Chapter 202: Hip Bridges and Push-ups (Please Subscribe, Please Give Monthly Tickets)

2025.

The afternoon sun was just right, the sky glowing with a soft white light, carrying the lazy atmosphere unique to early summer; even the air was permeated with a sense of drowsy comfort.

After finishing lunch and completing the tasks that needed to be done.

Lin Xiuyuan changed into some light clothing and invited the manager of the construction team who had once helped him renovate the Small Tavern to the Villa.

After the two exchanged a few pleasantries in the Living Room, he led the other person straight up to the roof of the Villa.

Pushing open that roof door which had long seen few visitors, a gust of wind mixed with a little dust rushed toward them.

The swimming pool lay there quietly, its empty bottom covered in fallen leaves, dust, and the remains of a few plastic bags that had flown in at some unknown time, looking quite like a "relic revival."

This pool was not small, over ten meters long and five meters wide, with a shallow area partitioned off on the side, equipped with a slide and a few rattan chairs soaked in the scent of sunshine.

At a glance, it looked just like a small rooftop paradise.

The team manager couldn't help but squint his eyes, looking it over carefully a few times, then turned his head to glance at Lin Xiuyuan, his tone filled with a bit of emotion.

"Mr. Lin, having a pool like this on the roof... the cost shouldn't be low, right?"

The construction team Lin Xiuyuan hired here was from Huaxia, so everyone didn't stand on the ceremony and complex etiquette of the Peninsula, and every word was quite direct.

"Not sure, anyway I don't have to spend the money, as long as I have a place to live."

Lin Xiuyuan, who was asked, chuckled, half-emotional and half-helpless, "But it's also because it hasn't been used for a while, so it's just been left abandoned like this, until recently when the weather got a bit hot, I thought about tinkering with it."

"Understood, Mr. Lin."

After hearing this, the manager immediately filled in the blanks for Lin Xiuyuan, assuming the identity of a second-generation young master; this Villa was nothing more than a gift from his family.

As for money, the other party probably never cared about it at all.

Thinking of this, the manager looked around and walked toward the filtration system on the side.

Lifting the water pump cover, he squatted down skillfully to inspect it, making notes while he spoke.

"The system maintenance is not bad; the circulation, water pressure, and disinfection functions are all still usable. The main thing is that the pool needs to be thoroughly cleaned, and the diatomaceous earth in the filter tank needs to be replaced. After cleaning it up, then filling it with water and disinfecting it, it should basically be ready for use again."

"For the cleaning, can you arrange for people to come tomorrow?" Lin Xiuyuan asked casually.

"Yes, I'll arrange it for you right now." The manager stood up and nodded, "It should take about two or three hours to finish, and after refilling the water and disinfecting it, it can be used by the evening."

"Good, see you tomorrow then."

Lin Xiuyuan didn't drag things out and quickly finalized the time with the manager.

Then he personally saw the person downstairs, and not until the sound of the car starting up echoed outside did he gently close The Gate and turn back into the house.

The master bedroom on the third floor was quiet, with only the light from outside the floor-to-ceiling windows spilling in at an angle, like a layer of soft gauze, quietly spread across the floor.

Lin Xiuyuan stepped on the floor and walked slowly into the master bedroom; the first thing that caught his eye was a familiar little wild cat.

To be precise, it was Krystal curled up on the big bed, the quilt covered loosely, her little head resting on the pillow.

The whole person looked just like a cat basking in the sun, sleeping peacefully, with a curve of satisfaction hanging at the corners of her mouth.

Krystal's mood was exceptionally light all day today, and she was much more relaxed.

Perhaps she truly felt at ease, or perhaps it was because after lunch, following a "satiety leads to lust" play session with Lin Xiuyuan, she had shed the mask she wore outside and was completely relaxed in body and mind.

Lin Xiuyuan didn't make a sound, keeping his footsteps extremely light.

When he walked over, he just quietly squatted down, gently pulled up the quilt that had gone a bit crooked on Krystal to cover her, and smoothed out a strand of messy hair on her forehead.

Krystal, who was fast asleep, suddenly hummed softly in her dream, as if sensing a familiar scent, and subconsciously rubbed against Lin Xiuyuan.

Lin Xiuyuan smiled, reached out to pinch her cheek, then leaned down and left a light kiss on her forehead.

The next second, as if sensing something, Krystal's eyelashes fluttered, and she opened her eyes.

She stared at Lin Xiuyuan for a few seconds, her eyes still a bit hazy, but the corners of her mouth slowly curved up, "You're back?"

"Yeah, the pool matter is arranged, it can be cleaned by tomorrow," Lin Xiuyuan said in a low voice.

Krystal nodded, but suddenly reached out and hooked him, dragging him directly onto the bed.

"Then you should rest for a while too," she muttered, curling into his arms, "Who doesn't cuddle after finishing? Xiuyuan, you need to be a bit more sensible."

"Are you asking me to lie down and keep you company? Or do you want to go again? You're being a bit greedy." Lin Xiuyuan laughed in spite of himself.

"How is this called greedy?" Krystal raised her head, looking righteous, "I haven't even mentioned the fact that you went out traveling with others for so many days."

After finishing, she stuck to him like soft cotton candy, her whole body pressed into Lin Xiuyuan's arms, "And... I feel like I can only sleep soundly and peacefully when you are by my side."

"If that's what you say, you'll have to sleep more in the future," Lin Xiuyuan responded with a light laugh.

"Sleeping more is impossible, doing it a few more times is what's right."

Krystal looked up at him, her eyes carrying a bit of cunning, yet so earnest it was heart-stirring, "By the way, I'm looking forward to what kind of activities you plan to arrange after the pool is fixed? Just playing around by yourself, or..."

She paused, her eyes suddenly becoming meaningful, "A swimsuit party?"

Lin Xiuyuan paused at the sight of her eyes, then laughed, "Your tone sounds like you're implying something."

Krystal hummed softly.

The situation of the party during Dalongzai's birthday last time still left quite an impression on Krystal's heart.

Because it was after that time that the boy in front of her was snatched away by more than half, which still made Krystal feel a bit uncomfortable to this day.

As a result, Lin Xiuyuan had a slip of the tongue and said, "Ah, besides Zhiyan and the others, what kind of swimsuit party is there to look at."

These words made Krystal's eyes freeze, and she immediately sat up a bit straighter, "What do you mean?"

"Nothing else, I was just making a joke." Lin Xiuyuan, having said the wrong thing, suddenly smiled with a bit of a guilty conscience.

"Heh."

Krystal, sneering while staring at him, slowly leaned in, "Xiuyuan, do you know? Often the jokes people say are their most sincere inner thoughts; wouldn't that be the case for you just now?"

"Of course not." Lin Xiuyuan denied it with a straight face.

"I'm not listening, I'll just take it that you are." As Krystal said this, she suddenly pulled with her hand, pressing him down onto the bed, "Let's do it again."

"Again?" Lin Xiuyuan was helpless and amused.

"Of course we're doing it again."

Krystal leaned against his ear, her voice low and sweet, "Didn't you say... I should sleep more from now on? If you don't accompany me, how am I supposed to fall asleep?"

……

At this moment, over at Jessica's Apartment.

Having just finished a meeting with a business partner, she returned home in her high heels; the moment she took off her shoes, her whole body felt as if it had been liberated.

She then tossed that expensive bag onto the entryway console, walked into the Living Room, collapsed into the soft beige sofa, and let out a long breath.

Originally, she had planned to ask "Dalongzai" to go to the court to hit a few tennis balls this afternoon, but since Li Juli had returned, the sisters had all agreed to go play golf together.

Consequently, they had even politely asked Jessica if she wanted to join in the fun.

Just hearing that group configuration, Jessica immediately lost interest. That was a reunion moment for their group; why would she, an outsider, force her way in? To give people something to gossip about? Or to actively play the role of a social background board?

So, after politely and elegantly declining, she hung up the phone with a smile, and then she ended up in her current state—lazily slumped on the sofa, boredly picking up her phone to scroll through it.

After sitting on the sofa for a while, she suddenly thought of Krystal, who had finished her work this morning.

She immediately opened her call logs, found that number she was already far too familiar with, and dialed it.

She figured she might as well call her out for a meal, preferably bringing along that "personal attendant."

Beep... beep... beep...

As it turned out, this call rang for a long time—so long that Jessica thought Krystal wouldn't pick up—before it was finally answered at the very last moment.

"Hello, Jessica, what is it..."

Hearing the voice, Jessica narrowed her eyes, then asked nonchalantly, "Do you want to grab a meal together tonight? Didn't you want to eat that Italian pasta last time? Let's go have some together."

"Tonight?"

After Krystal muffled these words on the other end of the line, she immediately replied, "Tonight won't work, I already have plans tonight."

Although she was in the middle of exercising, she still remembered Lin Xiuyuan telling her at noon that Xueli had already booked a grand meal for her tonight, so naturally, Krystal would not break her promise.

After all, she had no intention of repeating the mistakes of the years she had missed.

Now, she was holding this long-lost Xiaoxueqiu in the palm of her hand, afraid it might melt.

"With whom? Hey, Krystal, why is it that every time I ask you out you're busy? Why are you so hard to make plans with now?"

Jessica asked again, her delicate brows slightly furrowed.

In truth, when she asked this, she already had an answer in her heart; she just wanted to hear from Krystal whether her guess was correct.

Sure enough, as Jessica's voice trailed off, Krystal on the other end of the line stayed silent for about half a minute.

Then, she took a deep breath and answered her question, "What you want to ask, Jessica, is if it's with Xiuyuan, right~ Hahaha, then I can only tell you, you guessed right, it is indeed him."

As Krystal spoke, her tone had dropped.

To this, Jessica gave a faint "Oh," and then fell silent for a moment.

Krystal on the other end also sensed that the atmosphere was a bit subtle, "Jessica? Why did you stop talking?"

"It's nothing." Jessica's tone was airy, "You... continue your exercise."

Having said that, she didn't give the other party time to react and hung up the phone decisively.

"Beep..."

The moment the call was cut off, Jessica remained sitting on the sofa, her phone left untouched on the coffee table, her whole body leaning back into the sofa.

Her gaze was slightly unfocused, staring at the sky outside the window, saying nothing.

The sky was a vast blue, and the sunlight poured down, bright to the point of being almost white.

It cast large patches of light and shadow in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, falling obliquely onto her exquisite features, making her eyes look somewhat detached.

At this moment, Krystal's words still lingered in Jessica's mind: "... you know..."

As well as that faint, indistinct sound, and... the slightly coquettish nasal tone of the other party.

"..."

Immediately, she slowly raised a hand to rub her brow, then lowered her hand again, leaning back against the sofa as if she didn't want to move at all.

After a long while, she spoke in a low voice, as if talking to herself.

"Krystal, you really are becoming more and more uninhibited lately."

Then, the image of Lin Xiuyuan appeared in her mind, along with last night's dinner and the message Krystal had sent her not long ago; she lowered her eyes and sighed with a headache.

Right now, she had the illusion of not knowing how to face this person.

Wimbledon?

Should she really go?

……

At the same time, inside Lin Yun'er's Apartment.

Today, her home also had a pair of uninvited guests.

One was the leader of Girls' Generation, Tai Xiao Ruan, and the other was the third-eldest of Girls' Generation, the truly well-named President Li, Sunny.

"Unnie, it's been quite a few years since you two last came over to visit me, what's going on today?"

Lin Yun'er, who was smiling as she served the two of them a glass of water, sat on the sofa nearby and looked at the two people opposite her with some curiosity.

Kim Taeyeon took the water glass and spoke with a smile, "Don't ask me, I'm just a small accessory who followed Shun Gui here."

Then Lin Yun'er looked at Sunny, "Shun Gui Unnie?"

Sunny gave a light cough and said with a beaming smile, "Teacher Li Xiuman asked me to come over to poach you and see if there's any opportunity."

"Huh?"

Lin Yun'er was shocked and didn't react for a moment, "Unnie, are you serious? Don't mess around, I'm starting to panic."

"If you don't believe me, just ask Taeyeon." Sunny shrugged, her tone quite relaxed.

Lin Yun'er turned her gaze to Taeyeon and found the latter shrugging and nodding with a smile, "She told me the same thing just now; it's probably a task, so just listen and let it be. If nothing goes wrong, Shun Gui will probably go to everyone this time."

Sunny nodded and smiled, "That's about it, just going through the motions; more importantly, I'm looking for some behind-the-scenes teachers to chat with. The new company is very short on these experienced grassroots staff."

"The new group's Variety Show is out, isn't it? It seems Teacher Li Xiuman is really full of drive."

After hearing the reply, YoonA also laughed; she didn't take that remark to heart and shifted to other topics.

Speaking of this, the three of them met each other's eyes and all smiled with tacit understanding.

After all, YoonA and Taeyeon, who could already get a little bit of red wine from the hands of the agency, really had no need to go rushing around elsewhere.

At the age of 30+, one might still be considered just starting out in other industries, but for celebrity actors and idol artists, they are basically already established and can semi-retire.

And when YoonA took the initiative to bring up this topic, Shun Gui also followed up by saying, "Speaking of this, looking at those young girls rising up bit by bit now, I really have an indescribable feeling; every time it makes me think of the memories of when we first debuted."

Then the three of them just sat on the sofa like that and began to reminisce about the past.

It must be said that after people reach a certain age, no matter how glorious they once were, they will always start talking about the past; this seems to be a law of nature.

As they chatted, Shun Gui went to use the restroom in the middle.

And Taeyeon immediately leaned over to YoonA's side, her eyes staring straight at her, "YoonA, what you're doing is wrong, isn't it?"

"Doing what? Politely declining Shun Gui unni? How is that wrong?" YoonA didn't understand.

"That's not what I'm talking about."

Taeyeon, who rolled her eyes at her, pointed her finger at YoonA's face, her tone half-reproachful, "I'm talking about this... you actually ate alone in secret; why didn't you tell me sooner?"

YoonA clearly hadn't expected Taeyeon's topic to veer so far off course; after a moment of stunned silence, she let out a laugh, "No, unni, I told you about this thing, but if it weren't for The Gate, would you have believed it?"

"..."

Taeyeon fell silent instantly, momentarily speechless.

And it was indeed a fact; before experiencing it personally, who could believe it?

A science fiction movie plot that sounds like a fantasy, just thinking about it makes it impossible.

But she still muttered unwillingly, "Then after I knew about The Gate, you should have told me."

"That's definitely not possible; if you don't hide and keep such a good thing to yourself, what would you do if it got snatched away?"

The dead-serious YoonA continued, "According to scientific proof, a man's Milk is often an irreversibly decreasing resource; with one more person and one more mouth, it's hard for it to be my turn. If it were you, unni, you would definitely hide Lin Xiuyuan too."

Taeyeon pursed her lips and didn't reply.

She wouldn't just hide him; after returning to the Apartment last night, she even had a dream.

In the dream, she locked Lin Xiuyuan directly into a basement, fed him on a schedule every day, extracted his juice, and even stamped him with an anti-theft mark.

Just as her thoughts were flying wild, Shun Gui came out of the restroom and saw the two of them huddled so close at a glance, her eyes carrying a hint of suspicion, "What the hell are you two whispering about?"

"Nothing, we were thinking about what to eat for dinner."

The moment she heard the voice, YoonA instantly returned to being calm, her smile gentle and harmless, "Unni, do you have any restaurant recommendations?"

"Dinner? No particular ideas." Shun Gui thought for a moment, her eyes brightening slightly, "How about... eating barbecue? It's been a long time since we gathered to have a meal."

After finishing, she added as if unintentionally, "Perhaps we could call Lin Xiuyuan, together?"

"Agreed." Taeyeon nodded immediately, her eyes flashing with an inexplicable expectation.

Only YoonA pursed her lips, her tone subtle as she spoke, "I think Lin Xiuyuan shouldn't be free, how about we don't disturb him."

Taeyeon raised an eyebrow, "What is he busy with?"

"I'll give him a call and ask."

Before Taeyeon, who had started speaking, could even make a move, Shun Gui beside her had already pulled out her phone with lightning speed and dialed, "No need for you, I'll ask him; maybe he happens to be free."

"Hey, don't..."

YoonA just wanted to stop her, but discovered Shun Gui's movements were extremely fast and she had already pressed the dial button.

Beep... beep...

The phone rang twice, then connected.

"Hello?"

Lin Xiuyuan's voice came through, carrying a somewhat heavy sound, deep and with a muffled feeling like he was underwater.

Shun Gui was stunned for a moment by this slightly off-sounding voice before she could even speak, "Xiuyuan, you... why is your breathing so rapid? Are you... running?"

"Ah, no... I'm... doing some training..." Lin Xiuyuan's voice was intermittent, mixed with slight gasps and a muffled background sound of water.

Taeyeon was startled, her eyebrows shooting up rapidly.

Shun Gui subconsciously put the phone on speaker mode.

"Ah? Training? Are you at the Gym? Do you want to come out for barbecue tonight?"

"... No, just... upstairs, over on the roof..."

Lin Xiuyuan laughed awkwardly twice, his tone still unstable as he gave an answer that didn't match the question, "Yes... I'm doing push-ups... there's a lot of sweat dripping, I have to put down a towel..."

As he spoke, he seemed to be choked by something and coughed twice, "Cough cough... that, it's not very convenient for me to go out, I have arrangements with others tonight, I'm really sorry, I'll treat you next time."

YoonA slowly covered her face to the side, shaking her head and laughing softly, "I told you he wasn't free."

"That's right."

After Lin Xiuyuan finished speaking, he didn't give them time to react, his tone shifting as he said, "I'm hanging up now."

"Hey..." Taeyeon just wanted to ask a few more questions, but the call was hung up with a "beep" sound.

The room fell into a silence.

The three of them looked at each other.

Shun Gui was still holding the phone, her whole body half-leaning on the sofa, her brows furrowed tightly, "He said... doing push-ups? And sweat dripping on the floor?... Is, is he serious?"

Taeyeon opened her mouth, but couldn't say anything, her expression as complex as if she were trying to suppress her imagination.

Instead, YoonA's lips curved, and she laughed lightly, picking up a piece of fruit and popping it into her mouth as if she had victory in her grasp, her tone relaxed.

"Look, I told you Lin Xiuyuan wasn't free, but you insisted on calling."

She looked at the two of them with a smile, as if critiquing two disobedient children, and continued, "Believe me sooner next time, unni."

"..."

Sunny rolled her eyes and leaned back against the sofa in annoyance, "Damn it, I'm even looping what that guy is doing right now in my head."

"Why do I feel like..."

Kim Taeyeon suddenly blurted out, "He isn't training; he's being trained."

Regarding this, Lin Yun'er hurriedly called for a stop, "Unnie, don't talk nonsense. Statements without evidence are just rumors; you are framing the victim."

As soon as the words fell, the three of them looked at each other and laughed in unison.

At the same time, in a certain Villa in Gangnam District.

A boy covered in sweat, having just paused his core training, stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, wiping beads of water from his shoulders while staring at the white clouds on the horizon, slightly lost in thought.

"That was close... they almost heard it..."

The next second, laughter drifted over.

"Don't deceive yourself, Xiuyuan~"

Time slipped into the evening without anyone noticing.

The sunset glow poured in through the Villa's wide floor-to-ceiling windows, and the soft gold plated the entire room in a warm halo.

After finishing their exercise, Lin Xiuyuan and Krystal took a comfortable hot shower at the Villa before returning together to the 2013 Apartment.

As soon as the door opened, a faint scent of scallion and ginger rushed to their noses, warm and healing.

They saw Xueli in the Kitchen wearing an apron, skillfully stir-frying dishes in a pan; hearing the door open, she immediately poked her head out from the Kitchen and ran out with a beaming smile to welcome them.

"Ya~ you guys are back."

Xueli walked out of the Kitchen, wiping the water from her hands, and walked quickly to the Living Room, as excited as if welcoming family returning from a business trip.

Then she looked at Krystal's glowing little face, smiled slightly, and immediately teased, "Xiujing, you had so much fun today?"

Krystal was amused by her and chuckled, shaking her hair, "I had a lot of fun, thank you, Xueli~"

"Since you had such a good time, it's time to pay your debt."

Xueli smiled and grabbed her hand, half-pushing and half-pulling her toward the Kitchen, "Come quickly and help me taste this soup; I feel it's still missing something, you decide the saltiness."

After changing into her house slippers, Krystal didn't say much; she rolled up her sleeves with tacit understanding and walked in, laughing while helping to wash the vegetables, "If I hadn't come over so early, what would you have done?"

"According to my standards, regardless of whether you guys are used to it or not."

Laughter from the two suddenly rang out in the Kitchen, the sound of the spatula hitting the pan and the background noise of flowing water weaving into the most daily and warmest melody.

As the two were busy, Lin Xiuyuan curled up comfortably on the Living Room sofa, with an exquisite fruit platter placed on the coffee table in front of him.

Chilled watermelon, peeled grapes, sliced apples, and a few pieces of fresh orange.

Then, while watching a Variety Show playing on the TV, he held his phone in one hand, eating fruit and chatting intermittently in the group chat with Park Jiyeon and Zheng Xiuyan.

Park Jiyeon: 【Oppa, can you fly over to Tokyo?】

Lin Xiuyuan: 【Sure, go open a Presidential Suite first, just ask Zhenli.】

Park Jiyeon: 【Not safe, never mind.】

Park Jiyeon: 【Oppa, look at the photos of these few houses, which one do you like?】

Zheng Xiuyan: 【Buying a house again? Jiyeon, there's no need to be in such a hurry.】

Xian Enjing: 【I'll buy it, Church fees.】

Zheng Xiuyan: 【Ya, Lin Xiuyuan, come over to my place tonight, I have something to find you for.】

Lin Xiuyuan: 【Then do you want to come over for dinner? Xueli is almost done cooking.】

Zheng Xiuyan: 【I'm working, jerk~】

Looking at the messages on the screen, Lin Xiuyuan typed while smiling, then lowered his head to fork a piece of orange into his mouth.

As soon as it entered his mouth, he couldn't help but let out a soft exclamation, "Oh, so sweet."

Then he tried a few other fruits; the chilled watermelon, the crisp apples, and the grapes were all full of juice and tasted excellent.

So he smiled and shouted toward the Kitchen, "Zhenli, where did you buy the fruit this time? You picked really good ones."

Xueli was busy stir-frying in the Kitchen; hearing this, she couldn't help but laugh out loud, responding briskly through the cooking fumes.

"Hahaha, I didn't buy these; Xiujing brought them over at noon. We didn't end up eating them, so we packed them back. If you like them, Oppa, I'll ask her for the address later and buy more next time."

Lin Xiuyuan chewed the fruit and replied vaguely, "Sure, ask her."

After this small interlude, time quietly slid into seven o'clock in the evening.

The aroma in the Kitchen became increasingly rich. When Krystal walked out of the Kitchen carrying the last dish of garlic-flavored green vegetables, the pungent garlic aroma in the swirling steam made one's appetite soar.

Xueli, who followed her out, took off her apron, clapped her hands, and shouted to Lin Xiuyuan in the Living Room with a bright smile, "Oppa, dinner is served!"

"Coming."

Lin Xiuyuan stood up and walked to the dining table, looking at the home-cooked stir-fried dishes that were colorful, fragrant, and delicious, his eyes immediately lighting up, "Wow, this table of food today is really quite sumptuous."

"That goes without saying."

Xueli sat down slowly beside him, tucked her hair behind her ear, her tone gentle and carrying a hint of pride.

"I've been specifically researching a neutral flavor between Cantonese and Sichuan cuisine recently, wanting to make some home-cooked dishes that aren't too spicy or too oily. Today, I took the opportunity to make a good meal for Xiujing to properly test the dishes."

Krystal coughed lightly and looked at Xueli with a smile, "What is this, Xueli? According to what you're saying, I've become a test subject?"

"No, this meal tonight was made specifically for you, Xiujing." Xueli smiled, squinting her eyes, and answered in a serious tone.

"But it was researched specifically for Xiuyuan." Krystal raised an eyebrow and silently scooped a spoonful of soup into her bowl.

The two bantered back and forth; listening to their bickering, Lin Xiuyuan felt his mood lighten quite a bit.

Then he raised his chopsticks and first picked up a piece of curry potato braised chicken; as soon as it entered his mouth, his eyes lit up, and he immediately gave Xueli a thumbs up.

"Wow, Zhenli, your cooking skills have really improved a lot. How about I open a channel for you called Truth Food Diary? After a few years, when the fan count goes up, one wave will be enough to earn your income for these years, and then you can retire."

"Forget it, Oppa, these are just ordinary home-cooked dishes."

Xueli was a bit shy from the praise, so she chuckled and lowered her head to pick up some food.

Then Lin Xiuyuan said earnestly, "That so-called Chef God of yours treats it like a secret seasoning whenever someone uses oyster sauce, and can make those celebrities scream and cry with emotion just by stir-frying some garlic greens. Looking at it that way, if you served this meal on your Variety Show, Zhenli, I'm afraid you'd be crowned the new Chef God of the Peninsula right then and there."

Krystal knew who Lin Xiuyuan was talking about, so she immediately laughed out loud, "Xiuyuan, stop making me laugh, or I might spray food all over your face."

"It's fine, I sprayed you earlier, so it's no problem to give you a chance to spray it back now."

The blunt Lin Xiuyuan said this subconsciously, which startled Krystal so much that she hurriedly looked at Xueli beside her.

Xueli, however, just kept her head down and ate quietly, as if she hadn't heard a thing.

Krystal then glared fiercely at the boy across from her; she could show off such things in front of others, but she felt embarrassed doing it in front of Xueli.

However, the atmosphere at the dinner table became a bit more relaxed and natural because of this little interlude.

The three of them chatted while eating, talking about everything from today's schedule to the Variety Show they had been enjoying lately, with bursts of laughter ringing out from time to time.

Occasionally, Xueli would tell Lin Xiuyuan about the progress of some work here, such as the preparations for a television drama and some promotional activities for the investment company.

Krystal pulled Xueli into a conversation about some interesting things from '25, then mentioned that after Lin Xiuyuan's Time Gate evolved, the two of them would have the opportunity and time to travel abroad together.

Throughout the dinner, warm yellow light shone on the dining table, the steam from the food had not yet dissipated, and laughter continued, as if they had returned to a long-lost sense of life.

Simple, daily, yet precious.

Everyone ate this meal with a particularly settled heart.

(End of chapter)