Let me give it a try

Seeing this, Song Anquan quickly followed inside.

"Bro, you've already helped me so much. How can I let you pay for the flower decorations too?"

Su Yang laughed. "Come on, stop being so fussy. I already said I'd take care of the lead car—a lead car isn't complete without flowers. No more arguing, go wait outside."

Song Anquan chuckled helplessly. "Alright, fine. Once I’m done with this busy period, I’ll treat you to a proper spa day."

Su Yang raised an eyebrow with a grin. "Now that’s an offer I can’t refuse. And trust me, there’ll be plenty of chances for you to foot the bill~"

Song Anquan beamed. "No problem!"

Su Yang turned and walked to the checkout counter, pulling out his phone to pay. After scanning the code, he asked, "How long will it take?"

"We have a scheduled car coming in soon. Once we finish theirs, we’ll do yours. Should be about two hours or so."

Su Yang checked his watch and nodded. "Got it. I’ll come back later then."

Xuanxuan, behind the counter, smiled at him. "Mr. Su, you can add me on WeChat. If it’s done early, I’ll message you."

"Sure."

Beep.

Su Yang scanned her QR code and asked again, "Should I leave the car keys with you?"

"No need. I saw where you parked—it’s perfect, no need to move it."

"Alright, just let me know when it’s done."

"Will do~"

With a nod, Su Yang turned and walked out of the flower shop.

Song Anquan and the other two were chatting by the entrance. Su Yang strode over and said, "Let’s go wander around nearby and grab some food. They’ll need about two hours."

"Sounds good~"

Jiang Mengyun then looked at Su Yang. "I’m not familiar with Yangcheng. Any fun spots around here?"

Su Yang grinned. "Honestly, I’m not sure either. I’ve been in Haicheng for the past few years. What about you, Anquan?"

"Me? I’ve got no clue—I’ve been in Hangzhou this whole time~"

"Oh, right. What about you, Xiao Qi?"

Chen Qi, who had been quiet until now, shook her head. "I’m not from Yangcheng either~"

Su Yang laughed. "Then let’s just wander aimlessly. We’ll go wherever the road takes us."

The four of them strolled along the street and, after about ten minutes, arrived at a trendy shopping lane. Even though it was a Wednesday workday, the street was bustling with people.

Song Anquan pointed ahead. "Let’s check it out. Looks lively—probably lots of snacks."

"Yeah, let’s go."

They crossed the road and entered the street, named Harmony Lane.

The lane was packed with pedestrians on both sides, lined with vendors using their car trunks as makeshift stalls.

All kinds of food were available—barbecue, drinks, beer, you name it.

It was still early, but by evening, the place would be even livelier. These days, young people loved sitting by the roadside, sipping beer, eating skewers, and chatting.

What was once an indoor trend had now shifted to the streets.

Su Yang spotted a coffee cart and turned to the group. "Want some coffee? My treat!"

"Sure!" Jiang Mengyun agreed.

Hearing this, Song Anquan dashed toward the cart, calling out, "I’ll pay!"

Watching him run off, Su Yang shook his head with an amused sigh. "When did this guy get so polite? Come on, let’s catch up."

Soon, each of them held a coffee cup as they continued their leisurely stroll.

After a while, Jiang Mengyun and Chen Qi stopped in front of a roadside claw machine.

Su Yang and Song Anquan turned to them. "What? Wanna play?"

"Yeah, I can’t resist claw machines~" Jiang Mengyun admitted with a laugh.

Chen Qi nodded too. "Same here~"

"Then go for it. We’re just killing time anyway."

Su Yang walked over to the vendor nearby and called out, "Hey, boss, you run this machine?"

The man looked up with a smile. "Yep, that’s me. You folks wanna try?"

"Sure. Let’s start with fifty tokens."

"Coming right up~"

Soon, Su Yang returned with a small basket of silver tokens and handed it to the girls. "Here, go wild."

"Thanks!"

"No need. Just have fun—I’ll watch."

Jiang Mengyun and Chen Qi each grabbed a handful of tokens and positioned themselves in front of separate machines.

Song Anquan, intrigued, joined in too, taking a few tokens for himself.

Su Yang lit a cigarette and leaned back.

Ten minutes later, all fifty tokens were gone—but none of them had won a single prize.

Jiang Mengyun scowled. "Boss, did you rig this machine? Why can’t I grab anything?"

The vendor chuckled. "Now, now, miss. My machines are perfectly fine. Plenty of people win every day—if you can’t grab one, that’s not my fault."

"Hmph. No way. If it was just me, fine—but none of us got anything!"

"Miss, you can’t blame the machine just because you’re unlucky."

Su Yang stepped forward with a grin. "Boss, give me another thirty tokens."

"Sure thing."

"Why bother? His machine’s rigged—the claw loosens every time it lifts something!" Jiang Mengyun protested.

Su Yang waved her off. "Relax. Let me try."

He took the basket from the vendor and walked to the machine Jiang Mengyun had used.

After inserting the first token, he studied the stuffed toys inside the glass case. "Which one do you want?"

"What’s the point? It’s impossible," Jiang Mengyun grumbled.

Su Yang smirked. "Then I’ll pick one at random."

He focused on a yellow Pikachu and maneuvered the claw into position.

With a press of the button, the claw descended—grabbing the Pikachu and lifting it.

But just as it began moving toward the prize chute, the claw loosened, and the toy dropped back down.

"See?!" Jiang Mengyun exclaimed.

Song Anquan and Chen Qi frowned. "Dude, this machine’s 100% rigged. No doubt about it."

Su Yang wasn’t a claw machine expert either, so he had no rebuttal.

Quietly, he reached out in his mind.

—System, this machine’s tampered with. Can you fix it?

[The system only provides rewards to the host. It cannot manipulate external objects.]

—Tch. I know you’ve got a way. I’m not asking for much—just help me out this once.

[The system currently cannot interfere with external entities.]

Su Yang scratched his cheek in frustration.

—Then at least tell me how to grab the damn toy.

[That is possible. When the claw reaches its highest point, flick the joystick sharply to the left.]

—Seriously? That actually works?

[The host is free to test the method.]

—Fine, let’s try.

Su Yang quickly finished his silent exchange with the system, then smirked and slipped another silver coin into the machine.

The 30-second countdown began.

Once again, Su Yang maneuvered the joystick, guiding the claw toward the yellow Pikachu plush.

The claw swiftly snatched up the Pikachu. Su Yang gripped the joystick with his right hand, his eyes locked onto the claw.

The moment it reached the top, he subtly nudged the joystick to the left with a barely perceptible flick.

A faint mechanical sound clicked, and the claw paused—this time, it didn’t release. Instead, it carried its prize steadily toward the chute.

Thud.

The Pikachu tumbled neatly into the exit slot.

“No way?!” Song Anquan blurted out beside him.

Su Yang turned to the trio with a grin. “Success.”

He bent down to retrieve the Pikachu from the machine’s dispenser. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed the arcade owner’s gaze narrow slightly—but the man quickly plastered on a jovial smile.

“See? Told you the machine works just fine!” the owner laughed, spreading his hands.

Jiang Mengyun frowned at Su Yang. “That time, the claw didn’t drop it.”

Su Yang shot her a playful look. “With the 28 coins left, I’m grabbing 28 more toys.”

The owner chuckled, shaking his head. “Kid, you got lucky once. But clearing the whole machine? Even I couldn’t pull that off.”

Su Yang tilted his head. “What if I do?”

…