My Online Lover Lives Next Door (GL) - Chapter 19

He Qing didn’t say anything. She simply picked up her chopsticks, took the crayfish that Jian Fanxing had placed in her bowl, and put it into her mouth.

The moment her tongue touched the crayfish, a sharp sensation shot straight to her brain.

Spicy.

She instantly felt the urge to find water.

She actually couldn’t handle spicy food. Back when she took over the He Corporation from her father, she had been so busy with company affairs that she barely had time to eat, often managing only one meal a day—or sometimes forgetting to eat at all. By the time the company stabilized, she had developed a severe stomach condition.

Her digestive system was weak, so she usually ate very lightly. She didn’t dare touch spicy food, as it would feel like her stomach was on fire.

But this was a crayfish that Little Star had peeled for her, the very first one. In that moment, He Qing completely forgot about her health and put it in her mouth without a second thought.

She endured the discomfort, keeping her expression perfectly unchanged.

She calmly chewed twice, as if savoring the taste, then swallowed.

Though her swallowing seemed a bit rushed.

Jian Fanxing noticed He Qing’s reaction and confirmed that she could eat spicy food. Feeling relieved, she asked expectantly, “How is it, Sister He? Is it good?”

He Qing: “It’s good.”—Aside from the spiciness.

“Then I’ll peel another for you!” Jian Fanxing said as she reached for another crayfish.

But just as she got hold of it, a hand swiftly took it away.

Jian Fanxing blinked and followed the hand—He Qing?!

“Sister He…”

“I’ll do it. I already learned how.” He Qing said with a straight face as she looked at Jian Fanxing.

Jian Fanxing watched as He Qing skillfully removed the head and shell from the crayfish she had just taken, leaving only the meat in no time.

She really learned that fast?

Jian Fanxing blinked. This should be a good thing, but why did she feel a little disappointed?

Was it because He Qing had taken away her joy of peeling crayfish?

She withdrew her gaze and picked up another crayfish. Since she didn’t need to worry about He Qing anymore, she could focus on eating.

But the next second, the crayfish in her hand was gone again.

Instead, a peeled crayfish had appeared in her bowl.

Huh? Jian Fanxing looked up, meeting He Qing’s gaze, which was filled with warmth. As their eyes met, He Qing smiled slightly and said gently, “Eat up. I peeled it for you.”

As if worried that Jian Fanxing would refuse, He Qing added, “It’s only fair.”

Jian Fanxing didn’t think much about it and simply thought He Qing was a person who followed etiquette.

But as soon as she finished that crayfish, another one appeared in her bowl.

Jian Fanxing looked up, puzzled. “Sister He, you’ve already peeled one for me.”

“Really?” He Qing feigned surprise. “I saw your bowl was empty and thought I hadn’t peeled one yet.”

Jian Fanxing hesitantly accepted the explanation. The crayfish was already in her bowl, after all—she couldn’t exactly put it back.

So she ate it. But the moment she finished the second one, another crayfish appeared.

Jian Fanxing pursed her lips and looked at He Qing. She was just about to say no when He Qing, as if predicting her words, calmly gave an explanation. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to. I peeled it without thinking and put it in your bowl by reflex.”

Could she blame He Qing’s instincts? The crayfish had already landed in her bowl. She opened her mouth but couldn’t bring herself to complain.

She wasn’t sure if her silence was taken as acceptance, but no matter how fast or slow she ate, the moment she finished a crayfish, another would appear. Sometimes, even before she finished one, one or two more would pile up in her bowl. Soon, the crayfish meat stacked into a small mountain.

Jian Fanxing: “…”

She sneaked a glance at He Qing, noticing that her crayfish-peeling skills had improved significantly. She was even faster now—what used to take thirty seconds now only took ten.

And as He Qing’s speed increased, the plate of crayfish quickly emptied.

Jian Fanxing looked at her bowl, which was full of crayfish meat. If she remembered correctly, He Qing had only eaten one crayfish, and Yao Yao… hadn’t eaten any.

Speak of the devil—there she was.

Lu Yao walked out of the kitchen and immediately saw the empty plate on the table. If she remembered correctly, that plate had been full of spicy crayfish—two whole pounds of it. And now… it was… gone?

Her gaze shifted to Jian Fanxing’s bowl. Lu Yao blurted out, “Damn, Fanxing, you really ate it all by yourself?”

Jian Fanxing: “No, it’s—”

Lu Yao folded her arms, waiting for an explanation.

That bowl of crayfish was solid evidence. She was curious to hear how Jian Fanxing would spin this.

Jian Fanxing opened her mouth but found herself at a loss for words.

She couldn’t just say that He Qing had insisted on peeling them for her, could she? If she did, knowing Yao Yao, she would get teased relentlessly.

So Jian Fanxing simply shut up and put on a defiant face. “Yeah, so what if I did?”

Lu Yao turned to He Qing for backup, but then she noticed something—He Qing was calmly taking off her disposable gloves. Meanwhile, Jian Fanxing’s gloves were noticeably cleaner, clearly showing she hadn’t peeled much herself.

So… all of that crayfish meat was peeled by He Qing?!

Lu Yao suddenly had nothing to say. She silently found a seat, picked up her chopsticks, and reached for the crab.

If she couldn’t have crayfish, she could at least have crab.

But just as her chopsticks touched the crab, they bumped into another pair of chopsticks.

“Fanxing, how do you peel crab?” He Qing asked.

Crab… Jian Fanxing glanced at Lu Yao, seeing the miserable look on her face, and almost burst into laughter.

Even though He Qing was asking her, based on her previous actions, Jian Fanxing suspected He Qing wasn’t peeling for herself…

And if that was the case…

She already had a full bowl of crayfish meat, so she quickly shook her head. “I don’t like crab, so I don’t really know how to peel it.”

After saying that, she wondered if she was overthinking it. What if He Qing really wanted to eat crab? So she added, “If Sister He wants to eat, Yao Yao can teach you. She loves crab.”

He Qing immediately retracted her chopsticks and reached for another dish instead.

“I don’t like eating crab.”

Lu Yao: “…”

Jian Fanxing coughed and buried her head in her bowl.

After the meal, Jian Fanxing was completely stuffed, and Lu Yao was the same, rubbing her belly as she walked toward the sofa, burping along the way.

Jian Fanxing felt too embarrassed to act like Lu Yao, especially with He Qing around. But her stomach was uncomfortably full, so she stood up, ready to clean up the table to move around a bit and ease the discomfort.

“I’ll do it.” He Qing took the plate from Jian Fanxing’s hands and said gently, “You should go rest on the sofa too. I’ve already asked my assistant to bring some digestion tablets.”

If He Qing hadn’t mentioned it, it would have been fine. But the moment she did, Jian Fanxing’s entire face turned bright red.

“N-no need. We’ll just walk around inside.” Jian Fanxing finished speaking and quickly walked to the sofa, pulling Lu Yao up. “Let’s move around a bit to help with digestion.”

Lu Yao refused. “I’ll be fine after lying down for a while.”

Seeing Lu Yao sprawled lazily on the sofa, Jian Fanxing bit her lip and kicked Lu Yao’s foot unceremoniously. “Get up! Don’t you care about your image? There are… other people here.”

The last few words were spoken in a hushed tone, only loud enough for Lu Yao to hear.

They had really embarrassed themselves.

They had invited someone over for a meal, yet somehow, all the food had ended up in their own stomachs. Thinking back, He Qing had barely eaten—she had hardly even picked up her chopsticks.

So was this meal a complete waste?

Or maybe… the dishes on the table weren’t even to He Qing’s taste?

Jian Fanxing pressed her lips together, her mind drifting back to the housewarming dinner she had prepared for He Qing. She tried to recall which dishes He Qing had eaten the most of.

As she thought about it, she actually remembered something.

Last time, the heavier-flavored dishes had a lot left over, while the lighter-flavored ones had mostly disappeared into He Qing’s stomach.

So, He Qing actually preferred lighter flavors?

Then why had she just said that the crayfish were delicious?

Jian Fanxing wasn’t slow-witted—on the contrary, she was quite sharp. In the next second, she figured it out.

He Qing had only said the crayfish were delicious because Jian Fanxing had peeled them for her.

She…

Jian Fanxing looked at He Qing’s back as she methodically cleaned up the kitchen.

She really seemed like a very, very nice person.

At some point, Lu Yao had sidled up next to Jian Fanxing. Following her gaze, Lu Yao gave a teasing smile. “What? Staring at her so intently—are you falling for her?”

“What? No way!” Lu Yao’s words were like a stone thrown into a calm lake, sending ripples through Jian Fanxing’s heart. She quickly averted her gaze and firmly denied it.

“Really?” Lu Yao didn’t believe her. She had seen it clearly—Jian Fanxing’s eyes had practically been glued to He Qing. That was definitely the look of someone falling for someone else.

Jian Fanxing shook her head again. “I’m not.”

But this time, even she didn’t notice that her voice was a little weaker.

Lu Yao didn’t insist on getting an answer today. Seeing Jian Fanxing deny it a second time, she let it go. “Alright, alright, if you say so. But sooner or later, you will.”

Her last sentence was spoken much softer, almost like she was talking to herself.

As the saying goes, the bystander sees things more clearly.

As an observer, Lu Yao had already figured it out—Miss He was quite skilled at flirting. As long as she kept living across from her best friend, winning her over was only a matter of time.

And when that time came, Lu Yao was looking forward to hearing what kind of excuses her friend would come up with.