Are You Allergic To Romance? - Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Then I’ll Dig In

Xie Mianzhi gasped for breath, looking up at the little savior who had lent her a hand again. At this moment, Jing Yuan above was slightly frowning, head tilted, looking completely perplexed, as if asking her what on earth was wrong.

Xie Mianzhi was speechless.

She was so embarrassed. Losing her composure repeatedly in front of someone younger than her was an experience Xie Mianzhi had never had before. What would people in the group think of her if they knew?

The decisive second Miss of the Xie Group is actually a coward?

Honestly…

Xie Mianzhi inwardly vented about her own incompetence, raising an eyebrow at Jing Yuan’s face, which seemed like a magnificent gift from God, yet her expression was so innocent. How could she have thought this person was so sinister just now?

This person was the only little angel who would take her home and let her stay at a time like this.

It was just that this person’s hands were too cold, completely lacking warmth.

“What were you just—”

“I was just about to say, ‘How can you be so good-looking!’ I suddenly realized you’re, well, really beautiful,” Xie Mianzhi smoothly complimented Jing Yuan. If she had voiced her dark thoughts from a moment ago, her savior would probably refuse to let her stay.

Good-looking?

Jing Yuan clearly paused after hearing this, unsure how to reply.

This sudden jump in topic was unexpected.

Once Xie Mianzhi was standing steadily, Jing Yuan silently released her hand and continued to the front to open the door.

Of course, no one noticed that the tips of the little whale’s ears, hidden behind her hair, were faintly flushed.

This was the first time a stranger had seriously complimented her looks twice.

Was Miss Xie considered a stranger?

She should be. Aside from her name, she knew nothing else about her.

Jing Yuan sank into brief contemplation. After all, in her two-plus decades of life, she hadn’t spent this much continuous time with the same person very often.

In her mother’s words:

She didn’t look very approachable from the outside.

That’s why she didn’t have any friends.

“Do you live here alone?” Xie Mianzhi, who was walking behind, didn’t notice Jing Yuan’s private thoughts. Her eyes were filled with curiosity as she looked at the relatively spacious courtyard. She didn’t think a place like this was suitable for a young woman to live in alone.

It was so remote and very unsafe.

“Yes.”

Jing Yuan’s answer clearly confirmed her suspicion.

It really was just Jing Yuan living alone. Xie Mianzhi was surprised but didn’t ask further.

Jing Yuan turned on the courtyard lights. The previously pitch-black courtyard was instantly illuminated by beautiful, soft, colored lights.

Tiny fairy lights were strung along the railing, looking out of place in the silent darkness but adding a touch of warmth.

Xie Mianzhi suddenly noticed some small, seemingly knitted objects hanging next to the colored lights.

“Oh, what’s this…? Little persimmons?” Xie Mianzhi walked under a string of colorful lights, looking up at the small orange objects hanging there. She tentatively wanted to reach out and poke one but suppressed her curiosity and pulled her hand back, considering the homeowner.

“A good year of persimmons (Shì Shì Shùnxīn, a pun for ‘may everything go smoothly’),” Jing Yuan explained, but then regretted the reply, feeling the meaning sounded a little childish.

After all, when she used to hand-sew these small items, her mother from the Abyss would always laugh and say she was fit to be someone’s gentle young wife.

But Jing Yuan disagreed. It only showed that her fingers were nimble, much better than her mother’s.

“It’s very cute and a good omen. I think hanging them here is truly wonderful.” Xie Mianzhi felt that hanging these warm little things was saving this gloomy old mansion, at least making it look less like a murder house…

Jing Yuan felt a warmth in her heart upon hearing Xie Mianzhi’s approval instead of mockery.

“Actually, those—” Jing Yuan nearly blurted it out.

“What?” Xie Mianzhi stared at the exquisitely crafted little persimmons, then turned to look at the mistress of the house.

Jing Yuan saw Xie Mianzhi’s rather elegant dress. It wasn’t suitable for her to stand outside in the night wind any longer, so she decided not to mention that she had sewn the little persimmons herself.

Besides, this wasn’t the kind of thing to share with a guest only staying for one night.

“It’s very late,” Jing Yuan changed the subject, reminding Miss Xie.

Xie Mianzhi nodded, of course knowing what she meant. However, looking at this solemn person, Xie Mianzhi wasn’t sleepy at all.

Teasing her into talking is quite interesting.

“Well, can I come inside your house? You haven’t invited me yet, so I don’t quite dare to enter,” Xie Mianzhi said with a suppressed giggle, gently hinting at Jing Yuan.

“Don’t dare to enter?” Jing Yuan didn’t understand. Was there a ghost in this house?

Seeing that the other woman didn’t grasp her meaning, Xie Mianzhi had to adopt a dramatic tone and explain: “I can only enter with the owner’s consent or invitation. I have a bit of OCD about it, theoretically speaking.”

Jing Yuan found it slightly amusing. She kindly took in a woman, and now the woman required an invitation to enter the house.

She demanded a full measure of etiquette.

She suddenly recalled the woman applying makeup at her car window that day. She carried that same innate, striking arrogance and flair.

Xie Mianzhi actually wanted to see what the honest woman in front of her would say. Of course, she might find it strange and refuse to indulge her.

Should she say something to lighten the mood? Just as Xie Mianzhi was about to speak again—

“Then welcome to my small home. Please come in, Miss Xie.”

To her surprise, Jing Yuan spoke the words of invitation, showing the grace of the house’s owner.

Xie Mianzhi smiled. This person was willing to play along with her.

“Thank you for having me, Jing Yuan. Oh, right, don’t worry, I will definitely pay you a high price for the accommodation. It will be much more than five hundred yuan. You should know I don’t look like a liar.”

As Xie Mianzhi followed Jing Yuan into the house, she was still explaining her damned sudden predicament. She wasn’t just giving empty promises; her “sports coupe is worth four million, but it’s a broken-down piece of junk.”

She was even fully capable of acquiring the resort hotel she couldn’t stay at.

Jing Yuan slightly curved her lips, listening quietly and nodding occasionally to acknowledge the other woman’s emotional distress, then went in to turn on the lights.

Instantly, the lights in the house came on.

It was extremely clean and tidy, clearly showing the owner was a highly self-disciplined and meticulous person.

Xie Mianzhi looked around. Honestly, it was a bit unexpected. She had thought this seaside house was ordinary. The exterior didn’t look luxurious; on the contrary, it looked somewhat gloomy, aside from the two lively, large ducks.

But inside, the cleanliness and comfort were highly impressive. She politely stopped at the doorway. Her high heels were dusty and unsuitable for entering.

After Jing Yuan put on her house shoes, she looked up and saw Miss Xie curiously observing her house. When their eyes met, Xie Mianzhi forced a smile: “Excuse me, do you have any spare slippers? My shoes…”

“Wait a moment,” Jing Yuan bent down and retrieved two pairs of brand-new, unopened slippers from the shoe cabinet, giving Miss Xie the choice. “Which pair would you like?”

Xie Mianzhi was a little surprised. This person really was a little angel.

She pointed to the pair in Jing Yuan’s left hand, a touch of gratitude in her voice. “This one, the pink one.”

“Okay.” Jing Yuan gently handed it to her, simultaneously breathing a sigh of relief. Fortunately, she had spare slippers at home, just in case her mothers or Grandpa Hong came to visit. All the items here were simply stocked according to her preferences. Before this, she had never considered bringing a strange woman home.

She was actually a little nervous, worried the woman wouldn’t like it.

Xie Mianzhi took an extra look at the shoe cabinet when Jing Yuan closed it. The leather boots and sneakers inside seemed to all belong to Jing Yuan, and the slippers on the top shelf were all unopened.

She really lives here alone. Has no one ever visited her home?

Where are her family? Her parents?

Xie Mianzhi suppressed all her doubts, changed into the slippers, and picked up her silver high heels, looking around. “Where is the trash can?”

“Trash can?” Jing Yuan looked at the high heels in the woman’s hand, stunned for a few seconds, then replied, “You want to throw them away?”

“Mhm. They’re dirty, and the toe is water-soaked. Leaving them here ruins the aesthetic,” Xie Mianzhi stated her opinion. She was always very picky, even if she had only worn them once.

“It’s just a small stain,” Jing Yuan noted.

“Although I’m a bit reluctant, restoring them will be very troublesome, and I don’t want trouble,” Xie Mianzhi explained.

Jing Yuan stared at the brand-new high heels with only minor flaws. She didn’t try to dissuade her much. After a few hours together, she knew the rich young lady’s personality. She simply told the woman to leave them there, and she would take care of it later.

The two walked into the living room, one after the other. During this time, Xie Mianzhi was quietly observing her surroundings and the back of Jing Yuan’s head.

She was truly too curious. This was the first time she had met such a quiet and mysterious person.

But she couldn’t ask anything.

“I’ll show you to your room,” Jing Yuan prepared to take Xie Mianzhi upstairs to the guest room.

However, the person behind her stomach rumbled again.

“Looks like that one lollipop wasn’t filling enough,” Xie Mianzhi said, pursing her lips and laughing awkwardly. She looked at Jing Yuan and asked softly, “I wonder if you have anything to eat? I’ll pay extra for all of it.”

Food.

Jing Yuan frowned slightly. Her refrigerator only contained milk and mineral water.

More accurately, in the freezer, there was the heart of a deep-sea creature, which she hadn’t finished from her last hunt and kept for later raw consumption.

While she could stomach human cooked food, during this unstable stage of her life, she inherited more of her mother’s species traits and preferred to eat raw meat.

This was also why she lived alone here, practicing self-control.

Xie Mianzhi saw that this question made the other woman fall silent, so she waved her hand and gave up. “It’s fine if you don’t have anything. I’m on a diet lately.”

A diet? Jing Yuan knew the pain of hunger was very unpleasant.

She thought for a moment and recalled that Uncle Lu had left a box of instant noodles in the cabinet when he finalized the paperwork and left, saying it was for him to eat if he was hungry when he visited.

She had never seen him eat such a thing.

“I have instant noodles.” Jing Yuan washed her hands and went to the kitchen cabinet to check. It was indeed a box of instant noodles.

Hearing this answer, Xie Mianzhi immediately followed her excitedly. Thank goodness, this person wasn’t completely unprepared. Although she rarely ate instant food, for the sake of not starving, instant noodles were wonderful.

She watched Jing Yuan effortlessly lift the box of instant noodles onto the counter, noticing how clean and bright the open kitchen was. It was so clean it looked brand-new, as if it had never been used.

However, several gleaming knives were placed on a shelf nearby, which felt a bit jarring.

“Will this do?” Jing Yuan took out a packet of instant noodles and showed it to Xie Mianzhi, who was still observing her.

Xie Mianzhi snapped back to attention and nodded vigorously.

She then watched Jing Yuan turn and take a pot from the cabinet below. It was also brand-new and unopened.

Xie Mianzhi truly believed this kitchen had never been used for cooking.

Seeing Jing Yuan wash the new pot, she felt a little embarrassed. After all, she had begged the woman to bring her here. It wasn’t right to also ask the owner to cook instant noodles for her.

“Um, Jing Yuan…”

“?”

Jing Yuan turned around, tilting her head to look at her.

The woman’s gaze was so sincere. Aside from the slightly gloomy dark circles under her eyes, she was as kind as an angel. Xie Mianzhi couldn’t help but think her limited vocabulary of compliments only stretched to words like “little angel” and “little savior.” “If you do it, I’ll feel bad. It’s so late to trouble you. I’ll do it myself.”

Although she had never lifted a finger in the kitchen and her family had a dedicated chef, she could still boil water and make noodles.

It was genuinely troublesome for the host.

Jing Yuan felt Miss Xie had enough self-awareness—it could be argued that the woman had been nothing but trouble so far.

But—

“It’s fine. You are a guest,” Jing Yuan said.

Xie Mianzhi was stunned for a few seconds by Jing Yuan’s sudden words. Her hands didn’t know where to go, so she instinctively braced herself on the bar counter and laughed, picking up the conversation: “Oh, well, I’m truly honored then.”

“So, I’ll cook,” Jing Yuan informed her. As the owner of the house, she inherited the manners of her mother, Qi Wenxi, and knew how to treat a guest.

Xie Mianzhi stopped trying to refuse, and instead, she mentally noted all these favors, intending to thank her with a large sum of money before leaving tomorrow.

When she saw Jing Yuan start cooking, she gave a preemptive instruction: “I only eat half a portion of noodles. I can’t finish one packet.”

At this time of night, it was essentially a late-night snack. As a beautiful woman who strictly maintained her figure, she absolutely couldn’t eat too much at night, no matter how hungry she was.

Yet, as Xie Mianzhi made the request, her stomach was still rumbling.

Jing Yuan nodded in agreement. While Xie Mianzhi was in the washroom, she opened two packets of noodles.

The cooking stopped, and the long-awaited aroma of food wafted over as Xie Mianzhi returned.

“Can I come in?” Xie Mianzhi stood by the bar counter, asking Jing Yuan in a light, lazy voice. This was the third time she had asked, the previous time being for the washroom. She was very polite.

Jing Yuan was initially reluctant, as Miss Xie was a guest, but looking at the woman’s beaming smile, she couldn’t bring herself to refuse.

“Mhm.”

“It takes an eternity to get your consent,” Xie Mianzhi chuckled, then quickly helped Jing Yuan with the utensils. “It smells so good! Is this half a packet of noodles? It feels like quite a lot.”

“Not eating?” Jing Yuan tilted her head slightly, asking in return.

Xie Mianzhi immediately shook her head. She was starving! She had barely eaten anything all day because she was angry. Now, she felt like taking a bite out of the sofa.

She placed the bowls on the dining room table at Jing Yuan’s instruction.

“Here you go,” Jing Yuan handed Xie Mianzhi a set of utensils after the woman sat down.

Xie Mianzhi thanked her as she took them. The large marble dining table was impeccably clean, and a small bunch of yellow flowers on it added a touch of warmth to the dark table.

She likes flowers. This slightly surprised Xie Mianzhi.

She looked around and, seeing Jing Yuan return to the kitchen to clean up, cautiously began her late-night meal.

She was so strict with her diet that she had rarely eaten at this hour since she could remember, let alone a nutritionally poor food like instant noodles.

She looked at the steaming bowl of noodles, feeling the portion was huge.

“Can you eat seafood?”

Just as Xie Mianzhi was about to pick up her chopsticks, Jing Yuan walked out of the kitchen again and handed her a plate of what looked like very fresh, squid-like food.

“What is this?” Xie Mianzhi looked up in confusion. She hadn’t expected an unexpected addition to the meal.

Jing Yuan saw Xie Mianzhi’s sudden look of surprise, realizing the woman probably wasn’t allergic to seafood. She thought for a moment before explaining: “Cold-blanched squid tentacles.”

To be accurate, the “squid” was probably not traditional squid but a giant deep-sea squid from kilometers below the surface. She had seen it in the refrigerator just now—a giant tentacle she had torn off during her hunt yesterday. It had good nutritional value, and she heard that cold-blanching was the best way to prepare it for human consumption. She had tried to make it simply just now.

Eating only instant noodles seemed a bit too plain.

“This looks delicious! Did you just make it?” Xie Mianzhi was surprised. She thought she’d only get instant noodles, but she was getting seafood too. However, these tentacles looked different from the squid she’d tried at the hotel.

“Mhm.”

“Thank you. Then I’ll dig in.” Xie Mianzhi’s appetite instantly soared. But looking at the full bowl of noodles plus the seafood, she genuinely felt she couldn’t finish it all.

But the moment the first bite went into her mouth, she couldn’t help but let out a gasp.

“What’s wrong?” Jing Yuan asked, confused.

Xie Mianzhi quickly covered her mouth with a napkin. Could she say she burned her throat because it was too delicious?

Absolutely not.

“N-nothing…” Xie Mianzhi’s face flushed. Immediately, a bottle of mineral water appeared in front of her.

“Oh, thank you. Do you have the Ice Emperor brand, by any chance? Never mind.” Xie Mianzhi habitually asked for the high-end brand she usually only drank, but seeing Jing Yuan’s surprised look, she quickly smiled and said she’d drink this one. “But I still feel like I won’t be able to finish it.”

Jing Yuan looked at the portion in the bowl, then glanced at Miss Xie. She didn’t believe the woman wouldn’t finish it, which was why she had cooked more.

It wasn’t half a packet; it was two.

Then, Jing Yuan left Xie Mianzhi alone in the dining room and walked out of her sight.

“What the heck? Was that look disbelief? Do I look like I can eat that much?” Xie Mianzhi muttered to herself while eating the noodles. The moment she thought about Jing Yuan’s suspicious gaze, she felt a little annoyed. And here she thought this person was kind-hearted.

…

“Considering she brought me back, I won’t hold a grudge. I, Xie Mianzhi, am magnanimous,” Xie Mianzhi raised an eyebrow, finishing the last sip of the soup. She had forgiven the homeowner’s rudeness.

But when she saw the empty bowl, her eyes widened instantly.

She hadn’t realized that she had eaten the entire bowl of instant noodles, leaving not a single drop of soup. The seafood snack was gone too.

What on earth happened?! Was she so starved that she ate this quickly??

Hearing a door open nearby, Xie Mianzhi hastily gathered all the dishes and took them to the kitchen, immediately starting to wash them.

She had to destroy the evidence.

The fact that she had drunk all the soup absolutely could not be discovered by this person. Absolutely not!

“You’ve eaten—”

“You cooked way too much, I absolutely couldn’t finish it! I’ll wash them myself! Don’t trouble yourself!” Xie Mianzhi’s hands were covered in dish soap foam, immediately stopping Jing Yuan from getting closer.

Jing Yuan paused for a few seconds. She didn’t expose the woman’s little secret, but very cleverly changed the subject: “I just came to tell you that the water temperature in the shower has been adjusted. You can use it now.”

“Oh, really?” Xie Mianzhi forced a fake smile in thanks. “Thank you for the reminder, you’re so kind. I’m sure I’ll have a very comfortable wash tonight.”

Jing Yuan nodded. As she left, she couldn’t help but “kindly” point to her cheek with her finger, reminding her: “You have something near the corner of your mouth. No one is going to steal it, mhm.”

“Something?” Xie Mianzhi was puzzled. Ignoring the foam, she quickly wiped the corner of her mouth with her hand. A playful little diced carrot fell into her palm.

Xie Mianzhi was speechless. She looked up, only to catch Jing Yuan’s half-smile as she walked away.

Xie Mianzhi: You little brat, ***** (Curse word)