In the following two days, Chen Xuan didn’t stay idle either. He took Lin Qing to visit all the famous spots in Yue City, and even rented a shop near his home to include it in the branch network.

This way, in case of any emergency, he could smoothly travel back and forth between the two places.

On the morning of the third day, Zhao Jin sent a text message, setting the meeting location at the White Swan Hotel. This was already the most upscale hotel in Yue City, and hosting an event here evidently required a substantial amount of money, something most people couldn’t afford. This confirmed the words of his parents, Zhao family’s kid seems to be doing well now.

As for Gu Zhaoning, he contacted him a day in advance, saying the plane would arrive in the afternoon. After Chen Xuan explained the situation, the other party didn’t mind at all and said he would just find him at the hotel then.

Around 12:30, Chen Xuan and Lin Qing arrived at the White Swan as agreed.

Taking the elevator to the reserved area on the fifth floor, he immediately recognized several high school classmates—although they hadn’t met in years, their appearances hadn’t changed much, just matured in style. At the same time, he noticed many strangers he’d never seen before, both men and women... He guessed that he was not the only one who brought a friend.

It wasn’t surprising, considering most people are generally twenty-six or seven years old, and many have already started families.

"Chen Xuan, over here!" At this moment, Zhao Jin also saw him and waved him over.

Zhao Jin stood out today, dressed in a black turtleneck sweater and a brown Korean-style suit, which looked quite expensive, as if carefully curated. Even though he wasn’t particularly handsome, the outfit gave him an appearance of refined professional elegance.

As Chen Xuan approached the group, others came over to greet him as well.

"Yo, Brother Xuan, long time no see!"

"How come you haven’t made time to visit Yue City these past few years? How’s work?"

"You must have made it big by now! I heard the year-end bonus at big companies is quite something."

"Of course, he was the top student in class back in the day. My mom always used him as a model example."

Zhao Jin looked at him with a smile, seemingly waiting for his response.

Chen Xuan had nothing to hide, "I’ve already quit my job."

"Quit your job?" They all were taken aback, "Why?"

"It was too intense, I didn’t want to continue."

"Then what are you doing now?"

"Working at a fast-food restaurant."

Hearing this, everyone looked at each other in disbelief.

After all, the gap between his previous and current jobs was enormous, no one could have imagined that he would make such a choice.

"Haha... Doing whatever you like is a personal freedom, what’s so strange about that?" Zhao Jin clapped his hands to signal them not to probe further, "Besides, I can help ask around about Chen Xuan’s job, we’re old classmates after all, of course I’d lend a helping hand."

Chen Xuan slightly raised his eyebrows; he could see this guy was using him to show off. In the past, he might have felt stifled, perhaps even abruptly leaving, but now he remained unfazed, if not for fear of being obvious, he might have laughed along.

"Can you introduce us to your friend?" Zhao Jin then turned his gaze to Lin Qing beside him, "Could it be... your girlfriend?"

"No, just an ordinary—" Chen Xuan was cut off mid-sentence by Lin Qing.

She affectionately hooked her arm around Chen Xuan’s, taking off her sunglasses and mask, waving to everyone, "Hello, you can just call me Lin Qing!"

The scene suddenly fell into silence.

Everyone, regardless of gender, stared at Lin Qing, unable to speak for a moment.

Zhao Jin was no exception.

His eyes revealed a hint of surprise.

Impossible, right? Chen Xuan couldn’t help being a little surprised, despite knowing Lin Qing was very good-looking, it wasn’t to the extent of leaving people dumbfounded. This reaction... was like they had seen an alien.

"Haha... hello, hello!" The first to respond was Zhao Jin, he awkwardly laughed twice, "Miss Lin, it feels like the hotel has become classier since you arrived."

"Isn’t it already the best hotel in Yue City?" Lin Qing deliberately asked.

"Then there are those at the national level." Zhao Jin changed the subject, "There are things to eat and play here, feel free to do whatever you like... the reunion has no rules, just have fun."

Chen Xuan got some food from the buffet and casually found a table to sit down.

This was indeed a nice place, the venue was large, about a thousand square meters. There was a buffet at the entrance, unlike formal dining where everyone is confined to a big table, toasting, and bragging. On either side of the hall, there were entertainment areas, providing facilities for karaoke and mahjong, which were the most common group activities after starting work.

Lin Qing seamlessly integrated into the classmate circle at a speed Chen Xuan couldn’t comprehend.

It wasn’t an exaggeration; it was just a fact—from entering to now, in less than ten minutes, she had become the focus of attention for everyone. Wherever she went was the most lively place. First, it was the gossip-filled female classmates, then the male classmates who dared to come forward to chat... Lin Qing handled herself with ease in such social interactions, being both warm and maintaining boundaries, effortlessly attending to everyone’s emotions.

She wasn’t a social terror, no.

She was a social savant, the kind with a natural charisma.

Zhao Jin should have been the absolute center of the gathering, but now it was Lin Qing.

After about an hour of lively interactions, she finally found a moment and joyfully walked over to Chen Xuan, "Why are you staying here alone? Seems like your high school life was quite dull."

"Honestly, I didn’t expect you to be so sociable." Chen Xuan handed her a glass of juice, "Enjoyed yourself?"

Lin Qing sat down beside him, "Just so-so, not as nice as lying on a sofa surfing the web."

"Then why pretend to be so outgoing?"

"Because they’re using you to brag." Lin Qing pouted, "You’re the esteemed store manager, of course, I need to boost your image."

After she said that, she leaned closer, pointed a slender finger on Chen Xuan’s chest, drawing circles as she spoke, "Stop holding your laughter. You’re actually quite pleased inside, right?"

Oops, she saw through it.

Chen Xuan guiltily looked up at the sky.

"But despite the boring parts, I did gain something." Lin Qing withdrew her hand.

"What did you gain?"

"Those people chattered nonstop, telling me all about your past. I didn’t expect you were such a well-rounded student before. I kind of understand why Zhao Jin wanted to chat about you in public." She finished the juice in one gulp, burping as she spoke, "Didn’t you realize before? You were the ’other people’s child’ in their parents’ eyes."

Chen Xuan sighed softly, he could somewhat sense the distancing and exclusion of his classmates back then, but what did it matter? He went to college out of town, found a job, and quit... all decisions made independently. Even if he felt lonely while staying alone in his rented room on some nights, it only happened a few days a year.

After all, Extraordinary Eating Ability and Special Sleeping weren’t just for show.

It wasn’t until he became the manager of the Ability Store that things got more lively around him.

"But it’s okay, once we defeat the Dimensional Limit Mechanism and save the world, they’ll recognize their mistakes." Lin Qing declared confidently.

Discussing world-saving at an old school reunion created a sense of discord for Chen Xuan. Surely, the idea of a fourteen-year-old high school student saving the world seemed outlandish.

"Why are you two resting here?" At this moment, Zhao Jin came over with a group, sitting around the table, "Want to play some cards? They’ve already started a game over there, we can set up another table here."

"What cards?"

"Just the simplest, Fight the Landlord."

Lin Qing playfully winked at Chen Xuan.

Her eyes clearly conveyed: this time, I can’t help you, you’ll have to handle it yourself.

Chen Xuan chuckled silently; handle what, exactly? This level of competition... did they think they were going to battle? Still, avoiding things all the time could backfire; it was better to dispel the notion of boasting altogether.

"Sure, I haven’t played in a long time."