Chapter 74 Comforting the Heart: Absence Makes the Heart Feel New

After seeing the departing employee leave the office, Cheng Fan placed a cup of lemon tea on Sister Fuyao's desk.

"I'm on a diet recently and I've cut out sugar."

"I ordered less sugar for you, but you should still drink it. I was worried you might be in a bad mood."

Compared to the simple and honest boy in Zou City a few months ago, Cheng Fan has almost transformed into a completely different person. He has become more mature and capable of stirring up trouble.

During this time, with Cheng Fan helping her with everything, she felt much more relaxed.

Zhuang Fuyao accepted his offer, and seeing the words on the sticker label, asked curiously, "What is 'Duck Shit Fragrance'?"

Cheng Fan didn't know either. He found it strange when he first heard it, but now that Sister Fuyao was asking, he searched it online. "It's a type of oolong tea. The reason it's called that is because the soil where the tea trees are grown is what the locals call 'duck dung soil'."

Zhuang Fuyao chuckled, "How can someone name their food like that? Even if it's just out of curiosity, I still have to have a drink."

She took a sip. "It tastes pretty good, very refreshing."

Seeing that she seemed to be in a better mood, Cheng Fan began to discuss solutions to the problem. "Sister Fuyao, should we also lower our prices? Our taste, service, and environment are far superior to Qingyuefang's. As long as the prices are lower, our customers will definitely come back."

This matter needs to be carefully considered.

Once prices are lowered, it's difficult to raise them again. And even if Qingfeng Pavilion lowers prices, there's no guarantee that Qingyuefang won't continue to lower them.

Zhuang Fuyao sighed, "Our costs are higher than theirs. I don't want to resort to price reductions until the very end. Let me think about it carefully."

After getting off work, she parked her car and didn't go upstairs immediately. Instead, she went for a walk in the neighborhood to clear her head. She was still holding the cup of "Duck Shit Fragrance" that Cheng Fan had given her. Although it was ordered at room temperature, it was still a bit cold to drink outdoors. She held it in both hands, with the other hand in her pocket.

The location of Qianyue Villa is relatively remote, with fresh air and good greenery. Most of the guests are middle-aged and elderly people, who are the most health-conscious group.

In the evening, many people run and take walks here.

She was almost finished drinking when she suddenly remembered something, so she took a picture and sent it to Liang Huaixu: "[This lemon tea has such a funny name, it's called 'Duck Shit Fragrance,' hahaha.]"

As they talked, she couldn't help but ask when he would be back. The events at Qingfeng Pavilion these past few days had been too upsetting, making her miss him terribly.

Liang Huaixu called directly. It was a bit noisy on his end, and his friends were calling him, "Liang, it's time to go on stage."

He replied, "Wait a moment."

After that, it became much quieter; he must have moved to a less noisy place.

"It might be delayed by a day or two. My elders want me to spend New Year's Day here." He spoke calmly, without any urgency.

But Zhuang Fuyao knew someone was waiting for him. "Okay, it's nothing, I just missed you a little."

We chatted briefly for a couple of minutes and then hung up.

After finishing her drink, she threw the empty glass into the trash can, put on her headphones, sat on a bench, and listened to music while thinking of a way to break the deadlock.

Qingfeng Restaurant uses only the freshest, healthiest, and top-quality ingredients; even the vegetables are organic.

The preparation process for the dishes is also very complicated, with some taking several hours to complete.

Although she has ample funds, she never goes into business with the intention of losing money.

The prices at Qingyuefang are now one-third of those at Qingfengguan. If Qingfengguan were to lower its prices to the same level, it would have to operate at a loss...

So this is definitely not a good approach.

We need to think of other things.

As she was spacing out, she saw a familiar figure.

Yu Heng's pure white hoodie stood out in the darkness. He stopped beside her, his foot braced against his skateboard. "What a coincidence, we've run into each other again."

Zhuang Fuyao asked in surprise, "What are you doing here?"

“My home is right here,” he smiled, “but it’s a rented house.”

"What are you doing here? You don't live here either, do you?" he asked.

Zhuang Fuyao shrugged coincidentally and pointed in a direction.

Even more coincidentally, they were separated by only a few buildings.

"Wait for me a moment."

Yu Heng put the skateboard down and went to the convenience store next door to buy two cups of hot milk. "Here you go."

"Thanks." Zhuang Fuyao accepted the drink, but didn't drink it immediately.

"Have you changed your taste now? I remember you used to love drinking milk the most."

In high school, he really liked Zhuang Fuyao. When it was cold, he would go to the teacher's office every few days to get hot water and warm up milk to bring to Zhuang Fuyao.

"I just had a cup of lemon tea, I'll have another one later." She warmed her hands with milk.

"Can I sit for a while?" Yu Heng's voice was clear and pleasant, just like it was in high school.

The bench where Zhuang Fuyao was sitting was quite wide, easily accommodating three or four people. She moved a little to the side and said, "Make yourself at home."

After sitting for a while, Yu Heng suddenly said, "When I first came over, you seemed to be in a bad mood..."

He paused for a moment and said, "How is your relationship with Liang Huaixu? Considering your ages, your kids must be quite grown up by now."

This statement reveals that she and Yu Heng have definitely not been in contact for years, at least not for the last five or six years. He doesn't even know that she had a miscarriage or that she divorced Liang Huaixu.

She felt that she and Yu Heng were at most acquaintances now, and there was no need to talk about the details. She simply said, "No children, divorced."

After saying that, she added, "However, there are plans to remarry."

Yu Heng was momentarily dazed, then smiled wryly, “Time flies. I’ve never been married, and you’re already divorced and about to remarry.”

"You've never been married?" Zhuang Fuyao asked in surprise.

When Zhuang Fuyao finished her performance at the school's New Year's Eve party in her first year of high school, she saw Yu Heng waiting for her in the audience and asked her if she wanted to go for a walk.

They strolled from the gymnasium to the playground to look at the stars and talked about the future.

These were all the imaginings of a fifteen or sixteen-year-old about the future, and at that time, Yu Heng longed for marriage and did not show any inclination to be against marriage. So when she heard that Yu Heng had never been married, she was genuinely surprised. "I remember you used to long for marriage."

"If you haven't met the right person, it's better not to get married at all than to just find someone and then get divorced if you can't get along with them."

Their conversation was pretty normal, asking things like, "How are you doing now? Are you married? Have you had children?"

—This was just ordinary small talk between friends who hadn't seen each other in a long time.

But because of that hazy, youthful feeling from the past, she felt a little awkward and didn't respond to those words.

As the night deepened, fewer and fewer people remained in the neighborhood. She made an excuse to leave, saying, "I still have some work to finish, so I'll head back now."

"Okay, sure," Yu Heng replied.

After she left, he continued skateboarding, humming a few melodies, which were the inspirations he had recently found for his new song.

-

On New Year's Day, Zhuang Fuyao had dinner with her family.

Ji Lan was very sensitive to her daughter's emotional changes. After noticing that her daughter had been somewhat depressed for several days, she went to talk to her.

The first question he asked was, "Did you have a fight with Liang Huaixu?"

Zhuang Fuyao was taken aback. "No, it's about work."

"What happened?"

Before answering Ms. Ji, Zhuang Fuyao realized, "Wait a minute, Mom, you just asked me..."

Ms. Ji spoke casually, as if she had tacitly approved of her relationship with Liang Huaixu.

Zhuang Fuyao said with a hint of excitement, "You've tacitly approved of my relationship with him?"

"No tacit approval."

"….oh."

Ji Lan snorted lightly, "But she didn't say she objected either. Look at how quickly your face changes."

Zhuang Fuyao's eyes lit up again, "You don't object anymore?!"

"Let's investigate further," Ji Lan said casually.

The two returned to their previous topic.

After listening to her daughter's troubles, Ji Lan said lightly, "That's easy. I'll have my friends in the industry visit Qingfeng Pavilion more often. Isn't that a living advertisement? The Qingfeng Pavilion next door can't learn this, can it?"

This is indeed a good idea.

However, this is still only a temporary solution and not a permanent cure.

The celebrity effect is only temporary. Ms. Ji's friends are all very busy people, and it's impossible for them to come and help out every now and then.

Zhuang Fuyao was still thinking about this before going to sleep.

After two more days of deliberation, Liang Huaixu returned from England.

Ms. Ji is now turning a blind eye to her going to Boya Bay, so Zhuang Fuyao simply "went a step further" and stayed overnight at Boya Bay.

We haven't seen each other for a week, but the long absence makes us feel like we're newly married.

After a satisfying session, Zhuang Fuyao lay sprawled on the bed like a salted fish, barely saying a word.

After noticing his girlfriend's unusual behavior, Liang Huaixu reviewed the situation from the previous battle.

Forty minutes isn't particularly long, but it's not short either. If it had been any longer, she would have cried again.

This week, plus her period, it's been about half a month since they've been this intimate. After such a long break, he didn't want to be too rough.

...Could it be that they were not satisfied with his performance just now?

Liang Huaixu massaged her shoulders and back, "Are you tired?"

"It's alright." Zhuang Fuyao was lost in thought.

"Shall we do it again?" he asked gently.

Upon hearing this, Zhuang Fuyao turned over and looked at him with great interest. This was a rare instance of Professor Liang making advances towards her.

Because it was such a rare opportunity, she temporarily put aside her worries and enthusiastically wrapped her arms around his neck to kiss him. In the thick, intimate kiss, she subtly changed her position—

She rode on top of him.

She had tried this position many times, but in the end, she always failed to complete it due to various unexpected events.

She's determined to find out what it feels like tonight.

Because she wasn't familiar with the technique, she couldn't find the right spot for a long time. Liang Huaixu's patience was tested by her, and he even assisted her with the movements.

This position was tiring, and Zhuang Fuyao soon got tired. She lazily lay on his chest to rest, but was reluctant to get down.

Liang Huaixu was still inside, and this awkward position was really unpleasant for him. Her position also made it difficult for him to move around.

He patted his buttocks impatiently, his voice hoarse, "Fufu, get up first."

Unintentionally, this action excited Zhuang Fuyao. She reflexively tightened her grip, almost biting Liang Huaixu out.

He took a deep breath and said, "Relax."

Zhuang Fuyao relaxed and sat up straight.

This position is easier than the previous one.

Liang Huaixu held her waist and led the rhythm.

This time he no longer tried to suppress it.

Zhuang Fuyao sobbed, crying several times both above and below.

After they stopped to rest, he noticed that his girlfriend still seemed preoccupied. Given that the sheets were soaked through, he was certain that her mood wasn't because of him.

Liang Huaixu smoothed her sweat-dampened hair and said, "Can you tell me why you're in a bad mood?"