Lin Ran gently patted Wu Zhishang's shoulder and said, "I'm heading off first—my wife will be getting impatient soon. As for you..."
Wu Zhishang sighed. "Brother Lin, go ahead. I’ll wait a bit longer. I’ll drop by to visit sister-in-law when I get the chance. And don’t worry, I’ll pay you back for the meal just now."
Lin Ran thought for a moment and nodded. It was only right for his best friend to meet her.
Lin Ran: "No rush. If you want to order more, go ahead. I’ve got the card covered."
With that, he transferred 1 million directly to Wu Zhishang.
"Consider this an advance on your salary. Pay me back whenever your sales performance covers it."
Why didn’t he just gift the money? Because even brothers should settle accounts clearly.
Lin Ran had noticed Wu Zhishang’s financial struggles—something he’d overlooked before.
Knowing Lin Ran had just come into 1 billion, Wu Zhishang didn’t refuse, only insisting he’d repay it.
After leaving the restaurant, Lin Ran made a call. Within three minutes, Wang Bao arrived to pick him up.
When they reached the entrance of Luo Corporation, Lin Ran called again. Soon, Luo Yao emerged and immediately threw herself into his arms as they drove home together.
Back at the estate, Lin Ran changed his bandages but didn’t rewrap them—he no longer thought they were necessary.
Truth be told, the estate’s private doctor was exceptional. An ordinary person would’ve needed at least another week to heal.
While Lin Ran and Luo Yao were wrapped up in each other at the estate, Wu Zhishang waited endlessly for Zhao Miaomiao, unable to reach her by phone—until he saw her social media update.
[Photo: Lv Jian with his arm around Zhao Miaomiao, who gazed at him tenderly.]
[Caption: He was feeling down, so as his bestie, of course I had to keep him company till he forgot his troubles.]
Seeing this, Wu Zhishang felt as if he’d been plunged into an icy abyss. He didn’t know what to say. He kept calling and messaging Zhao Miaomiao, but all went unanswered.
It wasn’t until past 1 a.m. that Zhao Miaomiao finally replied.
[Zhao Miaomiao: Babe, Lv Jian was feeling low, so I stayed with him to cheer him up. My phone was on silent—sorry!]
Wu Zhishang’s hand trembled as he typed: [Do you have any idea how long I waited? And don’t you think you’re way too close with Lv Jian?] But after a long pause, he deleted every word and instead sent: [Got it. Where are you now?]
[Zhao Miaomiao: At a hotel with Lv Jian. He has depression—I was worried he might do something drastic.]
Wu Zhishang: ??? A hotel?!
[Send me the address. I’m coming to get you.]
After some back-and-forth, Zhao Miaomiao reluctantly sent her location—then went silent again.
Wu Zhishang, seething, rushed to the hotel, only for Zhao Miaomiao to claim she’d already gone home—even sending a photo as "proof."
[Zhao Miaomiao: Babe, we should trust each other more. Lv Jian and I really are just best friends.]
Wu Zhishang suppressed his fury before replying: [Get some rest. Goodnight.]
He took a deep breath, craving a cigarette, but the nearby shops had long closed.
With a sigh, he left. Up in the hotel, Lv Jian and Zhao Miaomiao watched his retreating figure from the window.
"Little Miao, your boyfriend’s way too possessive. Seems like it’ll be hard to meet up from now on. Maybe I shouldn’t interfere anymore…"
Zhao Miaomiao immediately stroked Lv Jian’s head. "Don’t say that! We’re besties—we can see each other whenever."
Moved to tears, Lv Jian buried his face in her embrace, sobbing as she comforted him for a long, long time.
(No major drama for the protagonists—just a light jab at the side characters. Don’t worry, nothing too heavy.)
As Wu Zhishang returned to campus, Liu Ruxue was dealing with her own troubles.
Liu Ruxue usually stayed in the dorms, but tonight, she was in a foul mood—all because of Lin Ran.
To numb herself, she dragged Huo Haini to a nightclub near campus, drinking until she was utterly wasted, slurring things like "I need Lin Ran back," "I’ve fallen for him," and "Why did he change so much?"
Staggering out, they were stopped—they hadn’t paid the tab.
Liu Ruxue and Huo Haini exchanged glances.
Liu Ruxue: "Nini, I’m broke. You cover it?"
Huo Haini: "But I don’t have enough in my WeChat wallet either."
Awkward silence. The server signaled, and a few bouncers closed in.
Normally, nightclubs made patrons pay upfront, but Liu Ruxue was a regular—until tonight, when she couldn’t pay.
Too drunk to think straight, she fumbled for her phone and dialed—
Lin Ran’s number.
The call didn’t go through. Hearing the rejection, Liu Ruxue froze, staring at her screen as memories flooded back. She crumpled to the ground, crying.
Huo Haini frowned. "Ruxue, try someone else."
Sniffling, Liu Ruxue called Lin Jian—who, upon hearing she’d racked up a 10,000+ tab while drunk, refused outright.
"Ruxue, 10,000 isn’t much, but you know my family’s situation. All my money’s gone to my dad—I really can’t help!" Lin Jian hung up.
Liu Ruxue was stunned.
Back then, no matter how much she spent, Lin Ran always covered it. Now, just 10,000, and Lin Jian couldn’t be bothered.
The contrast couldn’t be clearer.
In the end, she had no choice but to call one of her recent "admirers"—a hopeless simp from the foreign languages department. Within ten minutes, he arrived on a shared bike, handing over 3,000+ scraped together from his dormmates and his entire semester’s living expenses to settle her bill.
Liu Ruxue: "Thanks. I’ll pay you back."
Then she and Huo Haini walked off. When the simp offered to escort them, Liu Ruxue glared.
"I only borrowed money from you. That doesn’t mean you get to follow me around."
Panicked, the simp stammered, "I just wanted to make sure you got back safe—two girls out this late…"
Huo Haini sneered. "We don’t need your help. Go home."
Defeated, the simp pedaled away.
Since campus was close, the two girls staggered back on foot—only to be cornered by two thugs: one with a face like a bulldog, the other a sneering blond.
Even drunk, Liu Ruxue felt a chill. Huo Haini was terrified.
Now they regretted sending their human shield away.
The blond smirked. "Miss Liu, when exactly do you plan to pay back what you owe our boss?"