Henry Zhang watched Evan Lin with leisurely amusement. As Evan stood up, he walked straight over, squatted down, and picked up a bottle of beer.
"That's more like it. We're all here to have fun, so just play along. If you know what's good for you, I won't make things too hard for you, out of respect for Liam Li."
"All you need to do is honestly finish these two crates of beer, and I'll let your little stunt slide." Henry sat there with his chin up, looking at Evan with a smug, unhurried air.
"Let it slide, huh?" Evan Lin shook his head, holding two beer bottles in his hands. With a light flick of his thumbs, the caps popped right off both bottles.
Seeing this, Liam Li felt a sudden jolt in his heart—a bad premonition.
Henry Zhang, on the other hand, noticed nothing unusual and nodded slightly. "Mm, you've got quick hands with the bottles. Honestly, you might be cut out for a job as our resident bottle-opener. Judging by your clothes, you probably don't have much money at home. Ever thought about working here? Just hang around the tables and help the bosses open drinks when needed."
"For the salary, since Liam Li's vouching for you, I could go up to thirty-five hundred a month. Thirty-five hundred would be a pretty big deal in your little county, right?" Henry's lips curled into a mocking smile as he stared at Evan.
"Drink up. What's the holdup?"
Henry watched as Evan squatted down and opened the bottles, but instead of drinking, Evan turned and walked toward him, making Henry frown in confusion.
"The beer's fine, but the person's not. You want to invite me for a drink? Sorry, you're not worthy." Evan shook his head and stood right beside Henry Zhang.
"What are you trying to do?" Only now did Henry Zhang sense something was off, eyeing Evan Lin warily as he held the two opened bottles.
"Evan, my bro Henry here is the lobby manager at White Dragon Mountain Resort. You better think twice about what you're doing! If you keep this up, not even Chen Linyan's name can guarantee you'll be safe!" Liam Li, half bluffing and half nervous, tried to warn Evan, guessing what was about to happen.
"You're so dramatic—it's just drinking! Why are you still dragging it out?" Li Qiuxiang shouted at Evan, not realizing the situation was about to flip.
"What a buzzkill. Why'd you even come along?" Ma Yueying chimed in, backing up the complaints.
"You love drinking, right? Then drink up—I'll personally feed you these two crates." Evan shot Henry Zhang a cold look, then swept his gaze across the whole table, eyes icy.
"His eyes are scary..." Wang Liyan felt Evan's gaze and swallowed her retort, whispering to Li Qiuxiang beside her.
"Feed me beer? Are you nuts!" Henry Zhang's expression changed, anger flaring up as he heard Evan's words.
He slammed the table and tried to stand up, but suddenly felt a huge force on his shoulder. Evan Lin pressed him back down with his elbow, pinning him to the seat, unable to move.
"Don't rush off—the drinks haven't even started." Without another word, Evan picked up a beer bottle and jammed the mouth straight toward Henry's lips.
The bottle went in deep—Henry was caught off guard and didn't dodge in time.
Beer bubbled inside the bottle, making glugging sounds as Henry Zhang struggled with all his might—but he couldn't break free.
In just over thirty seconds, Henry had gulped down an entire bottle of beer.
Evan Lin pulled the empty bottle away from Henry's mouth.
Henry gasped for breath, glaring at Evan with bloodshot eyes. "Damn it! Kid, you're asking for—"
Before he could finish cursing, Evan shoved the second bottle into his mouth, face expressionless.
Glug, glug, glug...
Beer kept bubbling out of the bottle as Henry flailed, trying to shove Evan away, but Evan stood firm as a mountain, completely unmoved.
"Evan, that's way too much!" On the side, Zhao Chen shouted angrily and stood up.
This was the second time Evan had stolen Zhao Chen's thunder. Now, all eyes at the table were on Evan, and Zhao Chen couldn't help but feel furious.
Evan glanced at Zhao Chen, half-smiling. "You think I'm excessive? Trust me, I can go way further if you want."
"If you want to drink in his place, just say so. If not, then—"
At this, Evan's expression turned ice-cold. "Sit your ass down and stay put."
"How can you talk like that!" Li Qiuxiang, finally realizing things were getting serious, shouted at Evan. "If you talk to Zhao Chen like that, aren't you afraid he'll beat you up?"
"Don't think you can do whatever you want just because you came with us. If you really get beaten up, don't come crying!" Li Qiuxiang yelled, sounding confident and fearless.
She didn't think Evan could beat Zhao Chen. In her eyes, Zhao was just holding back because Evan was part of their group.
Sisi Shao watched from the side, her mind spinning with disdain: "He's just a guy who knows how to fight. What's the point? Once we're out in the real world, is he going to live off his fists forever?"
"Besides, this is their turf. It's all mountains around here; once the staff snap out of it, does he really think he'll walk out in one piece?"
Sisi Shao's gaze at Evan was full of complicated meaning.
Zhao Chen's face was dark as he clenched his fists, glaring at Evan. "Can't you give me and Liam Li a little respect? We're all here to have fun—if things get ugly, it's bad for everyone."
"Give you respect? Who do you think you are to ask me for respect?"
After finishing the second bottle, Evan pulled it away. Henry's face was pale and greenish as he coughed loudly, gasping for breath.
Evan looked at Zhao Chen with utter indifference, as if he were just an ant.
Who do you think you are?
Evan's words made Zhao Chen grit his teeth, eyes fierce, but for a moment, he couldn't think of a comeback.
Was he really going to start a fight?
Zhao Chen didn't dare. He still remembered the scene of Evan single-handedly fighting his way out of Imperial Grand.
This guy was as fierce as they come.
Zhao Chen was proud, but he knew deep down that he couldn't take even two punches from Evan.
Evan snorted coldly, let go of Henry Zhang, and bent down to pick up more beer.
After catching his breath, Henry snapped back to his senses. His face twisted with rage.
He shot to his feet, grabbed the chair he'd been sitting on, and swung it at Evan's back as Evan bent down for more beer.
"Screw you and your whole damn family!"