Cai Lixia was completely dumbfounded by Chen Bin’s words.
"That girl doesn’t look very old. How could she be your girlfriend?"
"Exactly, she’s still a student, just a first-year in high school."
Taking a deep breath, Cai Lixia looked visibly disappointed.
"You... How could you be dating a high schooler?"
Seeing her reaction, Chen Bin couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
Cai Lixia instantly realized she’d been tricked and gave Chen Bin’s calf a swift kick.
Feigning seriousness, he responded, "I’m your boss, and you dare kick me?"
With a cold snort, Cai Lixia appeared somewhat agitated.
"I kicked you because you deceived me!"
Smirking mischievously, Chen Bin teased her in a soft voice.
"Why do I get the feeling you care quite a lot about whether I have a girlfriend?"
"Don’t flatter yourself! Whether you have a girlfriend has nothing to do with me!"
Ignoring her retort, Chen Bin continued nonchalantly.
"New Year’s is fast approaching. Let’s head to the county tonight for dinner. Remember to change into that dress you wore last time."
Faced with Chen Bin’s unexpected invitation, Cai Lixia felt both excited and nervous.
Throughout the day, no matter what she did, she couldn’t suppress her restlessness.
By the time evening rolled around, she left work early to return to the guesthouse and change.
When she met Chen Bin again, she wore a long dress paired with sneakers, looking fresh and youthful.
As the two headed toward the county, neither noticed Ding Zi quietly standing behind them.
At Dragon Mountain Restaurant, as Chen Bin was ordering dishes, Cai Lixia suddenly pointed toward a man not far away.
"That’s Tian Rangping, Du Minli’s husband."
Following her gesture, he saw a man in his forties who was moderately handsome.
However, his eyes were listless, suggesting he might be long accustomed to indulgence in wine and lust.
Chen Bin asked curiously, "What does he do?"
"He’s the station master at the town’s seed station, though he rarely works. He’s just a drunkard."
"Do you know much about Du Minli?"
"Not much, but there’s plenty of gossip about her in town."
Glancing at Tian Rangping, Cai Lixia continued.
"Rumor has it that Du Minli is Lu Huisheng’s mistress, and Tian Rangping was the one who matched them up."
Chen Bin sneered, surprised that such a beautiful woman like Du Minli would end up with Lu Huisheng.
In the following moments, Chen Bin’s witty remarks kept Cai Lixia laughing uncontrollably.
Just as the atmosphere reached a delightful peak, a frivolous voice suddenly interrupted.
"Well, well, isn’t this Miss Cai, the great beauty herself? A few days without seeing you, and you’ve become even prettier!"
Chen Bin turned to see a man in his twenties, wearing a gold chain as thick as a pinky finger, exuding the vibe of a troublemaker.
Cai Lixia didn’t even need to look up to know who it was.
She said nothing and simply grabbed Chen Bin, preparing to leave.
However, the man blocked their path.
"Where are you running off to, gorgeous? Why not sit down and have a chat with your brother here?"
Staring coldly at the man, Cai Lixia replied disdainfully.
"Sorry, my boyfriend has something urgent, and we need to leave."
With a furrowed brow, the man’s expression turned sour instantly.
Hands stuffed in his pockets, he glared at Chen Bin dismissively.
"My name is Ye Pei, and I work at the county public security bureau. Who do you think you are?"
Chen Bin smiled and extended his right hand. "Nice to meet you. I’m Chen Bin, Cai Lixia’s boyfriend."
Ye Pei didn’t bother shaking his hand; instead, he sneered at Cai Lixia.
"Miss Cai, so you’ve been avoiding me, heading out to the countryside, and now you’ve ended up with some pretty boy? This guy looks like he’s got kidney issues."
Whether Ye Pei chose to shake his hand or not didn’t matter to Chen Bin.
But calling him "kidney deficient"? That was something he couldn’t tolerate.
Seeing Chen Bin’s sour expression, Cai Lixia immediately clapped back.
"I know better than you whether my boyfriend’s kidneys are fine. You, on the other hand, calling yourself a public security officer—what a disgrace!"
Instead of getting angry, Ye Pei started coaxing her."
"Lixia, I truly don’t mind you finding a boyfriend. But why settle for a pretty boy? I can guarantee he’ll cheat on you someday."
"If he does, I’m fine with it. Now step aside, please!"
With that, Cai Lixia pulled Chen Bin and headed out.
Behind them, Ye Pei shouted viciously, "Chen Bin, right? Just you wait!"
Chen Bin ignored him, instead wrapping his arm around Cai Lixia’s slender waist.
As they stepped out of the restaurant, Cai Lixia immediately blushed and snapped at him.
"Take your hand off me!"
Chen Bin replied with a grin, "Didn’t you just say I’m your boyfriend? How can I not hold your waist?"
"That was just to fool Ye Pei!"
"Well, it fooled me too—I thought I really was your boyfriend."
"I’ve realized today how thick-skinned you truly are."
"What do you think? Do you like it?"
Just then, like a dragonfly skimming the surface, Chen Bin planted a light kiss on Cai Lixia’s rosy cheek.
She turned shy immediately but said nothing more.
As they walked slowly along the street, a chilly breeze swept past, causing Cai Lixia to shiver slightly.
Seeing this, Chen Bin took off his jacket and draped it over her.
Cai Lixia felt deeply touched by the warmth but still teased him verbally.
"Ye Pei is the County Magistrate’s son. Do you really dare pursue me?"
"Why not? I’ve never been afraid of Ye Hong. But tell me, how did you end up on Ye Pei’s radar?"
With a sigh, Cai Lixia looked helpless.
"Back when I worked in the county, he started pestering me after we met by chance. He clung to me like a leech, and I had no choice but to move to Qinghe Town."
"But from the look of things, it seems you haven’t fully avoided him either."
"Honestly, after I moved to Qinghe Town, he stopped bothering me much. I didn’t expect to run into him today. I don’t know what’s in store for later."
Seeing her worried expression, Chen Bin cracked a joke.
"He’s the County Magistrate’s son. I bet there are countless girls who fancy him. Why do you keep dodging him?"
"County Magistrate’s son or not—I loathe people like him who throw their weight around under their father’s name!"
From her response, Chen Bin could tell she genuinely disliked Ye Pei.
He reassured her, "Let’s not talk about him anymore. We wouldn’t want to ruin the vibe of our date."
Then, Cai Lixia started asking Chen Bin a series of questions.
Chen Bin knew she was trying to get to know him better.
His answers, however, were a mix of truth and fabrication.
After all, Chen Bin only wanted to flirt; he wasn’t planning on marrying her.
During the New Year holiday, Chen Bin had Cheng Zhuang drive He Beibei back to Tianhai.
Upon arrival, Cheng Zhuang was about to leave but was stopped by He Beibei.
"Brother Cheng, you’ve been giving me rides to and from school every day. You should come to my house for a meal."
Scratching his head, Cheng Zhuang appeared unsure what to do.
Instinctively looking to Chen Bin and seeing his subtle nod, Cheng Zhuang agreed.
The three of them went to He Chaoping’s house, where He Chaoping warmly welcomed them.
As the dishes were served, Zheng Najiao also expressed gratitude toward Cheng Zhuang.
Then, He Chaoping turned to Chen Bin.
"Xiao Chen, how’s Beibei been doing lately?"
Chen Bin nodded repeatedly. "She’s been doing very well!"
Zheng Najiao, knowing her daughter’s impish nature, doubted she’d been behaving properly.
She looked fiercely at He Beibei. "You little rascal, have you been giving your Brother Bin trouble often?"
"What’re you talking about?!"
Exclaiming in surprise, He Beibei widened her eyes, her face filled with disbelief.
Chen Bin quickly explained, "Aunt Zheng, you misunderstood Beibei. She’s truly been exceptional lately, especially in her studies. She’s now ranked in the top five of her grade."
Though Dragon Mountain County’s schools weren’t prestigious and couldn’t compare to Tianhai No.1 Middle School, being top five in her grade was still impressive.
Taking a deep breath, Zheng Najiao finally relaxed.
He Chaoping, however, sternly added, "Doing well is only what’s expected. Otherwise, who would all her trouble be worth it to?"
He Beibei acted as though she hadn’t heard the remark, silently lowering her head to eat.
Near the meal’s end, Chen Bin’s phone suddenly rang.
Seeing that it was Zhao Xinmei calling, he quickly picked up.
In a calm tone, Zhao Xinmei asked, "Tomorrow’s New Year’s. Are you coming home tonight?"