"Nianhua?" Pei Yicheng glanced sideways, his voice ringing in her ear once again.
Xu Nianhua stiffened, feeling as if she couldn’t even hold her chopsticks anymore. Her heart pounded like a drum, as if she had encountered something thrilling. She took a deep breath and said, "Of course, you can."
"Really?" Pei Yicheng’s eyes seemed to sparkle with a sudden brightness.
The brightness was as if it was going to engulf her. Xu Nianhua quickly shifted her gaze and nodded, saying, "Of course it’s true. Whenever you want to eat, just let me know."
It’s just cooking a meal. Wasn’t that an exaggeration?
"It’s a promise." Pei Yicheng’s smiled, picking up a piece of braised beef. The stir-fried beef was spicy and tasty, without any gamey smell, exactly to his taste.
It was just a meal, and yet it was a promise?
Xu Nianhua thought it over and felt that Pei Yicheng was making too much of a fuss.
Sitting on the other side of Pei Yicheng, Pei Yining watched this scene and secretly laughed. She decided that she would stop calling her brother a blockhead, as he was not a blockhead at all.
At the dinner table, the atmosphere was very pleasant.
Contrarily, Cheng Hao, who usually chattered, was uncharacteristically silent. Except for toasting with everyone at the beginning, he spent the entire meal drinking and eating the braised pork that was just in front of him.
A bite of braised pork followed by a sip of liquor, he poured his own drink, as if he was intentionally trying to drink himself into oblivion.
"You’re going to get drunk if you keep drinking," Ling Dong said as he saw him nearly finish an entire bottle. He grabbed the liquor from his hands, saying, "Aren’t you sweetly in love? Why are you drinking so much?"
"I want to drink. What’s it to you?"
Cheng Hao glared at him and said, "It’s my own liquor. Can’t I drink it?"
"Drink, drink, drink, just be careful not to fall under the table," Ling Dong examined Cheng Hao from head to toe and asked, "You guys didn’t break up, did you?"
Cheng Hao slammed his cup down on the table, causing the plates and cups to shake. He said, "Ling Dong, are we still brothers, or are you cursing me? Do you just want to see me miserable?"
"We’re good. It’s just that she always goes to South City, and I’m just miserable alone," Cheng Hao slowly realized he might have dampened the mood. He apologized, saying, "Grandpa, Yicheng, I... I drank too much, my hand wasn’t steady. You don’t need to worry about me; I’m fine. I just felt like drinking today."
Pei Yicheng looked at him deeply and didn’t say much, just scooped up a bowl of hot soup and handed it to him saying, "Then don’t just eat one dish. We have plenty of food and drink, eat as much as you want."
"Yicheng, you’re really considerate."
Cheng Hao smiled broadly while sipping the soup, his inner discomfort filled with concern.
He subdued the expression in his eyes. During his last trip to South City, he happened to encounter Zou Yaru on a blind date. He saw that Mr. Gu and wished he could rush forward and tear him apart, but Yaru’s mother was there, and he couldn’t be rash.
Seeing Yaru’s elder, he couldn’t afford to present himself in such a disgraceful manner; he was obliged to show his best side in front of the Zou family.
Cheng Hao slowly calmed down, especially after he discovered that Yaru wasn’t showing any fondness to Mr. Gu and that it wasn’t voluntary, his heart steadied even more.
Cheng Hao couldn’t wait to tell Yaru about his identity, but then he thought it might not be right. After all, why must one consider family background when falling in love or getting married?