The dinner party lasted until eight o’clock, after which people began leaving the table to return to their rooms. Zhang Jin’an checked his watch and decided it was about time to head out. He put on his coat and greeted the group, who were still chatting away. "I’m heading out first."
Hearing this, everyone stopped their idle chatter to respond.
Jing Shangshu said, "Alright, take care."
Pan Ming checked his phone. "Got it. It’s already eight; we’ll be heading out soon too."
Chen Yi pointed around the room. "Look at that, only our table is still here. The others are almost empty. It really is time to go."
Jiu Chang, just returning from the restroom, saw Zhang Jin’an standing up and asked, "Huh? Big Brother is leaving? Going back to your room to play games?"
"No," Zhang Jin’an shook his head as he stood. "Going to the beach."
Jiu Chang asked again, "The beach? By yourself?"
Jiang Siyang raised his hand. "And me."
Seeing Zhang Jin’an nod, Jiu Chang pointed at the two of them, looking even more confused. "You two—when did you plan this?"
"This morning," Jiang Siyang added kindly, helping the group recall as they looked on blankly. "On the way to that street, didn't we pass a stretch of sea?"
That jogged everyone's memory.
"Oh—that beach?" Jiu Chang realized. "When I passed by it, all I could think about was how good the seafood there must be."
"Hey, I told Jing Shangshu back then that if Siyang saw that sea, he’d definitely pay special attention to it. See? I was right," Chen Yi said proudly.
Jiu Chang asked, "Just the two of you?"
Jiang Siyang replied, "Yeah."
Jiu Chang arched an eyebrow at Jiang Siyang. "So, is there still a seat in the car?"
The implication was obvious. Jiang Siyang understood and smiled at Jiu Chang. "Don't ask me. I can't make the call on this. You'd better ask Big Brother."
Chen Yi was highly amused. "Jiu Chang, if you want to go, just say so. 'Is there a seat in the car?' I'm impressed."
Jiu Chang huffed. "It’s called being subtle. We’re all civilized people here, don't you know?"
"Fine, fine, fine." Chen Yi cupped his hands, signaling for Jiu Chang to continue. "Go on, we're watching the show."
Jiu Chang scanned the others sitting there. "Don't you guys want to go?"
Pan Ming answered on behalf of everyone present, "You young people go ahead. We're old; we can't handle the cold wind."
"Where's the cold wind coming from in the middle of summer?" Jiu Chang cleared his throat and flashed a fawning smile at Zhang Jin’an, his voice becoming quite affected. "Big Brother—would you mind one more person in the car?"
The others couldn't take it and let out a chorus of "Ewws." Even Jiang Siyang recoiled slightly, feeling a chill down his spine. He looked at Zhang Jin’an, who simply shrugged. "Sure. If you want to come, come along. I don't mind."
"Really?!" Jiu Chang’s voice immediately snapped back to normal. He walked over, pulled Jiang Siyang up, and grabbed Jiang Siyang’s arm, saying excitedly to Zhang Jin’an, "Then Big Brother, let's go quickly!"
Jiang Siyang: "..."
Producer Jiang asked, "Jiu Chang, are you sure you were only drinking juice? I feel like it’s gone to your head."
Jiu Chang waved to everyone. "Bye-bye, bye-bye, we're off."
Chen Yi told Jiang Siyang, "Siyang, you have to keep an eye on Jiu Chang. I think his drink went to his head."
"Um, okay," Jiang Siyang waved his left hand twice, but before he could say anything else, he was dragged away by Jiu Chang.
Zhang Jin’an bid the group farewell. "We're leaving then. You guys enjoy your meal."
"Be careful on the road."
"Goodbye—"
"Big Brother, don't forget the pact! Come play with us again next time!"
"Alright, I will," Zhang Jin’an replied with a smile. "Leaving now, bye." With that, he turned and left.
By the time Zhang Jin’an leisurely walked to the elevators, Jiang Siyang and Jiu Chang happened to be waiting there as well. Jiu Chang had let go of Jiang Siyang’s arm and was looking down at his phone, seemingly sending a message; his thumbs were moving incredibly fast. Jiang Siyang just stood there with his hands in his pockets, his gaze fixed on the elevator floor numbers.
Jiang Siyang was the first to notice Zhang Jin’an approaching and the first to greet him. "You're here, Brother."
Zhang Jin’an looked at Jiang Siyang. "Do you have everything?"
Jiang Siyang patted his pocket and pulled out a palm-sized leather wallet. The edges were a bit worn, clearly having been used for a long time. He replied, "Got everything. Not much anyway, just my phone and wallet."
Jiu Chang must have finished his message. He put his phone away and asked, "Big Brother, will sand get into our shoes at the beach? Should we bring a change of shoes?"
"No need. They have shoes there that you can get when you pay the security deposit," Zhang Jin’an replied.
Jiu Chang had clearly never heard of this. "Security deposit? You need a security deposit to go to the beach?"
"Xiao Nanshan places a lot of emphasis on environmental protection. To prevent people from behaving badly, there’s a security deposit. Plus, there are people watching the beach basically every ten meters or so."
"Oh—" Jiu Chang said thoughtfully. "Makes sense. I’ve noticed along the way that the greenery in Xiao Nanshan is really well done. Even that park we first went to—the air was so fresh, one breath felt like ascending to heaven."
Zhang Jin’an laughed. "How much is the Xiao Nanshan tourism board paying you to advertise like this?"
Jiu Chang clicked his tongue and patted his chest. "I am a lifestyle vlogger, after all."
Zhang Jin’an countered, "You still remember you're a lifestyle vlogger? How long has it been since you updated your videos?"
Jiu Chang: "...? How did the conversation suddenly turn to this?"
Jiang Siyang and Zhang Jin’an exchanged a look, giving Jiu Chang no chance to talk back. Jiang Siyang added the finishing blow: "I think it's been a month."
Jiu Chang: "I..."
"Yeah, a whole month," Zhang Jin’an shook his head. "Your fans have even come to the official show account to demand updates. Did you know that?"
Jiu Chang looked at Zhang Jin’an, then at Jiang Siyang, and let out a long "Wow." "The way you two tag-team is practically invincible. I suddenly regret coming along."
Both Zhang Jin’an and Jiang Siyang burst out laughing.
A moment later, the elevator arrived, and the three of them went down to the underground parking garage. Zhang Jin’an walked in front, with Jiu Chang and Jiang Siyang following him past rows of cars until they stopped in front of one. Zhang Jin’an pressed the key fob, and the lights flashed twice. Jiu Chang studied the model and asked, "Is this a BMW M6?"
"Yeah," Zhang Jin’an walked over to open the driver's side door. "M6 Gran Coupe."
"Hiss—Big Brother, when you say it in English, it sounds even more expensive. You're not driving a car; you're driving stacks of cash," Jiu Chang couldn't help but touch the hood, asking Zhang Jin’an, "Is this car yours, Big Brother?"
"Technically mine," Zhang Jin’an replied, leaning against the roof.
Jiu Chang was stunned. "What do you mean... technically?"
"I didn't buy it, but if she’s willing, it can be considered mine in name," Zhang Jin’an didn't finish his sentence, clearly wanting Jiu Chang to guess.
Just as Jiu Chang was scratching his head, the previously silent Jiang Siyang spoke up. "I'm guessing it belongs to Miss Zhang Qingyue?"
Zhang Jin’an immediately looked at Jiang Siyang, then broke into a smile. "Correct."
"Ah, I forgot about that older sister," Jiu Chang said, unable to resist touching the hood again after hearing the answer. "It really feels like money."
"But would a floor manager have that much money?" Jiang Siyang asked.
"Well, because I bought this one as a birthday gift for her," Zhang Jin’an said nonchalantly, as if he had only gifted a bicycle. "I remember she has two. The other one was a gift from Dad after she finished the Gaokao; it should be in the garage at home."
Jiu Chang: "..."
Jiang Siyang: "..."
Seeing the two of them dazed, Zhang Jin’an was quite puzzled. "What's wrong?"
Jiu Chang swallowed hard. "Can I ask... does your family always give cars as gifts?"
"Who would be that much of a nouveau riche? we only give expensive things on dates with commemorative value," Zhang Jin’an tapped the roof. "For Zhang Qingyue's previous birthdays, I usually just sent a greeting. Like for the youngest, the most I gave her was a camera."
Jiang Siyang’s eyes lit up. "What kind of camera?"
Jiu Chang: "Is that the point?"
Zhang Jin’an thought for a moment. "I think it was called a Ca... 5D. she sent me the link."
Jiang Siyang immediately recognized it. "It’s a Canon, right?"
Jiu Chang was a video creator, after all, so he had researched cameras. Hearing Jiang Siyang say this, his eyes lit up too. "A Canon 5D? The one that costs sixteen thousand?! Holy crap, I’ve wanted to buy one but could never bring myself to pull the trigger."
"That probably doesn't include the lens, right?" Jiang Siyang said softly.
"She seemed to send me a link for a lens later. I don't really understand these things, I just thought it was more cost-effective to buy them together for the free shipping, so I bought it. It added up to over thirty thousand," Zhang Jin’an replied truthfully.
Jiang Siyang: "..."
Jiang Siyang was actually somewhat prepared—after all, Zhang Jin’an’s watch was already a walking stack of cash—but he hadn't expected Zhang Jin’an to be *this* wealthy.
Jiu Chang and Jiang Siyang were two extremes. While Jiang Siyang was shocked, he processed it internally and remained relatively quiet. Jiu Chang, on the other hand, exploded instantly.
"Cost-effective? Over thirty thousand?! Suddenly, the food in my hand doesn't taste so good anymore," Jiu Chang shook his head in mock agony. After a sudden pause, he looked at Zhang Jin’an with a solemn expression and an extremely grave tone: "Big Brother, I want to ask you a few serious questions..."
Zhang Jin’an immediately raised his hand in a 'stop' gesture. "Don't need any, no thanks, get in the car, goodbye."
After saying that, Zhang Jin’an quickly slipped into the car and called out to Jiang Siyang, "Siyang, you take the passenger seat."
Jiang Siyang obediently opened the passenger door and sat inside. Jiu Chang followed closely, opening the back door. Before his butt even hit the seat, he continued, " I was just going to ask if you're looking for a bodyguard."
"You, a bodyguard?" Zhang Jin’an didn't even look back at Jiu Chang as he buckled his seatbelt; he just let out a light chuckle. "Can you even beat Siyang in a fight?"
"This..." They had recorded so many episodes; who hadn't seen Jiang Siyang’s physique during the swimming episode? Even if Jiang Siyang was peace-loving and didn't fight, if it really came down to it, the result was a foregone conclusion.
Jiu Chang still didn't give up and asked, "Then Big Brother, do you need a younger brother?"
Zhang Jin’an glanced at Jiang Siyang. Jiang Siyang was smiling as he buckled his seatbelt, the corners of his eyes crinkling, looking elegant and easygoing.
"I don't," Zhang Jin’an turned on the music. Zhang Qingyue’s car only had some old songs; Zhang Jin’an selected "Ten Years."
Jiu Chang got excited as soon as he heard the intro. "I know how to sing this song! See how much chemistry I have with your family!"
Zhang Jin’an: "What are you trying to say?"
"Do you still need a younger sister?" Jiu Chang held up a delicate hand gesture and winked coyly at the rearview mirror. "Actually, I'm a girl at heart."
Jiang Siyang silently turned his head toward the window, looking at the ceiling of the parking garage. "The weather is really nice today."
Zhang Jin’an: "...There's really no need to be that disgusting."
***
| Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation |
| :--- | :--- | :--- |
| 小南山 | Xiao Nanshan | Little South Mountain; the location of the show/resort. |
| 生活区博主 | Lifestyle vlogger | A content creator in the "Life" category on platforms like Bilibili. |
| 官博 | Official account | Short for "Official Weibo" or the show's official social media page. |
| 佳能 5d | Canon 5D | A high-end DSLR camera series. |
| 《十年》 | "Ten Years" | A famous Mandopop song by Eason Chan. |
| 兰花指 | Delicate hand gesture | Literally "orchid finger"; a traditional feminine hand gesture often used in opera or to act effeminate. |
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Unable to be Arrogant [Entertainment Circle] | Chapter 45 | Heading to the Beach | Novela.app | Novela.app
