Why is Su Bai so bad

Although Wan Xinyan saw Xue Zhitao's message, she didn’t feel like giving a serious reply.

As usual, Su Bai glanced at his phone and chimed in the group chat:

【CrispyWhiteGoose: Don’t worry, my appetite’s fine】

【Xue Zhitao: ……】

【Xue Zhitao: Alright, just make sure you don’t lose track of time and delay our departure.】

【CrispyWhiteGoose: [WhiteGoose_OK]】

The girls were mostly focused on devouring the fish in front of them, their mouths glistening with oil.

To be fair, despite the hefty price tag slapped on it for being "wild-caught," the fish was undeniably exquisite—tender, succulent, and perfectly complemented by the light seasoning, teasing the taste buds just right.

Chen Yusheng even went ahead with her bizarre idea of dipping the grouper in dry chili flakes.

And honestly? It wasn’t half bad.

At the end of the day, when you’re working with top-tier ingredients, almost any preparation—short of outright culinary atrocities—turns out decent.

By 8:30 p.m., the meal was over, the bill paid, and the group headed out.

This time, Wan Xinyue took the wheel.

Clearly, she had a natural talent for driving, handling acceleration, lane changes, and turns with far more finesse than Chen Yusheng.

Given that Wan Xinyue was driving, the seating arrangement shifted subtly.

Chen Yusheng wanted to sit next to Su Bai, so she dragged him to the back row.

Jiang Qiuran, on the other hand, wanted nothing to do with Su Bai today—not after his relentless teasing and sarcastic remarks. Keeping her distance seemed like the wiser choice.

With that in mind, she settled into the passenger seat.

Thus, Su Bai ended up sandwiched between Chen Yusheng on his right and Wan Xinyan on his left.

Huh. Not bad.

Su Bai’s left hand…

Chen Yusheng blinked.

Yep, this was totally in line with the vibe of that cutesy couple photo she’d posted earlier—zero subtlety, full-on PDA.

Jiang Qiuran, witnessing this, felt her mood sink even further.

I was the one who knew him first. I was his childhood friend for so many years.

And yet, the moment we had a falling out, he suddenly became loaded and started dating someone else.

She couldn’t help but resent it. If she’d known Su Bai would turn out like this, she’d never have picked a fight with him.

Honestly?

In Jiang Qiuran’s eyes, Su Bai checked every box—looks, personality, everything.

In other words, aside from his financial situation before, he was practically her ideal type.

Otherwise, she wouldn’t have kept him around as a backup for so long.

But now? Su Bai casually dropped thousands on a meal and just booked a lakeside villa for 50,000 a night without batting an eye.

That kind of spending power already surpassed all her current suitors.

She was so frustrated. Was fate toying with her? Or was this punishment for taking Su Bai’s years of friendship for granted?

As Jiang Qiuran stewed in her thoughts, her peripheral vision caught something utterly shocking in the rearview mirror.

From the passenger seat on the right, the central mirror gave her a clear view of the left side.

There, she saw Wan Xinyan’s hand—also secretly intertwined with someone’s.

Undoubtedly, that someone was Su Bai.

Jiang Qiuran’s eyes nearly popped out of her skull.

What the hell? How can Su Bai be this shameless?

He already has a girlfriend, and he’s pulling this?!

But what baffled her even more was Wan Xinyan’s reaction—or rather, lack thereof.

Instead of anger or disgust, her gaze was soft, almost adoring, as she looked at Su Bai.

Like this was exactly what she’d been hoping he’d do.

How… how is this possible?!

Wan Xinyan might not live in the "goddess dorm," but she was undeniably goddess-tier. And here she was, acting like… like some obsessed fangirl over Su Bai!

No, this was even worse than that. What kind of girl would let a guy have all the perks without even giving her a proper title? Just staying as "friends"?

Jiang Qiuran felt her entire worldview crumbling.

......

Jiangcheng University, West Gate.

A Volkswagen Magotan 330 was parked by the roadside, its freshly washed body gleaming under the sunlight.

Xue Tao stood by the car window, fussing over his hair like some peacock.

Wang Haoran leaned against a tree nearby, mindlessly scrolling through a mobile game.

If anyone in the computer science department could be called unshakably chill, it was him.

While others partied or pulled all-nighters, his routine never changed—except for the sudden upgrade in his cafeteria spending after becoming Su Bai’s lackey.

Chu Mingzhe, meanwhile, had his Sennheiser in-ear headphones plugged not into a phone, but into a dedicated music player and DAC setup, looking every bit the audiophile snob.

Watching Xue Tao preen endlessly, Chu Mingzhe scoffed, "Quit trying. No amount of hair gel will make you half as good-looking as Su Bai."

"Shut it! You don’t get it. This is mature masculine charm. Does Su Bai have that? Nope. Not a chance."

Xue Tao huffed, then drifted into delusion.

"Hey, you think any of the girls will get carsick in Su Bai’s ride and refuse to step foot in that garbage domestic car again? Maybe they’ll all pile into my car instead?"

"Wait, how do you know it’s a garbage domestic car?" Chu Mingzhe asked.

"Isn’t it obvious?" Xue Tao smirked. "If Su Bai could afford a real car, he wouldn’t just be ‘doing well’—he’d be loaded. Does he look like the type to make big money?"

"Who knows? His fashion sense has leveled up lately. Maybe he did strike gold."

"Oh please. A broke freshman? Where’s the money coming from?"

The two bickered back and forth, neither conceding.

But Xue Tao clung to his fantasy of motion-sick goddesses flocking to his car.

A few minutes later, a Mercedes GLE rolled into view from the end of the road.

In Jiangcheng, a Mercedes wasn’t that rare, but this one caught Xue Tao’s attention for two reasons: first, the street was mostly empty, and second—this was the top-tier model of the year.

Most people shelling out for a 56E-level car wouldn’t spring for the highest trim.

"Damn, someone actually went all out on a fully loaded GLE. Must be real money," Xue Tao mused.

Chu Mingzhe squinted. "How can you even tell it’s the top trim from this far?"

"Details, my dude. I know cars. Unlike you, obsessing over your precious headphones."

"Pfft. And yet here you are, driving a Magotan while the actual rich kids roll up in BBA or better."

"You little—"

Just as their bickering flared up again, the GLE did the unthinkable—it pulled up right in front of the Magotan.

All four windows rolled down at once, revealing faces that instantly short-circuited Xue Tao’s brain.