Chapter 12

Chapter Summary: The "old ox" has ultimately fallen hopelessly in love with the "young grass."

Li Fengjian couldn't help but smile bitterly. He had indeed acted impulsively today, but it was a premeditated impulse. However, this impulse hadn't received a response, leaving him anxious and flustered. That afternoon, he made several cups of milk tea incorrectly. This prompted Xiao Dong to ask him...

"Boss, are you feeling unwell?"

Li Fengjian shook his head. He wasn't physically unwell; he was just burning with anxiety.

Time passed slowly, but there was still no word from his phone. He began to regret his actions, wondering if he should have been more tactful, more roundabout, and not so blatantly confessing his ulterior motives to her.

Indeed, he was eight years older than Yao Ye. He was almost thirty, having spent years navigating the complexities of society, and originally disdained to prey on young girls still in their ivory towers. Initially, Yao Ye was indeed just a familiar young woman in his eyes, perhaps a little more special—after all, she was Kazamado's first customer, after all, she seemed to bring good fortune to Kazamado like a goddess of luck, after all, she was a regular customer who came every few days, and after all, the sparkling look in her eyes when she tasted a delicious new drink was unforgettable…

Good heavens, Li Fengjian was completely confused. When exactly did he start to have such a strange desire for her?

In his frustration, Xiao Dong reminded him again, "Boss, this cup you're holding is supposed to be 30% sugar, but you've put in too much, it's almost 70% sugar..."

"Um..." He glanced at the label on the cup, "I'll redo it..."

A wind chime rang as someone pushed open the door, and Xiao Dong turned around and called out, "Welcome... Hey, are you the one from last night?"

Li Fengjian was taken aback, then turned around and saw that the person who came was indeed Su Yan. She had obviously dressed up carefully today, and looked much more beautiful than last night when she looked haggard. Whether she had applied blush or was really blushing, she walked shyly to the bar and looked at him with her eyes full of autumn water.

It must be said that Su Yan, after being made up, possessed a graceful beauty, but Li Fengjian had no time to appreciate it. Because he suddenly thought of a possibility.

Wait, Yao Ye didn't respond to him. Could it be that she was bothered by her roommate Su Yan? So should he have a clear talk with Su Yan?

So Li Fengjian took a deep breath, "Miss Su..."

…………

That noon, Yao Ye asked her sister for leave and spent time with Su Yan, eating, drinking, and having fun. They didn't say goodbye until evening, after exiting the subway.

Extricating herself from the lively atmosphere with her friends, Yao Ye was finally forced to confront the WeChat message on her phone and the sense of bewilderment and confusion deep within her heart when she was alone.

Li Fengjian's words were undoubtedly a confession to her. The moment she received them, Yao Ye's heart skipped a beat, and she felt a dizzying sense of joy overwhelming her.

But she had never been in a relationship before, and this was the first time in her life she had ever received a "confession"! Good heavens, she must not have misunderstood, right? Li Fengjian really did have feelings for her... For a moment, she dared not reply easily, nor did she know how to reply.

She was now sitting at the art class counter again, surrounded by a bustling crowd of parents and teachers, but she paid them no heed. She glanced at her phone with a frown, then angrily placed it face down on the table, glanced at it again, and placed it face down again…

This cycle repeated itself until, in the chat history between Li Fengjian and her, which had abruptly ended, a new message suddenly appeared!

It was Li Fengjian sending this message right now: "Your friend came to Kazamado. I think you probably didn't convey my reply to her. It's okay, I'll have a good talk with her."

"What?!" Yao Ye was so shocked that her hair stood on end. She jumped up from her chair and hurriedly replied, "Wait!"

"Oh?" Li Fengjian replied instantly, "So you were looking at your phone."

Ignoring his teasing tone, Yao Ye quickly said, "What do you want to talk to Su Yan about? Listen to me, I misunderstood before, actually..."

However, before she could finish typing, Li Fengjian sent a message first: "What do you want to say? Instead of typing, why don't you just come downstairs?"

………………

Furious, Yao Ye stormed down from the fifth floor to the basement, panting as she pushed open the door. She looked around, but there was no sign of Su Yan.

"Where's Su Yan?" she asked breathlessly, leaning against the bar.

"They've already left." Li Fengjian calmly walked out from behind the bar.

"What...what did you say to her?" Yao Ye asked urgently. "Listen to me, I misunderstood! Su Yan told me this afternoon that she wanted to ask if I had a girlfriend, but actually..."

"Actually, she wanted to ask Xiao Dong..." Li Fengjian smiled. "She came over just now and said that she had thought about it for a long time on her way home and decided to come and ask in person. Yesterday, when Xiao Dong took her to make lemon tea to beat up the scumbag, she felt that Xiao Dong was thoughtful and gentle. So, I specially gave Xiao Dong a night off so that the two of them could go out and get to know each other."

"Wow, this is great!" Yao Ye was delighted for a moment, then frowned and looked at him. "Since you already knew, why did you lie to me and go downstairs?"

Li Fengjian then feigned innocence. "Miss Yao, may I ask what I lied to you about? Please take another look at our chat history." He even took out his phone and pointed to the screen, saying, "I said I thought you might not have relayed my answer to her. It's okay, I'll have a good talk with her. Tell me, which of my words lied to you?"

"Uh..." Yao Ye was speechless. When did he become so good at playing word games?

Li Fengjian continued, speaking with conviction, "You certainly didn't relay my answer, did you? And I did have a proper talk with her, so I was telling the truth, wasn't I?"

“But…” Yao Ye subconsciously argued, “I misunderstood before, I thought she wanted to ask if you had a girlfriend! Later I found out that she was interested in Xiao Dong, so I didn’t need to relay your answer to her at all.”

“That’s true,” Li Fengjian nodded, then looked at her face. “And what about you?”

"……I?"

"You don't need to relay my answer to her. But what about you? Don't you need to give me a response?"

Yao Ye silently shrugged, her voice suddenly becoming as soft as a mosquito's buzz, "Didn't you say before..."

"What?"

She had no choice but to raise her voice slightly, "Didn't you say before that we'd discuss it slowly? What's the rush now...?"

Li Fengjian then smiled, "So you remember what I said before."

"...I just jotted this down, I'll delete it from my head later!"

"Don't delete it, remember it."

"Hmph, why should I remember?"

Li Fengjian sighed, as if he were helpless because his "old ox" had ultimately fallen hopelessly in love with "young grass." He could only resign himself to his fate and say, "Because I'm serious."

After saying that, Li Fengjian took out a small object from his pocket and gently placed it in Yao Ye's hand.

Yao Ye stared at the golden shirt button in her palm. She asked in surprise, "So you really found the other one?"

Li Fengjian nodded.

"Then why didn't you give it back to me before?" she asked.

“What do you think?” he replied.

"Then why are you willing to give it back to me now?" she asked again.

“Because now,” he raised an eyebrow and smiled, his words carrying a double meaning, “there’s no need to hide it anymore.”

………

After that, Yao Ye had just returned to the fifth floor when she received a WeChat message from Li Fengjian: "Here are your buttons back, but you're not allowed to wear that shirt anymore."

Yao Ye bit her lip, not replying. Li Fengjian added, "If I break down in front of others, I won't be able to handle it."

Oh my god! Yao Ye instinctively reached out and covered her burning cheeks.

Tonight is destined to be a sleepless night for her.

………