36: Pickup - 2

Yaoyao: [Okay, Brother. Wanda Apartment, Building B, Unit 1704. Brother, let me know once you've arranged for a Delivery Courier, and I'll prepare in advance.]

After sending the message, there was no further response from the other side.

Su Ning held her phone, feeling a bit uneasy, wondering if she had said something wrong.

Just as she hesitated whether to add another message, the other party's reply came: [Alright, let's do it tomorrow morning then.]

Su Ning felt relieved and quickly seized the opportunity to bring up the matter that had been causing her anxiety again.

Yaoyao: [Brother, about that Hall Battle... the 5000 flow thing...]

Brother Ye: [Isn't tomorrow just the first? What's the rush? You figure it out yourself.]

Those same eight words again—"You figure it out yourself."

Su Ning stared at the screen, once again falling into confusion.

This was already the second time she had received the same reply!

What exactly did it mean?

Was it a hint? A test? Or just a simple brush-off?

Her head was spinning from overthinking, so she resorted to her traditional skill of "when in doubt, ask the Strategist," taking a screenshot of the chat and sending it to Hall Manager Zhi Xia.

Zhi Xia's reply came quickly:

[See! I told you this guy is a pure pervert! All that talk about hair ties, hair clips, clothes, and shoes—it's all a smokescreen! What he really wants is 'Original Flavor' stuff, Yaoyao! The intimate kind, you know? Ugh, these guys with special fetishes are everywhere in this circle, nothing new.]

Su Ning looked at Zhi Xia's reply and was immediately taken aback.

She quickly scrolled back up through her chat history with "Brother Ye," and after considering Zhi Xia's words... honestly, with that interpretation, it actually made a lot of sense!

Otherwise, how could you explain him wanting these seemingly ordinary yet very personal items?

Her gaze involuntarily drifted toward the bathroom, where a small basket held the underwear she had changed out of before her shower tonight... a sense of absurdity washed over her.

Once again, she found herself in an internal struggle: to give or not to give?

This wasn't just about an item; it felt more like crossing a boundary.

But if she didn't give it, what about that 5000 flow Hall Battle task?

Would that seemingly elusive yet undeniably big-spending brother just disappear?

...December 1st, morning.

Jiang Ye woke up naturally, had a modest but filling breakfast, then pulled out the delivery uniform he hadn't touched in days from the corner of his closet and put it on.

He went downstairs, wheeled out his weathered electric scooter from the bike shed, and rode it leisurely straight to Wanda Apartment.

He had originally planned to place a delivery order on the platform, have a Delivery Person pick it up and deliver it to a nearby hotel lobby, then go collect it himself.

This would minimize direct contact and hide his real identity and address.

But after thinking it over carefully, he felt that calling for a Delivery Courier still wasn't cautious enough.

What if that woman Su Ning was meticulous and had someone lying in wait near the handoff point to spy?

Or what if she privately contacted the Delivery Courier, offered a little extra tip, and had them secretly take a photo of the recipient?

This wasn't just paranoia—after all, he had done similar work just a few days ago and knew exactly how much room for maneuvering there was in this line of work.

And... he clearly remembered that Yaoyao had given the address as 1703 last time, so why had it changed to 1704 now?

Had their "studio" moved? Or did they have several locations on the 17th floor to handle different "clients"?

After weighing the pros and cons, Jiang Ye decided to play it safe and make the trip himself.

In his delivery uniform, riding his electric scooter, he was just one of the city's most inconspicuous Delivery Persons, diving right into the situation.

Arriving at the lobby of Building B, Jiang Ye was about to call Su Ning to have her send the elevator down when a middle-aged woman waiting nearby glanced at him and smiled warmly:

"Young man, delivering food? Which floor? I can swipe my card for you—it works on every floor."

He smiled and responded, putting his phone away: "17th floor, thanks for the trouble."

"No problem, come up with me." The woman enthusiastically pressed the elevator button.

"Mm, thank you, ma'am."

The elevator ascended smoothly to the 17th floor.

Jiang Ye stepped out and went straight to Unit 1704, knocking on the door: "Hello, delivery!"

The room was quiet, with no response.

He waited a few seconds, then knocked a bit harder, raising his voice slightly: "Hello! Delivery! Here to pick up a package!"

Still no answer.

What was going on? No one home?

Jiang Ye scratched his head, pulled out his phone, and was about to call and ask when the door to the neighboring Unit 1705 opened a crack, and a head peeked out:

"Are you the Delivery Person? Why did you come up without calling first?"

Jiang Ye turned at the sound, and when he saw the puzzled, pretty face at the door, he was slightly taken aback, instinctively looking up at the unit number.

At the same time, Su Ning, upon seeing Jiang Ye standing next door in a delivery uniform, was clearly stunned, her beautiful almond-shaped eyes filled with surprise.

"Why is it you?"

"Uh... I'm here to pick up a package."

Jiang Ye quickly suppressed his surprise, pointing at the unit number for 1704: "Package for 1704, not your unit."

Su Ning stood at the door, her pretty brows slightly furrowed, a flicker of thought in her eyes as she quickly weighed her options.

Why was it this person again?

Should she pretend she knew nothing and just close the door?

No, having him wait next door wasn't a good idea either—what if he called Brother Ye to verify, making things even more troublesome?

Thinking this, she frowned and waved him over: "It's 1705. The stuff is with me. Come get it."

Jiang Ye raised an eyebrow, looked around at the unit numbers of the nearby rooms, and suddenly everything clicked.

Damn!

No wonder such a top-tier Girl was only charging 400, 600—it was all a defensive measure!

She's being pretty cautious, making me agonize and mentally prepare for nothing these past few days!

He walked to the door of 1705, still playing his role seriously: "Hello, miss, what do you need picked up?"

Su Ning didn't immediately hand over the item. Instead, she stood at the door, arms crossed, hesitating for a moment: "Come inside for a sec."

Jiang Ye was taken aback, a bit surprised, but followed her into Unit 1705.

Su Ning's apartment was a typical studio, even smaller than Ye Cheng's one-bedroom, but exceptionally tidy and clean.

A bed, a small sofa, a desk—everything was neatly arranged. The air carried a faint, pleasant fragrance, showing she was a Girl who paid close attention to life's details and quality.