CHAPTER 200: CHAPTER 200 BAR

Xia Liang waved his hand. At the same time, the waiter brought the dry pot chicken to their table.

"Let’s eat first." Xia Liang picked up his chopsticks and dug in.

If this had been before, forget not replying—just getting a single response from Zhou Xiangqiao would have made Shi Qiang ecstatic. But now, she was actually asking to meet him.

Upon hearing Xia Liang’s advice, however, Shi Qiang naturally obeyed. He clenched his teeth and turned off his phone.

"Okay!"

The two continued eating, and during that time, the phone rang several times, causing Shi Qiang to glance over at it frequently. But each time, he would see Xia Liang’s teasing half-smile and force himself to hold back.

An hour passed before Xia Liang finally took pity on his restless state.

"If you want to look, just open it and see."

As if granted a pardon, Shi Qiang snatched up the phone, still trying to make excuses. "She rejected me herself today. I... I’m just checking... in case she’s in any danger."

Xia Liang rolled his eyes at that but didn’t call him out.

Shi Qiang opened WeChat and clicked on the profile picture nicknamed "Xiang Qiao" to read her messages.

"I’m off work now."

"I’m sorry about what happened today."

"It was my fault you lost face in front of your friend."

"Honestly, as your friend, I should have helped you save face back there. I was just so surprised that I ended up explaining instead."

"I want to meet with you. Can we have a proper talk?"

"You know, after we broke up, I still had feelings for you. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have kept your contact information all these years."

...

There weren’t many messages, and they were mostly explaining what had happened earlier. She also revealed that she still had feelings for Shi Qiang, hinting that he still had a chance if he kept trying.

Shi Qiang was thrilled, but he still instinctively looked to Xia Liang. "Xiang Qiao said... she said she still has feelings for me. What... what should I do?"

Xia Liang wiped his mouth. "Wait."

Under Shi Qiang’s confused gaze, Xia Liang picked up the jacket he had set aside. "Don’t reply to her. Let’s move on to the next spot."

With that, the two got back into the car.

On the other end, seeing that so much time had passed without a reply from Shi Qiang, Zhou Xiangqiao was seething with frustration. This damn fatty! He’s grown a spine, has he? How dare he ignore my message for so long!

After fuming for a moment, she recalled what Xia Liang had said that morning about taking Shi Qiang out to have some fun. Before, Zhou Xiangqiao wouldn’t have cared. But now, Shi Qiang was apparently a rich second-generation kid, and a sycophantic one at that. What if another woman seduces him away? What then?

At this thought, she cast aside all her reservations and dialed his number directly.

In the car, the phone suddenly started ringing. Shi Qiang stared at it, bewildered. "She’s calling."

"Ignore it," Xia Liang said, as nonchalant as ever.

"Oh," Shi Qiang replied. Although he was on pins and needles, he simply held the phone in his hand, glancing at it from time to time.

Within five minutes, they arrived at their destination: Wendy Bar.

Just as the car stopped and they got out, several girls dressed to the nines in ultra-short shorts approached them.

"Hey, handsome guys, no ladies with you? How about us?"

"Hey, handsome, can I get your number?"

"Are you guys heading to Wendy Bar too? What a coincidence! It must be fate. How about you buy me a drink?"

...

Watching Xia Liang get instantly surrounded by a flock of flirtatious girls, Shi Qiang was green with envy.

"No need, we’re meeting someone," Xia Liang casually brushed them off. He led Shi Qiang through the security check and into the bar.

The moment they entered, a blast of cold air from the air conditioning hit them, carrying the mixed smell of smoke and alcohol. The deafening music made Shi Qiang’s head pound. Colorful spotlights spun dizzily overhead. In the middle of the hall, two young women in bikinis danced on a stage to the DJ’s rhythm.

Needless to say, Shi Qiang had been extremely nervous from the moment he walked in. It was his first time in a bar. He found everything novel but was too afraid to try anything, so he just stuck close to Xia Liang.

Seeing this, Xia Liang couldn’t help but shake his head. Looks like I’ll have to bring him to places like this more often. He sighed internally. It’s not that coming here is the ’right’ thing to do, but you should at least know how to act in these situations. You have to be adaptable, to know what to say to different people. It’s a necessary skill.

They got a private booth, a large space just for the two of them. Shi Qiang sat beside Xia Liang, his eyes filled with envy as he watched the men and women dancing wildly below.

Xia Liang shooed away a few women who wanted to have a deep discussion with him about their life aspirations. "Want to have fun? Go down there and dance," he said to Shi Qiang.

Hearing this, Shi Qiang quickly looked away and even retracted his hands slightly.

Seeing his pathetic display, Xia Liang felt a pang of disappointment. "What the hell are you so afraid of? This is a bar! People come here to drink, dance, and flirt. What are you doing just sitting here?"

"You... you’re just sitting here too, aren’t you?"

Holy hell! Xia Liang was about to lose it. Are you kidding me? Didn’t you just see me send a few women away?

"I’m here to show you a good time, to help you unwind! If I go have fun, I’ll be leaving you here all alone."

"If you want to go, that’s fine too. I’m okay just watching from here," Shi Qiang said again.

At that, Xia Liang finally understood. This guy seemed determined to drive him crazy today.

Seeing Xia Liang fall silent, Shi Qiang knew he had said the wrong thing and tried to ease the awkward atmosphere. "So, are we just going to sit here and watch them dance? Just the two of us?"

Xia Liang sized him up. "I’m afraid that if I called some people over, you wouldn’t even dare to flirt."

"I!" Shi Qiang started to say he would dare, but the words got stuck in his throat.

Xia Liang knew he had chickened out again. Forget it...

Thinking about the guy’s timid personality, but also remembering how he had stood up for him in a fight and taken a blow from Scarface for his sake, Xia Liang felt he had to help him out.

He immediately pressed a button on the table. A manager in a suit and tie quickly approached.

"Sir, what can I get for you?"

"Give me three sets of Ace of Spades," Xia Liang said casually, handing over his bank card.

"Hmm?" Hearing Xia Liang’s order, the manager’s face lit up.

A set cost 88,888 mililiters. You have to understand, in a third-tier city like Shangluo City, a bar like this might only see an order for one set every few weeks.

"Certainly, sir! We’ll arrange that for you right away!"

In the bar, ordering Ace of Spades came with a special perk. A lit-up Ace of Spades lamp would be placed on your table, allowing the whole venue to see your lavish spending. This was to say nothing of someone like Xia Liang ordering three sets. It was a huge sum nearing three cents.