The girl was clearly suppressing her anger as she walked over to Xiao Yunying and asked, "May I ask how this young lady is addressed, and where she is from?"
Chen Yuancheng stepped to the side, completely blocking Xiao Yunying: "My friend, there is no need to explain your background to Miss Lü."
Miss Lü was speechless: "Young Master Chen, you..."
"Ling Qi, see them out."
After Chen Yuancheng finished speaking, he turned around and said softly, "Let's eat."
Xiao Yunying said "Oh," took the dishes from Ling Qi's hands, and walked to the table in the center of the private room.
Ling Qi straightened up and made a gesture of invitation, his attitude seemingly respectful but actually forceful.
"Miss Lü, please."
The girl bit her lip, looking embarrassed and annoyed, but when she looked at Xiao Yunying, she became resentful and jealous.
Xiao Yunying placed the dishes on the table, tilted her head, and glanced behind her out of the corner of her eye.
Ling Qi invited you out, so why are you glaring at me?
I was just having a meal, what did I do to deserve this?
Chen Yuancheng's voice had lost its patience: "Ling Qi, if Miss Lü is unwilling to leave on her own, have someone invite Lord Lü to come and invite his daughter back in person."
"yes."
Ling Qi responded and started to walk out, but was stopped by Miss Lü.
"Wait a moment."
After calming her flustered emotions, Miss Lü gave a curtsy: "Since Young Master Chen has guests here..."
Chen Yuancheng interrupted her: "He's not a guest."
Miss Lü's breath hitched, and with the last vestiges of her reason, she continued, "Ming'er will not disturb Young Master Chen any longer."
After saying that, he turned and left the private room with his maid.
After Ling Qi saw that the person had left, he called the waiter waiting outside to bring in a wooden basin.
Xiao Yunying asked curiously, "Does that Miss Lü like you?"
Chen Yuancheng said with disgust and resistance, "They only know that my father was once the Imperial Tutor. With my sickly body, there is no benefit to be gained. Who would want to take a liking to me?"
Xiao Yunying understood his thoughts. It had nothing to do with his status. People who have been ill for a long time will not easily get rid of their inferiority complex due to their physical condition.
She arranged the stack of bowls and chopsticks on the table to make her comfort sound less deliberate and obvious:
"Who said that? I already said you're perfectly healthy. Besides, you're good-looking, have a great personality, are knowledgeable, and friendly. It's normal for people to like you. It would be strange if no one did."
Chen Yuancheng suppressed the smile in his eyes: "Is that really what you think?"
"Of course, I don't get paid to lie to you."
Xiao Yunying took her seat on the left: "Am I to say I suffered an undeserved misfortune because of you? What kind of well-bred lady are you? You seem to hold a grudge."
The atmosphere just now didn't give her a chance to explain. If she were a gentle girl, she would have taken the initiative to explain that she and Chen Yuancheng were just friends.
That Miss Lü was clearly spoiled, willful, and unreasonable, and was feeling ashamed, annoyed, and angry because of his appearance.
In this situation, she dared not step forward to explain, fearing that she would anger the other party even more and deepen their impression of her. She could only remain silent and minimize her presence.
Chen Yuancheng washed his hands and casually replied, "The daughter of Prefect Lü."
Xiao Yunying sighed, "It's over. She's even more powerful than a county magistrate. I hope she doesn't remember what I look like, and I hope I never run into her again."
As far as she knew, the prefect had more power than the county magistrate. The county magistrate was equivalent to the head of a county, while the prefect was equivalent to the mayor of a prefecture-level city.
"With me here, I won't let her bully you."
"You can't protect me every single moment."
"So you need to sign the investment agreement for Huiweilou as soon as possible. With the title of the second owner of Huiweilou protecting you, she won't dare to openly harm you because of me."
“You’re right.” Xiao Yunying patted her stomach. “Let’s eat first, then we can talk. Ling Qi, come and eat.”
Ling Qi looked for a seat close to the two dishes Xiao Yunying had prepared and wanted to sit down.
He didn't think much of it; he simply felt that Xiao Yunying's cooking was better than that of the chef at Huiweilou, and he wanted to sit closer to her for convenience.
And the location was right next to Xiao Yunying.
Chen Yuancheng gave him a light kick to the calf.
Ling Qi's gaze, which had been fixed on the stuffed tofu, shifted to her young master. Suddenly realizing what was happening, she put down the stool she had dragged out and said, "Please sit down, young master."
Chen Yuancheng took his seat with satisfaction, thinking that the kid wasn't hopelessly stupid.
Ling Qi could only sit down on the side.
It's okay, he has long arms, he can reach it.
Xiao Yunying ate a steamed dumpling before remembering something: "Did you ask Uncle Zhang to pass on a message to my children?"
“I told you, I asked that old man to take two food boxes back to your children. They have vegetables and snacks, they can just heat them up and eat, they won’t go hungry.”
Thank you.
"I should thank you. If it weren't for you, the poisoning of the mushrooms wouldn't have been discovered, and the culprits wouldn't have been found."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
