and Wang Mei they were not so easy to explain in detail—he could hardly say it was because Huang Yan had flipped him over and pinned him down, could he? That would reflect poorly on Huang Yan.

So Yang Ce pondered for a long while, chose his words carefully, and only then said: "Well... Second Brother Huang isn't exactly a conservative man. He has several wives himself. So if you would govern others, first govern yourself—we're all men of the same persuasion, so he has no grounds to demand anything of anyone else."

"Oh." Zhang Bin nodded, wearing an expression of dawning comprehension. "Hey, that's true enough. Looks like he's got nothing to say about it now."

Wang Mei, however, found it rather odd—Huang Lin did not usually seem like that sort of person. But odd or not, Wang Mei could hardly go and ask, could she? "Do you have several wives?"—that would be sheer madness. And so the unfortunate Second Brother Huang, still unaware that Yang Ce had emptied a chamber pot over his head, merely sneezed. Huang Lin wondered what was going on—was someone talking about him behind his back?

"Brother Huang, whatever's the matter? Have you caught a cold? I have cold medicine here!" A woman dressed in gaudy, flirtatious finery saw Huang Lin sneeze and immediately pressed herself close with great concern.

Huang Lin frowned at once. This woman was a widow who was forever playing the coquette among these young gentlemen. But never mind her poor character—her late husband had left her a company, and many of those present had family businesses that did business with hers, so he could hardly tear off all pretense and scold her. He could only grit his teeth and play along: "Sister Hong, don't joke. I'm two years younger than you."

"Oh, you're too unkind! How can you say such a thing? I'm so hurt—am I really that old?" Sister Hong rubbed her bosom back and forth against Huang Lin's body.

Huang Lin was overcome with revulsion, yet he had no choice but to play along: "Not at all. Sister Hong, you don't look much older than Lele."

"At least you know how to talk. How about this—after the banquet tonight, come sit with me a while?" As she spoke, Sister Hong began making eyes at Huang Lin.

How could Huang Lin possibly get mixed up with a woman like that? Rumor had it she had slept with hundreds of men. Never mind whether it was disgusting—who knew whether she carried some hidden disease?

Though Yang Ce could see the exchange between the two perfectly clearly, Wang Mei and Zhang Bin could not, so Yang Shuoxuan would not expose it. Yang Ce had been worried that Zhang Bin and the others would not believe him—and here came a living "piece of evidence."

"Damn, so it really is true—he's already hooked another one!" Zhang Bin looked at Huang Lin with envy. Granted, the widow Sister Hong still looked quite alluring—but if Zhang Bin knew her reputation, would he still feel envious?

Wang Mei nodded in wholehearted agreement. It seemed Yang Yanzhou's account could not be false; the facts lay right there before them, and no one could refuse to believe them.

Before long, Huang Yan had changed her clothes and come down the stairs. Her fresh, refined beauty at once drew many admiring looks from the crowd—especially from Li Jialiang and the pink-headed fatty, whose eyes fairly bulged.