The restaurant owner blabbered on in a frenzy, but he couldn’t even touch the hem of Huo Boyan’s clothes before he was blocked by the bodyguards.
Not far away, Song Xingchen frantically poked Zhu Ran’s arm with his elbow, his face full of curiosity. “When did you meet a rich guy like that?”
Zhu Ran replied, “He’s my cousin’s best friend’s older cousin. I’m not that close to him.”
Song Xingchen caught on. “The one who invited you to his private island?”
Zhu Ran didn’t want to mention Huo Junlin and vaguely said, “Something like that.”
Over on the other side, Huo Boyan walked toward them after resolving the issue, his face showing guilt. “Sorry you had to deal with something like that. How about I treat you to dinner at another restaurant?”
A local rich guy treating them to dinner! They had to pick the most authentic spot!
Song Xingchen’s eyes lit up immediately. Though he was tempted, he had enough emotional intelligence in key moments and didn’t speak up rashly. Instead, he waited for Zhu Ran’s response.
Zhu Ran hesitated a bit. If he had come alone today, he definitely would have refused right away. But he felt like Song Xingchen wanted to go.
“Whatever works for you,” Song Xingchen patted his shoulder and whispered in his ear, “You decide.”
Zhu Ran slowly let out a breath and said to Huo Boyan, “That would be great, thanks.”
Afterward, they took the elevator down and got into a stretched sedan. The four of them sat facing each other. As soon as Zhu Ran looked up, he saw Huo Boyan across from him. He wore gold-rimmed glasses and, noticing Zhu Ran’s gaze, gave a polite smile.
But Zhu Ran looked away and turned to gaze at the scenery outside the window. There wasn’t much to see, really—Zhu Ran had been here for days, and the novelty had worn off long ago.
Song Xingchen, on the other hand, was utterly fascinated. He kept taking photos and videos, leaving Zhu Ran no chance to talk to him.
Zhu Ran ended up scrolling through his phone, checking all his social media feeds, only to feel like he hadn’t seen anything at all.
He set his phone down with a sigh and caught the familiar woody scent from Huo Boyan. In the excessively low air conditioning, it was like endless cold rain that wouldn’t stop.
“Bzzz—”
Someone’s phone vibrated. Zhu Ran looked up and heard Huo Boyan speaking in Cantonese.
“Auntie, that’s no way to do business.”
“Next time you open a shop, pick a reliable head chef.”
Huo Boyan’s voice sounded even softer in Cantonese, almost giving the illusion of gentleness. But he spoke so quickly that Zhu Ran only caught the word “auntie” before Huo Boyan hung up.
Zhu Ran felt a slight pang of disappointment. He actually quite liked listening to Hong Kong people speak Cantonese. But perhaps to accommodate him as a mainland visitor, Huo Boyan always spoke Mandarin whenever talking to him.
“What do you want to eat? You can order ahead.” Sure enough, after hanging up, Huo Boyan switched back to Mandarin.
Zhu Ran asked Song Xingchen, “Anything you’re craving?”
Song Xingchen exclaimed, “We can order now? Then I won’t hold back!”
Huo Boyan smiled mildly. “Don’t hold back. Zhu Ran’s friend is like a little brother to me.”
Zhu Ran: “…”
Who is your little brother?
Song Xingchen wanted local dishes, and Zhu Ran was fine with that. Once they settled on it simply, Huo Boyan made a call and switched to Cantonese again.
“I’ll be there for dinner soon—get things ready. Two five-year-old lion-head geese, chopped up. Also two chickens—one white-cut, one simmered in five-finger peach soup. Two abalones. Got any wild spotted grouper today? Steam one.”
Zhu Ran couldn’t understand, so he opened a translation app and secretly started recording. But he worried the distance was too far for it to pick up.
He tried to inch his phone closer to Huo Boyan, but the man across from him suddenly paused, looked up, and glanced over.
Zhu Ran’s heart skipped a beat. Had Huo Boyan noticed he was eavesdropping?
But the next moment, Huo Boyan looked away and continued speaking into the phone. “No alcohol—they’re just kids I’m treating. Prep a variety of tong sui flavors.”
Zhu Ran tapped the translate button discreetly, but just then, the car swerved up into the hills. His finger slipped, and he accidentally hit voice playback.
“Two five-year-old lion-head geese…”
The app’s emphatic Mandarin filled the car, and everyone turned to look at him.
Zhu Ran: ???
With the speed of someone snatching concert tickets, he hit pause. The robotic male voice vanished, plunging the car into an eerie silence.
“Pfft—”
Song Xingchen broke first, covering his mouth as his shoulders shook with laughter.
Zhu Ran elbowed him in warning, which only made him burst out laughing.
Song Xingchen: “Hahaha, Pig, you’re gonna kill me. You were actually using a translator?”
Zhu Ran feigned composure. “Without it, could you understand?”
Song Xingchen: “The guy’s sitting right across from you. Why not just ask him?”
Zhu Ran: “…”
“Sorry, that was thoughtless of me.” Huo Boyan smiled, and compared to his usual official politeness, there was now a touch of genuine emotion in his eyes.
Zhu Ran: “…”
So real about mocking me, huh?
Zhu Ran silently looked away and inwardly grumbled about Huo Boyan again.
Huo Boyan explained in Mandarin what dishes he’d ordered. Song Xingchen listened with keen interest, while Zhu Ran stared out the window wordlessly, pretending the embarrassment hadn’t happened to him.
