late at night
On the way to the restaurant after picking them up, Yu Shiyuan asked Bai Yi, "Are you going to use calamus for research?"
"No, it's for mixing with perfume."
Yu Shiyuan was surprised that she was so lazy that she would even make her own perfume. Lu Xin said that she was always dawdling when doing experiments and sometimes even picky, and asked with a smile, "So free? What kind of fragrance do you want?"
Bai Yi didn't say it was for Zhong Yunxi, only saying, "I don't know what it will turn into yet, we'll have to try."
Yu Shiyuan focused on driving and said to her, "I contacted a friend over there, and he said he'll go to the Tibetan Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital tomorrow to buy some and send it back."
Bai Yi smiled and said, "Thank you."
At the red light, Yu Shiyuan stepped on the brake. For about half a minute, he let his thoughts wander.
He seemed to hear Bai Yi say thank you often. In normal social interactions, almost no one would care about a casual thank you, and he certainly wouldn't care about other people's thanks either. However, he would feel inexplicably powerless when Bai Yi said thank you.
His initial intention in doing anything for Bai Yi was never to get a thank you from her.
He would feel happier if Bai Yi accepted his doing things for her without saying anything.
The green light came on, and the car started moving again.
Upon arriving at the restaurant, a waiter kindly stepped forward to guide us.
After the food was served, a bottle of red wine was also brought along. Ren Xiao remarked, "It wasn't a waste of time to work here."
Bai Yi's biggest problem when eating is that she doesn't concentrate. At home, Zhong Yunxi would serve her food and soup and watch her eat, which would make her behave a little better.
In this situation, nobody cares about her. She takes a bite of food, plays on her phone for five minutes, or just stares blankly at something. Focusing on her food for more than three minutes is beyond her limits.
Yu Shiyuan watched Ren Xiao burying his head in his rice, then looked at Bai Yi, whose state was completely different, and asked with a smile, "Are you full? You're looking around."
Bai Yi turned his gaze away from elsewhere, took two more bites, and said, "I'm eating now."
Yu Shiyuan then began to comment on each dish, and then asked her, "Try it and see if it's good."
Bai Yi glanced at him, then at the dishes, and took a spoonful to taste. She was about seven or eight tenths full by the end of the meal.
She hasn't drunk much alcohol since the last time she got so drunk. After that, she hasn't drunk any alcohol in Zhong Yunxi's absence, not even low-alcohol red or white wine.
Yu Shiyuan asked with a smile, "Is there anyone at home to keep an eye on your eating habits?"
Bai Yi didn't want to talk to him and asked in an unhappy tone, "What's wrong with me?"
She didn't dare say anything to Zhong Yunxi, and she certainly didn't want to hear Yu Shiyuan's words.
Yu Shiyuan didn't speak, but just smiled at her. She must have someone taking care of her, otherwise she would have lost a lot of weight after being back in Yuegang for so long.
When Bai Yi was in Xiangcheng, he would visit her and her maternal grandparents every one or two months. He knew the nanny at home. He would send local specialties from all over the country back home, and he would contact the nanny to ask about Bai Yi's situation. He always told the nanny to make sure she ate well.
Ren Xiao drank his wine and glanced at Yu Shiyuan. This man seemed to have a blurred sense of boundaries. Didn't he see the engagement ring on Bai Yi's hand?
Ren Xiao laughed and said, "Isn't it normal for girls to be picky eaters? If they don't eat, it means they're not hungry. They'll eat when they're hungry. Why do you care?"
Yu Shiyuan gave a vague answer: "I'm used to it."
He first noticed Bai Yi's serious eating problem when he was in high school, less than a week into the semester. His seat was to Bai Yi's left front. They didn't know each other yet. Halfway through the second period in the morning, Bai Yi's deskmate, He Ming, whom he had played ball with several times, kicked his chair and said, "Stand for a bit and block my deskmate while she eats her bread."
Yu Shiyuan: ?
He glanced at the person behind him and raised his chin: "Hurry up, my deskmate is about to have low blood sugar."
Yu Shiyuan: ...
His gaze shifted to Bai Yi's face, and for the first time, he looked at her openly and seriously for a few seconds. He looked listlessly downcast, whether from hunger or sleepiness, it was hard to tell.
Yu Shiyuan stood up, slightly hunched his shoulders, lowered his head, and supported himself on the corner of the table with his right hand, his elbow slightly tucked in. From the perspective of the podium, he basically blocked everyone's view.
Listening to He Ming and Bai Yi whispering to each other.
It's like they were saying they ate too slowly in the morning, only a few bites, and because they were in a rush, they grabbed a piece of bread and left.
After class, Bai Yi handed him an orange-flavored gummy candy, smiled, and said thank you. The gummy candy stayed in his bag for a week.
Later, he often saw Bai Yi eating snacks during breaks, and she ate very slowly, like a little hamster. However, when he occasionally ran into her at lunchtime, whether on or off campus, he never saw her eat much of a proper meal.
Bai Yi has never changed this habit.
After finishing their meal, Yu Shiyuan excused himself to go to the restroom and went to pay the bill. The manager said that it was a table reserved by General Manager Xue, and all bills were signed in advance. He asked which General Manager Xue, and the manager said he was the assistant of Boss Zhong of Lingchuang.
On the way back, he called a designated driver. Bai Yi said that the driver would pick her up, and she would take Ren Xiao back and not go with him.
Yu Shiyuan glanced at the driver waiting at the restaurant entrance and nodded: "I will send the Tibetan calamus to the laboratory after I receive it."
Bai Yi smiled and thanked him again.
"You're welcome. The perfume is finished. Can you save me a sample?" Yu Shiyuan looked at her.
Ren Xiao listened in silence, and was about to make a joke and say something like "You don't need it to make a female fragrance" to brush it off, when Bai Yi spoke up and said calmly, "Okay."
Ren Xiao was quite surprised.
After the two got into the car, Ren Xiao put down the red wine and pastries he was carrying and jokingly said, "You promised to give me a bottle, so if what you make isn't enough, you can give me the boss's portion."
Bai Yi: "That's enough."
"Are you really going to give him a share?"
"No."
Ren Xiao was speechless, then pressed on, asking, "Then why did you agree to that so casually?"
"Just say it went wrong or it smelled bad and we threw it away. Who can say for sure what happens in a lab?"
Ren Xiao: ...
She discovered that Bai Yi was truly willful and had no moral conscience.
When he dropped her off at home, she raised her wrist and said, "Thank you for the wine and snacks, Mr. Zhong."
During the meal, she mentioned that the wine was delicious, and Bai Yi suggested ordering an extra bottle for her to take home. However, the manager explained that the person who ordered the food for them had left it at the restaurant and they needed to inform the person. Only then did Ren Xiao realize that the wine belonged to Boss Zhong.
She had a meal and even got a bottle of wine for free. Perhaps feeling indebted to him, she tried to defuse the situation by subtly hinting at her overstepping boundaries when Yu Shiyuan expressed some vague sense of transgression.
Of course, judging from Bai Yi's indifferent tone just now, she was overthinking it.
Zhong Yunxi called, and Bai Yi waved to Ren Xiao, rolled up the car window, and answered the phone.
I just asked her if she was back yet, and she said she had just dropped Ren Xiao off and was on her way.
Zhong Yunxi asked again, "Did you eat well tonight? Do you want Aunt Wu to prepare some food for you?"
"I'm stuffed." Without realizing it, she had been persuaded by Yu Shiyuan to eat too much.
Zhong Yunxi knew what she ate like, and didn't quite believe it: "Then I'll cook you a bowl of porridge."
Bai Yi didn't say anything more. Anyway, Zhong Yunxi would eat her leftovers. "Okay, you can eat them if you can't finish them."
Zhong Yunxi just returned from his business trip at noon today. He spent a few days in Beijing and then flew directly to Europe for a week.
I told her my itinerary before takeoff in the morning and asked her about it, but Bai Yi said she had to work overtime and had plans to meet someone that evening. Zhong Yunxi had booked a restaurant, so I had to let her use it to treat others.
When she arrived home, Zhong Yunxi was standing at the door in his light home clothes with a coat over them. As soon as the car stopped, Zhong Yunxi waved to the driver, indicating that he didn't need to get out. He opened the car door and reached out to help the person inside.
Not knowing how long he had been waiting, Bai Yi grabbed his arm, feeling that his coat was cold to the touch, but his hands were warm. "Why were you waiting outside?"
Zhong Yunxi took her bag and hung it on his wrist. "Don't you miss me?"
He wanted to say "I miss you," but the words were on the tip of his tongue when he turned his head and saw her arm around him, her shoulder naturally leaning against his, her face almost touching his shoulder. Suddenly, he wanted to hear her act coquettishly.
This business trip lasted for more than a week, the longest he could recall since getting married. And before he left, the temperature between Vietnam and Hong Kong hadn't dropped to this level.
Bai Yi looked up at him, narrowed her eyes, as if she knew his tricks well, and deliberately brushed him off: "I miss you, I miss you, okay?"
Zhong Yunxi supported her weight as they climbed the stairs, laughing, "Slow down, take the 'okay' part out."
As soon as she entered the room, the temperature of the underfloor heating was completely different from that of the outside. She took off her ankle boots, removed the belt from her coat, and Zhong Yunxi helped her pull down the sleeves to take off her coat.
"Let's go to the restaurant and have a bowl of soup." Zhong Yunxi placed their coats on the back of the sofa.
She wasn't hungry at all: "I'm really stuffed today."
Even so, she still went to the restaurant and asked Zhong Yunxi, "What did you eat for dinner?"
Zhong Yunxi rolled up his sleeves: "Wait until you come back."
She sat at the dining table and watched him stand in front of the open Western-style kitchen counter, presumably about to cook for himself.
Zhong Yunxi was indeed waiting for her to come back so he could see what she wanted to eat before deciding what to do.
I want to drink milk tea.
Zhong Yunxi said helplessly, "It's too late. If you drink this, you won't be able to sleep tonight. I'll make it for you tomorrow."
Then I asked, "You're not working overtime tomorrow, are you?"
Tomorrow is Saturday. I don't know what she's been busy with lately, but she often makes plans to meet people on weekends.
"Okay. I'll keep you company tomorrow." She suddenly smiled and rested her chin on her hand, looking at him.
Just as Zhong Yunxi put the steak into the frying pan, he turned around and glanced at her. Did she know what she was saying? While frying the steak, Zhong Yunxi washed a small bowl of strawberries and handed it to her.
But suddenly he bent down, turned his head and kissed her. He didn't have the patience for gentle sucking and licking from the beginning. He placed his thumb and forefinger on her chin and gently pinched her cheek. With this action, she slightly opened her lips, so her mouth was instantly filled.
Zhong Yunxi placed his other hand on the back of her head. She tried to lean back, but was pressed back down. Within moments, she was completely deprived of her breath.
The steak sizzled in the hot oil, and for a moment he regretted not turning off the heat.
As he turned back to the kitchen counter, Bai Yi got up and went to the living room, otherwise he wouldn't cook properly.
After his steak was cooked, he went to the living room to carry her over: "Have dinner with me, okay?"
She had spent a long time in the lab that afternoon, and as soon as she lay down on the sofa, she felt sleepy. She didn't want to move and pulled his coat, which was draped over the back of the sofa, over herself, saying, "Eat it yourself."
Zhong Yunxi could only rub her head and then turn back to bring over the tray.
Perhaps it was because Zhong Yunxi's coat was too warm, but she felt a little drowsy. She squinted, grabbed her own clothes, compared the feel of them, and complained, "Aren't these two clothes from the same brand? Did they cut corners on the women's clothes? Why are my clothes so thin?"
Zhong Yunxi listened to her rambling with a smile.
"How about I go shopping with you this weekend to buy a new one?"
She shook her head: "I still have a lot of winter clothes in the walk-in closet that I haven't tried on yet. I've been so busy lately."
"What are you busy with?"
Zhong Yunxi is very focused when he eats, so his efficiency is naturally very high. He finished a steak in just over ten minutes of casual conversation.
"I'll tell you when I'm done with this."
A question arose in Zhong Yunxi's mind: "What does this have to do with me?"
Bai Yi: ...
Was he a detective? How can you deduce anything from that?
"No." She denied it, feigning composure; she couldn't possibly tell him now.
Her nose brushed against the collar of Zhong Yunxi's coat; it was the scent of the perfume he had given her. The top notes of pine had faded, leaving only a faint lingering scent of agarwood in the base notes.
What she was thinking was that it lacked the fragrance of flowers.
She's probably been drinking too much of the old Su-style perfumes lately, and after smelling so many of the combinations of agarwood and jasmine, she finds this bottle of perfume too boring.
Zhong Yunxi didn't even have the patience to return the plate to the kitchen. After putting down his fork, drinking a glass of water, he got up and picked her up.
"Don't go to sleep so soon. Help me adjust to the time difference, and we can catch up on sleep tomorrow."
Bai Yi frowned: "If I adjust my time difference to match yours, won't my sleep schedule be messed up?"
Zhong Yunxi laughed and said, "Why don't you say it's bad sleep when you stay up all night playing games?"
"That's my subjective pleasure, how can it be the same?"
Zhong Yunxi kissed her forehead: "Then I'll try my best to make you feel happy."
Bai Yi: ...
Bai Yi was sometimes a little afraid of him. Most of the time he was very restrained, pampering her and pleasing her. But after they argued, she would feel his silent possessiveness. At that time, he would insist that she say a lot of nice things, as if to replace and cover up every word they said during the argument.
He's been away on business for so long, and Bai Yi isn't that she doesn't miss him, but she'd like to know if his longing for her has only intensified.
Bai Yi changed into a nightgown in the walk-in closet and went into the bathroom. He finished showering ten minutes later and then took her out of the bathtub.
Before I could even protest, I was picked up and placed on the sink. "You'll get sleepy if you soak for too long."
He lacked patience, and Bai Yi was also caught up in his pace, feeling a bit rushed and flustered, but his efficiency was surprisingly high.
Her breathing was frequently disturbed from the inside out, before she could even calm down.
The fire on a winter night was too hot.
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