CHAPTER 661: CHAPTER 361 REWARD

Chen Feng and Tan Xiaoyu, junior high school classmates, hadn’t seen each other for over a decade. To say they were deeply connected would be untrue.

However, as mentioned before, they were classmates after all, and since Chen Feng had the financial means now, offering some monetary assistance was a reasonable gesture of support.

Of course, he also understood the saying "a gift of rice endangers friendship," so he wasn’t foolish enough to give too much, lest people thought too much of him.

At least, that’s what he believed. Considering his current wealth, giving a little to an old junior high school classmate was truly not a lot.

But others didn’t see it that way.

Not only was Tan Xiaoyu moved to tears by Chen Feng’s "generous offer," but even Xie Xiaohua, who had some assets, was shocked, not to mention Zhong Mingjie.

"It seems Chen Feng is really rich now."

Zhong Mingjie sighed with a bit of envy and admiration for Chen Feng.

In fact, they hadn’t met for over ten years either. If it weren’t for Tan Xiaoyu’s terminal illness, Zhong Mingjie wouldn’t have reached out to Chen Feng at all.

He had settled in Beijing long ago, and his parents mostly lived there with him, helping with his kids. Over the years, his trips back to his hometown were very few.

His job was decent, earning over ten thousand a month, and his wife earned nearly as much. But the cost of living in Beijing was tough; just the mortgage alone put enormous financial pressure on them, not to mention childcare expenses and supporting his parents.

Thus, he didn’t have much disposable income. This time, as the former class president, he only donated eight thousand, and that was him gritting his teeth and taking it from his hard-saved private stash behind his wife’s back.

He had saved those eight thousand in secret over two or three years. So, handing it over at first really hurt his heart a bit.

Before Chen Feng’s donation, his eight thousand would be considered one of the most among their junior high classmates.

The most anyone had donated before was Xie Xiaohua, who gave twenty thousand. And that’s because he had a good relationship with Tan Xiaoyu since junior high, maintaining contact and social exchanges.

Now Chen Feng had donated eighty-eight thousand, completely overshadowing the others.

Truth be told, eighty-eight thousand isn’t a huge amount in today’s society, but that depends on the context.

If you’re talking about engagement gifts, eighty-eight thousand wouldn’t be enough; people generally start at one hundred thousand, and two hundred thousand is quite common.

But if it’s a donation, giving eighty-eight thousand is indeed substantial, even a lot.

Especially considering Chen Feng and Tan Xiaoyu’s ordinary classmate relationship. They hadn’t seen each other for over ten years, and they weren’t particularly close during junior high.

Yet Chen Feng directly gave Tan Xiaoyu eighty-eight thousand, which is truly remarkable.

Chen Feng’s generosity and righteousness were not something most people could do.

Xie Xiaohua, who lived in Shanghai, had the best relationship with Tan Xiaoyu among the classmates. He lived in a house worth millions and drove a "luxury car" worth over fifty to sixty thousand. He ran a business reported to earn hundreds of thousands a year, yet he only donated twenty thousand.

Everyone thought that Xie Xiaohua’s twenty thousand was already generous, but compared to Chen Feng, it seemed like a slap in the face.

In fact, Xie Xiaohua did feel a bit embarrassed at this comparison, so he remained silent.

"What exactly does Chen Feng do now?" Tan Xiaoyu asked with curiosity and gratitude.

Xie Xiaohua stayed silent, but Zhong Mingjie answered, "I only know he and his brother have two car washes by the river in our town and Yuelou Town, but his brother mainly manages them. He has been living in Xiu Zhou, and I don’t know what work he’s doing there. Haven’t had the chance to ask."

With a hint of jealousy, Xie Xiaohua commented, "I think this guy is obviously well-off. The last time we went to see him, he had two beauties by his side. You think this guy suddenly getting rich might be like Liao Xiaokai, doing something shady?"

Zhong Mingjie frowned and said, "Don’t say such things. Chen Feng seems quite upright, and he’s much smarter than Liao Xiaokai. Although Liao Xiaokai has high intelligence, his emotional intelligence is low, and he’s quite radical and eager for success. Chen Feng may be aloof and not very sociable, but he’s easy to get along with and seems stable."

Xie Xiaohua gave a sheepish smile and said, "You’re right, I was just talking randomly."

...

Chen Feng quickly returned home, where his mother Zhao Xiaolan immediately stopped him to ask what’s going on. Chen Feng told her about it.

Of course, he didn’t dare to mention giving eighty-eight thousand to Tan Xiaoyu, just said he gave eight thousand.

Zhao Xiaolan heard Chen Feng gave eight thousand and couldn’t help furrowing her brows, clearly thinking it was a bit much, but she didn’t say anything, just sighed, "It’s really a pity for someone so young to have such an illness."

After speaking with his mother, Chen Feng immediately went to the back room to find the two women, Guo Mengyao and Wu Mengting. He was a bit worried they might have had some conflict.

So, Chen Feng didn’t knock, just opened the door and walked in.

He happened to see Guo Mengyao and Wu Mengting sitting together on the bed, eating sunflower seeds, chatting, and laughing as they watched TV.

Chen Feng’s sudden entrance startled them a bit, and they both shot him a look of displeasure.

"You’re both watching TV, haven’t bathed?" Chen Feng asked with a smile.

"We already did," Wu Mengting replied, then asked, "What did those two classmates want from you?"

Chen Feng explained Tan Xiaoyu’s situation to them.

Guo Mengyao merely remarked, "There seem to be more and more people getting cancer these days, and quite a few are young."

Wu Mengting, however, knowing Chen Feng also had cancer, suddenly felt quite upset. She tried not to dwell on Chen Feng’s cancer, even though his health seemed good and his cancer showed signs of improvement, she still didn’t want to think about it. After all, Chen Feng hadn’t fully recovered yet, and as everyone knows, cancer at a late stage is hardly curable.

Chen Feng noticed Wu Mengting’s mood and diverted the topic with a smile, saying, "Let’s go to the county for dinner tonight. Mengyao, you’re more familiar with the county than I am, take us for a nice meal."

Guo Mengyao agreed without any objections.

Chen Feng sat down by the bed, glanced at the TV, and noticed it was a Korean drama, which prompted him to say, "Do all women like these Korean dramas?"

Guo Mengyao retorted, "Many of the guys these days also love Korean dramas, you know?"

Wu Mengting added, "The quality of Korean dramas is getting better and better, much more entertaining than our domestic dramas."

Chen Feng couldn’t deny this and switched the topic to other matters.

While chatting with the two women, the phone suddenly rang.

Seeing the caller ID, Lu Sijia was calling, so he pressed the answer button.

"Boss, when are you coming back?"