Little Qiao Loves Jungle: [She's an adult. She went to a bar and got drunk on her own. What business is it of mine? I'm not her mom, not her dad, and definitely not her boyfriend!]
Thanks, Goodbye: [Could you please go pick her up?]
Little Qiao Loves Jungle: [We had a fight. And we're not even real friends.]
Thanks, Goodbye: [It's so late and she's a girl alone at a bar. I'm worried something might happen to her. If Jiaojiao said anything wrong before, I apologize to her and to you on her behalf.]
Thanks, Goodbye: [I'm really worried right now, but I'm in City B. Even if I fly over, I won't get there until tomorrow morning.]
Thanks, Goodbye: [Just consider it a favor I owe you, okay?]
Xie Linchuan was gambling too.
He was betting that Qiao Liuyue had a cold exterior but a warm heart. If she really didn't care, she wouldn't have specifically texted him about this.
Little Qiao Loves Jungle: [I'm a malicious woman.]
Thanks, Goodbye: [I was wrong. I apologize. I'm sorry.]
Little Qiao Loves Jungle: [Do you really like her that much?]
Thanks, Goodbye: [Yeah. She's my first real relationship.]
Little Qiao Loves Jungle: [Fine. I'll do it for my dog's sake.]
Xie Linchuan heard her call him a dog again. He figured she must be angry.
He actually knew that the relationship between Qiao Liuyue and Jiaojiao was pretty strained. He didn't expect she'd still be willing to help. For a moment, he felt conflicted.
Was she malicious? Maybe not.
But kind? She kept calling him her dog, which really bruised his ego.
Whatever. Did pride matter?
Jiaojiao's safety came first.
Thanks, Goodbye: [Thank you.]
Little Qiao Loves Jungle: [Don't thank me too fast. You'll owe me a favor later.]
Xie Linchuan's brow furrowed. He'd only just started feeling grateful.
And now she was making conditions again.
Of course. He should have known. She wouldn't do a good deed for no reason.
Thanks, Goodbye: [What favor?]
Little Qiao Loves Jungle: [I'll let you know when I think of it. Don't worry, it won't involve your precious Jiaojiao.]
Thanks, Goodbye: [Fine.]
The chat ended. Qiao Liuyue thought it over. Going alone to find Dong Jiaoyan this late at night was actually a bit risky.
She needed a tool.
Who to pick?
Obviously Red Envelope Bro.
She opened Zheng Qingyuan's chat.
Little Qiao Loves Jungle: [Duoduo, are you asleep yet?]
Zheng Qingyuan: [No, not yet.]
He quickly unsent it.
Then he sent a deliberately evasive reply.
Zheng Qingyuan: [Ah, I didn't read that right. Sent the wrong message.]
Zheng Qingyuan: [I was just about to sleep.]
Zheng Qingyuan: [Also, who's Duoduo? Liuyue, did you send the wrong message by accident too?]
Little Qiao Loves Jungle: [Sister Doria, aren't I your Sun Quan big brother?]
Zheng Qingyuan: [Huh...? You've got the wrong person. I don't play support.]
Qiao Liuyue snickered softly.
She sent a voice message instead.
"Ruying, Suifeng. You're so consistent with your naming, did you know that?"
Zheng Qingyuan still tried to bluff.
"What Ruying? I don't know anyone by that name."
"Come on, stop pretending. I checked the match history. That Ruying account used a name change item. It was called Suifeng before, wasn't it?"
"Ah, this... I mean... it's just a coincidence. I've known Hammer for a while. He said he wanted to start a gaming companion studio, and I happened to have a little spare cash."
A little spare cash?
Red Envelope Bro, you've got a ton of cash. And you're the kind of rich guy who's a sucker too.
Zheng Qingyuan never expected his disguise, which had only lasted a day, to be exposed so quickly.
He definitely hadn't been sleeping well lately.
Why else would he have thought to change his name to Ruying?
Ruying Suifeng. How obvious was that?
He should have changed it to 'Sang Qi King Is the Strongest' or 'One Duoduo'.
Just as he was starting to panic,
Qiao Liuyue called him directly.
He answered instantly.
"What's up?"
Qiao Liuyue got straight to the point. "There's an emergency. Dong Jiaoyan got drunk at a bar and just called me to pick her up."
Zheng Qingyuan gritted his teeth. "Don't go! She went out to party on her own. At this hour? Screw picking her up!"
Qiao Liuyue: "That's what I thought too. But I'm trying to steal her boyfriend. Xie Linchuan hasn't been nice to me, and he's the sentimental type."
Zheng Qingyuan: "So...?"
Qiao Liuyue: "Have your Assistant Suifeng come. I'll go with him to the bar to get Dong Jiaoyan."
Zheng Qingyuan: "Huh?"
Qiao Liuyue: "Is that not convenient?"
Zheng Qingyuan: "No, it's not that. My assistant has rights too. It's late, he should be home with his wife and kids."
If Assistant Suifeng could hear that, he'd probably be moved to tears on the spot.
Then came the next line.
Zheng Qingyuan said: "I'm very convenient."
Qiao Liuyue: "But you just said... screw picking her up?"
Zheng Qingyuan: "That's what I thought. But now I'm the neighbor-brother persona. She can't have me. I want to make her watch and feel all itchy."
Qiao Liuyue: "Makes sense. I'll wait for you."
Zheng Qingyuan: "Don't worry. I drive fast!"
Ten minutes later.
Qiao Liuyue stood by the roadside at the back gate of the school, staring at a blue sports car with a caved-in front end driving toward her from a distance. She fell silent.
The window rolled down slowly.
Halfway down, it got stuck.
Then Zheng Qingyuan manually pushed the window down a little more, revealing a handsome face and black sunglasses.
Qiao Liuyue couldn't help complaining: "Seriously? It's the middle of the night. Why are you wearing sunglasses?"
Then she looked at the crumpled front end.
"Is this car going for a ruined aesthetic?"
Zheng Qingyuan took off his sunglasses, his cheeks flushing just a little.
He pursed his lips and tried to act tough.
"I drove really fast, you know. I, uh, had a little run-in with a flowerbed."
"But it's no big deal. The passenger door still works fine."
When he said that, Qiao Liuyue leaned over to look. Sure enough, not only was the front end smashed in, but the driver's door was dented too.
It looked like it wasn't just a run-in with the flowerbed.
It was more like a passionate farewell kiss.
Qiao Liuyue hesitated.
"Are you sure you're okay to drive? ...Maybe we should let Assistant Suifeng work overtime?"
Seeing her look of concern, Zheng Qingyuan felt his driving skills had been insulted.
He nodded with great confidence.
"Trust me! I'm very precise!"
The moment Qiao Liuyue sat down in the passenger seat, they'd barely gone one block.
THUMP.
Zheng Qingyuan hit a traffic cone on the side of the road.
They stared at each other.
Zheng Qingyuan awkwardly looked away. "Heh, accident. Just a little accident."
Qiao Liuyue let out a soft sigh.
Now she knew why Assistant Suifeng was always the one driving.
This 'real Suifeng' was a total road hazard.
How did he even manage to drive all the way to the back gate of the school in one piece?
She unbuckled her seatbelt and opened the door.
Zheng Qingyuan panicked. "Hey, Liuyue, don't leave. I can do this!"
Qiao Liuyue had one foot on the ground. She turned back.
Moonlight fell on her fair, makeup-free face. Behind her black glasses frames, her eyes sparkled, carrying a smile that was both tolerant and helpless.
Her tone was light and firm.
"Get out. I'll drive."
