Am I giving you too much respect?

Liu Ming didn't care about the other teachers anymore.

He snapped at Ye Chen.

With that, he raised his glass of red wine, ready to throw it at Ye Chen's face.

"Liu Ming, what are you doing? Do you not care about us at all?"

At this point, Mr. Gao couldn't stay seated any longer.

He immediately jumped up from his chair, striding toward Ye Chen and Liu Ming.

The other teachers followed closely behind.

But before Liu Ming could respond, Xu Cheng, the one overseeing the gathering, also stood up.

"Mr. Gao, we all know you've always favored Ye Chen, but is this necessary? I didn't want to say it, but since we're here, let's get it out in the open. This guy is a mess – a drunk, a gambler. He's constantly being chased by loan sharks. Is he really worth your protection? And let's be honest, is Liu Ming really making things hard for him?"

"No. If he can down an entire bottle of 52-degree liquor for 500 yuan, how is drinking one glass of wine and playing a round any trouble? And now he pretends to be sober? Isn't that just embarrassing us all?"

Growing impatient with the teachers' constant defense of Ye Chen, Xu Cheng spoke harshly.

"Xu Cheng, what nonsense are you talking about? Just because he can drink, does that mean he must? Aren't you the one always bragging about drinking three pounds of liquor in the group chat? Why don't you drink one now? Should Ye Chen really have to drink and play because he was late?!" Lin Mengxi snapped.

Xu Cheng had long been infatuated with Lin Mengxi, but he hadn't expected her to side against him over Ye Chen.

That was the last straw.

Enraged, Xu Cheng exploded, "Letting him drink is doing him a favor! Trash like him doesn't deserve to sit with us if it weren't for you insisting on inviting him! He's a curse – bad luck to everyone around him. Don't you know that?"

"Enough!"

Mr. Gao grabbed the wine glass from Liu Ming. "I'll drink this for Ye Chen. After that, we're leaving. I should never have agreed to come to this reunion!"

As he spoke, Mr. Gao raised the glass to his lips.

But Ye Chen suddenly stopped him, taking the glass from Mr. Gao's hand.

"Mr. Gao, that won't be necessary," Ye Chen said with a smile.

With that, he tossed the wine glass and its contents onto the dining table.

If not for the humiliation of his previous life's wedding, where he was ridiculed and treated as a joke, Ye Chen wouldn't have acted this way.

But those experiences made him see through every person in this room.

None of them were any good.

Since that was the case, there was no need to hold back.

The wine splashed everywhere, and the glass shattered with a loud crash.

The waitress opening the private room door jumped in fright.

"Ye Chen! Are you crazy? Do you really think you're somebody now?" Xu Cheng's veins bulged as he roared in disbelief.

The other classmates were stunned.

Wasn't Ye Chen supposed to be the fool, the one everyone laughed at?

How had things turned around like this?

Wasn't he supposed to be weak and timid?

Why was he standing his ground now?

But just as Xu Cheng's roar echoed, the name "Ye Chen" made a group of people passing by stop abruptly.

They turned their heads to look into the private room, catching sight of Ye Chen.

Who else could it be but him?

Inside the room, Ye Chen ignored Xu Cheng's furious outburst.

He smiled at Mr. Gao and the others, who were equally dumbfounded.

"Mr. Gao, honestly, I had no interest in attending this so-called reunion. The only reason I came was to prove I hadn't let you down – to show you I'm not what they say I am. But showing up doesn't mean much. It just means I have the courage to face everyone openly, especially you."

"I believe you! I believe in you, Ye Chen!" Mr. Gao swallowed hard and nodded.

"Well, I thought I'd stay a bit if things went smoothly, but clearly, that's not happening. No point in sticking around. You all enjoy yourselves. I'll catch up with you privately later," Ye Chen said with a light pat on Mr. Gao's arm.

"Do you think we'd want to stay after this?" Mr. Gao shook his head bitterly.

As he finished speaking—

"Brother Ye!"

"Mr. Ye!"

Two voices rang out.

Outside the private room, He Shaochong and He Wan'an entered with delighted expressions.

Along with them were a few men in sharp suits.

Everyone in the room turned their heads toward the door.

The next moment, Xu Cheng's gaze landed on one of the suited men.

"Manager Su?" Xu Cheng blurted instinctively.

But Manager Su ignored him.

Moments earlier, Xu Cheng had been shouting at the very person his chairman and young master had respectfully addressed as "Mr. Ye."

How could he dare respond now?

"Xiao Su, you know him?"

Before He Wan'an or He Shaochong could answer, another suited man – the senior executive of Antai Hotel – asked.

"President Du, he handles small packaging. Our hotel outsources paper napkin and toothpick packaging to his company," Manager Su replied nervously.

"Oh?" President Du gave Xu Cheng a glance.

That glance made Xu Cheng's face go pale and his body tremble.

Antai Hotel was one of his biggest clients – crucial to his company's profits.

But President Du's glance and tone left him dizzy with dread.

Who on earth was Ye Chen, that even people like Manager Su and President Du would address him with such respect?

"How is this possible?"

Xu Cheng's mind reeled.

"Why are you two here?" Ye Chen asked in surprise, recognizing He Wan'an and his son.

"Brother Ye, you didn't know? Antai Hotel is under our Wan'an Group! We were just here for a routine inspection and to meet with a supplier, so we set the meeting here. We happened to hear your name, so we came to check. I can't believe it's really you!" He Shaochong laughed nervously, clearly showing both humility and respect.

"Mr. Ye, is this a class reunion?" He Wan'an asked, frowning slightly.

He had heard the sound of breaking glass and Xu Cheng's shouts earlier.

If his guess was right, this wasn't a pleasant reunion – and Ye Chen was likely the one who had thrown the glass.

But what puzzled him was how someone like Xu Cheng could dare to shout at Ye Chen, someone even Zhang Jingshan's son sought to curry favor with.

Was this guy insane?