Chapter 176: I Deeply Suspect... But I Have No...
Nanming City. Early morning.
"Get up already, what time do you think it is?"
The moment Liu Liping's voice rang out, her hand swung up and gave Lu Kun's backside a smack.
Smack!
The sound was exceptionally crisp.
Lu Kun groggily opened his eyes, reached out his arm, and pulled Liu Liping straight into the bed.
"Stop messing around!" Liu Liping shot him a side-long glare.
...
"Hey, someone sent you an invitation card bright and early, and they even specifically noted that family members are not allowed!" Liu Liping said, gritting her teeth as she handed an invitation to Lu Kun.
"What?"
Lu Kun took the invitation with a bewildered look.
"Huh? This thing again?" Lu Kun frowned slightly, but his brow quickly relaxed.
This was an invitation to a gathering among the second-generation social circle of the province, and the sender's name was someone Lu Kun knew: Zheng Wei.
This was not the first time Lu Kun had received such an invitation. Previously, these invitations were usually delivered directly to his company; he hadn't expected this one to be delivered straight to his home.
"December 12th?"
Throwing a party on Double Twelve, and specifically warning against bringing family members or romantic partners—what the hell kind of gathering was this? Could they have picked a worse date?
Lu Kun was just about to toss the invitation out the window when he paused, stopping his motion.
Although he had some friction with the young man from the Liu family in the past, that was water under the bridge.
Ever since that incident, Lu Kun had maintained a peaceful, live-and-let-live relationship with the Zheng family, and sometimes they even helped each other out.
Now that they were kindly sending an invitation, it was clearly a gesture of goodwill. Coldly brushing it aside seemed a bit inappropriate.
"Not allowing family members or partners?" Lu Kun stroked his chin in thought.
"Hmm? Could it be that kind of party?" Lu Kun raised an eyebrow, quietly speculating to himself.
Lu Kun had once heard Sun Chengze say that the second-generation circle in Angui was quite chaotic, and they frequently held private gatherings among themselves to build connections and foster friendships.
These gatherings could roughly be divided into two types: the relatively decent ones, and the extremely indecent ones.
The decent ones were, of course, very proper. A large group of sharply dressed young men and women would gather together all night just to sip small drinks and chat, where even holding hands slightly would be considered crossing the line.
Even if an old-fashioned conservative scholar saw it, he wouldn't be able to utter any criticism about "decency falling to the ground."
After all, if you want to scold someone, you have to hit them where it hurts to make it fun.
The indecent gatherings, naturally, were thoroughly improper from start to finish.
There was definitely more to them than just drinking and chatting; other more primitive activities always found various new ways to be played out.
...
Gatherings of this second-generation circle were basically held as small meetings every week and large meetings every month.
Of course, attendance was not mandatory.
After all, Sun Chengze frequently skipped them, as he didn't fit in with their crowd.
Lu Kun lowered his head to look at the invitation in his hand. The sender was Zheng Wei.
Lu Kun had met that guy a few times—he was a textbook playboy!
...
"So, are you going to this gathering or not?" Liu Liping asked, picking up the invitation card Lu Kun had tossed onto the sofa.
"A bunch of kids playing together, what would I go for? I can't be bothered to join in that kind of noise! Just keep the invitation card safe," Lu Kun rolled his eyes and retorted irritably.
People often found themselves in this kind of situation: when status and social strata differed, it was difficult to mix and play together.
Even if they forced themselves together, it wouldn't feel comfortable.
Although Lu Kun wasn't much older than them, he interacted on equal footing with their fathers and grandfathers. What fun was there in eating, drinking, and playing around with a bunch of wet-behind-the-ears kids?
Their personal pursuits were completely different.
...
"I'm off to work," Lu Kun waved at Liu Liping by the second-floor doorway, then ducked into his car and sped away.
Chairman's Office at Huakun Holdings. Lu Kun was carefully verifying various sets of data.
"Boss, here is your goji berry tea."
The assistant considerately placed the freshly brewed tea on Lu Kun's desk, leaning her entire body almost flat across the surface.
Lu Kun raised his gaze slightly, and instantly felt as though he had been struck by lightning.
This assistant...
Damn it!
Lu Kun felt a sudden urge to vomit blood! He had already told those idiots in the human resources department that the previous assistant was too pretty and had them fired. How could the new one they recruited be even more overtly seductive than the last?
How on earth did those guys interpret the leadership's intentions? He clearly hadn't meant the opposite of what he said!
There was definitely something deeply wrong with this assistant!
Her facial features were breathtakingly exquisite, her skin fair with lips like ripe cherries, her figure smoking hot, and her brow carried a captivating allure that could hook a soul.
Who knew where she had heard that Lu Kun liked to drink goji berry tea, or perhaps every big boss simply loved goji berry tea?
So, was she just experienced?
Recovering his wits, Lu Kun forced himself to calm down, shook his head to banish the stray thoughts, and said with an icy gaze, "There's nothing going on here, you can head out and tend to your tasks first. Unless I call for you, don't keep crowding around me!"
"This... alright then."
The new assistant bit her lower lip, glancing back every three steps as she walked toward the door, feeling deeply wronged and lost in her heart: *There was once a rich sugar daddy standing right before me, and I loved him fiercely and madly. I pulled out all the stops, tumbling head over heels until I reached despair! In the end, though, he just told me to leave. Waaah!*
"Heh," Lu Kun chuckled. How could an old veteran like him lose his composure and make a fool of himself in front of such a small-time character?
After finishing his goji berry tea, Lu Kun grabbed his thermos and headed toward the pantry. After all, he certainly didn't want to give that new little siren another opportunity to approach him.
Heh.
As for those fellows in the human resources department, humph!
Instead of doing their jobs properly all day, all they thought about was how to suck up to the leadership by stuffing beauties around him. They simply didn't act like human beings!
...
After filling his cup with boiling water, Lu Kun tightened the lid, set it aside temporarily, and headed toward the men's restroom.
Lu Kun was right in the middle of a smooth and satisfying flow!
Suddenly.
A very jarring voice rang out from beside him, carrying three parts pleasant surprise and seven parts astonishment.
"Chairman, you actually came to the restroom in person?!"
Lu Kun: "......"
Can you please learn how to speak properly, you idiot?!
Dark lines covered Lu Kun's entire face, and storm clouds gathered across his brow.
Where did this moron come from, and how did he sneak in?
Lu Kun glanced at the employee ID badge pinned to the young man's chest, silently noting his name down. With a darkened face, he washed his hands and walked straight out.
He had merely dropped by the restroom on his way, yet the guy was making such a huge fuss, acting as if he had just laid eyes on an alien.
*Tsk tsk tsk, the psychological resilience of employees these days is simply not up to standard. Better not delay him further; I'll have the finance department settle his wages right away and let him seek his fortune and a better career elsewhere.*
*Of course, that female assistant and those slackers in the HR department should also be cleared out as soon as possible, lest they affect the work efficiency of the entire company,* Lu Kun thought with a gloomy satisfaction.