Hu Qianhao had initially thought he was mature enough, but compared to Yang Yongkang today, he was still slightly inferior.
Yang Yongkang was wearing an executive jacket today, his hair slicked back to a gleaming sheen, and with his glasses, he looked like an old cadre.
The most striking part was that he was even wearing a pair of shiny leather shoes.
Hu Qianhao's mouth dropped open as he exclaimed, "Holy hell, Kang Ge, you're this flashy?"
Yang Yongkang pushed his glasses up, grinned wryly, and said, "What do you mean flashy? Adults shouldn't dress so childishly anymore. Little Haozi, what are you wearing? It's not grand enough."
As he spoke, Yang Yongkang patted Hu Qianhao on the shoulder.
Hu Qianhao was momentarily speechless, realizing he had been outdone.
Yang Yongkang chuckled and said, "Actually, me wearing this is a bit of a coincidence. The other day I had absolutely nothing to wear, so I rummaged through my dad's clothes and put them on. And guess what happened?"
"I wore this getup and asked about the harvest at the village entrance. Before long, the village head and the party secretary both showed up."
Hu Qianhao's eyes lit up as he listened, "Alright, I'm getting one too. I'll go rummage through my dad's closet when I get back."
Wang Yue chimed in, "Last time I went back to the countryside, a young fellow to look more mature actually put on his burial clothes. Maybe you guys should learn from him?"
"Let's forget that, he's already fully decomposed," Hu Qianhao quickly waved his hand.
Qiao Zixuan, standing beside them, smiled throughout, amused by their attire.
Wang Yue sighed, "How did my freshman class get so lucky to have two 'Wolong and Fengchu' figures at the same time?"
Wang Yue led the group into the restaurant.
Wang Jianguo and Pan Huiying were both taken aback when they saw Hu Qianhao and Yang Yongkang.
With expressions of confusion, they wondered if it was a student's parent who had arrived.
"Hello, Uncle and Auntie," Yang Yongkang greeted them with a wide smile.
"Little Yue, are these your classmates?" Wang Jianguo asked, responding to the greeting.
"Yes," Wang Yue nodded.
"They're… quite mature," Wang Jianguo said, stifling a laugh.
Meanwhile, Pan Huiying smiled warmly at Qiao Zixuan, "Xiao Xuan, it's been a while."
They had met during the college entrance examination.
Pan Huiying had taken an immediate liking to this girl; what a prestigious daughter-in-law she would make!
"Auntie, it's good to see you too," Qiao Zixuan said, a little shyly.
A sweet smile played on her lips as she tried her best to show her most endearing side.
Although it wasn't apparent on the surface, she was incredibly nervous inside.
Wang Yue noticed Qiao Zixuan's awkwardness and quickly said, "Everyone, please sit. There are peanuts and sunflower seeds on the table, help yourselves and don't be shy."
Just then, some relatives arrived.
Pan Huiying and Wang Jianguo went to greet them. Qiao Zixuan let out a sigh of relief; she had been on edge, afraid of leaving a bad impression.
"So nervous?" Wang Yue leaned in and teased Qiao Zixuan.
"I'm not nervous at all," Qiao Zixuan huffed, though her face was flushed.
"Oh my, you two, enough already. We're still here, and I'm getting stuffed with dog food," Hu Qianhao said dramatically.
Yang Yongkang patted Hu Qianhao's shoulder, "Little Haozi, don't meddle in young people's affairs. We're maintaining a mature persona now."
"Kang Ge, you're right," Hu Qianhao immediately straightened up upon hearing this.
Wang Yue ignored the two clowns.
Soon, more people arrived, individuals Wang Yue hadn't expected: Wang Yucheng and Gu Zhi.
Wang Yue had actually thought they wouldn't come.
The animosity between the three had largely dissipated after the incident with Gu Zhi's embarrassing mop incident and the "Lu Bu reborn" scenario.
In truth, there were no grudges among young people that couldn't be resolved. Wang Yue's mindset had undergone a significant transformation this lifetime, and with his emotional knots untangled, nothing mattered.
Moreover, up to this point in this life, he had been the one bullying them.
Gu Zhi still wore a stern expression, but upon seeing Wang Yue, he managed a hesitant smile, "Wang Yue, congratulations!"
As he spoke, he even handed over a small bag.
Wang Yucheng quickly added, "Brother Yue, this is something Gu Ge and I bought together. We were foolish before, and we hope from now on, we can bury the hatchet!"
After Wang Yue was accepted as the top scorer in the college entrance examination, they realized they were destined for different paths from Wang Yue. Thinking back to how they had targeted Wang Yue before, it seemed almost comical.
They had actually competed with such an almost omnipotent individual.
Therefore, Gu Zhi and Wang Yucheng decided to reconcile with Wang Yue.
"Let's not dwell on the past. From now on, we're all good classmates," Wang Yue said magnanimously.
Both of them breathed a sigh of relief; being forgiven brought a sense of lightness, like a great weight had been lifted.
Subsequently, more classmates arrived one after another, with only two or three individuals absent. These absences were not due to unwillingness, but because they were traveling abroad and couldn't return.
With more people present, they were all classmates, so there was no sense of awkwardness. They chatted in small groups, and the atmosphere was lively.
Just then, someone walked in through the entrance, and everyone erupted in excitement.
"Teacher Zuo is here!"
"Teacher Zuo, it's been a long time, I've missed you a bit."
"Teacher Zuo looks more radiant than ever. Is there some good news recently?"
"Hahaha, Teacher Zuo is getting more beautiful."
Facing the crowd's flattery, Zuo Yue wore a gentle smile. These were students she had taught for two years, and as their homeroom teacher, she had developed deep affection for them.
"You all have such sweet tongues," Zuo Yue said with a smile. "When you go to university, don't forget to visit often, and don't forget about me."
"How could we, Teacher Zuo? I'd forget anyone before I forget you," Zhang Tao said with a smile.
"Exactly, exactly. It still feels a bit unreal, like we suddenly graduated from school."
"We used to think time moved too slowly, and we longed for holidays every day. But now that we're truly on holiday, we feel that school days were better, alas."
"Let's not get sentimental. Today is our valedictorian's celebration banquet. Let's all be cheerful!"
Soon, the joyful atmosphere dispelled the faint sense of melancholy.
Since they had gathered once during graduation, they had already vented most of their farewell sadness then.
Wang Yue invited Teacher Zuo to the main seat, surrounded by his classmates.
Zuo Yue shed her teacherly demeanor in private, so she had a good relationship with everyone.
She soon blended into the classmates' conversations.
More and more people arrived, some whom Wang Yue hadn't even met. He stood at the entrance with his parents to greet guests. As the protagonist of this banquet, he naturally couldn't stand idly by.
"Cousin!"
At this moment, Wang Yue heard a cheerful shout.
He looked up and saw his younger cousin, Pan Qiudong, striding towards him.
After not seeing him for a while, his height had increased significantly, and he was now almost as tall as Wang Yue.