Return of the Celestial King

Qin Tuo smirked.

”It’s true, I haven’t.”

Upon hearing this, Wu Liang’s eyes flashed with undisguised contempt and smugness.

Just as he was about to say something, Qin Tuo quickly added,

”I’ve certainly never drunk such a low-end, fake Maotai!”

At that one sentence, Wu Liang’s expression changed drastically.

The surrounding classmates, who had been drinking, put down their glasses one by one, their faces showing their anger.

”Hey, watch your mouth! How dare you say this is fake Maotai?”

”Hah! Senior Wu spent a fortune out of his own pocket to treat you to Maotai. If you don’t want to drink it, fine, but to slander him on top of that? That’s just infuriating!”

Clearly, with that one sentence, Qin Tuo had instantly become everyone’s public enemy.

Zhang Xiaoqian also chimed in furiously:

”Qin Tuo, who do you think you’re fooling? You talk like you’re so high-class, but didn’t you just show up in a crappy, domestically-made car?”

Hearing that Qin Tuo actually drove a crappy domestic car, the crowd erupted in laughter.

”I thought this guy came from money, but he’s just a poor bastard!”

”Haha, go on, keep pretending! Didn’t expect someone to expose you, did you?”

Listening to their taunts, Qin Tuo remained expressionless, completely ignoring them.

Wu Liang’s expression, meanwhile, began to gradually relax.

The truth was, his Maotai was indeed fake!

Because the banquet was so expensive, he had to cut costs wherever he could, especially in ways that wouldn’t be obvious.

Besides, these were just college students who hadn’t entered the workforce yet. They probably hadn’t even had much to drink before, so who could possibly tell if it was real or fake?

When Qin Tuo had called him out a moment ago, Wu Liang had been pretty nervous.

But when he heard Zhang Xiaoqian say that this Qin Tuo was just a poor bastard driving a crappy domestic car, he instantly relaxed.

’So this guy’s just another broke wannabe, trying to act tough!’

To lighten the mood, Wu Liang coughed twice and said with a laugh,

”Everyone, it’s all a misunderstanding. I’m not taking it to heart at all. Just enjoy the high-end banquet I’ve so carefully prepared for today. Eat well and have a good time, that’s all that matters!”

He struck a tolerant and magnanimous pose, which immediately earned him a huge round of applause.

”Look at what a great guy Senior Wu is! Compared to that brat, it’s like night and day!”

Everyone was thoroughly impressed with Wu Liang, giving him a thumbs-up.

Everyone looked at Qin Tuo, their eyes filled with contempt.

It was as if having someone like Qin Tuo sitting with them at the same banquet was a complete embarrassment!

But Qin Tuo didn’t feel embarrassed in the slightest. Instead, he retorted,

”If you’re going to host such a high-end banquet, shouldn’t the wine be presentable as well?”

Wu Liang frowned slightly, wondering what Qin Tuo was getting at now.

But Zhang Xiaoqian jeered again,

”Heh, so Maotai isn’t good enough for you? You hick, how long are you going to keep up this act? You say his wine is fake? Then open your eyes and take a good look at what my cousin has on his wrist. I bet you’ve never even seen a watch like that in your life!”

Zhang Xiaoqian’s rapid-fire retort made the surrounding classmates chime in with their support.

In an instant, the crowd was in an uproar, and all their attacks were aimed at Qin Tuo.

And Wu Liang deliberately pulled back his sleeve, trying his best to display the watch for everyone to see.

He sneered inwardly with satisfaction.

’You broke bastard. Trying to expose me in front of everyone? Dream on!’

However, to his surprise, Qin Tuo pointed at the watch and said with a laugh,

”Oh, I recognize that watch. A high-quality knockoff of a Richard Mille titanium watch, right?”

This sentence made everyone roar with laughter.

”Haha, listen to him! That’s just sour grapes talking!”

”It’s normal. A poor bastard like him will never get the chance to even touch a watch like that in his entire life. He probably thinks anything he can’t afford must be a fake.”

Wu Liang scoffed and announced loudly,

”Everyone, don’t mind him. This is what people who’ve never seen the world are like. I had a friend bring this titanium watch back from overseas for me. It cost me one million two hundred thousand!”

What? One million two hundred thousand?

The crowd was absolutely stunned, their eyes filling with worshipful gazes.

Zhang Xiaoqian immediately fanned the flames,

”Hey, kid, you hear that? A watch worth over a million! That’s more than your life is worth!”

However, Qin Tuo paid her no mind, instead saying to Wu Liang with a cheeky grin,

”You know, I think you should go have a serious talk with that friend of yours. One million two hundred thousand for a fake watch... that’s a pretty dirty trick to play on someone.”

But everyone just assumed Qin Tuo was just spouting more sour grapes.

”You damned brat, have you ever actually seen the world? The craftsmanship on his watch is so exquisite, how could it possibly be a fake!”

”Everyone, stop talking to him. The guy’s just got a case of sour grapes. Why even bother with him?”

In truth, however, Wu Liang was starting to get nervous.

’Damn it, this kid isn’t that freaky, is he? Can he actually tell it’s a fake?’

The watch on Wu Liang’s wrist was indeed fake, but it was a replica made with top-of-the-line imitation techniques.

Unless you took it apart, it was impossible to tell it from the real thing.

Even so, this fake watch had still cost Wu Liang tens of thousands to acquire.

Wu Liang began to wonder if Qin Tuo’s eyes were just that sharp—sharp enough to see through even this?

But after a moment’s thought, he immediately dismissed the idea.

’Qin Tuo is just a hick. How could he possibly appraise such a complex watch? I’m definitely overthinking this.’

And so, Wu Liang let out a cold laugh.

”Kid, I understand your bitterness. After all, not everyone in this life gets to wear a watch like this. And I, without a doubt, am the kind of person who is utterly beyond your reach!”

Zhang Xiaoqian chimed in with her own taunt.

”Why are you even talking to him, Cousin? You and he are fated to be in two different worlds. Compared to you, he’s less than nothing!”

Seeing everyone relentlessly mocking Qin Tuo, Han Zilin grew very angry and wanted to step in and say something on his behalf.

But just then, Qin Tuo suddenly seemed to notice something, his eyes fixed on Wu Liang’s wristwatch in surprise.

”Hm? The surface layer of your watch is actually starting to peel off. Is that supposed to happen?”

Hearing the surprise in Qin Tuo’s tone, everyone couldn’t help but look at the watch again.

One look, and many people’s faces immediately turned pale with shock!

Sure enough, a small piece of the watch’s surface had peeled off, and the metal exposed underneath... was the color of brass. How did that resemble titanium in any way?

”That’s weird. Isn’t this a titanium watch? Why is it brass?”

”No, wait. Am I seeing things? That’s definitely brass-colored!”

Many people blurted this out on instinct.

Only after the words were out did they realize what they’d said and quickly snapped their mouths shut in fright.

But the words had been spoken and couldn’t be taken back.

Wu Liang’s expression instantly turned hideously ugly!