Why Didn’t You Say So Sooner

The girl in the black robe didn't reply. She walked over to another chair next to Su Yang and sat down.

Su Yang turned his head and glanced at her. She was in the same old outfit, covering everything, but he could catch a faint, lingering scent of perfume.

"Spit it out, what exactly is the matter?"

"Didn't I tell you before that I would come looking for you again?"

"Yeah, I know. So tell me, I'm all ears."

"Your name is Su Yang, right?" the black-robed girl said lightly.

Hearing this, Su Yang jolted slightly and turned to look at her. He frowned and said, "How do you know my name?"

"Of course I know. Otherwise, why would I be looking for you?"

"Then tell me!" Su Yang raised his voice slightly.

The girl in the black robe wasn't angry. She sat motionless and asked, "Do you have a girlfriend right now?"

"Why? What does that have to do with you looking for me?"

"Um... nothing really. I was just asking."

"Yes."

"Alright. I just came over to ask if you have any plans for the Mid-Autumn Festival the day after tomorrow?"

"Of course I have plans for the Mid-Autumn Festival. I have to eat with my family."

"Alright, what about the day after that?"

"The day after that? I should be free. No, wait, what exactly do you want? You've come so many times without telling me your name or what you want. Are you messing with me?"

"It's actually nothing major, and I didn't really want to come looking for you either, but... forget it. If you're willing, come find me at Villa No. 1, Tianxiang Shuian in the Magic City the day after the festival. You'll know what it is when you get there."

"The Magic City? After all this time, you're from the Magic City."

"Yeah. I'm leaving."

"Wait, you can tell me your name now, right?"

"Zhuang Mengli."

"Zhuang..." Just as Su Yang was about to ask her to pull down her mask so he could take a look, footsteps came from downstairs.

"Su Yang," Pan Ning's voice followed.

"Yeah." Su Yang turned and glanced out of the terrace, only to see Pan Ning slowly walking over from the top of the stairs.

He hurriedly turned back to look at that Zhuang Mengli, but when he looked, she had already vanished.

At this moment, Pan Ning walked to the terrace door and asked, "What are you looking at?"

"Oh, nothing. A stray cat just jumped down behind here."

"Alright. Weren't you going to sleep? Why are you still out here?"

"Just had a cigarette. Let's go."

Su Yang said as he walked out of the terrace. At this time, Shen Yixue and Meng Qianyu from downstairs also hurried up.

Shen Yixue was still holding that little dog in her arms.

"Are you going to sleep holding it?" Su Yang smiled.

"No, I'm going to put it by the bed."

"It won't pee everywhere, will it?"

"I already took it outside to the yard to pee."

"Alright. By the way, aren't you going to give it a name?"

"A name? Oh right, it's been half a day and we still haven't named it. Do you guys have any ideas?" Shen Yixue looked at the others and asked.

Su Yang smiled and said, "That's easy. It's pitch black all over, let's just call it Blackie."

"Black... that's too tacky!" Shen Yixue vetoed the name.

"Then I'm out of ideas."

"No way, you found this dog. You're basically its second parent, so you have to name it."

Su Yang was stunned. "I... I gave it a name but you didn't use it."

"Come up with a better-sounding one."

Su Yang looked up, thought for a moment, and said, "Then let's call it Black Dragon. Sounds badass, right?"

"Black Dragon?"

"Right, it's settled. From now on, it's called Black Dragon."

Su Yang smiled and turned to walk into the bedroom without waiting for the three to speak.

"Black Dragon?" Shen Yixue stared blankly at the puppy in her hands.

Meng Qianyu covered her mouth and laughed, "I think it works. It's pretty cool."

"Really?" Shen Yixue glanced at Pan Ning and Meng Qianyu.

Pan Ning also nodded. "Let's go with that. Time to sleep!" After speaking, she walked into the bedroom and closed the door.

Shen Yixue stopped fussing over it and smiled, "Then Black Dragon it is. Hehe, little guy, you have a name now~ Black Dragon."

"Let's go, Sister Xue, time for bed." Meng Qianyu went to the bedroom door, opened it, and walked in.

Shen Yixue quickly followed.

Tonight, Su Yang and Pan Ning didn't fight. After getting into bed, they embraced and fell asleep.

At six-thirty the next morning, a ray of morning sun shone through the gap in the curtains into the bedroom.

Su Yang slowly woke up. He didn't take last night's matter to heart, even though he really wanted to figure it out.

But whether to go or not was still up to him, and even if he went, it wouldn't be now.

Without overthinking it, he turned his head, kissed the still-sleeping Pan Ning, and got out of bed.

After a simple wash and changing his clothes, he walked out of the bedroom.

He went to the living room, took out his phone to call a ride-hailing car, and then went behind the bar counter to turn on the coffee machine.

Ten minutes later, he finished making a cup of coffee, and his phone rang.

"Hello."

"Hello, Mr. Su. I am your ride-hailing driver. I have arrived at your door."

"Okay, I'll be right out."

Su Yang picked up his coffee, went out the door, and quickly walked outside the yard.

A black Audi A6L was parked right in front of him. Su Yang opened the back door and got into the car.

"Hello, Mr. Su. May I ask what the last four digits of your phone number are?"

"6686."

"Correct. Please fasten your seatbelt, we will depart immediately."

"OK."

......

Half an hour later, the car arrived at the main gate of a driving school called Huasheng in the Feiyun District.

Su Yang paid, got out of the car, and walked straight into the driving school. Perhaps because it was still early, or maybe for other reasons, there were very few people practicing driving inside.

After finishing the registration and medical examination processes, Su Yang followed an instructor to practice driving.

These things were simply too easy for him, but he still had to go through the motions.

The exam started right on time at 9 AM.

The motorcycle test, like the car test, was divided into Subjects One, Two, Three, and Four, but it was relatively simpler.

It didn't take long for Su Yang to quickly finish the two theoretical subjects, Subject One and Subject Four.

After that, he immediately went on to take Subject Two and Subject Three.

These two subjects were even easier for Su Yang. Subject Two mainly tested the single-sided bridge, weaving through cones, and starting on a slope.

Subject Three tested starting, driving in a straight line, changing lanes, passing a pedestrian crossing, pulling over, and making U-turns.

It didn't take much time for Su Yang to pass everything on the first try, directly breaking the driving school's record for the fastest motorcycle test completion.

Taking the motorcycle license test was like child's play to him, easy and enjoyable.

After the exam, he had to wait for the test results to be reviewed. Su Yang chatted with the instructor for a while and smoked a cigarette.

At eleven o'clock, he left the driving school and headed to the vehicle management office to apply for his driver's license.

However, there were quite a lot of people at the vehicle management office, and producing the license also took a certain amount of time, so he could only wait in line.

On the other side, the three girls, Pan Ning, Shen Yixue, and Meng Qianyu, had taken the puppy to a pet store for a bath, then bought a whole bunch of groceries, and had now returned to the Tomato House.

The three of them brought the pork, beef, mutton, and various seafood and vegetables into the kitchen and put them away.

After they were done, they went to the yard to play with Black Dragon.

"It's already twelve o'clock, why isn't Brother Su Yang back yet?" Meng Qianyu asked, looking down and petting Black Dragon.

"Who knows. If he doesn't come back soon, the others will probably be here."

"It's fine, the three of us can just host them," Shen Yixue said with a smile.

"Oh no!" Just as they were talking, Meng Qianyu suddenly stood up and shouted.

"What's wrong?" The other two turned to look at her.

"It seems like we didn't buy any alcohol..."

"Oh, right? We bought everything else, but forgot the booze."

Pan Ning tilted her head, glanced at the living room, and said, "Doesn't he have some baijiu in that liquor cabinet?"

"There's only half a box of Maotai left. Brother Su Yang even reminded me to buy beer yesterday, and I completely forgot about it."

Just as they were speaking, Pan Ning's phone rang. She picked it up and saw a message from their road trip group chat.

Liu Bo: @Su Yang, Brother Yang, I'm almost there! Get a coffee ready for me!

Pan Ning: Your Brother Yang isn't here. There is only bottled water.

Liu Bo: Huh? He's not there? Did I get the time wrong? Isn't the party today?

Pan Ning: It is today. He went out to take his motorcycle driving test and hasn't come back yet.

Liu Bo: Oh, oh, scared me to death. I thought I made a wasted trip.

Meng Qianyu: Old Pang Ge, where are you now?

Liu Bo: I'm almost at Lianwu Lake. What's up?

Meng Qianyu: There is a very important matter. We forgot to buy beer when we went grocery shopping this morning.

Liu Bo: Meaning you want me to bring some over?

Meng Qianyu: Hehe, yes. Thanks, Bladder.

Liu Bo: ?? Thanks what?!

Meng Qianyu: Uh... sorry, I typed too fast. Thanks, Pang Ge~

Liu Bo: Scared me. I was about to say, why would you give me such an ugly nickname.

Meng Qianyu: If you really like it, it's not totally out of the question.

Liu Bo: Forget it, just calling me Pang Ge sounds a bit more affectionate.

Pan Ning: Don't play on your phone while driving!

Liu Bo: Hehe, Sister Pan is still the one who cares about people. I'm just waiting at a red light.

Meng Wenzhou: @Liu Bo, you're going this early?

Liu Bo: Didn't Brother Yang say to go early?

Meng Wenzhou: I'm still in bed.

Liu Bo: Then hurry up and get out of bed, come over quickly!

Meng Wenzhou: OK, OK, getting up now.

Ji Bo: I'm heading out too.

Su Qingci: Sister Ziyun and I are already on our way.

Pan Ning: Okay.

Meng Qianyu: @Liu Bo, remember to buy the booze, buy a lot! Brother Su Yang said there will be a lot of people today.

Liu Bo: A lot of people? Isn't it just us old buddies?

Meng Qianyu: You're the old one. There are also Brother Su Yang's other beautiful female friends.

Liu Bo, who had just pulled his car over to the side of the road, suddenly widened his eyes when he saw this and replied: ??? Holy crap? Why didn't you say so earlier?

......