"Objectively speaking, her legs look better than yours, but your face is prettier."
If Huang Yiyi's looks weren't rated 90 points, Jiang Cheng might not have glanced twice at a girl only 160 cm tall.
After all, he himself stood at 183 cm; in his experience, anything shorter than 165 cm was less than ideal when things got… practical.
Not getting the answer she'd hoped for, Huang Yiyi puffed her cheeks again. "Hmph, you're just a few centimetres taller than me!"
Ignoring her, Jiang Cheng drove straight to the campus food street.
When they arrived, Wang Jian had already led several dozen members of the External Liaison Department into Hishua Barbecue.
It was prime dinner hour and the place was buzzing, mostly with students.
Seeing Jiang Cheng walk in, Wang Jian jumped up and came over. "Cheng-ge, over here."
Jiang Cheng glanced around; every other table near Wang Jian was packed, yet no one had started eating.
Everyone was glued to their phones, chatting.
"Everyone's here?"
Wang Jian nodded. "The place isn't crowded—we've practically booked it. Except for a few who couldn't make it, thirty-three showed up. Add us and Yiyi and we're thirty-eight."
"Good."
The moment Jiang Cheng finished, Shen Mengjia walked up.
As she approached, she subtly sized up Huang Yiyi.
"Minister Jiang, you're finally here—everyone's been waiting."
Seeing her speak to Jiang Cheng, Huang Yiyi immediately looped an arm through his.
"Sorry to keep you waiting. I wanted to come early, but he insisted on buying me black silk stockings, so we were delayed."
Jiang Cheng shot her a sidelong glance; he could smell the strong scent of green tea.
Sure enough, Shen Mengjia's expression soured instantly.
She forced a stiff smile. "Minister Jiang, I've been running around all day—my stockings got snagged several times. I think Miss Huang's pair is lovely; your taste is excellent. Next time you'll have to take me shopping."
"Oh, that won't do. If you want them I can tell you the shop; you can go yourself. He doesn't have time to escort you."
"All right, a word first." Jiang Cheng cut them off and addressed the group: "Hi everyone, I'm Jiang Cheng. Let's take good care of one another."
The crowd had been eyeing him since he walked in—after all, he was a campus celebrity.
His first treat was this lavish.
News of the earlier Zhao Rui incident had already spread by word of mouth.
Half of those present were here for the free meal; the other half wanted to network with Jiang Cheng.
So when he finished, enthusiastic applause erupted.
"Welcome, Minister Jiang! Welcome!"
Ever since becoming CEO of Stellar, Jiang Cheng's heart no longer skipped a beat at such scenes.
He waved for quiet.
Then he rolled out the usual pleasantries smoothly: "All right, enough clapping. Our first gathering officially begins. Let's try not to disturb the other diners—hope everyone enjoys tonight!"
With that, Wang Jian called the order-taker over to count heads and tally the bill.
Hishua Barbecue was an Internet Celebrity hotpot buffet.
The décor was stylish, the ambience pleasant.
Each guest had an individual hotpot; pairs shared a large grill—double the fun.
Dinner price: 120 yuan per head. Not the cheapest buffet around, but far from outrageous.
The usual bargain places charged 59 or 69.
Thirty-eight people came to 4,560 yuan total.
As Wang Jian reached for his phone, Jiang Cheng stopped him. "A deal's a deal—my treat."
Wang Jian didn't argue, pocketing his phone with a grin. "Thanks for the meal, Cheng-ge."
"Of course. I'll be counting on you from now on."
Arm slung over Wang Jian's shoulder, Jiang Cheng headed for an eight-seat circular grill table.
Seeing him, Lu Chuan and Wu Kun stood. "Cheng-ge, quick—grabbed loads of good stuff already."
Wu Kun's face was alight with excitement.
Jiang Cheng walked over and saw the table crammed with more than a dozen plates.
Much of it seafood—fish, prawns, crab, even abalone.
From experience he knew it had been frozen; the abalone were the smallest grade.
But understandable at this price.
If they served live, jumping seafood at 120 a head, how would the place turn a profit?
You get what you pay for—fair enough.
Watching the group about to attack the buffet in earnest, Jiang Cheng almost pitied the owner.
Eighteen- and nineteen-year-olds eat like wolves.
Luckily more than half were girls—less chance of a loss.
Girls have smaller appetites; buffets rarely break even for them.
Take Shen Mengjia beside Wang Jian—her plate held mostly greens and dessert, little meat.
A guaranteed loss.
Huang Yiyi naturally sat next to Jiang Cheng.
The moment she settled, she switched on his hotpot for him.
"What would you like? I'll grill it."
"Two oysters," Jiang Cheng answered without thinking.
"We're so in sync—I wanted the same!"
She raised her voice deliberately, as if for Shen Mengjia's ears.
Jiang Cheng sighed. "Shall I order you two cups of green tea to go with your performance?"
Wu Kun burst out laughing. "Miss Huang, your tea ceremony just flipped the car!"
"Monitor Wu, keep laughing and I'll stop rallying girls for class events," Huang Yiyi threatened.
Wu Kun wiped the grin off his face. "My apologies. Honestly, you brew strong tea—very aromatic."
Huang Yiyi only giggled. "Really? By the way, I've seen you send identical messages to Huang Ke and Chen Lin. Copy-paste? They don't seem to know yet."
"Miss Huang, I surrender—shutting up now."
The table roared with laughter.
Their banter lightened the whole meal.
Pop music played; everyone joked, drank, and feasted.
Jiang Cheng savoured the vibe.
In two years, after graduation, this youthful air would be hard to recapture.
It was something he never felt with Wang Congcong and Qin Fen.
Just as he was soaking it in, a Waitress came to swap the grill plate.
Reaching their table, the Female Waitress's expression turned awkward.