As a Magnate, I Started Checking in at a Convenience Store

Chapter 257: The Alumni Association Begins!

Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

“Huff, Slow down, Second Bro. We’re still on time. There’s no need to rush!” Li Yang panted, holding onto his knees, and commented while looking at Zhou Chao, who seemed perfectly calm.

“I’m afraid we won’t find good seats if we wait. If you’re okay with sitting in the back row, 1 don’t mind!”

Zhou Chao wasn’t in a hurry either. After all, his purpose in coming was to scout for talent, so he wanted to find a good spot to interact with some high-quality alumni.

“Well then, let’s take it slow, and we’ll walk there. No need to run!”

“Sounds good. I’m fine with that,” Li Yang replied after walking at a more leisurely pace for a while, feeling like he had recovered.

The two of them took about 20 minutes to return to the small auditorium. By this time, many people had already taken their seats. In addition to alumni, there were also some leaders, outstanding students, and members of the student council present.

Zhou Chao and his two companions looked around and eventually found a spot further back to sit. It wasn’t that they didn’t want to sit in the front rows, but those seats were already occupied, except for the first row.

Time quickly passed, and it was already 2 o’clock. During this time, more people continued to arrive.

“Second Bro, the people in the first row are coming in!” Zhou Chao, who was lost in thought, heard Li Yang’s voice and prepared to turn his head to look towards the entrance.

“Boss, Ling Chen is here too!” Lin Wu, who was next to them, looked surprised as he observed the people entering through the door.

“Oh, that’s true. I didn’t expect that we’re all alumni from the same school. Why didn’t I know this before?” Zhou Chao remarked when he heard Ling Chen’s voice among the group entering with the school leaders.

“Boss, do you want me to call him over?”

“No need! He’s seen us already.” Zhou Chao noticed Ling Chen’s gaze directed at them and shook his head slightly.

Ling Chen followed the school leaders into the small auditorium. After taking a few steps, he spotted Zhou Chao and Lin Wu sitting in the back rows. He initially thought of going over to greet them but noticed Zhou Chao’s subtle head shake. So, Ling Chen continued walking forward, and their brief exchange went unnoticed by others.

Soon, the first row was also filled with people. Except for Ling Chen and the department leaders, Zhou Chao didn’t recognize anyone else.

The music in the small auditorium began playing, and a beautiful woman holding a microphone walked onto the stage.

“The 36th Alumni Association of Modu University officially begins!”

Following that, the host began introducing the school and department leaders, teachers, and some well-known alumni in attendance, with Ling Chen’s name prominently mentioned.

After the introductions, the department leaders delivered speeches, and there was an overview of the recent changes, reforms, and developments in the school over the past few years!

Zhou Chao and Li Yang in the back row listened with great interest, occasionally expressing their sentiments, “Time really makes us grow old, doesn’t it? In just a few years, the college has undergone so many changes!”

Soon, the college leaders finished their speeches, and a beautiful female host came forward with a piece of paper in her hand.

“Next, we will honor outstanding alumni of the university and thank them for their donations and support to the school!”

After saying this, the beautiful host raised the paper and began to read from it.

“Ling Chen! President of Modu Dragonfly Group!” The first person introduced was indeed Ling Chen, indicating that the school had made significant efforts in organizing this event.

“Wang Hao! General Manager of Jinling Hami Media!”

“He Yichen! Executive of a Fortune 500 company!”

“Lan Ting! Renowned calligrapher!”

“Ji Xu! Famous author!”

The beautiful host continued to announce the names of more than a dozen individuals. When she mentioned these names, the entire venue erupted in enthusiastic applause and tears.

“Lastly, we have our fellow alumnus, Zhou Chao. We would like to extend our special thanks to Zhou Chao for his donation of two million, primarily for computer equipment in the Computer Science department. As they say, we should not forget those who helped us. Zhou Chao, who achieved outstanding success shortly after graduation, deserves our recognition. Now, let’s invite Zhou Chao to the stage to speak!”

The atmosphere in the small auditorium instantly became lively, with people engaged in discussions.

Meanwhile, Zhou Chao and Li Yang, sitting in the back, were utterly bewildered. Zhou Chao, in particular, experienced a sudden system crash. Could there be others with the same name as him in the audience? At that moment, everyone in the small auditorium started looking around.

“Second Bro, do you think someone is playing a prank on us?”

“I don’t think so. After all, it’s an alumni event. Who would have the time and inclination for such elaborate mischief? Moreover, this kind of thing is usually orchestrated by someone intentionally, in other words, to embarrass us. In this situation, if what the host just mentioned comes true, it’s possible that we’ll be publicly embarrassed by the entire college. Besides, I don’t have any bad relationships within the school. Wait a minute… I think I’ve figured out what’s going on!”

Suddenly, it dawned on Zhou Chao. He raised his head and saw Wang Hao not far away, wearing a smug smile while seemingly mouthing something to Zhou Chao. At the same time, Li Yang also noticed something unusual.

“Second Bro…” Li Yang looked at Zhou Chao apologetically.

“No big deal,” Zhou Chao replied as he and Li Yang discussed the situation.

Just as they were deep in their discussion, the host on the stage noticed that no one had come forward and asked, “Is Zhou Chao still here in the small auditorium?”

Before Zhou Chao could stand up, Wang Hao’s voice rang out. He pointed towards Zhou Chao and his group and said, “Zhou Chao is in the corner at the back. As for why he didn’t dare to come up, maybe he’s afraid his bragging will be exposed!”

All eyes in the small auditorium turned towards Zhou Chao and his group in the corner!

Seeing Zhou Chao in person made many girls’ hearts beat a little faster, and even the female host on the stage couldn’t help but cast a gleaming look at Zhou Chao.

Seeing himself singled out by Wang Hao, Zhou Chao didn’t hide any longer. He stood up from the couch and walked towards the stage.

“Hello, everyone. I’m Zhou Chao. This is my first time back on campus after a few years. 1 have many memories here, and it’s only natural to do something for my alma mater. There’s no need to make a big deal out of it.

Also, the host just mentioned that I donated 2 million, but that’s not accurate.”

As Zhou Chao’s voice trailed off, the entire small auditorium buzzed with excitement. Wang Hao and his companions in the audience wore mocking expressions while looking at Zhou Chao.

“Let’s see how this guy wraps up. You know, it’s quite enjoyable to see someone make a fool of himself like this,” Wang Hao said with a smug grin, anticipating that Zhou Chao would make a major blunder.

But Zhou Chao, looking at the lively audience, picked up the microphone again.

“I haven’t finished speaking yet. Please don’t be surprised until I’m done!”

The whole venue fell silent instantly. The expressions on the faces of the leaders, alumni, and others in the audience varied from those who were enjoying the spectacle, those making fun of him, to those who were genuinely concerned.

Of course, all of this had nothing to do with Zhou Chao. He felt the time was right, so he continued speaking. “What 1 donated to the school is 20 million, not 2 million. It might be that the beautiful host was too busy earlier and didn’t notice. 1 apologize for any confusion.”

“It’s impossible. You’re just a poor guy without parents. What gives you the right to claim you can donate 20 million? Just because your good buddy is the young master of the Li Family in Modu?” Wang Hao jumped out like a clown. The school leaders had turned visibly pale by this point, as they had more experience and wisdom than Wang Hao and understood what was happening.

Most people in the small auditorium turned their attention to Zhou Chao, waiting to hear his explanation.

But before Zhou Chao could speak, a deafening voice echoed from below the stage.

“Just because Zhou Chao is my boss!”