Chapter 85: Things Aren’t Going as Planned
Translator: 549690339
Weishou Restaurant was across from the hotel, and Jiang Cheng and Yang Lingbao were waiting for the green light at the intersection on the hotel side.
The talisman rang, and Jiang Cheng chose to answer.
Sun Yuan’s voice came through the talisman, “Jiang Cheng, where are you? I’m already on my way, almost there.”
Jiang Cheng, “I have one more intersection, about three minutes.”
“Okay.”
As soon as Jiang Cheng finished reporting his location,
Sun Yuan’s friends immediately passed on Jiang Cheng’s situation to the hands of the Anti-Jiang Cheng Alliance.
At this moment, the Anti-Jiang Cheng Alliance, except for the unreachable Yue Ping, was fully in place.
Xie Linshan and Tang Qian were seated on either side of Lin Yao, tasked with “protecting” the leading lady of the day.
Zhou Yiwen, Chen Shuai, Wang Ze, Liu Ting, and other male classmates sat at another table.
Bao Jun and Song Zhang, who were planning to ambush Jiang Cheng outside, had also already taken up positions in the shadows on one side of the hotel, each holding a cup of milk tea.
Zhou Yiwen glanced at Lin Yao, who was seated at the table across from him, and silently began to compose a text message.
“Jiang Cheng is coming soon, everyone get ready for your assigned tasks.”
He hit send to the group.
The pressure was greatest on Bao Jun and Song Zhang at the moment; they were to fire the first shot of the day’s action. If they did not do it well, it could inevitably affect the morale of their fellow brothers.
So everyone could make mistakes, except for them!
“Jiang Cheng is coming!”
“Get ready, let him come a bit closer, and then we charge out.”
“The person next to Jiang Cheng looks a bit like Principal Yang, doesn’t he?”
“Are you sure you’re not seeing things? What does Yang Lingbao have to do with Jiang Cheng’s family?”
“Who cares if it is or isn’t, we’ve graduated anyway, what’s there to fear? Charge!”
“Charge!”
Jiang Cheng was about to reach the entrance of the hotel when Bao Jun and Song Zhang, gripping their milk tea, sprinted over.
According to their plan, the milk tea in their hands would fly from their grasp as they approached Jiang Cheng, tracing a perfect parabola to land at Jiang Cheng’s feet, splattering him with the sticky drink.
However, before Bao and Song could reach Jiang Cheng’s vicinity, it was Yang Lingbao at Jiang Cheng’s side who first recognized them.
“Hey, aren’t you guys from Senior Class 2?” Yang Lingbao said, slightly surprised.
When the principal spoke up, the menacing momentum that Bao and Song had gathered up in desperation instantly dissipated.
“Oh, right.”
“Hello, Principal.”
The two of them nodded and bowed.
“Hello there. Are you also here for the banquet?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Yes, yes.”
“Then let’s go together. Come with me and Jiang Cheng.”
“Oh, sure, sure.”
When Jiang Cheng appeared at the hotel entrance unharmed, side by side with Yang Lingbao, Zhou Yiwen and Chen Shuai, who had been observing from inside, were dumbfounded.
Is it really that hard to splash a cup of milk tea?
At the entrance of the hotel, Yang Lingbao took out a spirit stone, preparing to give it as a gift.
Bao Jun and Song Zhang sheepishly returned to their seats.
“Idiots,” Zhou Yiwen could not help but curse.
The unsuccessful start by Bao and Song indeed affected the morale of the Anti-Jiang Cheng Alliance.
Chen Shuai, who was usually confident, began to feel anxious.
Chen Shuai could only try to shift the blame in advance, “Where’s Yue Ping? Where’s he? Why hasn’t he arrived yet?”
Zhou Yiwen bit his lip and said, “Chen Shuai, you go first. I’ll call Yue Ping right now with a talisman.”
Since Zhou Yiwen had put it that way, there was nothing Chen Shuai could do but force himself to stand up, ready to pick a fight with Jiang Cheng.
But Jiang Cheng didn’t even sit at the same table as these children!
Jiang Cheng was pulled along by Yang Lingbao, talking and laughing all the way to his father Chen Qiming’s table.
As for their table in the corner of the hotel, Jiang Cheng seemed not to have noticed them at all.
This… can we even play like this?
“Chen Shuai, stick to the original plan.” Zhou Yiwen started putting pressure on Chen Shuai.
Chen Shuai’s scalp tingled. If he approached, he might lose face; if he didn’t, and acted cowardly, he’d lose even more face.
Torn between two options, Chen Shuai turned to look at the ultimate goal of their actions, Lin Yao at the neighboring table.
The tender and affectionate gaze with which Lin Yao looked at Jiang Cheng deeply unsettled Chen Shuai.
Fuck.
Let’s do this!
Chen Shuai got up and followed behind Jiang Cheng and Yang Lingbao until Jiang Cheng arrived at the table reserved for the adults.
Chen Shuai walked while brewing his emotions.
The speech he had practiced was already burning his tongue.
As long as he faced Jiang Cheng, he just needed to recite the well-rehearsed lines and it would be done!
“Chen Shuai, you’ve come at just the right time, you and Jiang Cheng are from the same school, aren’t you? Seeing the principal and not hurrying to toast together,” Chen Qiming said with a smile, subtly nudging Chen Shuai next to Jiang Cheng.
Chen Shuai, taken aback, held his wine glass and clinked it with Yang Lingbao’s, beginning to toast.
However, that was not the end, as many at the entrance examination banquet had come just for the sake of Jiang Cheng’s face.
Among them, many were actually users of the Fishing Talisman.
Now that the toasting had started, several prominent figures from the tables nearby, all holding their wine glasses, came over to cozy up to Jiang Cheng.
Whether or not they drank the wine wasn’t important; a quick chat and the chance to buy a few more talismans were both good outcomes.
Even if they didn’t use them themselves, selling them directly as scalpers could net them a good deal of favors and Spirit Stones.
The Fishing Talisman was really hot commodity in Wuyue right now.
Fishing Talisman, you could give one away based on someone’s interests.
To an exhausted middle-aged leader, you could also give one.
To the leader’s wife, you most certainly could give one too.
Compared to the popularity of Jiang Cheng, Sun Yuan, the very protagonist of the entrance examination, had just arrived at the banquet and hadn’t even attracted the attention of a single person. Even his father, Sun Qing, was now defecting, watching Jiang Cheng.
Chen Shuai was utterly unable to get a word in, not just that, but also losing a lot of face trying to squeeze out from the enclosure of adults.
“Dad, what’s up with Jiang Cheng?” Chen Shuai managed to get to Chen Qiming’s side.
Chen Qiming was deeply wary of Jiang Cheng, including that apartment; he now wouldn’t even mention it.
He simply advised Chen Shuai, “Hang out with Jiang Cheng more when you have the chance, ask dad directly if you need money.”
Chen Shuai: ?
This was the first time his father had actively suggested he make friends.
It was unusual.
Totally unusual.
The first wave of attacks, the second wave of attacks had all failed, and Yue Ping, who represented the third wave of attacks, was completely out of contact, the Anti-Jiang Cheng Alliance was panic-stricken, everyone turned to look at their last trump card, Zhou Yiwen.
“Chen Shuai, this trash.”
Zhou Yiwen’s fingers squeezing the communication talisman turned white; he was now clearer than anyone about the urgency of the situation—if he didn’t do something now, today would not be about making Jiang Cheng look like a fool, but rather putting him in the spotlight, trampling all the male cultivators from their high school beneath his feet!
In doing so, it would be akin to clearly telling Lin Yao that she was right to like Jiang Cheng, because all the other guys were worthless.
No, this absolutely couldn’t happen!
“Eh? Yaoyao, where are you going?”
Tang Qian asked, seeing Lin Yao stand up from her seat.
Lin Yao replied indifferently, “I’m going to help Jiang a bit.”
It was right when Jiang Cheng was at the peak of his popularity, Zhou Yiwen stepped out of his place and blocked Lin Yao’s path.
“Lin, Jiang Cheng is busy entertaining guests; he doesn’t have time for you right now.”
Lin Yao showed no emotion towards Zhou Yiwen, indifferently saying, “He doesn’t like entertaining; I want to go help him.”
“Lin, what do you mean?” Zhou Yiwen hadn’t comprehended yet when he saw Lin Yao making her way through the crowd towards Jiang Cheng.
Jiang Cheng was being surrounded by a group of imposing gents for toasts, so naturally, Lin Yao couldn’t just push through them. She saw the other side of the table was quite empty with just a kid sitting there.
“Hi, would you mind letting me through?”
Lin Yao asked Sun Yuan.
When Sun Yuan saw Lin Yao, he froze.
This was his idol, standing right in front of him so easily?
His legs moved uncontrollably, and he instinctively stood up, making way for Lin Yao.
Lin Yao borrowed the path from Sun Yuan’s side and smoothly circled around the table, arriving at Jiang Cheng’s side from behind him.
“Hello, dear uncles, my teacher brother can’t really drink, so how about letting Yaoyao drink for him?”
Sun Yuan: Huh? What does “my teacher brother” mean?
Meanwhile, across the street, a monster sitting in front of a pile of snacks suddenly set down the fries headed for its mouth, furrowing its brows slightly.
PS1: Yesterday we crowd-funded for talismans, and a brother guessed the author’s reserved talisman correctly. Although it doesn’t count as the author taking advice from him, the author still plans to give out the sponsorship fees for Crazy Thursday. Not for anything else, just setting a leading example as a demonstrative benchmark, keeping one’s word, saying it will be given and thus it will be given. The relevant reader will be notified in the corresponding chapter; remember to join the group and privately message the author to receive it.
PS2: The author has seen comments from some readers saying that the Fishing Talisman has doomed the Aquatic Tribe, even leading to their extinction. The author can only say not to worry, that won’t happen; the Fishing Talisman is like a school teacher, no matter how hard the teacher encourages, not all students will become top achievers—there will always be many fish that slip through the net. Besides, there are at least two more twists to come with the Fishing Talisman. Stay tuned.