The cool breeze drifted through the night, with a streetlamp every so often, light and shadow alternating.
This path led to the boardwalk connecting to the villa.
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 reminds me of one back in my hometown," Chen Si Yang said, breaking the brief silence.
Tang Zhi Chu didn't respond. Instead, he asked, "So, did you have fun today?"
"I guess I did."
"What do you mean, 'I guess'? Did you get hurt?"
"Then do you think I had fun?" Chen Si Yang turned to look at Tang Zhi Chu.
Tang Zhi Chu nodded. "You definitely did. You smiled a lot, at least."
"I think so too. So, you're still pretty charming. You should talk more, have more conversations. Once you're lying in the ground, you won't be able to talk even if you want to." Chen Si Yang grinned.
Tang Zhi Chu said, "Well, thank you."
Chen Si Yang copied Tang Zhi Chu, nudging him with her elbow. Then she jogged toward the villa, grinning.
When she reached the entrance and saw Tang Zhi Chu hadn't caught up, she turned around to wait for him.
"Hurry up, Old Tang."
"Old Tang?"
"Yeah. You barely talk and you're always so slow. If you're not old, who is?"
"Better than some people who look miserable all day."
Chen Si Yang glared. "Who's miserable?"
When Tang Zhi Chu came close, he snatched the bucket hat off Chen Si Yang's head and put it on his own. He lowered his head until passersby could see little more than his nose.
Then Tang Zhi Chu lifted his head and looked down at Chen Si Yang over his nose. "How's this look? Don't I seem like I've got a huge grudge against the world?"
Chen Si Yang burst out laughing and punched him. "I'm going for cool. You look like you've got something seriously wrong with you."
"We're the same. If you say I'm sick, then you're sick too."
"Pfft, you're the one who's sick!"
After fooling around for a while, they pushed the door open.
They changed their shoes and went inside, where they found four pairs of strange-looking eyes staring at them.
Everyone was in the living room, looking at the photos Huang Ze Jun had taken.
They'd all heard Tang Zhi Chu and Chen Si Yang horsing around.
From the others' perspective, seeing Tang Zhi Chu and Chen Si Yang like this was downright bizarre.
Without her hat, Chen Si Yang looked even prettier. She was the very picture of fair skin and beauty, and seemed more approachable and lively.
But Chen Si Yang's hat was on Tang Zhi Chu's head.
"You—you're all back. Good evening. I-I'll head upstairs first." Chen Si Yang sensed something was off and hurried upstairs. At the top of the stairs, she even turned back to glare at Tang Zhi Chu.
Tang Zhi Chu shrugged. He didn't feel anything in particular.
What, was Old Tang not good enough to pursue a goddess?
The four pairs of eyes followed Chen Si Yang upstairs, then all turned to Tang Zhi Chu once she was gone.
They'd all noticed the change in Chen Si Yang. She wasn't as aloof as before; she had some of the liveliness that belonged to someone her age.
"Where'd you two go?" Yang Jia Xing asked, his expression blank.
Tang Zhi Chu poured himself a glass of water and casually replied, "Just watched a movie."
Yang Jia Xing: "???"
They just watched a movie?
Could one movie really change Chen Si Yang that much?
And somehow get her hat onto your head?
The others' expressions grew even stranger.
Tang Zhi Chu was a man of few words, not someone who seemed to joke around.
If he said they watched a movie, then they must have watched a movie.
That fit his personality. He looked like the kind of guy who had no idea how to win a woman over.
But how had it worked so well?
Yang Jia Xing rubbed his temples, feeling a tightness in his chest.
Huang Ze Jun had always felt he was overlooking something. At that very moment, a sudden realization struck him, and he stared at Tang Zhi Chu in disbelief.
Tang Zhi Chu got text messages every day. Who was sending them?
Huang Ze Jun had assumed it was Zhou Yun, since Zhou Yun was friendly with everyone. But when it mattered, Zhou Yun always chose Yang Jia Xing.
Could it be that the messages Tang Zhi Chu received had actually been coming from Chen Si Yang all along?
Once Huang Ze Jun figured it out, it all suddenly made sense.
Was that why Tang Zhi Chu had stepped forward yesterday, when everyone wanted to hear Chen Si Yang sing?
Huang Ze Jun suddenly felt that this Tang guy was a lot more inscrutable than he'd thought. That was the only way to explain Chen Si Yang's change.
Watching a movie was certainly ordinary, but when both people were interested in each other, it became something special.
"Sixth Brother," Huang Ze Jun grumbled inwardly. He was shocked, and felt a little bitter too. Why did it have to be him?
"Watching a movie? Good grief, you two were out until ten thirty?" Huang Ze Jun interjected.
Yang Jia Xing looked at Tang Zhi Chu again, wondering what was going through his mind.
Zhou Yun seemed thoughtful but said nothing.
After her initial surprise, Jiang Lan looked downright gossipy. A celebrity and a small restaurant owner?
That sounded so interesting!
Late at night, in the men's dormitory.
Yang Jia Xing and Huang Ze Jun were both awake, unable to sleep.
Huang Ze Jun thought he had little chance of pursuing Chen Si Yang now, so he turned his attention to Jiang Lan. But he still couldn't shake the sour feeling in his heart.
If he'd lost to Yang Jia Xing, whom he'd always seen as his rival, he could have accepted it.
But that quiet Tang guy, who even seemed a little insecure, had beaten him to it. It was so frustrating.
"Hey, are you asleep?" Huang Ze Jun called toward Yang Jia Xing's side.
Yang Jia Xing was already irritated and answered grumpily, "I'm asleep."
"Hey, what do you think of Jiang Lan?"
If Yang Jia Xing had heard that question before tonight, he would have been very interested.
But right now, he felt it didn't matter much, so he replied perfunctorily, "She's great. Sister Lan is pretty and a career woman."
"I think so too. We exchanged texts today."
"Oh, congratulations."
After a brief silence, Yang Jia Xing suddenly sat up. Wait, Brother Jun and Sister Lan had exchanged texts?
Yang Jia Xing felt unsettled. He hadn't thought as far ahead as Huang Ze Jun, but now that Huang Ze Jun had brought it up, he understood.
So Sister Lan had been sending her messages to Brother Jun all along?
Yang Jia Xing hadn't been sure before, but today, while they were hanging out, Zhou Yun had said she'd sent her messages to him.
So Chen Si Yang had been sending hers to Tang Zhi Chu all along?
Holy crap!
That guy really deserved it!
Seeing Yang Jia Xing rub his temples again, Huang Ze Jun felt a little better.
Time to sleep.
The next day, Tang Zhi Chu didn't head out until eight thirty.
Wang Jun had sent word that his eldest aunt's family was coming over today.
As the only son in Old Tang the Second's branch of the family, Tang Zhi Chu had to host them.
Tang Zhi Chu took a taxi to the restaurant.
The restaurant was a two-story building, with a sign bearing the words Old Tang Sichuan Cuisine.
After Old Tang the Second fell ill, Wang Jun had taken charge of the kitchen.
There weren't many people in the kitchen, just four including Wang Jun. They'd only recently hired one more.
When Tang Zhi Chu arrived, he saw Wang Jun getting out of a van.
"You're here early," Wang Jun said when he spotted Tang Zhi Chu.
"Brother Jun, why are you still the one opening up?" Tang Zhi Chu asked.
He hadn't told Wang Jun when he set out. He wanted to arrive early and see what the restaurant Old Tang had built from scratch was really like.
As he opened the van's trunk, Wang Jun replied, "I was thinking I'd make some pigeon soup for Second Brother and take it over at noon. I also stopped by the market to pick up some ingredients that are hard to find."
The ingredients Wang Jun meant were the more expensive ones, like beef and ribs.
If they had the market deliver those, it was easy for them to pass off inferior goods, and the quality was hard to control.
Tang Zhi Chu nodded, then helped Wang Jun unload.
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