“Can you drive?” Luan Nian picked up the alcohol. Shang Zhitao couldn’t drink, which was perfect for driving down the mountain. To his surprise, he saw Shang Zhitao shake her head: “I can’t.”
Luan Nian felt something fluttering in his heart. The plain and ordinary Shang Zhitao sitting across from him somehow made the alcohol taste better. If he savored the moment more carefully, he could detect a hint of boundless romantic feeling.
That strange desire he felt that one time in Guangzhou was now seeping into his body just a little bit.
…
Luan Nian put the alcohol aside and asked the owner for a bottle of cola, poured it for Shang Zhitao, and selected the most succulent piece of fish for her. She was a bit overwhelmed by the special treatment and hurriedly thanked him, only to hear Luan Nian say: “Thank you for treating me to dinner.”
Oh. Shang Zhitao, struggling at the subsistence level, was a bit stingy. If she could choose, she wouldn’t have dinner with Luan Nian in the first place. If she had to, she would choose a tasty but inexpensive roadside stall. After all, everyone had to live, and it wouldn’t be strange for Luan Nian to experience some of life’s hardships.
“You’re welcome, it’s my pleasure.” Despite thinking this way, she still responded politely. After taking a bite of fish, she felt she couldn’t let this treat go to waste: “You’re having dinner with me, does that mean you think I’m okay and can stay at the company for observation?”
“The last time I had dinner with a colleague, it didn’t prevent the company from firing him the next day.”
“Don’t scare me.”
Luan Nian glanced at her: “Have you considered learning to drive? You’re probably the first person at Lingmei who can’t drive.”
“I already signed up at a driving school. I’m studying for the test.”
“Study hard. I’m worried you won’t be able to learn it.”
“That’s impossible.”
Shang Zhitao grinned, her face flushed red from the steam of the fish pot: “Do you often bring your girlfriends here for dinner?”
“Do you always ask so many questions?”
“Hehe.”
Luan Nian ignored her and continued eating. He had drunk heavily yesterday and hadn’t eaten properly today. Now he finally felt his stomach wasn’t empty anymore. Not hungry, his mood naturally improved a bit, showing a touch of pleasantness. So he followed Shang Zhitao’s train of thought and asked her: “What about you? What do you usually do with your boyfriend during your free time?”
“I don’t have a boyfriend.”
“The one at the bar?”
“That’s my roommate.”
“Your roommate seems nice. You could try dating him.”
“My roommate is amazing.” Shang Zhitao sincerely praised Sun Yuanzhu: “He can do everything, and he has a great temperament, often helping me.”
“How does he help you? What has he helped you with?”
“Just… daily small things, everything big and small… he even accompanied me to register at the driving school…”
“So for you girls, that’s the standard for being good?”
“As a friend… isn’t that good enough?”
“It’s enough for being a friend, but he needs to work harder to be a boyfriend.” Luan Nian teased her.
Hearing Luan Nian say this, Shang Zhitao seriously thought about it: “So you’re very good to your girlfriends?” She was quite sharp-tongued. After a few bites of fish, she forgot who she was, daring to challenge Luan Nian. That plural “girlfriends” was deliberately emphasized.
Luan Nian saw her tilting her head up, in a posture ready to debate with him, and finally smiled. When Shang Zhitao wasn’t timid, she was quite entertaining.
Not only was she entertaining as a person, but her appetite was quite large.
“Aren’t you afraid of getting fat?”
“I’m hungry… I’ve only had this one meal today.” She looked a bit pitiful.
Luan Nian also thought she was quite pitiful and put another piece of meat on her plate: “Eat up.”
Their meal together was quite pleasant. As they were finishing, Shang Zhitao said to Luan Nian: “I’m going to the restroom.” She secretly went to pay the bill. She understood this etiquette.
“How much for that table?” Shang Zhitao asked the owner.
“Five hundred and thirty.”
Not too bad. Shang Zhitao thought that Luan Nian was still a decent person, not fleecing her too badly: “I’ll pay the bill.”
“No need to pay. Manager Luan has a card here with a lot of money on it. When we were catching the fish, he said to deduct it from the card?”
“What?”
Shang Zhitao was a bit shocked, recalling Luan Nian’s expressionless “You’ll pay.” He had said it casually, but she had taken it seriously. Shang Zhitao felt a bit foolish; she couldn’t tell when Luan Nian was being serious or joking. She had never been able to distinguish the truth from falsehood in Luan Nian’s words.
She returned to the table, sat across from Luan Nian, and cleared her throat: “Luke.”
“What?”
“Next time I must treat you.”
“There’s going to be a next time?” The expression on Luan Nian’s face was one of “Are you serious? You want to have dinner with me again?”
“Well, I’m serious.” Shang Zhitao knew she couldn’t see through Luan Nian, so she stated her position first: “I’m serious.”
“So what do you plan to treat me to?”
“I’ll go back and research it properly?”
“Don’t bother researching. I have many other ‘girlfriends’ to date. Today was an exception.” After saying this, Luan Nian stood up: “Ready to go back?”
“Yes. Just drop me off at the bottom of the mountain where I can easily get a taxi.”
“How considerate?”