Chapter 112 A Secret Relationship

The days are short in winter, and when Nianxi and her friends returned, it was almost dark.

Li had asked the kitchen to prepare a table of food, all of which were dishes that everyone liked, but after waiting for a long time, no one came back.

It's inevitable that I feel uneasy about this.

Thanks to Zhou Yanli's patient consolation, he was able to calm down.

When Wen Yuanqiao and the others finally came back, Li was about to get angry, but seeing that everyone looked unhappy and hearing what happened in front of the teahouse from Wen's father, she could not help but put her hands together and chanted a Buddhist mantra.

"Thanks to Pei Langjun for blocking it for you, otherwise that club would have hit you, you would have died!"

Li was shocked to hear this and was even more grateful to Pei Jian. She asked, "Since he saved my life, why don't you invite him to your home for dinner?"

Wen Yuanqiao also had a look of regret on his face, "If I had known Yan Li was here, I would have invited Shi Zhang back no matter what. The child is very polite and said that today is the winter celebration and he refused to come home."

The speaker did not mean it, but when other people heard it, it made Zhou Yanli seem ignorant.

Li replied without leaving any trace, "Yes, I feel a little awkward. But after all, we have only known each other for a short time, so it is understandable. Unlike Yan Li, we have watched him grow up since he was a child, and he is no different from our own child."

Nian Xi also noticed Zhou Yanli's discomfort, and chuckled as she said to him, "I bought some candied chicken rice on the way back. I remember you like it, so eat more later."

Zhou Yanli raised her eyes with a smile on her face, "Thank you, sister."

Everyone washes their hands and changes clothes.

There is no rule in the Wen family that one should not talk while eating or sleeping, so the conversation at the table was still about what happened during the day.

Zhou Yanli said, "Since that scoundrel committed the crime in the street, it would be best to report it to the police immediately."

"Shi Zhang said that he would handle this matter."

Father Wen was now very convinced of Pei Jian. He stroked his beard and smiled, "Shi Zhang had revealed who that rascal's father was at the time. He was the deputy chief of the Censorate, supervising all officials. It would be right to give this matter to him."

After hearing this, Li talked about the ways of the world, "When this matter is resolved, we must reward Mr. Pei and prepare a generous gift."

Father Wen disagrees in his heart.

He felt that he and Pei Jian were close friends regardless of age difference, so he didn't need to care about these external things. But since the lady had spoken, he couldn't disobey her, so he could only perfunctorily say, "I know my limits."

Wen Qingheng was even more dissatisfied with this.

Pei Jian should thank his father for giving him the opportunity to show up in front of his sister. How could he have the nerve to accept the thank-you gift from their family?

So he said casually, "I don't think it's necessary."

Li's eyebrows immediately raised, "Why not? Mr. Pei was injured while saving your father, but you were so calm. You were also at the scene at that time, why didn't you rush forward to block it for your father?"

"Son, you are talking nonsense again. Tomorrow, you should bring a thank-you gift to Pei's residence and thank your father on his behalf!"

Wen Qingheng never thought that a single word he said would lead to such blame from his mother. He responded hesitantly, lowered his head to eat, and dared not speak again.

After Li vented her anger on her son, her originally tense mood became much better. She then asked Father Wen, "Is Mr. Pei married?"

Father Wen didn't care about these things. He thought for a while before saying, "Probably... not."

"I guess there are many noble families in the capital who want to recruit him as their son-in-law."

"Shi Zhang is indeed a good kid. Any girl who marries him will surely have a blessed future."

The couple chatted about family matters. Wen Qingheng didn't dare to say anything more. As for Nianxi, she lowered her head and ate slowly, her manners were elegant, and she didn't join in the conversation.

Zhou Yanli appeared to be docile as usual, but no one knew what kind of storm was going on in his heart.

He forced himself to be patient, but his hands were clenched tightly under the table, and his palms were painful.

"Try this. It's something my mother made especially for you."

Nian Xi pointed at a plate of fish sashimi and said softly.

Zhou Yanli was startled. Nian Xi's gentle eyes were so close to him. "I see you didn't eat much for dinner."

"Every time there's a festival, my mother would always ask the kitchen to cook everyone's favorite dish. I had eight-treasure duck, my brother had lamb trotters and bamboo shoots, and my father had stir-fried chicken and mushrooms. This fish sashimi is made for you."

"Is it because you have lost your appetite or have you changed your taste?"

Zhou Yanli stared at her, almost unable to restrain himself, wanting to see a hint of affection in those concerned eyes.

Unfortunately not.

She was calm in every move she made, treating him only as a childhood playmate or a sensible younger brother.

Zhou Yanli lowered his eyes to hide the sadness in his eyes, and said nonchalantly:

"No, I have never changed."

He thought that when he showed up, everything would be just as he imagined. His beloved sister was also missing him and waiting for him.

But she never stopped, and in front of the years that he could not compete with, people kept appearing beside her.

Zhou Yanli thought his enemy was the distant Gu Ci, but he thought too simply.

After listening to the conversation between Mr. and Mrs. Wen at the dinner table, he realized that he had underestimated his opponent and overestimated himself.

This discovery made Zhou Yanli feel a little depressed.

He tried his best to control this emotion, but as a sixteen-year-old boy, it was difficult for him to conceal it well.

It was not until this moment that Nian Xi finally determined an answer.

The official in red who held an umbrella with her when the snow was all over the world, and the old friend who chased her to the pavilion in the mountains and forests to drink tea and listen to the rain with her, it turned out that they had always had a love that was buried deep in their hearts and had never been told.

For a moment, the chopsticks in my hands felt like they weighed a thousand pounds.

What weighs on my heart is a heavy, indescribable feeling of emotion.

No one knows the feeling of waiting better than her.

As she looked at Zhou Yanli like this, a feeling of sadness welled up in her, soaking over her head like water, almost drowning her.

"Yanli, are you free tomorrow?" she asked softly.

Zhou Yanli was startled for a moment, then looked up at her.

"You've been in Beijing for so long, but I haven't taken you to taste Beijing's delicacies yet." Nian Xi's clear almond eyes were full of seriousness, "Do you want to come with me?"

Zhou Yanli was a little at a loss for a moment.

These days, Nian Xi has always been avoiding him in a subtle way. Zhou Yanli doesn't know what he did wrong to make her angry, and he feels a little flustered.

Never thought that Nian Xi would take the initiative to ask him out.

He didn't understand her intention, but he nodded and replied solemnly:

"good."

On the second day, Nian Xi went to Panlou by herself. As it was still early, she booked a private room with a good location.

This time he didn't order any hot pot, but instead ordered all the other signature dishes, and told the waiter to serve the food when the guests arrived.

Then, she quietly looked at the plum tree in the yard, recalling her past and present lives with Zhou Yanli.

Zhou Yanli was very punctual and arrived much earlier than the agreed time.

"Didn't we agree to meet at noon? Why are you here so early?"

Her eyes curved slightly, revealing a clear and bright gaze like a clear spring, indescribably lively and charming.

Zhou Yanli was dazzled by such a smile and his heart was beating fast.

It seemed as if I saw that winter day again, a silly little girl clumsily coaxing the gloomy and sad boy, and pulling him back into the sunshine.

He couldn't help but lower his eyes slightly.

The long eyelashes hide the surging emotions in the eyes.

"My sister hates waiting for people, so I came a little early."