Lin Chu had actually been pretty excited, ready to conquer a new scene and get a taste of being the top dog at the bar.
But when she agreed so readily, Lin Chu was instantly a little turned off.
'You have to understand, if a sewer doesn't even have a basic manhole cover, countless people must have already gone down it.'
'Hey, at least show a little token resistance.'
'This leaves me with zero sense of accomplishment, and even less of a sense of security.'
'Still, a part of me is tempted.'
'But I'm genuinely scared of catching something.'
'You know, things like AIDS, Syphilis, whatever.'
...
"Wow, Lin Chu!"
"It really is you!"
"Whoa, quite the scene you've got here..."
A boisterous voice suddenly rang out as Lin Chu felt a tap on his shoulder. He glanced back and saw a young woman with delicate makeup and her hair in a bun standing behind him, her eyes filled with a teasing light.
'Hm?'
'An Qingning?'
"What a coincidence..."
Lin Chu said with a smile.
'My ex-girlfriend Yaoyao's best friend.'
'The last two times we came to 404, Yaoyao had brought her along. We often ate together too.'
'Back when we were dating, I often felt like having a girlfriend meant I was supporting both her and her bestie.'
'The bestie was always eager to participate in every recreational activity.'
'The only thing she didn't join in on was what happened in the bedroom.'
'Then again, who knows? Girls like them most likely share all the juicy details with each other.'
'My impression of An Qingning wasn't half bad.'
'At least when Yaoyao and I argued, she'd act as a mediator, trying to get us to reconcile instead of splitting up. She had a shred of a conscience, at least.'
'And, to be honest, she's better looking than Yaoyao.'
'Longer legs, a better figure... she works out often, so her ass is ridiculously toned.'
'It's just that I met Yaoyao first.'
'What's that saying again? "If you meet a girl, don't be in a hurry to hook up. What if her best friend is hotter?"'
"Stop looking, Yaoyao's not here. I live nearby, and after dinner I just wanted to take a stroll and ended up wandering over."
"Did you two really break up?"
She asked, fishing for gossip.
Lin Chu waved his hand. "Shouldn't you be more in the loop about this than me? What, she didn't consult you guys before she did it?"
His tone still held a sting.
'The resentment was still there.'
"She really didn't. Hey, a breakup is a breakup. It's time to say bye-bye and find someone better. Who says you can't live without the other?"
An Qingning said comfortingly with a smile, her gaze casually sweeping over the table. Seeing the three Divine Dragon Sets already there, she asked, "Now that you two are done, are we still friends?"
Hearing this, a smile tugged at the corner of Lin Chu's lips, and an idea suddenly popped into his head.
"Come on, sit down."
Pushing away the girl in his arms, Lin Chu patted the spot on the sofa next to him.
An Qingning didn't act coy. She stepped onto the back of the sofa and hopped over. Her two long, fair legs were slightly thick but very shapely, and certainly not short—she had to be about five-foot-seven.
"Do me a favor,"
Lin Chu said with a smile.
"Hm? Go on."
"Promise me first."
An Qingning hesitated but still gave a little smile. "You tell me first."
Lin Chu reached over, put his arm around her shoulder, and held up his phone with his other hand. "Let's take a selfie."
An Qingning: "Don't!"
Lin Chu had already snapped the picture.
"Dude, don't mess with me. Playtime is playtime, but no taking pictures in the KTV. Don't you know the code?"
Lin Chu just smiled casually. "I'm not just taking it, I want you to post our picture on your social media. And don't you dare block Yaoyao from seeing it."
An Qingning: ...
"You're a real dog."
"Are you trying to get me killed?"
"No, I can't do that. Yaoyao's my best friend. I can't make her that mad."
Though her words were a refusal, she didn't leave. Instead, she grabbed a glass from the holder and poured herself a drink.
"Some best friend. You have no idea what she used to say about you... She said you've got nothing going for you besides your big boobs, that your legs are thick, that you're cheap and wouldn't even buy a friend a cup of bubble tea. And that you're a total fake—that you're actually wild but pretend to be all innocent, keeping a bunch of guys on the back burner without even letting them hold your hand..."
Lin Chu said with a sneer. Most of it was true, but he'd thrown in a few embellishments of his own.
An Qingning: ...
She was completely stunned.
"When did she say that?"
She was practically fuming, and her face burned with humiliation.
Being slapped with those labels, she felt like she'd been taken down a peg in front of Lin Chu.
"Heh, don't ask when. In bed, obviously. But don't get too worked up. What's a 'best friend' anyway? Just a fake friend, right? So, are you posting it or not? Be quick about it."
'This feeling of being the bad guy gives me a dark thrill.'
'It's not that I'm still hung up on Li Yaoyao. I just get a kick out of making her miserable.'
'Why the fuck should I be the bigger person?'
'Even if I were, it wouldn't be for you.'
"Let me have a couple of drinks first. I need to think."
An Qingning was clearly feeling down. She raised her glass and clinked it against Lin Chu's.
"What've you been up to lately?"
Lin Chu asked, keeping his arm casually draped around her, not letting go.
She gave a nonchalant shrug of her shoulder but didn't forcefully struggle free.
As for the "sewer" from earlier, she sat sullenly to the side, clearly annoyed but not daring to offend the big shot.
"I started working at a private equity firm."
"I'm in IR. Been there two months and haven't closed a single deal. I'm just planning to collect three months of my base salary and then quit,"
An Qingning said, sounding frustrated.
Lin Chu let out a sly chuckle. "That's easy enough. If you want to close a deal, with what you've got to offer... *tsk*..."
IR, or "Investor Relations," was, to put it bluntly, a job that involved sweet-talking rich people into handing over their money for the company to invest.
The big boss gives you the "right to use his funds," so how are you going to pay him back?
"You're horrible!"
"Lin Chu! You've become so shameless!"
An Qingning immediately understood his implication. She slapped his arm and said in a playfully indignant tone.
'Running into a whale like him takes luck, after all.'
'There are too many pretty girls and not enough whales to go around.'
Lin Chu: "I've always been this shameless. You just don't know the real me."
An Qingning: ...
"No wonder..."
She'd wanted to say, "No wonder Yaoyao broke up with you," but she stopped herself just in time.
'Things are different now.'
'If I actually say that, he might get pissed and turn on me.'
'It's like the Lin Chu in front of me now is a completely different person from the one I used to know.'
'And it goes without saying, it's the money that did it.'
"Brother Chu, seeing how well you're doing these days, how about investing a little something?"
she asked tentatively, her smile blossoming.
"You post it first. I mean, you have to risk something to gain something, right? Are you really trying to get something for nothing? You think I'm an easy mark?"
His tone was playful and bantering, but with an undercurrent of mockery.
An Qingning pouted, leaned in closer, and snuggled up against him. Her voice immediately switched to a cutesy, high-pitched tone. "Brother Chu, come on, invest a little. If you invest, I'll post it. It's not much, the minimum is only thirty thousand. Our firm is totally legit, with an average annual return over five percent."
"Post it first."
Lin Chu was unmoved, his fingers nonchalantly tracing circles on her collarbone.
An Qingning took a deep breath, gritted her teeth, and threw caution to the wind. 'It's just one best friend!'
'And one who talks so much trash about me, at that!'
"Get a little closer."
She was decisive. Once she made up her mind, she acted immediately. She practically melted into Lin Chu's arms, her body pressing against his.
Lin Chu seized the opportunity, leaning in until his lips brushed against her cheek.
An Qingning's face grew warm. She held up her phone and—SNAP—took a picture.
She also took a picture of the alcohol on the table, and the other people drinking.
"Okay, I'm posting it?"
"What should I write for the caption?"
She was all in.
Lin Chu thought for a moment. "Just write, 'Finally found you. So glad I never gave up.'"
An Qingning: ?
'You...'
'You son of a bitch, you're so damn extra.'
'Using a song lyric, really?'
'If Yaoyao sees this, she'll lose her mind.'
She gritted her teeth. "Fine, I'm posting it. But... I'm only making it visible to a certain group. My boss and coworkers can't see this."
Lin Chu teased, "More like you don't want your backup guys to see it, right?"
An Qingning: "Jerk! I don't have any backup guys!"
Lin Chu: "Well, that's no fun at all. I was actually thinking of making a move on you. I like girls who have a ton of guys chasing them but can't be caught... only to end up getting their back blown out in my bed."
Her: ?
She shot Lin Chu a resentful glare.
'A jilted man is a terrifying thing. No holds barred, no bottom line.'
'But... he's rich!'
With the post edited, An Qingning tapped "send."
Lin Chu watched her post it, then poured her a drink and raised his own glass.
"To good friends. Cheers!"
...
...