Chapter 106: 102, Guan Yue returns, 2 Medals of Honor
The hotel management didn’t dare disturb Lu Lin’s Promotion Banquet; they simply had staff intercept customers out front.
Today, Junsheng Hotel was not accepting walk-in customers. Even guests attending banquets in private rooms had to follow the guidance of Junsheng Hotel management and the Detective Department, entering the hotel through a separate entrance.
The hotel had also specially assembled its top chefs to prepare the dishes for Lu Lin’s Promotion Banquet.
At this point, it was no longer just about Lu Lin’s Promotion Banquet.
In the eyes of Junsheng Hotel’s management, the presence of the Governor and Elder Cen, regardless of their purpose, was enough to secure Junsheng Hotel’s top position in the Northern Continent’s hotel industry for years to come.
If they didn’t pull out all the stops now, they knew such an opportunity wouldn’t come again.
After Governor Bai and Cen Xian sat down, waiters began serving dishes in a continuous stream.
Lu Lin, who had been chatting with Governor Bai, suddenly glanced towards the hotel entrance and froze.
Guan Yue?!
Judging by her travel-worn appearance, she must have just gotten off an airplane. Several people from the Star Guide Association were behind her, including Zheng Yulong.
"Governor Bai, a friend of mine has arrived. I’ll go greet her."
Governor Bai nodded. He hadn’t come here just for the meal, after all.
At yesterday’s meeting, the Nine Stars Governors had not reached a unanimous decision.
Their reasoning was that Lu Lin’s current ability wasn’t yet formidable enough.
They felt it would be too hasty to establish a policy plan that would affect the Federation’s future for decades to come with such urgency.
It would be better to give Lu Lin some time to develop, and also use this interim period to gather more intelligence on the various Exotic Beast Clans, selecting those more amicable to humans for initial contact.
For this initial contact, humans could offer the Exotic Beast Clans food, equipment, or methods to improve the survival rates of their young.
The various clans in the Exotic Battlefield had been warring for years, and newborn exotic beasts were extremely vulnerable to natural predators or becoming casualties of the fighting.
Faced with this decision, Governor Bai could only temporarily shelve his ’Prioritize Lu Lin’ plan.
However, even though the plan was temporarily shelved, Bai Jingwei believed that with Lu Lin’s remarkable qualities, he would still deliver a series of outstanding performances, even if he began his University career like any other student.
His attendance at Lu Lin’s Promotion Banquet at Junsheng Hotel this time was specifically to publicly mark Lu Lin as being under Saturn’s wing.
Henceforth, anyone who recognized Lu Lin’s genius and wished to recruit him would have to at least consider whether Bai Jingwei would consent.
Unexpectedly, Governor Bai, whom Zhao Lei had anticipated would compete with him for talent, harbored similar intentions.
It just went to show: those who poached talent often found themselves being poached from.
"President Guan, what brings you here? I thought you were out of town and wouldn’t be able to make it back."
Guan Yue smiled faintly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.
"You’re about to head off to University; I couldn’t miss seeing you for anything."
"Lu Lin, all the best."
"Yes, I’ll do my best."
Lu Lin led the group into the hotel and guided them to their seats. Guan Yue, along with several other Star Guides, joined Wan Fugang’s table.
Zheng Yulong, meanwhile, sat down next to Wang Juan and Da Xiang.
However, as he took his seat, Zheng Yulong cast a curious glance at Wang Juan and Da Xiang.
Then, feigning nonchalance, he settled in and began chatting with everyone.
The Governor’s arrival left the performers on stage unsure how to proceed.
Some of these local artists hadn’t found much success; they’d never even been to East Forest, let alone performed for a Governor.
Guan Pingchao had to go up and urge them twice before the singers finally decided to perform a grand chorus.
"The Federals Who March Forward Bravely"
As the song rang out, nearly everyone in the hotel joined in, and the atmosphere became incredibly fervent.
Yet, once the song ended, the earlier, more subdued atmosphere returned.
The singers packed their things, turned, and quietly departed.
The entire hotel hall fell silent.
Bai Jingwei smiled and turned back to converse with Lu Lin and Cen Xian.
Ultimately, Bai Jingwei departed with his entourage in less than half an hour. With him present, Lu Lin’s Promotion Banquet couldn’t truly get underway; no one dared to speak, and everyone ate with careful restraint.
Before leaving, Bai Jingwei presented Lu Lin with a medal.
[Saturn Honorary Citizen]
The medal offered no Star Power bonus. Bai Jingwei only told Lu Lin that wearing it during a life-or-death battle, or upon entering the Exotic Battlefield, could save his life once.
Lu Lin quickly and carefully put it away.
Cen Xian also gave him a medal.
[Federation Honorary Soldier]
This medal wasn’t as grand as the one from Bai Jingwei. It merely granted Lu Lin the status of a soldier, allowing him to seek protection and aid from the local City Defense Army anywhere he went.
Zhao Lei glared resentfully at the departing pair. Now he was last again.
Eat.
This genius, Lu Lin, he had clearly been the first to discover him!
"Lu Lin!"
He had just seen off the Governor and the other important figures.
Suddenly, a voice called out from the hotel entrance. Lu Lin turned and broke into a smile.
Wasn’t that Jiang Yueming, the one they had fleeced so thoroughly last night?
What’s he doing here too?
Lu Lin walked over. "Old Jiang, fancy meeting you here! As it happens, I’m holding my Promotion Banquet today. Come on in and have a bite with us."
"Alright, thanks for having me," Jiang Yueming replied, not declining. He followed Lu Lin into the hotel.
Lu Lin thought for a moment, then seated him at Guan Pingchao’s table.
He was curious to see how Jiang Yueming would fare among the fighters from the Wild Kill Martial Arts Hall.
This was purely a bit of mischievous amusement on Lu Lin’s part.
Jiang Yueming didn’t seem to mind. After sitting down, he began to eat with gusto, apparently determined to get his money’s worth from the previous night’s expenses.
After settling Jiang Yueming, Lu Lin took his wine cup and began making the rounds, toasting at each table.
First came his relatives—his numerous aunts and uncles—who patted his shoulder, squeezed his arm, and expressed their warm regards.
Two young cousins were even brought before Lu Lin by their parents, solemnly promising to learn from their ’Brother Lu Lin’ and to stop playing games on their Personal Terminals.
The scene drew a round of laughter from everyone.
Next were the tables of his former classmates and teachers. Lu Lin toasted them one by one. His elementary school Class Advisor and physical education teacher were particularly wide-eyed today.
Who could have imagined that the bright young boy from back then, just graduated from High School, would already have connections with figures like Bai Jingwei and Cen Xian? It was truly astounding.
They offered Lu Lin hearty encouragement and also advised the other students that regardless of their future positions or work, they were all contributing to Green City, to Saturn, and to all United Federation Humans.
The teachers’ earnest words still echoing in his ears, Lu Lin was then pulled aside by Guan Yue to share a drink with the Star Guides.
Several times, Guan Yue mustered the courage to confess her feelings to Lu Lin, but each time she either hesitated or was interrupted by others.
Finally, watching Lu Lin finish two drinks and move on to the table with the Tata City Guard and the Linbei City Guard, Guan Yue felt a pang of regret.
If she didn’t speak up now, she had no idea when she’d see Lu Lin again.
She had agonized over it for a full day and night before finally deciding, as dawn broke, to return and see Lu Lin one last time.
She had even roped in Zheng Yulong and two other Star Guides as a pretext for her visit.
But now, in this very moment, Guan Yue lost her nerve again.
Forget it.
Guan Yue shook her head and sat back down, picking at the food on the table without any appetite.