It's just that they have money.

The others seemed oblivious to the change in Fang Chen's expression.

Mr. Li chuckled twice, raised his glass, and clinked it against Sun Yiming's.

"Mr. Sun, what are you saying? Mr. Fang brought two beautiful women with him, how could it be your turn?"

Mr. Wang also laughed, his face jiggling with laughter.

Zhou Yaoguang, who had already noticed Fang Chen's expression, smiled, but the smile was forced.

Fang Chen slammed down his chopsticks with a click, the sound particularly clear amidst the laughter.

The laughter in the private room gradually subsided.

"Mr. Sun," Fang Chen spoke, his tone no different from when they were discussing the project earlier, calm and collected, "I didn't invest in your project earlier because I didn't think it was good enough. But if there are any decent projects in the future, we might as well cooperate."

He paused.

"Let me tell you clearly now, I will not invest in any of your projects, not because of the projects themselves, but because of your mouth."

Sun Yiming's hand holding the wine glass hovered in mid-air, his smile frozen as if someone had pressed the pause button.

"What did you say?"

"I'm telling you, you can't keep your mouth shut," Fang Chen said in a calm tone. "I don't care who you joke about, but joking about my people, especially in front of me, is unacceptable."

Xu Wen sat next to him, his chopsticks long since untouched, resting on the edge of the plate.

She didn't look at anyone; her gaze was fixed on the bowls and plates in front of her, her expression as calm as still water.

But Fang Chen had known her for so long that he knew what her calmness meant.

She was enduring it.

She had tolerated it while working at the investment bank, and she had mentioned it during the interview. In the months she had worked for him, she had never mentioned anything about being offended to Fang Chen.

It wasn't because she hadn't encountered it before, but because she felt there was no need to mention it.

Gao Jie sat next to Xu Wen, her smile still on her face, but it had already frozen.

She's been in this industry for over a decade and has seen this kind of situation countless times; each time, she's the one who manages to brush it off with a smile.

It wasn't because Sun Yiming's words were particularly offensive; she had heard far more offensive things in the past.

Rather, she didn't know how Fang Chen would react.

"Mr. Sun, Xu Wen is my assistant, and Gao Jie is my production manager. They work for me, and they're sitting at this table not because they're women, but because I need them to be there."

"Did you find what you just said funny? Hmm?"

Sun Yiming's face flushed red, and his lips trembled slightly.

"Mr. Fang, are you sure you don't need to go that far? I was just saying it casually."

"Just something offhand?" Fang Chen interrupted him. "Then let me ask you, Mr. Sun, do you have a daughter?"

Sun Yiming was stunned for a moment.

Why are you asking this?

"Yes or no?"

Sun Yiming's expression changed. He didn't answer, but his expression told everyone the answer.

Fang Chen looked at him, his tone unchanged, still unhurried.

"Mr. Sun, if your daughter graduated from university and started working, and during a social gathering, a man twenty years her senior made jokes about her like that in front of everyone, how would you feel?"

Sun Yiming's face went from red to white, then from white to an indescribable color. He opened his mouth, as if to say something, but it was as if something was stuck in his throat, and he couldn't utter a single word.

"Do you think that man was just saying it casually?" Fang Chen's voice wasn't loud, but every word was like a nail driven into the table. "Do you think your daughter is making a mountain out of a molehill? Do you think she should just bear it, laugh it off, and pretend she didn't hear it?"

Sun Yiming slammed his wine glass on the table, making a crisp sound.

"Mr. Fang, you're making a mountain out of a molehill."

"I'm just trying to get you to empathize with how you would feel if you did the same thing to your own people."

Fang Chen stood up: "Mr. Sun, this meal is over. I won't invest in your project, and I won't associate with you. If I need your help in the future, I'll find someone else. If I don't need you, it's best if we don't run into each other."

He turned his head and looked at Xu Wen and Gao Jie.

"Walk."

Xu Wen stood up naturally and followed Fang Chen away.

Gao Jie hesitated for a moment, glanced at Zhou Yaoguang, as if saying goodbye.

As the three reached the door, Sun Yiming's voice came from behind them, much louder than before.

"Fang Chen! If you don't explain yourself clearly today, you're not leaving this room!"

Fang Chen didn't turn around; he just stood at the doorway, his back to the table.

"That's clear enough. I believe my communication skills are fine."

He opened the door and stepped out.

The soundproofing of the private restaurant wasn't bad, but the corridor was too long, and the door to the private room was closed from the inside after Fang Chen and the others left. In that instant, some sounds leaked out from the gap.

It wasn't just one person's voice; it was several people's voices mixed together, making it impossible to understand what they were saying.

"...a newcomer..."

"...What are you pretending for..."

"...That's how it is in this industry..."

"...He's so arrogant..."

As Fang Chen walked out of the restaurant, he stood at the entrance looking at the searchlights of the film studio in the distance.

I'm hungry.

Gao Jie was stunned for a moment, then couldn't help but laugh.

"Mr. Fang, you barely touched your chopsticks at the table just now."

"So I'm hungry." Fang Chen turned to look at her. "You guys haven't eaten much either, have you?"

Xu Wen nodded.

From the moment she sat down until she stood up, she moved her chopsticks only a handful of times.

Gao Jie nodded slightly.

It's not that she doesn't have the opportunity to eat, it's just that in those situations, she never really eats freely.

This is an instinct she's developed over so long in the industry; a dinner party isn't a place to eat.

"Let's go find a place to eat."

The three people walked along the street.

Hengdian's nightlife isn't particularly lively, but it's not quiet either.

Most of the shops on both sides of the road were still lit up, and the charcoal fires at the barbecue stalls flickered in the night. The aroma of cumin and chili mingled with the wind, making people's stomachs rumble.

Fang Chen didn't choose any fancy restaurants. He saw a small restaurant with a few tables of customers inside, but it didn't look very big. He pushed open the door and went in.

The proprietress was doing the accounts behind the counter when she looked up and saw three people come in. She greeted them with a smile, "What would you like to eat? The menu is on the wall, please have a seat."

Fang Chen chose a seat towards the back, with Xu Wen sitting next to him and Gao Jie sitting opposite him.

The three of them ordered a few simple dishes.

The restaurant wasn't big, with only five or six tables. Besides their table, there were two other tables of customers.

At one table were two young men, still dressed in their period costumes and with their wigs on, heads down, eating their food very quickly.

At the other table were three girls who looked like tourists, chatting quietly and occasionally letting out a soft laugh.

Gao Jie picked up the teacup, took a sip, put it down, picked it up again, and took another sip.

Fang Chen noticed that she seemed a little restless, as if she had something to say but didn't know how to say it.

"Sister Gao," Fang Chen spoke first.

"Um?"

"Did you think I would just let it go on the table just now?"