Trillionaire's Slice of Life

Li Fei, with a hint of acidity in his voice, shook his head and said, "Buddy, your life is without regrets!" Chu Mo saw the envious look of his close friend opposite him and laughed, "If you want, I can introduce you to a couple, oh right, just this morning I met a pair of twin sisters, their looks are not inferior to those eight bridesmaids. If you're interested, I'll introduce you, but whether it can work out or not, it's up to your skills!" Li Fei's eyes immediately lit up, but the glow faded away after a moment, and then he sighed lightly, shaking his head with a bitter smile, Li Fei helplessly said, "Not everyone is like you. Goddesses of that level would only throw themselves at families like yours. People like me, I reckon, would not even get a second glance from them!" Li Fei, with a somewhat troubled expression, picked up his coffee and took a gentle sip, then he straightened up and grew serious, saying, "Let's not talk about that. One Liu Hui is enough of a headache for me; I've no interest in inviting trouble from other women." Seeing the troubled look on his close friend's face, Chu Mo knew the other must be facing an insurmountable problem. His main reason for coming was to help his friend out of trouble, so he too put away the teasing look on his face, and with a serious expression, Chu Mo asked, "What's the matter exactly, did you and your sister-in-law have a falling out?" Li Fei didn't consider Chu Mo an outsider; having taken a seat opposite him, he did not plan to keep it a secret, so after taking a deep breath, this normally jocular man spoke with a touch of bitterness, "Actually, I blame my soft heart for this. Last week, our company nominated employees for excellence, and two people from our team were elected: me and another long-time employee of the company, who has been good to me. When I first joined the company and wasn't familiar with the business, he was the one who mentored me, and I always called him 'Master.' But this time the selection was a bit special. Our team leader was transferred to another province as a manager, which left a team leader position vacant, and it was decided to choose between the two of us for the role. Initially, senior management favored me; after all, I'm young and a college graduate. However, my 'Master' approached me and talked about how hard it wasn't easy for him, being over forty and having put nearly twenty painstaking years into the company, with elderly parents at home and young children to look after. If he didn't get the promotion this time, he probably wouldn't have another chance in the future, whereas I'm young, and even if I miss this opportunity, there will be others. In a moment of soft-heartedness and because he genuinely took good care of me before, I let him have the team leader position. This should have been the end of it, but somehow, my wife got wind of it. What was supposed to be a happy newlywed couple ended up in a quarrel. She scolded me for having no ambition or drive, going on about how others have wives and families, and whether I don't have a wife to support or not... Sigh! Anyway, home has become a place of constant bickering, and now I don't even want to go there!" Chu Mo looked at his close friend who was sighing across from him, and for a moment, he wasn't quite sure what to say. Chu Mo had once invited him to join his Bafang International Hotel, offering him the position of general manager with a salary and dividends that didn't need mentioning, certainly enough to ensure a villa-living, luxury-car-driving lifestyle. But in the end, his friend had declined. And now, his close friend was stressing over a small promotion opportunity to the point of not wanting to go home, which was something that Chu Mo had never expected. However, he didn't blame his friend for the past refusal, perhaps this plain daily life was really what his friend preferred. Chu Mo took a gentle breath, and after a moment, he asked curiously, "Last time, I clearly gave you a big red envelope. Although it can't make you filthy rich, at least you shouldn't have to worry about food and drink, should you? Why does your sister-in-law care so much about a small team leader position?" Upon hearing this, Li Fei took out a bank card from his pocket. He played with the diamond VIP card with both hands, his eyes filled with complex emotions. After a moment of silence, he spoke softly, "You're talking about this bank card, right? I know you meant well, brother, but I haven't taken this card out. The hundred million in it, I haven't touched it, nor have I told Liu Hui about it. I was thinking, when we really need it in the future, then I'll take it out. For now, even though I don't earn much, it's enough to support the family. You don't know, Liu Hui is good in every other way, but she just loves to compare with others. If she knew about the existence of this card, she would spend like water, completely uncontrollable!" Since it was his friend's family matter, Chu Mo did not say much more. He picked up his coffee and took a gentle sip, but from the corner of his eye, he noticed Fang Lihu, a tall figure, striding towards them from the entrance of the café. A moment later, Fang Lihu arrived in front of Chu Mo, bent down slightly, and then spoke in a low voice, "Mr. Chu, Mr. Fan has taken some honored guests to Baoyue Building, where some performances and programs have been arranged. Mr. Fan is asking when you'll be joining them!" Upon hearing this, even before Chu Mo could speak, Li Fei across from him was already waving his hands and saying: "Chu Mo, if you've got things to do, go ahead and take care of them. I'm just talking about some trivial household matters here. Just chatting with you makes me feel a lot more relaxed. Don't let me hold you up from your important business!" Chu Mo glanced at his best friend across the table. In the past, he always called him "Xiao Mo," and he would call him "Fatty." But now, he didn't know exactly when it started; he no longer called him by his nickname, but by his full name instead! Had he changed, or had his best friend across the table gradually changed? Chu Mo didn't know the answer, but what he was certain of was that, if it had been the past, even if he had something immensely important to attend to, he would never have left his friend in the lurch. Just like a year ago, before he had acquired the unlimited bank card, Li Fei would make time to have a drink with him every month, and then cheer him up. This was also why Chu Mo could persist in this cold city until the end! Only now, he didn't know since when, compared to his best friend, a few princes and princesses seemed more important in his heart. He took a deep breath, and after a moment, Chu Mo had reached a conclusion. It wasn't his best friend Li Fei who had changed; Li Fei was still that Li Fei, working nine to five every day, caught up in the daily humdrum. It was he who had become different. Taking another deep breath and glancing at Li Fei across from him, Chu Mo casually raised his head and said: "Tell Fan Zhijian to treat the guests well; I won't be going over... Tonight, I will properly host the honored guests!" Fang Lihu, standing over two meters tall, immediately nodded in agreement. He dwarfed the other patrons in the cafe as he gently retreated and then turned to leave. It wasn't until then that Li Fei managed a wry smile and said: "You've got things to do, there's no need to waste your time here with me!" Chu Mo, completely nonchalant, replied: "Do you even know who these guests I'm hosting are?" Seeing the smile at the bottom of Chu Mo's eyes and feeling somewhat more relaxed himself, Li Fei pondered and said: "How would I know, business partners?" Chu Mo smiled and nodded, but after a moment, he shook his head and then said: "Actually, you should recognize these people. Let me mention a couple: Wei'er, Mina, Ben Hesed!" A look of confusion flashed across Li Fei's eyes. He hadn't grasped Chu Mo's point at first, but then, suddenly widening his eyes, he stood up abruptly, staring and stammering: "That jewelry queen?" Chu Mo nodded, took a deep breath, and then said with a full-faced smile: "Tonight, have the sister-in-law prepare a lavish dinner. Didn't she say you lack ambition? Well, let's show her just how expansive your connections are, Brother Fei. Tonight, I'll introduce you to a few princes and princesses! We'll also discuss some multimillion-dollar projects in front of the sister-in-law!"