Chapter 273: Chapter 275: Got the House
"Bottoms up!" the big guy roared.
No matter the reason, he was a grown man being backed into a corner by a little girl. It would be too humiliating not to drink!
’Drink!’
’I have to drink!’
The proprietor brought more alcohol, and An Ning downed it bowl after bowl, as if she were drinking plain water, not liquor.
And in fact, that was exactly the case.
An Ning’s spiritual power was refining and evaporating all the alcohol.
What she was drinking now was no different from plain water. Aside from needing more bathroom breaks, she could keep this up all day.
She could drink water all day without getting water intoxication because her spiritual power was cheating by evaporating most of it, so it never stayed in her system for long.
The big guy gritted his teeth and forced down the first bowl after the ten-jin mark.
He fought back the urge to vomit and swallowed the second bowl.
The third bowl...
HUUUURL—
The big guy truly couldn’t hold it in any longer.
Looking at the mess on the floor, An Ning calmly asked:
"Does this count as me winning?"
"You win! You win!"
The big guy straightened up. He was clearly much more clear-headed after throwing up.
By any standard, he could really hold his liquor.
Not only that, he was the "rally and keep drinking" type. In the world of drinking culture, he definitely had a place at the table.
Having sobered up a bit after vomiting, the big guy looked at An Ning, who was still perfectly composed across from him, and cupped his fists.
"I admit defeat."
"You let me win."
An Ning returned the gesture and prepared to get up and leave.
"Wait a moment."
The big guy called out, but An Ning still stood up at her own unhurried pace.
"Don’t worry, I’m not leaving. We haven’t gotten the house yet, and my Second Brother is still here. I just need to take care of some personal business."
An Ning asked for the restroom and quickly disappeared.
When An Ning returned, the mess on the floor had been cleaned up.
At some point, the passed-out Boss Jin had been laid down next to the sleeping An Guoming.
The table had been reset with fresh dishes, and all the alcohol had been cleared away.
"Little Sister An, come have a bite."
"Great, I’m starving."
An Ning had reverted to her sweet, girl-next-door demeanor, shedding the intimidating aura she’d had moments before.
The drinking contest had made the big guy see An Ning in a completely new light; he was even impressed.
Neither of them spoke, focusing on their food.
Once the churning in his stomach had settled a bit, the big guy finally voiced the question on his mind.
"Little Sister An, why did you have to beat me in a drinking contest? I’d already conceded on the price."
An Ning set down her chopsticks and answered bluntly, "Because it was never about the price."
"You like to drink, you can hold your liquor, and you’re willing to solve problems over a bottle. That’s all your personal choice, and I respect that."
"But you shouldn’t have goaded my Second Brother into drinking with you after you’d already made your decision."
"I mean, just look at my Second Brother. He looks like the type who could accidentally drink himself into an early grave. And I can tell you, in his case, appearances aren’t deceiving. He really can’t hold his liquor."
The big guy chuckled at An Ning’s dry wit. His gaze shifted to An Guoming as he said, "I think your Second Brother knew that, but he came along anyway."
An Ning also looked over at the soundly sleeping An Guoming. A faint, gentle smile graced her lips, completely different from before.
"I know. But he’s my Second Brother, and when it comes to him, I’ll be biased without a second thought."
"That’s what family is for, isn’t it?"
Feeling good from the drinks, the big guy habitually raised his bowl toward An Ning for a toast, only to remember it just held lamb soup.
"Sister, how about we down this bowl of soup? This one’s to you."
"It would be rude not to."
An Ning graciously picked up her bowl of lamb soup. The two, full of bravado and a newfound sense of camaraderie, prepared to drain their bowls.
"HAAH—"
"HSSS—"
Finding the soup too hot, they both put their bowls down, looked at each other, and burst into laughter.
The big guy was truly a straightforward man. It was the first time he’d ever found someone so much on his wavelength while drinking, and he had a wonderful time chatting with An Ning about everything under the sun.
An Ning also learned that the big guy was selling his house to go try his luck in the south.
But when An Ning asked what he planned to do there, the big guy seemed lost. He hadn’t made any plans.
"My Second Brother runs goods between the north and south all the time. You could ask him about it."
"Oh? I didn’t know your Second Brother did that for a living."
After they had finished eating, drinking, and talking, they each carried one of the unconscious men back to the big guy’s house.
It was An Ning’s first time inside the house. It was huge—a large, square building.
No wonder An Guoming wanted to buy it.
An Ning and the big guy didn’t leave, but simply moved to the courtyard to continue their conversation.
As the sun began to set, An Guoming finally woke up.
He ran out of the room in a panic, not even wearing shoes.
The moment he saw An Ning safe and sound in the courtyard, he could finally breathe a sigh of relief.
"Little Sister, I was wrong. I’m never drinking again."
"I did drink a little too much, but I didn’t mean to fall asleep, I swear. I kept telling myself I couldn’t get that drunk, that I had to get you out of there."
An Guoming remembered his mind being perfectly clear, even if his body felt a little drunk.
’He had been about to leave with An Ning, so how did he end up falling asleep?’
An Ning looked at An Guoming with a docile expression and said, "Second Brother, you have to remember this. Don’t ever drink like that again. I was so scared all by myself!"
"COUGH COUGH COUGH— COUGH COUGH—"
The big guy, who was sipping tea across from An Ning, broke into a violent coughing fit.
"The tea went down the wrong pipe."
He turned away, still coughing, but his mind was filled with the image of An Ning completely dominating everyone.
’She really had terrified everyone.’
’Even the mutton proprietor had been strong-armed into giving a fifty-percent discount.’
’She’d even done it in a way that made him feel like he’d be disrespecting himself if he didn’t give the discount.’
Too bad An Guoming didn’t know any of this. He was genuinely convinced that drinking was a recipe for disaster.
"Little Sister, don’t you worry. From this day forward, I will never drink again."
An Ning just nodded obediently.
"Second Brother, the whole family and I believe in you."
An Guoming went back inside to put on his shoes, and the big guy’s coughing subsided.
"How’d you knock out your Second Brother?"
"I knocked him out."
Those four words made the big guy give her a thumbs-up in admiration. ’What a beast,’ he thought. ’Losing to her was no shame at all.’
After An Guoming sobered up, Boss Jin woke up too. He, however, seemed even more thoroughly convinced of his defeat, to the point that he gave An Ning a wide berth as he scurried out of the courtyard.
It was getting a little late, so it was definitely too late to handle the paperwork today.
So, An Ning and An Guoming simply decided to stay the night at the big guy’s house.
That night, An Ning went to bed early.
Surprisingly, An Guoming and the big guy got to talking.
Whenever An Guoming asked about what happened after he’d passed out from drinking, the big guy’s answers were always vague and noncommittal.
Eventually, An Guoming just stopped asking. ’In any case, Little Sister is fine and we got the result we wanted,’ he figured. ’Why does it matter how it happened?’
He answered the big guy’s many questions about the south. This was the real An Guoming, in his element.
The big guy asked questions and listened intently.
「The next morning」
When An Ning came out, breakfast was already on the table.
The big guy was cheerfully setting out the dishes when he shouted into the room, "Second Brother An, come and eat!"
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