Chapter 167: I'll go to your place to wait on you

The next day, Xu Yanfeng arrived earlier than expected, just past eleven-thirty; Xia Xi came out of the library, ready to go to the cafeteria for lunch, when she got his call, and like a happy little bird she fluttered over to find him.

"Didn't you say you'd come pick me up this afternoon?" Xia Xi rushed over and hugged the person waiting outside the car for her.

Xu Yanfeng rested his hand on her waist: "I've finished handling things ahead of time."

Only a few people passed by sparsely around; Xia Xi glanced around, seeing no one looking, she quickly kissed his lips—once shy, now familiar, she no longer needed to psych herself up; if she wanted to kiss him, she just went for it.

"It's a reward for you." Xia Xi's big eyes brimmed with a smile.

Xu Yanfeng held an immovable, mountain-like face, patted her lower back, and urged her into the car.

Xia Xi tossed her backpack full of books and materials into the back seat, then sat in the passenger seat, fastened her seatbelt, and said, "I haven't had lunch yet."

Xu Yanfeng started the engine, lightly pressed the accelerator, and slowly drove out of the school: "I was already planning to have lunch with you." Otherwise why would he have rushed to finish work at the company and come over? "What do you want to eat?"

This time Xia Xi didn't say "whatever"; she looked up a Western restaurant on her phone, showed it to Xu Yanfeng, and asked, "Can we have Western food?"

"I'll follow your lead."

Xu Yanfeng drove there following the navigation.

It was noon rush hour; the restaurant was full, so Xu Yanfeng didn't want to wait in line and asked for a private room, even though only he and Xia Xi would be there.

In Xia Xi's imagination, the weekend would be a pleasant lunch with him, then a lovely afternoon, but plans changed faster than expected, and that pleasant lunch was ruined by her rash action.

She made Xu Yanfeng have an allergic reaction.

The story is a bit funny and a bit sad: she didn't know Xu Yanfeng was allergic to beef, thought the steak tasted good, cut a piece and invited him to try it; he's also interesting—if he's allergic he should just say so, but instead he insisted, "Beef smells awful."

She had no idea of the real situation, only thinking he was picky, so she used her own method to "cure" him—she held the steak in her mouth and moved close to feed it to him, after all they were in a private room where no one would see.

She just loved playing these little lover's games.

Xu Yanfeng didn't know if he was stupid or what, but knowing he was allergic, he still swallowed the steak.

Just as he was filling his stomach, Xia Xi hadn't even had a sip of juice when she suddenly noticed he wasn't quite right—his face and neck flushed, a few red bumps appeared on the skin behind his ears; she reached over and rubbed a spot, anxiously asking, "What's wrong?"

Xu Yanfeng could already feel waves of itchiness on his skin; having not eaten beef for a long time, he thought a bite wouldn't hurt, overestimating his tolerance to the allergen.

"I think it might be... an allergy." He didn't want her to feel guilty, saying it in a flat, even tone with no emotional fluctuation, as if it weren't a big deal.

"An allergy? How could you be allergic?" Xia Xi gasped, jerking upright; her chair scraped back with a "screech," and she asked, "What are you allergic to?"

By now there was no point hiding it; Xu Yanfeng confessed honestly: "Beef."

"Beef..." Xia Xi uttered just one word and froze, her expression stunned, she lifted her hand to cover her mouth.

It was her fault; she shouldn't have been willful, forcing him to eat the steak.

Xu Yanfeng lowered her hand and then comforted her: "It's fine, just take some medicine when we get back." Actually, the allergy feels unpleasant; the skin on his neck grew increasingly itchy, even developing a burning sensation.

"Why wait to go back? Let's go to the hospital now!"

Xia Xi anxiously pulled him toward the exit, forgetting to pay; she almost became a dine-and-dasher, but the waiter chased her out of the elevator to remind her, and only then did she react, hurriedly scanning the code.

Xu Yanfeng: "It's not that serious."

"Shut up." Xia Xi glared at him and began to list his faults, as if an allergy were something to joke about.

Thinking back to past meals together, he indeed didn't eat beef, but he was considerate—if he didn't eat it himself, he'd order it for others.

Xia Xi searched for nearby hospitals; Xu Yanfeng stopped her: "Just take medicine, we really don't need to go to the hospital."

She glanced at him sideways; he gave her an affirming look.

Xia Xi relented a little, her gaze sweeping along the streetfront shops; she found a large pharmacy, brought him there, and bought oral allergy medicine and a topical ointment.

Next door was a convenience store; Xia Xi went in and bought a bottle of mineral water, twisted off the cap, read the medication instructions, then took out a pill and placed it in Xu Yanfeng's palm: "Take the medicine first."

Xu Yanfeng did as she said, put the tablet in his mouth; Xia Xi promptly handed him water, he took two sips and swallowed the pill: "All right, don't worry." He screwed the cap back on the water bottle and changed the subject: "Where do you want to go this afternoon?"

Seeing him like this, Xia Xi had no mood to play; a glance at the connected rash on his neck made her feel guilty and uneasy.

"It's my own issue, don't be like this." Xu Yanfeng pinched one of her cheeks, lifted it slightly, and said, "Don't look so down; smile."

Xia Xi couldn't smile.

Xu Yanfeng thought for a while, then tentatively suggested: "Otherwise, let's take you to the art gallery; I recall there's an avant-garde art exhibition today afternoon that's closing soon, tickets aren't hard to get—would you like to go see it?"

Xia Xi shook her head: "No interest."

Xu Yanfeng had no better plan; he stood by the roadside, his neck itching made him irritable, his expression gradually turned indifferent, giving off a sense of distance, but he wasn't losing his temper—he just didn't know what to do with her.

After a few seconds of stalemate, Xia Xi came over to soothe him: "How about you go home? Rest properly, and you can apply the topical medicine when you get back—combining both will heal you faster."

Xu Yanfeng: "And what about you?"

"Me?" Xia Xi wrapped her arm around his: "Of course I'm going home with you. Your allergy is my fault; I need to take responsibility—I'll go to your place to take care of you, okay?"

Her words were flawless, but her expression was off; Xu Yanfeng studied her for a while and thought she looked exactly like the wolf grandmother in a fairy tale who lures Little Red Riding Hood, saying she'll wait on him while actually thinking how to take advantage of him.

He had already lost control yesterday, being stimulated by her to the point of forgetting everything, throwing his original plans into disarray.

Bringing her home, if she were to do something improper again, he couldn't guarantee he'd restrain himself from touching her; his self-control in front of her was a joke, utterly feeble.

Xu Yanfeng silently analyzed the situation, then refused her.

Xia Xi always felt he had seen through her, but he surely misunderstood her; she was thinking of using stimulation to treat his hidden condition, but not to such a beastly extent—he's already allergic, how could she bear to torment him?

She raised her hand and promised him she wouldn't touch him.

But saying that only made her seem more guilty, as if trying to cover up something.

Xu Yanfeng's misunderstanding deepened indeed; he directly used the excuse that his family had a maid and didn't need her to wait on him, and refused her again.

Xia Xi's defiance was stirred; she still didn't believe it, thinking Xu Yanfeng could refuse her once or twice, maybe three or four times; if he wouldn't agree, she'd keep pressing him to see who was stronger.

In the end, Xia Xi proved stronger; Xu Yanfeng lost to her, agreed to take her home and let her wait on him.

He also wanted to see just how she would wait on someone.