Chapter 22.2 - The Twenty-Second Sentence Part 2

Translator: tarararawr

The Twenty-Second Sentence Part 2

Half an hour later, Cheng Su turned off the range hood and called her from the kitchen. “Pu Tao.”

His voice was much clearer this time. Pu Tao put aside the pillow in her arms and responded, “Hmm?”

“Where do you want to eat? The coffee table or dining table?”

Pu Tao: “Both are fine.”

Cheng Su came out with a bowl of noodles in one hand. “Come to the dining table.”

“Oh.” Pu Tao quickly put on her slippers and went to him.

Although the man had an effortless expression, the bowl was steaming. She stopped at the table and asked, “Isn’t it hot?”

“It’s fine.” Cheng Su raised his chin slightly. “Sit down.”

Pu Tao immediately sat down. “Okay.”

Cheng Su handed her a pair of walnut wood chopsticks and wondered, “Why are you always so restrained?”

Pu Tao became very distressed. “I’m minding my manners.”

“Make yourself at home.”

“Huh?”

“Make yourself at home.”

Pu Tao heard him clearly, but she just felt that his sentence was very ambiguous. While it was a common saying to treat guests, it also had a deeper meaning. For instance, it meant that she was a family member.

Forgive her for her shameless thoughts, Pu Tao was secretly delighted.

She didn’t ask any more questions. She just said “okay” and looked down at the noodles on the table.

The man’s plating was very careful. Chili oil, sweet pea pudding, baby bok choi. It was pretty balanced. There was a sprinkle of Sichuan pepper powder, and the thick soup was soaked up by the noodles. It smelled delicious.

Da Tiao clearly smelled it, too. She came out of nowhere, wandering around the table and rubbing against their calves.

Pu Tao clicked her chopsticks twice, and her hand moved as she praised, “I feel like my bento photo from back then has been surpassed.”

Cheng Su sat down opposite of her and said, “It’s just a bowl of noodles.”

Pu Tao slurped some noodles and savored it carefully.

Cheng Su asked, “Is it delicious?”

Pu Tao complimented, “It is super delicious, better than what I can eat at the restaurants in Rong City. I don’t know if there is anything as delicious as this in the restaurants of Shan City though.” Cheng Su didn’t say a word, but his smile climbed up to the tip of his eyebrows.

He continued to look at her. Pu Tao had to eat somewhat properly. She deliberately put on a certain expression, which made her face start to feel numb. She rubbed her forehead with one hand and continued to inhale the noodles.

Cheng Su thought she was sweating, so he took a napkin and gave it to her.

Pu Tao was surprised and explained, “It’s not hot. It’s because you keep looking at me, so I’m nervous.”

“Okay, I won’t look.” Cheng Su took out his cell phone.

Pu Tao secretly looked up, and sure enough, he was not looking at her. His thumb was scrolling through the screen. His nose was almost pointy like a European person’s, but his upper eyelids only had a slight crease. The tail ends of his eyes were long like from ancient times, which happened to neutralize his coldness.

How are his eyes like that? Pu Tao sighed.

Suddenly, the man looked over, and Pu Tao quickly lowered her head and shoved some noodles down. ·̩̩̥͙＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚ ꜱᴜᴘᴘᴏʀᴛ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛʀᴀɴꜱʟᴀᴛᴏʀ ᴀɴᴅ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴏɴ ꜰᴏxᴀʜᴏʟɪᴄ.ᴄᴏᴍ ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊·̩̩̥͙

Cheng Su put down his cell phone and rested his arm against the back of his chair. “You’re allowed to look at me, but I’m not allowed to look at you?”

Pu Tao swallowed the last noodle and muttered, “Who made me apply a double standard?”

“Hmm?” He pretended not to hear clearly.

Pu Tao slightly raised her voice, “I am applying a double standard.”

“Oh.” Cheng Su paused. “I realize that your voice is always very low.”

Pu Tao put her tongue to her cheek. “Because it doesn’t sound good.”

Cheng Su asked, “Does it?”

Pu Tao: “Yes.”

“I don’t think so.”

Pu Tao answered naturally, “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.”

Cheng Su suddenly understood. “Is that so…”

Pu Tao remembered the voice message Cheng Su sent the first time. “My original voice as a woman is not as good as your falsetto of a man.”

Cheng Su said, “The falsetto is just a fun thing to do, it’s not practical.”

Pu Tao was curious. “How did you do it?”

Cheng Su: “Just use my breath.”

Pu Tao immediately put her hands together and asked him to be her teacher on the spot. “Teach me, okay? I want to sound better.”

Cheng Su raised an eyebrow and asked, “You want to learn?”

“Yeah.” Pu Tao pouted. “My 24th birthday wish is to say goodbye to my duck voice.”

Cheng Su: “Is your birthday over this year?”

“Not yet, I’m making a wish in advance.”

Cheng Su laughed.

“Come here.” He pulled the chair next to him.

Pu Tao immediately sat there.

Cheng Su looked at her and said, “Say something.”

“What do I say?”

“Anything.”

“…”

“Your voice is not natural,” he said. “Your pharynx may be too hard.”

Pu Tao listened politely. “How do I make it better?”

“Try to sigh.”

“Ha.”

Cheng Su corrected her. “No, not like that. Take a breath and sigh naturally.”

“Ha…”

“That’s right. Now let it out with a heavy sigh, oh…”

“Oh.” She tried to follow him.

Cheng Su paused for a moment. “Why are you so cute?” Then he demonstrated patiently again. “Look at me, ha… oh…”

His voice was low, but it was also breathtaking in the way he released it. It was very subtle, and Pu Tao’s face warmed up a bit when she heard it.

Pu Tao put aside her dirty thoughts and concentrated on learning. She tried again. “Oh…”

“Yes, use your breath to drive your voice, relax your throat, and do it again.”

“Ho—”

“No.”

Pu Tao had a headache. “It’s so hard.”

“It’s a little hard for you.” Cheng Su thought for a moment. “Do you know how to do abdominal breathing?”

Pu Tao’s eyes lit up. “I know, I used to do it when I worked out.”

Cheng Su nodded. “Yeah, can you do it?”

Pu Tao: “… I kind of can, but not really. Mainly because I haven’t studied it carefully.”

“Let me show you. I inhale air slowly, it sinks, and I feel my stomach protruding.” Cheng Su finished talking, then showed her.

Pu Tao followed.

“Feel the abs.”

Pu Tao’s brain didn’t turn on for a moment, and her hand covered the man’s abs and kept it there.

“…”

Cheng Su let his breath out and chuckled. “Did I let you touch my abs?”

“…” After a short pause, Pu Tao reacted. She removed her hand quickly and pressed her own stomach hard, as if she was holding down her own fluster.

Cheng Su asked, “Did you feel it?”

With the sensation still on her hand, Pu Tao temporarily lost the ability to feel and think. “Huh?”

Cheng Su smiled. “Do I have abs?”