Super Doctor - Chapter 175

As the sky darkened, lights inside and outside the house gradually flickered to life, and the sound of lively chatter and music began to drift from the grand living room.

Li Yue glanced at his watch and smiled. “Let’s head in. The party should be starting soon.”

The two made their way down the corridor toward the entrance of the hall, where the buzz of conversation was already booming. They exchanged a glance, shared a faint smile, and walked side by side into the room.

As they entered, guests near the doorway were taken aback. Li Yue was, of course, well-known to everyone. But the eldest son of the Li family, who had always claimed to find parties boring and rarely made appearances, had actually shown up today. It was enough to leave those who spotted him stunned.

And who was this strikingly handsome, poised young man beside him, wearing such a calm and faintly smiling expression? Which family did he belong to? To be on such familiar terms with Li Yue, he must be someone remarkable.

As the crowd near the doorway quieted, others nearby gradually noticed the shift and turned to look. The once-boisterous hall grew slightly hushed.

Though many felt somewhat cautious in the presence of the future heir to the powerful Li family, they quickly put on smiles and greeted him warmly. “Young Master Yue… It’s been a while!”

Seeing Li Yue instantly become the center of attention, Xu Ze couldn’t help but flash a faint smile. This guy really was quite the big shot in these circles.

Li Yue nodded politely to the crowd, then reached for two glasses of champagne from a server’s tray. He handed one to Xu Ze, raised his own glass in a light toast to everyone, took a small sip, and then turned to Xu Ze with a smile, guiding him further into the room.

Noticing how attentively Li Yue treated the handsome young man beside him, most of the guests regarded Xu Ze with a mix of curiosity and newfound respect.

Under their collective gaze, Xu Ze remained completely composed, holding his glass as he followed Li Yue forward.

Soon, the two reached the innermost part of the hall, where the more senior and distinguished guests had gathered.

As they entered, several older guests smiled warmly in their direction. Though Li Yue had been somewhat impulsive in his younger years, he had grown more like his father over the past two years—a change the elders appreciated, albeit with a hint of wariness.

In a few more years, this young man would likely take full control of the Li family’s affairs, and by then, few in the room would dare to look down on him.

A dignified middle-aged man, surrounded by a group of people, smiled as Li Yue approached and stepped forward to greet him. “Li Yue, I didn’t expect to see you here today.”

“Uncle Sun, Lingfei is turning twenty. How could I not come?” Li Yue smiled, shaking Sun Rui’s hand. “Uncle Sun, let me introduce someone to you.”

He turned to Xu Ze and said, “Xu Ze, this is Lingfei’s father, Minister Sun.”

“Hello, Uncle Sun. I’m Xu Ze.” Meeting the other’s faintly authoritative smile, Xu Ze nodded politely, leaning forward slightly to shake Sun Rui’s hand with humility.

“Ah, so you’re Grandpa Tang’s adopted grandson, Xu Ze. Truly, outstanding talent emerges from the young.” Sun Rui looked Xu Ze over, nodded with a smile, and shook his hand warmly. “I’m sorry to have troubled the old gentleman. I didn’t expect him to remember Lingfei’s birthday. Please give him my regards.”

“You’re too kind, Uncle Sun. Lingfei and I are classmates—there’s no need to stand on ceremony,” Xu Ze replied calmly and courteously.

“Ah, yes, I nearly forgot you’re also Lingfei’s classmate.” A faint gleam flashed in Sun Rui’s eyes as he smiled. “Well, Lingfei will be down shortly. Please make yourself at home, Xu Ze. I’ll have her come thank you and the old gentleman later.”

After exchanging pleasantries with Sun Rui, Xu Ze and Li Yue moved away from the circle of elders. Li Yue knew these older folks weren’t particularly comfortable around him—conversations with them were always cautious and guarded, and there wasn’t much for them to talk about anyway.

The two made their way to the side of the hall, picking up plates to help themselves to some food. Fortunately, they’d both eaten beforehand and were only putting on a show of sampling the offerings.

Watching the room full of people chatting and laughing, exchanging hollow compliments with feigned warmth, Li Yue took a sip of red wine and remarked, “Xu Ze… don’t you think these people are hypocrites?”

“Not really,” Xu Ze replied with a light shake of his head.

“No?” Li Yue set down his glass and looked at Xu Ze curiously. “Why not?”

Xu Ze smiled faintly. “Who in this world isn’t hypocritical? Everyone has moments when they must be. Often, we suppress our inner troubles, never letting them show, and keep a smile on our faces—that’s hypocrisy. Sometimes, when we’re happy, we have to act as if nothing is happening—that’s also hypocrisy.”

“And these people… how are they any different? They just have their own reasons for being hypocritical.”

“Since everyone is hypocritical, we might as well brush it off like dust and not bother disliking them for it,” Xu Ze said calmly.

Li Yue seemed to reflect on this, then nodded slowly. “That makes sense. I suppose I’ve been too narrow-minded.”

He raised his glass to Xu Ze. “Here’s to that… cheers.”

Xu Ze smiled and nodded. They clinked glasses and drained them in one go.

Li Yue checked his watch. “Lingfei probably won’t be down for a while. Let’s have a few more drinks.”

He stood up, walked to the table, and brought back an entire bottle of red wine. After examining it, he grinned. “Sun Rui sure isn’t cutting corners today—this Bordeaux probably costs six or seven thousand a bottle. Let’s enjoy it while we can!”

Seeing Li Yue’s almost miserly delight, Xu Ze couldn’t help but laugh. “Since when does Young Master Yue care about wine like this? Acting all pitiful—if anyone should be saying that, it’s me.”

“Haha, drinking someone else’s wine hits different—it has its own unique flavor,” Li Yue said with a light chuckle.

He picked up the bottle, poured himself a full glass, and then filled Xu Ze’s to the brim.

“Let’s take our time with this,” Li Yue said, raising his glass.

Looking at the full glass of wine, Xu Ze could only smile wryly and join Li Yue in drinking slowly.

Nearby, many guests watched the two holding their bottle and drinking freely, inwardly impressed. Only someone like Li Yue would dare to do such a thing. No matter how much others might enjoy drinking, few would feel comfortable carrying around a bottle at a banquet and pouring themselves glass after glass.

Still, quite a few looked at Xu Ze with envy. Being on such good terms with the Li family’s young master meant that, regardless of his background, this young man was sure to benefit greatly in the future.

Li Yue and Xu Ze drank as if no one else were around, taking turns until they nearly finished the entire bottle. Li Yue looked at Xu Ze, who had drunk half the bottle yet still looked composed without even a hint of redness in his face, and sighed in admiration. “No wonder you dared to drink with me like this—you really can hold your liquor.”

Seeing Li Yue’s slightly frustrated expression, Xu Ze grinned. There weren’t many things he excelled at, but when it came to drinking—after testing his limits last time—he truly had nothing to fear.

Just then, Sun Rui, standing in the middle of the room, clapped his hands and waited for the hall to quiet down before announcing, “Now, let’s welcome our birthday girl!”

A violinist nearby began playing a cheerful tune, and as the music swelled, a figure descended gracefully from the grand staircase in the center of the hall.

Xu Ze looked up, and his eyes lit up. Sun Lingfei was wearing a pink off-the-shoulder evening dress, her hair elegantly swept up and light makeup accentuating her features. She looked utterly stunning, radiant and beautiful.

Sun Lingfei glanced around the room until her eyes finally landed on Xu Ze’s smiling face in the corner. Her expression immediately brightened, and a dazzling smile spread across her face. For a moment, everyone felt their hearts skip a beat, taking in a soft breath as they gazed at her in awe.

Amid the applause, Sun Lingfei gracefully descended the staircase, took her father’s arm, and walked to the front of the crowd.

Sun Rui smiled contentedly at everyone and said, “Today is my daughter Lingfei’s twentieth birthday. Thank you all for coming.”

“To express our gratitude, Lingfei will play a piece on the violin for everyone—’Joy of Love.'”

Amid another round of enthusiastic applause, Sun Lingfei smiled sweetly and gave a graceful curtsy before walking over to where the band was stationed.

She gently accepted the violin handed to her, smiled at the audience, took a soft breath, and began drawing the bow across the strings. A lively, flowing melody soon filled the room.

Watching Sun Lingfei’s skilled movements and listening to the uplifting, cheerful tune, Xu Ze was both surprised and delighted. After knowing her for so long, he had no idea she could play the violin—and so well at that.

As she played, Sun Lingfei glanced subtly in Xu Ze’s direction, her eyes filled with unmistakable affection, filling his heart with joy.

Nearby, Li Yue shook his head and sighed. “These two lovebirds are seriously too much.”

The other guests, many of whom had an appreciation for music, nodded and smiled appreciatively at Sun Lingfei’s performance, quietly praising the Sun family’s daughter for her talent and beauty.

Some of the younger guests watched Sun Lingfei’s enchanting, focused expression with captivated eyes.

As the final notes of “Joy of Love” faded, the hall erupted into warm applause. Several young guests cheered for an encore.

After bowing to thank the audience, Sun Lingfei turned to a delicate, pretty young woman beside her and said, “Xiao Rui, how about we play ‘Castle in the Sky’ together?”

The young woman smiled and nodded, about to make her way to the piano, when someone across the room called out laughingly, “Xiao Rui, don’t play. I hear you every day at home—I’m tired of it. How about letting someone else give it a try?”