Return to the City: The Strongest King
Chapter 713 - 714: No Respect for Face

Chapter 713: Chapter 714: No Respect for Face

Lin Su’er, Song Qing, and Zhao Rui really had a great relationship with each other. Amongst the three of them, there wasn’t the kind of competitive spirit commonly found among girls, but rather a mutual concern and willingness to help one another.

This was quite rare to Song Xiaodong, as he had also attended reunions with several girls from his family and his classmates. But at those reunions, there were always people who engaged in opportunistic flattery and comparison, rarely displaying the kind of friendship these three had.

After the meal, Zhou Pingqing was quick to pay the bill. It wasn’t that much, just over five hundred, but everyone’s income was limited, after all, and spending over five hundred on a meal was not shabby at all.

Lin Su’er and Song Xiaodong had intended to leave, but Zhao Rui and Song Qing insisted on taking them along to karaoke.

Unable to refuse their warm invitation, Song Xiaodong and Lin Su’er agreed and accompanied them to a nearby karaoke hall.

Before even entering, they encountered a group of people. Zhou Pingqing immediately went up to them, saying, "Deputy Director Li, you’re here for karaoke, too?"

The group comprised five individuals, four men and one woman, most of whom were middle-aged men over forty, apart from the woman.

A portly, bald middle-aged man, who was Deputy Director Li Jinghui of the second hospital, sized up Zhou Pingqing and said, "Oh, isn’t this Doctor Zhou? I’ve brought a few friends along to sing."

"What a coincidence, we’re here to sing as well. You all go ahead and enjoy yourselves, Deputy Director Li, I’ll take care of the bill." Although Zhou Pingqing had his own connections, he naturally wanted to curry favor with his superior.

Deputy Director Li Jinghui smiled and replied, "Then I won’t stand on ceremony." He had an approving look in his eyes, since having someone offer to cover the bill while out singing with friends was definitely a matter of face.

A man standing next to Li Jinghui glanced over at Lin Su’er’s group and suggested with a smile, "Since we’re all here to sing, why should we split into two groups? It would be better and more lively to sing together."

Li Jinghui immediately added, "That’s right, Doctor Zhou, what do you think?"

Zhou Pingqing quickly responded, "Sure, that would be great, let’s sing together."

He didn’t ask for anyone else’s opinion. Song Qing and Zhao Rui were nurses in the hospital, and Lin Su’er was about to join them. They all studied nursing and were naturally nurses. Being all from the same hospital and with the deputy director’s invitation, they naturally had no reason to refuse.

Zhao Rui and Song Qing stood alongside Lin Su’er, and Zhao Rui quickly whispered, "Lin Su’er, this is our hospital’s deputy director. He holds a high position and has significant power. A single word from him could affect our jobs. We definitely cannot afford to offend him."

"Indeed," Song Qing added, pulling a face, "But it seems that Deputy Director Li gets really excited when he drinks. He becomes foolhardy, and his reputation isn’t very good."

Zhao Rui was startled and hurriedly said, "Shush, don’t talk nonsense. Our boyfriends are right here. What could he do to us? But if we truly offend him, he could get us thrown out of the hospital with just one word."

Lin Su’er merely responded with an "Oh," upon hearing the deputy director’s poor reputation. She didn’t really want to join what could spoil the gathering among classmates. However, seeing that the other two were going, she felt compelled to follow.

Now there were eleven of them in total. They booked a large private room, and once inside, they ordered fruit platters, various nuts, and most importantly, plenty of alcohol.

Zhou Pingqing naturally wouldn’t be stingy when spending on the deputy director, showcasing his generosity at this moment to give Li Jinghui face in front of his friends.

Li Jinghui and his group were seated in the middle, with Zhou Pingqing accompanying them, while Lin Su’er and her two close friends were sitting at the side, with Song Xiaodong and Yang Yong joining them.

After various things were served, Zhou Pingqing started to liven up the atmosphere, shouting to let Deputy Director Li sing first. Li Jinghui did not shy away and immediately sang a song, then called a few friends to sing as well.

After singing for a while and having some drinks, one of Li Jinghui’s friends said with a laugh, "Don’t just have us sing, those beautiful girls haven’t sung yet. Don’t be shy, we all came out to have fun together."

Li Jinghui also immediately said, "That’s right, come on, you girls also sing a couple of songs, let’s all enjoy it."

Since the Deputy Director had spoken, Zhao Rui and Song Qing could no longer refrain from singing, and they pulled Lin Su’er over with them. The three of them went to pick songs on the computer and then started singing.

The three girls sang quite well indeed, prompting applause from everyone.

If things had continued like this, with everyone singing together, there wouldn’t have been any issues, but after over half an hour the atmosphere started to change because Li Jinghui and his group had drunk quite a bit. Some people get excited when they drink too much, and Li Jinghui was a prime example of this type.

Birds of a feather flock together, and the people that came with Li Jinghui were basically the same kind.

While Zhou Pingqing was singing, Li Jinghui stood up and said to Zhao Rui, "Come on, let’s dance to accompany Doctor Zhou."

This was considered normal social interaction, and Zhao Rui could not refuse, so she had to dance with Li Jinghui.

The other two men also stood up and came over to invite Song Qing and Lin Su’er.

Song Qing stood up as well; in such a situation, she could not refuse either. To turn down this man would be equivalent to rejecting Li Jinghui, and of course, that would be an offense she couldn’t afford.

"This beautiful lady, let’s also dance a dance," the last man said with a grin, looking at Lin Su’er. Lin Su’er was definitely the prettiest here, and if it weren’t for her having a boyfriend, he would have approached her a long time ago.

"I’m sorry, I can’t dance," Lin Su’er said apologetically.

"Oh? Really? You can’t even dance? You’re not just worried that your boyfriend might not like it, are you?" the man said, thinking he was being humorous.

Lin Su’er hurriedly said, "I really can’t dance."

The guy’s expression stiffened, clearly feeling somewhat disrespected by the rejection, and said, "It’s okay if you can’t dance, I can teach you, it’s easy to learn."

Song Xiaodong frowned and said, "Thanks for your kind offer, but I don’t really like my girlfriend dancing hand in hand with other men. Please carry on!"

Song Xiaodong’s words were somewhat stern. Actually, this was understandable. Given Song Xiaodong’s status, Li Jinghui and his group were people he couldn’t take seriously. The fact that they were still insistent on dancing with Lin Su’er meant that Song Xiaodong was already being quite polite.

The guy’s face darkened immediately and he said, "Young man, you’re really not giving face now. I just wanted to dance with your girlfriend, not sleep with her. Are you being too uptight?"