Chapter 16: Chapter 16: Ultimate Tycoon!
As for Liu Fei'er, she couldn't help but drool, while her heart was tremendously shocked. She hadn't expected Ye Tian to possess such profound knowledge and insight; it was indeed unexpected.
Just as she was about to express her surprise, a voice filled with ridicule and mockery suddenly came from behind her.
"How impressive that someone dressed so shabbily dares to boast about every corner of the world here. You must have spent quite some time on Baidu to impress girls, huh?"
Liu Fei'er frowned slightly and turned around, only to see a woman dressed in flamboyant clothes and heavy makeup looking back at her with equal disdain.
However, in the next moment, both of them were stunned. Because they were college classmates.
"Oh, isn't this our campus belle, Liu Fei'er? What's up, have your tastes become so lofty now?" Wang Hong wasn't very beautiful, but she wasn't ugly either; decked out in thick makeup and an array of expensive luxury items, she could be considered an average-looking woman.
Ye Tian didn't care about her disdain and smiled at Liu Fei'er, "Your classmate?"
"My former college classmate, Wang Hong," Liu Fei'er muttered unhappily.
Liu Fei'er and Wang Hong never got along. Liu Fei'er disdained Wang Hong for being lazy and for her pursuit of luxury, as well as her fondness for wealthy people. In college, in order to attract the attention of rich people, she would spend hours putting on makeup every day.
As for Wang Hong, she harbored resentment towards Liu Fei'er's looks and figure. If she had half of Liu Fei'er's appeal, she would definitely have landed someone wealthier by now.
At this moment, Liu Fei'er turned her head and glanced at the man beside Wang Hong. He appeared to be in his mid-thirties to forties, at least a decade older than Wang Hong, with a big belly and greasy skin. At the moment, his round chubby head was looking at Liu Fei'er with surprise and lust, which almost made Liu Fei'er want to vomit.
Indeed, Wang Hong's fondness for rich men had never changed.
"Hong'er, is this your classmate?" the middle-aged man, Fang Dongshan, asked Wang Hong with a smile.
Wang Hong gave Fang Dongshan a glance and nodded. She felt even more depressed knowing he was interested in Liu Fei'er but said nothing because she still needed him to pay for her shopping cart on Taobao.
Seeing Wang Hong's nod, Fang Dongshan immediately stood up, "What? She's your classmate and you're not introducing her? Really now."
"What's there to introduce? Can't you see that she has a bumpkin boyfriend who reeks of poverty?" Wang Hong immediately grew unpleasant, no longer hiding her disdain as she spoke.
"What did you say?! Say that again!" Liu Fei'er looked at Wang Hong, her anger flaring.
She was aware that Ye Tian's appearance was a bit lacking. She could ridicule him sometimes, but it was extremely displeasing to have him insulted by someone else, especially an old classmate who had always been adversarial. It felt as though something she cherished had been splashed with ink, and she was incensed.
Seeing Liu Fei'er's reaction, Wang Hong's disdain only grew. Just as she was about to mock further, Fang Dongshan cut in, "Even if her boyfriend is ugly and poor, you shouldn't speak like that."
Then, Fang Dongshan looked at Ye Tian with a light chuckle, but his eyes carried a hint of contempt and annoyance, mostly annoyance. That such a beautiful woman as Liu Fei'er would end up with someone like him seemed to reflect the harsh realities of the world. He thought, 'Even with all my wealth, she wouldn't be with me.'
"Brother, no offense. Although her words are harsh, they are also true. You shouldn't boast beyond your station. Young people should be more practical," he said.
Ye Tian looked at the smug expression on Fang Dongshan's chubby face, smiled, and said nothing. He only sighed to himself, lamenting how the world has changed, where even speaking the truth could be met with disbelief.
Checked on Baidu?
Ye Tian was curious if one could really find that information on Baidu, but he had no need to stoop to the level of such people.
Fang Dongshan, feeling somewhat annoyed by Ye Tian's silence, was about to speak when he suddenly caught someone out of the corner of his eye. He immediately walked over with an air of respect to greet a middle-aged man with a smile from afar, "Yo, Boss Ding, what brings you here?"
Ding Qiang wore a traditional Chinese shirt and sported a crew cut. He was plain-looking, with a perennially mild smile on his lips, appearing very ordinary. However, only those in the upper echelons of Yunhai City knew of the terrifying extent of his influence.
He was not only the owner of this seafood restaurant but also a well-known figure in the business world of Yunhai City, renowned in the fashion industry. Most importantly, he had clout in both the legitimate and underworld circles. No one dared to deny Boss Ding face.
Yet he preferred not to be called "Boss Ding"; instead, he liked to be addressed as "Boss Ding."
Ding Qiang glanced at Fang Dongshan and shook his hand with a light laugh, "Boss Fang, it's been so long since I've seen you. You haven't patronized my humble establishment in days. Let's not talk about anything else today; the bill is on me."
Fang Dongshan was somewhat excited and didn't expect Ding Qiang to still remember him. He immediately said with a compliment, "It's my honor that Mr. Ding can still remember me. How could I let you pay? Today I'll pick up the tab myself, and I'll bring more friends here in the future."
"Then I shall thank you here," Ding Qiang said with a mild smile, exhibiting a bit of a celestial demeanor, which quite effortlessly exuded style.
Ye Tian, standing at the side, also looked at Ding Qiang with surprise and a bit of admiration in his eyes. This man was not simple.
"I wonder what Mr. Fang was discussing just now; it sounded quite lively," Ding Qiang said with a mild smile, very amiable.
The reason for his success and why everyone held him in awe was his penchant for making friends, which was his foremost trait. What's more critical was that he didn't choose friends based on their social status; as long as they could be of help to him, he could strike up a conversation with anyone, even a beggar.
Fang Dongshan glanced at Ye Tian and disdainfully said, "Just now, I was speaking of this young man. Dressed so plainly, yet aiming too high and boasting shamelessly. He's really out of touch with reality; it's just… "
Fang Dongshan hadn't finished his sentence when he saw Ding Qiang walk toward Ye Tian with a puzzled expression, looking him up and down, his eyes soon filled with contemplation.
Then, under the stunned gaze of everyone around, Ding Qiang slowly knelt on one knee and lowered his head to look at the simple and ordinary looking shoes on Ye Tian's feet as if they were cheap street market wear for just a few bucks, after a while murmuring in astonishment, "This craftsmanship, texture, color, they're definitely rare in this world. Even the world's top shoe artisans could only match this at best."
His gaze then slowly shifted to the socks, which had gathered a layer of dust because Ye Tian hadn't been tending to them, yet Ding Qiang was even more shocked, "My goodness, these socks must be worth at least hundreds of thousands of US Dollars!"
With a numb gaze, he slowly turned to the pants and the shirt, as Ding Qiang's lips trembled while he said, "This fabric, this texture, this sheen, could it be handcrafted by Giorgio Armani himself, the founder of Armani? No, that's not it. I heard he no longer crafts himself. Could it be Gianni Versace? No, that's not it either. I can't even recognize it. This, this... it must be worth millions of US Dollars at least, right? Not just millions, but tens of millions!"
Ding Qiang's murmurs were soft, but Fang Dongshan, who wanted to suck up to him, heard them very clearly!
And Wang Hong, seeing Fang Dongshan trying to curry favor, hurried over to listen, equally as shocked by what she heard. As for Liu Fei'er, she took in every word that Ding Qiang uttered!
All of them bore the same expression at that moment—shock!
Who was Ding Qiang? A renowned tycoon in Yunhai City's fashion industry!
If such words had come from anyone else's mouth, they might have scoffed at them, but coming from Ding Qiang, it could only be accepted as the absolute truth!
However, this truth left everyone utterly stunned!
All eyes turned to Ye Tian as if they had seen a ghost, including Liu Fei'er's!
The ragged-looking Ye Tian, in clothes akin to street market wares, was now worth tens of millions of US Dollars? Which was so...
It was hard for them to wrap their minds around it at that moment!
Wang Hong was nearly scared to tears, her eyes gleaming as she looked at Ye Tian, her heart racing with thoughts, "My goodness! This guy is actually a low-key tycoon! I almost missed out! I must find a way to win him over. I wonder what he likes..."
Fang Dongshan was trembling, his plump face quivering nonstop.
He didn't even know what to say. He had, without knowing, offended such an extraordinary rich man!
Wearing clothes nearly worth tens of millions of US Dollars, no wonder he was so calm and indifferent; it wasn't arrogance—it was genuine disregard!
More crucially, who wears clothes worth nearly tens of millions of US Dollars? That's too flamboyant! Not even Bill Gates would do that, would he? My god!!
As for Liu Fei'er, her petite hands couldn't help but shake, her face a portrait of shock and awe.
She always knew he was so mysterious, so noble, truly unreachable...
And watching the diverse expressions of shock among the onlookers, with Ye Tian at the center of everyone's attention, he simply gave a devilish smile without saying a word. He was, however, a bit curious about Ding Qiang, not expecting the man to have such discernment.
Because what Ding Qiang had said was all true, although his price estimates were a bit on the lower side.
This outfit, which appeared scruffy and cheap, was truly invaluable. To put it in monetary terms would be impossible, as the wealthiest people in the world couldn't manage to have the most legendary figures in the world of fashion work together on a single piece of clothing!