Chapter 36

Cheng Xiaoyu drooped his head and drove in silence. Xu Qinling was holding his phone, talking to Su Yuxi.

"Yuxi, you didn't see your brother's face at the time. He was pale, looking so awkward, like he was caught in the act. It was hilarious," Xu Qinling laughed uncontrollably while glancing at Cheng Xiaoyu.

Cheng Xiaoyu put on his signature expression, not planning to acknowledge Xu Qinling. He wanted to listen to what Su Yuxi was saying, so he quietly turned down the music. He faintly heard Su Yuxi say something about not doing something, but it wasn't very clear. He didn't feel comfortable turning off the music completely, so he gave up.

Only Xu Qinling's carefree, sweet, and soft voice echoed in the Ferrari. She had already taken off her coat in the car, revealing a pink sweater that accentuated her stunning figure. Cheng Xiaoyu glanced at her unintentionally but quickly looked away, thinking to himself how girls these days could be so captivating at just sixteen or seventeen. He wondered what they would be like when they grew up.

Feeling a bit dazed, he heard Xu Qinling say, "Yuxi, when we get back, I'll stay at your place! I'll borrow your brother for a few days."

He didn't know what Su Yuxi said, but Xu Qinling pouted, "Oh, Su Yuxi, don't be so stingy. Don't worry, I won't mess him up!"

Cheng Xiaoyu had a bad feeling that he had been betrayed, but he didn't feel right asking Xu Qinling what they had talked about. Besides, he thought that even if he asked, it would only invite her ridicule.

Xu Qinling hung up the phone but showed no intention of returning it to Cheng Xiaoyu.

Cheng Xiaoyu's dissatisfaction dissipated a bit in the face of Xu Qinling's beauty, but he pretended to be angry and asked, "What do you want to eat?"

Xu Qinling adjusted her seat to a more reclined position and said lazily, "Anything."

Cheng Xiaoyu hated it when women said "anything." When a woman said "anything," she meant: "I'm too lazy to think, and I can't come up with anything good. I'm letting you decide, but you have to come up with something I like."

Cheng Xiaoyu didn't ask her again. He just wanted to get this "big troublemaker" fed and sent away as quickly as possible. He saw a Hunanese restaurant and was about to pull over when Xu Qinling said, "No, Hunanese food is too greasy and spicy."

Cheng Xiaoyu had to keep driving. Not far ahead, there was a Chaoshan hotpot restaurant. Cheng Xiaoyu asked, "How about this one?"

Xu Qinling looked up and said, "This is too light. I'm a bit tired of seafood. Let's try something else."

Cheng Xiaoyu grumbled to himself but asked, "How about Shanghainese cuisine?"

"Anything," Xu Qinling said indifferently.

Cheng Xiaoyu decided not to pay attention to Xu Qinling anymore and drove straight to Liu Yishou. When they arrived, he parked the car without waiting for Xu Qinling's approval and said they were there.

Xu Qinling hesitated, got out of the car, and saw the red sign of Liu Yishou. She asked, "What kind of place is this? We're supposed to eat Shanghainese cuisine, right?"

Cheng Xiaoyu smiled and said, "Hotpot! Don't tell me you've never had hotpot?"

Xu Qinling shook her head. "I've heard of it, but isn't it very spicy? And isn't it something only poor people eat? You can't be that stingy, right? You're taking me here?"

Cheng Xiaoyu chuckled. "A life without hotpot is incomplete. Since you've never had it, let's give it a try. It won't be a waste of our acquaintance."

Xu Qinling picked up her Chanel bag and said, "If it's not good, we're changing places! Don't think you can get away with it!"

Cheng Xiaoyu didn't respond and walked into the restaurant.

When they got inside, the tables were full of guests, and the steam from the hotpots seemed to scare Xu Qinling. She had always eaten in the teachers' canteen, high-end clubs, and five-star hotels. The most casual place she had ever been to was a private kitchen with only one or two tables a day. This was her first time in such a place. She had never eaten street food, skewers, or even cotton candy. No one had ever asked if she wanted to try these things; they had only told her that these were not for her.

Cheng Xiaoyu called a waiter to show them to a table. Xu Qinling first wiped the chair and table thoroughly with a napkin, then started asking questions like a curious child. What was the sauce station for? Shouldn't hotpot be cooked over charcoal? Was that pot called a Tai Chi pot?

Cheng Xiaoyu's head was spinning from all the questions. When their yin-yang pot arrived, she asked if the white soup was drinkable.

Cheng Xiaoyu nodded expressionlessly and poured her a bowl.

Xu Qinling took a sip and said, "It's really good." Then she picked up a slice of tomato and started eating.

Cheng Xiaoyu brought back two bowls of sauce and gave one to Xu Qinling. He started cooking without paying attention to her.

Xu Qinling was a bit hesitant. She didn't recognize any of the dishes on the table and asked Cheng Xiaoyu, "What's this grass? Can I eat it?"

"That's enoki mushrooms," Cheng Xiaoyu said, eating heartily without looking up.

Xu Qinling picked up a few enoki mushrooms and cooked them in the pot for a few minutes. She asked Cheng Xiaoyu, "Can I eat them now?"

Cheng Xiaoyu nodded, and she carefully dipped the enoki mushrooms in the sauce bowl and then put them in her mouth. She was ecstatic. She slapped Cheng Xiaoyu's shoulder and said, "The texture is so complex, spicy, but so refreshing!! What else can I eat?"

Cheng Xiaoyu, a bit frazzled by Xu Qinling's excitement, said, "Everything on the table, as long as it's in a dish, can be eaten!"

Xu Qinling picked up a slice of beef tripe and asked, "What's this?"

"It's beef tripe," Cheng Xiaoyu said.

"What is beef tripe?"

Cheng Xiaoyu, not knowing what beef tripe was, said dismissively, "Beef tripe is the throat of a bull under one year old, as precious as bear paws."

Xu Qinling swallowed and put the beef tripe in the pot to cook.

Cheng Xiaoyu saw that she would take forever to cook this way and said, "Just throw it in the pot and use a strainer to scoop it out later."

Xu Qinling shook her head, insisting on cooking it herself. Cheng Xiaoyu had to put a lot of dishes in the pot for her.

Then Xu Qinling went into overdrive, shouting "spicy" while drinking cola and using her chopsticks to scoop food.

Seeing Xu Qinling's swollen, cherry lips, Cheng Xiaoyu couldn't help but smile, but he also felt that this innocent side of her was truly beautiful, making his calm heart ripple.

When the two of them were sweating and the table was almost empty, Cheng Xiaoyu paid the bill. As they walked out of the restaurant, Xu Qinling was still complaining about the spiciness but asked Cheng Xiaoyu to bring her and Su Yuxi back the next day.

Cheng Xiaoyu didn't commit, standing by the car and saying, "We have a deal! Next, I'll take you home, or you can take a taxi. Don't worry, I'll give you the money for the taxi!"

Xu Qinling stood in front of Cheng Xiaoyu, almost as tall as him in her canvas shoes, staring into his eyes. Cheng Xiaoyu saw her tears welling up and started to feel afraid.

Xu Qinling grabbed Cheng Xiaoyu's arm, a tear rolling down her cheek, and whispered heartbreakingly, "Your Majesty, you want me to go back! I can't do it!!"

Seeing Xu Qinling's dramatic performance, Cheng Xiaoyu was at a loss. He thought, "You like to act? I'll act with you today."

Cheng Xiaoyu flung his sleeves and bowed to Xu Qinling, saying humbly, "Your Majesty, the last time, all the mistakes were mine. I failed to recognize your greatness. Please don't be angry. It's not worth it for you to get upset over me. If you hurt yourself, it will pain me deeply."

"Bold servant, since you know your mistake, why don't you take me back to the palace!" Xu Qinling's role change was so quick that Cheng Xiaoyu was caught off guard.

Cheng Xiaoyu had no choice but to open the car door for her and say, "Your Majesty, please get in the carriage."

Xu Qinling didn't care that many people were secretly watching her stunning beauty. She continued to play the role of the empress, holding Cheng Xiaoyu's arm and getting into the car.

Cheng Xiaoyu got into the car, put on a serious face, and shouted, "Go!" He started the car, stepped on the gas a few times, and imitated the sound of a horse neighing.

Xu Qinling couldn't hold back her laughter, clutching her stomach and lying back in the seat, shouting, "Oh no, I can't stop laughing, Xiaoyu, the empress is going to laugh to death! You better support me."

Cheng Xiaoyu, a natural comedian, remained serious and said, "Your Majesty, if you want me to support you, the horse has to stop! I know how to start the horse, but I don't know how to stop it!"

Xu Qinling couldn't take it anymore, laughing and rolling in her seat, gasping for breath, "Call the donkey, call the donkey!"

Cheng Xiaoyu sighed and imitated a eunuch's voice, "Truly, the world is in decline, and people's hearts are not what they used to be! Now even horses are picky, refusing to stop unless given an LV!"

Xu Qinling was stunned for a moment, then reacted and pounded the seat, her laughter uncontrollable, tears streaming down her face, unable to speak clearly.

Seeing Xu Qinling laughing uncontrollably, Cheng Xiaoyu also laughed and put on a serious face, "My beloved, what are you laughing about? Tell me so I can hear it too!"

Xu Qinling, still laughing, reached out and pinched Cheng Xiaoyu's arm, saying, "No taking advantage of me! I can take advantage of you, but you can't take advantage of me, NO!"

Cheng Xiaoyu, enduring the pain in his arm, said humbly, "Your Majesty, where are we going? You have to tell me!"

Xu Qinling wiped her tears with a tissue and thought for a moment, "Let's go buy a phone first."

Cheng Xiaoyu thought it was a good opportunity to buy an iPhone, so he turned on the navigation and headed to Dixintong.

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