Chapter Twelve: Should We Go Upstairs for a While?
One hour later.
“Waiter, the bill, please.”
Seeing Wei Lin finish the last glass of beer, Lin Nanxi, who had long since eaten her fill, raised her voice to call over a nearby staff member.
“Coming!”
A waiter, also watching the table closely, quickly approached with the bill and a QR code. “That’ll be 386, but I’ll round it down to 380.”
He noticed Wei Lin shamelessly striking up conversation—ordering more drinks and adding extra dishes—and inwardly formed some opinions.
So, although Lin Nanxi was the one who called for the bill, the waiter handed it to Wei Lin.
Many diners glanced over at their table upon hearing the call for the bill.
“My brother always has class; he wouldn’t let a beautiful lady foot the bill for real,” An Xin complained, wiping the grease from his mouth. “He didn’t even sit with us for a single moment during the whole meal!”
“Really pathetic!” Qiu Lin nodded emphatically.
Yang Zechen smirked mischievously, “Women over brothers! If it were me, I wouldn’t stay a second either!”
“Why give the bill to me? Give it to her,” Wei Lin refused the bill, pointing to Lin Nanxi across the table. “Didn’t you hear her call for the bill?”
The waiter’s smile stiffened, cursing silently at Wei Lin’s shamelessness.
“I’ll pay.” Lin Nanxi calmly unlocked her phone, and after scanning and completing the payment, she quietly asked, “Where are you going later?”
“Nothing planned downstairs. You wait outside for me, I’ll go with your car.” Wei Lin ignored the disdainful looks around him, wiped his mouth with a tissue, came over to An Xin’s table, tossed the car keys down, and instructed, “Find a designated driver later and get my car back.”
An Xin asked stupidly, “Brother, what about you?”
“I’ll go with her.”
Wei Lin pointed to Lin Nanxi, who was already heading toward the door.
“Uh, okay, I’ll find a designated driver.” An Xin agreed immediately, then shouted, “My dad said I have to stick with you all day! Brother, where are you two going? Take me along!”
“Get lost!”
Wei Lin turned and left.
“I’m really impressed, honestly impressed!” Qiu Lin shook his head, full of emotion. “The bill was paid by her, and then he walks off with her—can’t argue with that!”
“You two idiots, didn’t you notice?!” Yang Zechen, who had been watching all along and was a whole level above them, analyzed seriously, “From my professional perspective, the beautiful lady must have taken the initiative to invite him!”
Qiu Lin and An Xin ignored the comment and raised their glasses in unison, shouting, “Enough talk! Drink up, drink up!”
...
“Has Lin Nanxi gone crazy today?”
After Wei Lin’s figure disappeared, a drunken man with a pot belly dared to shout loudly, “Wasn’t she supposed to splash water on him right away?”
“Not only did she not splash water, she let that guy sit down and even left with him!” another at the table roared in disbelief.
“The image I had of her... shattered!” The pot-bellied man stomped his foot in anger.
Other patrons who knew Lin Nanxi muttered all sorts of polite curses, all aimed at Wei Lin—calling him shameless, despicable, unashamed, stingy.
...
Inside the Lingzhi ES car.
“Why didn’t you invite me to dinner?”
Before starting the engine, Lin Nanxi’s gaze was as sharp as a blade. “You said it would be in the next few days!”
She had been busy with copywriting from dawn till dusk just to free up time for dinner.
In her spare moments, she kept opening their chat window, but the last message from Wei Lin was always the same: “Alright, wait for my message.”
Nothing else.
She had waited two days now.
Yesterday she didn’t get the invite, so she stayed late at work; today before leaving, she finally finished the important copywriting, but still no invite from Wei Lin.
Who would have thought that, disappointed and alone, she would run into him by chance while grabbing a bite.
No invitation, no explanation, which left her feeling resentful.
“I’ve been a bit busy these past couple of days; I was planning to ask you tomorrow...” Wei Lin awkwardly started to lie again.
“Then tomorrow it is!” Lin Nanxi cut him off through gritted teeth, setting the time firmly.
“Uh... okay.”
Wei Lin scratched his nose. Having downed a dozen beers, he reached out to pull Lin Nanxi in for some coaxing.
“Don’t touch me!”
Lin Nanxi, still upset, shook him off, started the engine, and coolly asked, “Where do you want to go?”
“How about we go to Weishan Bar, where we first met?” Wei Lin smiled sheepishly, glancing at his watch. “It’s still early.”
“Not in the mood today. If you want to go, I can drop you off.” Lin Nanxi kept her eyes on the road, urging, “So where to?”
Wei Lin’s mind flicked to messages from a group chat with his brothers—several places popped up clearly—but after some thought, he said, “Galaxy International, North Gate.”
He added quietly, “My place.”
Lin Nanxi focused on driving, barely responding.
“Want to come up for a bit?”
At the North Gate of the residential complex, Wei Lin cleared his throat, eyes flickering with meaning.
Looking at the towering high-rises, Lin Nanxi’s expression wavered slightly but she firmly declined: “No.”
She had no idea what Wei Lin did for a living, nor did she know where he lived. She just sensed he was well-off, but hadn’t imagined it was this extravagant.
Galaxy International was a wealthy district in Linjiang City, well known to all.
It had once been her dream address.
“Alright then.”
Wei Lin, who never brought women home, was finally willing to make an exception this once—but after being decisively refused, feeling a bit embarrassed, he opened the car door to leave.
“Wei Lin.”
Lin Nanxi looked ahead again. In the dim light of the car, her profile was exquisite. In a voice barely above a whisper, she asked, “Have you thought about me at all these past few days?”
“Yes. When I’m not busy with work, I think of you from time to time.”
Wei Lin got out of the car, gently closed the door, and waved goodbye with his back to her as he walked away.
Inside the car.
Lin Nanxi watched his departing figure for a long time. Only after he disappeared into the community and was no longer visible did she step on the gas and drive off gracefully.
...
At home, Wei Lin, not the least bit sleepy, curled up in his study pondering the art of winning over women.
“Sunk cost.”
A post caught his attention, resonating deeply with him.
The so-called “sunk cost” referred to the fact that in relationships, the party investing more money, time, and energy finds it harder to let go.
This applied to both men and women.
The post detailed the importance of guiding women to invest more time and money in a man, rather than giving endlessly.
Only then would a woman care more about the relationship, reluctant to give up easily.
“Being a simp until you have nothing left—there’s some truth to that.”
Recalling his interactions with Lin Nanxi, and her move to pay the bill at the hotpot restaurant, Wei Lin smiled knowingly, realizing he had unknowingly followed this principle exactly.
As he closed his eyes in thought, he noticed the affection progress bar had increased again—to 12 out of 50.
The newly added two points also came from Lin Nanxi.
...
A scene flashed through his mind: Lin Nanxi parked in the underground garage but did not rush home; instead, she sat at the wheel, lost in thought.
“Chatting is meant to lead to meeting in person; a meeting advances the relationship more than a call, and a call is better than text.”
A phrase he had read earlier in the office quietly entered Wei Lin’s mind, prompting him to decisively make a voice call.
“What is it?” Lin Nanxi’s cool voice sounded.
“Did you get home safely?”
“Just arrived.”
“What do you want to eat tomorrow?”
“Anything.”
“Okay, I’ll book a place and let you know.”
“Okay.”
“See you tomorrow.”
The call was brief.
“An Xin, go wash the clothes in my car and bring me the car keys tomorrow morning.” Wei Lin remembered the clothes in his bag and sent a message with instructions.
They lived in the same community, so getting the keys was convenient.
“Brother, where have you been? Does that Lin sister have any siblings? I’m bored out of my mind at the KTV. Can I come find you?”
An Xin replied instantly.
“What are you thinking? I’m home already, about to sleep.”
Wei Lin hummed as he replied.
“Do you think I’ll believe you?” An Xin, eating a fruit plate in a karaoke box, hummed back, “Nobody knows who you are, but I’m your brother—I know you too well.”
“Heh, believe it or not.”
...
At half past ten that night, one of Linjiang City’s top karaoke bars—the Royal International.
In a private room, a group of men and women played dice and rock-paper-scissors excitedly.
Two of them had their arms around each other, shouting the chorus of “Brothers” at the top of their lungs, spitting and facing each other during the climax.
Chen Hao, holding a heavily made-up girl smelling of cheap perfume, boredly played with his phone.
“Brother Hao, I ran into Lin Nanxi today at the Sichuan-Chongqing hotpot place. It’s really strange.”
A flurry of messages flashed across his screen.
Chen Hao frowned, impatiently pushing the girl away as he read carefully, his expression darkening.
“Go away!”
He snapped at the unwelcome girl, then opened his chat with Lin Nanxi and typed, “I heard someone hit on you?”
A few minutes later, Lin Nanxi replied with a question mark.
Chen Hao felt a tightness in his chest, took a deep breath, and said, “You even left with someone else?”
“What does that have to do with you?” Lin Nanxi answered.
“Nothing, just concerned about you.” Chen Hao’s face turned ashen.
“No need!” Lin Nanxi replied again.
Chen Hao put down his phone. Seeing the girl approach again, he rudely told her, “Go away! Don’t you understand human language?”
After that, he lashed out at his buddies, “You all sing terribly! Can you keep it down?!”
...
End of page three.