Trembling At A High Altitude

"Boss Wang, you're just showing off! But Boss Wang, you do have the flair to show off! Surrounded by beauties, a successful career, there aren't many classmates who can match up to you!" a male classmate with the surname Cao chimed in from beside Mr. Wang.

"Don't talk nonsense! I keep myself very clean, haha! That Chen Liang over there, didn't he just become a section chief? I heard his dad is about to be transferred to the municipal government soon, has power in his hands, way better than us earning a few dirty bucks," Mr. Wang expressed modestly.

"Hey, do you think the financial backer came for Chen Liang? In business, clinging to someone powerful, helping each other out..." Mr. Cao lowered his voice and started gossiping.

"Unlikely, even if Chen Liang's dad goes to the municipal government, he's just a minor clerk, not worth the tycoon going to such great lengths," Mr. Wang shook his head.

"That's weird then, who could the financial backer be here for? Apart from Chen Liang and you... it doesn't seem like anyone else fits the bill!" Mr. Cao was baffled.

"Maybe he's here for you?" Mr. Wang teased.

"How could that be?" Mr. Cao was modest.

"Because you're handsome!" Mr. Wang kept teasing.

"Really? Haha... stop kidding, I think he's here for you, Boss Wang!"

"Heh, I reckon, all the single male classmates here, no matter how self-loathing or nerdy they are, and no matter how weird-looking they are, might secretly fantasize that the financial backer came just for them...

"Thinking they must have some special charm that attracted the backer, so even though they usually skip reunions, they rushed to come this time, hoping to strike it lucky," Mr. Wang said, deliberately glancing at Li Teng, who was engrossed in his meal.

"Yeah, men always have this inexplicable confidence. Me included, hahaha..." Mr. Cao agreed with Mr. Wang's views.

"There's value in self-awareness! Being a toad, one must accept their toady fate, stop dreaming unrealistically about swan meat!" Mr. Wang added a few more lines.

During the buffet, almost every dining table had similar discussions and guesses.

Everyone was curious, wondering who the mysterious backer really was and what was the purpose of treating them to this grand meal.

The class monitor Elsa surely knew, but she showed no intention of revealing it, only mentioning that the backer would soon come in person to meet everyone.

...

Seven o'clock.

The class monitor Elsa shared a piece of news that the financial backer had already arrived at the hotel entrance.

In a couple of minutes, he would enter the buffet private room where everyone was gathered.

The atmosphere suddenly heated up.

The mystery that had troubled everyone all afternoon was about to be solved!

Who exactly is it? And what's the purpose of treating everyone to this grand meal?

Li Teng was almost certain it was Liu Yin, coming specifically for him.

He just didn't know what her grand motive was.

Was it to announce the status of their relationship in front of all their classmates?

After what happened at the cinema, did she still want to keep seeing him?

What exactly was she plotting in her scheme?

...

Two minutes later, a young and beautiful woman walked into the private room from outside.

She was accompanied by two men and two women, who could have been bodyguards or some sort of assistants.

They were carrying many bags, all emblazoned with the PBOX2 logo.

Seeing the woman, Li Teng furrowed his brow.

It actually wasn't Liu Yin?

He didn't recognize this woman at all!

Was his guess wrong?

"It's Shen Mengying! The daughter of Shen Linxiang, the exclusive dealer of PBOX2 in Hua Zhong District!" someone immediately recognized the young woman's identity.

Although Li Teng didn't know Shen Mengying, he was all too familiar with the name Shen Linxiang within the gaming circles.

The exclusive rights to sell PBOX2 in the Hua Zhong District, and also the exclusive distributor for many high-end electronic products in the same area, owning dozens of Huayao Game Cities, her wealth ranking in the top five in He City.

This also explained why the sponsor chose PBOX2 game controllers and consoles as gifts for the male classmates.

But it could not explain why she wanted to treat everyone in their class to a lavish meal.

Among the boys in the class, which one was worth Miss Shen's great effort to get close to?

"This is the big boss behind your family business," a male classmate with the surname Cao reminded the dazed Mr. Wang enviously.

Mr. Wang's family had a franchise with Huayao Game City.

A business under the Shen family's flag!

On his way there, he had wondered if the sponsor might be Shen Mengying, and if so, he suspected he would become the main character tonight.

It turned out it really was her!

Had Shen Mengying come for him?

So exciting!

For a moment, the male classmate with the surname Wang's face flushed with excitement.

After glancing at Shen Mengying, Li Teng lowered his head and continued eating the food on his plate.

The fact that it wasn't Liu Yin who came made him feel a bit strange.

But he also felt a sense of relief.

It seemed he had overthought; tonight's event had nothing to do with him.

Shen Mengying's personality didn't seem very extroverted, but she was better than Liu Yin. After entering, under the encouragement of Elsa and others, she started by downing three glasses of red wine on her own.

"I invited you all here because there's something important I want to announce," she said.

Asked repeatedly, Shen Mengying then prepared to reveal the answer to everyone.

The noisy scene suddenly fell silent.

Single male classmates all looked eagerly at Shen Mengying.

Especially the male classmate with the surname Wang, who was trembling slightly with excitement.

Elsa had mentioned earlier that the sponsor was single and unmarried, and she would give the game console to the male classmate she favored the most.

Did this mean that she had developed a liking for one of the male classmates and wanted to publicly announce their relationship?

Although they were all grown men, when faced with this kind of situation, they couldn't help but entertain fantasies.

Fantasies that the Cinderella story could happen to them.

"Let's not beat around the bush, in fact, I have developed feelings for one of the boys in your class," Shen Mengying continued, her face slightly flushed—perhaps because of those three glasses of wine.

"No way? Really?"

"Hahaha, have you fallen for me?"

"It must be me, right?"

As soon as Shen Mengying finished speaking, the momentarily quiet atmosphere burst into excitement again.

"Hehe, everyone, calm down! Stop that! Miss Shen will be a member of our class from now on. We need to bless her and that lucky guy!" class president Elsa shouted a few times.

"Announce it already! Who is the lucky one?"

"Yeah! The biggest lucky charm of He City this year!"

"Hurry up! I'm dying to know! Which guy in our class deserves Miss Shen?"

"With that bunch of cowards, I really couldn't tell."

"Yeah! Miss Shen must be blind."

The emotions of both male and female classmates were stirred up, the males inexplicably excited, the females inexplicably jealous, everyone increasingly looking forward to the answer to this mystery, eager to know who would be the lucky person.

However, Shen Mengying did not announce the answer but instead moved through the crowd toward the corner of the restaurant.

Passing by the tables without stopping, the expectant looks on the faces of the male classmates gradually solidified, then turned to envy and jealousy.

All the classmates watched as she went up to the table where Li Teng was sitting, and then saw her pull up a chair next to male classmate Mr. Wang and sit down.

"Miss Shen… Miss Shen… I… I…

"I really didn't expect…

"I… I…

"We… I definitely…"

Male classmate Mr. Wang was so excited he was about to faint.

Happiness came too suddenly, huh? Tears were about to fall.

As for his current girlfriend, of course, it was time to break up immediately. Who could compare to Miss Shen?

Mr. Cao also looked enviously at male classmate Mr. Wang.

If he had known he could cling to such high branches, he should have sold everything back home to start a franchise of Huayao Game City!

The other male classmates in the class also heckled, full of envy, jealousy, and resentment.

Even more classmates took out their phones, wanting to record this thrilling moment.

"Thank you, but could you please move aside and not block me?"

Shen Mengying, finding that Mr. Wang completely blocked her view and even had the nerve to speak to her, had to bring it up.

"Ah… I…" Male classmate Mr. Wang was so stunned he couldn't react.

"Miss Shen is asking you to move aside!"

"Hurry and get up! She's not looking for you!"

"Talk about wishful thinking!"

"She's not looking for me?" Male classmate Mr. Wang felt as though he had fallen from heaven to Hell, completely dumbfounded.

The tears of happiness fell, turning into bitter and awkward ones.

Other male students who were ignored at the table by Shen Mengying jeered and forcefully pulled Mr. Wang away from his seat.

"Ah, why… why… am I…" Male classmate Mr. Wang's face turned red as if it had been scorched by fire.

He had just thought Shen Mengying came looking for him! It seemed Mr. Wang was being wishful.

So embarrassing!

"Hey! You all quickly delete the video…" Male classmate Mr. Wang suddenly realized something.

If that scene got uploaded on the internet, he would lose face big time!

"Ah? Sorry, I already shared it in the group chat, it can't be undone."

"I've posted it on Douyin…"

"…"

"You guys…" Male classmate Mr. Wang was on the verge of tears.

One must be self-aware! He was just a small franchisee, how could Miss Shen possibly fancy him?

The mystery remained, if Miss Shen wasn't interested in him, then who was she interested in?

After being pulled away, Mr. Cao couldn't help but brighten up… Could it be because he was handsome that Miss Shen came specifically for him?

Mr. Cao quickly struck a seductive pose, waiting to be graced by Shen Mengying.

"Brother Teng, stop eating, can we talk for a moment?" After male classmate Wang had left, Shen Mengying approached Li Teng, who was busily eating.

"What?"

As he dealt with a giant lobster, Li Teng, greasy-faced, suddenly found himself the center of attention and furrowed his brow.

After looking at Shen Mengying, who was smiling at him, Li Teng hesitated for a moment, then focused back on his lobster as if no one else existed.

"Brother Teng, don't ignore me! I've liked you for so long, and today I finally gathered the courage…" Shen Mengying wasn't put off by Li Teng's reaction and continued to ramble.

The onlookers exploded again upon hearing Shen Mengying's remark.

Really? Miss Shen came for a nerd like Li Teng?

Why though?

Especially the male classmates with the surname Wang and Cao, who had shared the table with Li Teng earlier, all looked incredulous.

Li Teng glanced at her, didn't utter a word, and continued eating his lobster.

Is this Shen woman sent by Liu Yin?

Liked him for a long time? Yeah right, pull the other one!

Whether she was sent by Liu Yin or not, this whole thing was very peculiar.

Whatever could these daughters of the wealthy families in He City be after by approaching him?

Do they all share a crime they need him to take the fall for?

This was getting weirder and weirder!

"Brother Teng, would you be my boyfriend, pretty please? Don't ignore me!" Shen Mengying cooed at Li Teng.

The scene quieted down, and everyone's eyes were locked on the dining table, focused on Li Teng.

What in the world was this performance art?

Why would a rich second-generation girl like Shen Mengying make such a move on a poor nerd like Li Teng?

This Li Teng, a stinky nerd, really had nothing going for him!

"Li Teng, say something! Don't be rude!"

"Exactly! This is the kind of luck that comes once in many lifetimes!"

"So poor, so timid... what did she even see in you…"

"Right, it feels like Miss Shen's taste is off."

"You guys are just jealous, haha..."

"..."

The surrounding students were variously indignant, and some couldn't help but speak their minds.

"Sorry, you're not my type." After staring at Shen Mengying for a while, Li Teng shook his head and rejected her public display of affection.

Shen Mengying's face flushed even redder.

She seemed a bit angry but managed to hold it in.

Upon hearing what Li Teng had just said, the place exploded again.

Has Li Teng lost his mind?

This is Shen Mengying! She took the initiative to express her love and wanted to be your girlfriend, and you actually turned her down?

Why don't you take a good look at yourself, with those looks and that family background, how are you even a match for her? Such a golden opportunity lands on your lap and you actually reject it?

It's probably for the best that he rejected her, or else, that old saying would come true.

All the good cabbage has been hogged by pigs.

The male classmates finally felt a bit more balanced.

Was Miss Shen blinded by lard? Why on earth would she fancy such a timid and rough nerd?

And in a class of over forty people, only this oddity emerged, surely the rest, no matter how bad, were better than him, right?

Why him? It really was baffling.

Could this be the era of the timid and the lame?

"Then what type do you like?" Shen Mengying, seemingly unwilling to give up, pressed Li Teng with another question.

"I like... someone like Liu Yin." Li Teng purposely mentioned Liu Yin's name, observing Shen Mengying's reaction covertly.