CHAPTER 255: CHAPTER 144 GUILT_2

"Han Lie, don’t go back tonight. There’s plenty of room at our place; just stay here!"

What?! Pan Ge, who was on the sofa dealing with strawberries, looked up in astonishment. She felt her father was becoming more and more outrageous.

It wasn’t that she didn’t want to spend more time with Han Lie, but staying over was a bit... you know.

Don’t I have any dignity? Why are you two in such a hurry to give me away?!

When Pan Ge looked up, her gaze met Han Lie’s, which clearly held a teasing glint.

She was about to object and voice her protest when Han Lie declined first.

"Thank you for the kind offer, Uncle Pan, but I don’t think it’s appropriate. It’s still early; I’ll head back to my dorm later."

Han Lie’s demeanor wasn’t impolite, but Pan Ge immediately felt annoyed.

She glared at him, grinding her teeth.

This was a secret signal.

Brother Lie vividly remembered the sharpness of her small teeth; even an accidental scrape could send shivers down his spine.

But his decision wouldn’t change. If they couldn’t persuade him, he wouldn’t stay!

Pan Shengwu tried to convince him again, and Zhao Anni also showed enthusiasm, but in the end, Han Lie stood his ground.

Panzi was somewhat dissatisfied, but Zhao Anni seemed to like Han Lie even more.

Hmm, a good kid. He knows his boundaries!

After eating fruit and drinking tea, as the time approached 8:30 PM, Han Lie took his leave on schedule.

Panzi tossed him a bag and then arranged for a driver to take him back to the school entrance. The pleasant day was almost over... Or so he thought!

It was a big weekend. How could he not go out and have some fun?

Wang Tianqing?

No, she was too injured. It would be better to see what Zhao Shengnan and Lou Xiaoxiao were up to...

Before sending any messages, Han Lie opened the bag to take a look.

Sure enough, inside was the watch box.

The box contained three watches, from Hermès, Dior, and Ferrari respectively.

The Hermès watch was a "Moon-Reading Time" model, with an alligator leather strap and a black dial featuring a moon surface pattern.

The protective film hadn’t even been peeled off, and the price tag dangled from the strap.

Han Lie took it out for a look. Wow, 300,000 Hong Kong dollars.

A Hermès platinum bag going for 300,000 Hong Kong dollars wasn’t surprising, but their watches... Most people would consider them an intelligence tax.

It all depends on one’s position, I guess.

For Zhao Anni, this watch was likely just an impulse buy, something casually tossed into her shopping basket while she was buying a bag. She probably hadn’t thought much about its use at the time; she bought it simply because it looked decent.

Han Lie tried it on. The fit was good, and the design, sporty and quite dashing, paired well with athletic wear.

Anyway, it’s not my money. As long as it looks cool, it’s fine.

And so, Brother Lie happily tried on the second watch.

The Dior VIII had a ceramic case and strap, all in pure white, with diamonds on the bezel—the epitome of minimalistic elegance, priced at 30,000 euros.

This watch was even cooler, perfect for light-colored clothing.

The only issue was that the strap hadn’t been adjusted and was a bit large when worn.

The last one, from Ferrari, was a Hublot Big Bang Ferrari 2013 Magic Gold watch.

Man, that dial was so flashy it was practically indescribable.

But it was surprisingly handsome on the wrist. It had a unique fashion sense with its complex machinery and was versatile enough for sportswear, casual, or formal attire.

All three watches satisfied Han Lie extraordinarily. He had to admit that even though fashion watches didn’t retain value, had less sophisticated movements, and were at the bottom of the watch world’s hierarchy, they truly had personality and flair when worn.

Men under twenty-four or twenty-five are really better suited to fashion watches than top-tier brands like Patek Philippe, Rolex, or Vacheron Constantin.

It wasn’t that top-tier watches weren’t beautiful, but they lacked that unbridled creativity.

Their intense focus on craftsmanship and style often results in an excess of sobriety at the cost of vitality.

Another point: small-time businessmen and second-generation rich kids could grit their teeth and afford a top-tier watch worth several hundred thousand just for show. After all, Patek Philippe and Rolex always retained their value; even selling them pre-owned after wearing them for a while wouldn’t result in too much loss.

Fashion watches were different. Who, other than the super-extravagant, would spend hundreds of thousands on them?

Trying to sell them second-hand? You couldn’t move them even at a massive discount.

Wear one on your wrist, and without saying a word, it instantly told people: This guy is filthy rich!

There was just one catch: people with dark skin or thin wrists really couldn’t pull off the avant-garde style of these watches. If one’s aura was even slightly lacking, wearing them was practically fashion suicide.

When Du Lante wore a Richard Mille with Armani haute couture, the photos made him look like a migrant worker. That was exactly the principle.

Han Lie, however, had no such problem. Any of the watches looked good on him.

His 79-point Face Value wasn’t for nothing.

Speaking of Face Value, Han Lie remembered something else—allocating attribute points.

He opened the "Physique" sub-item and invested 400,000 experience points into ’Height’, gaining a little over two centimeters.

Seeing he still had plenty of experience points left, enough to add 1 point to an overall attribute, Han Lie opened the "Special" sub-item and did the same...

This was what they called synchronized growth. Don’t be envious; it’s unattainable for others. A cheater is just that unreasonable.

Now, Han Lie’s overall attributes had become—

[Basic Attributes: Strength 70, Agility 71, Constitution 71, Intelligence 70]

[Secondary Attributes: Face Value 79, Physique 76, Health 75, Special 77]

His Strength, Agility, and Constitution hadn’t increased; his gym time was still too short. However, his Secondary Attributes were nearly maxed out, thanks to Zhou Ci, Haohao, Chen Shao...

Having sorted himself out, Han Lie, in a cheerful mood, sent Zhao Shengnan a text message.

"Feeling guilty?"

Zhao Shengnan: "What is there to feel guilty about???"

"I feel guilty."

Zhao Shengnan: "Huh? You can’t be serious. What kind of friendship could you possibly have with Liu Yingjun?"

"Forget it, you wouldn’t understand."

Zhao Shengnan: "Ugh! So, what do you want to do then?"

"Join me for a drink. Let’s drown our sorrows."

Zhao Shengnan: "Okay, where are you? I’ll come to you right away."

"Sheraton. Call me when you arrive."

Zhao Shengnan: "Mhm, don’t drink too much, wait for me!"

Thus, when she hurriedly dragged Lou Xiaoxiao to the executive suite at the Sheraton and pushed open the door, they saw Han Lie. He was sitting on the sofa before the floor-to-ceiling window, holding a glass of red wine, gazing solitarily outside, his melancholic profile half-turned, etched with untold stories.

In that single instant, Zhao Shengnan’s emotions surged once more.

She was powerfully struck, even feeling as if she had truly fallen in love with Han Lie.

Mom, this man is playing so unfairly!

"I’m here."

Her heart filled with maternal tenderness. She sat down gently opposite him and asked softly, "Alright, I’ll drink with you. Then we can talk properly. What’s there to feel so guilty about in this kind of situation?"

Still, no matter how you put it, he was quite remarkable. Using Brother Yingjun as a unit of measurement, he was about 10 Yings. Using Ma Ke as a unit, about 12 Mas. When the two girls brought this up with such conviction, Han Lie felt his masculine vanity immensely satisfied.

He cheerfully went downstairs and hailed a cab.

"To the Mandarin Oriental."

The hotel’s driver discreetly glanced at Han Lie, deeply etching the image of this formidable man, already making his rounds so early in the morning, into his memory...

Han Lie waited for ten minutes in the lobby of the Mandarin Oriental before Pan Ge finally made her dazzling entrance.

Wow. A wool coat, plaid skirt, gray stockings, and white mid-top leather boots—a look that was half innocent, half sexy, and stunning beyond words.

Instantly, Brother Lie felt his vigor return.

Miss, I’m ready for you!

The young lady wore light pink sunglasses perched on her nose, but they did nothing to conceal the murderous glint in her eyes.

"You didn’t come back to the dorm again yesterday?!"