Chapter 724: 【Chapter 97: One vs. Three】Requesting the guaranteed monthly passes for November

Chapter 97: One Against Three

(Old Lai’s birthday is in 3 days, and Qidian has opened a blessing page. Many thanks to Qidian and the book friends who sent blessings, but please note, just choose the last "Blessing Gift Box," as the previous gifts seem to require Qidian Coins)

Li Jie and Qiao Huanxuan didn’t proactively call Li Yan, and of course Yue Yao wouldn’t make things difficult for him, but he still needs to face tonight’s date arrangements.

After thinking it through, Li Yan felt that the ideal arrangement would be to call and decline Huang Ying, telling her he’s busy tonight and will see her next time. Huang Ying will certainly follow his arrangement and won’t ask why. Then, he would turn off his phone, have dinner with Wen Qianyi, and finally part ways early to meet Hai Fu.

This is naturally a scheduling issue. As long as the explanation to Huang Ying and Hai Fu is satisfactory, they will accept it. However, deceiving them this way does put a psychological burden on him. Huang Ying usually asks for very little from him, and it’s rare for her to speak up. She was also the first to call today, and he initially agreed with her. It’s embarrassing to push her aside first, even if she doesn’t delve into it or make a fuss.

Agreeing with Hai Fu was entirely because of chatting about some intimate topics, which led to forgetting the time overlap. He simply thought the sleep time wouldn’t overlap, which was a thoughtless promise he made. Surely, he can’t just find her only for bed and sleep, right? Even if Hai Fu doesn’t show it, she’d feel disappointed and hurt inside.

As for Wen Qianyi, her sharp tongue made it impossible to refuse. If anyone is suitable to be stood up, it’s her. Even Zhang Yurong’s invitation to dinner was refused, so standing her up once wouldn’t mean much, right?

However, Li Yan didn’t want to see Wen Qianyi disappointed either. He also didn’t want Zhang Yurong disappointed. He doesn’t want people he cares about to get hurt. Rejecting Zhang Yurong just now was also something unavoidable. Is there really no better solution for the three of them?

There’s a story about a peerless swordsman who taught two apprentices. In testing them, the challenge was this: in two pathways on the left and right, there are starved tigers locked in, and at the end of each path is a person tied up. The younger apprentice made a choice when opening the gate, managing to kill the tiger and save the person before the tiger could reach and eat the captive. The senior apprentice hesitated because he wanted to save both, which delayed his action and resulted in both captives being eaten by the tigers!

Sometimes choices are just that helpless. Even if you make a choice out of kindness and goodwill, there isn’t always a good outcome. So while making choices, you need precise judgment!

Many years ago, during training, Li Yan faced similar choices and decisions. But it wasn’t about saving people; it was about minimizing collateral damage in missions while staying safe. The senior apprentice’s wrong decision led to both hostages being killed by tigers. If he made a wrong judgment at the time, choosing not to harm any innocent, he would have ended up hurt himself.

When it came to life and death, his judgment and choice were always sharp. But in terms of emotions and relationships with women, neither judgment nor choice could be generalized.

If he chooses to reschedule with Huang Ying, Wen Qianyi won’t be disappointed, but Huang Ying will be, and Hai Fu might be slightly disappointed too;

If he chooses to have dinner with Huang Ying first, then go to Hai Fu, Wen Qianyi will be disappointed;

If he chooses to have dinner with Huang Ying first, then have dinner with Wen Qianyi, and finally go to Hai Fu, it would be even worse, resulting in unsuccessful dates with each of them...

After some analysis and hesitation, Li Yan made a seemingly risky decision!

This decision is something he had thought of but found too absurd, thinking it might lead to another version of the concert hall incident! That’s right, he would simply invite them all to dinner together, not necessarily for hotpot. Initially, he thought this wouldn’t work because meals with girls are about atmosphere and meaning; dining isn’t the key, dating is. If everyone goes together, there would be the trouble of awkward encounters that could hurt everyone involved, which was the lesson learned from last time.

But after careful consideration, he felt it was feasible!

Having a meal together is different from last time’s concert. Last time, he hid everything from everyone, and was dating five people simultaneously, running back and forth, which when exposed made them feel deceived and disrespected. This time, however, it’s simply a meal that can be done openly and honestly!

Why did they all choose to meet tonight and leave Christmas for Li Yan? Because Wen Qianyi and Hai Fu both know his girlfriend is Yu Xiaodi, and although Huang Ying doesn’t know, she feels he has another girlfriend and thinks he should be with Wen Qianyi.

Since that’s the case, everyone together wouldn’t cause any disputes. Huang Ying and Wen Qianyi used to be in the same department, so they both know each other has a good relationship with Li Yan; Hai Fu also knows the two have a good relationship with Li Yan. Although she is very strict in the company, she has also gone to a physical exam with Wen Qianyi and Yu Xiaodi before, and they are now all high-level executives in the company, so they are familiar with each other, and Huang Ying gets along with everyone.

With others around, none of them would show any particularly close behavior with Li Yan. This way, it could completely be considered a gathering of friends and colleagues. Although it may not have the nice atmosphere of a date between men and women, which is a bit regrettable, it’s still better than being alone, right? And you can get a different kind of joy.

After thinking it over repeatedly, Li Yan felt this was feasible. The next step was to choose a good restaurant and arrange a time for everyone to meet.

The question of where to go for dinner took him a long time to think about, and in the end, he felt the best idea was still the silly idea of having hotpot! Not to save money, but maybe because there might be a lot of couples going out for dinner tonight. Restaurants with a better environment must have been booked early; even if he can find a seat, with others paired up while he’s with three women, it would seem very out of place and make them associate more. On the contrary, those eating hotpot are mostly friends and families gathered in a lively manner, fewer dating couples, which creates a different lively atmosphere, making everyone less reserved, and conversations more natural.

So... the time came for Li Yan to call each of them one by one. Besides telling them the time and place, he also proactively mentioned the presence of others in order to prevent them from feeling deceived.

"...Right, but at that time there will be two more colleagues, Wen Qianyi and Huang Ying, who used to be in the Business Department, you know that. They also wanted to be treated to dinner. But don’t worry, after it ends, I will go back to your place to find you. But considering your authority in the company, why not just act like you happened to be there to meet someone else, and your friend didn’t show up, so you ended up joining us."

When Hai Fu heard this, she understood the situation. Compared to their almost unknown private relationship, it was harder to refuse colleagues Wen Qianyi and Huang Ying, who are on good terms. She was aware of her image in the company and couldn’t expose their relationship, so she could only appear by this accidental encounter. Although a little regretful for not being able to have a date alone, it was a rare opportunity to slowly blend into his circle of friends openly, which wasn’t a bad thing, so she agreed to cooperate.

"Qianyi, besides treating you to dinner, there’s another person coming. You know her, it’s Huang Ying... Sweat, it’s nothing special, you know her resignation was because I introduced her to another company. Her conditions aren’t too good now, and it’s hard for her too. We were colleagues after all and never had a meal together before. Since it’s a treat anyway, why not do it together?"

Wen Qianyi was using this as a pretext for the treat. If she refused at this time, wouldn’t it seem like she wanted to be with him alone? So, she just smiled and agreed. However, she estimated that with Huang Ying’s shy and bashful character, she would probably finish eating and leave first, right?

Huang Ying was easier to talk to. Li Yan knew that as long as he asked, regardless of the request, she would agree. But he also considered her feelings and sincerely told her.

"...Almost off work, right? I originally intended for the two of us, but just now Wen Qianyi called me, asking to be treated, and for me to be promoted to now, for you to complete the resignation process smoothly, was all with her help, so..."

Before he could finish, Huang Ying already tactfully said, "It’s fine, you go ahead and treat Miss Wen for dinner first; we can do it next time."

"No, let’s do it together. I told her about you, and don’t refuse. You’re not working at the same company now. You’re not her subordinate; don’t be afraid of her. You’ll have to meet more people in the future, so take it as practice. From another angle, consider it a colleague gathering, and besides, you owe her a thank you."

Huang Ying thought he made sense but still hesitantly asked, "Wouldn’t it be disturbing you guys?"

Li Yan understood what she meant by ’disturbance’, but he deliberately explained it differently: "It’s after work on the weekend, not in the same department, and not discussing business affairs, how would it be a disturbance? That’s settled, do you want me to pick you up later?"

"No need, I’ll go by myself." Huang Ying saw how he put it and had no choice but to agree quickly. She wanted to be alone with him, whether cooking at home or dining outside. It was said to be a romantic evening, a night for dates, perhaps tonight he could stay over... That thought made her very nervous and shy, so she’d been pondering it since yesterday until this afternoon when she finally mustered the courage to speak up. Although now joining with Wen Qianyi brought some disappointment, the tension also faded. Furthermore, Li Yan insisted on having her along with him and Wen Qianyi, not leaving her out, she felt a burst of relief and joy inside.

When Li Yan was about to hang up the phone, Huang Ying meekly asked, "Miss Li is also at the company, and she’s a good friend of yours too, do you want to invite her along?" 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

Li Yan was a bit speechless; wasn’t this increasing my pressure?

(Thanks to the brothers who tipped on the 30th: dongmin8061, Book Friend 100228165125125, jys0022, Book Friend from Taiwan, zjun971210, CP Pampas, しょぅけん, Li Fanshow, JK Liang) (To be continued, to know how the story unfolds, please log in to www.qidian.com, with more Chapters available, support the author, and support legitimate reading!)