Shi Manyao shook her head slightly. "No offense taken, but good things shouldn't be forgotten among good friends; you have to remember to share. Besides, when we head back later, we won't need to take a taxi."

"It's just livelier with more people, letting more people share in your happiness is a good thing." Wang Qiqi ordered a few dishes she and Han Tao liked, then added two dishes Nana favored, before passing the menu to Dai Lijun to order.

When Dai Lijun took the menu, he first offered it to Lu Qiaowei. Lu Qiaowei thought they had already ordered so much; she shouldn't order more, especially since the food here wasn't cheap. "Go ahead and order. Anyway, today is a happy occasion; we’ve already spent quite a bit, no need to be frugal." Seeing his girlfriend insist on not ordering, Dai Lijun smiled, "My Weiwei is the best." He shook his head, ears dangling, looking quite smug.

"So we're not good?" Shi Man bristled. "We forgot to order drinks. Since there's a driver, we'll just order a few bottles of red wine later." Hmph, why bother with soda when a large bottle of Coke is enough for everyone for so little money? A bottle of red wine will cost as much as the food. Shi Man thought, You think we’re not good, huh? I’ll show you exactly how 'not good' we are.

"Oh, yes, yes! Such good food deserves red wine, it would be a waste not to!" Wang Qiqi clapped her hands excitedly in agreement. Noticing the sudden collapse of a certain person’s expression, she exchanged a high-five with Shi Man in celebration. "Which brand of red wine should we get?"

The two grabbed the nearby wine list and began studying it seriously. Dai Lijun initially thought they were just making empty threats, never imagining they’d actually order wine. He really wanted to slap himself a few times, cursing his loose tongue and fast talking. He knew perfectly well not to cross Wang Qiqi and Shi Man, and of course, Han Tao was not to be crossed either, but offending Qiqi was certainly worse. "Qiqi ah..." He knew that if he truly couldn't cover the bill, the wealthy benefactor nearby would generously pull out a bank card to settle it. However, he’d have to settle accounts with that benefactor later—calculating the principal and interest on the loan. Sighing, Dai Lijun wondered why he’d impulsively suggested celebrating with a meal. Why didn’t they just eat at the entrance of the complex? Since Jiang Xin’s target had shifted to Han Tao, he should have been the amused spectator, but now he felt like the monkey on display. This shift in roles completely unsettled Dai Lijun.

What angered Han Tao even more was that Han Tao was also looking at the wine list. Alas, these were his friends; quick to kick a man when he was down.

After Wang Qiqi and Shi Man finalized the wine they wanted, "Tao, you should have some red wine too, just a little."

"Good, red wine it is. Let's get two bottles." Han Tao named the brand of red wine and the quantity. "Dai Lijun is treating for the food, so let me cover the drinks." That amount for drinks would be around four hundred. He supposed he was being a bit soft-hearted by helping this guy out.

Hearing that the drinks were on someone else, Dai Lijun almost gloated, wondering if he could request something else. But he caught Han Tao’s playful, scrutinizing gaze and instantly felt a chill run down his spine. He dared not speak again, fearing he wouldn't reap any benefits but would end up footing the entire liquor bill. "Get a bottle of juice, Weiwei still needs to study later."

This request was extremely reasonable and passed instantly. Wang Qiqi ordered a glass of fresh-squeezed juice for Lu Qiaowei. "The Dummy is quite good to Weiwei, thinking of his girlfriend. A good man." Having spent so much of someone else's money, she felt obligated to put in a few good words for him in front of Lu Qiaowei.

"Exactly, the Dummy is really great..." Shi Man threw compliments out like they were free, hoping to ensure Dai Lijun would treat them to a nice meal again in the future.

Dai Lijun thoroughly enjoyed the floating, elated feeling. If it weren't for the fact they were in the main hall and he couldn't get too smug, he really wanted to tell Shi Man, Good little sister, say more nice things about your elder brother.

Just as Zhu Lina arrived, the dishes started arriving in succession, especially the two bottles of red wine. She was immediately surprised. "Did the Dummy strike it rich today, or is he moving to the US and treating us to a good meal?" If this was a farewell dinner, didn’t the Dummy previously say he’d treat them after returning from his hometown? Why was it early?

"No, the Dummy struck it rich and bought a shop. He just went out for a stroll this afternoon and..." Shi Man chattered away, recounting how the man had acted like a magnate buying property that very afternoon. "I always thought Qiqi was the wealthiest, but compared to the Dummy, she’s far behind." Wang Qiqi nodded continuously beside her. This was the most genuinely generous display. Previously, when Wang Qiqi bought her shop, she thought it was quite a grand gesture, but compared to the Dummy's action, it was miles apart.

"Bought a shop?" Zhu Lina admitted that although her interactions with them weren't frequent, she shouldn't have been kept in the dark about such a major event. How had she heard no rumors beforehand?

Shi Man shrugged, indicating she didn't know. "I was at the library reading with Weiwei today. As soon as we got back, we heard someone say he bought a shop and was treating us to dinner." To be honest, they had all been quite startled. "I thought it was April Fool's Day."

Lu Qiaowei nodded emphatically nearby. "I was also shocked when I found out." If her man hadn't repeatedly assured her it was a spur-of-the-moment decision, and emphasized that he had some money at home he didn't want to lend out, which led to his sudden impulse, Lu Qiaowei would have been truly angry. Such a monumental decision, and his future wife knew nothing about it—how significant must it be?

"Don't even mention Manman and the others; I didn't hear a whisper when I went out at noon," Wang Qiqi thought. Dai Lijun’s lack of operational security was a loss to the intelligence agency. She still felt that even if Dai Lijun genuinely went looking at shops for the first time today, the idea of buying one had been circling in his mind for a long time.

Zhu Lina had never known Dai Lijun possessed such resolve. She gave him a thumbs-up. "You're impressive. This time, you finally look like a man." It was far more decisive than renting that place like a white dove. The former Dai Lijun, to put it nicely, was cautious; to put it less nicely, he was indecisive and unable to make final calls. It seemed that having a woman had made him understand his responsibilities. Of course, Zhu Lina didn't realize that she didn't know the real situation; if Dai Lijun hadn't worried about lending money and not getting it back, he wouldn't have made the decision so quickly.

While eating, Zhu Lina asked Dai Lijun about the location of the shop. When she heard where the shop he bought was located, her eyes widened. "Dummy, Dummy, how can I even talk to you?" Zhu Lina wondered if this guy was some illegitimate son of heaven, possessing such incredible luck. Especially since the Dummy had the courage to put down such a large deposit; even a tempted seller would have no choice but to sell it to him.

Since Zhu Lina's entire face was serious when she said this, Dai Lijun suspected her sources were quite extensive. Did his shop have some major problem? "Nana, what do you mean...?"

Wang Qiqi and the others also looked tense. This guy was so boastful earlier; hopefully, his beautiful dream wouldn't be shattered before the night was over, which would surely make him sad.

Dai Lijun’s heart raced so high he felt like he was struggling to breathe on a plateau at five thousand meters altitude. "It's fine. Even if I bought the wrong one, it's still a shop." Please don't let the area be slated for demolition right after I bought it. That would be incredibly unlucky. Who knew how much compensation they’d get from demolition?

"Congratulations, Dummy, you're going to be rich," Zhu Lina wouldn't draw out the suspense. She completely forgot that her stern face had just terrified everyone half to death.

Rich? Hearing this, Dai Lijun clutched his heart. His heart just dropped from the five-thousand-meter plateau back to the sub-zero plain. He felt that everything happening today was beyond what his heart could handle. "Nana, my dear Nana, next time you share news, whether good or bad, just say it directly. If my psychological tolerance wasn't decent, you guys would have had to call 120 to take me to the hospital."

After this complaint, Dai Lijun incessantly questioned Zhu Lina about why he was going to be rich. Although he knew buying the shop meant he would eventually profit in a few years, Zhu Lina's tone suggested this fortune would be substantial. Zhu Lina waved her hand, indicating this wasn't the place for discussion. She wouldn't have spoken so quickly if she hadn't just heard the location of the shop the Dummy bought. While the news would spread in a couple of days, there were still many opportunities to act on it; sometimes, knowing a piece of news an hour earlier versus an hour later made the difference between heaven and earth.

They were all seasoned enough not to press Zhu Lina for details when she held back, knowing she would explain everything back home. In any case, it was good news. "Come on, let's raise a toast to the Dummy’s great luck. Cheers!" Shi Man excitedly raised her glass.

"Right, right, congrats, Dummy."

After everyone drank heartily, Shi Man suddenly interjected, "If you really strike it rich, this meal..." Although it looked like a decent meal, knowing the person would soon earn a lot of money made Shi Man feel a bit stingy about the cost of this dinner.

"Exactly, you pay for the drinks too," Wang Qiqi chimed in. Of course, Wang Qiqi was simultaneously calculating whether, if there was truly significant good news, she could broker a deal and quickly make some money by buying into a shop there.

"If I really become rich, I’ll treat everyone to another meal, provided the news is confirmed." With the prospect of making big money, Dai Lijun certainly wasn't going to be stingy about the cost of a single dinner. "I'll urge my parents to come over immediately to finalize the paperwork." Regardless, he couldn't afford delays; he had originally thought a few days wouldn't matter for the paperwork, but now delay was impossible. If he wasn't worried about his parents being unavailable, he’d have them rush over tonight. His parents were minor officials and hadn't mentioned any major events recently, so taking a few days off shouldn't be an issue.

The group talked excitedly about the happy developments over dinner, constantly urging the man of the hour to drink. The Dummy was in a good mood today. Although he drank modestly, he couldn't refuse so many toasts. By the time they dispersed, his face was flushed red. If everyone hadn't been mindful that they needed to hear the major news later, they surely would have gotten Dai Lijun thoroughly drunk.