King of Vinegar
Zhu Shiyi sat up straight, maintaining a composed expression, pretending not to have seen through Pan Yue's thoughts.
The next second, Pan Yue straightened up, a tissue in his hand, which he casually tossed onto the table.
Zhu Shiyi: ......
My face inexplicably felt hot.
She's so narcissistic. That person was just being civilized, picking up a tissue that had fallen on the ground.
The waiter served a dessert to Pan Yue.
Pan Yue carried the plate and placed the small cake in front of Zhu Shiyi.
Zhu Shiyi had a little scheme. She reached out and deliberately placed her hand over Pan Yue's knuckles. She gave him an innocent smile, stared into his eyes, and said sweetly, "Thank you!"
Physical contact—see if he's interested!
Unexpectedly, Pan Yue withdrew his hand in an instant and looked away.
"It's alright," he said politely.
Zhu Shiyi: ......
Confessing your love is like a dream shattered.
She sulked to herself, then, as if venting her anger, scooped out a small cake with a fork and shoved it into her mouth.
Hmph! She doesn't want to talk to Pan Yue anymore. She's not proactive at all, making her seem like a thirsty, starving ghost.
The eerie atmosphere persisted until the end of the meal.
After Pan Yue paid the bill, Zhu Shiyi stood up, preparing to follow Pan Yue away, silently chanting a spell in his mind.
Don't be angry, don't be angry. The scenery is beautiful tonight, don't get angry with a straight man!
The straight man in the curse stopped in his tracks.
“Those flowers,” Pan Yue, who had his back to her, suddenly said, “you can take them.”
......
Zhu Shiyi, holding a beautifully wrapped bouquet of red roses, sat in the passenger seat as Pan Yue drove her home.
"The service at this shop is really good," Zhu Shiyi said happily, fiddling with the flower petals. "I can take the roses off the table with me, and they even helped wrap them!"
Pan Yue remained the same, casually humming in response, his tone revealing little emotion.
Zhu Shiyi: ...
What kind of attitude is that!
How can people be so indifferent, apathetic, perfunctory, half-dead, and completely uncaring?
She pouted and muttered under her breath, "Why do you always say 'um'?"
Pan Yue frowned slightly: "Hmm?"
Zhu Shiyi: ......
Human-machine interaction.
"It's nothing." Zhu Shiyi turned her head and looked out the window.
The lights of yesteryear swept past her eyes, stretching out ethereally, much like her long, yet glorious, pursuit of a man.
...
His gaze lingered on her profile, seemingly with a hint of intensity.
Zhu Shiyi instinctively reached out, but Pan Yue immediately withdrew his gaze, leaving no trace.
A muffled breath escaped from his nose. Leaning against the door and window, Zhu Shiyi propped his head up and stared intently at Pan Yue.
What exactly is he trying to do?
Pan Yue kept his eyes straight ahead and drove as if nothing was wrong.
......
About ten seconds later.
Perhaps it was because her gaze was too melancholy, but as the traffic light turned, Pan Yue turned his head and met her eyes.
"You can't learn to drive just by looking at your eyes."
Zhu Shiyi's lips twitched: "Who said I wanted to practice driving?"
Her eyes were constantly fixed on the person opposite her.
Pan Yue's eyes flickered. He seemed to naturally look away, glancing at the red light counting down outside the car window, his knuckles subtly tightening their grip on the steering wheel.
Zhu Shiyi was puzzled.
...
Her keen intuition told her that Pan Yue was running away—
Avoid touching her;
He avoided eye contact with her.
and.
It wasn't an escape due to overwhelming emotions or shyness, but a deliberate and conscious escape.
As for the reason?
......
Did he discover her feelings for him?
Indeed, she made it so obvious, he must have noticed by now.
......
So, he's running away because he doesn't like her?
The countdown ended, the green light flashed before my eyes, and a sudden surge of acceleration swept over me. Lights flashed past my eyes and disappeared quietly on the next right turn, leaving only a dim expanse.
As her heart seemed to fade with the flickering firelight, Zhu Shiyi withdrew her gaze and unconsciously lowered her eyes.
He avoids her.
Her affection was a burden to him.
......
Is that so?
But he carried her on his back in the heavy rain, let her hold his hand, and even brought her to such a high-class Western restaurant.
It's clear that he also has some feelings for her.
......
Zhu Shiyi didn't understand.
"Are you in a bad mood today?" After thinking it over, Zhu Shiyi felt that there was only one possibility.
Pan Yue's lips opened and closed, with half a sound of "no" hanging on his lips. The next second, he pursed his lips and said the classic "hmm".
...
My mood took a complete 360-degree turn.
For the first time, Zhu Shiyi felt that the word "um" was so kind, especially when it came from Pan Yue's mouth; it was simply heavenly music!
She finally let go of her resentment.
It turns out he really was in a bad mood.
"Who upset you?" Zhu Shiyi asked indignantly. "Was it someone from work?"
It's all that person's fault; they ruined her romantic candlelight dinner tonight!
Pan Yue glanced at her and looked at her for two seconds.
"Um."
Zhu Shiyi hummed softly.
Is he a "poop monster"?
Knowing Pan Yue had boundaries, Zhu Shiyi didn't press him. Adhering to the principle of only comforting emotions and not discussing logic, and unconditionally standing by Pan Yue's side, Zhu Shiyi spoke directly:
"Don't be sad, don't be angry. Some people's intelligence is cut along with their umbilical cord, and their cerebellum is not fully developed."
Pan Yue's brow twitched, and he opened his mouth: "Actually..."
But Zhu Shiyi was completely oblivious, and continued to launch into her own attack: "You're just too nice, and you're nearsighted, so you treat everyone like a human being. Once you really look into their eyes, you'll realize that the one who's making you angry isn't even human... Ah... Achoo!"
Zhu Shiyi suddenly sneezed loudly because his nose was inexplicably itchy.
What's going on? She's not cold!
Pan Yue silently tore off a piece of paper and handed it to her, a faint smile playing on his lips.
"...Thank you." Zhu Shiyi covered her face, somewhat embarrassed.
Just as she was wiping her nose, a soft voice drifted over her side: "...Actually, she didn't do anything wrong, it's my fault."
Zhu Shiyi immediately raised his head and stared wide-eyed.
She's criticizing the other side, and now she's taking over his defense of others?
Zhu Shiyi just wanted to chuckle.
The clown was herself.
But she did insult the other person, and she should apologize to Pan Yue: "I'm sorry."
"..." Pan Yue's eyes were a little strange. "Why apologize?"
“…I shouldn’t have said that about her,” Zhu Shiyi said, a slight smile playing on her lips. “But I’ve slowly come to realize a principle of life: it’s better to blame others than to waste your own life.”
Zhu Shiyi meant it sincerely. She had previously cared too much about the feelings of unimportant people. She now realized: "Good moods are precious; don't waste your energy on unimportant people."
"That's good." Pan Yue nodded slightly and curled his lips.
He drove, staring ahead, his gaze slightly unfocused.
"...However, she is not an unimportant person."
“That’s true,” Zhu Shiyi nodded in agreement. “Work is linked to your wallet, so the people you work with have to be important people.”
Pan Yue: ......
He glanced at it lightly, his eyes deep and unfathomable.
Zhu Shiyi inexplicably shrank back.
What? He's wrong too.
“…Let’s go to my house first.” Pan Yue turned his gaze away and suddenly changed the subject, turning at the intersection onto another bend.
Zhu Shiyi: ?
Her face slowly flushed: "...Why would I go to your house?"
Pan Yue didn't explain: "What kind of tea do you like?"
Zhu Shiyi: ? ?
"Green tea, or oolong tea, please." She sat up slightly, looking a little uncomfortable.
Why did he ask that?
No, that's not right. The main issue is, why would he invite a teenage girl to his house so late?
Zhu Shiyi blushed, wanting to ask more clearly: "You..."
"What about Pu'er?" Pan Yue suddenly asked.
Zhu Shiyi: ? ? ?
He wanted to bring her tea.
What day is it today? Two people brought her tea.
“Actually, I can drink any kind of tea,” Zhu Shiyi replied quickly.
Pan Yue opened his mouth, as if he wanted to say something more.
Zhu Shiyi calmed down and said first, "It's so late, and I have to go to work tomorrow, so I won't go to your place."
Pan Yue probably meant that he wanted to offer her tea.
But Zhu Shiyi didn't actually love tea that much. In her opinion, although the tastes of tea were different, they were all pretty much the same.
But the car had already arrived at Pan Yue's residential area.
“You don’t need to go up.” Pan Yue drove into the underground parking garage. “Just wait for me for a few minutes.”
Zhu Shiyi pressed for an explanation, but Pan Yue didn't elaborate, only saying that he was getting something.
......
Three to five minutes later.
As Zhu Shiyi had guessed, Pan Yue got into the car carrying a paper bag.
Pan Yue handed over the bag with one hand and pulled up the seatbelt with the other: "I'll take you home."
Zhu Shiyi looked down at the bag on his lap.
The cinnamon rock tea, Lao Ban Zhang ripe Pu'er, and some flower teas are beautifully packaged and look expensive.
"Was it a gift for me?" Zhu Shiyi asked to confirm.
As expected, Pan Yue hummed in agreement.
"Thank you," Zhu Shiyi said, returning the tea, "but you can keep it and drink it; you don't need to give it to me."
“It’s alright,” Pan Yue said without looking at her, quickly pushing the tea bag back. “In a while, the pre-Qingming Longjing tea from West Lake will be fresher, and I’ll get you some more.”
Pre-Qingming Longjing tea is Longjing tea picked before the Qingming Festival. Because the temperature is low before Qingming and the plants grow slowly, the tea leaves accumulate rich internal substances and are more refreshing.
Of course, good things are naturally scarce and expensive, and the pre-Qingming Longjing tea from West Lake is the finest of the fine.
Zhu Shiyi knew that the appeal of green tea was its freshness; green tea doesn't keep well, so there wasn't much of it available in winter—it's seasonal. In other words, Pan Yue's words weren't an excuse; he genuinely wanted to send it in the spring.
Just thinking about the price made Zhu Shiyi's heart ache.
“You really don’t need to spend that money,” she said, her tone a little harsher because she was worried about her wallet. “I’m not that fond of tea anyway. You can take these back. You don’t need to send me anything else.”
Pan Yue: "I still have some."
“I have one too,” Zhu Shiyi declined. “The packet that Brother Chang gave me is enough! Just that little packet would take Fan Jie and me a long time to finish.”
Pan Yue frowned slightly, almost imperceptibly.
...
“Perfect,” Pan Yue said casually, “My family is short of black tea. Why don’t you give me the packet he gave you, and you take these from me.”
...
A sudden thought flashed through my mind.
Zhu Shiyi watched helplessly as Pan Yue, like a football being passed around, brought over the tea bag once again.
Zhu Shiyi lowered his head, staring at the hot potato-like, reddish-brown tea bag, and slowly a bold guess arose in his mind.
She looked up and secretly glanced at Pan Yue.
He tightened his lips, gripped the steering wheel, and stared intently ahead. His serious demeanor made her conjecture seem utterly absurd and laughable.
Zhu Shiyi was not giving up. She leaned her head slightly toward Pan Yue and deliberately tested him: "That was a gift from Brother Chang. How could I give it to someone else?"
She looked at Pan Yue, blinked her big eyes, and pretended to be natural: "That's not polite."
A deep, muffled breath reached my ears.
Zhu Shiyi could clearly see that with each deep breath, Pan Yue's chest rose and fell.
“Don’t worry,” Pan Yue glanced at him indifferently, “that tea was given to Lin Changren by someone else, and he gave it to you as soon as he heard about it.”
Pan Yue chuckled softly and gave a slight smirk: "He doesn't care about these formalities."
With her suspicions somewhat confirmed, Zhu Shiyi couldn't help but feel a little excited. She shifted her body, getting closer to Pan Yue again: "That's true, Brother Chang is a carefree and easygoing person, he probably doesn't care about these things."
"..." Upon reaching the main road, Pan Yue didn't even spare a glance.
He was staring straight ahead, and in the dim light, Zhu Shiyi seemed to see something, so he squinted.
“Your carefree attitude is just your imagination,” Pan Yue said quietly. “Lin Changren… has many things he cares about.”
He suddenly fell silent.
Since it involved other people's privacy, Zhu Shiyi didn't press for details or show much curiosity. She simply nodded in agreement: "Yes. Brother Chang seems to be a very sentimental person."
Even though Yu Fan had clearly rejected Lin Changren's confession, he still didn't give up, feeling that Lin Changren was indeed a very persistent person when it came to relationships.
"......"
At intersections with flashing green lights, experienced drivers would accelerate and speed through, and Zhu Shiyi assumed Pan Yue would do the same. But he gradually slowed down.
......
The SUV came to a steady stop before the red light.
Pan Yue suddenly turned his head, his gaze fixed on her face.
Zhu Shiyi inexplicably shrank back a few inches.
Seeing him open his lips, I heard him say:
"You have feelings for Lin Changren?"
......
Zhu Shiyi was momentarily stunned.
If she still doesn't understand now that things have been said, then she's definitely a fool.
Pan Yue had never spoken so bluntly before.
He never said even this kind of roundabout, straightforward thing.
A muffled sound rang in my ears.
Pan Yue covered his lips, coughed lightly, then released his hand, put his arm on the steering wheel, and looked extremely relaxed: "...What I mean is, you seem to know him very well."
......
A strange, almost immoral, pleasure welled up inside Zhu Shiyi. He forced himself to suppress his joy and restrain himself from laughing out loud.
So Pan Yue was jealous!
He simply loves her.
He just wanted to confess his feelings to her!
However, Lin Changren's intervention hindered Pan Yue's advance in expressing his feelings!
......
Pan Yue was really stupid.
What about her seems to like Lin Changren at all!
"Do I know him?" Zhu Shiyi chuckled softly, tilting her head and forcing a smile. "I think I know you a little better."
Pan Yue blinked, looking a little dazed. He naturally turned his gaze away, as if it were unintentional.
But Zhu Shiyi could vaguely detect a hint of softness within that hardness.
He has a strong profile and long eyelashes that tremble slightly.
A clear spring flows from my heart.
Zhu Shiyi stared intently at the person so close to him.
She parted her lips slightly:
"Your name is Pan Yue, you just turned twenty-six, twenty-seven this year, a Capricorn, born on January 2nd, and you are 1.87 meters tall.
Beneath his deep-set brows, his soft eyelashes fluttered.
The clear spring in the mountains murmurs even more joyfully.
Zhu Shiyi unconsciously curled the corners of his lips:
"You are an upright person, a conscientious worker, and a down-to-earth person. You pay attention to a balanced diet and have many massage devices, health products, and various teas at home. You live like an old cadre."
Pan Yue's eyelids twitched, and he turned his head away.
“You say that adults don’t have time to think about so many things they like, but you do have things you like. You like beaches, lawns, kites, sunsets, and Lego.”
Zhu Shiyi showed no fear and looked him straight in the eye.
His unfathomable black pupils gradually cleared, and a hint of a smile was hidden in his eyes.
“More importantly,” she said, her eyes crinkling as she looked at him, “you love life.”
"You said you pursue happiness."
"When you jumped off the tower without hesitation, I knew that this kind of brave and passionate life was what you were pursuing—"
"happiness."
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