"No, no, no, there’s nothing like that! I’m not buttering you up, I’m genuinely complimenting you."
With these three denials, Leng Lingxiao became even more convinced that Tang Xiaowan had definitely done something mischievous and was purposely distracting him.
So, he pretended to be calm and started grilling threadfin, crabs, and oysters.
These were all Tang Xiaowan’s favorites.
"Wow, Huahua, why are you sweating so much? Come, don’t move around, let me wipe it off for you. It must be so uncomfortable to be sticky."
Leng Lingxiao cleared his throat and pretended to be unmoved, but Tang Xiaowan’s voice was too gentle and sweet; he couldn’t resist it and had to gulp down a few sips of pear juice hastily.
"It’s okay, no worries."
"Oh, do you need my help?"
"No need, this is a man’s job. You just sit there and eat nicely."
"Oh, alright then, I’ll go take some to grandma and the others. Oysters, big prawns, and...this, right, these two as well."
Just like that, Tang Xiaowan picked a few things she thought were tasty and easy to bite.
Watching her hopping away, Leng Lingxiao felt something was off, and it seemed like people passing by were looking at him, even two were covering their mouths and giggling, which was strange.
So, he glanced at Tang Xiaowan subconsciously again but still couldn’t spot anything unusual.
It wasn’t until five minutes later when Zhao Renjie and Cheng Shi came by with fruit that they both laughed simultaneously; Leng Lingxiao then put down the skewer in his hand.
"Master, it’s because of this."
With that, Zhao Renjie peeled a pink sticky note off Leng Lingxiao’s back.
"I am a pig, a skewer-grilling pig!"
Leng Lingxiao took it, immediately laughed, and then gestured a shooting sign in the direction Tang Xiaowan was.
Then, he coolly blew on his fingertip.
The playful Tang Xiaowan, of course, wouldn’t show weakness. She picked up a pebble and retaliated, casually throwing it, and it just so happened to hit the large pear juice cup in Leng Lingxiao’s hand.
The three big guys exclaimed in their minds.
"Tangtang, you dare not run away!"
With a loud shout from Leng Lingxiao, he put down his pear juice cup and dashed quickly towards Tang Xiaowan’s direction.
Seeing this, Tang Xiaowan ran for her life.
And just like that, they chased each other on the beach, and finally, behind a coffee shop, Leng Lingxiao cornered the panting Tang Xiaowan.
"You little rascal, do you know how many threadfin, crabs, and oysters I grilled? You ate so much all by yourself and still dared to tease me, spit it all out for this handsome guy!"
"Huahua, I was wrong, I won’t dare do it again."
Tang Xiaowan pouted, her large watery eyes innocently looking at Leng Lingxiao.
"Wrong? Do you really know you’re wrong?"
As his words fell, Leng Lingxiao suddenly embraced Tang Xiaowan and pressed her against the wall, his actions quick and catching her off guard.
"What are you doing?"
"Humph! What am I doing? What do you think?"
Leng Lingxiao smirked wickedly and kept approaching Tang Xiaowan’s flushed face, clearly ready to play rough.
"I was wrong, I won’t dare again."
"Oh, wrong, then okay. Considering you apologized sincerely, I’ll let you off this time. If there’s a next time... I’ll show you how fierce this handsome guy can be, haha."
"Yes, you’re the fiercest, annoying!"
Only then did Leng Lingxiao slowly let go of Tang Xiaowan, looking at her with a smug expression.
However, just as Tang Xiaowan took a deep breath and started to step away, Leng Lingxiao suddenly pulled her back into his arms and planted a dominating and forceful kiss on her.
"I was wrong... I won’t dare again."
"Uh... I can’t catch my breath... let go of me!"
Just like that, their chase finally came to an end, and hand in hand, they headed back to the original beach to continue enjoying the barbecue.
Huang City, a small apartment.
"Uh... It’s dawn... the sun is out..." Lin Xiaoxiao slurred her words, drunkenly pulling off the summer quilt with her right hand unintentionally.
"It’s still early, only eleven o’clock."
"Cold, so cold, so cold..."
Lei Ziyi carefully covered her with the summer quilt again, but worried she might get too hot, he finally just turned on the air conditioner, setting it to 28 degrees.
"You said you’d drink clear liquor; I thought you could handle your alcohol, but you’re even worse than me."
"Nonsense, I can hold my liquor, especially..."
Gradually, Lin Xiaoxiao stopped babbling drunkenly and only occasionally snored. During this, Lei Ziyi didn’t dare to touch even her hand, fearful she might wake up and get angry and leave.
He cherished this opportunity to be alone with her.
Du Jiahao, who had a very high tolerance for alcohol, was still sober when he left. About fifteen minutes later, he sent a message to Lei Ziyi.
[A rare opportunity, good luck to you.]
With just a few simple words, Lei Ziyi understood Du Jiahao’s intention. He looked up at Lin Xiaoxiao, then replied with a smile: [Uh, understood, thanks!]
Lei Ziyi was a top-notch hacker, already famed for his feats at a young age.
However, before dinner, Lin Xiaoxiao, while Lei Ziyi was out buying more liquor, had installed two pinhole cameras in the apartment, and he returned without noticing a thing.
In the virtual world of the internet, he had many avid fans and was admired by many. Yet, in reality, in front of Lin Xiaoxiao, he just wanted to be an ordinary, good man.
Love is intoxicating, but it can also lead astray.
A moment later, Lei Ziyi turned off the living room lights and quickly stepped into the bedroom to start working.
His fingers danced over the keyboard like agile dancers on piano keys, completely engrossed. Suddenly, his eyes lit up as if he had found something.
The computer screen emitted a dim light.
A hacker’s instinct told him that he had found what his boss was looking for—an important piece of information that could control the fate of the Leng Family.
Joy surged through him.
As time ticked away with the tapping of the keyboard, Lei Ziyi’s forehead began to bead with sweat.
Yet at that moment, a creaking sound came from outside the door, accompanied by soft footsteps.
Lei Ziyi’s heart leaped to his throat. He clumsily shut down his computer, quickly got up, and left the swivel chair.
Upon opening the door, he saw a staggering Lin Xiaoxiao, who seemed to be headed to the bathroom. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ NoveI★Fire.net
Lei Ziyi finally breathed a sigh of relief; he had thought someone had secretly entered his private space, but it was just a false alarm.
"Xiao Xiao, you’re awake."
He hurried over, intending to help her.
But as if in a reflex, Lin Xiaoxiao grunted and pushed him away, then continued into the bathroom unsteadily on her own.
It seemed the alcohol was still affecting her!
A profound sense of loss suddenly washed over Lei Ziyi.
However, it quickly dissipated.
He understood that she still needed time, and he would wait for her to truly fall in love with him, to let down her guard.
So, not until Lin Xiaoxiao came out of the bathroom and lay back down on the couch did Lei Ziyi sit back down at his computer desk and continue working.
After midnight, silence enveloped everything.
Lei Ziyi’s thoughts wildly fluctuated. He didn’t know what the future held, but at that moment, he deeply wished to give Lin Xiaoxiao a secure home.