You Must Marry Me! - Chapter 27
Chapter 27
The hot pot restaurant Qi Zhen had reserved was tucked away in a small alley behind the shopping mall. It was a quaint three-story standalone building, decorated in a traditional style, with an old-fashioned sign hanging over the entrance—it looked charming and full of character.
Next to the restaurant was a small hut with a sign that read “Convenience Store.” They had a little window selling hot pot base ingredients, snacks, and ice cream.
Intrigued, Yan Yiyun walked over and bought two packets of hot pot base. She pointed at the ice cream and asked Qi Zhen, “Which flavor do you want?”
Qi Zhen shook her head. “I can’t eat it.”
She was really something. Just a moment ago, she was telling Yan Yiyun to take care of her stomach, and now she was asking which ice cream she wanted to eat.
“I know,” Yan Yiyun said cheerfully. “I’ll eat it. You just pick the flavor you like—then you’ll get a taste too, right?”
She opened the freezer and rummaged through the ice creams. “There’s mung bean, mango, and grape. Which one do you want?”
Qi Zhen felt a little awkward. She had just been internally criticizing Yan Yiyun for offering her ice cream after telling her to be mindful of her stomach, but now she realized Yan Yiyun meant to let her choose a flavor and take a bite after her.
Qi Zhen pointed to the grape-flavored one. “Grape. That one’s really good.”
“Okay,” Yan Yiyun grabbed the grape one, but her eyes lingered longingly on the mango. Still, she handed the grape-flavored one to the vendor. “One grape, please.”
Qi Zhen pressed her hand down and passed the mango-flavored one to the vendor instead. “This one.”
She paid, unwrapped the ice cream, and handed it to Yan Yiyun. “Just eat what you want. Don’t worry about what I like.”
Yan Yiyun’s fingers brushed against Qi Zhen’s hand. Qi Zhen’s skin was a little cool but dry and soft. When she had pressed her hand just now, it had been so gentle.
Her heart skipped a beat. She turned her head away to avoid looking at Qi Zhen and said while eating, “You have to try it too.”
She handed over the ice cream with a bite already taken out of it. Qi Zhen took it, saw the jagged bite mark on the top, and hesitated.
Yan Yiyun had been waiting for this moment. She hooked her arm around Qi Zhen’s and narrowed her eyes playfully, asking, “What, you think it’s gross?”
She was still holding a bit of a grudge, clearly.
Qi Zhen chuckled. Why was Yan Yiyun like a child who remembered every little thing? With a knowing smile, she took a bite of the ice cream and licked her lips. “As long as you don’t mind.”
Yan Yiyun froze. She stared at Qi Zhen, unable to snap out of it.
Even someone as slow to realize things as she was understood now. Sharing the same ice cream like that… wasn’t that basically an indirect kiss?
And the fact that she handed Qi Zhen the bitten ice cream while saying those things—wasn’t that basically…
She had indirectly kissed her!
Her face flushed. They were both girls—why was she even thinking about this kind of thing? But… Qi Zhen seemed to think so too?!
Yan Yiyun’s thoughts were a mess. She smacked Qi Zhen’s arm and said, “I don’t mind! Give it back!”
She snatched the ice cream from Qi Zhen’s hand and finished it off in a few big bites, barely tasting it at all.
Qi Zhen smiled helplessly. “Don’t eat so fast, or you’ll freeze your teeth.”
But Yan Yiyun didn’t care. Just looking at the ice cream made her heart pound.
Having lived abroad for many years, Yan Yiyun naturally knew that girls could date girls. Back in college, she had known several same-s3x couples and got along well with them.
But if you asked her whether she liked boys or girls, she genuinely didn’t know.
She had never liked anyone before.
All these years, she had only ever had one goal—to find Qi Zhen and be friends with her again. That “marriage certificate” they once had symbolized a promise, a promise that they would meet again.
As for what “marrying Qi Zhen” meant… she hadn’t figured that part out.
She only knew that Qi Zhen was the light in her heart, and she just wanted to have that light in her life again.
Yan Yiyun’s heart was in turmoil. She didn’t know whether to let go of Qi Zhen’s arm or not.
Luckily, the convenience stall was just steps away from the hot pot restaurant. As they approached, a friendly staff member came out to ask if they had a reservation.
The moment they stepped inside, the rich aroma of hot pot hit Yan Yiyun. The soup base was clearly made with real beef tallow—fragrant and spicy. She wasn’t even seated yet, and her cravings were already stirred up.
Qi Zhen’s reservation was on the third floor—a private room with a window and the best view in the whole place. They could see the bustling street below and the colorful flow of traffic. Eating hot pot while enjoying the night view—it was a real treat.
Yan Yiyun hadn’t had hot pot in a long time. She felt like she wanted to eat everything. With the menu in hand, she started circling items: beef and lamb rolls, a must-have; tripe slices, a necessity; luncheon meat, tribute meatballs, tofu of all kinds, duck bl00d, kidney slices, shrimp paste, lettuce, radish, and some greens. She hesitated at the pig brain for a long time before asking Qi Zhen:
“Is it okay if I order pig brain?”
Qi Zhen nodded. “Go ahead—order one for me too.”
Yan Yiyun ended up ordering two. Glancing at the menu, she realized she’d basically ordered everything already. Feeling a little uneasy, she asked, “I think I ordered a lot… is that okay?”
“Yeah.” Qi Zhen added a plate of eel slices. Two people were definitely ordering too much, but Yan Yiyun hadn’t had hot pot in so long, she probably didn’t want to skip anything. “It’s okay. We can pack up the leftovers.”
Her smile was so gentle that Yan Yiyun’s heart started pounding again. She quickly turned to look out the window.
Just when she had calmed herself down while ordering, those strange feelings started bubbling up again. She felt like she was becoming weird.
To distract herself, she asked, “Do you want milk tea?”
Qi Zhen looked up and took the menu. “Sure. Let’s add a pot.”
This place brewed their milk tea fresh and let you choose your toppings. Yan Yiyun added pearls and mini tapioca, and ordered two caramel puddings before handing the menu back.
The drinks and desserts came quickly. Just as the bubbling broth began to boil, the server placed the milk tea and puddings in front of them.
Yan Yiyun was practically rubbing her hands together in excitement.
“I haven’t had hot pot in forever. I really missed it,” she said, already putting some kidney slices near the edge of the pot, waiting for the broth to heat up more. “Especially kidneys and duck bl00d—places abroad never serve those.”
When it came to food, Yan Yiyun could really focus. All those messy thoughts in her head disappeared, and even the way she looked at Qi Zhen became more innocent. She mentally praised herself.
Qi Zhen noticed that Yan Yiyun no longer seemed awkward and relaxed a little herself.
She picked up a kidney slice and dunked it into the bubbling broth, smiling. “You’ve got a pretty heavy palate.”
“You look pretty happy eating too,” Yan Yiyun shot back. “Your taste isn’t exactly mild either.”
“True,” Qi Zhen admitted without hesitation. “Not many people can share a hot pot with me.”
Yan Yiyun nodded in agreement. She loved eating pig brain and offal, which many people couldn’t stand—not just refusing to eat, but unwilling to even share the pot. To accommodate others, she often just skipped those dishes, which meant she rarely got to enjoy them unless she was eating alone.
But eating hot pot alone was a bit boring, and you couldn’t order much. So the fact that Qi Zhen could eat these things with her made Yan Yiyun’s heart soar.
It really had nothing to do with romance—she just felt it was rare and precious to have someone to eat with.
With that thought, she felt even more determined to help Qi Zhen get healthier.
While she was dipping a slice of kidney into the broth, she was already planning to take Qi Zhen for a full physical checkup soon. Her family had a VIP card to the best private hospital in the city—it’d be easy.
Just seven seconds later, the kidney slice was ready.
Yan Yiyun dipped it in the dry sauce mix, and the thin slice of kidney was instantly coated. The rich, spicy aroma enveloped the tender yet chewy slice. One bite, and the flavor exploded—absolutely mouthwatering.
It had been so long since she had hot pot, and that first bite was heavenly.
She smiled in satisfaction and couldn’t help but exclaim, “This kidney is amazing—so good!”
Qi Zhen had dipped a slice of beef into the tomato broth. It had been freshly sliced and soaked up the tangy, sweet tomato flavor—absolutely delicious.
After eating her beef, she saw Yan Yiyun still working on the kidney slices, so she dipped one into the spicy pot too. “I’ll just eat one. It won’t upset my stomach.”
Then she winked at Yan Yiyun.
Yan Yiyun was stunned. That playful little expression from Qi Zhen… was too cute!
She always looked so serious and cold—who would’ve thought she could pull a face like that? Yan Yiyun’s heart fluttered again, and that weird feeling returned.
She couldn’t even look Qi Zhen in the eyes—those deep eyes felt like they’d drown her.
Because of that moment of distraction, her kidney slice got overcooked.
Frustrated, she fished it out of the pot, dipped it, and muttered as she ate, “It’s overcooked, overcooked. Shouldn’t have looked at you… Why’d you suddenly act cute…”
Qi Zhen chuckled, her lips curving into a gentle smile as she watched her.
Yan Yiyun looked so flustered—it was adorable. The more Qi Zhen looked at her, the more flustered she became. She skipped the kidney slices entirely and tossed in some luncheon meat, grumbling, “Stop looking at me!”
But instead of stopping, Qi Zhen stared even more intently.
Yan Yiyun tried to keep her cool and focus on eating, but she couldn’t hold out for long. Her earlobes gradually turned red.
Feeling her face heat up, Yan Yiyun grew more and more annoyed with herself.
All Qi Zhen did was wink—why was she reacting like this?
Qi Zhen glanced at her ears—those small, pink ears were simply too cute.
A subtle feeling rose in her heart. The way Yan Yiyun felt about her…
Might not be so innocent after all.
Maybe it started out innocent. Even when Yan Yiyun held up that “marriage certificate” and demanded, “Didn’t you say you’d marry me?”—Qi Zhen could tell she just wanted to be friends again, to eat, chat, and hang out.
But at some point, things had started to shift.
Qi Zhen couldn’t quite put her finger on when it changed.
And judging by the look on Yan Yiyun’s face, she clearly hadn’t realized it yet either.
Qi Zhen didn’t want to burst that bubble. They were both girls—she didn’t know whether Yan Yiyun could accept that kind of thing. If the truth came out now, would she get scared?
Besides, their relationship wasn’t quite there yet.
Qi Zhen set those thoughts aside and turned her attention back to the food cooking in the hot pot.
“Okay, okay, I won’t look,” she said with a gentle smile, placing a perfectly cooked kidney slice into Yan Yiyun’s bowl. “Here, eat some kidney.”
The slice was just right, and when Yan Yiyun picked it up and took a bite, she blurted out, “How is it better than mine?!”
Qi Zhen smiled and said meaningfully, “Because you weren’t paying attention when you were cooking.”