Chapter 106: How Could There Be Such a Petty Man in This World
More than half of September had passed quickly, and Chu Qing was about to start printing the wedding invitations.
The marriage of their precious son was no small matter, so Chu Qing went all out and custom-ordered the most luxurious invitations. They were gilded and inlaid with jade, with an overall opulent style; each invitation was worth over ten thousand yuan.
Once the invitations were ready, Chu Qing prepared to distribute them.
Since City H held special significance, the wedding banquet would definitely be held there. However, many of Chu Qing and Xie Yunting’s friends and close acquaintances were in City C, so they had to inform them one by one.
Although there were still half a month to go, Chu Qing and Xie Yunting were organizing everything methodically. Soon, many people knew that Xie Sicheng was getting married.
Xie Sicheng! Getting married!
He’s so young, and he’s getting married?
Even outside their circle, in ordinary families, this would be considered an early marriage, right? If memory serves, didn’t Xie Sicheng just graduate this year?
Xiao Fu’s underlings were shocked and started a heated discussion in their group chat.
[Did you guys hear that Xiao Fu is getting married?]
[You mean Xiao Fu? No way! Wait, you said Xiao Fu, but the previous text says Xie Sicheng.]
Wait, there’s a mistake here. The underlings are Xiao Fu’s, and they are talking about Xie Sicheng getting married.
Let me correct that.
[Did you guys hear that Xie Sicheng is getting married?]
[Yeah, I heard! I’m shocked. Is it the same Xie Sicheng we know? He’s getting married so early?]
[What about Brother Xiao? Brother Xiao doesn’t even have a partner yet. Isn’t he being overshadowed?]
[Oh my god, my parents are taking me to attend Xie Sicheng’s wedding. So awkward! If Brother Xiao finds out, will he hold it against me?]
[He probably won’t. Brother Xiao is likely going too. Such a big event, he can’t possibly not attend.]
[What’s Brother Xiao going for? To crash the wedding?]
[Don’t say that, but that’s actually a good idea! It could make Xie Sicheng lose face. But the consequences might be severe.]
[That’s indeed a great idea! Our Brother Xiao isn’t afraid of anyone. If he wants to crash, he crashes. What’s the worst that could happen—get shot?]
[I’m also attending Xie Sicheng’s wedding. My parents are taking me. You guys better not cause trouble. It’s fine to mess around in private, but not when our parents are there. It’d be too embarrassing.]
[Doesn’t anyone care who Xie Sicheng is marrying? Someone as aloof as him can actually get married? Unbelievable. I thought he’d stay a virgin until thirty.]
[Of course we care, but I asked my parents, and they don’t know. We’ll have to wait for the invitation to find out the bride’s name.]
[Which family’s daughter is it? Anyone who knows, speak up.]
[If it’s a girl we know, I’ll cut off my head and let you use it as a toilet! Someone as pretentious as Xie Sicheng—if he were interested in a girl from our circle, he wouldn’t have waited until now. He would’ve secretly dated long ago.]
[You talk as if you know him well.]
[Not that well, but I have a hunch. If he plays, he plays big. Isn’t there a saying, ‘the silent dog bites the hardest’? Same with people. Those who seem like ascetic monks are actually indulging in all sorts of vices in private.]
[You should tell this to Brother Xiao. He’d be thrilled to hear it, hahaha.]
[I’m so shocked that among us, it’s actually Xie Sicheng who’s getting married first.]
[Actually, when you think about it, it makes sense. Hasn’t he never dated? Maybe he’s inexperienced in that area, a bit naive, so he got tricked.]
[No way, tricked? Don’t treat him like an idiot, okay? Which man is naive? We’re all men here; no need to make excuses for him.]
Meanwhile, Zuo Qianxing was stealthily lurking in the group chat. To be honest, although Xiao Fu’s lackeys had low IQs, watching them was amusing. It was one of his few sources of joy.
Seeing their heated discussion, he couldn’t help but chuckle secretly, thinking that if they knew Xie Sicheng was marrying Xiao Fu’s own younger brother, they’d probably be scared to death.
Xiao Fu was really something—not even telling his underlings about his own brother’s wedding.
But the circle was only so big. Even if relationships were strained in private, the connections between their parents couldn’t be severed. So most people in the group would receive invitations at home. Some planned to go; others were afraid that Xiao Fu would settle scores afterward and didn’t dare to attend.
In total, out of eighteen people, only five dared to go.
Zuo Qianxing felt there was going to be a good show. Using a small account, he said, [If Brother Xiao is going, and too many people don’t go, won’t he hold a grudge? Maybe we should ask Brother Xiao if he’s going?]
[Good point. I’ll go ask Brother Xiao.]
The group fell silent for a while. Soon, that person came back. [Brother Xiao replied; he said he’s going.]
[Oh wow, is he really going to crash the wedding? Then we have to go watch the fun!]
[Can we watch that kind of fun? Our parents will be there. Don’t cause trouble.]
[What are you afraid of? If Brother Xiao isn’t afraid, I’m not afraid.]
[Same here.]
[Causing trouble at someone’s big happy occasion wouldn’t be appropriate, would it?]
[It’s not appropriate. People have tempers too. Better not stir things up. If Brother Xiao dares to cause trouble, he’ll definitely be in trouble. If he suffers, can we escape unscathed?]
[Exactly. Not only should we prevent Brother Xiao from causing trouble, but we should also keep an eye on him. It’s not that we don’t support him, but if things get out of hand, Brother Xiao’s company could lose ten or twenty million.]
[So we’re going to keep an eye on Brother Xiao?]
[Yes, best if we all watch him. It’s fine to mess around in private, but if we make a scene publicly, we’ll all be in trouble.]
Seeing this, Zuo Qianxing thought, hey, there are actually smart people in this group. He was quite surprised.
At this moment, his small account was suddenly addressed. [By the way, who is this ‘One Hand Plucks the Stars’? Everyone else has their real names as remarks; why are you using an ID?]
Zuo Qianxing: “…”
But soon, someone spoke up for him: [That’s the kid from the Zhao family. He’s in his third year of high school this year.]
[Oh, change your remark name. Otherwise, we’ll kick you out next time we see it.]
Zuo Qianxing quickly changed his remark name to Zhao Wanwan.
The group continued chatting, but he didn’t pay further attention. He was looking forward to when these people would see Xiao Fu and Xie Sicheng, the two sworn enemies, becoming in-laws. Their expressions would surely be priceless. Just imagining it made Zuo Qianxing laugh gleefully.
*
On the other side, Chi Wang also received the invitations. As soon as he got one in his hands, he was stunned—it was so beautiful, practically a work of art.
The exterior was golden and glittering. Opening the invitation, two small three-dimensional figures would slide out—one from left to right, one from right to left—scattering tiny petals. The two little figures held a scroll in their other hands, and as the invitation opened, their names, written on a red scroll with golden edges, appeared.
Chi Wang opened and closed it several times, playing with it until no more petals could be scattered, and then he stopped.
After cleaning up the petals on the invitation, Chi Wang remembered to ask Xie Sicheng, “This invitation is so heavy; it’s not made of real gold, is it?”
Xie replied, “It’s plated with a layer of gold on the surface; it’s not solid.”
Despite what he said, Chi Wang still took out some tools. He pried off the jade clasp on the invitation, then burned the invitation. In the end, he extracted 15.7 grams of gold.
Chi Wang: “…”
I can’t stand up to you capitalists!!!
An invitation actually had as much gold as a gold bracelet!
Chi Wang clutched his chest, looking as if he might faint. “…Having money doesn’t mean you should spend it like this!”
“…” Xie said, “Actually, it has great collectible value. Don’t you think?”
Chi Wang: “…That’s true.”
Chu Qing had given him a hundred invitations, letting him distribute them as he wished.
So Chi Wang packed the invitations into his backpack and took them to school. He first gave them to his roommates, then to the dorm supervisor, and to the classmates who usually did room inspections…
After a day of handing them out, he still had over seventy left.
He began contacting his old friends.
That evening was spent mostly making phone calls. “Yes, I’m getting married. You’re asking about the bride? No, my partner is a guy. Hahaha, I’m not gay! It’s hard to explain. I wouldn’t like any other guy. Anyway, I’ll send you an invitation. See if you can come. If you can’t, that’s okay. Your blessings are enough.”
“Teacher, I’m getting married; you must come! I want to toast you. Huh? The bride? Hahaha, actually, my partner is a man. What? You already noticed? Teacher, you can’t say things like that…”
“Huanzai, you have to come to my wedding! I’ll cover your travel and accommodation expenses. We haven’t seen each other in two years; let’s take this opportunity to meet.”
“Yes, my partner is a guy—a senior of mine. What? You liked me in high school too? No way, you’re gay? I couldn’t tell. What? There are many gays at our school? Most of them like me?? Huh, am I that popular? What kind of athlete am I? I quit the track team in less than a month… Don’t cry. Then I won’t send you an invitation to spare you the sadness. Bye.”
“Hey, Xinxin, I’m getting married; can you come? Oh, you already know? It’s in the group chat? Wow, you guys are informing each other in the group? That’s fine. Those who want to come, send me an address, and I’ll mail you invitations. Help me tell everyone in the group. Wouldn’t it be more sincere if I called each of you? Travel and accommodation are covered. Let’s have some fun.”
Listening from the side, Xie gained a deeper understanding of Chi Wang’s popularity. Seizing a moment when Chi Wang paused to drink water after a call, Xie quietly asked, “Exactly how many friends do you have?”
Chi Wang paused and handed his phone to Xie. The screen showed the number of his WeChat contacts—it displayed 622 friends.
Xie: “??”
Xie’s jaw tightened. “…Are they all your friends?”
Chi Wang said, “Not all, but close enough. Conservatively, I have over a hundred good friends.”
Xie: “…”
In a cool tone, Xie said, “You have a lot of friends.”
Chi Wang detected a hint of barely noticeable jealousy and couldn’t help but laugh. “Having many friends makes everything easier.”
After a brief pause, Chi Wang quickly added, “But my heart is reserved solely for the dignified and handsome Mr. Xie beside me.”
Xie’s lips curled up slightly. In a calm tone, he said, “So I’m living in a single room after all.”
Chi Wang chuckled, “Of course! Absolutely a single room. My friends are all in a big shared dormitory. The place you live in is definitely the most spacious.”
A few words were enough to appease Xie. Suddenly, Chi Wang thought of something and asked, “Have you sent out your invitations to your friends?”
Xie replied, “I have.”
Chi Wang asked, “To whom?”
Xie said, “Zuo Qianxing.”
Chi Wang burst into laughter, “Just him?”
Xie: “…Yes.”
Chi Wang let out a teasing laugh, “Hahahahaha, you’re too antisocial! Do you only have one friend?”
Xie smiled slightly and said, “Isn’t that good? The single room you’re living in is even larger than mine.”
Chi Wang: “…”
His smile faded.
How could there be such a petty man in this world!
- “I’ll cut off my head and let you use it as a toilet”: A hyperbolic expression to emphasize certainty that something is impossible.
- “The silent dog bites the hardest” : A proverb meaning that quiet people may be the most dangerous or intense.
