Chapter 163: Of Course I Wanted to See Her Once

Zhu Yuan subconsciously thought that Sheng Yu couldn't eat spicy food, and if he felt Pei Ling was being passive-aggressive toward him, he might flip the whole table of dishes later, and then no one would get to eat.

She whispered a correction, "It can't be that absolute."

However, her voice was low, and she was turning her head to speak to Pei Ling, so to the others, it looked like the two of them were whispering to each other.

Sheng Yu leaned against the back of his chair, the gloom in his brows and eyes like thick, indelible ink stained with frost, his lips curled slightly in a smile that wasn't quite a smile.

The others at the table didn't dare to look at Sheng Yu's expression.

Yuan Fengye's habit of feeling embarrassed for others kicked in.

He cleared his throat; Zhu Yuan didn't seem to have realized anything, so he cleared his throat again immediately after.

Suddenly, Pei Ling swept a cold, sharp glance over, and Yuan Fengye, in the middle of clearing his throat, nearly choked on his own saliva, silently picking up his teacup to drink.

How is this Pei the Second's intimidation factor just like Yu Ge's, so oppressive?

Zhu Yuan was in the middle of ordering dishes when her whole body suddenly stiffened; a large hand under the table covered her thigh, the warm palm kneading her with light and heavy pressure.

It was full of warning.

Zhu Yuan hurriedly finished ordering, put down the tablet, and feigned picking up her teacup to drink, while her other hand reached under the table to try and grab the man's hand away.

But the moment her hand touched the other party, it was gripped back by that hand, forcibly interlacing their fingers.

The numbness spreading from her fingertips instantly permeated her entire body.

She looked at Sheng Yu with a normal expression, their eyes meeting.

Sheng Yu raised an eyebrow with that smile that wasn't a smile; Zhu Yuan's expression remained unchanged, but her feigned calm gaze gradually turned into a plea for mercy under the man's kneading fingers.

Only then did the man reluctantly loosen his grip, watching her with composure, "Is it very hot? Why are you blushing?"

"It's not hot." Zhu Yuan picked up her teacup and drained it in one gulp.

The waiters finished serving the dishes one after another.

The atmosphere in the private room was extremely strange and awkward.

Even the usually eloquent Yuan Fengye didn't know what to say; one was Pei Ling, who had no connection to them, and the other was Yu Ge's ex-girlfriend.

He suddenly forgot how this table had been put together.

Zhu Yuan was thinking about eating her fill early and leaving; Zhu Chaoqin had already been sent back to the Zhu Family, and she would go straight to the theater after she was full.

But just as she stretched out her chopsticks to pick up some food, the dish in front of her rotated away.

She stretched out her chopsticks again, and the plate rotated away once more.

"Arms too short to reach?" Sheng Yu asked her in a low voice, with a hint of teasing.

But Zhu Yuan clearly saw his fingers pressed against the edge of the lazy Susan; he was doing it on purpose!

Watching her look like she wanted to lose her temper but was holding it back, Sheng Yu placed a piece of spicy chicken into her bowl.

Zhu Yuan looked at the food in her bowl.

She hadn't ordered the dishes she liked; this wasn't what she had ordered.

It was what Sheng Yu had ordered.

She was furious throughout the meal, yet every time she got angry, Sheng Yu would put the food she liked into her bowl.

Purely to retaliate against her for coming out to eat with Pei Ling.

But fortunately, the dining table "Shura field" she had worried about at the beginning didn't happen; the people at the table were all young masters and ladies raised by major families, and they were very particular about table etiquette.

Of course, the key issue lay with Sheng Yu and Pei Ling.

As long as they didn't clash, the others probably wanted to finish the meal in peace even more than she did.

She ate seriously; a piece of meat appeared in her bowl, and she picked it up and put it in her mouth out of habit.

Suddenly sensing a coldness enveloping her, she instinctively looked at Sheng Yu, only to find that the dish from just now had been placed there by Pei Ling.

"Yu Ge, this steamed fish is made quite well; it's your favorite flavor, would you like to try it?" Ning Huaiqing's gentle voice melted into Sheng Yu's cold aura, and the chill gradually faded a little.

Zhu Yuan gripped her chopsticks tightly.

She heard Sheng Yu give a low "Mm," "Okay."

Zhu Yuan ate silently; that was fine.

Feeling inexplicably restless, Zhu Yuan accidentally bit her tongue; she gasped, and a faint, bloody taste quickly spread in her mouth.

Her movement was very small, and she didn't let anyone notice.

Suddenly, a warm hand pinched her chin and turned her face toward him.

She was met abruptly with Sheng Yu's deep, dark eyes.

"Open your mouth."

Zhu Yuan's mind was a mess, and she opened her mouth subconsciously. Sheng Yu took a look; the tip of her tongue had been bitten, and the bleeding had already stopped.

"How old are you, and you can still bite your tongue while eating?" Sheng Yu said with displeasure.

A surge of anger rose in Zhu Yuan's heart for no reason, and she swatted his hand away.

Sheng Yu placed the fish meat, with the bones removed, in front of her with a dark face.

She dared to give him attitude?

Zhu Yuan saw the dish of fish meat in front of her and was stunned; so he hadn't wanted to eat it himself.

Realizing what her inexplicable emotions just now meant, Zhu Yuan frowned deeply.

Her heart was beating very fast, very chaotically.

Suddenly, a cup of tea appeared on her right side.

It was placed there by Pei Ling.

"It's cool; it can relieve the pain," he said flatly.

After the meal, Zhu Yuan went to the restroom.

When she pushed the door open and entered, Ning Huaiqing was washing her hands at the sink; hearing the movement, she looked up at the mirror and immediately turned around.

"Miss Zhu."

Zhu Yuan nodded slightly toward her.

Ning Huaiqing wiped her hands dry and walked toward her, "I couldn't get away due to some matters during A Zhan's funeral, so I didn't return, and I haven't met you before. You might not know me; my name is Ning Huaiqing, and I am Xiao Chu's older sister."

"I feel very sorry for the things Xiao Chu did to hurt you before. I cannot apologize to you on her behalf, but I still want to say I'm sorry."

"It's all in the past, and Ning Chu has already received her punishment; you don't need to apologize to me," Zhu Yuan said magnanimously.

"Miss Zhu has such a good personality." Ning Huaiqing smiled slightly, said nothing more, nodded slightly to Zhu Yuan, and walked out of the restroom.

The group walked out of the lobby of Shengshi Restaurant.

Pei Ling toyed with his car keys, "I'll take you to the theater."

A warning gaze landed on her, and Zhu Yuan only felt her scalp tingle; she quickly said, "No need, I've already called a car."

She walked quickly toward the outside and ducked into a blue taxi.

When that taxi drove out of Shengshi, several black sedans hidden in the shadows also followed; others did not notice, but Pei Ling caught this detail.

He narrowed his eyes slightly, turned his head, and looked at Sheng Yu with a smile that didn't reach his eyes, "Still haven't given up?"

"And what about you, Second Master Pei?" Sheng Yu's tone was cold and distant, "Does a Zhu Chaoqin really require you to take action personally and detain him at the Pei Family Bank?"

"He naturally doesn't have that kind of face," Pei Ling smiled playfully, "Of course, I did it because I wanted to see her."

How much of this smile was real and how much was fake, no one knew.

Even Pei Ling himself did not know.

Sheng Yu's gaze suddenly turned sharp, "Let's go to Sheng Tang for a drink."