The private rooms on the third floor of the club were relatively large, each averaging over two hundred square meters.
All the lights were turned on, making the whole room appear magnificent.
Sang Qiao and Xu Qiran had not been sitting for long before dish after dish was served.
From cold dishes to hot dishes, from appetizers to desserts.
The cheongsam lady who escorted them in arranged all the dishes and sweetly said, "Mr. Sang, Mr. Xu, you may start dining now. If you need anything else, please feel free to ring the bell."
Sang Qiao joyfully blew a kiss to the beautiful lady, "Love you! Can you bring me a bottle of beer?"
The slender cheongsam lady raised her lips and said, "Director Fu specifically instructed that you cannot drink."
Before Sang Qiao could speak, she placed a car key in front of him, "This is left for you by Director Fu, Mr. Sang. Remember, no drunk driving."
Sang Qiao: "..."
The car key usually has a factory logo on it.
Sang Qiao leaned over to take a look, and it seemed to be the Maserati that Fu Xingzhou came in.
Wow.
What a nice car!
Sang Qiao loved it.
So, he obediently poured himself a cup of tea, fiddled with his mouth, and picked up his chopsticks to prepare to eat heartily.
In the large private room, there were only the two of them, Sang Qiao and Xu Qiran.
In contrast to Sang Qiao, who was eating with greasy mouth.
Xu Qiran picked up his chopsticks several times, but in the end, he couldn't resist and put them down, turning his head to ask, "Sang Qiao, do you know the general manager of the Fu Corporation?"
Sang Qiao's eyes rolled a few times, "Are you talking about Fu Xingzhou?"
Xu Qiran glared at Sang Qiao, "Who else would it be?"
Sang Qiao wiped his mouth, "Just met him!"
Xu Qiran didn't believe it at all, and pressed the chopsticks back into Sang Qiao's bowl, "Just met him and he invited you to dinner?"
Sang Qiao: "..."
Sang Qiao had to put down his bowl.
Rubbed his stomach, and then let out a small belch, compromising, "Okay, I'll tell you, but don't tell anyone."
Xu Qiran knew every time Sang Qiao spoke that way, nothing good came out of it, and instantly felt a headache, "Go on."
Sang Qiao leaned toward Xu Qiran and said, "I've been taken care of by Fu Xingzhou."
Xu Qiran: "..."
It took Xu Qiran a moment to react and ask, "What did you say?"
Sang Qiao turned around, used his thumbs to make a lewd gesture, and said with a smile, "It's just a pure financial relationship."
Xu Qiran was stunned. It seemed like he wanted to say something, but he opened his mouth and didn't say anything.
In this circle, such relationships were so common that it was unnecessary to be surprised.
But it was different.
At least, before today, Xu Qiran had always thought that Sang Qiao wouldn't take this step.
Because there were too many people chasing after Sang Qiao.
He was too outstanding. Even just standing there without saying a word, he was like a beautiful rose. Unfortunately, roses had thorns that would make others bleed profusely. Therefore, Sang Qiao's performing career was always stagnant.
Xu Qiran fell silent for a while. "Sang Qiao, this kind of thing isn't a long-term solution."
Sang Qiao poked at a piece of dessert with a fork and shrugged, "But there was never anything long-lasting in my life to begin with."
Xu Qiran: "..."
Sang Qiao tilted his head back and wolfed down his food, "It's okay! Fu Xingzhou is handsome and rich, so I'm not losing out anyway."
Xu Qiran was irritated by Sang Qiao for a few seconds, and finally regained composure. "No one else knows about this, right?"
Sang Qiao shook his head, "Definitely not! Only you, me, and Fu Xingzhou know; whoever talks about it is full of crap!"
Xu Qiran: "..."
Xu Qiran wanted to punch Sang Qiao, "If you say that nonsense again, I'll make you copy a Chinese textbook."
Sang Qiao immediately behaved, flatteringly saying, "As long as you don't make me copy, we split the money that Sugar Daddy gives us fifty-fifty, okay?"
Xu Qiran: "Get lost!"
Sang Qiao pouted and left.
As they left, he didn't forget to call the cheongsam lady to pack the uneaten food into a disposable lunchbox.
When the two rolled out of the private room to wait for the director, they found that the lights in rooms 3016 and 3018, which were brightly lit before, had been turned off at some point, and even the doors were tightly closed.
The manager who had just met them personally brought a fresh-keeping box and stood in front of Sang Qiao.
With a charming smile, he bent over, "I couldn't bear to let Mr. Sang take away the leftovers, these were the dishes you liked just now. If Mr. Sang has anything he wants to eat in the future, just call the number on the business card, we provide delivery service."
Sang Qiao shamelessly accepted the benefit and pointed to the darkened private room, "May I ask, the interview is over?"
The manager spoke carefully, "No."
Sang Qiao: "Oh...I'm sorry for swearing. I saw the lights were off."
The manager patiently said, "Our clubhouse has stopped providing services to this guest."
Sang Qiao: "???"
The manager smiled, "You can ask Mr. Fu about the specific situation. Mr. Sang, Mr. Fu's car for you is parked in the underground parking lot. Let me take you there."
Sang Qiao: "..."
Sang Qiao held a Class A driver's license and drove a large truck. In other words, this was his first time driving a car.
Sitting in the driver's seat, Sang Qiao twisted uncomfortably.
After finally finding the seat belt, he gossiped with Xu Qiran, "Stopped service, do you think they kicked out Director Wang?"
Xu Qiran: "..."
Xu Qiran thought the show was probably eighty percent finished, and Sang Qiao's chance might also be gone. He was extremely worried, "Drive."
Sang Qiao shrugged and reversed the car out of the garage.
Sang Qiao, who was driving a nice car for the first time, proudly put the top down.
The late autumn night in the northern city brought the still lingering heat and the noise of the engine and tires.
Xu Qiran's phone rang twice, and he finally answered it on the third ring.
Sang Qiao parked the car on the side of the road, listening to Xu Qiran on the phone while flirting with attractive women passing by.
It seemed like Xu Qiran had heard some wonderful news on the phone, and his eyes towards Sang Qiao became noticeably kinder.
After a while, Xu Qiran hung up and said, "I just found out that the variety show we talked about has changed directors."
Sang Qiao: "Ha?"
Xu Qiran seemed to be in a much better mood: "Originally it was only going to be broadcast on the platform, but now the platform invited a big director on their own. Does Shao Ming know?"
Sang Qiao sincerely replied: "I don't know."
Xu Qiran scolded Sang Qiao: "The initiator of the earliest domestic talent show entertainment. Did you forget all the industry knowledge I asked you to understand?"
Sang Qiao, who knew nothing about studying, honestly replied: "Should we still go for the interview?"
Xu Qiran said, "Yes, tomorrow."
Sang Qiao: "Oh..."
Xu Qiran pondered, "Could it be that Fu Dong informed them?"
Sang Qiao lazily leaned on the steering wheel and tilted his head: "A few dishes, and we're already drunk like this?"
Xu Qiran: "Shut up."
After being reprimanded by Xu Qiran, Sang Qiao was reminded to prepare well for tomorrow's interview when he got home.
By the time he arrived back at the house, it was already past ten in the evening.
The wide-framed Maserati couldn't fit into the narrow alley.
Sang Qiao tried several ways and finally managed to squeeze the car into a temporary parking space by the roadside.
Unlike the high-profile and wealthy Fu family, and different from the clubs where the consumption level far exceeded the average, this place was filled with a sense of hustle and bustle in every inch of soil.
The floor tiles underfoot, which were already worn and uneven, were stained with oil and difficult-to-remove dirt.
Even though it was this late, most of the kitchen lights were still on.
That was when people returning home late were preparing a meal to reward themselves.
The ambitious young people had long moved away from here.
The remaining residents, aside from the renters, were mostly elderly people of moderate means, unwilling to burden their children.
When Sang Qiao returned to the entrance of the building, several old ladies downstairs were fanning themselves and chatting.
The old ladies all recognized Sang Qiao, and greeted him, "Qiao Qiao is back, are you busy?"
Sang Qiao put on a charming smile and replied, "Not busy."
"Qiao Qiao, are you tired? If not, can you help Granny Zhang carry the water upstairs?"
"And also, the gas bottle for Granny Li's house, no rush, you can do it tomorrow."
The old houses built in the fifties and sixties were generally not very tall, only three or four floors.
After helping a few grannies, Sang Qiao wiped the sweat from his forehead.
Then he turned back with a smile, "I almost forgot, I've gathered the money for Grandpa Sun's medical treatment. I'll transfer it to him tomorrow and he can have the surgery right away, we can't delay anymore."
One of the grannies happened to be Grandpa Sun's spouse, and she immediately said, "How can this be? That's a large sum of money. There's no reason for you to pay for it!"
Sang Qiao smiled and said, "It's only right. If all the grandpas and grandmas hadn't given me a meal to eat back then, I would have starved to death a long time ago."
After this was said, the elderly people fell silent for a moment. Then, they all urged him, "Yes, medical treatment is important, it's a matter of life and death. Now that you've grown up and made something of yourself, you should focus on the treatment first."
Grandpa Sun's spouse also hesitated, and after a while, she said, "Qiao Qiao, is this large sum of money really not a problem?"
Sang Qiao patted his chest and reassured her, "It's fine, don't worry!"
Eight million yuan minus the eight hundred thousand he gave to Grandpa Sun, Granny Zhang's family needed a new color TV, Granny Liu wanted to buy a refrigerator, Granny Li...
The forty-square-meter apartment only had one bedroom and one living room.
But because the furnishings in the room were so simple, even a one-bedroom flat felt spacious.
Sang Qiao yawned under the dim light, and couldn't help but rest his head on the table.
After deducting all the expenses, there would still be six million five hundred thousand left.
As long as he spent frugally, it should be enough for a lifetime.
But he didn't know how long a lifetime would be.
Sang Qiao pondered this question. Before he could come to a conclusion, the phone placed at the other end of the table rang.
He looked at it.
Oh, it's his dad, Sang Zhongde.
Sang Qiao ruffled his hair, grabbed the phone, and said, "Good evening, Chairman Sang."
Sang Zhongde couldn't stand Sang Qiao's ruffian appearance: "Will you never have any manners?"
Sang Qiao pretended, "I'm sorry, Chairman Sang, I didn't have a proper upbringing, I'm really sorry."
Sang Zhongde took a deep breath and changed the subject, "Did Fu Xingzhou get the certificate?"
Sang Qiao yawned again, "Yes, he did."
Sang Zhongde said, "Take a photo and send it to me later, I want to see."
Sang Qiao smirked, "If you don't believe me, just say so, no need to beat around the bush. No problem, I'll send it to you later. Is there anything else?"
Sang Zhongde was almost provoked by Sang Qiao's words, he took several breaths before continuing, "Do you remember what I asked you to do?"
Sang Qiao replied, "I remember. Keep the marriage secret, I can't let anyone know that Fu Xingzhou is engaged to me."
"But," said Sang Qiao, crossing his slim, white legs on the table, "you're not really planning to wait for Sang Qing to come to his senses and then exchange him for me, are you?"
Sang Zhongde didn't want to say another word to Sang Qiao, and coldly replied, "This is none of your concern."
Sang Qiao nodded, "It's not my concern, I just think you're quite stupid, wanted to give my opinion."
Sang Zhongde was so angry that he hung up the phone.
Sang Qiao happily hung up the phone, whistled, and went to take a shower in the small bathroom. Then he crawled into the warm bed.
Close eyes.
Open eyes.
Close eyes.
Open eyes.
...
Can't sleep.
Sang Qiao felt intense pain in his arms and legs, but his mind was as clear as if he could drink ten bottles of pesticides or eat a chicken. He tossed and turned in bed for a while, but finally decided to get out of bed.
He looked at his phone.
It was three in the morning.
Outside, it was quiet.
Not a single light or shadow could be seen.
He felt more and more out of place in this world.
Sang Qiao stood by the window for a while, as if suddenly realizing something, he took a step back. Then he turned around and turned on the light in the room.
The room was suddenly bright.
Sang Qiao pulled open a drawer under the table and took out a white unlabeled pill bottle.
There was some leftover water in the cup.
Sang Qiao poured out two pills and swallowed them with water.
The cold water chilled his stomach.
Sang Qiao grimaced, screwed the bottle back and threw it into the drawer, "Bah, lousy doctor, tastes awful."
The author has something to say: Fu Xingzhou: Who's my sugar daddy?
Fu Xingzhou: That's my wife, understand? My wife!
Qiao Qiao: 00
Qiao Qiao: Although I'm selfish, troublesome, and a jerk, can you forgive me for being sick? qaaaaaq I'm being cute to you all!