Chapter 161: Bear With It (Begging for Monthly Tickets, Begging for Rewards)

In a small, plainly decorated private room, the lighting here wasn't all that bright, giving it a somewhat dim atmosphere.

Fang Hong and Liu Tianxian sat facing each other, with a large whole fish on the table between them, along with a few side dishes and desserts.

"This seems to be the first time we've gone out to eat alone, doesn't it?" Fang Hong said.

"Yes, there were always other people around before."

Liu Tianxian thought about it — after talking for so long, it really was the first time they'd gone out on a date to eat alone.

They'd done far too little of what couples do.

She used her own chopsticks to scrape meat off the fish and placed it in Fang Hong's bowl: "This place tastes great. I come here often with friends. You should try it."

Quite the attentive gesture.

"Did you ever go out to eat alone with Zeng Yike before?" Fang Hong asked between bites.

Liu Tianxian glanced at him: "We did."

"Did you do anything else?" Fang Hong asked again.

"That's a strange question. What could two girls possibly do together?" Liu Tianxian shot him a look.

"Hey, that's not necessarily true. Sometimes two girls do more things together than a guy and a girl do." Fang Hong laughed.

"Just eat, will you? So much talk." Liu Tianxian picked up a piece of vegetable and tossed it into his bowl.

Always saying things that have nothing to do with anything.

The two chatted and laughed as they ate the fish, a rare moment of relaxation — before this, they'd always been busy busy, and always arguing too.

Liu Tianxian put a piece of fish in her mouth, set the bone on the table — looking quite refined — and asked: "How's your mom been lately?"

"She's fine, just keeps nagging about you." Fang Hong said.

Liu Tianxian hadn't been to his house in a long time either.

The last time she went was during New Year's, and in the blink of an eye almost another year had passed — except last time the two of them weren't that close yet.

She'd deliberately kept her distance, not wanting things to develop too fast and give the elders the wrong idea.

But over this past year, Fang Hong had been the one constantly running over to her place — quite the thoughtful one!

Seeing her stay silent, Fang Hong picked up a piece of fish and put it in her bowl, probing: "When you have time, you could go see her."

"Okay."

Liu Tianxian nodded in agreement, put that piece of fish in her mouth and ate it, then let out an "Ugh," her expression freezing.

"What's wrong?" Fang Hong asked with concern.

Liu Tianxian opened her mouth wide, repeatedly pointing at her own mouth, and said in a muffled voice: "Ugh, a fish bone is stuck in my throat."

When she spoke, her mouth didn't move — she wasn't speaking with her mouth, but with her throat and chest cavity.

Not only was it muffled, her voice had even changed — it might be stuck pretty deep. "What?" Fang Hong hurriedly stood up to take a look, peered down at her mouth from above: "You're really too careless."

"Hurry up and help me get it out."

Liu Tianxian tilted her head back, mouth open, face flushed red — whether from the bone or from holding still, it was hard to tell.

That pose had a certain allure to it, a certain Feifei-worthy quality.

"How am I supposed to get it out? I don't have any tools. I'd better go find you a doctor."

Fang Hong glanced deep into her mouth and throat, growing anxious as he reached for his phone.

Liu Tianxian waved her hand, then pointed at his hand, indicating he should just use that.

She didn't dare move — any movement hurt; the bone was lodged in the flesh.

"Is it really okay to use this?" Fang Hong raised his own hand.

"If not this, then what? Hurry up." Liu Tianxian was getting impatient — so much nonsense.

"Then let me wash my hands first, don't rush me."

Saying that, Fang Hong ran out, washed his hands quickly in the restroom, and even rubbed them with hand soap.

This was a deep-throat situation — one ought to have a sense of ceremony about it.

When he came back, Liu Tianxian was still in the same position, head tilted back, her eyes signaling him to hurry up.

Fang Hong walked up to her, pressed one hand on her forehead to keep her from moving and making it hard to work: "Bear with it."

Liu Tianxian gave a slight nod, then felt two fingers slide into her mouth — a feeling of being invaded.

The feeling wasn't pleasant; she could only endure it.

Her mouth was warm and slick, her tongue brushing past every now and then. As he went deeper, Fang Hong felt the space for his two fingers getting narrower and narrower, even a bit tight.

Liu Tianxian cooperated as best she could, opening her mouth as wide as possible.

Fang Hong's expression was serious, his gaze carefully fixed on the inside of Liu Tianxian's mouth, trying to locate that pesky bone.

His hand kept groping around.

Liu Tianxian watched the man with wide eyes — in this position, she could only watch.

And she could see everything especially clearly.

After a bout of groping, Fang Hong found the bone, pinching something shiny between his fingers.

"Throw it away." Liu Tianxian saw it too.

Fang Hong tossed the bone into the trash can, pulled out two paper towels to wipe his hands, then asked: "How do you feel?" "Much better!"

Liu Tianxian picked up the water on the table, took a sip, rinsed her mouth, then spat it out.

She felt much better, and her voice had returned to normal.

"Didn't you feel any pain or anything?" Fang Hong sat back in his seat, looking every bit the concerned party.

"Just hurry up and eat, let's go when you're done."

Liu Tianxian waved a hand — of course she'd felt pain, she just didn't want to say so, finding it embarrassing.

"Aren't you going to eat?" Fang Hong said.

"I'm not eating anymore, you eat." Liu Tianxian had been spooked by getting a bone stuck and lost her appetite.

"Go ahead and eat, it's fine. If you get another bone stuck, I'll fish it out for you again — this time I've got experience." Fang Hong said with a smile.

"I've grown up this big and never once had a fish bone stuck in my throat. It only happened after eating the fish you picked out for me — what a joke. Are you my nemesis or what?" Liu Tianxian leaned forward.

"How can you call that being a nemesis? This is what life is — supporting each other, holding each other up. Life always has some difficulties that need mutual help and mutual overcoming. Get it?" Fang Hong said.

"How is it that no matter what it is, you can always spin it into some grand philosophy out of your mouth." Liu Tianxian pressed her lips together and smiled.

She had returned to how she was before.

"That's called being rich in life experience — you've still got a lot to learn." Fang Hong wore the look of someone who'd been through it all.

"Pfft, how old are you even, to be 'rich in experience'?"

When Liu Tianxian said this, she also thought for a moment — this man's life experience really was pretty rich sometimes.

"Ambition has nothing to do with age. Just think things through. Plenty of people live their whole lives and are still ignorant." Fang Hong said.

Liu Tianxian nodded in agreement, then recalled something: "Let me ask you a question. When the thing between me and Zeng Yike blew up back then, did you ever think I was into girls?"

Back then she had said to Fang Hong: "Whether I'm into girls or not, others may not know — don't you know?"

And this man's reply had been: "I really don't know."

"I did think about it!" Fang Hong nodded.

"And you still talk about thinking things through — what did you think through!"

Liu Tianxian, fuming, got up, went over, grabbed him by the neck, and shoved him down.

Fang Hong hunched his neck, forced to bend at the waist by her pushing: "Let me explain."

"I don't want to hear it."

Liu Tianxian pounded twice on his back — "Thud thud" — she was determined to give him a beating.

Honestly — to think he'd doubt her sexual orientation.

"My head was overheated at the time, I spoke without thinking." Fang Hong explained.

"Hmph!" Liu Tianxian went back to her seat and ignored him.

"Alright, alright, don't be mad. Just take it that I said the wrong thing. We agreed — no more bringing up the past." Fang Hong coaxed.

Liu Tianxian's expression softened a little.

Fang Hong put on a smiling face and tilted his head: "Feifei, little Feifei, little Xixi, little baby."

"Pfft—!"

Liu Tianxian saw his silly look and couldn't help laughing: "Can you not be so childish?"

A perfectly serious person — every day in front of her, acting that childish.

"This is just how I am." Fang Hong spread his hands.

The two chatted and laughed, and quickly made up again. Liu Tianxian wasn't eating, and Fang Hong couldn't be bothered either, so he called the server over to pack it up.

"Why are you packing it up?" Liu Tianxian was puzzled.

"It's good. I'll bring it back for my mom to try. If we can't finish it, we'll give it to Heizi — no point wasting it." Fang Hong had it all arranged quite thoughtfully.

One person eats their fill and the whole family eats their fill.

"Just order another portion, no need to pack it up." Liu Tianxian, looking quite generous, told the server to make another one.

"Rich people really are different." Fang Hong teased.

"Cut that out with me. Aren't you pretty extravagant too, spending money all over the place?" Liu Tianxian said.

"Hey, in daily life I've really never been extravagant, and I've never spent money recklessly." Fang Hong said.

He only threw money around in his career — in daily life he really hadn't been that extravagant.

Liu Tianxian thought about it, and it did seem to be the case. The car was hers, the house was rented, the meals were cooked by his mom — he really hadn't been extravagant at all.

Fang Hong saw she wasn't talking and asked carefully: "You're really not into girls, right?"

Liu Tianxian's face immediately fell. She grabbed her bag and left, not wanting to say another word to this man.

"Hey hey, I was just kidding, don't be mad." Fang Hong hurried after her, and slapped his own mouth — what a loose tongue.

"Sir, your packed fish!" The server, seeing the two about to run off, called out quickly.

"Thanks!"

Fang Hong ran back and picked up the packed fish.

(End of chapter)