Chapter 103 Making it public: "You're very afraid that our relationship will be known by others..."

Zhu Liushuang had this feeling for the first time: it turns out that the winter wind can also be warm and dry.

As the car drove along the road, the northwest wind blew in from all directions, brushing against her ears. Her cheeks, neck, the backs of her hands... all the exposed skin was turned red from the wind.

He sat beside her, becoming an undeniable presence, so she didn't feel cold at all. She only knew that every cell in her body was screaming, alert, and on high alert.

Zhu Liu stared intently at the glass partition in front of him, his gaze sweeping across bustling intersections, yet he couldn't find a focal point. The reason—was probably due to the two men's thighs pressed tightly together.

They're so close together, not even a breath of wind can get in.

She couldn't concentrate at all, letting her mind wander aimlessly in the night wind.

"Road construction ahead..."

In a hazy, dreamlike state, she heard He Ming seemingly saying something. Unfortunately, the howling wind drowned out most of his voice.

Zhu Liushuang barely came to her senses and turned her head to ask He Ming loudly in his ear, "Senior, what did you just say..." She caught a glimpse of his thick eyelashes out of the corner of her eye, and her thoughts once again became scattered.

Before she could finish speaking, there was a loud "bang," and the tires rolled over the bumpy road, causing her body to sway violently. The inertia made her lean heavily against He Ming's side.

Her lips brushed against his shoulder quickly, the faint scent of leather mingling with her breath.

Not just their thighs, but now their upper bodies are pressed together as well.

The man beside her remained silent, enduring the impact of her body. Compared to her panic, He Ming's reaction was much calmer. He slowed down the car and used his right hand to steady her.

"Sorry—" Still shaken, Zhu Liushuang straightened up and tried to distance herself from them as much as possible.

He Ming raised his voice, his tone unusually calm, as if the incident had never happened.

"This path is not easy to walk on, so hold on tight to the handrail."

"Mmm," she responded softly, unsure whether she was speaking to herself or to him.

————

Wanghu Road Food Street runs north-south, with at least sixty or seventy stalls on both sides. Zhu Liushuang's free stall was located in the middle of the street, making it easy to find. Coincidentally, after so long, she ran into an old acquaintance while setting up a stall again.

As soon as the tricycle came to a stop at the stall, someone greeted her in surprise: "Hey, isn't this Xiao Zhu! I haven't seen you for months..."

Indeed, it had been a long time. Zhu Liushuang jumped out of the car and greeted people with a sweet smile: "Good evening, Uncle. I hope your business is booming!"

"Well, it's barely passable." The man slicing tomatoes waved his hand and said, "It's cold, everyone's staying home and not coming out, so the customer traffic has dropped by at least half."

"Your beef burgers are so delicious, they're highly praised, you don't have to worry about not having enough customers." Zhu Liushuang casually made a compliment, then turned around and took out two plastic folding stools from the back of the car, unfolded them, and handed one of them to He Ming.

"Senior, please have a seat," she whispered to him, while she took the string lights and began decorating her stall cart.

The power cord was plugged in, and the string lights immediately lit up, twinkling like stars in the dark night. After the simple setup, she walked back to He Ming's side and sat down on another folding stool.

"Are you cold?" she asked, tilting her head.

The tall buildings lining both sides of the street shielded them from much of the wind.

"It's alright, not too cold," He Ming said honestly, then asked her, "How about you?"

Zhu Liushuang tucked her chin into her scarf and shook her head, saying, "I'm not cold either, I'm wearing a lot of clothes."

"Do you know the guy at the stall next door?"

It was rare for him to initiate a conversation, so Zhu Liushuang naturally answered all her questions. She said with great interest, "Yes, his stall has been next to mine several times, so we've gotten to know each other. The beef burgers he makes are really high-quality... If you want some, I'll treat you to a late-night snack later."

He Ming hummed in agreement, then turned to examine Zhu Liushuang's stall cart. The white tricycle was beautifully decorated, the platform was clean, and small lights illuminated the sides, creating a pleasant atmosphere. It was clear that the owner had taken great care of maintaining the vehicle.

"Was this car... ordered online?" he asked.

Zhu Liushuang was replying to customer messages in a WeChat group when she heard He Ming's question. She looked up and said with a proud tone, "Ordering a whole car is expensive. I bought a used car and modified it based on an online sample, which saved me at least several thousand yuan..."

"That's a great deal." The man nodded, then asked, "How late will you be setting up the stall tonight?"

“Who knows…” She frowned, pointing to the desserts in the freezer, “These strawberry cakes in enamel bowls have already been pre-ordered. We only made three boxes of tiramisu, but there seem to be fewer people on the street today, so I don’t know if we can sell them all… If…”

Just as she was speaking, there were two buzzing sounds, and her WeChat notification popped up on her phone.

Zhu Liushuang looked down and saw it was a private message from Gu Xuting.

[Sister Shuang, the tiramisu I brought to school last time was all snatched up by my classmates, and I didn't even get a bite myself. Waaah... So, tonight I'm going to pre-order some for those cravings—five pistachios and five green grapes. Remember to pack them up for me in advance!]

The conversation suddenly stopped, and He Ming looked up at her, as if asking for her to continue.

"Maybe we can finish early tonight, a big customer has arrived!" A smile bloomed on Zhu Liushuang's face as she held up her phone to He Ming and said, "Tingting has reserved ten yuan."

A box only contains twenty yuan, and half a box was sold out in just a few minutes, so she was naturally happy.

But the smile only lasted a few seconds before being replaced by a frown.

"Buzz," the phone vibrated again.

[Gu Xuting: Sister Xiaoshuang, I have my monthly exam next week, so I still can't come out tonight. My brother will come to pick it up; I'll tell him to come early!]

What? Gu Xufeng is coming over?

Zhu Liushuang opened her mouth in horror, her eyes instinctively looking for He Ming.

Perhaps her loss of composure was too obvious, for the person sitting on the stool met her gaze with a puzzled look and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Senior...Senior..." she hesitated, unsure how to begin.

"Have you run into a tough situation?" The man stood up abruptly and walked to her side.

Zhu Liushuang simply handed her phone to He Ming so he could check WeChat himself.

The man took the phone, glanced at it briefly, and said calmly, "It's nothing."

Gu Xufeng's arrival is tantamount to making their relationship public, so how could nothing happen? Zhu Liushuang rubbed her temples and said, "Why don't you go browse other stalls first, and come back after Gu Xufeng leaves?"

"Or...you..."

"Liu Shuang." The man lowered his head and looked directly into her eyes. "Are you afraid that others will find out about our relationship?" For some reason, when she was eagerly giving him advice on how to avoid Gu Xufeng, He Ming felt incredibly irritated.

“No…” Zhu Liushuang’s face fell, and she bit her lip helplessly. “I…I didn’t. I just thought…”

I thought you didn't want others to know.

The words stuck in her throat were like a wad of cotton, choking her and making her unable to speak.

"What did you think?" The man's tone softened.

Zhu Liushuang couldn't resist licking the faint mark left by her teeth on her lower lip. Looking up again, the panic and grievance on her face had vanished completely: "It's nothing. I just feel... isn't it too fast? If Gu Xufeng knew about our relationship, with his gossip skills, everyone in your company should know by now, right?"

“It’s not that exaggerated.” He Ming seemed to be thinking seriously. “At most, only the audit team knows.”

The audit team—their audit department is divided into four groups, with at least a dozen people. With so many mouths passing the word around, isn't that the same as everyone knowing? The key is that Ruixin has business dealings with Zhonghe; who knows, this matter might even reach General Manager Guo's ears. Zhu Liushuang couldn't help but sigh inwardly, Gucheng is really too small; everyone you meet is an acquaintance, so naturally, secrets can't be kept hidden.

"Well, since you don't mind, I'm okay with it too." She said with a smile, "If Gu Xufeng asks, you can just say..."

“We’re dating.” He Ming paused, then completed the sentence, “I pursued you.”

His answer was impeccable, and his earnest tone made it seem as if the matter were truly real. Zhu Liushuang hummed in agreement and turned her back.

Pushing open the glass cabinet door, she picked up a spatula and cut the tiramisu into pieces: "I'll pack it for Tingting first."

Only being busy could calm her restless heart.

Having run her stall for over a year, Zhu Liushuang was incredibly skilled at cutting tiramisu. Cutting, scraping, placing, and scraping – every step was flawless. Ten takeout boxes were lined up, and within minutes, they were filled with richly colored tiramisu.

She was focused on cutting the food and didn't notice the people around her were also busy. The small box that had been open a moment ago was now covered with a transparent lid, waiting to be put back into a paper bag by the vendor.

By the time she noticed, the man had already sat back down on the plastic stool and was scrolling through his phone.

Zhu Liushuang glanced at him for a while, then at the packed box, a faint smile playing on her lips.

Gu Xufeng arrived at this time.

Saying he ran is no exaggeration. She spotted him sprinting from half a street away, solely because of his booming, loud voice.

"Zhu Liushuang! Zhu Liushuang! Zhu..."

The man's voice stopped abruptly the moment he bumped into He Ming. Reaching the stall, he panted and turned his back, saying, "Old He! What are you doing here?" His expression of surprise was almost as if he'd seen an alien.

He Ming remained silent, then looked up and gave Gu Xufeng a cool glance.

Zhu Liushuang pretended not to notice Gu Xufeng's surprise, and after putting the ten boxes into a paper bag, she instructed, "Teacher Gu, there are quite a lot of things, so please handle them carefully."

"You...you..." Gu Xufeng hesitated, his gaze sweeping over the two men's faces. "What's going on between you and Lao He?"

Zhu Liushuang smiled but remained silent, pointing to He Ming behind her, letting him ask him himself.

"Xufeng." The man who had been sitting calmly on the stool finally stood up, walked around the freezer to Gu Xufeng's side, and said, "Come here for a moment, I have something to say."

Gu Xufeng chuckled and said to Zhu Liushuang, "I'll talk to Lao He for a bit first, I'll get the bag later."

Around 7 p.m., the streets gradually filled with pedestrians. Several young girls squeezed in front of the stall, greeting Zhu Liushuang with smiles.

"Boss, I've come to get the strawberry cake."

"Boss, I'd like two slices of tiramisu. One with green grapes and one with mango."

"Boss, how much is this strawberry cake?"

While answering questions from new customers, she deftly packed food for regular customers. In the brief moments between bending down to pick up the takeout boxes, her gaze secretly drifted to a spot not far away.

The streetlights were dim, and two tall, burly men leaned against a white wall, talking in hushed tones.

She couldn't hear their conversation, but she could see Gu Xufeng's face changing into various exaggerated expressions.