"What’s the deal with this Zhou Wang?"
Xue Peng furrowed his brow and called out to Zhao Yan to ask.
"He’s a friend of Song Rui and Cheng Yiyi, from Yunan Province, has some money, and is apparently a big internet celebrity..."
"Oh, from the way you reacted, I thought he was someone important."
Upon hearing this, Xue Peng immediately lost interest.
"Maybe not that important, but a real hothead. The other day when I interacted with him, he didn’t even acknowledge me!"
Zhao Yan chuckled as he spoke.
"Oh?" Xue Peng shook his head with a laugh, "And there’s an outsider who dares to act arrogant in Beidou? Let me ask around later, see who brought him here..."
"With you around, Peng Ge, even a dragon or a tiger would have to lie low!"
"Alright, let’s not boast among us brothers... You better watch out outside lately, don’t keep using my name to scare people."
"Has something happened?"
Upon hearing Xue Peng say this, Zhao Yan asked in surprise.
"Not exactly... But you really haven’t heard?"
Xue Peng waved it off at first, then confirmed with another question.
Seeing Zhao Yan shake his head, Xue Peng motioned for him to sit down, picked up his wine glass, clinked it with Zhao Yan’s, and after they both drained their glasses, Xue Peng spoke:
"A few days ago, a Western restaurant called Peninsula Furongli opened, do you know about it?"
"Peninsula Furongli..."
Zhao Yan recalled for a moment, then realized, "Isn’t that the one invested by Qiangsheng Group... I remember now, Liao Xiaoqiang seemed to have posted about it in his Moments, but I’m not that familiar with him, so I didn’t go that day."
The Liao Xiaoqiang Zhao Yan mentioned is the younger brother of Liao Jianli, the boss of Qiangsheng Group. Qiangsheng Group has been gaining significant attention in recent years, making him quite a formidable figure in the Beijing Circle, earning respect from everyone.
Sometimes, people even compare him to the Four Young Masters; however, since the Liao Family comes from a grassroots background, it’s mostly considered a joke.
"I didn’t go either, but I heard... the restaurant ran into some trouble that day."
"Trouble?"
Zhao Yan asked puzzledly, "What kind of trouble?"
"Hey, Zhao Yan, you really haven’t been following the news, huh!"
Another young man nearby laughed and chimed in, "I remember you and that Qu Jie were quite friendly, and his mother got taken in, you didn’t know?"
"Qu Jie’s mother... Cao Meijuan?"
Zhao Yan was shocked, "What happened that she got taken in?"
"The official reason is bribery, who knows... Anyway, her companies are being investigated, as well as Wang Feiyu’s family..."
The youths nearby had apparently heard about this news earlier and shared what they knew. Although no one could explain the full story, the bits they shared already left Zhao Yan stunned.
"No... why does it all sound more and more bizarre, what on earth happened, and what role did Qiangsheng Group play in all this? Doesn’t Liao Jianli or Liao Xiaoqiang have anything to say?"
"That’s the strange part, logically, Qiangsheng Group and the Cao Family and Wang Family’s companies have been partners for many years, it’s easy to find out, the restaurant was even opened together, but, strangely, both Liao Jianli and Liao Xiaoqiang have remained silent on the issue."
One of the youths shook his head, "By the way, yesterday I went to Wanliu to play golf and ran into Liao Xiaoqiang, just as I asked him about it, his face turned as sour as if he’d swallowed a fly, gave me a long hard look on the spot..."
Zhao Yan’s curiosity became even more piqued, and seeing no one could give a clear answer, he looked at Xue Peng, who had been quietly drinking while the others discussed.
"Peng Ge, with your connections, you must know what’s going on, care to share with us?"
"It’s not that I don’t want to tell you, it’s just that even if I did, you might not understand, and due to certain rules, I can’t lay everything out clearly."
Facing Zhao Yan’s inquiry as well as the nearby gazes, Xue Peng simply said distantly, "All I can reveal is that the level of this issue is far higher than you think."
As he spoke, Xue Peng lifted his hand and pointed upwards.
Seeing Xue Peng’s mysterious expression, although they were still puzzled, they seemed to feel a certain gravity... it was as if Xue Peng had spoken and yet said nothing.
At this moment, Zhao Yan noticed Cheng Yiyi and others heading to the dance floor, just as he wanted to join them, he was suddenly pulled back by Xue Peng’s arm around his shoulder.
"Zhao Yan, let me discuss something with you, alright?"
Saying this, Xue Peng proactively lit a cigarette for Zhao Yan.
Caught a bit off guard, Zhao Yan quickly smiled and said, "Peng Ge, between us brothers, there’s no need for discussions, just say what you need!"
"That girl called Yiyi, I quite like her, I see from the way you guys are that things aren’t set between you yet, right?"
Xue Peng said with a smile, "So, what do you think..."
Zhao Yan’s expression faltered, forcing a smile, "Peng Ge, this... this might be a bit inappropriate, don’t you think?"
"You know I don’t have many hobbies, just a bit of a thing for uniforms, this girl seems clean and different from the usual ones in our circle, I’m genuinely tempted..."
"Peng Ge, I thought you’d like someone like that female DJ on stage..."
Not knowing how to respond for a moment, Zhao Yan could only make faces, trying to change the topic.
"You mean Jiang Mubai, girls like her with such an alluring vibe are indeed quite something in certain ways, but I bet she already has a sponsor behind her, no need to mess with that mess."