Chapter 20: Following me has made you suffer.

The string that had been stretched to its limit in Jing Ge's mind seemed to be gently pulled back at this moment, allowing it to return to a relaxed and unstretched state.

The tears fell unexpectedly.

Li Mushi then took out another handkerchief and gave it to her.

Jing Ge didn't want it.

You can just wipe it with your sleeve.

Li Mushi didn't ask any further questions: "Are you hungry?"

Jing Ge nodded.

As she patted her nose, tears streamed down her face.

Li Mushi gave her the handkerchief again.

Jing Ge nodded, his voice muffled: "No, thank you."

After saying that, he wiped his face with his dusty sleeve.

Li Mushi's brow twitched.

I placed the handkerchief on her lap, then took her laptop and helped her pack it up.

After they finished collecting the items, Jing Ge was still sitting on the rusty little cart when Li Mushi looked down at her and asked, "Want to eat Haidilao?"

"..." Jing Ge's tears stopped abruptly. "Really?"

Li Mushi: "."

“I ate fast food for seven days,” Jing Ge finally spoke, “three meals a day, 21 meals in total. Each time, I stood next to the shipping container with my lunchbox, rice mixed with dust…”

No wonder her face is so thin.

The baby fat is gone, the facial bone structure is gradually becoming clearer, and there is a different look from when they first graduated from school.

As Jingge stood up, her handkerchief nearly fell to the ground.

She hurriedly caught it and handed it back, saying, "I don't need it..."

Before she could finish speaking, Jingge noticed that her hands were dirtier than her tears, and silently put the handkerchief away.

have to.

I've taken advantage of someone else's expensive handkerchief.

Jing Ge asked hesitantly, "Uncle, do you also like Haidilao?"

Li Mushi: "I don't like it."

"......"

The scene felt strangely familiar.

Just like last time with Pizza Hut.

Jingge called a car on his phone, and once in the car, he was lost in thought about where Haidilao was, and didn't think of anything else for the time being.

The taxi drove to the bustling shopping mall.

Jing Ge snapped out of his daze, got out of the car, and blurted out, "Uncle, following me has made you suffer."

"......"

"No, no..." Jing Ge realized, "I meant to say, you've never ridden in such a bad car before, have you? It smells bad and it's not clean..."

It felt like his white shirt had been stained.

I should have known she called a luxury car!!!

Li Mushi's eyes were unreadable as he pushed his suitcase inside, saying, "This meal is on you."

Jing Ge exclaimed and quickly caught up: "I haven't received my salary yet, but I have a year-end bonus. However, I just became a full-time employee, so the year-end bonus is only half of my salary. Do you really want me to treat you? Let's eat spicy hot pot then."

Li Mushi looked at her, puzzled: "Spicy hot pot?"

“Ah,” Jingge said, “it’s similar to hot pot, you just put everything together and cook it…it’s cheap.”

Li Mushi: "Shall I invite you?"

Jing Ge: "Haidilao".

Li Mushi: "You..."

Jing Ge quickly replied, "Mala Tang (spicy hot pot)."

Li Mushi: "."

"I don't have the student discount anymore," Jing Ge said, sounding a little unsure. "It's really tough for us recent graduates. If you insist on treating me to Haidilao, we'll just have rice soaked in the broth. I can fill you up, but I can't guarantee you'll eat well. Besides, we need to be a little shameless..."

This girl can really talk a lot when she gets going.

After she finished speaking, Li Mushi couldn't help but press his temples and said, "I'll treat you."

Jing Ge: "Let's go, let's go, Uncle, can I order whatever I want? I want to eat meat, all kinds of meat."

The girl ran very fast, afraid that he might change his mind at any moment.

Li Mushi paused for half a second, then, as if unable to contain himself any longer, a smile flashed in his cold, dark eyes.

Li Mushi didn't like these things, so he only took a few bites and then stopped eating.

With food to fill his stomach, Jingge gradually regained his spirits, and the problems that had been masked by his low mood began to surface.

"Uncle, what are you doing here?"

Li Mushi: "My second sister-in-law asked me to come and see you."

“...Oh,” Jing Ge said listlessly when the people of Hai City were mentioned. “I’m busy, I won’t go back. I’ll take my uncle to the airport later.”

Tell him to go ahead and not wait for her.

Li Mushi put down his water glass and asked through the rising steam, "The factories are all on holiday, what are you busy with?"

Jing Ge was speechless for a moment, then made an excuse: "I'm just busy, you wouldn't understand..."

Li Mushi smiled slightly: "I know a little about foreign trade, tell me about it."

"......"

The hot pot was bubbling away.

After a long pause, Jing Ge looked at the unreal man opposite him and said, "I'm not going back. Uncle, please don't say anything, or I'll put you in the enemy's camp later."

Li Mushi laughed in anger.

I was genuinely so angry I laughed.

This is rare, almost the first time.

"So you're just planning to stay here?"

“It’s nice here,” Jingge whispered. “Quiet, no one to bother us.”

Li Mushi: "Are you sure you can handle it?"

An unfamiliar city.

She doesn't even have a friend to talk to during the New Year. A girl her age can only talk tough; when the day comes, she might not be able to bear the loneliness and sense of being adrift.

I'm afraid I'll have to secretly shed tears again.

Jing Ge: "I just want to have a happy New Year."

Li Mushi fell silent.

After pausing for more than ten seconds, Li Mushi lowered his eyes, used a slotted spoon to help her put the meat in, and said indifferently, "Li's Group's year-end benefits for senior executives include a company-funded trip. I'm withdrawing at the last minute. Do you want it?"

"..." Jing Ge thought he was going to force him to return to Hai City, and when he suddenly heard this, he thought he had misheard. "What?"

“Take a cruise to Antarctica and you can see glaciers, penguins, and the aurora,” Li Mushi said. “I don’t have time for half a month. If you’d like, you can do it for me.”

Jing Ge remained seated.

Li Mushi glanced at her indifferently: "Do you dare to travel far away by yourself?"

"...Dare you?" Jing Ge asked, as if in a dream. "Uncle, are you really not going?"

"Yes, I'm very busy."

"Can I really go?"

"Um."

"Uncle."

"Um."

Jing Ge's dried tears welled up again: "Why aren't you my father?"

The strainer in Li Mushi's hand remained suspended in mid-air.

If he hadn't been so used to restraining himself, the strainer wouldn't have landed on the hot pot, but on her head.

After a long while, Li Mushi finally caught his breath: "Keep it a secret. Don't post it on social media. If we get caught, we'll both be reincarnated as grandsons."

Jing Ge laughed unexpectedly.

Li Mushi actually makes jokes.

"What kind of tickets are they?" Jingge asked excitedly. "I want to see them."

Li Mushi's expression was unreadable: "It's in the hidden compartment of your suitcase. I'll get it for you when we get back to the hotel. Eat quickly, or you'll have to treat me if I waste more than 100 grams."

"......"

While Jing Ge was cleaning up the battlefield, Li Mushi kept sending messages.

As he said, he is really busy.

After paying, the two strolled around inside the mall.

Jing Ge watched as Li Mushi entered a store selling extreme cold clothing.

He then told the salesperson who approached him, "Help her pick out two sets of gear for her trip to Antarctica, from head to toe."

Extreme cold weather clothing is the most expensive of all winter clothing.

Jingge felt embarrassed, realizing he had taken too much from him: "Uncle, I'll pay for it myself..."

Li Mushi interrupted her with a single sentence: "This year, red envelopes will be cancelled and replaced with gifts."

Every year, the elders of the Li family would give Jing Ge a large red envelope.

Li Mushi was no exception.

“Uncle,” Jing Ge said, deeply moved, “when I make a lot of money, I will definitely take good care of you.”

Li Mushi, young and handsome, endured for a moment before losing his composure for the first time: "Shut up."