On the other side of the bar, Nie Chang leaped to his feet. Shit! This wasn't a date! This was obviously someone spiking a drink and taking advantage of somebody else's innocence!
He ran over and blocked the way in front of the guy in the suit. "Get your hands off him."
The man frowned. "What do you think you're doing? Can't you see that my friend is drunk?"
"Your friend?" Nie Chang snorted. "You better get your hands off my friend now or I'll make you regret it."
"Make me regret it?" The man in the suit frowned and looked at Nie Chang as if he was an idiot. "Do you have any idea who I am?!"
Nie Chang looked at him with a deadpan expression. "Ling Dong Hai, age 25, second son of Ling Guo Ming. Achieved a major in business studies thanks to costly tutors and the help of some poorer fellow students. On his final exam, he was suspected of cheating, though the university dropped the charges in the end because they turned out to be only malicious rumors slandering him. At least, that was the message released to the public. Interestingly, the university received a fairly large amount of money from an anonymous benefactor just two days after the scandal was exposed. One really has to wonder whose money they received."
"What are you trying to get at?"
"Oh, nothing. Just like I said: I think it's very interesting. In fact, it's so interesting that I'd like to have a look into who that benefactor was. I mean, good people should be known to the world, shouldn't they?"
The man gritted his teeth. "It was anonymous so it should better stay that way. If someone investigated too much, that might turn out bad for that person."
"Are you threatening me?" Nie Chang smiled. "You better give him back now or else not only this scandal will be exposed. After all, there are quite a few things that happened while you were abroad for the last two years, weren't there?"
"You —"
"Mister Ling, before you threaten somebody else you should make sure that it is someone you can afford to offend. If not ... it might spell trouble for you and your whole family." He reached over and pulled Su Yan into his arms. His friend didn't even react. "Tch." Seriously, thankfully he had followed him! Who knew what might have happened otherwise?
He glared at the guy in the suit again, turned around and brought Su Yan outside. He stopped at the entrance. Su Yan still wasn't conscious. "Damn, what was in that drink?" Nie Chang patted his cheek but he didn't get any reaction besides a slight frown.
He hurriedly called a taxi over and gently put Su Yan on the backseat before telling the driver his address. He had thought about bringing Su Yan to the hospital but most likely they wouldn't find any drugs. Bringing him home also wouldn't be good. Who knew how bad it would be when he woke up? No, his apartment was still more convenient.
Thus, when Su Yan finally woke up again he found himself in an unexpected place. It wasn't a completely unfamiliar bedroom but it also wasn't his own. Instead, it was one he had seen a few times.
He took some minutes to adjust to this surprise. He couldn't remember how he had ended up here and his head hurt like hell.
"Ah Chang?", he called out, hardly holding back a moan. Damn! What had happened to his head? Had he fallen on the way back from work or something?
Wait a moment ... Work ... It seemed he had resigned and then started to work at Nie Chang's place? And then ... He had used his work time to write. That much he could remember but after that ...
"Ah Chang?", he called out again and this time there was the slight rustling of clothes.
Su Yan turned around and frowned. That bastard was actually sitting at his bedside! "Why didn't you answer just now?"
Nie Chang frowned, too. "Is that really what you should be saying now? Su Yan, kindly explain to me while you went alone to a bar after work?"
"Bar?"
"Yes. And while you're at it you can also tell me why you would take a drink from a complete stranger."
"What stranger?"
Nie Chang held his phone in front of his face. On the screen was the photo of a man in his mid-twenties wearing a mahogany-colored suit. Su Yan felt like he had seen him before but he couldn't remember. That smile on his face was somehow eerie ...
"Look at that!" Nie Chang pointed at his face, his expression stormy. "You can't even remember! Do you have any idea what would have happened to you if I hadn't been there?"
Su Yan gulped. Nie Chang rarely got loud but if he did then there would definitely be a good scolding. "I certainly didn't do it intentional ..."
"Of course, you didn't! If you actually did, then I certainly wouldn't have helped you!"
"Uh ... Ah Chang, can't you speak a little more quietly? My head —"
"I don't care for that! Do you still not understand how lucky you were? That guy was already dragging you to his car! Do you know where he wanted to take you?"
Su Yan hastily shook his head and then lowered it a bit. The guiltier he looked the sooner Nie Chang would leave him alone.
"He was going to take you to a hotel! You can take a guess what he wanted to do to you there. Tch." Nie Chang stood up. There was no use talking with Su Yan now. That troublemaker couldn't even remember. He'd give him some time to wake up and then talk some sense into him again. Thus, he made to leave the room.
Su Yan pursed his lips. Hearing what Nie Chang said made him think of the word villain and suddenly, he remembered why he might have gone to a bar in the evening: That damned System had told him to meet the 'hero' there.
"You certainly are no hero", he mumbled thinking of the guy on the photo, unfortunately, it was still loud enough to be heard by Nie Chang.
"What was that?" Nie Chang turned around at the door and frowned. Knowing Su Yan, he hadn't expected any big thanks but this was really low.
"Oh ... nothing, I ... was talking to myself." He couldn't say the truth, right?
"Talking to yourself?" Nie Chang wasn't mollified, though. Did that heartless guy even understand how much he had worried about him?
He went back to him and propped his arms up on both sides of Su Yan. "You feel like I shouldn't scold you when you've done something this dumb?"
"No, I —"
"It's alright. But if you want to be the damsel in distress, then you better prepare for the things the hero gets after saving her."
And with that, he bent forward and kissed him.