⌈I won’t add other people’s WeChat casually.⌋
The sound of the slap was incredibly sharp and crisp.
The motion of the slap was decisive, swift, and flawless, executed with the precision of someone who was highly practiced.
Because it was so direct and decisive, even the business people in the room, whose minds were usually full of twists and turns, were momentarily stunned.
The brat was also dazed by the slap.
It was probably the first time in his life he had ever been slapped.
After realizing what had happened, the fourteen- or fifteen-year-old boy opened his mouth wide and started howling.
As he cried out, he looked for Ji Yue, shouting, “Mom! He hit me!”
However, the shouting irritated Lu Ran.
He reached out, grabbed a paper basket with some snacks from the table, and shoved it into the boy’s mouth.
The world went quiet.
Only then did Ji Yue snap back to reality.
Seeing her precious son being hit, she completely disregarded everything else.
“Who the hell are you to hit my son? Do you know who I am? I’m Ji Min’s aunt! Do you think you can talk to me like this?!”
As she spoke, she raised her hand to retaliate.
But Lu Ran caught her wrist, asking, “Aunt? The one who made them postpone the birthday by a day?”
Ji Yue was stunned by the question.
In the next moment, the young man extended his hand, and with a slap on her face, he said, “You can leave too!”
After that slap, everyone in the room was completely dumbfounded.
That… that was Ji Min’s real aunt!
The eldest young lady of the Ji family!
Ji Yue staggered back several steps, holding her face, unable to react for a while after being slapped.
Meanwhile, Ji Yue’s husband, seeing that both his wife and son had been slapped, finally approached.
“What the hell are you doing?!”
This man, with a robust build, reached out to grab Lu Ran by the neck.
Lu Ran raised his hand and slapped him again. “You, a man living off a woman, get lost.”
Though the man was bigger, it was so easy to knock him down.
“You!” He covered his face and charged at Lu Ran again.
Lu Ran directly grabbed his head and, with a bang, slammed it into the plate of creamy soup on the table.
The table jolted and the soup splashed everywhere.
After a moment, Lu Ran lifted his hand and asked, “Can you leave now?”
Ji Yue’s husband looked up, wiped his face in confusion, and silently turned to leave.
Three strikes!
The guests at the table with Ji Min were all stunned.
Once they regained their senses, they all turned their attention to Ji Min to see how he would react.
The man, who had looked cold and distant just moments before, now slowly furrowed his brows.
Under everyone’s gaze, he gently reached out and pulled the boy’s wrist, which had been splattered with soup, toward him.
He then took a napkin and carefully wiped off the soup from Lu Ran’s wrist and fingers.
Once he confirmed that the boy wasn’t burned, he slowly let go of his hand.
To a nearby waiter, he said, “The table is dirty, wipe it down. Take away the soup and replace it with dessert.”
At this moment, Ji Yue, still dazed from the slap, suddenly shrieked.
She stood up, pointing at Lu Ran and then at Ji Min. “He—he hit me! Ji Min, I’m your aunt. You’re just going to let him hit me?”
Ji Min furrowed his brows and glanced at her, sighing, “He’s only nineteen, just a kid who can’t control his temper. What are you fighting with him for?”
Ji Yue almost choked on her own breath in disbelief.
“Nineteen?”
What do you mean, “just nineteen”?
Does being nineteen still mean they need to see a pediatrician?!
The onlookers, after watching the entire scene, silently suppressed their shock.
They lowered their gazes, no longer daring to look in Lu Ran’s direction.
Actually, Ji Min was a little shocked too.
He had originally been worried that Lu Ran might sympathize with the Li family and feared his methods would scare the boy.
But now, after a few slaps from Lu Ran, he had already forgotten what he had originally planned.
Especially after seeing the kid beside him, who, after eating a few bites, seemed to snap out of a trance and said, “Whoa, so many people! Did your birthday party just start now?”
“What else would it be?” Ji Min shot him an annoyed glance.
Lu Ran immediately leaned over, whispering: “But I didn’t have time to cover up the hickeys, what should I do?”
Ji Min: “…”
“Thanks, but it’s fine. A single mark will work just fine,” he replied.
Lu Ran ate quietly for a while longer.
Then, his dark eyes scanned the room before asking again.
“Uh… Boss, did I accidentally hit someone important just now?”
“Accidentally?” Ji Min raised an eyebrow.
Lu Ran poked his steak with his chopsticks, speaking softly: “I might have accidentally on purpose hit someone…”
Ji Min suddenly felt a laugh bubbling up inside him.
He suppressed it and asked, “What if I said yes?”
Lu Ran fell silent for a moment.
He put down his chopsticks, clasped his hands together, and apologized to Ji Min: “Sorry, boss. Please have mercy, don’t deduct my salary!”
Then, he paused for a moment before adding, “If you need, I can also go apologize to them.”
For some reason, hearing this, Ji Min suddenly felt a sharp pang of heartache.
This kid was out of control everywhere, doing all sorts of reckless things, as if he never considered the consequences.
But now, he was telling him that he could go apologize.
“Eat your food.”
Ji Min speared a piece of cake and stuffed it into the boy’s mouth.
Watching the teenager chew like a hamster, Ji Min finally whispered, “No one needs you to apologize.”
The chaos from the earlier incident gradually died down and the banquet returned to a semblance of calm.
Everyone at the table was sharp and no one mentioned the Li family matter again.
Occasionally, someone would glance up and inconspicuously look at the boy beside Ji Min, who had his head lowered, eating.
They tried to memorize the boy’s face, reminding themselves not to be the brainless person who might offend someone they shouldn’t.
The meal had already stretched for almost two hours.
By all accounts, it should have been drawing to a close.
However, after Lu Ran sat down at the table, more dishes were brought out like a continuous stream.
Finally, Ji Min picked up his chopsticks and began to eat something.
As long as the person at the main seat didn’t move, the others were glued to their chairs.
They felt that the banquet was indeed hard to endure, but also that they had witnessed a big drama. Somehow, it felt worth it.
It wasn’t until after 4 PM that the guests began to leave one after another.
When Gu Zhi was leaving, he made a special trip to walk around the room.
Lu Ran didn’t recognize him, so he looked over at Ji Min.
Ji Min furrowed his brows and glanced at Gu Zhi before saying, “He’s from the Gu family, and according to the family hierarchy, you should call him ‘Uncle Gu’.”
At this point, Ji Min seemed to remember something and paused before adding, “He’s not an important person, you don’t need to remember him.”
Gu Zhi: “…”
“Hey, I’m still standing here. Is it really okay for you to say that?” he said.
“Well, why don’t you go a little further away?” Ji Min replied.
Gu Zhi muttered to himself, but still gave Lu Ran a thumbs-up and quietly said, “You really did well just now.”
This was the first time Lu Ran had been complimented, so he raised his head to look at Gu Zhi.
Gu Zhi stared back at him for a while.
Then, he suddenly slapped his forehead in realization, exclaiming, “Wait, you’re from the Shen family?”
Lu Ran didn’t respond, he just stared at him.
Those eyes were too familiar, and Gu Zhi suddenly remembered. “It’s me, Ran Ran! Don’t you remember me? I’m your Uncle Gu!”
At this point, Gu Zhi had completely forgotten about Ji Min and moved closer to Lu Ran.
“He’s now called Lu Ran,” Ji Min said.
“It’s a small thing, no big deal.”
Gu Zhi waved it off and, gesturing excitedly at Lu Ran, continued, “Don’t you remember? When we were little, I even took you to catch cicadas!”
“You were quiet back then, but you had a lot of courage and loved playing with bugs!”
Gu Zhi’s attitude was very warm.
This was the first time Lu Ran encountered someone who talked about his past so happily, and it piqued his curiosity.
“I still like playing with bugs,” he said.
As he spoke, he couldn’t help but take a step forward, trying to get a better look at Gu Zhi’s face to see if he recognized him.
But just as Lu Ran leaned forward, he felt his wrist being grabbed.
He turned his head and saw that it was Ji Min.
“What’s wrong, boss?” Lu Ran asked.
“Sigh! He’s just being petty, don’t mind him!” Gu Zhi walked over and reached out to pull Lu Ran aside for a chat.
Lu Ran looked at him but still turned his head to look at Ji Min.
Ji Min lightly pressed his lips together and furrowed his brows as he looked at Gu Zhi. “Why are you still here?”
“I’m always not doing anything productive and there’s nothing for me back at the company,” Gu Zhi replied, sounding quite at ease.
Ji Min, however, said, “The old man called me yesterday and asked about you at the company.”
Gu Zhi: “…”
Alright, you’re ruthless, Ji Min.
He took two steps back and gave Ji Min a bow.
Then he waved at Lu Ran. “We’ll talk another day!”
As he said this, something seemed to occur to him, and he circled back to ask Lu Ran.
“By the way, the day you returned to the Shen family, my dad even had someone send you a gift, and told you to come visit the Gu family when you have time. Why didn’t you reply?”
“Gift?”
Lu Ran slightly raised an eyebrow.
It didn’t take long for him to realize that Shen Hongyuan must have kept it from him.
He smiled at Gu Zhi. “I’ll ask clearly when I get home.”
Seeing Lu Ran’s smile, Gu Zhi couldn’t help but shudder.
The boy still looked pretty much the same as the little kid from before, but why did his smile seem so chilling now?
Gu Zhi waved at both him and Ji Min. “I’m really leaving this time! Remember to visit me sometime!”
Once Gu Zhi was out of sight, Ji Min realized that he was still holding the boy’s wrist.
He abruptly let go and looked away, giving a light cough.
Thinking about the way the boy had looked at Gu Zhi earlier, he pressed his lips together and said, “I have Gu Zhi’s contact information, I’ll send it to you later. As for old Mr. Gu, I can take you to meet him.”
Lu Ran tilted his head and stared at the man for a moment, then shook his head.
“Forget it, I don’t remember anything about what he said. But I will meet old Mr. Gu.”
It was only then that Ji Min realized the boy’s “forget it” referred to not wanting the contact information for Gu Zhi.
Most of the people had already left the courtyard.
Ji Min and Lu Ran walked toward the inner courtyard together.
Da Huang ran out and circled Lu Ran’s legs.
Lu Ran bent down and picked up Da Huang.
Suddenly, he said, “Boss, don’t worry, I remember that I’m your ‘ex-boyfriend’ now, so I won’t casually add others on WeChat.”
When he said this, his tone was the same as before.
Excited, like a little worker striving hard.
But his eyes were focused solely on Da Huang, carefully picking the grass leaves out of the dog’s fur.
Ji Min also looked away.
“Mm, alright,” he replied softly.
It was as if the earlier interruption was truly just about “work”.
When the two entered the living room, they found that not everyone had left.
The Li family father and son had already fled in a fit of rage, but Ji Yue, after all, was from the Ji family.
She was still sitting on the sofa in the living room, with a stern face.
When she saw Lu Ran come in, her face tightened and she opened her mouth to say something.
But Ji Min spoke first: “Come to the tea room.”
Ji Yue paused, still upset. She pointed at Lu Ran and said, “He slapped me and hit your younger brother. You’re still protecting him?”
Lu Ran couldn’t hold back and defended himself: “But I was really restrained.”
“Restrained?” Ji Yue nearly laughed in anger.
He slapping me and is calling it restraint?
But when Ji Min heard Lu Ran’s words, he fell into an odd silence for a moment.
Then he nodded, as if in agreement.
“That’s right, he’s been very restrained.”
Moonlit: Lady, you’ll be eating sh*t if he’s not restrained.
