When she pushed open the door to the private room, there were already many people inside. He Zhilan looked around but didn’t see Bian Xiulin and Xing Ye anywhere.
"Everyone’s here, except for Xing Ye and Bian Xiulin!" Lin Chan gestured for He Zhilan to sit next to him after a quick glance around the room. Then his gaze landed on a man who wasn’t in his guest list.
"Who is he?" Lin Chan raised an eyebrow, clearly unhappy, his hand drumming on the table.
"Lin Chan, long time no see~ I’m Lan Song!" The newcomer seemed afraid that Lin Chan wouldn’t recognize him, so he added, "I’m Lan Li’s brother, Lan Song!"
"What are you doing here?" Lin Chan shot a glance around the table, apparently asking which of his buddies had brought the unwanted guest.
Bian Muhe and Bian Mufan both shrugged and shared an amused smile, Chen Yun toyed with his cigarette and gave Lin Chan a look but remained silent, Qi Chengnan was completely ignoring Lan Song and instead started chatting with He Zhilan, asking how she was doing in military training, and sharing his own story about how he had fiercely dealt with his drill sergeant, only to be ganged up on and flattened.
He Zhilan was amused by Qi Chengnan’s story. It was all too easy to imagine a group of well-connected youths refusing to submit. As people accustomed to giving orders, they wouldn’t be obediently receiving instructions from others. So, when a few daredevils banded together to give their sergeant a hard time, they ended up getting served themselves.
"Lin Chan, an interesting coincidence, isn’t it? I haven’t seen you guys in a while! I didn’t expect to bump into you again so soon after my arrival in the capital just a few days ago." Lan Song didn’t seem to notice the unwelcome expressions on their faces, he continued enthusiastically, as if they were old friends.
Ignoring Lan Song, the others just glanced around awkwardly. Just then, Lan Song spotted the unfamiliar woman, He Zhilan, looking at him. Being a smooth operator, he noticed that Lin Chan had personally brought her, and everyone at the table seemed quite familiar with her. They weren’t treating her lightly or frivolously, but rather with familiarity; even dark-horse Qi Chengnan was sharing his personal stories with her. This observation allowed Lan Song to dismiss the idea that Zhilan was just a plaything of Lin Chan’s.
However, he couldn’t remember any significant family surnamed He in the capital. From Qi Chengnan and He Zhilan’s conversation, he also found out that she was a fresh student at Capital University. He thought that women generally tend to be easier to get along with than men. Besides, He Zhilan had already looked at him, clearly indicating some interest. Therefore, Lan Song prepared to use He Zhilan as his entry point into this social circle.
The reason He Zhilan looked at Lan Song was simply because he shared a surname with Lan Li, whom he had mentioned was his brother. If she knew that Lan Song had construed so much from this meaningless glance, she would undoubtedly burst into laughter.
"Zhilan, you’re attending Capital University? That’s impressive, it’s rare these days to find a girl who is both beautiful and academically accomplished," Lan Song predictably shifted his attention to He Zhilan, addressing her with familiarity to fit in with Lin Chan and the others.
"Shoo! When exactly did she become your Zhilan?" Lin Chan retorted indignantly, glaring at Lan Song. He would’ve ripped into him hadn’t his phone started ringing.