The Wine Tastes Bad and the Face Isn’t Worth Giving

The atmosphere was extremely delicate.

Shen Yuanbao, who had just been busy digging into backgrounds, was now feeling a bit regretful.

Those drinking tea had already set their cups down on the table.

Those playing with their phones now flipped their screens face-down.

Even the ones who'd been sitting with their legs crossed and shaking their legs stopped at once. All eyes suddenly focused on Evan Lin.

Lei Zhou, sitting in the corner, trembled all over.

He was confused and lost, unable to understand how the vibe had suddenly turned like this.

Could it be this kid has some secret background nobody knows about?

Is it the kind of background even these second-gen elites wouldn't dare mess with?

Thinking of this, Ray Lei was terrified, his legs going weak.

Gloria Rong, quietly sipping her tea, noticed the weird vibe. She looked up, glanced at Barry Shen frozen in place, caught between advancing and retreating, and raised an eyebrow: "Why so quiet all of a sudden?"

"Ah, I was just thinking about something."

Barry Shen snapped back, heard Gloria's words, slapped his thigh, and looked at Evan Lin: "See, I was wondering why Gloria suddenly stopped eating halfway and said she had to go pick someone up. Turns out she was waiting for you, Evan."

Bro, not gonna lie, I've known Gloria for years. We're old friends. But I've almost never seen her personally go out to meet anyone. For you to get that kind of honor, Evan? That's wild, man. Not ordinary at all.

Barry was trying to steer clear of the earlier topic.

Digging into backgrounds takes real strategy.

If you dig too early with people from big families, it's hard to get close later—and almost impossible to build any real friendship.

So sometimes, when everyone has a rough idea, you only dig halfway—leave a bit for later, then after you've built some rapport, go deeper if you need to.

It's like brewing good liquor: the quality depends on timing and patience, and it's all about the game of endurance.

Baby Yuan's got a point. We've never seen Gloria personally go out to pick someone up before. Looks like you and Gloria are pretty close, Evan?

A guy who hadn't even looked at Evan Lin since he walked in now grinned and teased, pretending he'd checked Evan out a few times: "Honestly, when you first came in, I didn't see anything special about you."

"But after you sat down and hung out for a bit, I started to feel there's something really different about you."

He kept talking, hyping Evan Lin up without a hint of embarrassment, rattling off compliments like he wanted to slap his own thigh in approval.

"Honestly, Gloria kind of did us dirty this time. With a guy like Evan Lin, how come she didn't let us meet him earlier? That's not how you treat friends, right?"

"Of course! If Gloria thinks someone's worth her attention, how could he be just some ordinary guy?" A girl in a plaid shirt and jeans nodded, her gaze at Evan Lin full of gentle, smiling warmth.

A guy with a rough voice chimed in, sounding pretty reasonable too.

All the flattery from the crowd landed in Gloria Rong's ears, and she nearly spat out her tea.

All the flattery from the crowd landed in Gloria Rong's ears, and she almost spat out her tea.

She looked up at Evan Lin beside her. He was calm as ever, which only made Gloria even more annoyed.

What the hell's going on here?

Gloria watched Barry Shen and the others, who were already calling Evan Lin 'bro' and raising their glasses to toast him. Her mind was a mess.

Seriously, what the hell?

Gloria watched Barry Shen and the others, who were already calling Evan Lin 'bro' and raising their glasses to toast him. Her mind was a mess.

Seriously, what the hell?

Gloria was thrown off.

"Did you all get something wrong?"

She couldn't help asking, then added, "The person I'm actually picking up hasn't arrived yet. I just happened to run into him at the door."

"I saw he seemed to be in some trouble, so I brought him in to lay low for a bit."

I brought Evan Lin over so you second-generation brats could use your usual arrogance to put him in his place, make him realize the world isn't as simple as he thinks.

But after just a little while, why does it look like everyone's trying to cozy up to this guy?

Gloria was thrown off her game.

Barry Shen, holding a wine bottle in one hand and a glass in the other, was just about to toast Evan Lin. When he heard Gloria's words, he froze mid-action, his hefty body pausing before slowly sitting back down.

Everyone else kept watching, their eyes glued to Evan Lin's still-calm face, suddenly unable to figure him out.

"Bro, mind if I ask you something?"

Barry Shen, still holding the wine, hesitated for a long time before finally asking, "Blake Lin... what's your relationship with him?"

Blake Lin.

The moment those three words dropped, everyone's gaze heated up again.

He was the real top-tier playboy of Beijing these days.

Evan Lin shook his head. "Never even heard of him."

Hearing Evan Lin's answer, Barry Shen's nervousness vanished, and the people who'd just been so eager instantly backed off, their enthusiasm gone.

Barry put down the bottle and glass, sat back in his chair, straightened up, and squinted: "Man, the wine tonight tastes off. I was pouring it just now and already felt like puking. Lost my appetite before I even took a sip."

"These days, it's hard to even enjoy a drink."

He smacked his lips, looking totally bored.

People from smaller families didn't even know the Orthodox Lin clan existed.

To them, all the stuff about Beijing's upper crust was just legend.

Just asking that question had Barry Shen sweating bullets.

Blake Lin was basically the only person from the Orthodox Lin clan they'd ever even heard of.

"Never met him."

Evan Lin shook his head. "Never even heard of him."

Hearing Evan Lin's answer, Barry Shen's nervousness vanished, and the people who'd just been so eager instantly backed off, their enthusiasm gone.

Barry put down the bottle and glass, sat back in his chair, straightened up, and squinted his eyes: "Man, the wine tonight tastes off. I was pouring it just now and already felt like puking. Lost my appetite before I even took a sip."

"These days, it's hard to even enjoy a drink."

He smacked his lips, looking totally uninterested.

If you haven't even heard of Blake Lin, how could you possibly be from a real powerful family?

What a joke.