Lu Liang forgot to check the price per pound. Either way, the three plates were filled to the brim, and even after the half-off discount, it still cost over seventy yuan. Watching his cousin scarf down the food with a ravenous energy, Lu Liang's appetite improved as well. Normally, he didn't eat much for dinner, but tonight, he surprisingly managed to polish off two bowls of rice.
Fang Shiyu's enormous appetite caught the attention of both the staff and customers in the restaurant. The key point? He actually finished everything.
Even Zhang Qian noticed. When she saw Lu Liang sitting next to Fang Shiyu, her eyes widened in surprise. “When did you get here?” she asked with a delighted expression.
Lu Liang smiled. “I’ve been here for a while. I saw you were busy, so I didn’t want to disturb you.”
“How do you feel about it?” Zhang Qian asked, smiling as she continued clearing a couple of tables while chatting with him.
“It’s not bad,” Lu Liang said softly. “There’s definitely potential, though it’ll be hard work.”
If gold shines wherever it goes, Zhang Qian was certainly proof of that. During the meal, Lu Liang overheard no fewer than ten compliments about her looks. Young boys sneaking peeks at her weren’t in short supply either. After all, even as the night shift manager, her charm still far exceeded that of most people—even while wearing an apron and handling food.
Just imagine—most restaurant owners you’d see on the streets were either overweight, exhausted-looking, or hunched over. But Zhang Qian stood tall and proud, with a graceful smile that felt like a spring breeze, always on her face. Even when tired, she managed her expressions impeccably. For someone like her, it was almost an unfair advantage.
The food tasted good too. As long as the prices weren’t too steep, there would surely be plenty of returning customers in the future.
Halfway through her sentence, she was startled by Fang Shiyu. To him, Li Manli looked like a little chick. She asked in alarm, “Who are you?”
“He’s my cousin and also my driver. His name’s Fang Shiyu,” Lu Liang said, laughing as he stepped out of the passenger side.
“Brother Shiyu, nice to meet you. I’m Li Manli,” she greeted politely, quickly slipping her shoes back on as she got out of the car.
“Hello,” Fang Shiyu responded in a muffled voice.
“Shiyu, you can head back. It’s the weekend tomorrow—I’ll call you when I need you.”
After watching his cousin drive away, Lu Liang turned to Li Manli and noticed the sweat on her forehead. “How long have you been cooped up in there?”
Knowing how unpredictable Lu Liang’s return time was, Li Manli must have started waiting as early as five or six in the afternoon to be so perfectly on time.
“Not too long. I just wanted to surprise you,” she said, wrapping her arms around his neck and acting coy.
"You're starting to smell, and you still say it hasn't been that long." Lu Liang’s face was full of mock disdain.
"Impossible! I still smell nice!"
Li Manli was startled and sniffed herself, but she didn’t detect any strange odor—until she saw the mischievous smile at the corner of Lu Liang's lips. Realizing she’d been teased, she pouted in frustration. With a playful jump, she clung onto him, wrapping her legs tightly around his waist as she hugged him. “You stink!”
“Alright, let’s go. Take a shower, and then we’ll head out for a spin to see how good your driving really is.” Lu Liang Visit NovelHub for more amazing novels and chapters.
“Why don’t we shower together? I’ll scrub your back!”
Laughter echoed as they fooled around in the bathroom for over an hour. By the time they came downstairs, it was already past ten.
Brimming with confidence, Li Manli drove the car out of the underground garage. But soon after, Lu Liang’s constant feedback had her sulking in frustration.
She eventually pulled the car to the side of the road, her face sullen. “You drive! I’m not driving anymore. Who keeps talking and criticizing when someone’s driving? I was so confident before, and now you’ve ruined it!”
Lu Liang laughed helplessly. “You’re treating the solid lane lines as if they’re invisible—how could I not say something?”
“I don’t know this road well, and the GPS didn’t show it! Plus, I only got my license today. Cut me some slack, will you?” Li Manli said, her face full of grievance.
“Alright, alright. For a newbie, you’re doing pretty well. You drive, and I promise I won’t say another word.”
Lu Liang comforted her with a smile but made sure to emphasize something important. “If the car gets damaged, it’s fine; we can just buy another one. But you only have one life—whether it’s yours or someone else’s on the road, you have to be careful. Hit anything you want, just don’t hit a person.”
Li Manli, still young and impressionable, had her values shaped by her surroundings. Lu Liang could tolerate vanity and materialism, but he couldn’t accept arrogance or recklessness.
“I understand.” Li Manli nodded seriously, her playful attitude giving way to sincerity. It was rare to see Lu Liang so serious, and it left a deep impression on her.
The two of them headed west under the cover of night.
Lost in his own thoughts, Lu Liang didn’t pay attention for a moment, and Li Manli somehow ended up on the highway. Worse yet, she missed the nearest exit.
The only silver lining? At least she knew not to make a U-turn on the highway and just kept driving.
By the time they reached the shores of Taihu Lake in Suzhou, Li Manli looked guilty. “How about we watch the sunrise at Taihu?” she suggested timidly.
“It’s two in the morning—do you want to see ghosts instead?” Lu Liang glared at her, half-convinced she’d done it on purpose.
“Oh, come on! Since we’re already here, can’t we wait for three more hours?” Li Manli whined, resorting to playful pouting and rolling around to charm him.
The truth was, she’d been so busy with livestreaming recently that she hadn’t had much time to spend with Lu Liang. With the weekend coming up, she wanted to make the most of it. In fact, she’d even worked overtime in the past few days to hit her monthly streaming hours in advance, just so she could free up this weekend.
“Let’s get a room first. We’ll talk about the sunrise in the morning.”