Chapter 339: You Call This a Small Business?

Chapter 339 -264: You Call This a Small Business?

“I don’t know.”

“Never heard of him.”

Gao Wei and the others all shook their heads, their faces completely blank.

“Uh…”

“That’s our boss.”

Just as Wan Jiaze and the others were utterly bewildered, the server at the register pointed in a certain direction.

Hearing this, Wan Jiaze and the others all followed the server’s finger.

The man they pointed to, the owner of Champion Scholar Pavilion, was at that very moment standing deferentially by Gu Heng’s side, his demeanor exceedingly polite.

“What’s going on?”

“Your cousin’s childhood friend knows the owner of Champion Scholar Pavilion?”

“Did the owner comp our meal because of your cousin’s friend?”

Seeing this, Sun Ye looked slightly stunned. “Brother Wan, don’t tell me your cousin’s friend is the son of some high-ranking official?”

“He’s not.”

Wan Jiaze was just as shocked as Sun Ye and the others, if not more so. While they had no idea about Gu Heng’s background, he did—and that was precisely why he was so stunned.

Amid everyone’s astonished gazes, Gu Heng and Wan Jiakai, who had been walking behind, reached the register.

“Brother, what are you all standing around here for?”

Wan Jiakai asked Wan Jiaze, completely confused.

Wan Jiaze ignored Wan Jiakai. He turned his gaze to Gu Heng, but given the setting, he didn’t say or ask much, simply stating with a hint of resignation,

“Ah Heng, the owner comped the meal.”

Hearing this, Gu Heng turned to look at the owner of Champion Scholar Pavilion, Fan Sheng, who was beside him.

“Mr. Gu, you’ve honored my humble establishment with your presence. That alone is a great show of respect to me, Fan Sheng. How could I possibly accept your money?”

Fan Sheng beamed as Gu Heng looked his way, quickly offering his explanation.

When Wan Jiaze, Sun Ye, and the others heard the owner of Champion Scholar Pavilion addressing Gu Heng—a man decades his junior—so formally with each word, the expressions on their faces shifted subtly once again.

“Boss Fan, restaurants run on thin margins, and this is a small-scale operation.”

“If you do this, I won’t be able to come back in the future.”

Gu Heng shook his head. As he spoke, he gently pressed the silver ring on his right index finger with his left thumb.

This silver ring looked like a piece of jewelry, but it actually concealed a micro-sensor. Its signal terminal was located at the Zhao De Inheritance Security Department, where it was monitored in real-time, 24/7.

A single press was a routine summons.

Three presses signified an emergency summons.

Rapid, continuous presses indicated a high-threat alert.

The first case would only bring Gu Heng’s personal bodyguard.

The second would require all professional bodyguards routinely hidden around Gu Heng to immediately converge on his position for an emergency assembly.

As for the third scenario, it would mobilize every single professional bodyguard from the Zhao De Inheritance Security Department. The entire Zhao De Inheritance would activate its emergency protocols, deploying all its societal resources from top to bottom to ensure Gu Heng’s safety.

At that moment, Sun Ye, Gao Wei, and the others standing before Gu Heng and Fan Sheng heard Gu Heng’s words and subconsciously glanced around the packed dining hall.

‘Excuse me? What did you just say, buddy? You call this a small-scale operation? A single day’s profit from this place probably exceeds our entire annual salary, and he calls it a small-scale operation?’

Yet, when they looked at the Champion Scholar Pavilion owner’s expression after Gu Heng had spoken, he didn’t seem to have any intention of refuting it.

“No, no, no!”

“Mr. Gu, I just wanted to show a small token of my appreciation!”

Hearing Gu Heng’s words, Fan Sheng waved his hands in protest.

As they were speaking, Xiang Lingshuang, having just received Gu Heng’s summons, quickly walked in from outside Champion Scholar Pavilion.

She wore a black, stand-collar wool coat, giving her a sharp and capable appearance.

“Give me the handbag.”

Gu Heng instructed in a low voice as Xiang Lingshuang walked straight up to him.

Upon hearing this, Xiang Lingshuang immediately handed the handbag she was carrying to Gu Heng. After taking it, Gu Heng unzipped it, pulled out a thick wad of cash, and placed it gently on the counter.

“Put the extra on a gift card. I’ll be back.”

Gu Heng said to Fan Sheng.

“This…”

Fan Sheng wanted to refuse, but when he met Gu Heng’s gaze, which seemed to brook no argument, he swallowed his words. “Then we’ll do as Mr. Gu says. Thank you for your patronage.”

“Of course.”

Gu Heng smiled, then looked at the dumbfounded Wan Jiaze and the others. “Brother Ze, let’s go.”

“Oh, oh…”

“Right, right, let’s go.”

Wan Jiaze barely managed to snap out of his stupor, agreeing on instinct.

Personally escorted by Fan Sheng, the group walked out of the restaurant.

As the brilliant headlights of a Maybach GLS 600 parked at the entrance lit up, Wan Jiaze and the others all subconsciously turned to look at Gu Heng.

“Well, brothers, Ah Kai and I will be heading out.”

Gu Heng turned to Wan Jiaze and the others with a smile. “Let’s get together again when we have the chance.”

“Wait!”

“Ah Heng, how much was dinner just now?”

Wan Jiaze’s mind was still a muddle. It was only when he heard Gu Heng was leaving that he belatedly realized what happened. “There were so many of us! How could we let you be the one to pay the bill in the end!”

“Brother Jiazze, Ah Kai and I aren’t brothers by blood, but we’re closer than brothers.”

Gu Heng smiled at Wan Jiaze. “It’s just one meal. You can just treat me next time, right? No need to be so particular about it.”

Wan Jiaze gazed into Gu Heng’s clear and sincere eyes. He didn’t know what kind of turn Gu Heng’s life had taken to cause such a world-altering reversal of his once-dim prospects, but he knew one thing: Gu Heng’s friendship with Wan Jiakai held no trace of malice. It was a bond as pure and flawless as a diamond.