Let Me Treat You to a Late-night Snack

"Go bro, crush them!"

"Relax, piece of cake!" Liu Bo waved a finger dismissively.

He then picked up the dice cup and shook it with exaggerated flair.

Pan Ning gave hers just a couple of casual shakes, peeked at her numbers, and closed the lid.

Watching Liu Bo still shaking his cup like he was performing some ritual, she shot him a sharp look. "Hurry up."

"Uh, yeah, yeah." Liu Bo immediately settled down, while Meng Wenzhou stifled a laugh.

Scratching his head, Liu Bo finally lifted the lid.

Su Yang and Meng Wenzhou leaned in to check the results.

Three twos, one one, one five, one six.

With numbers like these, it’d be hard to lose even if he bluffed wildly.

Liu Bo grinned. "Four twos."

"Five sixes."

"Five... damn, how am I supposed to top that?"

Meng Wenzhou and Su Yang were already tipsy, muttering incoherently: "Call her bluff! I bet she doesn’t have that many sixes."

"I kinda think she does."

"Then just wing it. What’s the worst that could happen? We drink."

"Fine. Six twos!"

"Open. I don’t have any twos." Pan Ning calmly revealed her dice.

"No way!!" Liu Bo jumped up to check—sure enough, not a single two.

"Damn it, we can’t win against her."

"It’s not that you can’t win. You’re just terrible at this." Pan Ning leaned back on the couch, unimpressed.

Su Yang turned to Meng Wenzhou. "How is your sister so good at these games?"

"No idea. I hardly ever bring her to bars."

Beside Pan Ning, Shen Yixue and Tang Yuwei cheered gleefully.

"Wow, she’s amazing! These guys don’t stand a chance!"

"Who are you calling ‘don’t stand a chance’?" Nothing irked men more than being told they couldn’t measure up.

To prove their worth, the three guys downed another round and challenged Pan Ning again.

They took turns, but the losses kept piling up.

An hour later, Su Yang slumped on the couch, waving a hand. "No more... I can’t drink another drop."

Liu Bo pulled him up. "Come on, man! Never say you can’t!"

"Fine, I’m not a man then. I’m done." Su Yang shamelessly played the coward.

Meng Wenzhou, meanwhile, had already passed out on Su Yang’s shoulder.

Across from them, Shen Yixue and Tang Yuwei were also wasted—especially Tang Yuwei, who’d already thrown up once but was still hanging on.

Pan Ning glanced at the group, deciding they’d had enough. She pulled out her phone and texted Su Yang.

He squinted at the message.

"Don’t leave yet. I’m treating you to late-night snacks."

Su Yang blinked. Huh? What’s this about? She’s inviting me alone? Nice.

He quickly typed back: "Got it~"

"Alright, time to go?" Su Yang announced.

Tang Yuwei perked up and hurried over, whispering, "Su-ge, I forgot my keys today. I’ve got nowhere to go later."

"What? You too?"

"Just go find Lin Yiyi. I’ll send her money to book a room. You can crash with her."

"But... I don’t wanna stay with her~"

"Then book your own room."

"I’m scared to stay alone..." Tang Yuwei pouted.

Su Yang rolled his eyes internally. Yeah, right. I’m ditching Lin Yiyi for you?

"Fine, go ahead and book. I’ll catch up later."

"Really?"

"Really. Just send me the room number."

"Yay~" Tang Yuwei beamed and skipped off after saying goodbye.

Finally. So clingy.

"Let’s go. Old Meng, wake up!" Su Yang shook Meng Wenzhou awake.

"Huh? We leaving?" Meng Wenzhou mumbled, swaying slightly.

"Yeah, it’s late. You’re wrecked—go home and sleep."

"Alright... Su, buddy, Liu Bo, help me back."

"On it." Liu Bo hauled Meng Wenzhou up and grinned at Su Yang. "Next time, man!"

"Next time. Wait—"

"What?"

"We never added each other on WeChat. Let’s fix that."

"Sure thing!" Liu Bo cheerfully pulled out his phone, and they exchanged contacts before stumbling off.

Now only Su Yang, Pan Ning, and Shen Yixue remained.

As they stood to leave, Little Li, the waiter, rushed over. "Heading out, Su-ge?"

"Yeah, tapped out."

"Cool. Mind if I add you on WeChat? Next time you come, I can save you a spot."

"Sure." Su Yang added him too.

Little Li happily saw them off.

Outside, Pan Ning turned to Shen Yixue. "Isn’t your boyfriend picking you up?"

"Probably still singing with his friends."

"I’m taking Su Yang for a bite. You joining?"

Shen Yixue glanced at Su Yang and smiled. "Nah, I’ll find my boyfriend. You two go ahead."

"Alright, get home safe."

"Will do. Bye!" She waved and hopped into a cab.

"Let’s go."

"Where to?" Su Yang asked.

"Just a short walk. There’s a great beef noodle spot—perfect after drinking."

"Lead the way."

The two strolled through Haicheng’s quiet streets at 1:30 AM.

The summer breeze brushed against Pan Ning’s delicate features, her short hair swaying lightly.

"So... why the sudden invite?" Su Yang ventured.

Pan Ning met his gaze. "I wanted to talk about the race."

"Race?" He paused, then remembered. "Oh, the drag race thing?"

"Yeah. When are you free?"

"Anytime. You pick."

"Day after tomorrow. I’ll have Meng Wenzhou find us a track."

"You two just call each other by full names?"

"Yeah. Problem?"

"Just curious."

Ten minutes later, they reached a lively alleyway.

A street vendor—a middle-aged woman—was busy cooking noodles over a steaming pot.

A few wooden tables were crowded with young people slurping down fragrant beef noodles, the scene buzzing with late-night energy.

"Here we are," Pan Ning said.

"Busy for this hour."

"She only opens at night. Never been?"

"Nope. Didn’t even know this place existed."

"Then try it."

They stepped into the alley.

"Boss, two bowls of noodles for us, plus two soft-boiled eggs."

"Coming right up! Find a seat first," the boss replied cheerfully.

[Ding! Detected Pan Ning's favorability toward the host has increased to 25. Reward: 200,000 yuan.]

—Finally, it went up.

—But only 25? Well, take it slow. Pan Ning seems like a tough one to win over, but I do love a challenge.

The two found a seat and sat down.

While waiting for the noodles, Pan Ning rested her chin on her hand and looked at Su Yang. "So, what’s the deal with those two girls at the bar earlier?"

"Huh?" Su Yang scratched his brow. "Just friends. That Lin Yiyi is a streamer—I sent her some gifts, so she treated me to a meal."

"And the other one?"

"That’s her friend. I don’t really know her."

"Really? They seemed pretty cozy with you, practically glued to your chest."

"Uh, well—"

"No need to explain. Just curious."

"And when they left, they were whispering something to you. What was that about?"

Damn, they invited me to a hotel—like I can tell you that!

"Nothing much, just saying goodbye."

"Really? Didn’t look like it. If I had to guess, they probably said they ‘forgot their keys’ and asked you to get a room with them, right?"

"Holy shit, are you psychic?"

......