on.The entire table fell silent. Wang Weiwei, who was seen as aloof and high up like a prince among the crowd at Yi Zhong High School, was actually called "garbage" by Su Can. Now everyone looked at S...Chapter Twenty-Two: Hurdles

Guo Xiaozhong had been feeling frustrated these past few days, not seeing Su Cen at school. This time he specially came from home to look for him and learned that he was going to contribute an article to Chao Hua Magazine. His eyes immediately widened as he couldn't hide his excitement upon hearing the news that Su Cen would be writing for "Yao Tai," a column in the magazine.

Although many students at No.27 High School had criticisms about Chao Hua Magazine, it still enjoyed considerable attention throughout the entire school due to its status as the official literary publication. There was no denying this because of its widespread influence.

The incident Guo Xiaozhong remembered most clearly was Wu Shimiao's submission to Chao Hua last semester, which made it among the three articles selected for "Yao Tai." At that time, two large courtyards' children had organized an outing to eat small hotpots. Wu Shimiao wore clothing so eye-catching that she was treated like a princess by Zhao Xin and Yang Zhao, who fawned over her excessively, causing Guo Xiaozhong's heart to race inexplicably. Despite the other kids in the old courtyard secretly criticizing her behind her back, they couldn't hide their envy.

Wu Shimiao basked in glory that day and felt her name would be buzzed about if her article was published by "Yao Tai." This sense of vanity was enough to make her blush with satisfaction. It was said that Zhao Xin had argued with Wu Shimiao due to her haughty attitude during the selection period, but after Yao Tai chose a different submission, they stayed out at a barbecue stall late into the night. They returned red-eyed and drunk, indicating it had been quite a blow for Wu Shimiao.

Guo Xiaozhong wanted to rush out and find her back then, but reason told him that wouldn't help and might even provoke Wu Shimiao's foul temper, leading to an angry tirade. This incident left a deep impression on Guo Xiaozhong.

Hearing now that Li Qingyang, the strong-willed president of Chao Hua Society, had personally requested Su Cen to write for them was astonishing and made him feel that Su Cen's potential was truly remarkable.

"Li Qingyang, Yang Cheng, Du Yifei, and Jia Haiming are the school's four renowned 'talents.' I think you have the potential to catch up with them!" Guo Xiaozhong said earnestly as he picked up a chocolate pie from Su Cen’s coffee table and started eating it without hesitation. These chocolate pies were considered high-end in supermarkets back then, featuring soft and delicate black cocoa cake, rich and pure dark chocolate, and creamy milk-filled layers that melted smoothly in the mouth—treats Guo Xiaozhong usually couldn't afford to enjoy.

Su Cen smiled. He knew that within the campus, students were deeply influenced by Hong Kong films, since there weren’t many foreign movies around at this time compared to later years when American TV series dominated the scene and made people feel overwhelmed with too many blockbusters and prone to boredom. The thriving period of Hong Kong cinema had also brought a lot of slang from those movies into use among students. While internet buzzwords hadn't yet exploded, these insults or newly coined words were considered quite "trendy" at present.

The notion of the four talented scholars in the school is mostly associated with Stephen Chow's "A Chinese Odyssey" where he portrayed Tang Bohu. These classic movies are still being alternately aired on domestic TV channels today. Although Hong Kong films have declined, their influence from back then remains significant.

"Oh no!" Guo Xiaozhong thought for a moment and immediately interrupted his previous speculation: "You will definitely catch up to them because at least two of these four individuals are girls who desire you ardently, and they are your girlfriends!"

"Girlfriends!" Su Chen was taken aback, nearly speechless.

"Don't tell me that a simple hug between ordinary friends can look like what I saw outside the classroom," Guo Xiaozhong said with yearning. He thought to himself that ever since he first met this new companion on his first day here, he knew there was something extraordinary about him. Now, his assumptions and insights are being proven correct.

"Oh no!" Guo Zhong slapped his hand in realization as he stared at Su Chen: "If you are involved with Tang Wu, what if Li Qingyang demands your manuscript"

Su Chen nodded and flashed a grin at him. "You're making progress; you've finally seen the essence of things."

Guo Zhong was startled. He even forgot about the snacks on the coffee table, as well as Su Chen's breakfast for tomorrow morning: "That Li Qingyang is truly regarded by most girls as a male idol like Takeshi Kaneshiro; he actually uses such despicable methods to fight over a girl. You're just a transfer student with no fame and reputation—how could he possibly request your manuscript He will definitely use this opportunity to humiliate you! Hey, buddy, do you have the confidence that your article for Yao Tai column won't be criticized by others This column is of utmost importance and caters to the general taste. Rarely are articles submitted here not subject to criticism!"

"I'll try my best." Su Chen shook his head and thought it amusing that he would actually care about how an article would impact the school's reputation. However, considering the environment at No. 27 High School, his concern was understandable given that this wasn't just targeted at him but also involved Tang Wu.

He had been reborn here; hence, for any bullying from high school students, he could simply ignore it with a flip of his eyes. But how Tang Wu felt about these things mattered to him. Although she appeared mature, she was only seventeen years old. She might not completely disregard others' opinions either, and given that she recommended him, she hoped he would shine at No. 27 High School. This young girl's thoughts were indeed fickle; one couldn't judge her based on appearance alone.

When Su Cheng returned home, he was so excited that he immediately instructed Su Chen and Zeng He to get ready for a dinner engagement today. Originally, this dinner was meant for Zhong Jianjun from the corporate management department, but due to some matters today, Su Cheng had to take his place instead. Since future enterprise management would be handled solely by these two individuals, it was necessary for Su Cheng to prepare himself.

But it seemed that this wasn’t a formal dinner, but rather something like a banquet with a relaxed atmosphere. Su Licheng naturally wouldn’t let his family go hungry while he ate alone. When there were gatherings at the company in Xiahai City, Little Su Licheng would always drag his entire family along. If they found anything good to eat, no one was left behind. They didn’t care about what others might think.

When stepping out of the building, he saw that some cadres from the company had already left in their cars. So the whole family took a taxi and went to Da Ronghe on Zijin Road. The parking lot was filled with sedans as this Sichuan restaurant was quite famous and often crowded with people dining there. When they got out of the car, Su Licheng saw some familiar faces from the company, whom he greeted.

Only then did he realize that many of those around him were also attending the banquet. The atmosphere was relaxed; there were colleagues from the company and others who seemed to be acquaintances. Most of them had brought their families with them—Li Yuhé and his wife were among them. When they saw Su Licheng, they even came over to exchange a few pleasantries. This surprised Su Cai, as well as Su Licheng. However, Su Cai had an inkling that something was amiss about this dinner.

As expected, when they got upstairs, several women were collecting red envelopes from people while welcoming them inside.

Su Licheng was taken aback and asked the person beside him, "What kind of banquet is this"

"It’s a birthday party for Deputy Director Zhang Ping’s eighteen-year-old daughter. Didn’t you know" A department manager was puzzled by Su Licheng’s ignorance.

Su Licheng was confused; wasn’t this supposed to be an event organized by the city union How did it suddenly turn into a birthday party for the director of the Provincial Construction Committee's daughter

Now that they were caught off guard, they hadn’t prepared anything beforehand. Moreover, people weren't registering their gifts and just handing over red envelopes with names written on them. It seemed everyone at the banquet knew about this event except his family, which meant there must be some underhanded dealings going on.

Before Su Cai’s family could react, they were swept into the ballroom by the crowd. Thinking back to how those middle-aged women had scrutinized them earlier and seeing Li Yuhé and others looking rather smug, Su Cai felt a surge of inexplicable anger.

Deputy Director Zhang Ping, with his beer belly, was still addressing the directors from real estate companies in an elongated tone even though it was his daughter’s birthday party. Although these people pretended to agree outwardly, they were cursing inwardly since those who usually lorded over their own companies felt powerless when faced with actual decision-makers.

However, the person representing the Great Oak Construction Group was different. After all, this company was under Xu’s old man’s control and had many connections; therefore, he smiled more readily when speaking to Li Yuhé and other department chiefs and managers.

Lǐ Yúhé then pulled Zhāng Píng over. He waved at Sū Líchéng and smiled, "Come here, Director Zhāng, let me introduce you to our new deputy minister of the enterprise management department, Sū Líchéng. He was in charge of the project for Xiahai City's Star Sea Square, which has been recognized by the provincial government; he’s now transferred to our company. He’s quite remarkable and is a talent within Dagong Construction Group! You’ll be interacting with him frequently from now on. Do you want to have a drink"

Zhāng Píng felt somewhat uncomfortable inside. Did it really require such a grand introduction for a deputy minister of the entire department From Lǐ Yúhé’s words, Zhāng Píng got the impression that Sū Líchéng was quite arrogant because he had successfully overseen Star Sea Square, an award-winning project at the provincial level People like him often fell flat on their faces.

Zhāng Píng's expression darkened slightly. "We specially organized a study trip to examine Star Sea Square; it’s indeed impressive."

Sū Càn, who was listening by the side, felt his heart tighten up a little. Zhāng Píng seemed quite unhappy with what Lǐ Yúhé said, and his tone wasn’t friendly.

But Sū Càn’s father didn’t seem to pick up on anything wrong; he spoke freely: "Star Sea Square was my first large-scale project in Xiahai City where I participated from supervision to design and regulations. The designers and construction teams were full of talent, coming up with ingenious solutions for lighting, landscaping, settlement, and other architectural challenges. It’s truly worth learning from and emulating. This is inseparable from the accumulated experience of outstanding frontline personnel. As long as we actively discover such talents and combine their strengths, our provincial architecture has a significant advantage!"

Seeing his father speak so unrestrainedly made Sū Càn feel down.

Lǐ Yúhé smiled in an extremely sinister manner. Not knowing that Zhāng Píng was already unhappy with him, he spoke with evident distaste; yet Sū Líchéng continued to elaborate as if inviting engineers from the provincial construction department to visit and learn!

Initially, Zhāng Píng’s expression darkened when hearing this. However, after listening closely and seeing through Sū Líchéng's straightforwardness with no ulterior motives, he noticed Lǐ Yúhé’s sly smile and immediately understood that this was a trap set by Lǐ Yúhé to use him against someone else. He actually started to like Sū Líchéng for his candid nature.

Smiling, Zhāng Píng raised his glass and clinked it with Sū Líchéng’s. "Bottoms up! Manager Lǐ just told me that you’re a talent. Now I see that your Dagong Construction Group is indeed skilled at identifying outstanding cadres!"

Lǐ Yúhé was taken aback. Zhāng Píng had been sipping his drinks with others, but he and Sū Líchéng actually downed their glasses together. Clearly, Zhāng Píng admired him greatly. He originally planned to target Sū Líchéng, only to find himself unwittingly outsmarted.

"Are you the one who’s like ZHōu Xīngchí" It seemed that a single-lidded girl with a butterfly clip in her hair and wearing a dark green dress had been sizing up Sū Càn earlier. After careful observation, she finally seemed to confirm.lly infuriating."Well then, let's agree on that," Chen Linsan felt it wasn't a big deal to be here in this little lake, considered by everyone as the perfect spot for dating. She turned around gracefu...