"Haha, wait for me, I'll be right there."
"Do you know the address?"
"I know." Su Yang opened Jiang Mengyun's WeChat and found the location navigation she had sent to his phone earlier.
Jiang Mengyun's coffee shop was located on Jianghai Road in the Nanlin District, right in the heart of the city center.
Being able to secure a storefront in such a prime, expensive downtown area was enough to show that Jiang Mengyun's financial situation was quite good.
After driving in a long line of traffic and being stuck for half an hour, Su Yang finally arrived at Jianghai Road.
Seeing that the GPS showed only two hundred meters left, he started looking for a parking space.
There were no parking spots on the street, so Su Yang had to drive his car into a seven-story spiral parking garage inside a nearby shopping mall.
After parking the car, he took the elevator down to the first floor and walked along the street toward the coffee shop.
After walking forward for about a hundred meters, he turned left into an alley and saw a two-story coffee shop situated along the side.
Su Yang tilted his head to look at the shop's name. It was called: Slow Coffee.
"How minimalist. Slow Coffee. Not bad, slow down and have a cup of coffee," Su Yang muttered to himself as he opened WeChat and found Song Anquan.
"I'm at the door."
"You're here? Hurry up and come in."
"Okay," Su Yang replied, stepping up to the coffee shop and pushing the door open.
As the door opened, a rich aroma of coffee wafted into Su Yang's nose.
He walked in and observed the interior decor. It perfectly matched the vibe of a boutique coffee shop, with dim lighting and soothing music.
The design mainly featured a combination of wood and stone, giving it a somewhat vintage feel that provided a quiet and cozy atmosphere.
Since it was mealtime, there were temporarily no other customers in the shop. Song Anquan and his wife seemed to be on the second floor.
A few meters directly opposite the front door was the counter. Behind the counter, a girl wearing a coffee-colored uniform, an apron, and a baseball cap was looking down at something.
Hearing a customer come in, she looked up.
At that moment, Su Yang also looked at her. Their eyes met, and a second later, they both smiled and called out each other's names.
"Su Yang!"
"Jiang Mengyun!"
"You finally decided to show up," Jiang Mengyun said with a beaming smile, walking out from behind the counter toward Su Yang.
"Sorry about that. I originally planned to come hang out here, but shortly after Song Anquan got married, I went on a road trip with some friends. I just got back yesterday."
Jiang Mengyun nodded. "Oh, you're quite leisurely then. You've been traveling for that long?"
"Yeah, Yunnan, western Sichuan, the Holy City, the no-man's land, and so on. I drove across almost half of China."
Jiang Mengyun looked at Su Yang and smiled. "I really envy your lifestyle. You can do whatever you want. Unlike me, I have to be busy every day."
"Aren't you the boss?" Su Yang asked in return.
"I am the boss, but I still have to be here. I can't just ignore everything and be a hands-off boss."
Hearing this, Su Yang thought of the restaurant and company the system had given him. He barely managed them at all; he was completely a hands-off boss.
However, their situations were different. Jiang Mengyun's coffee shop was her own blood, sweat, and tears; she had invested a lot into it. For Su Yang, it didn't really matter.
"True. Is Song Anquan upstairs?" Su Yang looked up at the second floor to change the subject.
Jiang Mengyun nodded. "Yeah, with his wife."
"Good brother!" Just as they were talking, Song Anquan appeared at the top of the stairs and quickly ran down.
He rushed down the stairs toward Su Yang and gave him a massive bear hug.
"Alright, alright, I'm not really used to hugging guys," Su Yang said with a grin.
"I missed you to death!" Song Anquan laughed heartily.
Jiang Mengyun shook her head helplessly from the side. "What would you like to drink?"
"An iced Americano."
"Don't you want to try something else? That's too easy to make."
"Then just make me whatever you're best at."
"Alright, you guys take a seat first. I'll be right there."
"Okay," Su Yang agreed, and he and Song Anquan headed toward the second floor.
As soon as they reached the second floor, he saw Wang Xiaoyan walking over while on the phone.
Wang Xiaoyan also saw Su Yang. She smiled and waved at him, said a couple more words, and then hung up.
"Brother Yang, long time no see!"
"It has been a while. How are you guys doing? Did you enjoy the honeymoon?"
"Of course!" Song Anquan chuckled.
At this point, Wang Xiaoyan suggested, "Why don't we go sit downstairs? If Mengyun comes up later, there will be no one on the first floor."
"Sure." The three of them went down to the first floor and found a window seat to sit down.
Su Yang looked at the couple and asked, "By the way, when did you guys arrive in Haicheng?"
"Let me think. It's been five days already."
"That long?"
"Yeah, I've even rented an apartment."
"That fast? Where did you rent it?"
Song Anquan looked up in thought and said, "I think it's right around here. Two bedrooms and a living room."
"How much is it a month?"
"Two thousand five hundred."
"Why didn't you tell me you were looking for an apartment? I happen to have a friend who is renting out places."
"I did ask you," Song Anquan scratched his head.
"You asked me? When? How come I didn't get any messages?"
"I don't know either. I couldn't get through to your phone at the time, so I just went looking myself."
Hearing this, Su Yang immediately realized something. The time Song Anquan called him must have been during those two days he was in the no-man's land.
"Uh... alright. When you called me, I was probably in the no-man's land. There's no signal there."
"It doesn't matter. I just wanted to ask which area was closer to you anyway. It's already rented."
"Alright then. How long did you rent it for?"
"Just for half a year for now."
Su Yang nodded. "That works."
At that moment, Jiang Mengyun walked over holding a cup of coffee. "What are you guys chatting about so happily?"
"Mengyun, come sit down," Wang Xiaoyan immediately waved her over.
Seeing this, Su Yang asked, "By the way, Mengyun, don't you have any servers in the shop?"
"I have two young girls working here. One took a leave of absence, and the other got off work, so it's just me right now."
"Oh, no wonder."
Jiang Mengyun walked to the table with the coffee and sat down next to Wang Xiaoyan.
Su Yang looked at the coffee and smiled. "Is this your specialty?"
"Yep. Want to try it?"
"Sure thing." He picked up the cup, took a large sip, and then gave a thumbs up.
"Perfect!"
"Hehe, not bad, right?"
"Very good."
"By the way, I've been wondering something." Su Yang took another sip of coffee, put down the cup, and looked at Jiang Mengyun. "How come Song Anquan and his wife are here at your place?"
Jiang Mengyun tilted her head. "You might not believe me if I tell you, but I bumped into them on my way to the shop."
"That's a coincidence."
"Yeah, just a coincidence. It was probably about two hours ago. Once I got closer and saw it was really them, I invited them over to hang out."
"Alright then."
"Let's not talk about that anymore. Xiao Jiang, what time do you close? Let me treat you guys to dinner," Song Anquan asked, seeing that it was about that time.
"I can close anytime. There's no one else here right now anyway."
"Then let's go?"
"Okay, let me go change my clothes first. Wait for me a sec."
"Alright."
young master of the Shen family—a figure of immense power and wealth beyond measure—and awakened the "Destined Ultimate Villain System"! His starting scenario? Running into his icy fiancée who shows up with a mountain-descending divine doctor to break off their engagement. The divine doctor arrogantly taunts: "What does your Shen family have besides a bit of stinking money? You're not even worthy of tying Qingxue's shoelaces!" Shen Fei just smiled. He completely defied the usual script: "Fine, I agree to break off the engagement. Also, notify the finance department to withdraw all investments from the Su family." Minutes later, with its capital chain severed, the Su Group teetered on the brink of bankruptcy! The once aloof and proud ice queen CEO was thrown into utter panic. That very night, she went to Shen Fei's villa, casting aside all dignity to beg and plead desperately... From then on, in this world teeming with Sons of Destiny, Shen Fei embarked on a path of extreme dimensional suppression! A mountain-descending divine doctor? Peerless medical skills? Shen Fei: "Reporting you for practicing medicine without a license! I'll gladly take your ancient medicinal cauldron and twin sister assassins." The Crooked-Smiling Dragon King? Commanding a hundred thousand soldiers with a single order? Shen Fei: "Illegal assembly and suspected treason! Let a fleet of attack helicopters sanitize the area and teach you what the state apparatus really means!" A reborn tycoon? Knows all the golden opportunities of the next decade? Shen Fei: "A trillion in capital to reverse and pump the stock market, making you blow your margin and jump on the very first day of your rebirth!" What Chosen Ones? What bearers of Heavenly Fortune? In Shen Fei's eyes, they're all just chives (i.e., suckers/marks) waiting to be harvested! Shen Fei: "Sorry, but as the Destined Ultimate Villain, I don't play by the rules of honor. I only play the game of dimensional suppression."
grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)
] [Lone Wolf, No Male Gaze] [Protagonist is pursued early on; extreme protagonist-stans, stay away!] The "Carnival Paradise" descends and slowly devours the real world in the form of a game. By chance, Zhu Yan awakens the talent [Roleplay], becoming one of the first beta players. He thought he could develop safely, but after clearing the first instance, he is branded by humanity as the chief culprit behind the game's spread—a traitorous villain. A villain? Who would ever... become one! He'll be the villain! From then on, Zhu Yan is not only a player but also a lackey for the Carnival Paradise. Between the straight path and the crooked path, he chooses the con. With his left hand, he dons the villain's mantle, staging scenes within instances, infuriating players who decry him as a despicable traitor, all while the game happily promotes him. With his right hand, he joins the non-human organization "Fangcun Mountain," which opposes the Carnival Paradise, transforming into a mysterious player who slaughters game bosses, earning cheers of "Long live the expert!" from fellow players. Gradually, Zhu Yan rises to become an S-rank human player in Fangcun Mountain's archives, while also being the Carnival Paradise's certified top game Boss. But when the final war erupts and both major factions place their hopes in him— Players tag his various aliases: "Experts, this offensive depends on you." The Carnival Paradise's supreme Boss throws an arm around his neck: "Bro, you're the iron, I'm the steel; you can't let me down again!"
rowess are unmatched, commanding a million-strong army! Yet, the Emperor wants to depose him for the sake of a false prince? Hold on, are you throwing me into some female-oriented romance plot? How can I tolerate this? With a grand wave of his hand—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! Slander the Emperor? Very well, all of you shall die! ... The False Prince: "Although I am not the biological son, Father and Mother love me more. The throne should be mine!" The Female Lead: "Qin Xiao, you are the Emperor, and I am a commoner. If you wish to marry me, you must abdicate. Otherwise, you will never have me!" The Empress: "After we divorce, you must give me half the empire!" The Transmigrator Consort: "You worthless Emperor, why should I kneel to you? All men are equal—I advise you to be kind!" The Great General: "The enemy general is my childhood sweetheart. For her sake, I willingly abandon the frontier defenses!" The Retired Emperor: "Although Yu'er was adopted, I prefer him. Qin Xiao, you should abdicate and let him become Emperor!" ... Very well! So this is how you want to play? Facing this twisted world of female-oriented tropes, Qin Xiao grins and raises his hand to unleash—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! I am the Emperor. Why would I bother reasoning with you? Seal the gates! Leave none alive!
