The trio sitting nearby panicked as if they had stepped on a live wire. One took the long way around Xianyu's table to ask a staff member for tissues, while another frantically tried to cover the third person's mouth.
Xianyu had wanted to listen closely to Jingliu, but with the people beside them causing such a commotion, he could no longer focus.
How could they cover someone's mouth when he was choking on milk tea? If they handled this wrong, it could end very badly.
"Give me a moment."
Seeing that someone was about to die right beside him, Xianyu could no longer spare any attention for Jingliu. He hurriedly rummaged through the tissues on their tray.
He stood up, looked at the white-haired man coughing his lungs out, then at the accomplice to attempted murder, and thrust the tissues at the white-haired man without another word.
"Are you all right?"
Jingliu's gaze followed Xianyu. When she saw the people beside their table, her eyes suddenly sharpened.
The white-haired man was coughing with most of his face covered. At the question, he nodded hastily.
Seeing that the man was doing fine and would not drop dead on the spot, Xianyu returned to his seat and said apologetically, "Sorry, what were you saying?"
Jingliu withdrew her gaze, the chill in her eyes giving way to warmth. "I didn't cause you any trouble after I got drunk last night, did I?"
Ummm...
Being forced to practice swordsmanship until he ran out of stamina sounded humiliating no matter how he described it.
Without so much as a twitch, Xianyu said, "Not at all. Just remember not to drink so much next time."
He put his straw into the Peppery Soup milk tea, its surface covered in cream, and stirred, then pushed the other two flavors toward Jingliu.
"Want to try some?"
Like Xianyu, Jingliu chose the Peppery Soup milk tea. With an air of casual curiosity, she asked, "Why did you order so many? Are you meeting someone?"
Xianyu gave a simple, unadorned reason. "Because the second cup was half price."
"Oh," Jingliu said, copying him as she stirred the cream with her straw.
Xianyu took a sip of milk tea.
The first thing to reach his mouth was silky cream cheese, with just the right amount of sweetness. As he savored it, he noticed little bits mixed in.
The bits were salty. Only after tasting them carefully did he realize they were pieces of beef.
Xianyu: ...Why the hell were there pieces of beef in milk tea?!
Refusing to believe it, he took another sip, and the icy milk tea sent an ache through his teeth.
The milk tea was salty and spicy, with a truly malicious sweetness lurking amid the heat.
That mouthful was no different from torture. It nearly put his throat out of commission.
Peppery Soup was spicy, stimulating, and delicious. Milk tea was silky smooth and left you feeling happy after drinking it.
But while he could accept both being in his stomach at the same time, he absolutely could not accept them being in his mouth together!
Xianyu felt as though he had swallowed not milk tea, but frozen slush made by mixing Peppery Soup with cream cheese.
How was this any different from swallowing frozen spicy beef-tallow hot pot base whole...?
Damn it! I want to grab whoever lied and told me this tasted good, then force ten cups down their throat!
That single mouthful left Xianyu stunned for so long that he did not even manage to warn Jingliu beside him. He could only watch helplessly as she drank it.
Jingliu lifted the milk tea and took a sip. Her cheeks then turned red at a speed visible to the naked eye.
She chewed something with a blank expression. By the time she turned to look at Xianyu again, she was on the verge of tears.
Xianyu: *!!!*
Startled, he hurriedly picked up a normal-flavored milk tea, pierced its seal with a straw, and held it to Jingliu's lips.
For some reason, the trio beside them started making a fuss again. He could faintly hear someone squealing under their breath.
After glancing at them out of the corner of his eye, Xianyu ignored them and told Jingliu, "This one's sweet."
Jingliu tucked the long hair at her temple behind her ear, lowered her head slightly, and leaned over to take the straw between her lips, drawing in a large mouthful of milk tea.
Once Jingliu recovered, she frowned and asked in utter bewilderment, "Why was there a whole Sichuan peppercorn in the milk tea?"
"Huh?"
Xianyu could hardly believe it. He felt as though his entire worldview had been shaken.
"What a vicious flavor. No, I have to get Jing Yuan a cup and let him try it too."
As Jing Yuan's master, Jingliu not only refrained from objecting but nodded in wholehearted agreement.
She leaned against the back of her chair and turned her face slightly, her gaze settling on the three increasingly stiff figures beside them. With a soft laugh, she said, "An excellent suggestion. I think Dan Feng and Yingxing would like it too."
After confirming the number with Jingliu, Xianyu volunteered to go to the counter and order.
Once he had left, Jingliu and the trio beside her met each other's gazes at the same time.
Perfectly composed, Jingliu swept her gaze over their varied expressions before finally fixing it on the white-haired man, who was avoiding her eyes.
"Jing Yuan, didn't you just say you had something important to take care of?"
The white-haired man lowered the hand covering his face. Exposed, he gave a sudden jolt and said with an awkward smile, "I just wanted to try something new..."
"So you brought Dan Feng and Yingxing along too?"
The two men Jingliu named were far more mature than Jing Yuan. Neither so much as twitched an eyebrow.
Yingxing nodded, keeping his face stern.
"It's one thing for you two to join Jing Yuan in his nonsense, but why did you even change your clothes?"
Despite Jingliu seeing through all three of them, Dan Feng did not look the least bit embarrassed. Instead, he smiled serenely and asked, "How did the milk tea taste this time? Was it good?"
Jingliu: "..."
Realizing that all three had witnessed her interaction with Xianyu, she felt a sudden surge of mortified indignation.
The feeling urged her to argue with Dan Feng and explain her relationship with Xianyu, but the moment she spotted him approaching with three cups of milk tea, it died away.
Seeing Jingliu look behind them, the three turned as well, exposing their completely undisguised faces to Xianyu.
"What a coincidence."
Xianyu was surprised. What were Jing Yuan, the High Elder, and the Master Forger doing here too?
Wait, doesn't that mean they heard everything Jingliu and I said? Did I buy all this milk tea for nothing?
Well, I've already bought it. Jing Yuan, I choose you!
Without missing a beat, he greeted each of them, then took out a cup of milk tea and shoved it straight into Jing Yuan's hands. For some reason, Jing Yuan was beaming.
"Here. The Peppery Soup milk tea you recommended."
To Xianyu's surprise, Jingliu took the other two cups from him and pressed them into Dan Feng's and Yingxing's hands with a smile, her tone light:
"You came all this way to this shop. How could you not try their signature drink? Isn't that right, Dan Feng, Yingxing? Oh, and Jing Yuan."
The three fell silent for a moment.
Xianyu sensed something odd about the atmosphere, but before he could figure out what it was, Dan Feng was the first to open his drink. With a teasing smile, he said, "Whatever it tastes like, this trip was certainly worthwhile-"
The High Elder shut his mouth the moment he tasted the milk tea.
One second, he had been declaring the trip worthwhile. The next, the milk tea's heat had turned the little azure dragon into a little fire dragon.
"We're leaving."
Jingliu picked up the sweet milk tea, took Xianyu's hand, and headed straight outside.
Xianyu's brain instantly stopped working. He even forgot to say goodbye to Jing Yuan and the others. It was as though he had lost all sensation in his body except in the hand Jingliu was holding.
He let Jingliu pull him along in a daze. Only after she let go did he belatedly come to his senses.
Jingliu looked at him with smiling eyes and said, "Come on. Let's head back together."
Xianyu: "Huh?"
Why was he supposed to go back with Jingliu?
His home was right nearby.
Before you continue