The friendship between men must rely on alcohol to be maintained.
It's not about whether you can drink, or whether you love drinking.
The key is that men, as rational beings, typically won't easily lower their guard or open their hearts to another unfamiliar male under normal circumstances.
Only after some initial cooperation, such as doing X together as an example, can the foundation of trust be established.
Drinking alcohol is the most cost-effective and simplest way to achieve this step.
From a sociological perspective, the production of alcohol signifies the abundance of food, and abundant food means there's no need to fight others for survival—naturally, vigilance fades away.
As for that workplace PUA tactic stuff, that's a whole other story.
Wang Yunxiao had no alcohol and didn't drink, but the two elders arrived with alcohol in tow.
Besides alcohol, they even brought canned stir-fried peanuts and canned braised ribbonfish.
