Volume 1, Chapter 66: Poverty Limits My Imagination

I never expected to run into Zhang Yin here.

Seeing her instantly brought back that scene from the fire, making it feel as though a lifetime had passed.

Today she was wearing a gray shirt paired with hip-hugging jeans and a bun, exuding a mature and alluring charm from the inside out.

Given that we shared a life-and-death bond, seeing her here made me both surprised and delighted.

"Sister Yin, are you here to hang out too?"

She was slightly startled, her eyes shifting with a graceful smile. "Well, what a coincidence! Are you here with President Mei? If she's around, I'll come over for a couple of drinks."

"No, I'm with a few friends. Today is a friend's birthday."

"Oh, then I won't come over. Which room are you in?"

"406."

Zhang Yin looked at me with focused eyes, her smile carrying the subtle allure of a mature woman. "What kind of alcohol are you planning to buy?"

I awkwardly scratched my head, not afraid of her laughing at me, and answered honestly, "To be honest, I don't even know what to buy. I only found out when I got here that today is a friend's birthday, and I didn't prepare anything."

I paused and smiled. "How about you give me some advice?"

Zhang Yin's smile gradually deepened, looking somewhat mischievous. She glanced at the wine cabinet, curled her lip, and said, "There's nothing good here. Go back to your private room and wait! I'll have a waiter send over two bottles of good liquor in a while."

She said this casually, making no mention of money. I, however, was taken aback and said, "Wouldn't that be inappropriate? We can just pick something from here! There's a lot of alcohol here I've never tried, hahaha."

"Alright, just listen to my arrangement. You don't need to worry about the rest. Today, I guarantee you'll save face."

As she spoke, she pushed me toward the door. Unable to refuse her, I simply said thank you.

Zhang Yin gave me a sidelong glance. "What are you thanking me for? You saved my life. If anyone should be saying thank you, it's me. Hurry back and keep your friends company!"

Since she put it like that, insisting further would have seemed overly dramatic, so I turned around and headed back to the private room.

Back in the room, the girls were drinking merrily. Seeing me return empty-handed, some of them immediately asked:

"Handsome, what kind of alcohol did you go buy?"

"We're almost done with the beer, we've just been waiting on your booze!"

"..."

I smiled awkwardly. I had no idea what kind of alcohol Zhang Yin was going to have sent over, but as such a big boss, she certainly wouldn't let me lose face. Therefore, I deliberately kept it a mystery, which only made them even more curious.

At that moment, the door of the private room suddenly swung open from the outside. I thought the alcohol sent by Zhang Yin had arrived, but as soon as I saw who it was, the laughter and chatter in the room instantly came to an abrupt halt.

Xie Zixuan walked over to Lin Feifei, holding a massive bouquet of roses with a beaming smile. "Feifei, happy birthday."

Lin Feifei's face darkened. "Why are you here? Who told you?"

A flash of awkwardness crossed Xie Zixuan's face, but he forced a smile and said, "Never mind who told me. I came here specially to celebrate your birthday. Look, I even bought these flowers for you. It would be such a waste if you don't accept them!"

"It's not a waste. Leave the flowers here, and you leave."

"..."

Xie Zixuan froze on the spot, his expression a bit unnatural. At that moment, a few girls began to persuade Lin Feifei not to be angry, considering it was her birthday, but Lin Feifei was resolute and refused to tolerate Xie Zixuan at all.

Realizing he truly wasn't welcome, Xie Zixuan put on a fawning smile and said, "Alright, alright, I'll leave. As long as Feifei is happy, I'm fine with anything."

With that, he cast a disdainful glance in my direction and said sarcastically, "Well, since it's Feifei's birthday, I'll treat everyone to drinks tonight."

He called the waiter in and asked haughtily, "What is the most expensive alcohol you have here?"

"XXO Cognac, 700ml, forty-five hundred a bottle."

Xie Zixuan waved his hand grandly. "Bring two bottles. Also, whatever the girls want to eat or drink, my treat!"

As soon as these words were spoken, a series of gasps echoed through the private room.

This was precisely the effect Xie Zixuan wanted. A satisfied smile curved the corner of his mouth, and then, looking at me with his nose in the air as if he had just noticed me, he feigned exaggerated surprise:

"Oh, you're still here! I just ordered two bottles of cognac, do you even have the money to drink something like that?"

Lin Feifei's face had already been cold, but hearing him mock me made her fly into a rage.

"Get lost! Who the hell wants your treat, get out!"

Xie Zixuan's expression shifted, and just as he opened his mouth to coax her, a young woman dressed like a manager walked in carrying two bottles of liquor.

"Excuse me, which one of you is Mr. Yu Bin?"

Seeing the two bottles in her hands, I instantly understood. These must be the two bottles Zhang Yin sent me. The outer packaging box was custom-made, so the brand wasn't visible, but coming from Zhang Yin, it certainly wouldn't make me lose face.

I coughed a couple of times and said, "I am."

The young woman smiled gracefully, respectfully placed the two bottles of wine on the table, and said to me, "These two bottles of XO were sent to you by Sister Yin. This is her private reserve of fine liquor and is not sold to the outside public. Furthermore, all charges for this private room tonight are on the house."

I was stunned. Before I could even react, Xie Zixuan let out a few sneers and said dismissively, "How good could any gifted wine possibly be? I'd like to see if it can be more badass than the XXO Cognac I bought."

He bent down to tear open the outer packaging, but the moment he laid eyes on the actual bottles, the smile on his face instantly froze, and his voice completely changed pitch.

"Holy shit! Louis XIII Rare Cask!"

His exclamation drew the attention of the other girls, and a few of them who knew their wine immediately wore expressions of shock.

Instantly, the way they looked at me changed, and they began chattering excitedly:

"It really is Louis XIII! I've had cognac so many times, but this is my first time having Louis XIII."

"Quick, let's take a picture before we drink it."

"..."

Their chatter gave me a headache. Knowing nothing about cognac, I turned my head to ask the young woman who had delivered the wine.

"Is Louis XIII really that big of a deal?"

Amused by my seemingly ignorant question, the young woman smiled gracefully and said, "Market price is about eighteen thousand a bottle, I suppose?"

"Holy shit!"

I was utterly astonished. I knew Zhang Yin was wealthy, but I hadn't expected her to be generous to this extent. It seemed my imagination was truly limited by my poverty.

Suppressing the turmoil in my heart, I asked, "Since Sister Yin is able to store her wine here, she must be a regular customer of yours, right?"

The young woman shook her head. "She's not a customer here."

I was taken aback. "Then she is...?"

"She's our boss."

"..."

I was startled for a moment, but upon reflection, given her financial power, it didn't really seem all that surprising after all.

While I was momentarily dazed, the young woman handed me a black card with both hands and smiled, saying, "Sister Yin asked me to give this to you. This is our KTV VIP card. Whenever you come here in the future, you can charge whatever you like, and it's all on us."