Chapter 301: How about we not be together?

Xu Yanfeng lifted his head, his neck resting on the sofa back, his eyes fixed straight on the ceiling; the sound of water from the bathroom reached his ears, intertwining with the rain outside the window.

After a while, the water sound in the bathroom stopped, and a few minutes later Xia Xi came out drying her hair; seeing that Xu Yanfeng hadn't called for room service, she knew he wanted to go straight to the restaurant.

She said to Xu Yanfeng, "I need to blow-dry my hair; if you're hungry, go to the restaurant first."

"No rush." Xu Yanfeng leisurely flipped through the travel magazine on the table, lifting his head briefly then lowering it again.

Xia Xi returned to the bathroom, picked up the hair dryer, and blew her hair dry.

Amid the buzzing, she faced the mirror, thinking about how to tell Xu Yanfeng.

She had originally planned to bring up reconciliation after returning, but now Xu Yanfeng had come "to kill," so she definitely couldn't brush it off.

The hot wind made her head feel dizzy; after her hair was dry, Xia Xi didn't bother with makeup, just dabbed on some lotion and went out.

"Let's go." Xia Xi only took her phone.

She wore a simple, comfortable dark brown pullover sweater with a wide neckline resembling an off-shoulder, revealing her delicate white collarbones, and underneath a cream-colored wool skirt that fell to her ankles.

Xia Xi took off her slippers and stepped into a pair of flat leather shoes with two crossing straps on the vamp, a ballet‑flat style.

Xu Yanfeng casually picked up his coat and draped it over her.

She paused, turned her head to look at the crisp men's jacket on her shoulder, pressed her lips, and softly said, "I'm not cold."

"Keep it on; you'll get chilly after a shower." Xu Yanfeng pressed the elevator button.

They arrived at the restaurant; at this hour there were few people and empty seats everywhere, so they randomly picked a spot to sit. Xu Yanfeng opened the menu and ordered, then asked Xia Xi across from him, "Want something else?"

Xia Xi shook her head decisively; she had already eaten a fairly full dinner.

The rain outside kept pouring, leaving winding traces on the glass window.

Xu Yanfeng closed the menu and said something to the waiter waiting nearby.

Xia Xi came to slightly, as if she heard him order hot red wine.

Soon, Xu Yanfeng's order arrived; he pushed the hot red wine toward Xia Xi: "Have a sip, it helps you sleep."

Xia Xi didn't refuse, cradling the cup and taking small sips, while Xu Yanfeng lowered his head to eat what was before him.

The atmosphere was quiet; Xia Xi broke the silence: "You've come, what about Zi Heng?"

"I sent him to his grandmother's." Xu Yanfeng said, "I was frank with the little brat about coming to see you, and he had no objection."

He naturally understood he couldn't neglect one for the other; he needed to get his son's consent first, then come see Xia Xi wholeheartedly.

Xu Yanfeng ate leisurely; Xia Xi finished a cup of hot red wine, he was still eating, but fortunately she had brought her phone down, so she could play with it to pass the time.

Xu Yanfeng waited for Xia Xi to bring up that matter, but she seemed to have forgotten; each time he glanced over, she showed no sign of wanting to discuss the serious issue, he couldn't focus on his meal, not noticing what he was putting in his mouth, and he was on the verge of depression.

Xu Yanfeng gave a low cough and hinted indirectly: "Did you forget something?"

Xia Xi slowly lifted her gaze, put her phone on the table, knowing what he meant, and feigned ignorance: "What?"

Xu Yanfeng: "……"

If he kept eating, he'd end up with a stomach ailment.

Xu Yanfeng simply put down his knife and fork, took a sip of lemon water, looked at her with a hint of resentment in his eyes, and said, "Rather than worry about when the sword above your head will fall, I'll do it myself." He took a deep breath and spoke slowly, word by word: "How do you want to change our relationship?"

While taking a shower, Xia Xi had been pondering how to bring it up to him; while blow-drying her hair she was still pondering; just now she seemed to be playing with her phone, but in fact she hadn't absorbed anything, she was still pondering.

Thinking she could delay a bit was a delay, but now Xu Yanfeng had proactively asked, so she couldn't procrastinate any longer.

All the thoughts Xia Xi had been mulling over were tossed aside, and what she said was the simplest and most direct: "Xu Yanfeng, I've thought a lot lately; if you still want to be with me, I……"

Xu Yanfeng's heart trembled; before she could finish, he gave an affirmative answer: "No 'ifs'."

There is no hypothetical scenario of "he still wants to be with her"; the fact is simply that.

"Listen to me finish." Xia Xi glared at him resentfully; she had finally mustered the courage to pour out the words buried in her heart, but when he interrupted, she felt a bit deflated.

Xu Yanfeng's fingers resting on the table curled into a fist, suppressing his surging emotions: "All right, go ahead."

Xia Xi: "I forgot."

Xu Yanfeng: "?"

Xia Xi threw the pot at him: "It's all your fault for interrupting me."

Xu Yanfeng held his composure: "Think about it again."

Xia Xi cupped her face in her hands, not looking at him, head lowered to the tabletop, stammering incoherently: "You, you're so smart; I don't believe you can't see that I can't keep pretending I have no feelings for you. So, we…… let's make up."

Phew, she finally finished saying it.

Xia Xi truly didn't know how her twenty‑year‑old self managed to do so many earth‑shattering things—confessing to Xu Yanfeng in public, more than once, using all sorts of means now remembered as extremely embarrassing to win him over… it could practically be called a black history.

After a jumble of random thoughts, Xia Xi suddenly realized Xu Yanfeng seemed not to have expressed his stance.

She lifted her eyelashes and glanced at the person opposite her.

He had turned to stone, completely unlike his nature.

Xia Xi tapped her fingertip on the table once: "What do you mean?" At least give some reaction, otherwise she'd feel her words were spoken to empty air.

Xu Yanfeng blinked his eyelids several times, his expression enigmatic: "You said you wanted to change our relationship—do you mean being together with me?" Then how absurd his recent anxiety had been.

Xia Xi looked at him and nodded seriously.

Xu Yanfeng glanced at the cup holding the hot red wine on the table—it was empty, not a drop left—and he felt uneasy: "You're not drunk, are you? You won't wake up tomorrow morning and deny it, right? Or how about you say it again so I can record it on my phone?"

Xia Xi: "……"

Xu Yanfeng, you're really talkative.

Xia Xi waited a good while; he still didn't give a proper response, so she had to ask: "What's your answer?"

"What answer?"

"I said we're together; what do you think?"

"Need to ask?" Xu Yanfeng raised his brows, his eyes brimming with a smile: "I've already told you many times. Besides, I've been chasing you lately; isn't that enough to show what I think?"

Xia Xi's big eyes were full of doubt: "You're chasing me?"

Xu Yanfeng didn't want to speak; could it be she hasn't felt it?

After a few seconds of silence, Xia Xi lightly commented: "You're pursuing me way too low-key."

"Well, it's not as high-profile as when you chased me in college." Xu Yanfeng nodded, affirming, "But it's not that different. Weren't you caught by my pursuit?"

Xia Xi choked, retorting: "Am I something you caught? I originally liked…"

She clenched her mouth shut, unwilling to say the rest, not wanting Xu Yanfeng to get too pleased.

Xu Yanfeng tilted his ear, as if to hear more clearly: "You said you originally liked what? Do you like me?"

Xia Xi wouldn't fall for his trick, turning the question back: "You said you're chasing me—how are you doing it?"

Cooking for you.

Xia Xi laughed: "How do I remember you were just apologizing to me? Isn't that right?" She ran through the whole story for him: "You pretended to have a car accident, I saw through it, I was furious, and to earn my forgiveness you painstakingly learned cooking—what does that have to do with chasing me?"

"……"

"Anyway I don't feel it." Xia Xi pressed on, "How about we not be together for now? You keep chasing, let me feel it more carefully—maybe I'll sense a bit."

"……"

Xu Yanfeng kept retreating, stood up, and walked toward Xia Xi.

Xia Xi leaned aside, making a dodging pose: "What's up, you gonna hit me because you can't argue?"

Xu Yanfeng gritted his teeth, suppressing a smile, grabbed her wrist, pulled her up, and walked outward.

Xia Xi snatched up her phone, forced to keep pace with him, twisted her neck to glance at the leftover stuff on the table: "You're not eating that?"

Xu Yanfeng spoke in a leisurely tone, seeming nonchalant: "Xia Xi, you'd better think first about how to beg for mercy later."