“I'm sorry, Gu Jia, to call you over so late.”

While Chen Cheng and Xu Huanshan were running on the soccer field,

Wang Manni had called Gu Jia to the Misia store.

Gu Jia stood up and smiled apologetically, “I should be the one saying sorry.”

“Oh, I really didn't expect to be able to get this bag so quickly.”

Wang Manni also looked proud, “It just arrived from Beijing; it's still fresh.”

Gu Jia could barely contain the smile on her face, “Thank you, Wang Manni.”

“I really owe you this time.”

Wang Manni waved her hand with a smile, “Oh, it's nothing~”

“You picked out a few other things too, right?”

Gu Jia pursed her lips and smiled, “You owed such a big favor for my sake, I couldn't let you be in a difficult position.”

“I scrambled to scrape together some credit card limit last night; besides buying the bag, I also wanted to help boost your friend's sales figures.”

She patted Wang Manni on the arm, “Don't worry, it's well within my means.”

Wang Manni nodded in agreement and smiled, “I hope this bag really helps you out.”

Gu Jia beamed, “Thank you~”

If Chen Cheng were there, he would definitely think Gu Jia was crazy.

Maxing out a credit card to buy a bag? And having to return a favor on top of that?

If he were to tell her, taking too big a step makes it easy to pull a muscle.

Oh, that's not right, she doesn't have balls.

So, Xu Huanshan was the one who pulled a muscle.

“Old Xu, are you okay?” Chen Cheng ran over and asked with concern to Xu Huanshan, whose expression of pain was quite grim.

Xu Huanshan hunched over, one hand supporting his thigh, while waving his other hand, “I'm fine~”

“Might have pulled something.”

Just a moment ago, Xu Huanshan had lunged into a sliding tackle to intercept the ball.

Not only did he miss the ball, but he ended up performing a split for everyone to see.

Shen Jie also ran over, supporting Xu Huanshan and asking, “Old Xu, are you really okay?”

Xu Huanshan took a few breaths and felt a bit better, “I'm really fine, probably just pulled a muscle.”

Chen Cheng laughed, “Old Xu, you're really going all out.”

Shen Jie also shook his head with a smile, “How old are you, still acting like you're eighteen.”

Chen Cheng and Shen Jie helped Xu Huanshan to the sidelines to rest.

After sitting for a while, Chen Cheng looked at Xu Huanshan, “Let's call it a day. If Old Xu really gets wrecked, Gu Jia won't let me and Shen Jie off the hook.”

Xu Huanshan retorted irritably, making a gesture to kick Chen Cheng, “Screw you two, you're the ones who are wrecked.”

Shen Jie and Chen Cheng exchanged a look and burst out laughing, “He can still joke around, so it seems he's fine.”

The two didn't stand up and sat back down in their previous spots, one on each side.

Chen Cheng took off his shoes, put on the sandals he brought, took a sip of water, and looked up at the sky, dyed red by the city's neon lights, sighing with emotion.

“The last time I played soccer was in elementary school.”

“I remember it even snowed that time; it left a deep impression.”

“...”

After chatting for a while, they packed up and left the field.

Chen Cheng threw his shoes and jersey into the trunk and sat in the car to wait for Zou Yu and Guan Juer.

Xu Huanshan got into Shen Jie's car; the field was near Junyue Mansion, so Xu Huanshan hadn't driven.

Since he pulled a muscle in his leg, he had to let Shen Jie give him a ride.

Shen Jie parked in front of Chen Cheng's car and rolled down the window.

Xu Huanshan, in the passenger seat, poked his head out to greet Chen Cheng.

“Old Chen, we're heading off.”

Chen Cheng waved with a smile.

Xu Huanshan shook his head with a smile and said to Shen Jie, “Let's go~”

As Shen Jie drove, he asked, “Where did you meet this young brother?”

“He's really something.”

Xu Huanshan said casually, “He's our upstairs neighbor. Gu Jia, you know, she likes to handle social stuff.”

“As soon as they moved in, Gu Jia went to get to know them.”

“A couple of days ago, Gu Jia was coming back with the kid, and he gave them a lift. I happened to run into him when I was coming back from soccer, and that's how we met.”

“We chatted for a bit, and he recognized my soccer jersey at a glance, so I asked him to come play.”

“Didn't expect him to actually agree.”

“You saw it today too; whether he's really a beginner is another matter.”

“But, with his movement, sudden stops, and acceleration, that bunch of guys who eat sea cucumbers might not even be able to catch up to him.”

Shen Jie nodded, “He's indeed impressive.”

He sighed again, “It's good to be young.”

Xu Huanshan laughed irritably, “Old Shen, we're only thirty, right?”

“...” Shen Jie was speechless, pursed his lips, and rubbed his round belly, “My stomach, it's been ruined by drinking.”

After a pause, Shen Jie raised an eyebrow and asked, “What does he do?”

“With two young and beautiful girls, driving the latest G63.”

“Looks pretty wealthy.”

Xu Huanshan: “He works in private equity funds. Gu Jia says his performance is great and he's doing very well.”

“He belongs to that type of person I told you about, the kind that even people in Gu Jia's 'wives' circle' can't meet.”

“Gu Jia didn't want to let this opportunity slip, she wanted to get to know his connections and buy his chicken essence later, that's why she agreed to me playing soccer.”

As he spoke, Xu Huanshan pursed his lips, “You know, I don't like dealing with these connections, circles, and all that.”

“So, I specifically called you along.”

Xu Huanshan had complained to him about Gu Jia trying to climb into the wives' circle.

Hearing this, Shen Jie immediately understood the value of it, laughed, “Thanks, Old Xu~”

Xu Huanshan's eyes were full of smiles, “We've been brothers for so many years, no need to say that.”

“...”

At this time, Xu Huanshan was still a rather awkward person; he was willing to cooperate with Gu Jia's desire to climb up and squeeze into the upper-class circles.

But deep down, he was very pretentious, looking down on these vulgar powerful people.

He had a feeling of 'everyone is drunk, but I am sober.'

Until Xu Huanshan met that 'UU' who 'admired' and encouraged him, which completely amplified his inner need to be worshipped and looked up to.

Chen Cheng sat in the car for ten minutes before Zou Yu and Guan Juer came out of the stadium.

He got out of the car, took towels from the trunk, handed them to the two women, and raised an eyebrow with a smile, “How many laps did you run?”

Guan Juer had a shy smile on her face and held up a peace sign.

Chen Cheng joked, “Just two laps?”

Zou Yu rolled her eyes at him, puffed up with anger, “Twenty laps!”

Chen Cheng's mouth curled up slightly, looking at her haughty expression, and complimented her, “That's really impressive.”

“Hmph~ Of course!”

Chen Cheng naturally placed his hand on Guan Juer's waist, “Let's go, let's head home~”

“Mhm~” Guan Juer wiped her sweat and nodded obediently.

Zou Yu consciously sat in the back seat, leaving the passenger seat for Guan Juer.

Once in the car, Guan Juer took a sip of water, turned her head, and said to Chen Cheng with excitement:

“Brother Cheng, do you know?”

“Just now, several guys were hitting on Sister Zou Yu.”

Zou Yu was immediately a bit embarrassed and angry, glaring at Xiao Guan, and let out a coquettish sound of annoyance.

“Hmph~ Xiao Guan, you traitor.”

“You promised me just now you wouldn't tell him.”

“...”