"Hm? Who are you?" Li Xian looked up at her, his face full of confusion.
The girl in front of him wore a dress that fell below her knees, with long hair draped over her shoulders. She had a heart-shaped face and big eyes, and her makeup was a little heavy, especially the light brown eyeshadow. Overall, she wasn't as pretty as Dong Linlin. She was no more than an eight out of ten, but still a beauty.
Li Xian couldn't for the life of him remember who she was. Judging by her expression, though, she seemed to know him quite well.
The girl blinked, apparently waiting for Li Xian to say her name, but his reaction disappointed her.
"I'm Peng Mengke! We were classmates for four years in college, and you don't even recognize me? That's so hurtful," the girl said, a little upset.
Girl... There were forty or fifty people in our class, and around twenty of them were women. Was I supposed to remember every single one?
Li Xian was at a loss for words. He hadn't interacted much with the women in his class back in college, and he couldn't even remember all their names, much less what they looked like.
Still, the name Peng Mengke did ring a bell.
Li Xian gave her a careful once-over. Her name didn't quite match the person he remembered, and he exclaimed in surprise, "Peng Mengke? No way! You've changed so much. I really didn't recognize you."
"Giggling... A lot of people have said I've changed a lot these past two years." Peng Mengke smiled and modestly said, "But it's not that dramatic. I just managed to lose weight... I am a little thinner."
"You've done more than lose a little weight. You're way prettier than before." Li Xian rarely handed out compliments. "The guys in our class are probably kicking themselves for not making a move sooner."
Li Xian might have been blunt, but he still knew how to show an old classmate some courtesy.
But while he said that, he couldn't help thinking: How was this just losing weight? She'd practically become a whole new person!
As he remembered her, Peng Mengke had been a chubby girl with little confidence who didn't know how to dress herself. She was nothing like the sophisticated city girl in front of him now. Compared to before, she was practically a different person.
Could losing weight really do all that?
Give me a break!
I'm not buying that poisonous motivational crap.
Li Xian had no motivation to lose weight. If sleeping could help him slim down, he'd probably be very motivated.
"You've changed a lot, too. You're much more handsome than you were in college. I wouldn't have recognized you if I hadn't gotten closer." Peng Mengke gave him a sidelong glance, her smile growing even brighter. She was clearly pleased by Li Xian's compliment, so she returned the favor with some mutual flattery.
"Oh, right... Chen Chao..." Peng Mengke suddenly turned around and realized that Chen Chao, who had come with her, wasn't beside her. He was admiring the decorative paintings on the wall some distance away. A little annoyed, she called out, "What's with you? An old classmate's here, and you can't even come say hello?"
"Oh... There's nothing to say." Chen Chao reluctantly walked back.
He was also one of Li Xian's college classmates, and they had once been roommates. But the two of them had fallen out over something during their sophomore year.
Chen Chao had spotted Li Xian before Peng Mengke did, but he hadn't wanted to speak to him, so he'd deliberately kept his distance.
Li Xian had noticed him a while ago, too. He felt much the same way, and they both understood without saying a word.
It wasn't a case of bitter enemies meeting and seeing red. They just couldn't stand each other, so there was no point pretending to be close classmates just because they'd run into each other.
Once Chen Chao came over, he didn't even bother looking Li Xian in the eye. "Well, well, Fatty. Life treating you pretty well? I can even run into you at Crab General."
Li Xian shot him a sideways glance and said sarcastically, "Holy shit, if it isn't Dog Chao. Didn't think you were still alive."
"I'm definitely doing better than you!"
"Yeah, it's a miracle you've made it this far!"
"Still better than some people. You put on a show to chase after a girl, and now you'll be eating instant noodles for weeks to make up for this meal, right?" Chen Chao glanced at Dong Linlin and said, "Miss, keep your eyes open when you're out. You don't want to pick the wrong guy."
"What's it to you?" Before Li Xian could say anything, Dong Linlin snapped, glaring at Chen Chao with disgust. "Who I have dinner with is none of your business!"
"Uh..." Chen Chao's expression changed. He was a little embarrassed.
Well, she's got some fire!
Nice, nice...
The perfume hadn't gone to waste.
Li Xian raised an eyebrow and grinned. "Do you understand human speech? It's none of your damn business! Go stand off to the side... Seriously, Dog Chao, you're just asking for a beating. You annoy people everywhere you go."
"You..."
"Chen Chao... What's going on between you two?" Peng Mengke hurriedly stepped between them. She hadn't reacted in time before, and now she was dumbfounded.
Peng Mengke knew that Chen Chao and Li Xian had clashed back in college, but she hadn't expected them to trade barbs the moment they saw each other. If she'd known this would happen, she wouldn't have let Chen Chao come over.
With Peng Mengke stepping in to mediate, Chen Chao quickly toned it down. He was pursuing her, after all, and didn't want Li Xian to ruin things for him.
"Sorry, Li Xian," Peng Mengke said apologetically. "I didn't know it would turn out like this. You two..."
"Heh... It's just like you saw. Nothing more to say." Li Xian sat back down, not wanting to drag things out. He was also giving Peng Mengke some consideration. "You should've left him hiding in the corner. Then none of this would've happened."
"I wasn't hiding from you!" Chen Chao protested.
"Say a little less..." Peng Mengke glared at him, then turned apologetically to Li Xian. "Sorry, Li Xian. We won't disturb your meal... Your girlfriend is beautiful."
As she spoke, Peng Mengke smiled apologetically at Dong Linlin, then dragged Chen Chao away, fuming and muttering.
After they left, Li Xian raised an eyebrow at Dong Linlin and said, "That was real nice of you... By the way, my classmate got the wrong idea just now and thought we were... you know. Don't take it the wrong way."
"It's fine, it's fine... Let's order first." Dong Linlin pointed at the menu. She wasn't sure why she'd suddenly spoken up for Li Xian. Maybe it was because of those two bottles of perfume she liked, or maybe it was because Chen Chao had gotten on her nerves.
"Right, let's order. I'm starving. Waiter..." Li Xian called over a waiter and opened the menu. "Salmon sashimi, grilled eel, sweet shrimp, assorted sashimi platter, sushi platter, ark shell, sea urchin..."
Li Xian chose the cheaper dishes: salmon sashimi for 48, grilled eel for 88, sweet shrimp for 49, assorted sashimi for 78, a sushi platter for 59, and ark shell and sea urchin for less than a hundred combined.
This restaurant specialized in serving king crab seven ways. Almost every crab dish cost over a hundred, so everything he'd ordered so far came to only around five hundred yuan.
Dong Linlin was treating him, so Li Xian didn't want to take too much advantage of her. If he were paying himself, he'd start with the king crab seven ways and go from there.
"Sir... Our grilled crab legs, crab congee, and crab-shell steamed eggs are all very popular..."
"Is your crab fresh?"
"Of course. I can bring out a live crab for you to see."
"Oh~~" Li Xian pointed at the menu. "How much does that whole king crab listed at 498 weigh?"
"About two or three jin..."
"That's a little small. Never mind, I don't want it." Li Xian turned to Dong Linlin and said, "Their crabs are too small. I'll treat you to a four- or five-kilogram crab some other time. Now that's a real feast. Take another look—anything else you want?"
Hearing that, Dong Linlin pressed her lips together to keep from laughing as she took the menu.
The waiter standing nearby twitched his mouth, not sure whether to laugh or cry. But he couldn't show it.
You're way too hard to please. You think the four- or five-hundred-yuan crab is too small, but you'd order one that costs two or three thousand?
He really wanted to say it, but he was afraid Li Xian would just come up with another excuse, so he decided not to invite trouble.
Dong Linlin ordered a bowl of crab congee and a serving of crab-shell steamed eggs, then added two hand rolls.
With Li Xian's dishes, the total came to around eight hundred yuan, which was nothing to Dong Linlin, who made over ten thousand a month.
The waiter went to put in the order. At a table two or three seats away, Chen Chao quietly said to Peng Mengke, "Hear that? That's Li Xian for you. A broke loser putting on airs!"
Peng Mengke looked at him with displeasure. "Weren't you roommates? Do you really hate each other that much?"
"Heh." Chen Chao held his teacup and gazed off to the side, saying nothing.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Dong Linlin smiling brightly and felt uncomfortable. How could a beauty like her possibly be interested in a fat guy like Li Xian?
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