That Man Is a Little Wild - Chapter 29

“Let’s start with the four signature dishes.”

As soon as they sat down, Chi Ye waved the waiter away, signaling him to step out, then handed the menu to Li Cang. “Anything else you want?” he asked.

The business hotel was known for four signature dishes: roasted pigeon, lobster, large green grouper, and Wenchang chicken. Each one is a renowned specialty from different regions.

Anyone who’d tried them once would inevitably rave about the flavors because they were genuinely excellent.

For someone as picky about food as Li Cang, these four dishes were flawless. Even after his first tasting, he had lingered on the flavors for days. He had even considered convincing Xu Siruan to host their annual meeting here.

“Order whatever you like,” Chi Ye said, draping an arm over the back of Li Cang’s chair, his presence radiating warmth. “If you can’t finish, I’ll take care of the rest.”

Li Cang thought for a moment and picked a few items. He preferred small, delicate dishes and had a particular fondness for all kinds of spring rolls, dried tangerine peel, pork rolls, coconut rolls, crispy egg rolls, and fresh hot rolls.

He ate only one or two of each, sipping some corn juice, and that completed his dinner.

Though he ate little, he ate slowly. By the time he looked up, Chi Ye had already polished off most of the dishes in front of him.

“Want dessert?” Chi Ye asked.

Li Cang shook his head. He only ate about seventy percent full, wary of upsetting his figure.

Chi Ye seemed to know what he was thinking and gave his waist a gentle squeeze. “Don’t worry. I’ll help you burn it off tonight.”

Recalling Chi Ye’s “help” from last night, Li Cang didn’t hold back: “Get lost.”

Chi Ye’s large hands enveloped him, pulling him close, and he lowered his head to kiss Li Cang deeply.

Li Cang bit down softly, letting out a muffled “Ah.”

Suddenly, someone opened the door. “Ah, sorry… I didn’t come at the right time.”

Li Cang assumed it was a waiter and didn’t react much, still nestled in Chi Ye’s arms.

Until he heard Chi Ye call out, “Mom.”

He stumbled, nearly falling off Chi Ye’s lap.

Scrambling to his feet, he had no time to process why Chi Ye’s mother was here, forcing a smile. “Hello, Auntie.”

Damn.

Chi Ye’s mother was remarkably well-preserved. At fifty-six, she looked barely forty, her skin smooth, her smile warm and inviting.

Li Cang felt a vague familiarity but couldn’t place where he had seen her before.

“Hello,” she said, smiling at him, her gaze gentle and appraising. “Ye rarely brings friends here. When I heard he was coming today, I wanted to stop by and say hi.”

Li Cang returned a polite smile.

He had grown up in a fractured family parents divorced when he was young, and he was shuttled back and forth between them, abandoned four times in less than a year. From then on, he’d held no affection for anyone of the parental generation.

But now he was facing Chi Ye’s mother, his boyfriend’s mother.

Before he could even consider how to interact with her, she spoke, her expression kind.

“Come by more often,” she said. “It gets quite lonely here by myself. Ye has always been away for work, and even when he’s home, I rarely get to see him.”

Li Cang nodded. “Of course, I will.”

As he said it, a realization struck him. He turned to Chi Ye.

“This is your family’s hotel?”

In that moment, it clicked why Chi Ye’s mother seemed familiar.

When Xu Siruan had brought him here to meet a client, he had pointed her out from afar: the owner of this chain of business hotels.