Chapter 23: Beat It Out of Him Until He Spits It Up

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Manager Huang’s expression suddenly turned cold. He snapped at Lai Gaojun, “Boss Lai, you really aren’t the honored guest, and I’m no boss either. I’m just an employee—I can’t afford to give away wine worth hundreds of thousands! Don’t you know who the owner of this restaurant is? Do you really think I’d dare call myself the boss? Are you trying to get me killed?”

“Boss? You mean Manager Huang? Or… or is it… Boss Chen?”

Lai Gaojun’s legs began to tremble.

Thinking it over carefully, he realized that Manager Huang truly could not possibly call himself the boss. Everyone knew that the owner behind this restaurant was a ruthless man who had risen through the underworld. Who among those working under him would dare call himself the boss? No one!

And thinking about it even more carefully, there was indeed no way Manager Huang would have brought wine worth hundreds of thousands to give him for no reason.

As the restaurant’s general manager, he earned at most a hundred thousand a month. How could he possibly give away wine worth hundreds of thousands? Only Boss Chen could make such a grand gesture. After all, to a man like him, that amount was no more than a drop in the ocean.

Lai Gaojun had been too eager to show off in front of Su Xiran to think things through. Now that he considered the matter carefully, cold sweat broke out all over him.

But who here could possibly be worthy of being called that man’s honored guest? He certainly was not. Yet there were only three people here in total. Could that man have made a mistake?

With that thought, he asked Manager Huang anxiously, “Manager Huang, was this wine meant for another table and delivered here by mistake? There’s no honored guest here at all.”

Manager Huang looked furious, as though he had been insulted. He angrily rebuked him, “Are you a pig? Are you blind? Can’t you see Mr. Lin sitting right here?”

With that, he turned and flashed Lin Chen an ingratiating smile.

To become a general manager in a place like this, one had to be considerably sharper than the average person, with a mind that worked much faster.

The moment he heard Lai Gaojun’s first words, he had already concluded that this man had gotten into a dispute with his employer’s honored guest. After taking in the expressions on their faces, he became completely certain.

His scolding and cursing of Lai Gaojun was, without a doubt, a disguised attempt to curry favor with Lin Chen.

He did not know who Lin Chen was, but he knew that Lin Chen was certainly no ordinary person. Every day, countless wealthy and powerful individuals visited the restaurant, yet very few could make his employer personally send over red wine—much less wine from the boss’s private cellar.

He would have known whom to side with even if he had thought about it with his backside.

On one side was merely a small businessman with whom he had some dealings. On the other was his employer’s honored guest. If he could not even understand something so obvious, he had no business remaining general manager.

Hearing Manager Huang’s words, Lai Gaojun laughed as though he had just heard a joke. “Manager Huang, you must have made a mistake! How could this brat possibly be an honored guest? Just look at his clothes and the way he eats. He’s nothing but a pauper. How could he possibly know Boss Chen?”

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Su Xiran was displeased by how contemptuously Lai Gaojun treated Lin Chen, but she did not know how to refute him. In her eyes, it was indeed impossible for Lin Chen to know the owner behind this upscale Western restaurant.

After all, anyone capable of opening a Western restaurant in such a prosperous district was certainly no ordinary person.

Lin Chen, however, already understood who it was. He did know a man surnamed Chen, and he had once saved that man’s life. That man should indeed be capable of owning a restaurant like this.

That man was Chen Tianpeng, whom Lin Chen had treated after helping Leng Hanyan.

When Manager Huang heard Lai Gaojun continue to ridicule Lin Chen, he grew furious at the man’s ignorance and was about to reprimand him.

Then a hearty middle-aged voice rang out.

“Haha, Brother Lin, what a coincidence! I never expected to run into you here. I noticed you earlier, but I happened to be discussing something with a client and was delayed. That’s why I came over so late. So, do you like the red wine I sent you?”

A middle-aged man came striding over with a smile, followed by a burly, broad-shouldered man. It was Chen Tianpeng and Gangzi.

The moment Manager Huang saw them, he hurriedly greeted them. “Boss! Brother Gangzi!”

Chen Tianpeng gave a slight nod. But when he noticed that the atmosphere seemed somewhat strange, his expression darkened. In a low voice, he asked, “Huang Weiyi, what’s going on? Didn’t you take good care of Brother Lin?”

Cold sweat immediately broke out across Manager Huang’s back. He knew very well that this seemingly amiable boss was actually a brutally ruthless man. If he angered him, it would hardly be surprising if he vanished from the world that very night.

Lai Gaojun’s hearty laughter had long since frozen on his face.

Chen Tianpeng did not know him, but he knew Chen Tianpeng.

Although he was still utterly unwilling to believe it, after hearing Chen Tianpeng’s words, he had no choice but to accept that Lin Chen truly was Chen Tianpeng’s honored guest.

As rumors about Chen Tianpeng came flooding back to him, Lai Gaojun’s face turned ashen.

He stared at Lin Chen with a mixture of fear and confusion. Who exactly was this man? Why was he able to establish a connection with Chen Tianpeng?

In his eyes, Lin Chen had suddenly become mysterious. An ordinary person could never have any connection with Chen Tianpeng, much less be addressed by him as a brother.

Manager Huang quickly whispered an explanation into Chen Tianpeng’s ear. It took only a few brief sentences, but they made the entire situation perfectly clear.

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Chen Tianpeng’s expression changed faster than the turning of a page. One moment he had been smiling; the next, when he looked toward Lai Gaojun, his face was covered in storm clouds. Lai Gaojun was so frightened that his legs nearly gave way.

Chen Tianpeng stared coldly at him, his expression grim. “The red wine I sent—Brother Lin didn’t drink it, but you did? Was it good?”

Lai Gaojun’s voice trembled with fear, and his smile looked worse than a cry. “Boss Chen, I’m truly sorry. I honestly didn’t know he was your honored guest, and I didn’t know the wine was yours, meant for him. I… I…”

Chen Tianpeng ignored his explanation and waved a hand. “How much did you drink?”

“Just… just a few sips,” Lai Gaojun answered, his voice shaking.

Chen Tianpeng nodded and said nothing more. Turning to Gangzi, he ordered, “Drag him away and beat him hard. Keep beating him until he vomits up everything he drank.”

Then he looked at Lai Gaojun, who had collapsed onto the floor and was begging for mercy. “Who do you think you are? You think you’re worthy of drinking my wine? You’re courting death!”

Gangzi acknowledged the order and dragged Lai Gaojun away.

When Lai Gaojun realized that Chen Tianpeng had no intention of paying attention to his pleas, he turned to Lin Chen and begged instead. “I was blind and failed to recognize a great man! Please spare me! I’ll never dare do it again!”

Lin Chen ignored him, and Lai Gaojun was soon dragged out by Gangzi.

“Lin Chen, what… what exactly is going on?”

Su Xiran looked at Chen Tianpeng in disbelief, then turned to Lin Chen.

The Lin Chen she knew was nothing more than a poor young man from the countryside. How could he possibly know someone as formidable as Chen Tianpeng?

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