Chapter 638 - 284: Perhaps I Was a Beast of Burden Before, So I Know Their Suffering

But just as he was boarding his flight, Lin Suiling caught him by surprise, kissing him on the cheek and snapping a photo.

She looked incredibly pleased with herself.

’It was just one intimate photo, not a nude or anything.’ For the life of him, Xu Yun couldn’t figure out what she was so smug about.

When he got home, he checked his phone and saw a text from Chen Xin.

It seemed her event was over. The association had arranged an evening activity, so after dinner and hanging out for a while, she would head back on her own.

She told him not to worry about her.

Xu Yun never interfered with the social lives of the women in his life.

Everyone is an individual and deserves their own space and freedom.

Besides, it was a good thing for a girl with social anxiety like Chen Xin to get out and interact with people more. Otherwise, she’d just be cooped up at home writing novels all day and lose touch with the world.

While lying on the sofa, bored and scrolling through his phone, Xu Yun discovered that yesterday’s team-building event was trending again on the short-form video apps.

SHOCKING! COMPANY SPENDS 5 MILLION TO RENT ENTIRE BAR FOR EMPLOYEE TEAM-BUILDING!

He had no idea who had recorded the video and posted it online.

The comments section below was even more abuzz with activity.

"Listen up, you damn capitalists, *this* is what a team-building event looks like!"

"I’d call this the pinnacle of team-building!"

"For real, I’m so jealous! I want one of those top-of-the-line phones too!"

"Can I ask if the company is still hiring? I’ll quit my job this instant T_T"

"Damn, the money they gave out at their team-building is more than my monthly salary."

"Badass. No wonder that bar was closed last night. Turns out some big shot booked the whole place for a team-building event."

Xu Yun scrolled for a while, thinking the people in the comments section were real characters.

Every single one of them was a smooth talker and hilarious.

And they were full of good jokes.

He left a comment below: "Correction, I only spent 4 million, not 5 million."

Then he went back to scrolling through other videos.

Suddenly, a video about intangible cultural heritage with over a million likes made him stop scrolling.

He recognized the female influencer.

She was one of the original top-tier influencers.

But she had disappeared a few years ago after a lawsuit with her company, announcing she was quitting the internet.

He was surprised to see that even after coming back, she was still at the top of her game.

He read in the comments that after posting this video, she had gained another 3.5 million followers in just one day, and her total was about to break 50 million.

Looking at the finished product she had created after a year of long, hard work, Xu Yun genuinely liked it.

’Isn’t this so much better than foreign luxury goods?’

’Back when I was poor, I could only admire products of intangible cultural heritage like this from afar; I never dreamed of owning one.’

But now, of course, things were different.

’When I get the chance, I’ll definitely find time to visit her and preorder a piece of Su embroidery for my mom, so she can show it off during the New Year.’

So, he tagged her in the comments and left a message.

"Teacher Li, can I add you as a friend?"

Xu Yun’s online persona, "Young Master Xu," had been getting a lot of attention on the internet recently.

He believed that with the help of netizens, it wouldn’t be long before she saw his comment.

Just as he was killing time by looking through her past works, Chen Xin suddenly sent him a message, asking if he had time to come pick her up.

Xu Yun frowned.

’Knowing Chen Xin’s personality, if she said she’d get a taxi home, she would.’

’She’d never bother me!’

’So for her to suddenly ask me to come get her, there must be a reason.’

Xu Yun texted back curiously, "What’s wrong?"

"Nothing, I just want to come back now."

Seeing she didn’t want to say, Xu Yun didn’t press the issue. He just grabbed his jacket, left the house, and started driving toward the location Chen Xin had sent.

Half an hour later, Xu Yun arrived at the entrance of a KTV. An employee led him to the private room where Chen Xin was.

There were quite a few people inside, both men and women.

But they were mostly young people.

Everyone looked at Xu Yun, who had suddenly barged in, with confused expressions.

A young man stood up and asked uncertainly, "Bro, who are you looking for? Can I help you?"

"I’m here for Chen Xin."

After speaking, Xu Yun walked straight to Chen Xin’s side and said, "Let’s go."

"Oh."

The man who had spoken first asked, "Chen Xin, is this your...?"

"He’s my boyfriend."

Chen Xin said, a little shyly, "Sorry, something’s come up, so I have to go now."

With that, she deliberately took Xu Yun’s hand right in front of the man and left the room.

Once they were out of the KTV, Xu Yun understood why Chen Xin had called him over.

It seemed she had run into an admirer.

Xu Yun teased, "What, was that great writer from earlier into you?"

"Mhm."

Chen Xin nodded. "He didn’t say it outright, but I could feel it."

"Don’t worry, I’m not the jealous type."

Xu Yun said, "The fact that my girlfriend is so well-liked is something to be happy about."

"But the way he was being nice to me made me uncomfortable."

Chen Xin explained, "Plus, everyone else was teasing us and making jokes about it. It made me really unhappy, so I didn’t want to stay."

On the way back, Chen Xin saw a group of university students on a night ride.

It was a lively and happy scene.

She said nostalgically, "When I was in university, I used to love riding my bike around campus at night by myself."

"How about we secretly follow them and blend in?"

Xu Yun smiled. "It’s been a long time since I’ve ridden a bike."

"Okay!"

Chen Xin’s eyes lit up instantly.

But soon, a problem occurred to her.

"But where are we going to find bikes now?"

"That’s easy. Watch me."

Xu Yun looked at the large procession of students, then gestured to stop two young men. "Excuse me, could you guys help me with something?"

They asked, confused, "What is it?"

"I’ll give you each five thousand if you let me have your bikes."

Xu Yun gestured with his chin toward Chen Xin behind him and explained, "It’s my girlfriend’s birthday today, and she wants me to go for a bike ride with her."

"Of course!"

Hearing such a great offer, the two immediately agreed. "Helping others brings joy. It’s a traditional virtue!"

Although this night ride would have been an unforgettable experience of their youth, for five thousand each, they were willing to give up that experience.

After scanning their codes and transferring the money, Xu Yun successfully acquired two bicycles.

And just like that, he and Chen Xin, each on a bike, followed the large group all the way into Jiangcheng University.

Once on campus, Xu Yun took in the familiar surroundings and said with a smile, "I haven’t been back once since I graduated."

"You graduated from Jiangcheng University?"

"Mhm."

Chen Xin said with envy, "Wow, you’re amazing. That’s a top-tier university."

"So what if it is?"

Xu Yun said self-deprecatingly, "After graduating, don’t most of us just end up as wage slaves for some damn capitalist?"

"There are good capitalists, too."

Chen Xin retorted with a smile, "Like you, for example. You’re almost *too* good to your employees. I saw the trending news today; everyone is insanely jealous."

"Maybe it’s because I used to be a wage slave myself, so I know how much it sucks."

"Sigh."

Chen Xin suddenly sighed. "If only I had studied a little harder, just a little bit more, I could have gotten into this university. Maybe then I would have met you sooner."

"Why would you want to meet me sooner?"

"Because I like you."

Chen Xin said with a hint of frustration, "Then I would’ve latched onto you and never let go, and I wouldn’t have let you find so many other close female friends."

"Maybe..."

’If I had really met someone as wonderful as Chen Xin in university,’ Xu Yun thought, ’we might have gotten married right after graduation. We would have lived an ordinary life, having and raising children.’

’Every day, Chen Xin and I would work hard to earn money, pay the mortgage, and buy a car.’

’My mom would be at home helping with the kids, cooking meals for us every day when we got home from work.’

’The family wouldn’t have been very wealthy, but we would have been happy and harmonious.’

’Then the whole thing with Huang Mengyao would have never happened.’

’And I certainly wouldn’t have acquired the Divine Rich System because of Huang Mengyao, starting this brand-new life where I could Do as You Please.’

So...

’In life, you never know what’s going to happen next!’

(P.S. Sorry this Chapter is a bit of a filler; I wrote it to maintain my perfect attendance bonus. I’m having some serious writer’s block.)