Chapter 354 — An Jianwen's Scheme: Every day he dealt with rich men, guiding them to parking spots and parking their cars, and in time a sense of superiority came over him quite naturally — he thought himself a breed apart, and looked down on the poor.

To the ones who rolled up in luxury cars, the little security guard bowed and scraped; before the likes of Wei Zhao, who drove a battered old wreck, he strutted and swaggered like a fox borrowing the tiger's might.

"Who the hell are you calling brain-dead?" Su Taizao's palm cracked across the guard's face. He and An Jianwen had already parked the car, and when Wei Zhao failed to follow, they had hurried back to the parking lot entrance to look for him. They had only just arrived when they heard the little guard call him and Brother An brain-dead, and Su Taizao's temper went up in flames on the spot.

"I... I..." The guard was dazed by the slap and had no idea why Su Taizao had hit him. But one glance told him that every stitch on the man was a designer label, and that he had come running out of the parking lot itself — plainly a VIP of the establishment. How would he dare offend such a man? His face crumpled. "I didn't curse you..."

"Talking back, are you?" Su Taizao dealt him another slap. "I'm treating him to dinner, and you call me brain-dead — you think I didn't hear you?"

"Ah?" The guard was struck dumb. He would never have guessed that anyone actually invited the man in the beat-up van to dinner.

An Jianwen walked over too, frowning. "Taizao, what's going on?"

"This guard called us brain-dead! Is he asking to die?" Su Taizao was seething. Back in the day, when he and Brother An had been two of the Four Young Devils of Songshan, lording it over Songshan City, which security guard or manager of any nightspot did not know them by sight?

And now this little guard had no idea who he was, and had even dared curse him — how could he not be furious?

"Forget it." An Jianwen waved a hand indifferently. He was angry too, but there was proper business to attend to today and no time to deal with this little guard. "Let's go. Don't lower yourself to the likes of him."

The guard bobbed and bowed, apologizing and thanking him profusely. Yet for all his deference to An Jianwen and Su Taizao, when he raised his head he shot Wei Zhao a look of pure venom.

He did not take Wei Zhao for a rich man. By the look of him, Wei Zhao was just a poor student in a clapped-out van that had probably passed through heaven knows how many hands. So he dared not offend An Jianwen and Su Taizao, but in his heart he resolved to take his grievance out on Wei Zhao. Later he would go and slash his tires — the parking lot was vast, the man would never know who had done it, and could only swallow his bad luck.

Wei Zhao's senses were keen beyond measure; how could he miss the hatred in the little guard's eyes? Yet he paid it no mind. "Keep an eye on my car," he said mildly. "If anything happens to it, I'll be holding you accountable."

"Ah..." The guard smiled bitterly. He had not expected Wei Zhao to see through him; angry as he was, he could only choke it down and resign himself. Little did he know that Wei Zhao simply could not be bothered to stoop to his level — otherwise he would have been flat on the ground long ago.

An Jianwen led Wei Zhao up to a private room on the fourth floor. The fourth floor housed the finest of the private rooms; above the fourth floor lay the entertainment complex.

The room was large and spacious, and its floor-to-ceiling windows looked straight out onto the sculpted fountain at the heart of the city, not far from the hotel — a fine vantage indeed. A room like this, one imagined, was not something an ordinary person could ever reserve.

"Brother Lin, please, sit! No need to stand on ceremony!" An Jianwen, however, seemed long accustomed to such views. He set his phone casually on the table and dropped into a seat with an easy sprawl. "...It's been a long time since I've been in this room. Three years or more, I'd say?"

"That's right, Brother An. Back in the day, we Four Young Devils of Songshan — how we swaggered! And now these little guards push us around!" Su Taizao said indignantly.

"Heh. It's because Brother Lin dresses a little too plainly, and his car is a little out of the ordinary — so that guard looked down his nose at you." An Jianwen smiled, deliberately slipping in a jab at Wei Zhao without any show of feeling.

Wei Zhao understood perfectly well that An Jianwen was mocking him for having no money, for being unworthy to stand beside Gu Mengyao. But he took no offense. The only reason he had come today was that the eldest Miss had sent him — and, in passing, to teach these two a lesson on Shen Yushu's behalf. Everything else was secondary.

Besides, Wei Zhao had disguised himself as a beggar more than once while on assignment — how could he care about a few contemptuous looks? So he had not taken the little guard's words to heart at all.

"Ha, true enough," Su Taizao caught An Jianwen's meaning at once and chimed in with a laugh. "Brother Lin, you ought to have Yaoyao buy you a few nicer clothes. Going about like that, you'd shame yourself in public!"

"She bought them. I don't wear them." Wei Zhao smiled. He had caught their meaning well enough and answered offhandedly. Gu Mengyao had indeed bought him clothes, but he wore his school uniform whenever he went to class.

"Taizao, what Brother Lin has is called keeping a low profile! How does that saying go — play the pig to eat the tiger!" An Jianwen explained with a smile.

"Right, right! Play the pig to eat the tiger! A low-key show-off!" Su Taizao nodded along.

The two of them were of course speaking in irony. In their eyes, Wei Zhao could not have played such a part even if he tried.

Wei Zhao offered no explanation. Laugh while you can, he thought. In a little while I will have you crying.

An Jianwen made a few more jokes at Wei Zhao's expense, venting some of the foul air pent up in his chest, but he dared not be too blatant for fear Wei Zhao would take offense and storm off in a huff. So, before Wei Zhao could speak, he raised a hand and signaled the waiter to serve the dishes.

The dishes had been ordered in advance. Before leaving Gu Mengyao's villa, An Jianwen had phoned ahead and had the hotel prepare everything, so once he gave the waiter the word, the delicacies were brought to the table in procession.

An Jianwen stealthily pressed the record button on his phone. Placing it on the table earlier had been deliberate; he had aimed the camera squarely at Wei Zhao, meaning to capture the man making a fool of himself.

In An Jianwen's estimation, Wei Zhao had surely never eaten such delicacies. If his table manners turned out ugly, the recording would make fine material to circulate as a joke.

That, of course, was not the main event. The highlight was the entertainment he had arranged for later.

"Brother Lin, don't stand on ceremony. There are only the three of us, no need for so many rules! Let's eat!" An Jianwen raised his glass. "Here, let me drink to you. Last time you saved my life — I won't waste words on thanks. It's all understood without saying."

"It was a small thing — and Yaoyao's bidding besides." Wei Zhao raised his glass in turn, took a token sip, set it down, and unhurriedly began to eat.

Seeing that Wei Zhao did not wolf down his food as expected, An Jianwen was somewhat disappointed. But then he recalled that the real treat was still to come, and he settled himself. "Brother Lin, shall we call a few girls up to liven things up? The three of us men drinking alone is hardly any fun!"