Chapter 55 - Sorry, Hard Pass

Soon, everyone had arrived, and the class reunion officially began.

People formed their own tables; they were basically small cliques of good friends from their university days reuniting, or people sitting together in twos and threes with their family members.

“Time flows on, the years pass like a song. After a decade of life's ups and downs, the bonds between classmates remain the truest! Five years after graduation, we once again gather happily under one roof to reminisce about our deep friendship and to speak of the bright futures that lie ahead!”

“Even though the quicksand of time may have left its mark upon our faces, it cannot erase the deep bonds between us. Instead, it allows the longing in our hearts for our classmates, for each other, to deepen and settle!”

Liao Bin, who was in charge of hosting the reunion, stood on the stage, microphone in hand, delivering the opening speech with rich emotion.

The moment his words fell, the hall erupted in enthusiastic applause and cheers.

“I have to say, this kid Ah Bin has a way with words,” Zhou Yan remarked while clapping along.

“Isn't that the truth. He was the school's go-to host. If he didn't have a way with words, he couldn't have been a host back in school,” Lu Zhai nodded and added.

After the opening speech ended, the reunion moved on to the open-mic and performance segment.

Someone went on stage to tell jokes, making everyone roar with laughter. Another person played a video montage from their university days on the screen, causing everyone to reminisce about their bygone youth.

Of course, there were also those who had already started their own shops or companies and went on stage to announce their grand ambitions, drumming up some investment and support or asking everyone for their future patronage.

While most classes go their separate ways after graduation, perhaps never to meet again, let alone have a reunion, their class held one almost every year. It wasn't because their bonds of friendship were particularly deep, but because their class had quite a few 'nouveau riche' young masters from the Magic Capital…

A chance to freeload a meal, see old friends, and if you're lucky, network with classmates who have already reached the pinnacle of their lives—most people wouldn't refuse.

After a round of people taking turns speaking on stage, a man dressed in a sharp suit, his face arrogant, stood up from his seat. He adjusted his collar slightly and slowly strode in his shiny black leather shoes to the center of the stage.

Lin Fan only needed one glance at the man to recognize him.

Zheng Shaohao. Like Zhou Yan, he was a Magic Capital local. His parents were high-level executives in a publicly listed company, so his family background was extremely privileged.

The difference was, Zhou Yan generally didn't show off in front of his classmates, only appearing particularly generous when treating others or buying things. Zheng Shaohao, on the other hand, relied on his family's wealth and loved to show off and flaunt it in class and around school every day, all while pretentiously feigning humility on the surface, yet terrified that others wouldn't know about his 'young master' status.

During the freshman basketball tournament, when Zheng Shaohao was going for a dunk, Lin Fan accidentally blocked his shot. It was just a small incident in a game, but Zheng Shaohao held a grudge over it for all four years of university.

From that one game onward, he had always been at odds with Lin Fan and found him disagreeable. Of course, the feeling was mutual; Lin Fan didn't much care for him either. As a result, the two had almost no friendship, only animosity.

In university, he was also a member of the student council. Relying on his little bit of power, he loved to come for dorm inspections when he had nothing better to do, deliberately looking for trouble with Lin Fan.

And whenever they met in a basketball game, he would always target him and relentlessly block his shots…

And so, the two were always at odds with each other, and their animosity continued right up until graduation.

“Ahem.”

Zheng Shaohao picked up the microphone on the stage, coughed lightly twice, and said with a smile:

“Good evening, everyone. It's been a year. I trust none of you have forgotten me, right?”

As soon as he spoke, everyone present greeted him with smiles.

“How could we!”

“We could forget anyone in our class, but we could never forget our President Zheng!”

“Exactly! President Zheng's generous support is an indispensable part of our reunion every year.”

“We might even have to rely on President Zheng's help and promotion in the future, hahaha~”

“…”

Listening to the crowd's flattery, the corners of Zheng Shaohao's mouth curved upwards. He was clearly lapping it up, but he still feigned humility:

“Not at all, not at all. We're all classmates; it's only right that we help each other.”

“As for me, I started a company this year. The scale isn't large, just a few million as a token gesture. My family gave it to me to test the waters.”

“Currently, my company already has over a hundred employees. If any of you need to find a job in the future, you can contact me anytime.”

“As classmates, I am very willing to help everyone, and I welcome you all to come work at my company. Once you're at my company, we're all one family.”

As his voice fell, the room immediately erupted in thunderous applause, and cheers accompanied the clapping:

“As expected of President Zheng, so magnanimous!”

“Now this is a true model of classmates helping each other!”

“From now on, we can really call you President Zheng!”

“…”

Amidst the crowd's eager chorus of agreement, Lin Fan minded his own business, picking up some food from the table, completely ignoring him.

Although his words were vivid and humble, his expression and tone revealed nothing but a condescending sense of triumph.

Rather than being about helping old classmates, it seemed more like he wanted to show off in front of them. The things he said were like a boss telling a subordinate he'll get a promotion and a raise soon—an empty promise you couldn't even smell.

Zheng Shaohao's gaze swept over the crowd. When he saw that Lin Fan's table was quiet, without the slightest reaction, his brow furrowed in displeasure.

“Yo, look who I’ve found, Lin Fan!”

“It’s really been a long time. You’ve never come to our class reunions before, have you?”

“It’s been a full five years. As an old friend, I’ve really missed you.”

“Sorry, hard pass. I'm not interested in men, so I've never thought about you. Please have some self-respect.”

After tossing a bite of food into his mouth with his chopsticks, Lin Fan put them down, gave a faint smile, and retorted with sharp words.

As his words fell, the crowd couldn't help but break out in roars of laughter.

“Hahaha, is this the same Lin Fan from university who barely spoke?”

“How did he get so daring with his words now?”

“‘Hard pass,’ hahaha, that’s killing me.”

Hearing the laughter around him, Zheng Shaohao felt his face flush red. He forcefully gripped the microphone in his hand.

“Who said I was interested in you? I'm not interested in you at all!”

Hearing this, Lin Fan feigned confusion.

“Hmm? I don't think I ever said you were interested in me. Why are you in such a hurry to deny it? Could it be a guilty conscience?”

“Hahaha.”

As soon as he said this, the atmosphere in the hall became even more cheerful.

Even Long Yue, sitting to the side, couldn't help but let the corners of her mouth lift as she tried to stifle her laughter.

*I never knew the Demon Sovereign could be so witty and humorous…*

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