Chapter 504 — What an Overbearing Name

"No need. We can go on our own." Wei Zhao declined Wu Chengtian's offer flatly.

"Don't be like that! If you don't come, my conscience will never be at ease! I know I was wrong, and there is no greater virtue than correcting one's faults!" Wu Chengtian said. "Give me some face, won't you?"

Wei Zhao glanced at Wang Xinyan, who was standing not far off, and saw that she was looking at him, a faint expectation hidden in her gaze. He was puzzled at once. Did Wang Xinyan want him to dine with them? And what exactly was her relationship with Wu Chengtian? At the thought, Wei Zhao hesitated.

If it were purely a matter of Wu Chengtian treating him to a meal, Wei Zhao would never have entertained the idea of going. But with Wang Xinyan in the picture, things were different... Before Wei Zhao could speak, however, Feng Xiaoxiao cut in first: "You're going to treat us to dinner?"

"That's right, Sister Xiaoxiao. I gave great offense before, and I am truly sorry!" Wu Chengtian already knew of Feng Xiaoxiao's special background and naturally did not wish to make an enemy of her, so the glare he had worn earlier was gone.

"Is that so? Then I'll give you a chance to make amends. What do you say, Wei Zhao?" Feng Xiaoxiao winked at Wei Zhao.

Wei Zhao was slightly taken aback, wondering what mischief Feng Xiaoxiao was plotting now. But whenever that expression appeared on the girl's face, it meant someone was about to have a bad time! She had worn that very same look the few times she had set her sights on him. This time, though, the unlucky one was probably Wu Chengtian.

So he nodded. "Then we'll do as you say." Wu Chengtian was overjoyed to see Wei Zhao agree. "Then let's go. Today it's on me. Order whatever you like, and we'll clear up this misunderstanding!"

"Oh, we were just on our way to the top floor of the Songjiang International Hotel for a late-night meal, so let's go there again," Feng Xiaoxiao said, nodding as naturally as could be.

"Huh?" Wu Chengtian was stunned. As for the Songjiang International Hotel, he had only ever been to the third and fourth floors, and those were already luxurious enough—a single table there had cost him nearly ten thousand yuan. If it was the top floor, how much would that be? He had never been, but he could well imagine!

So Wu Chengtian hesitated again. He had originally planned to take the Xiao brothers and Kang Jinglong to the ground-floor main hall, and with Wei Zhao added, the second-floor private room at most—a table of food and wine would come to eight or ten thousand at the very most. But he had never expected Feng Xiaoxiao to blurt out that she wanted the top floor!

"Hm? What's the matter with you?" Feng Xiaoxiao looked at Wu Chengtian, whose face had changed color, with some puzzlement. "Why has your face changed color? Don't you practice the Iron Hand technique? Have you been training an iron face as well?"

"That—of course not..." Wu Chengtian forced a laugh, then said, "Then we'll go eat on the top floor!"

"Wonderful! I've never been to the top floor. I'll have to eat my fill and see what it's like!" Feng Xiaoxiao cheered. She had only heard people say that the top-floor restaurant was as lavish as an imperial palace and that its chefs were all world-class masters, but she had never seen it for herself. Even with Feng Tianlong's comparatively high annual salary, he could never have set aside half of it to take Feng Xiaoxiao out for a grand meal, so she had assumed she would never get to see it before she died. Who would have thought that a sucker like Wu Chengtian would deliver himself right to her door?

Wu Chengtian was so furious he wanted to curse. If you've never been, why did you bring it up? But he had already spoken the words, and to take them back now would not only fail to achieve his aim but would cost him face as well!

The Xiao brothers and Kang Jinglong were still behind him. How could he, the most prominent figure of the Wu family's third generation, let them look down on him?

"Brother Chengtian, I hear the top floor is just like an imperial palace, that even the bowls are inlaid with diamonds." Though Xiao Wangba also yearned for the luxurious restaurant on the top floor, it was not something ordinary people could afford. What if Wu Chengtian couldn't pay the bill when the time came? So he hurriedly reminded him in a low voice, "Isn't it a bit too expensive?"

Xiao Wangba's voice was not loud, but Wei Zhao and Feng Xiaoxiao still heard it. Feng Xiaoxiao immediately chimed in, "That expensive? I didn't know that before either. Maybe we should just go on our own, then, and not put Brother Chengtian to such expense..."

Instead of having the intended effect, Feng Xiaoxiao's words only provoked Wu Chengtian further. He was, after all, a scion of an old established family—how could he let anyone look down on him? If he couldn't even afford to treat someone to a meal, wouldn't he be laughed out of town? So he waved a hand with great magnanimity. "What's a little money? I said it's my treat, so once we're there, order whatever you like!"

"I have to say, Brother Chengtian, you really are generous! Even my boyfriend isn't as generous as you!" Feng Xiaoxiao waved her fist happily, and Wu Chengtian's heart gave a sudden flutter. But he also knew that he was currently pursuing Sun Jingyan; if he let his heart wander now, there would be no good end for him! Feng Xiaoxiao was indeed stunningly beautiful, but she was also not someone to be trifled with—especially since her father was Feng Tianlong. Wu Chengtian would never provoke her of his own accord.

And when he heard Feng Xiaoxiao call Wei Zhao her boyfriend, he was overjoyed. He had previously doubted the nature of the relationship between Feng Xiaoxiao and Wei Zhao; now that it was confirmed, things would be much easier—and all the money he was spending on this meal would not be wasted!

At that thought, Wu Chengtian felt somewhat mollified. He said to Wei Zhao, "Let me introduce you to a few friends. These two are Xiao Wangba and Xiao Wangdao of the Xiao family."

"Huh?" Feng Xiaoxiao's eyes went wide. "Wow, you two brothers have such overbearing names! Xiao Wangba especially—that's sheer domineering spirit!"

"Isn't it, though!" Xiao Wangba nodded, thinking Feng Xiaoxiao was praising him. Naturally, he did not catch the mockery in her tone—Feng Xiaoxiao was calling him a "little bastard."

"Put our names together, and it makes 'overbearing'!" Xiao Wangdao nodded as well, not catching the sarcasm in Feng Xiaoxiao's words in the slightest. But that was hardly surprising. The Xiao family had once been at the height of its glory, and the old master had still been alive then, so even if anyone noticed the homophone in Xiao Wangba's name, they would not have dared say so. Now that the Xiao family had just fallen, naturally no one had had time to mention it either.

Only Wang Xinyan caught the sarcasm in Feng Xiaoxiao's words, and she could not help but cover her mouth and laugh—which utterly entranced Kang Jinglong. "Xinyan, what luck—another girl has turned up. I was worried you'd feel awkward on your own, but now it's settled: you'll have someone to keep you company!"

"..." Wang Xinyan said nothing. She merely looked quietly at Wei Zhao, a faint sense of loss stirring in her heart—though whether it came from seeing him together with Feng Xiaoxiao, or from her distaste for gatherings of this sort, she could not say.