Damn It All

A cool breeze blew gently, with streetlights casting alternating shadows and light at intervals.

This path led to the villa via a boardwalk.

Tang Zhi Chu had his hands in his pockets, while Chen Si Yang swung her arms leisurely.

Chen Si Yang felt much more relaxed on this date.

"This path is a bit like one back in my hometown," Chen Si Yang said, breaking the brief silence.

Tang Zhi Chu didn't reply, instead asking, "So, are you happy today?"

"I guess so."

"What do you mean 'I guess so'? You're hurt."

"Then do you think I'm happy?" Chen Si Yang turned to look at Tang Zhi Chu.

Tang Zhi Chu nodded. "Of course you're happy. You've been smiling a lot, at least."

"I think so too, so you're quite charming. You should talk more, chat more. When you're lying in the dirt, you won't be able to speak anymore," Chen Si Yang said with a laugh.

Tang Zhi Chu: "Thank you."

Chen Si Yang playfully nudged him with her elbow, just like Tang Zhi Chu had done, then happily jogged towards the villa.

Seeing Tang Zhi Chu wasn't following when she reached the entrance, she turned back to wait for him.

"Hurry up, Old Tang."

"Old Tang?"

"Yeah, you talk so little and move so slowly. If you're not old, who is?"

"Better than some people who are grumpy all day."

Chen Si Yang glared. "Who's grumpy?"

As Tang Zhi Chu approached, he snatched the bucket hat off Chen Si Yang's head, put it on his own, and lowered his head so passersby would only see his nose.

After doing this, Tang Zhi Chu tilted his head up and looked at Chen Si Yang through his nostrils. "How's this look? Do I look like I'm carrying the weight of the world?"

Chen Si Yang burst out laughing, then playfully punched him. "That's cool, you look like you've lost your mind."

"We're the same then. If you say I'm crazy, then you're crazy too."

"Pfft, you're the crazy one!"

They playfully tussled for a bit before pushing the door open.

After changing their shoes and entering the house, they discovered four pairs of strange eyes.

Everyone was in the living room, looking at photos Huang Ze Jun was taking.

They had heard Tang Zhi Chu and Chen Si Yang's playful banter.

From the perspective of the others, Tang Zhi Chu and Chen Si Yang's interaction was indeed peculiar.

Without her hat, Chen Si Yang's beauty was greatly enhanced, perfectly fitting the description of fair skin and lovely features, with an added touch of approachability and vitality.

However, Chen Si Yang's hat was on Tang Zhi Chu's head.

"Oh, you're all back? Good evening. I'll... I'll head upstairs first." Chen Si Yang sensed something was off and quickly ran upstairs, glaring back at Tang Zhi Chu from the staircase.

Tang Zhi Chu shrugged, not feeling particularly bothered.

What, am I, Old Tang, not allowed to pursue a goddess?

The four pairs of eyes followed Chen Si Yang upstairs. Once she was gone, they all turned their gaze to Tang Zhi Chu.

They had all noticed the change in Chen Si Yang's demeanor; she wasn't as aloof as before, now possessing a vitality befitting her age.

"Where did you two go?" Yang Jia Xing asked expressionlessly.

Tang Zhi Chu poured himself a glass of water and replied casually, "Just went to see a movie."

Yang Jia Xing: "???"

Just saw a movie?

Could a single movie cause such a significant change in Chen Si Yang's state?

And she let him wear her hat?

The gazes of the others grew even stranger.

Tang Zhi Chu was naturally a man of few words, not the type to joke around.

If he said they saw a movie, then they saw a movie.

This also fit his personality; he didn't seem like the kind of person who knew how to woo girls.

But the results were too effective!

Yang Jia Xing rubbed his temples, feeling a pang of unease.

Huang Ze Jun had always felt like he was overlooking something. At that moment, a flash of inspiration struck him, and he looked at Tang Zhi Chu with disbelief.

Tang Zhi Chu received text messages every day. Who was sending them to him?

Previously, Huang Ze Jun thought it was Zhou Yun, because Zhou Yun was nice to everyone, but at crucial moments, Zhou Yun always chose Yang Jia Xing.

So, is there a possibility that the text messages Tang Zhi Chu received were actually always from Chen Si Yang?

Huang Ze Jun suddenly understood after thinking this through.

So that's why he stepped forward yesterday when everyone wanted to hear Chen Si Yang sing?

Huang Ze Jun suddenly felt that this Tang fellow seemed a bit unfathomable; only this could explain Chen Si Yang's change.

Watching a movie is indeed cliché, but if two people are interested in each other, then it becomes new and exciting.

"Old Six," Huang Ze Jun grumbled inwardly. He was shocked and also felt a bit hurt, with a sense of "why him?"

"Watching a movie? Good heavens, you guys stayed until 10:30?" Huang Ze Jun interjected.

Yang Jia Xing looked at Tang Zhi Chu again, unsure what he was thinking.

Zhou Yun looked thoughtful and said nothing.

After her surprise, Jiang Lan looked full of gossip. This female celebrity and the small restaurant owner?

It felt so interesting!

Late at night, in the male dormitory.

Neither Yang Jia Xing nor Huang Ze Jun slept; they were both insomniac.

Huang Ze Jun felt his chances of pursuing Chen Si Yang were slim, so his gaze shifted to Jiang Lan, but he just couldn't feel right about it.

If he lost to Yang Jia Xing, whom he had always seen as a rival, he would have been okay.

But to be beaten to it by that quiet, seemingly self-conscious Tang fellow, it felt so awful.

"Hey, are you asleep?" Huang Ze Jun looked towards Yang Jia Xing.

Yang Jia Xing was already annoyed and replied curtly, "Yes."

"Hey, what do you think of Jiang Lan?"

If Yang Jia Xing had heard this question before tonight, he would have been very interested.

But at this moment, Yang Jia Xing felt it was meaningless, so he responded perfunctorily, "She's fine. Sister Lan is beautiful and a strong woman."

"I think so too. Today, we exchanged text messages."

"Oh, congratulations."

After a moment of silence, Yang Jia Xing suddenly sat up. Wait, Brother Jun and Sister Lan exchanged text messages?

Yang Jia Xing felt uneasy, thinking less than Huang Ze Jun, but Huang Ze Jun's reminder made him understand.

So, Sister Lan had always been sending texts to Brother Jun?

Yang Jia Xing wasn't sure before, but when they were playing today, Zhou Yun had said that she sent all her texts to him.

Then Chen Si Yang has been sending them to Tang Zhi Chu all along?

Holy crap!

This guy deserves to die!

Seeing Yang Jia Xing rubbing his temples again, Huang Ze Jun felt a bit better.

Sleep, sleep.

The next day, Tang Zhi Chu didn't leave until 8:30.

Wang Jun sent a message saying his eldest aunt's family was coming today.

As the only son of Tang Lao Er's lineage, Tang Zhi Chu couldn't possibly not host them.

Tang Zhi Chu took a taxi to the restaurant.

The restaurant had two floors, with a sign bearing the words "Old Tang Sichuan Cuisine."

After Tang Lao Er fell ill, Wang Jun managed the kitchen.

There weren't many people in the kitchen, only four including Wang Jun; they had just added one more recently.

When Tang Zhi Chu arrived, he saw Wang Jun getting out of a van.

"So early?" Wang Jun also saw Tang Zhi Chu.

"Brother Jun, why are you still the one opening the door?" Tang Zhi Chu asked.

He hadn't told Wang Jun when he left; he just wanted to come and see the specific situation of the restaurant Old Tang had built.

Wang Jun replied while opening the back of the van, "I was thinking of making some pigeon soup for Second Brother and delivering it at noon. I also went to the market to buy some hard-to-find ingredients."

The hard-to-find ingredients Wang Jun mentioned were the more expensive ones, like beef ribs.

It was easy for the market to pass off inferior products for these, making quality difficult to control.

Tang Zhi Chu nodded, then helped Wang Jun move things.