Jingxia Rose

Chapter 58: We're not a couple

The restaurant wasn't far. It was too cold at night, and the streets were deserted. We arrived with all green lights and it only took a few minutes.

Wen Qi naturally left the task of ordering food to Ji Xian, and Ji Xian didn't refuse.

The menu featured common Chinese dishes. Ji Xuan ordered three dishes and noticed that there was porridge on the last page, with five or six kinds. She subconsciously thought that Wen Qi hadn't eaten much in the morning and at noon because he was sick.

It's best to eat something light in the evening; porridge is the most suitable.

She looked up and asked, "There's preserved egg and lean pork congee, vegetable and lean pork congee, pumpkin congee, fish congee, oatmeal congee, and a Laba congee."

As she spoke, Wen Qi looked over, and when he heard the name "fish porridge," the corners of his lips unconsciously twitched downwards.

"I also can."

Ji Xian then asked the waiter how much porridge they served.

The waiter was Asian. Ji Xuan asked in Russian, and he replied in Chinese, “Our porridge is served in single portions, so we can cater to customers with different tastes.”

Ji Xian paused for a moment, then curved her red lips into a smile and replied in Chinese, "Then let's have one serving of vegetable and lean pork porridge and one serving of fish porridge."

"Okay, please wait a moment."

The waiter took the menu and left.

The cool white light above the dining table slanted down, making her fair and pretty face appear white and radiant. Her lips, covered in velvet lipstick, were full and moist, opening and closing with her soft voice.

A faint smile played in her calm, upturned almond-shaped eyes, revealing a captivating charm.

It resembles the gentle, misty rain of March in Jiangnan, with a hazy beauty and a cool, serene atmosphere.

Wen Qi's Adam's apple bobbed, he suppressed the strange movement in his eyes, took a sip of warm water, and calmed the inexplicable restlessness in his heart.

Having been accustomed to composure and calmness for nearly thirty years, this inexplicable anxiety felt very unfamiliar to him, but he understood that these strange emotions were all caused by Ji Xian.

He remembered that when they met again after their breakup, Xiao Guxing picked her up and mentioned that he had brought her this porridge.

He didn't know whether she simply loved the porridge or if she loved it because of someone else.

Even for the first time, I felt fear.

He feared that the answer Ji Xian gave would be something he himself couldn't bear.

While waiting for her food, Wen Qi asked her if she would go home for the Chinese New Year.
"Back."

Ji Xian's words were concise and to the point.

The company's normal working hours follow the Moscow schedule, which usually lasts until February, about two weeks, but the Chinese New Year is on the 21st of next month.

Therefore, she had previously told Xiao Guxing that if this task could be completed before the end of the year, she planned to take her annual leave, plus her regular public holidays in February.

It's been about a month.

Seeing that she didn't intend to say anything more, Wen Qi wanted to ask her if she was going back to Beijing, but the question stuck in his throat and he couldn't say it no matter what.

This was their second meal together since their breakup and reunion, but the atmosphere seemed even more somber than at noon.

The restaurant wasn't crowded, so the food came out quickly. Both bowls of porridge were served in clay pots, and when they were brought to the table, you could still see the white rice grains boiling inside.

A rich aroma wafts towards you.

After being hungry for so long, my stomach finally started to rumble.

Wen Qi's appetite was so-so. He ate a few bites of vegetables and only half of the porridge, but it made his stomach, which had been empty for a long time, feel much better, and his body felt much warmer as a result.

Neither of them were in a hurry, and when they had almost finished eating, the waiter brought over a small plate of fruit.

Ji Xian moved several cooling fruits aside, saying, "Your cold isn't better yet, so don't eat these."

Wen Qi smiled slightly, picked up a cherry tomato and put it in his mouth. "I'm full, you can have it."

Ji Xuan had almost finished eating, and stopped after tasting a strawberry.

Wen Qi called someone to pay the bill, took out a wallet from the inside pocket of his coat, and placed the money on the table. Seeing Ji Xuan also take out his wallet from his bag, he said, "I'll pay. Consider it a thank you for taking care of me today."

Ji Xuan pursed her lips and tossed her wallet back into her bag a few seconds later.

I've accepted this favor.

Wen Qi said to the waiter, "Any extra is a tip."

"Thank you sir."

The waiter looked like he was there to earn money while studying, and Wen Qi had given him a lot more than he should have. He smiled and revealed two cute little tiger teeth. "I wish you and this lady a long and happy marriage."

Wen Qi: "..."

He was stunned for a few seconds before he reacted.

To be honest, that sounds pretty good.

He glanced at Ji Xian's expression, and although he couldn't discern anything amiss, he was still afraid that Ji Xian would feel uncomfortable if she heard it. After thinking for a moment, he still explained, "We are not a couple."

Upon hearing this, the waiter's smile suddenly froze, and he awkwardly scratched his cheek. "Uh... I'm sorry, I misunderstood..."

Ji Xian thought the little boy was quite cute, so she didn't take his words to heart and smiled, "It's nothing."

Perhaps it was because Ji Xian's smile was so beautiful and her voice so gentle that the boy immediately lost his previous awkwardness, and then solemnly apologized to them before leaving.

Wen Qi glanced at her, seeing that she didn't care at all, and was indifferent. He felt half relieved, but half jealous.

It's incredibly astringent.

As the two emerged from the restaurant, snowflakes began to fall again from the silent, dark sky.

Ji Xian raised her chin and looked up a few times. Suddenly, her foot slipped on the snow, and she staggered. Startled, she instinctively reached out and grabbed at the air.

She happened to grab Wen Qi's arm, and Wen Qi, seeing this, immediately reached out and put his arm around her waist.

"Are you okay?"

Ji Xian broke out in a cold sweat, gently shook her head, and slowly loosened her grip on his clothes. "Thank you."

Wen Qi withdrew his hand and whispered a reminder, "The roads are slippery on snowy days, walk slowly and watch your step."

Ji Xian nodded without saying a word.

He spread his hands, "I'll drive, you can rest in the car for a while."

Ji Xuan didn't put the car keys back immediately, frowning slightly. "It'll take 40 minutes to drive. Can you manage?"

That statement is ambiguous; it just doesn't sound right.

Wen Qi gave her a deep look. "It's probably because the injection is working. She ate something and rested for more than half an hour. She's much better now."

Ji Xian noticed that his complexion had indeed improved somewhat, but considering it was a snowy day and late at night, she didn't give him the keys. Instead, she turned around, said "I'll drive," and got into the driver's seat.

"I……"

Ji Xian glanced at him briefly as he closed the car door. Wen Qi stopped himself from saying anything more and resignedly walked around the front of the car and got into the passenger seat.

Perhaps because he had slept too much during the day and before, Wen Qi wasn't sleepy in the car, and the two of them didn't have much to talk about.

The carriage was quiet, and Ji Xuan didn't want to talk. She remained silent the whole way until they finally arrived at the apartment complex where she lived.

Ji Xuan got out of the car and saw Wen Qi walking around the front of the car. She said, "Drive slowly on the way back and be careful."

Wen Qi nodded, "Thank you for your hard work today. Get some rest when you get home."

In the cold wind, he watched Ji Xian's figure grow smaller and smaller until it became a faint ray of light and disappeared completely into the night.

Even the biting wind couldn't fill that empty heart.

Mr. Wen will be happy tomorrow, hehe.