Chapter 152 Standing like a slave

Chapter 152 Standing like a slave

Chapter 152 Standing like a slave

Ning Chunyan's voice was so soft and small that it went straight into his ears, and Wang Zixu couldn't help but shudder.

He wanted to ask more, but Ning Chunyan did not give him the chance to refuse. She smiled and went to sit next to Shi Tonghe.

The prince felt a lump in his throat as he pondered how to tell Ning Chunyan after the party was over:
Maybe he could take off his coat and throw it in front of her, pat his thigh, and say in Zhang Mazi's tone, I became a bandit in this mountain because my legs and feet were not in good condition and I couldn't kneel down... No, resign;

Or he could look at her humbly and gently for a long time, and then ask her gently, "Why do you think I resigned without mercy? Why did the leader let me go without any regrets?"
Or he could also tell her honestly that drinking in social occasions and building relationships is a skill, and resisting drinking is a profound knowledge. If you want to resist drinking, you can't just talk about wine, you have to talk about everything and quote classics to appease people before you can resist a glass of wine. I am dull and can't learn it.

It was because he didn't know how to do this that he was determined to embark on the path of literature. Because he thought that literature didn't require connections.

Of course, these are all excuses.

Ning Chunyan had a conversation with him about this topic a long time ago, and had said at the time, "Knowing that there are a lot of filthy people in the literary circle, are you still willing to come in?"
He answered "I do".

Wang Zixu sighed. Even if he took a step back, he couldn't refuse Ning Chunyan. He was the only male member of the small "Xin Shang" magazine, and Ning Chunyan had connections all over the world. Looking beyond her appearance, she was just a girl much younger than him. Could he escape from the battlefield?
It's like in the forty years of Shu Han, the only one who could be picked out was Liao Hua, and he could only take the lead as a pioneer, so who else could do it but him?

He was able to take a good look at Shi Tonghe: Shi Tonghe was short and stocky, with a square face and not much hair, but the little hair he had was combed meticulously. His eyes were coquettish almond-shaped, just like Shi Shuqiu's. His lips were slightly burnt and had many wrinkles, which were the marks left by years of smoking.

He was making hand gestures and whispering something to the person next to him. Ning Chunyan was sitting a seat away from him, blinking his eyes and listening attentively, nodding his head from time to time, revealing an innocent look.

By their lip movements, Wang Zixu could roughly tell what they were talking about. It was about economics, academia, and Nanjing University. These were some grand topics that were very suitable for discussion in this occasion - but in short, they had nothing to do with the little prince.

"Thank you, teachers. I have finished my speech."

Shi Shuqiu bowed deeply on the stage, and the audience burst into warm applause. Shi Shuqiu walked off the stage with a smile on his face. When he passed by Wang Zixu, he bit his lip and whispered:
"Dude, your PPT presentation is too crude. I can't follow a lot of the beats."

After saying that, he left. Wang Zixu ejected the USB drive as if waking up from a dream, stood up, and just happened to meet the eyes of Professor Huang Xinghuo who was drinking water.

Professor Huang put down his water cup, smiled and nodded to him. He nodded back and was about to walk up to him to discuss "The Lost Sky Slash" when Diao Yiwen quickly walked over and whispered to him:
"Hurry to Shitong River."

"what?"

"Go!"

Wang Zixu was almost half-pushed to Shi Tonghe's side. However, Shi Tonghe and his party had already stood up, surrounded by the crowd, and walked quickly out of the auditorium, as if to avoid the fanatical fans who were rushing to sign autographs. He didn't even look at his son.

"Old Shi!"

A student in the back row stood up and called forward eagerly, holding a book high in his hand: "Give me an autograph!"

His voice made the auditorium quiet for a moment, and then a louder voice rushed over:
"Give us an autograph!"

"Master Shi, please stay!"

Shi Tonghe had already walked out of the auditorium. A man in a suit raised his hands above his head, clasped them together in the air, and said loudly: "Students, Teacher Shi has important arrangements next and cannot stay. I hope everyone will understand!"

After saying that, he turned around and walked out the door.

Zhao Peilin put down the book in his hand and turned to look at Xu Rongrong:

"Why doesn't he even look at his own son?"

Xu Rongrong said: "He definitely doesn't want to expose this relationship yet."

Zhao Peilin then turned around and saw Wang Zixu's back as he hurriedly followed.

He wanted to follow, but was suddenly stopped by a woman next to him:
"Excuse me, are you Zhao Peilin, a disciple of Professor Zhong Junmin?"

Zhao Peilin was stunned. He looked down and saw her hand extending to him, so he quickly reached out and shook hands with her.

"Yes, may I ask who you are?"

"My name is Duan Xiaosang."

"Duan Xiaosang?!" Zhao Peilin was shocked. "Are you the legendary new-school martial arts writer?"

Duan Xiaosang smiled and said, "You're overpraising me. I'm just an ordinary book editor now."

Xu Rongrong poked her head out from behind Zhao Peilin and stared at her with a suspicious look.

She added, "I heard that you have a lot of friends in the Chinese department and know a lot of people."

"No problem. From undergraduate to graduate students, I can basically get the contact information of any student on campus."

"I want to ask you about someone, is that okay?"

"If it won't disturb the life of the person involved, I can help you make the connection."

Duan Xiaosang blinked, looked at him and said, "I want to inquire about a first-year student named Du Kezhu...

"According to my investigation, she has several pen names, including Fei Tianzi, Murong Ying, and the Innocent Poet."

……

Wang Zixu followed the crowd like a lackey. The people formed a wall, surrounding Shi Tonghe and preventing water from entering. It reminded people of red fire ants floating in a ball.

Now is a good opportunity to build a good relationship with Shi Tonghe. Diao Yiwen pushed him over, obviously wanting him to seize this opportunity. If he has a chance to talk to Shi Tonghe, or to help Ning Chunyan, it would be great.

Unfortunately, he now doubted whether his performance was a little too clumsy. He followed the crowd, no one drove him away, and no one allowed him to talk to Shi Tonghe. Shi Tonghe didn't even notice that he was following him.

Shi Tonghe had been talking to the school leaders all the way and never stopped. There was no chance for anyone else to interrupt, let alone Wang Zixu. Even Ning Chunyan could only follow him like a vase, not too far away, with a decent smile on her face.

Just when Wang Zixu felt that he was acting silly, Ning Chunyan looked back and saw him. She smiled at him without saying anything and quickly turned back to listen attentively to Shi Tonghe's words. Wang Zixu felt a little relieved.

The group walked all the way until they came to a long sedan. Shi Tonghe stopped, took the school leader's hand and said:

"Just send it here, and we'll discuss it in depth tonight."

"Okay, okay." The leader smiled.

Shi Tonghe pointed at Ning Chunyan again and said, "You have to come and participate in the evening's activities too!"

Ning Chunyan smiled as if in spring breeze: "Of course. By the way, Mr. Shi, can I bring a member of our magazine with me?"

Shi Tonghe said, "Sure! What's wrong with that? Bring everyone from your magazine, and the little prince too, so I can meet him."

Ning Chunyan said hurriedly in a low voice: "Teacher Shi, the little prince is a freelance writer. His identity has not been exposed so far. I only have his contact information and have never met him in person." Shi Tonghe didn't seem to understand what she meant for a moment. He didn't understand how what Ning Chunyan said was related to what he said, and just said expressionlessly: "Oh."

The school leader next to him said, "Teacher Shi, please go ahead and do your work. We are so sorry that we couldn't listen to your lecture this time."

Shi Tonghe laughed and sat in the back seat of the car: "The level of Nanjing University is very high. What else can an old man like me teach?"

"Can you come to our school and give a class next time?"

"There is a chance."

The car door closed, and everyone stood at the rear of the car, raised their hands and waved reluctantly, and the car drove away.

Ning Chunyan stayed and chatted with the school leaders for a few more words. The school leaders deeply affirmed the great success of Ning Chunyan's magazine. Ning Chunyan spoke modestly and highly praised the support of the school leaders and the help of the excellent atmosphere of Nanjing University.

After exchanging pleasantries for a long time, the two sides officially said goodbye. Wang Zixu walked behind Ning Chunyan and waved to everyone from the school. The people around the school leaders then realized that he was from the magazine.

Of course, no one asked Wang Zixu's name, and they waved goodbye again in such an awkward manner.

Ning Chunyan remained silent and walked along the path in front of the library for a long time. After making sure that there was no one around, he threw the bag in his hand to Wang Zixu and started to vent his anger:
"He might as well not come!"

Wang Zixu knew what she was talking about and comforted her, "Even if he only came for a minute, it's a great honor, which is already very good."

Ning Chunyan said angrily, "This is a very cunning way of doing things. Are you here? Yes, but only for a while. Tathagata, don't offend anyone."

Wang Zixu smiled bitterly.

When Shi Tonghe said he wanted to come, Ning Chunyan must have had some illusions, hoping that he could follow the whole process from beginning to end, and preferably even go on stage to say a few words to support the little prince, even if it was just a few casual comments.

But Shi Tonghe only stood there for less than half an hour without saying a word. Even the only time he mentioned the little prince's name was to ask him to come over for dinner, which exposed that he knew nothing about the little prince.

Wang Zixu said, "Actually, you didn't say something right just now. Shi Tonghe wanted the little prince to come over for dinner. If you answered like that, it would seem like you were helping the little prince to put on airs. He doesn't understand the little prince, and thinking back on it, he will feel uncomfortable."

Ning Chunyan rolled her eyes at him. "He's not feeling well? I'm not feeling well either! He has no intention of understanding the little prince, nor is he interested in his works. He just wants to meet him in person. He only talks to him after he meets him in person. Isn't that just trying to cater to the person?"

Wang Zixu said: "In this era, even if he wins the Nobel Prize in Literature, it is possible. It is understandable that he did this."

Ning Chunyan said proudly, "Then I don't care. Even if he doesn't admit it, there are readers who do. The Little Prince will be liked by more and more readers in the future. What about him? Can he still write anything? Humph, arrogant guy, he will regret it sooner or later."

Wang Zixu felt numb from the bones to the skin, but his expression remained serious: "Don't tell this to anyone."

"Of course I know! Isn't this just complaining to one's own people in private?"

After that, Ning Chunyan analyzed: "He was late on purpose today, and didn't really give any substantive comments. He didn't say a word, but he just showed up. For us, he gave us face and didn't offend anyone.

"But if the little prince is attacked in the future and this incident is brought up, he can stay out of it. He can say, 'Although I went there, I am not interested in it and I don't know much about it, so I won't comment.' This way he gets the benefits without giving anyone anything to talk about. I don't want to comment on the way he did it."

Wang Zixu nodded: "Indeed. He came here mainly for traffic, to support his son and bring him popularity."

"He is still trying to cover up his son's relationship." Ning Chunyan said dissatisfiedly, "If this isn't cunning, what is it?"

"As cunning as a fox." Prince Xu sighed.

However, this kind of method is very common in administration, and he has seen a lot of it, so this is not too much. Some of the practices he has seen can disgust people for half a year.

Ning Chunyan said: "By the way, do you have formal clothes?"

Wang Zixu was stunned and said, "I have a very old suit that I wore during a previous civil servant interview. Do I need to wear formal clothes tonight?"

"Of course we have to wear it. Even though they are cunning and treacherous, we must show them 120% respect and get things done properly. We can't neglect the details."

"You are quite experienced."

“Hey, my dad taught me.”

Wang Zixu said: "Anyway, there are formal suits, but it might be a bit out of place to wear them to a dinner party."

Ning Chunyan's expression changed: "Like an insurance salesman?"

"My temperament is not that bad..." Wang Zixu's expression also changed. To be honest, he was a little shocked.

He imagined himself putting on the suit he hadn't worn for many years, and cut out the materials in his mind, but couldn't piece together a complete impression.

Ning Chunyan said nervously, "Let's go to your house and take a look. If it doesn't work, go buy one this afternoon."

The prince was alarmed and asked, "Not really, right?"

"As for that, we'll do it this afternoon." Ning Chunyan said, "We were delayed today, so we have to at least get it back tonight."

Wang Zixu wanted to say something but stopped.

He wanted to say, everyone knows that the other party is very cunning, with their limited skills, can they really find a venue?

It’s a victory if you don’t get drunk and make a fool of yourself.

Thinking of this, he became nervous again: What did Shi Tonghe mean by emphasizing that he wanted to invite Ning Chunyan to the dinner? For some greasy old men, a beautiful literary girl like her is the most delicious dish to go with the wine at the dinner. Who knows what she is thinking.

Wang Zixu began to hesitate, not knowing whether to back out or to get promoted. Anyway, he had to act as the flower protector today, and it all depended on how he performed.

He took Ning Chunyan to his car, and Ning Chunyan finally remembered to ask, "Where is your home?"

"Not far."

The prince pointed at the location, and Ning Chunyan was surprised and asked, "How long have you been in Donghai? You can buy a house in that place?"

Wang Zixu was startled. He almost revealed his true identity. He quickly said, "I did business with a friend before. I made some money and bought a house with Ye Lan. We paid the mortgage together."

"Is there such a thing?" Ning Chunyan was shocked again.

"Yes, I was surprised at first when I learned that it was possible. But after trying it, I felt that it smelled pretty good."

Ning Chunyan's expression suddenly became serious: "So you are living with Ye Lan now?"

Wang Zixu's hands on the steering wheel froze. He turned around to look at her serious expression and suddenly felt as if he had said something wrong.

(End of this chapter)