I'm A Baller - Chapter 331
Chapter 331: Imposing Manner
Coming right away? Anyone who believed that was an idiot.
Wang Yan waited for 20 minutes, during which Li Yixu had already booked a restaurant and sent the address, but the two girls still hadn’t appeared.
When he asked where they were, Big Bear had a lot to say.
“Why are you hurrying us? We came here just to sign the contract and have fun, so we didn’t bring any clothes along. You want us to make you look good, so we should dress up, right?”
Wang Yan felt like slapping himself. Make him look good? They took him seriously?
He sighed. “Fine, Nawu, take this chance to bully me. You’ve gotten a few hundred thousand bucks as compensation for your injury, so you’ve got to spend it somewhere huh.”
He hadn’t said much but Nawu ended crying on the spot.
“You!! Rubbing salt into my wounds! I’m already so upset and you yell at me…”
Wait, what?
Wang Yan was dumbfounded.
She wasn’t upset at all! Look at how much fun she was having!
But he couldn’t do anything else but raise his hands in surrender.
“Ok, ok, take your time but don’t go over the top alright? It’s a casual gathering. He’s already waiting for us so I’ll go over first. You girls get ready and take the hotel limousine service there…”
How difficult! He was going to disappear right now!
He shook his head and said to the driver, “Changning District, Honggu Road, number 669.”
The driver nodded. “Five on West. Got it.”
Wang Yan had no idea what restaurant this was, but since the driver seemed familiar, he didn’t have to look it up himself.
He asked a little curiously, “Do you know about that restaurant? What’s it like?”
The driver started his long speech as if he was recounting his family history or something.
“It’s not as good as Tang Court, Fortune Restaurant or Yongfu Restaurant, but it’s still one of Shanghai’s best. The head chef, Sun Zhaoguo, is very famous. He was named as one of China’s best chefs ten years ago.”
“It’s not easy to get Chef Sun to cook personally, especially since your appointment is so last minute.”
“But even without Chef Sun around, Five is still a famous place.”
“It’s dinner time now and it’s not easy to get a private room at this hour. Mr. Wang, your friend is really pretty capable…”
Wang Yan still had no idea what line of business Li Yixu was in, but he was certainly sincere in making friends.
In fact, he was more sincere than Wang Yan expected.
Wang Yan smiled and asked casually, “Why do you know so much about that place?”
The driver answered a little embarrassedly, “I often send guests to all these high end restaurants for their appointments. If the guest wants us to stay so that they have a car back to the hotel, they’d let us into the restaurant too. There are very few high end restaurants in Shanghai that I’ve not managed to leech food off..”
“That’s not leeching. That’s only what you deserve,” said Wang Yan with a laugh. He had learnt something new.
These five star hotel limousine drivers were not to be looked down upon. They had gone to all sorts of high end restaurants, private clubs, luxurious hotels, airport VIP lounges and luxury brand boutiques. They might have gone to even more places than those children to wealthy parents.
They knew everything about the city.
If he ever needed to hire a personal driver, he would find one who used to work for a high end hotel. They were more reliable than a rental car driver or those who retired from the army.
A driver didn’t have to be a bodyguard at the same time. It was best that everyone just focused on what they did best. He’d just hire a bodyguard to protect him!
While he was dreaming about the future, the car soon stopped in front of Five on West.
Li Yixu came to the door to receive him and he had a warm smile.
“Welcome, welcome! It’s been a while, but you’re looking more and more radiant these days. Princess He didn’t come along with you?”
Wang Yan shook his head. “She didn’t come to Shanghai.”
“But I’ve got two other friends joining the party, I hope it’s not too inconvenient.”
“Of course not! A meal is meant for people to make friends with each other. I’m more than happy to meet any of your friends, Master Wang!”
Li Yixu knew his manners well, and Wang Yan was just as polite.
“I’ll call you Brother Li then. Don’t call me things like Master Wang anymore. My name is Wang Yan, so you can just call me that.”
“You’ll be Young Master Yan then. Don’t call me Brother Li. You can call me Brother Xu or Third Brother.”
Brother + surname made them sound distant, while Brother + name made them sound closer. Since Li Yixu placed such importance on these little details, he must be a very steady and meticulous person.
After they were done with the niceties, they went to Room 101. Four people were standing and waiting inside.
Three men and one woman were inside the room, and none of them seemed to carry the same aura as Li Yixu. Wang Yan immediately had an inkling of what was going on.
“Young Master Yan, let me introduce them to you.”
“Shen Man is the most popular livestreamer on Waiwai, and she’s the first female livestreamer to have 1 million fans.”
“Liu Kun is the Assistant Operations Manager at Fun Times, and he’s number 2 at Waiwai.”
“Xiao Zhe is an up and coming livestreamer on Waiwai, and he’s a youngster with a head for business.”
“Chen Handong is one of the earliest operators of Tiger Tooth, and he’s an old friend of mine. He’s been hoping to manage his own guild recently.”
“I don’t have to introduce Master Wang to you guys, right?”
“All of you are in the livestreaming industry, so you should know how hard it is to get Master Wang to make an appearance.”
Li Yixu’s introduction sequence was very interesting.
At most proper business meetings, the first person to be introduced was always the one in the highest position, which was Wang Yan.
But Li Yixu skipped introducing Wang Yan and went with the only lady first, followed by the other two from Waiwai, and then finally Chen Handong from Tiger Tooth, who only got the label ‘old friend’.
There was so much one could read between the lines.
Firstly, Master Wang’s position was so much higher than theirs, there was really no need to introduce him at all.
Secondly, since this was a friendly gathering, the ladies got the priority.
Thirdly, Liu Kun had the highest status among these four, while Xiao Zhe had immense potential.
Fourthly, he emphasized that Chen Handong was a friend, so Chen Handong couldn’t be upset that Li Yixu had introduced him last.
It was just a simple introduction, but Li Yixu had taken care of every single detail. This level of EQ was so high that Wang Yan was shocked.
So many of these wealthy heirs and heiresses were a bunch of useless airheads who didn’t know how to do anything even with help.
But the elite among them could go a much longer way than any ordinary person.
Wang Yan didn’t put on any airs. He shook all their hands and received their overwhelming praise.
“Mr. Wang, you’re so young! No wonder all my friends who have come into contact with you all say that you’re a genius who only appears once in a hundred years!”
“Mr. Wang, hello, hello! Pleased to meet you!”
“My goodness, Master Wang, you’re so handsome! And your voice is so magnetic…my goodness my heart is beating so quickly!”
Li Yixu glanced at Shen Man and said with a smile, “I’ll give you special permission to sit next to Mr. Wang then. Since I’ve fulfilled your fangirl wish, you should help me take care of Mr. Wang. That’s a good deal, right?”
“Of course!” Shen Man nodded eagerly and the joy on her face was apparent.
But Wang Yan didn’t take any of what she said seriously.
He knew a thing or two about Shen Man. She had already become a livestreamer to a million fans about six or seven years ago.
A lot of models wanted to become livestreamers because of what they had heard in the media about her.
To a certain extent, she was a woman who was part of livestreaming history in the country. She was one of the earliest successful livestreamers, so she had helped to greatly increase the influence livestreaming had.
A woman like that was definitely not some simple minded foolish girl like Nawu.
But Wang Yan didn’t think that this woman had designs on him just because she said nice things about him. Someone who had climbed up from the bottom were normally nicer to those who were rich and powerful, and they didn’t necessarily have any ill intentions.
Everyone took their seats.
Since he wasn’t sure when Nawu and Fu Yushi were arriving, Wang Yan didn’t leave them any space. Li Yixu was on his left and Shen Man was on his right.
When the food arrived, a middle aged man came in to greet them.
“Young Master Li, you’ve really blessed our humble restaurant with your presence! This is the menu I’ve specially put together for you, is it to your liking?”
This time, Li Yixu introduced Wang Yan. “Chef Sun, this is the VIP for tonight. You can introduce the dishes to Mr. Wang Yan.”
After Wang Yan shook the man’s hand, Li Yixu added, “This is Chef Sun Zhaoguo, one of the best chefs in Shanghai. Young Master Yan, you’re the VIP tonight, so don’t hold back, feel free to express your opinion.”
Wang Yan knew how to behave too. He just shook his head and smiled as he listened to Chef Sun introduce the dishes.
There were exactly eight people eating, so eight appetizers were prepared. Since it was prepared by this top chef, there was nothing to complain about.
The main dish for the night was the Coconut Paste High Grade Double Jade. Wang Yan had no idea what that was at all.
Chef Sun took the time to explain the dish very carefully and sounded really fancy.
“Jade is a medium sized abalone that grows in the purest waters of New Zealand. The largest among them are called Double Jades.
“When we talk about single and double, we’re referring to the weight of the abalone without the shell. Double Jade means that two of them weigh 500 grams, while Triple Jade means that three of them weigh 500 grams.”
“But of course, the earliest unit of measurement we had was the Sima Jin, so that’s equivalent to 600 grams. But we now use the standard 500 grams.”
“But even though they may be the same weight, the difference in species makes a big difference in price.”
“Jade is a delicious and rare type, and it’s even more expensive than the Red Robe abalone. This is $8,800 per gram, and it is a treasure that I keep for only my most important guests.”
“If Young Master Li didn’t ask about them, I wouldn’t have used them today.”
In other words, Chef Sun was showing off. Even if someone else paid him more money, he wouldn’t have sold the abalones to them!
Wang Yan found this way of showing off very nauseating, but he had to play along.
“Thank you for being so hospitable, I’m really looking forward to it.”
The next main dish was the 400 gram Yangtze crabs.
The freshwater hairy crabs of Yangcheng Lake were the best, but Chef Sun didn’t think so.
“The crabs of Yangcheng Lake reach 250 grams at most.”
“Hairy crabs are only mature after they have molted a certain number of times, and they molt more and more slowly. Yangcheng Lake is only so big, but there are so many crab farmers there.”
“The crab farmers have no motivation, time or space to rear crabs in such high quantities.”
“If you take 5 to 8 years to rear one batch, your cost will exceed your profits, and you won’t be able to earn the usual 30% on the crabs. That’s a loss, and nobody will be willing to do it.”
“So if anyone tells you that they can provide 400 gram hairy crabs from Yangcheng Lake in bulk, you don’t have to check with anybody else. I can tell you that they’re definitely lying.”
“400 gram hairy crabs must be from other places, sent to Yangcheng Lake, then captured quickly just so that they can claim it’s from that lake.”
“Don’t believe them!”
“Hairy crabs that have been freed from their cages can grow up to 500 grams, but would you be able to find one just after a year?”
“That’s difficult.”
“The crabs we use here are grown in the Yangtze River. They are wild with green backs, white bellies, golden claws, and yellow hair. They are cooked with aged yellow wine and their taste is absolutely top-notch!”
“But I can’t sell them to you at the price of Yangcheng Lake. Five on West has always been doing business according to the rules.”
Sun Zhaoguo was well-informed and eloquent. With just a few words, he had raised the level of the food he was offering quickly.
Wang Yan looked at the menu. It was 2,500 a piece. It was really not cheap, but he felt that it was worth it.
The art of speaking made a difference…
Next was was Miyazaki beef. This was nothing new to Wang Yan.
However, Kobe beef was banned in the country. From this, it could be seen that Chef Sun’s connections and capability was above others.
There was nothing much to discuss about the remaining small lamb from Inner Mongolia. It was rare, but it was not unique.
Overall, Li Yixu spent a lot of effort on today’s dinner.
What was especially rare was that in less than half an hour, he had settled the private room and come up with this table of dishes. He was very capable and full of sincerity.
After receiving such a warm reception, Wang Yan felt he should make some response.
When Chef Sun went to prepare the dishes, Wang Yan gave Li Yixu a thumbs up.
“Brother Xu, you’re thoughtful.”
Li Yixu smiled and teased, “This certainly can’t compare to your big spending. I just tried my best to make Young Master Yan satisfied!”
Shen Man took the opportunity to say, “You two are really amazing, but you’re being modest. I’m just a little livestreamer, and all this is really making me nervous…”
Then, she gently lifted the menu and said with a smile, “I looked at the main dishes. None of them are available on the restaurant’s regular menu.”
Chen Handong nodded with a smile. “Today, I’ve benefited from Mr. Wang and Third Brother.”
It was hard to say if Xiao Zhe was really clueless or just pretending to be. But he looked very excited.
“Wow, I’ve heard of this restaurant a long time ago. The special dishes alone are very expensive. I can’t even afford to invite my buddies. There’s actually a special menu? Third Brother, if you didn’t bring me here, I wouldn’t even dare to think about it!”
Li Yixu was in a good mood and said a few more words, which was rare.
“Actually, every top chef has similar abilities and motivation. They hide some secret skills that vary according to the ingredients and use these specialties to serve their distinguished guests.”
“The menu that is placed on the table and made available to the public does not represent the true prowess of any high-end restaurant.”
“In the entire world, such renowned chefs are extremely rare, and they all have their own unique set of skills.”
“You can’t get to eat it because your status isn’t high enough. It definitely isn’t because those top restaurants only have a few standard features and main hits.”
“Oh! So that’s how it is! You’re really knowledgeable…”
Xiao Zhe nodded after being taught. He didn’t show any discomfort because of Li Yixu’s attitude.
He was a smart person who recognized the true gap between himself and people like Li Yixu.
As for Shen Man, she immediately followed suit.
“Third Brother, where’s the wine you brought? Quickly take it out and show me!”
Li Yixu gave the order, and the waiter immediately brought the wine in.
A case of 1996 Flying Maotai, two bottles of Romani Conti, two bottles of Champagne Armand de Brignac, and a bottle of Teeling vintage Irish single malt whiskey.
The quantity of the wine was not much, but the price was not cheap.
At this moment, the difference in levels among the people present could be seen.
Xiao Zhe stared at the case of extremely simple packaging, extremely retro Flying Maotai and started calculating how much the 20-year-old Maotai should be worth.
Shen Man looked at the two bottles of Champagne Armand de Brignac and her eyes were filled with surprise. She had probably gone to many nightclubs and knew the lethality of those things.
Chen Handong and Liu Kun were the most interested in the Romani Conti. Each of them picked up a bottle and looked at it non-stop.
Wang Yan was curious about the bottle of whiskey. It had nothing to do with the price. The main thing was that he had never drunk whiskey before, so it felt very new to him.
Liu Kun looked at it for a long time but could not understand it. He gave the Conti to Li Yixu and was very explicit in his flattery.
“Third Brother, your taste is really too high-end. I’m afraid this bottle of wine is worth tens of thousands a bottle, right? How generous!”
Li Yixu smiled and didn’t respond. He asked Wang Yan with interest, “Young Master Yan, are you not interested in red wine?”
Good heavens! Was Li Yixu going to try and show off?
Wang Yan shook his head without batting an eyelid. “It’s mainly because I’m not interested in black Pinot Noir. In addition, the Echezeaux grand cru vineyard cannot be considered an authentic Conti. Furthermore, these are only ten years old…that’s a tragedy.”
Wang Yan was now a real expert in red wine.
That [wine tasting card] , which would expire next year, represented a huge sum of extra money. Of course, Wang Yan would put in effort.
He had the heart to learn and he didn’t lack money. He dared to look, dared to ask, and dared to buy. He also had a true expert whom he could consult anytime, so his experience grew tremendously.
This small display of his knowledge immediately shocked the people around him.
Shen Man and the others were thinking, Wang Yan was speaking in a language they understood, but they couldn’t comprehend a single thing!
Master Wang was indeed awesome!
Li Yixu was the only one who could understand what Wang Yan was saying, and he was also deeply impressed by Wang Yan’s knowledge.
He could distinguish so much information at a glance, but he was so young. What kind of family was he from?!
Perhaps he had been gargling high-end red wine since he was young?!
In fact, when Li Yixu asked the question, he more or less had the intention to pretend. He intended to show off in front of this younger man, but unexpectedly, Wang Yan did not fall for that trick at all. Instead, he made himself feel quite uncomfortable.
However, Li Yixu reacted very quickly and his EQ was high, so he was able to ease the situation easily.
“So Young Master Yan is a real wine tasting master! It’s my fault for not realizing this and showing off in front of an expert. If there’s an opportunity in the future, Young Master Yan, you can teach me how to taste Bordeaux. I want to learn from you.”
Wang Yan immediately returned to his harmless smile. He picked up the bottle of whiskey and saved Li Yixu some embarrassment.
“Let’s talk about the future later. I want to ask you now, Brother Xu. I basically don’t drink high-alcohol alcohol and don’t know anything about whiskey. Can you tell me more about this bottle?”
It was a classic case of giving a slap first, then offering a candy after that. It was an old ruse but it never went out of date.
Li Yixu was very happy to be asked because Wang Yan’s family background, status, and foresight were all extraordinary. A word of advice was more useful than a hundred words of flattery from Shen Man and the others.
He started to explain excitedly.
“Teeling is actually a newly built distillery this year. This brand, not to mention you don’t drink whiskey, may not even be known by old wine lovers who drink whiskey all year round.”
“I was invited to participate in this year’s San Francisco World Spirits Competition when I went to San Francisco to deal with the family business some time ago. Only then did I discover this new wine.”
“Teeling’s small batch of Irish Single Malt Whiskey won the Double Gold Medal of the 2015 San Francisco World Spirits Competition.”
“The price of this bottle of wine was not high. It was less than 20,000 per bottle, but the taste was very elegant. It had a freshy fruity taste and the fragrance of dry spices flowers.”
“What was more valuable was its output. In total, it brewed more than 200 bottles. More than 30 bottles were used in the exhibition, and more than 50 bottles were given away. Only about 130 bottles were sold to the outside world.”
“A total of 16 bottles were brought into China, and 12 of them are in my hands.”
“If you weren’t my guest tonight, then even if Wang Siming asked for them, I might not have been willing to take them out.”
When they heard Wang Siming’s name, the others’ gazes changed.
Wow!
In Third Brother’s eyes, Wang Yan could actually be compared to Wang Siming?!
Of course, that was an exaggeration. It was a very obscure and brilliant flattery method.
Wang Yan knew this very well.
Moreover, his heart suddenly had a thought.
Li Yixu…could it be that he knew Wang Siming?
Interesting…
He wanted to say something modest, but his habit of [Speaking with Discretion] flashed. In the end, Wang Yan didn’t ask about Wang Siming and just gave Li Yixu a thumbs up.
“Brother Xu, you have good taste and foresight! You paid the price of cabbages in exchange for 11 gold bars…”
He wasn’t going to start asking about Wang Siming even though Li Yixu had purposely dropped that name!
Smiling, he handed the whiskey back and turned his gaze to the Champagne Armand de Brignac.
“Let’s drink champagne today. I don’t have any feelings for whiskey, so it’s a waste of God’s gift to give it to me. Brother Xu, keep it well. When I’m enlightened one day, I’ll look for you again, haha!”
The young man was unwilling to drink, so Li Yixu couldn’t force him, and he could only smile and nod.
“Okay, I’ll specially leave a bottle for you. When you want to drink it, call me. Just say the word!”
When he turned around to pack up the wine box, Li Yixu’s smile disappeared and his brows furrowed slightly.
His heart was filled with suspicion.
Was it because Wang Yan didn’t want to appreciate the favor and wanted to maintain a distance?
Or was it simply because Wang Yan didn’t like it?
He couldn’t understand it.
Wang Yan was obviously easygoing and cultured. He was magnanimous and spoke frankly, but he was unexpectedly difficult to read as well.
Up until now, he had tried several times to sound Wang Yan out but to no avail. He couldn’t even figure out what sort of person Wang Yan was.
Li Yixu really felt a little uncomfortable.
He had seen countless people, but he had never met such a difficult youth!
He was only 20, so he was still a youth, right?
He was a young man but he was so much harder to deal with than some PhD holder.
Facing Wang Yan, Li Yixu even felt a sense of defeat. He had lived 10 years longer than him. Was that all in vain?
He kept muttering these things in his heart, but when he turned around, he was immediately composed and at ease.
A mature man, no matter how capable he was, had to always be shrewd.
Li Yixu was really not bad, but his luck was not so good…he had run into someone who didn’t react the way he expected at all.
Just as they finished talking about wine, the waiter began to serve the dishes.
As soon as the cold dishes were served, Shen Man eagerly poured wine for Wang Yan.
Actually, it should have been the waiter who did this, but the young lady insisted on doing it herself. She was being so sensible that even Wang Yan couldn’t stop her.
When she poured the wine, Shen Man leaned forward. Her collar was loose and she was rather near to Wang Yan. What he could see is self-explanatory.
Could this be considered seduction?
Actually, strictly speaking, it wasn’t. It was just a small trick to show off one’s charm. But if one fell for it, the other party would act reserved.
Wang Yan looked Shen Man up and down, and in return, she gave him a warm, respectful, and slightly excited smile.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome, you’re welcome! Master Wang, you’re my idol. It’s my honor to be able to serve you well!”
My, my, this girl really knew the right things to say!
Wang Yan really wanted to bring Miss He over so she could learn from Shen Man. Unfortunately, in her dreams, she was the boss.
As for Shen Man, she did not stir up any interest in Wang Yan at all.
In her made up state, her looks were 90 points, so her bare face was at most 85 points. She did not even deserve a name in the system, let alone compare to Miss He. She was not even on the same level as Pingzhi.
Well okay, there was one thing about her that was better than Pingzhi by three points.
That was a sad story, so it was better not to mention it.
The calmer Wang Yan appeared, the more Li Yixu, who was secretly observing, wanted to smile bitterly.
Damn it, that Princess He was so gorgeous and all those showgirls were also so beautiful. It was obvious that Wang Yan’s taste in women was very difficult to please, and a honey trap wasn’t going to work on him…
However, Shen Man didn’t give up.
She had never seen what sort of power Wang Yan really had, and always thought that she was very pretty, sang well and knew how to strike a conversation. So she always assumed that everyone would be smitten with her.
So she took out her phone and moved closer. She asked shyly, “Master Wang, can I take a photo with you? I want to save it and secretly show it off to my friends in the future…”
This humble attitude Wang Yan feel very good.
Of course, although it felt good, it was impossible to take a photo with him. Ugliness was the original sin.
Just as he was about to refuse, Big Bear suddenly flung the door open and stared at Wang Yan in an imposing manner.
A little princess came in after her and said with a faint smile, “Mr. Wang, are we here a little too early?”
