I'm back in 1990

Chapter 600: In-depth conversation 1

Qin Yu glanced at the exquisite watch on her wrist; the platinum strap, engraved with the Patek Philippe logo, gleamed softly under the light. "It's getting late. We've been chatting for so long, are you hungry?"

Upon hearing this, Huang Xiaochuan subconsciously touched his stomach and realized he was indeed a little hungry. He then smiled and said, "You were right! How about this? To celebrate our reunion and the successful completion of this deal, it's my treat tonight. I should still show you hospitality, even though this is your territory."

Qin Yu couldn't help but smile, her smile appearing particularly vivid under the light. She really didn't intend to compete over such trivial matters, as it seemed unnecessary given her status and the current atmosphere.

She nodded gracefully, accepting Huang Xiaochuan's offer: "Alright then! I'll give you this opportunity. You, the richest man Huang, have spent a fortune, but..."

Huang Xiaochuan asked, "But what?"

Qin Yu winked playfully, a hint of slyness in her eyes: "I chose the location, so I'll recommend the dishes too. I guarantee you'll taste the authentic flavors of this restaurant."

Huang Xiaochuan laughed and said, "I couldn't be happier. Then I'll leave everything to you, Class Monitor Qin, to arrange. Tonight, I'll just be in charge of taking orders."

Qin Yu pressed the call button on the table to summon a waiter, and soon a waiter appeared in the private room and respectfully handed over two thick menus.

As Qin Yu flipped through the menu, she introduced the ingredients and chef to Huang Xiaochuan: "The ingredients and chef here are very famous, especially the seafood, which is prepared with great care. I recommend you try their signature grilled cod, served with herb butter sauce and seasonal roasted vegetables. The cooking time and seasoning are absolutely superb. Or if you prefer red meat, their dry-aged ribeye is also excellent, served with black truffle mashed potatoes."

She looked up at Huang Xiaochuan, her eyes questioning.

Huang Xiaochuan closed the menu in front of him immediately: "I have no say in New York cuisine, so let's have cod! Something light and refreshing. What about an appetizer?"

"For appetizers," Qin Yu thought as she continued flipping through the menu, "their oysters are very fresh, they're shipped directly from Maine. Or you could try their crab cakes, which are also a specialty here. They're packed with crab meat, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, and the lemon dill sauce really cuts through the richness."

Huang Xiaochuan readily agreed: "Then let's have crab meat cakes! They sound delicious!"

Qin Yu ordered a vegetable salad for each of them to cleanse their palates, and also asked Huang Xiaochuan about his wine preferences. In the end, she chose a bottle of refreshing Burgundy white wine with a moderate fruity aroma to pair with the seafood.

After ordering, the waiter left silently as he had arrived, and the private room returned to its previous tranquility, but the atmosphere was noticeably more relaxed.

Huang Xiaochuan picked up his water glass, took a sip, and said, "Speaking of which, Ren Yangyang has changed quite a bit. I didn't have time to chat with her in detail the other day. How is she?"

Upon hearing Huang Xiaochuan mention his best friend, Qin Yu smiled and said, "Her? She's doing very well. A happy little woman, she's a Chinese language teacher at our alma mater, and she has a daughter who's quite mischievous. After 9/11 last year, I went back to China for about two weeks and experienced her daughter's naughtiness firsthand."

It's definitely a headache, but I can tell she loves her child very much. Her husband works at a bank and is very family-oriented. The three of them live a simple yet fulfilling life. Sometimes she emails me to tell me about her family trips to the park on weekends, or how she and her husband have had some hilarious arguments about how to raise their child. I find it very real; that's what life is really like.

Huang Xiaochuan nodded in agreement, saying, "Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication, especially after having children. My two little ones are the same, except one is very lively and the other is very quiet. They are like two extremes." Huang Xiaochuan did not notice that his tone was very gentle when he talked about his two children.

Qin Yu keenly sensed it; she saw that uniquely paternal radiance in her old classmate. She picked up the glass of white wine the waiter had just poured and gently swirled it. "Yes! I heard your wife gave birth to twins, a boy and a girl. What a blessing! What are their names? How old are they?"

Qin Yu was driven by genuine curiosity, which stemmed from her own curiosity as a single person about the life of a complete family.

"The older one is a boy named Huang Zeji, and the younger one is a girl named Huang Ruiying. They are almost six years old. My son is introverted and quiet, but he has a stubborn temper, which is probably inherited in my family! As for my daughter, don't even mention her. She is a real headache for me. She is so naughty. Even though she is a girl, she likes to fight. She has beaten up people who are several years older than her until they cried. After she started kindergarten, I had to apologize to other parents every few days."

Huang Xiaochuan's description was very vivid. Qin Yu seemed to see the scene of the two children in front of her, and she was also attracted by the fatherly love that Huang Xiaochuan inadvertently exuded.

A faint sense of loneliness quietly resurfaced in her heart. She raised her glass, took a sip as a cover-up, and then said, "I can tell you love your child very much. How is your wife?" She asked naturally, as if she were just casually inquiring about her old classmate's wife.

Huang Xiaochuan's reply was equally natural: "It's great. She was the happiest person when we went back to Qingjiang for the New Year. She dragged me to visit all the places she used to frequent. Come to think of it, she rarely goes back since she left Qingjiang to study and work. Plus, she married someone like me, so she's not very free to travel."

Qin Yu said sincerely, "That's wonderful! I can tell that you two have always had that passion for life, which is very rare!" She paused, as if she wanted to change the subject.

"Speaking of which, Huang Xiaochuan, before the dot-com bubble burst two years ago, when I was still at Morgan Stanley, I had the privilege of reading several of your papers published in journals, especially those on irrational market exuberance and the flaws in valuation models. They had a really big impact on me."

At this point, Qin Yu's gaze suddenly sharpened and became focused. She looked directly into Huang Xiaochuan's eyes with a probing look: "At that time, the market was so frenzied that almost no one listened to any warnings. To be honest, I think your views and analyses were very prescient and very bold. I was wondering at the time, did you really see the outcome when you wrote those, or were they just theoretical deductions?"

This is a crucial question. It's not just about academics, but also about Qin Yu's own harrowing experience with short selling. She wants to know if the man in front of her is, to some extent, one of the driving forces behind her fate.