"Yulan, how do you like this surprise? I specifically chose a restaurant that has a private room named 'Magnolia'." Xi Mingzhou’s smile remained as brilliant as ever, as if the stifling tension of yesterday had never existed.
Yulan tugged at the corners of her mouth. "Very creative. It’s nice."
"Sit down, quick, let me introduce you." He cleared his throat and spoke with great formality: "This is my uncle, Shen Zhixing. He’s a PhD from Peking University Health Science Center and currently the CEO of Xinwu Pharmaceuticals."
Yulan extended her hand quite naturally and introduced herself. "Nice to meet you, Uncle. I’m also a CEO—the Chief Evaluation Officer for the sweetness levels of local milk tea."
Seeing Yulan reach out, Xi Mingzhou was suddenly annoyed. He had forgotten to warn her about his uncle’s professional quirk. He stood up, laughing it off, and reached out to pull Yulan’s hand away to avoid any potential awkwardness.
Just as his hand stretched out, Shen Zhixing also extended his hand, wearing a smile. "A pleasure, Student Yulan."
It was a gentle, tolerant, and relaxed smile—without a hint of the mockery Yulan had anticipated.
The term "Student Yulan" threw Xi Mingzhou’s train of thought into disarray. He let out an "Ah," and looked at Yulan in confusion. They had agreed that if his family asked about her educational background, she should say Sichuan University or the Sichuan Fine Arts Institute. If they didn't ask, it was best not to mention it at all. What was this "Student Yulan" business?
Xi Mingzhou pulled Yulan down to sit. "We’re here to eat. Let’s not talk about all that other stuff."
It was a strange sensation. In a situation where such a lie should have been exposed, leaving everyone embarrassed, a single expression from Shen Zhixing had put Yulan at ease. On the other hand, Xi Mingzhou’s sudden, stiff change of subject made Yulan feel a bit uncomfortable.
Fortunately, just then, there was a knock at the door of the private room, and a waiter entered with the menu. Assuming it was out of "ladies first" etiquette, the waiter placed the menu open right next to Yulan.
Her lips tightened for a second, and embarrassment made her lower her gaze. Xi Mingzhou didn't notice; he urged her, "Yulan, order quickly. I didn't eat this morning, I'm starving."
A hand appeared before Yulan’s eyes—the fingers long and slender, like jade.
It was Shen Zhixing’s hand. He took the menu quite naturally. "Do you mind if I order first?"
Yulan nodded slightly in response.
Then, she heard him rattle off a few dishes in fluent French.
Suddenly, he shifted his gaze from the menu to Yulan’s face. "Any dietary restrictions?"
"No."
"Yes."
Xi Mingzhou was stunned.
Yulan said helplessly, "I’m allergic to seafood. You forgot again."
Xi Mingzhou slapped his forehead and admitted his fault. "I’ve been so busy lately I’ve lost my mind. My fault, my fault."
Shen Zhixing gave Xi Mingzhou a silent, sidelong glance, then added a few more items to the order.
While they waited for the food, it was mostly Shen Zhixing and Xi Mingzhou chatting. Yulan felt listless and didn't want to speak.
"Ms. Yulan, how long do you plan to stay in Beijing this time?" Shen Zhixing suddenly asked.
This was Yulan’s first time in Beijing. She had originally intended to go sightseeing with Xi Mingzhou first and then visit various wholesale markets to look at raw materials. But since she was currently staying in a "sucker-tax" hotel that cost three thousand yuan a night, she was really...
"Three days, maybe. School is starting soon, and my shop will be very busy."
"Does your shop not have any employees, Ms. Yulan?" Shen Zhixing asked, unaware of the circumstances.
Finally, a topic Xi Mingzhou could jump into. He quickly replied, "That shop isn't even bigger than our bathroom at home. Hiring someone would be a waste."
Yulan’s eyes flickered, and she nodded with a smile. "I can handle it completely by myself. Back when Mingzhou was still around, he used to come over to help, too."
"With his strong limbs and simple mind, I imagine he was more of a hindrance than a help?"
Yulan genuinely hadn't expected the refined Uncle Shen to be so blunt and sharp-tongued. She was momentarily stunned.
Shen Zhixing continued, "His left and right brains don't cooperate. When he was little, he spent days just looking at the manual for building blocks."
"Uncle!" Xi Mingzhou said, getting anxious. How could he say such things in front of his girlfriend!
Yulan, as if recalling something, laughed out loud. "No wonder he managed to spill twenty cups of milk tea on me at once back then. I was so afraid his day's wages wouldn't cover the loss that I let him off the hook."
At the mention of that, Xi Mingzhou softened. That was when he had been posing as a delivery driver to woo Yulan. He hadn't realized those bags were so fragile, and in an attempt to show off, he had carried all twenty cups out at once. He slipped, and all the milk tea spilled. He had wanted to compensate Yulan, but her panicked expression at the time was so adorable that he had kept his mouth shut. In the end, after much sighing, Yulan had retreated back behind the counter to make another twenty cups.
After a few moments of idle chatter, the food arrived. Looking at the huge plates and the tiny portions of food, Yulan finally understood why the service was so fast. But a new problem lay before her: she had absolutely no idea about Western dining etiquette. If she were alone, she would definitely ask the waiter for chopsticks. Regardless of whether it was Western or Chinese food, a Chinese person should use chopsticks. Could she really be defeated by something meant to be eaten?
The crux of the matter was that her boyfriend was beside her, and his uncle was sitting opposite. She sighed, barely audibly.
"Could you bring us three pairs of chopsticks, please? Thank you," Shen Zhixing said.
Yulan suddenly looked up, her gaze meeting Shen Zhixing's as he retracted his own.
Xi Mingzhou frowned. Using chopsticks for a proper Western meal was just incongruous. He was about to ask why, but he caught a warning glance from Shen Zhixing. *Fine, fine.* He was starving to death; as long as he didn't have to eat with his hands, he could accept anything.
The meal passed quickly. Shen Zhixing stopped asking questions, and Yulan was happy to be left alone. Even so, the meal left her physically and mentally exhausted. She wished she could grow wings and fly back to the hotel right now.
They could have left once the bill was signed, but at the last minute, a Frenchman entered the private room. He bowed to Shen Zhixing with great respect, grinning from ear to ear. If Yulan had to describe it, it would be in two words: "bootlicking."
Seeing Yulan’s curiosity, Xi Mingzhou leaned into her ear and provided a simultaneous translation as if showing off a treasure. As Yulan expected, eight out of ten sentences were pure flattery. This made Yulan curious—could a pharmaceutical company actually have ties to the catering industry? Curious as she was, Yulan couldn't ask directly, so she chose a middle-ground approach.
"What kind of doctor is Uncle?"
"Cardiology. A very good one. A top-tier national technical talent."
Yulan blinked. "Then why not continue?" After asking, she felt it might have been intrusive, so she changed the subject. "I can't tell, though. Uncle’s vibe doesn't seem to have anything to do with the medical profession."
Xi Mingzhou: "Judging a book by its cover, are we? Can you tell that my French is fluent?"
Put that way, Yulan regained her composure. She nodded solemnly. "Unexpected, but reasonable. Elite 'rich kids' always have at least eight languages under their belt."
"Little Magnolia! I’m only twenty-one! Even if you worked me like a donkey, I couldn't learn that many!"
"What about Uncle? Does he?"
"He does..."
As the two spoke, the phone Xi Mingzhou had left on the table began to vibrate. He glanced at the number, and the cheeky look he’d had just moments ago vanished. If one looked closely, one could see the tips of his fingers holding the phone were trembling.
Xi Mingzhou assumed a very calm demeanor and said to Yulan, "It’s an international call from my mom. I’ll step out to take it."