O. Henry Ending

Did Xue Tao finally get laid?

This is quite a complex philosophical question.

He did, but not entirely.

The story traces back to when Xue Tao, after buying fake jade, was relentlessly nagged by Liu Yuanyuan until he couldn’t take it anymore and stormed out of the hotel to clear his head. His destination? A famously trendy local bar.

How famous, you ask? Well, let’s just say it’s plastered all over Xiaohongshu with countless guides raving about it—supposedly packed with gorgeous girls, an unbeatable vibe, and a crowd from all over the world.

Of course, Xiaohongshu’s marketing mainly highlights the chance to meet foreign hunks there. Some people are really into that, or so they say.

But forget foreign hunks for a second… Actually, scratch that. For the local girls, Xue Tao himself was practically the exotic foreign hottie in this place!

Dreaming of a steamy encounter tonight, Xue Tao checked the time and hailed a cab to the bar. He even got ripped off by the taxi driver due to the language barrier.

But at this point, Xue Tao couldn’t care less about such trivialities. His mind was already fully immersed in the anticipation of wild bar fun.

The main issue was that Liu Yuanyuan’s temper had pushed him to his limits.

She was the one who wanted the jewelry, he was the one who paid for it, and yet when they got scammed, she blamed him? What kind of messed-up logic was that?

But Xue Tao had been acting like a doormat around Liu Yuanyuan for way too long.

Before this, Liu Yuanyuan had tried cozying up to other rich guys at school, only to have them see right through her, leading to humiliating failures.

The girls around those wealthy guys either had great personalities or stunning looks. Liu Yuanyuan had neither, so of course she struck out every time.

Xue Tao, however, remained blissfully unaware. While complaining about how mean Liu Yuanyuan was, he headed to the bar, hoping for a new romantic spark.

Some people are just hopeless.

But that wasn’t even the wildest part.

At the bar, after much deliberation, Xue Tao opted for the cheapest available booth.

The bar counter was strictly for casual drinkers—friends hanging out, not for picking up girls. The slightly more upscale booths were way too expensive.

So, weighing his options, Xue Tao went for the lowest-tier booth with the minimum spend.

And then, in this dimly lit corner of the bar, he ran straight into Liu Yuanyuan.

Yes, you read that right.

Liu Yuanyuan had the exact same idea.

She figured that since she didn’t have to stick with Xue Tao tonight, why not hit up this bar that her Xiaohongshu girlfriends raved about?

But barely after settling in, she found herself face-to-face with Xue Tao, staring each other down.

Well, to be fair, Liu Yuanyuan’s eyes aren’t that big to begin with.

It’s all about the makeup.

Without it, she looks kinda tired.

But since she was at the bar, of course she was decked out in full glam—rocking a sexy crop top and stockings…

Xue Tao’s blood boiled at the sight. Damn it, she never wore stockings for me!

This reminded him of before the holiday break, when he’d watch Su Bai and Chen Yusheng—the "born-in-stockings goddess"—being all lovey-dovey on campus, green with envy.

So he begged Liu Yuanyuan to wear stockings for him.

She shot him down hard.

"Stockings? So tacky. Only fashion-illiterate straight guys like that stuff. Plus, they’re uncomfortable. I don’t get what kind of girl would even wear them!"

At the time, Xue Tao couldn’t help but think: Nobody calls Chen Yusheng tacky for wearing stockings. Everyone thinks she’s elegant, sophisticated, and gorgeous—guys and girls alike.

Basically, Liu Yuanyuan’s argument was pure nonsense.

Now, it was clear—she was just making excuses!

Not only that, but she’d also taken a cheap shot at Chen Yusheng. As Chen Yusheng’s roommate, Liu Yuanyuan had to watch her and Su Bai being all lovey-dovey every day. The jealousy must’ve been eating her alive.

Look at you now, wearing stockings like it’s nothing!

Xue Tao’s temper flared, and he confronted Liu Yuanyuan.

Liu Yuanyuan knew she was in the wrong, but her inner "princess" instincts kicked in, and she immediately went on the defensive, launching into a full-blown argument with Xue Tao.

There they were, huddled in the cheapest booth, bickering about everything from jade authenticity to boyfriend duties to the purpose of stockings—arguing so fiercely it felt like the universe itself might collapse.

Passersby kept glancing over, baffled. Were these two rehearsing a comedy skit or something?

The fight escalated until Xue Tao hit his limit and exploded.

"If you hate me this much, let’s break up! Then no one will ever force you to wear stockings again!"

"…"

Still hung up on the damn stockings.

Just how obsessed is this guy?

Liu Yuanyuan was stunned. Watching Xue Tao storm out of the bar without looking back, she panicked.

Honestly, she shouldn’t have snapped. The fake jade debacle was entirely her fault. After venting her frustration and using Xue Tao as an emotional punching bag, the proper "green tea" move would’ve been to switch from attack mode to sweet-talking—give him some sugar to smooth things over.

But her inner "sisterhood" instincts overpowered reason, and Liu Yuanyuan went full "spiky-backed dragon," triggering Xue Tao’s fight-or-flight response.

At this critical moment, Liu Yuanyuan’s true "queen bee" colors shone through. She sprinted after Xue Tao in her high heels, catching up just as he was about to hail a cab back to the hotel.

Right there on the street, she pulled him into a passionate kiss, then clung to him, sobbing hysterically.

She poured out a sob story about how it wasn’t that she hated him—it was her troubled family, past emotional trauma, peer pressure, bad influences online… the whole nine yards.

She begged for his forgiveness.

Xue Tao was floored. Holy crap, when had Liu Yuanyuan ever acted this vulnerable before?

His heart instantly melted.

Honestly, Xue Tao was something else. One minute, he was declaring their breakup in the bar; the next, after Liu Yuanyuan’s tearful street performance, he was ready to forgive her by the time they got back to the hotel.

Ah, so what if she’s a little dramatic?

What girl isn’t these days?

Besides, Liu Yuanyuan was still one of the prettier girls at Jiangcheng University.

Let’s face it—at a top-tier school like that, most students are average-looking. The really stunning ones are rare.

Since she was being so sweet now, surely she’d… behave from now on, right?

In reality, Xue Tao was delusional. Girls like Liu Yuanyuan could flip moods faster than a light switch.

Back at the hotel, Liu Yuanyuan, eager to fully appease Xue Tao, suggested they… you know.

Since they were already on a trip together, everyone would assume they’d done it anyway. Whether they actually had or not didn’t matter.

The key was that Liu Yuanyuan sensed Xue Tao was nearing his breaking point. True, he’d spent a fortune on her lately—for a college kid from a demolition-compensation family, it was a massive investment. He’d even upgraded to a Cayenne for her sake (a used Cayenne, but still a Cayenne!).

So, the time had come!

A gullible, loaded catch like Xue Tao wasn’t someone Liu Yuanyuan would let slip away easily.

Xue Tao was over the moon. But…

He failed.

Literally.