Chapter 563: I’m Just Here for a Free Meal

“Xu Shaochen, you’re taking things too far.”

Kong Tianjing squeezed out the words through gritted teeth.

He finally understood.

Xu Shaochen was intentionally trying to mess with him today, purposely stirring things up, and there was nothing he could do about it.

“Young Master Kong, how am I going too far? I’m just thick-skinned enough to come for a free meal.

Is that such a big deal?”

Xu Shaochen looked wronged as if he had been misunderstood. Meanwhile, Long Yi had already brought in the bowl and chopsticks.

Without hesitation, Xu Shaochen started eating. While eating, he beckoned to everyone, “Come on, come on, don’t be shy. If you don’t eat soon, the food will get cold.”

As his words fell, it seemed as if no one had heard him. From beginning to end, not a single person picked up their chopsticks.

“What’s the matter? No one wants to have a meal with me? Are you all looking down on me?”

Xu Shaochen’s face darkened as his eyes swept over everyone, his gaze sharp like a blade.

No one dared meet his gaze.

“Heh, isn’t this Director Liu from the Municipal Bureau, and this one, the warden of the Second Prison of Yijing? Oh, and this one, impressive indeed, the son of the second-in-command of Yijing, and this one…”

As Xu Shaochen identified each person, the sweat on their foreheads seemed to increase, as Xu Shaochen was applying tremendous psychological pressure on them.

“Each of you is a big shot in your own right, so it’s perfectly understandable not to give face to a little nobody like me. I get it.”

Xu Shaochen sighed, then continued eating nonchalantly.

“Ring ring ring…”

Suddenly, Kong Tianjing’s phone began to ring.

Just as Kong Tianjing was about to answer, Xu Shaochen spoke up, “Young Master Kong, I’m curious about this call too. How about putting it on speaker?”

Despite his seemingly polite words, Xu Shaochen rudely snatched the phone away and put it on speaker right in the middle of the table.

A panicked voice immediately came from the phone.

“Young Master, something terrible has happened. Lan Cheng was strangled to death in the detention center.”

For a moment, the atmosphere in the private room dropped to freezing point, as if the temperature had plummeted. Everyone felt a chill.

Earlier, Kong Tianjing had briefly mentioned something about Lan Cheng to them, but before he could go into details, Xu Shaochen had interrupted.

And now, Lan Cheng had suddenly been strangled to death. Was this just a coincidence?

“Young Master, Young Master, why aren’t you saying anything? Did something happen to you?”

Hearing no response from Kong Tianjing, the bodyguard on the other end sounded visibly anxious.

“I understand.”

Kong Tianjing responded coldly and then hung up the phone, his gaze icy as he looked at Xu Shaochen. “Xu Shaochen, you’ve got some guts. I didn’t expect you’d act this fast.”

“Hmm? What do you mean, Young Master Kong? You should be careful with your words. I, Xu Shaochen, am known as a law-abiding citizen. You shouldn’t dump this kind of dirt on me.”

Xu Shaochen warned, staring at Kong Tianjing.

“Hmph!” Kong Tianjing snorted coldly before adding, “Lan Cheng is dead, so be it. I should thank you for eliminating a nuisance for me, saving me the trouble of having to rescue him.”

“Sigh, I’m happy to help Young Master Kong solve any problems, but this really has nothing to do with me.”

Xu Shaochen paused for a moment, then looked at the others, “Do I look like the kind of person who would do such a thing? Young Master Kong, you must really misunderstand me. Right, everyone?”

No one said a word, but the fear and wariness in their eyes spoke volumes.

“Oh, I forgot. You big shots look down on someone like me. There’s no way you’d talk to me.”

Xu Shaochen chuckled self-deprecatingly, then stood up, picked up a napkin, wiped his mouth, and looked at the group.

“I hope you all remain big shots forever. Hmm, it would be unfortunate if one day you stumbled and ended up like me, just another ordinary commoner.”

With that, Xu Shaochen smiled slightly at Kong Tianjing, “Thanks for the meal, Young Master Kong, but the beef stew wasn’t that great.”

After he finished speaking, he casually tossed the napkin he had wiped his mouth with into the dish in front of Kong Tianjing, then left with his bodyguard.

Whew—

As Xu Shaochen’s footsteps completely faded away, everyone in the private room let out a long sigh of relief.

But they all caught the warning in Xu Shaochen’s final words, which sent chills down their spines.

They didn’t even know who Xu Shaochen really was.

But since Xu Shaochen dared to go head-to-head with Kong Tianjing and seemed to have the upper hand, it was clear he was no simple man.

Thus, there was a real possibility Xu Shaochen could strip away their prestige, turning them into ordinary people.

Thinking of this, they exchanged worried glances, feeling the cold sweat run down their backs.

“Young Master Kong, I just remembered I have something urgent to attend to at home. I’ll be leaving now. I’ll treat you to a meal next time.”

“Young Master Kong, I just remembered I left something cooking at home. I need to take my leave too.”

“Young Master Kong, it’s time for me to head home. If I’m late, my wife will throw a fit…”

As if they had a prior agreement, everyone scrambled to come up with excuses, hastily fleeing the private room.

“Crash!”

Watching the now-empty room, Kong Tianjing angrily kicked over a chair.

“Damn cowards! A bunch of useless weaklings who will never accomplish anything!”

Cursing loudly, Kong Tianjing grabbed a beer bottle and began guzzling it down, spilling the alcohol all over his clothes.

“Xu Shaochen, you’re something else. I’d like to see how you plan to snatch that thing from me.”

Teeth clenched, Kong Tianjing spat out the words before storming out of the private room.

“Sir, sir, wait! You haven’t paid the bill yet.”

Just as Kong Tianjing stepped into the elevator, the waiter’s anxious voice called out behind him.

Kong Tianjing: “………”

………

Meanwhile, the seven people who had just dined with Kong Tianjing had already left the hotel.

“Quick, find out who this Xu Shaochen really is.”

“That name rings a bell. I feel like I heard it not too long ago,” said the Municipal Bureau Director, frowning.

“It doesn’t matter who he is. What matters is where he lives. We need to find out where he’s staying and pay him a visit.”

“Here, I found it. Last night’s news.”

They barely skimmed the headline before the group instantly remembered who Xu Shaochen was. Thick beads of sweat rolled down their foreheads, their faces turning as pale as paper.

“Gulp—”

Someone loudly swallowed a mouthful of saliva, followed by a chorus of similar sounds.

Especially the young man in the silver suit who had previously been hit by Xu Shaochen, originally defiant, but now full of fear and anxiety.