There are many types of gatherings in society.
Dinner gatherings, drinking gatherings, tea gatherings, coffee gatherings;
Gaming gatherings, sports gatherings, wellness gatherings, police stations.
But the gathering Lu Qing was about to face today was rather special—
It was called the "Asura Gathering."
Originally, he had thought it would be simple.
Just a casual steak gathering, which could also be called a "partner meetup gathering."
They would discuss work matters, plan the long-term course for the V-circle, and have the two girls work together to achieve the "Great Voyage" expedition, reaching the pinnacle of the V-circle and creating a new legend (official version).
However, when he saw Bai Xing appearing in his line of sight, fully armed and full of energy...
He was...
"Wait, why are you wearing my coat?"
At the entrance of "Mansion High-End Image Design," Lu Qing was instantly struck by the girl's radiant energy.
If, when they went to buy breakfast together before, Bai Xing had put in 80% effort into her appearance;
And on the day they announced their relationship in class, she had gone all out with her outfit;
Then today, she had invested 120% of her energy, as if borrowing from the future, to fully arm herself.
This gave Lu Qing a feeling—
[The little thing wants to devour the candy flower in one bite.]
"Hehe... Senior, why worry so much? When I’m meeting you for a meal, I have to look my best, right? Otherwise, people might think your voice actress isn’t up to par~"
"??"
Wordplay.
Absolute wordplay.
Lu Qing detected a hint of fragrance in her words.
—"Others," "your family."
Well done.
He didn’t call her out on it, just let her take his hand, and they set off.
Together, they headed to their destination—
"Moon Gathering Fine Steak" on the basement level of City Plaza.
"By the way, Senior, why did you suddenly want to eat steak? Isn’t it a bit expensive?"
As they walked, Bai Xing continued to probe.
Of course, Lu Qing wouldn’t tell the truth. After all, he was quite particular about steak, and he could get good ones online, so he wasn’t particularly craving the steak from this restaurant.
The reason he chose this place was mainly to "let Tang Hua eat more meat"...
He knew that even if Tang Hua had 50,000 yuan in her pocket, she would never dare to order a 200-yuan steak in one go.
After years of being conditioned by poverty, Tang Hua had developed a rather unfortunate logic—
"Once the money is gone, it’s gone."
"So, I have to spend it sparingly."
This is the typical logic of a poverty mindset, born out of fear of being poor. In contrast, the wealthy mindset is—"How can I create more income to earn more money?"
But Tang Hua had completely cut off that path.
She had given up on "creating income," even if it meant missing out on various "opportunities," and remained steadfast in her belief that by following Lu Qing, she would see the "light of day."
As a result, Lu Qing felt immense pressure.
If he couldn’t give Tang Hua a bright future, one with the possibility of financial freedom and economic independence, then he, as her "boss," would be [unqualified].
So, today’s agenda was crucial.
He had to make sure Tang Hua ate meat.
He had to show Tang Hua the future.
He had to make Bai Xing willingly cooperate with her.
He had to make Bai Xing, while giving her all, form a united front with Tang Hua to build their new venture.
"It’s delicious, so I want to eat it."
He gave a perfunctory reply, earning a playful eye roll from the girl.
Then she asked, "Has Lubia arrived yet? Did she come before us?"
—Probing.
Still probing.
Lu Qing noticed this and naturally responded, "Well, I just sent her the location and the time we agreed on. Whether she’s left or not, I can’t say for sure."
"Oh, I see."
Bai Xing immediately felt reassured, thinking to herself:
"So, it seems your relationship with Senior isn’t that close after all. At least, not like mine, where I can always be by his side, coming and going together."
"Hehe, outside the apartment, I’m invincible. As long as we’re not in the apartment, what can you do, Lubia?"
The girl was brimming with confidence as she held onto Lu Qing’s arm.
The two took the elevator and soon arrived at the basement level of the mall.
"Hello, sir, do you have a reservation?"
At the entrance of "Moon Gathering Fine Steak," a staff member in uniform stepped down from the host stand and asked politely.
"Yes," Lu Qing nodded.
Although the restaurant wasn’t likely to be full, and they could have walked in without waiting, Lu Qing was meticulous. He preferred to call ahead and make a reservation to ensure there wouldn’t be any issues when they arrived.
"Under the name Lu."
"Got it, Mr. Lu. A table for three, right? Please come this way."
"Alright."
The staff led them into the restaurant and mentioned that the dishes had already started being prepared ahead of time as per the reservation.
Lu Qing was very satisfied. He chose a seat by the window, where they could see the interior of the mall, and sat down with Bai Xing.
"Hehe! Looks like Lubia hasn’t arrived yet, huh?"
Bai Xing locked arms with Lu Qing and sat on the same side of the table. After her plan succeeded, she couldn’t help but show a contented smile, like a Ragdoll cat.
"Right, I’ll send her a message and check."
Lu Qing didn’t pay much attention to this. He just followed the routine, pulling out his phone and sending Lubia a message—
"Where are you? How much longer?"
He glanced at the time.
It was currently 7:45 PM, and there were still 15 minutes until the agreed-upon time, so there was no need to rush.
But sure enough, Tang Hua immediately showed "Typing..." in the chat. After a long while, she finally replied:
"Boss... I’m sorry, I’ve been here for a while, but... I got lost..."
"???"
What?
Lu Qing leaned closer to his phone screen, momentarily confused.
"Where are you? Where exactly are you right now?"
He assumed that Tang Hua had already arrived at City Plaza but had gotten lost in the mall and couldn’t find the steak restaurant tucked away in a corner of the basement level.
Sure enough, Tang Hua sent a photo, saying, "Boss! I’m here! I... I’m too shy to ask for directions!"
"..."
Incredible.
Lu Qing sighed and zoomed in on the photo. Upon closer inspection, he realized she was actually on the upper floor, not far from the "Mansion Image Design" store where he and Bai Xing had just come from—right next to an escalator entrance and an advertisement board.
Clearly, there was a mall map right beside her...
Even a touch-enabled, interactive smart map that could search for store names.
But she didn’t know how to use it.
And she had no intention of asking strangers for help.
"..."
Alright then.
At this point, Lu Qing immediately stood up and said to the slightly confused Bai Xing beside him:
"Wait here for me. I’ll go pick her up. Order whatever you want from the server, and I’ll pay when I get back."
"Eh... Eh??!"
Before she could finish, he grabbed his coat and, with the highest priority, dashed out of the steakhouse like he was going to find [his own child].
...
...