We arrived at the place Qiao Lan mentioned. There's only one hotel where we could dine, and it's quite high-end. Even if there were street food nearby, we wouldn't have thought she would invite us here.

Momo excitedly took out her phone and started snapping selfies like crazy.

"Qiao Lan is truly the epitome of wealth and beauty. She's rich enough to bring us to such a place just for a meal. We've really hit the jackpot sharing a dorm with her."

Seeing that Zhao Mei and I had indifferent expressions, she leaned in to interact with us.

"Don't you agree?"

I forced a smile and perfunctorily replied, "Yeah."

After about half an hour, Qiao Lan sent a message in the group chat.

[The private room is VIP03. You guys go in first; I'll be there shortly.]

The waiter led us to the private room.

Zhao Mei looked around and asked the waiter.

"Did we get the wrong room? There are only four of us, do we really need such a large round table?"

The waiter confidently replied, "No mistake, VIP03 is here. The person who made the reservation said there would be three young ladies arriving early, so this is correct."

We looked at each other but decided to sit and wait for Qiao Lan to clarify.

If it was just to show off her wealth, then she had won.

"Wow, such a big hall—"

"Mom, look where I am! My roommate invited me for a meal!"

"Really, we get along very well. Don't worry. I just looked at the menu, and everything is so expensive. It's really a blessing."

As soon as Momo sat down, she started a video call with her mom, each of them engrossed in their own phones.

Not long after, the door to the private room opened. Qiao Lan finally arrived, wearing a tight-fitting V-neck shirt and a mask.

I thought she came alone, but unexpectedly, three potbellied middle-aged men followed behind her.

As soon as she entered, she introduced us to the three men with a smile.

"These are my classmates, young and beautiful. This is Sister Zhao, Sister Gu, and the cutest one in the corner is Sister Momo."

"Oh, hello, classmates."

The balding man in the lead smiled lecherously and waved at us.

"Hello, girls. So young."

He turned to the other potbellied men and said, "Seeing them makes me feel young again."

The men behind him nodded repeatedly as they stared at us.

I felt an indescribable sense of unease.

One of the men in a floral shirt had a belly so large that it strained against his shirt, revealing glimpses of his pale belly.

"Sit down, girls, don't be shy. Order whatever you like."

Zhao Mei and I exchanged glances, uncertain of what Qiao Lan was planning.

"Who are they?"

Momo tugged at Qiao Lan's sleeve and asked quietly.

"Oh, you don't need to know. They're just some big brothers here to join us for dinner. Don't be nervous; call them brothers, they're very friendly."

Hearing this, the men laughed so hard that their bellies jiggled.

Calling them brothers felt overly polite.

Momo, not doubting, obediently called out, "Hello, brothers."

This made the three men across from us laugh so hard their eyes disappeared.

"Enough talk, you must be hungry. Girls are still growing, so let's order some food. Pick whatever you like."

The balding man handed the menu to Zhao Mei, who took it but seemed momentarily uneasy.

I sent her a message under the table.

[What's wrong?]

She saw her phone vibrate on the table, understood, and quickly replied under the table:

[When that man handed me the menu, it felt like his finger brushed against me. It made me uncomfortable, but I'm afraid it might be my imagination.]

[This meal definitely isn't just a simple dinner invitation.]

[I think so too.]

Qiao Lan called out to me.

"Gu Jianjian, stop fiddling around. Hurry up and see what you want to eat."

Her loud voice interrupted my conversation with Zhao Mei.

I could only randomly point at two dishes to get it over with.

During the meal, the three men across from us kept staring at us, their heated gazes making us extremely uncomfortable.

"Where are you all studying?"

Qiao Lan quickly answered with a smile.

The balding man asked a few more questions, and Qiao Lan answered them all in detail.

A feeling of discomfort washed over me.

The balding man seemed pleased, asking questions intermittently, and Momo joined the conversation, laughing heartily at his jokes.

Zhao Mei, out of politeness, also started chatting.

Facing these three greasy men, I couldn't eat a bite, so I excused myself to go to the restroom.

At the door, I sent a message in our dorm's group chat.

Me: [Suddenly remembered I have something to do, I'm heading back first]

Zhao Mei: [Huh? Where are you? I'll leave with you.]

Momo: [Are you guys full already? The dishes aren't even all served yet.]

About 5 minutes later, Qiao Lan appeared.

Qiao Lan: [Let's go, let's go. It's not easy for me to treat you to a meal, and you give me this. You really take my kindness for granted!]

Momo: [I'm still here, don't scold me. Bring me along next time!]

Qiao Lan seemed to get angrier and sent several more messages.

Qiao Lan: [You may never have the chance to come to such a high-end hotel in your lifetime! You should have cherished it! I was even thinking of bringing you guys again if you behaved well this time.]

Momo: [Raising hand jpg]

Qiao Lan: [I'm angry. Not even saying goodbye to the brothers before leaving is so rude.]

My phone kept vibrating in my pocket, so I turned on Do Not Disturb mode.

After reading Qiao Lan's messages, Zhao Mei seemed a bit guilty. She thought for a moment and replied in the group chat.

Zhao Mei: [Sorry, Qiao Lan, Jianjian really had something urgent. I might not have much of an appetite; I had an upset stomach after eating some sweet shrimp.]

Qiao Lan immediately replied.

Qiao Lan: [You're hopeless, no ambition.]

Qiao Lan: [Forget it, you won't have another chance anyway.]

Zhao Mei: [I'm really sorry. Next time, we'll treat you to make it up.]

Momo: [Can I join in on the treat?]

Zhao Mei looked up at me, "Do you think leaving like this is really okay? Won't it be embarrassing for Qiao Lan since she organized this?"

I snorted, "Haven't you figured it out yet? Even though she's treating us, we are the real menu items."

Zhao Mei was taken aback, "You mean she..."

She shook her head, "No way, her family is so wealthy, why would she do something like this?"

I shrugged.

"I don't know. Anyway, there was no good intention behind this dinner."

Qiao Lan and Momo didn't return to the dorm until midnight. As soon as they entered, I smelled a strong odor of alcohol.

Momo, supporting the staggering Qiao Lan, pleaded for our help.

I quickly helped move Qiao Lan to her spot and poured her a cup of water.

She still had her mask on, and without thinking, I reached out to remove it.

Her face, whether from being covered or from drinking, was bright red, covered with swollen pimples and pus-filled whiteheads, her skin in a terrible state.

Momo, standing nearby, couldn't help but let out a gasp of disgust.

Zhao Mei carefully fed her some water.

I asked Momo, who was still conscious:

"Why did she drink so much?"

She glanced at us and complained:

"Isn't it because of you two? Your early departure upset the three brothers, so they kept making Qiao Lan drink."

This statement left me speechless.

But since Momo was firmly on Qiao Lan's side, I didn't say anything more. After all, nothing I said would outweigh Qiao Lan's single "I'm treating you to dinner."

Zhao Mei took a towel to wipe Qiao Lan's face, but she suddenly cleared up for a moment, swatted Zhao Mei's hand away, and then collapsed on the table again.

Helpless, we could only make a makeshift place for her to lie down using chairs and covered her with a blanket.