I was forced to start the second round because I was raised in poverty

Chapter 249 County-level Brahmin

In his previous life, Su Cheng lost contact with Han Yu after graduating from high school, so his understanding of Han Yu was limited to that period during high school.

Su Cheng knew nothing about what happened afterward, including whether she got married or not, and she never inquired about it.

All he knew was that Han Yu's father used to be a construction contractor, and his father was responsible for things like repairing toilets and doing maintenance.

According to Zheng Jiawei, Han Yu's father stopped providing employment several years ago and now runs a building materials business.

Su Cheng narrowed her eyes slightly.

Hmm...that's normal.

It's probably because there was a reshuffle in the leadership team a few years ago. Han Yu's father couldn't get any more projects, so he could only rely on his remaining connections to do some building materials business.

The family income is definitely not as good as before, but the foundation is still there.

Their annual income exceeded that of most families in the county.

To use a trendy phrase, Han Yu was considered to be of the Brahmin class in the county town.

Zheng Jiawei then introduced Han Yu and Fu Zihan to Su Cheng.

"I don't know much about them, but the three of them seem to have always been hanging out together and often get together. It seems that the two of them started dating about two years ago and got married after dating for two years."

It's hard to comment on Su Cheng.

The typical example is the "spirited young men and women" on short video platforms, where three men and one woman take photos in a hotel and post them publicly.

But besides these young men and women with a penchant for self-destructive behavior, some small groups that have received education but lack basic manners also behave this way.

It's perfectly normal for them to have ambiguous feelings for each other and date.

A took over B's playlist, and then B took over A's playlist. They broke up later, but they could still get together and hang out.

Everyone knows it, but no one says it.

When someone in this small group starts dating someone outside the group, they are often teased and joked about, and even attacked openly or subtly.

The person in the relationship will also post the chat history in the group for everyone to evaluate and criticize.

Zang Feilong felt that Han Yu was taking over his mess, picking up his old shoes.

But deep down, Han Yu definitely thinks Zang Feilong is a good-for-nothing. What does it matter if he once possessed something?
As for Fu Zihan...

There's no need to comment further.

She would definitely feel like she's living the life of a leading lady, with two men revolving around her and having a very harmonious relationship with her.

However, Su Cheng did not comment further.

They figured if they could get together and have fun, it had nothing to do with Su Cheng.

After going back.

Su Cheng received a friend request from Han Yu.

He accepted the friend request, and Ye Li began to watch Su Cheng and Han Yu prepare to talk.

The first thing I do when adding someone as a friend is definitely to check their background.

Han Yu's profile picture is a silhouette in deep space, which looks very profound.

The background of my WeChat Moments post is Michael from "The Godfather," and it's in black and white.

My personal motto is: "The lighthouse becomes its own misdirection in the fog."

The account is restricted to posts from the last six months, but there is only one post, which is a photo taken at her engagement party with Fu Zihan.

"Let me see, let me see." Ye Li couldn't wait to see what Han Yu and Fu Zihan looked like.

Su Cheng handed the phone over to Ye Li so she could look at it.

"This Han Yu is alright looking, not ugly."

"The woman is very beautiful."

The following conversation started normally, asking Su Cheng when she returned, whether she was still working in Jingzhou, and whether she had been busy lately.

Su Cheng simply went through the motions with him.

It is worth mentioning that.

Neither of them sent any emojis.

Han Yu: [I ran into you in the square in the park a couple of days ago, but I didn't dare to recognize you.]
Su Cheng tilted her head and glanced at Ye Li.

In the square... that can only be the time when people line up to get eggs.

Su Cheng replied: [Ah, I didn't see you. What a coincidence!]
Han Yu then extended an invitation to Su Cheng: [What are your plans for tomorrow? We could get together if you're free?]
When making such an invitation, the other party usually asks how many people will be attending and who they will be.

So Han Yu didn't wait for Su Cheng to ask and told him directly: "[Me, Fu Zihan, Zang Feilong, just the three of us, you know them all, we can also invite Jiawei]"
This is a habit Han Yu has developed, to make it easier for the other party to consider whether or not to keep the appointment.

If you don't want to hang out with the people you're with, just say you don't have time; that way, it'll look better on the surface.

If you ask who it is and then refuse, it would seem a bit deliberate and wouldn't look good.

Su Cheng usually wouldn't attend events like this.

Because it involves the issue of [energy extraction].

He wasn't having his energy drained by Han Yu, but rather by the guests Han Yu had invited.

There are bound to be acquaintances at these kinds of gatherings, and quite a few of them at that.

He knew him, and he knew him again.

This network in the small county town is easy to navigate; once people sit together, they're bound to chat about things from the past and ask around.

This thing may seem to involve metaphysics, but it is actually about human nature and psychology, and is related to people's self-esteem.

To give a very simple example.

Su Cheng saw on her WeChat Moments that a colleague or classmate had picked up a Mercedes or Audi.

Then his energy was drained away.

The vanity and sense of superiority gained from posting this on social media were satisfied, and the source of that satisfaction was that the energy of others was being drained away.

The amount of energy that is absorbed depends on each person's level of self-esteem and energy level.

It could be 1%, or it could be 90%.

Wedding banquets are usually held a week or two in advance, inviting guests and close friends to have a meal together, so that they can help out at the wedding.

Someone like Su Cheng definitely won't need help; she can just go and give a gift and eat at the banquet.

Although Han Yu didn't mention marriage, he showed Su Cheng his post on WeChat Moments.

Accepting Han Yu's invitation meant attending his wedding.

"Then are you going?"

"go."

If Su Cheng didn't assign herself some work, the old man would definitely drag her to do hard labor, making her work herself to death for more than ten hours, and her back would ache for a long time.

Su Cheng already had a work-related hazard of sitting for long periods, so he really couldn't do the kind of physical labor that required constantly bending over and swinging his arms.

"Sister Chestnut, will you come with me?"

"I think I'll pass. I don't know them, and you don't know them either."

"It's okay, just treat it as a meal. You can sit there and not say anything, just consider it as giving me face."

"What, you want me to pretend to be your girlfriend to save face?"

"Yeah, Sister Chestnut, aren't you practically my dad's future daughter-in-law?"

"Okay, okay, but I charge for this, so you have to cheer me on."

"Okay, okay, I'll fill it up for you. I'll use the gas card I just topped up tomorrow."

The next morning.

Su Cheng and Ye Li packed their things and then drove from their hometown to the county.

The two of them went to refuel first and used the gas card they had used to recharge on the highway.

They then went to the agreed-upon restaurant to meet.

Han Yu, Fu Zihan, and Zang Feilong had arrived earlier, and Zheng Jiawei had also arrived before Su Cheng.

Han Yu was a fashion icon when he was in school, wearing whatever was trendy, but now his style is much more low-key and understated.

He was wearing Arc'teryx sneakers with a small logo, black unbranded trousers, and black leather shoes. Zang Feilong, on the other hand, was dressed entirely in Adidas, with white Oni-Tora sneakers on his feet.

Fu Zihan still knows how to dress up. Today, she carefully applied eye makeup and blush, giving her a pure and alluring look.

However, this kind of makeup lacks its own characteristics and looks exactly like those female bloggers on Douyin, making it difficult to tell who looks who for a while.

As for comparing her to Ye Li, there's absolutely no comparison.

Fu Zihan has a decent appearance and figure, but she is not tall; she is less than 160cm with shoes on, while Ye Li is 169cm with shoes on.

Ye Li only wore light makeup, yet she had already utterly defeated Fu Zihan.

Su Cheng wasn't just referring to her stunning looks, but also her captivating aura.

This kind of thing is invisible and intangible, but you can intuitively feel the difference in skill level.

The two sides met.

Han Yu and Su Cheng greeted each other warmly.

Han Yu enthusiastically flattered Su Cheng: "Hey, it's been so many years, our Cheng-ge has become even more handsome!"

Fu Zihan followed up: "Yeah, Cheng-ge, I thought you were really handsome back in school."

Zang Feilong remained silent, his attention focused on Ye Li: "Su Cheng, aren't you going to introduce this beauty to us?"

Su Cheng smiled and introduced Ye Li to them. He didn't directly say that Ye Li was his girlfriend, but rather that she was his senior in college and was now his colleague at the same company.

Fu Zihan smiled and said, "Oh, girlfriend is girlfriend, don't be so shy about introducing her."

"Come on, come on, let's go inside and have a private room. We can sit down and talk some more."

Zheng Jiawei was not very prominent in this situation. He was just accompanying Su Cheng and Han Yu's groups today. He sat on the side and did not need to say anything. He just laughed along with whatever topic was being discussed and did not interrupt unless necessary.

The dishes came up one after another.

Everyone chatted and ate, and the topics were still the same few: work, current situation, etc. It was just that they took the conversation from the WeChat chat box and brought it into the real world, and this time it was a group chat.

Han Yu is currently helping with his family's business, and he plans to take over his father's job later.

"However, I might also take the civil service exam. We'll see when the time comes. Anyway, anyone can take it at 35. I'm 33 or 34, so it shouldn't be a problem."

Zang Feilong just became a physical education teacher at a middle school in the county this year.

Being a teacher is a very respectable job in the county.

The standard for a county town has never been about how much money one makes, but rather stability and respectability, preferably a leisurely job, the more leisurely the better.

Physical education teachers like Zang Feilong are on "sick leave" all year round and rarely go to the playground, which is quite bad.

If Zang Feilong wanted to retire, he could actually announce his retirement now, wait out his insurance and seniority, start taking care of his health now, and he could receive a pension for many more years.

Of course, Zang Feilong can also strive for a middle-level position; these two goals are not mutually exclusive.

As for Fu Zihan...

She is an art student and has already passed the teacher qualification exam. Two years ago, she was accepted as a music teacher in a rural town, but she didn't go. Now she teaches music to children at a training institution while waiting for the county-level exam.

For young people in county towns, taking civil service exams and applying for government jobs is still the main focus.

There's no rush with Fu Zihan's matter. With a little help from Han Yu's family, getting her ashore in the county is practically guaranteed.

Su Cheng was curious about something, so she asked Fu Zihan, "Does Auntie still run that clothing store?"

"Huh?" Fu Zihan was stunned. Su Cheng actually remembered that her mother owned a clothing store.

Su Cheng certainly remembered.

Previously, her mother always attended parent-teacher conferences, and she always left in a different man's car.

When the news spread in the class, Fu Zihan explained to the others that it was her uncle and maternal uncle.

In fact, Fu Zihan's mother divorced a long time ago, but the specific reasons are unknown.

Su Cheng didn't take it too seriously at the time. He focused most of his time and energy on the college entrance examination and didn't have time to care about such gossip.

Su Cheng has now come to her senses.

Fu Zihan and her mother are basically cut from the same cloth; her mother perfectly fits the stereotype of older divorced women in small towns.

Single or divorced.

They own a men's clothing store or other type of clothing store, have their own car of various brands, but the most common is a Mercedes-Benz C260, and they really enjoy going to the barbershop to have their hair washed.

The first thing I do every morning when I get to the clothing store is to take out the stereo and play classic old songs from the last era or corny DJ tracks on repeat.

Anyone who is not divorced is not qualified to be on this stage.

At the very least, her husband has to be someone who is often away from home and rarely comes back.

Su Cheng can roughly tell what the ingredients are.

Fu Zihan's mother may have been a professional athlete in her early years, or a semi-professional or part-time athlete.

Anyway, it wasn't through his own 'efforts'; he just hooked up with a few rich guys and made some savings.

After getting older, I returned to my hometown and opened a clothing store.

"Yes, my mom still runs a clothing store. You remember that? You have a great memory."

what.

Still running a clothing store.

There's a saying: "The landlord is a constant, but the tenants come and go."

The fact that Fu Zihan's mother was able to run a clothing store for so many years after retiring shows that she has some skills.

The dinner table.

Both sides were very polite to each other.

Especially Han Yu.

He used to be a popular figure at school.

Compared to Han Yu, Su Cheng was practically invisible back then.

Almost everyone in the grade knows Han Yu.

Su Cheng felt that he had changed a lot. He was no longer as high-profile as before, but had become more reserved and steady.

Actually.

Han Yu learned this from his father.

He's already made enough of a splash in school, and he's not interested in that anymore.

Han Yu's current approach to life is to be reserved, humble, and polite to everyone, which is the best way to build connections.

This is the business acumen he learned from his father.

Su Cheng actually envied people and families like Han Yu.

Such a person actually has a lot of energy. They can provide high emotional value to others without being affected themselves. They don't feel mentally or physically tired, or tired from pretending to be subservient.

Han Yu had developed a habit of being polite to everyone he dealt with, even to people who were mentally challenged; he would treat them with a smile.

This kind of business style is quite popular in the county town. It allows him to build a large network of connections and easily take over his father's building materials company.

You might spend a minute scrolling through your own phone's contact list and still not reach the bottom.

If you want to get something done, you just need to find a specific person.

It seems so easy to hit exactly where you point it, just like in a TV drama. Some people would even sarcastically remark, "That's how Brahmins are."

But in reality, this is the result of their hard work over several years or even decades.

Some connections cannot be inherited from one's parents.

They've already managed to win these people over.

Like this dinner party today.

Han Yu invited Su Cheng to dinner, ostensibly to catch up, but actually to see how Su Cheng had grown and whether it was worthwhile to be friends with her.

Assuming Su Cheng is doing only so-so, when he gets married, Su Cheng will come and give him a gift, and that's it.

If Su Cheng is doing very well now, then after getting married, Han Yu will definitely contact Su Cheng often and try his best to befriend her, because he might need her help someday.

(End of this chapter)