Spring Night Kiss.

The Weibo post had only been up for a few seconds when Lu Yanbai's messages flooded in.

Lu Yanbai: [Myself?]

Xu Zhouye: [?]

Lu Yanbai: [I thought you'd been possessed.]

After a pause, another message came: "[Do you know what you look like right now?]"

Xu Zhouye knew he wouldn't say anything nice, so he leaned back in his chair and typed with one hand: [Spit it out, I have things to do.]

The typing prompt on the other end flashed for a long time.

Lu Yanbai deleted the original line "a male dog wagging its tail" and retyped: 【I'm just here to check on my good brother's feelings, aren't I?】

No need.

Xu Zhouye replied crisply.

Lu Yanbai wasn't angry. A thousand-year-old iron tree only blooms once in a lifetime, so he had to offer some advice.

A long message popped up: "Let me tell you, you can't invite someone to dinner empty-handed. Forget diamond necklaces, at the very least you need a bouquet of roses, right? The most expensive kind, don't just send ordinary red roses, that's embarrassing!"

Xu Zhouye was too lazy to reply at first, but then paused, his thumb hovering above the screen.

Rose?

It really suits her.

He typed: 【Subscribe.】

Lu Yanbai: [What? You've gotten used to ordering me around, haven't you?]

Xu Zhouye: [Didn't you take the initiative to ask about my relationship status?]

There was a three-second silence on the other end.

Lu Yanbai: 【…Fine, you're ruthless.】

Lu Yanbai: [I'm telling you, flowers are hard to order. At this time, all the good flowers in Suzhou are sold out. I have to ask someone to get them from Shanghai...]

Xu Zhouye stopped looking and switched back to Weibo.

The comments section has gone crazy.

"??? Nogami, you have someone you're pursuing? When did this happen?"

"I don't believe it, I don't believe it, I don't believe it!"

"Which restaurant in Suzhou is it? I'd like to stake it out."

"So, what you said at the last press conference about spending your life with the car was a lie?"

Xu Zhouye's hand paused. When exactly did he say that?

He clearly said that he goes by feeling, and that it's better to just date a woman than to just pick one randomly.

They're all fucking misunderstandings.

He scrolled through the list of meaningless complaints and gossip, and found a few serious restaurant recommendations.

One person recommended a good Suzhou-style restaurant near Jinji Lake, saying it offered good privacy. Another mentioned a private restaurant on Pingjiang Road that required reservations but had a suitable ambiance for dates.

He liked both of these posts.

Then she opened WeChat and sent Lu Yanbai a message: "[Please reserve this private restaurant on Pingjiang Road for me, 7 PM.]"

Lu Yanbai: [? ? ?]

Xu Zhouye ignored him and put down his phone.

On stage, Song Qingjia plucked the strings with her fingertips, her eyebrows lowered, and her eyelashes cast a fan-shaped shadow under her eyes.

He stared at her intently.

This woman, there wasn't a single part of her body that didn't seduce him.

Even in bed, they were incredibly compatible.

He curled the corners of his lips, picked up the celadon teacup, but out of the corner of his eye he noticed several audience members in the front row whose eyes were also fixed on her.

A young man held his phone high, taking countless photos.

A young girl held a teacup, her eyes wide with amazement.

And the old men and women were all watching with great interest.

Xu Zhouye's smile slowly faded, and he narrowed his eyes. He took a sip of tea; the tea had already gone cold.

But my heart felt even colder.

accurate.

But what could he do? Rush up and blindfold all those people?

He could only endure it, continuing to stare at the woman on stage who attracted so many admirers, his gaze fixed on her.

The last piece ended at six o'clock in the afternoon. The audience dispersed, and Song Qingjia returned backstage with her pipa.

Xu Zhouye didn't move, remaining seated and waiting.

Footsteps came from the direction of the backyard.

Song Qingjia changed back into her own clothes, a hibiscus purple velvet slip dress that reached her ankles. Her hair was loose, with a few stray strands falling beside her ears.

She came out, carrying a bag, looking down at her phone.

"Qingjia," Zhou Yunqing's voice came from the backyard, "Come on, let's go home for dinner. I made your favorite bamboo shoots today."

Song Qingjia looked up, about to respond—

"She's not going today."

Xu Zhouye had somehow reached the side door, his hands in his pockets, leaning against the doorframe with a roguish smile on his lips.

Song Qingjia glanced at him and rolled her eyes inwardly.

Zhou Yunqing walked over from the backyard, saw Xu Zhouye, and paused for a moment: "And this is...?"

She looked him up and down. The young man was very tall, probably close to 1.9 meters, with a good build and handsome features. Standing next to Song Qingjia, they were a very pleasing sight to behold.

"She has plans, so she can't have dinner with you tonight."

Yeah, that tone of voice is a bit irritating.

Song Qingjia glared at him, then turned to Zhou Yunqing and said, "Aunt Zhou, I have something to do tonight. I'll have dinner with you another day."

Zhou Yunqing glanced at Song Qingjia, then at Xu Zhouye.

His gaze swept between the two of them, and he smiled knowingly.

"Alright, young people, go on your dates, I'm an old lady, I won't hold you up," she joked with a smile.

Upon hearing the word "date," Xu Zhouye's eyebrows relaxed, and he smiled with obvious delight.

"Thank you, Aunt Zhou. We'll be going now."

Song Qingjia truly admired his shamelessness.

But Xu Zhouye could be even more shameless. He stepped forward, his arm naturally wrapped around the woman's waist, his palm pressed against her side, and he even gently squeezed it.

Song Qingjia didn't move, but obediently said "Goodbye, Aunt Zhou" to Zhou Yunqing, and then turned and walked out.

As soon as she stepped out of the Pingtan theater, she reached out and slapped his hand away from her waist.

"Mr. Xu, your skill in taking advantage of others is truly masterful."

Xu Zhouye's hand was red from the slap, but he didn't care. He pulled his hand back and put it in his pocket, tilting his head to look at her with a roguish smile: "Isn't this just me trying to make a good impression on Aunt Zhou?"

Song Qingjia glanced at him: "What's there to prove?"

"Make her think your boyfriend is reliable." He winked. "See, it's working well. I think Aunt Zhou likes me quite a bit."

"Boyfriend?" Song Qingjia repeated, emphasizing each word.

"Male friends." Xu Zhouye knew when to stop.

Song Qingjia scoffed and walked past him toward the Ferrari parked by the roadside.

Xu Zhouye raised an eyebrow and followed.

-

The private restaurant is located in a narrow alley on Pingjiang Road. It has no signboard, only an old lantern hanging at the entrance.

Pushing open the wooden door, you'll find a small courtyard with three sections. A welcoming pine tree grows in the courtyard, and a pond of koi fish is raised beneath it.

The private room is on the second floor, and the river is right outside the door and window.

Song Qingjia looked around and liked it very much: "How did you manage to book this place?"

Xu Zhouye pulled out a chair for her: "I've asked someone to help. The boss only accepts three days a week, three tables each day."

He paused, placed his hands on the back of the chair, leaned down to her ear, and his warm breath brushed against her earlobe, carrying a hint of deliberate seduction.

He said in a low voice, "We are the fourth table today."

Song Qingjia raised an eyebrow, about to speak, but he had already stepped back, walked to the opposite side of her, pulled out a chair, and sat down.

"What would you like to eat?" He pushed the menu towards me.

Song Qingjia opened the menu and looked at it. There weren't many dishes; most were Suzhou local cuisine. She had heard before that the menus of these private restaurants usually changed every day, depending on what the chef offered, not what the guests wanted to eat.

After ordering a few dishes according to her preferences, she looked up and asked, "Is there anything you'd like to eat? Are there any dietary restrictions?"

Xu Zhouye: "No, whatever you want to eat, I'll eat."

Song Qingjia twitched her lips, feeling that she had asked the unnecessary question.

Not long after the menu was taken away, there was another knock on the door of the private room. The door opened, and a waiter walked in carrying a large bouquet of flowers.

Juliet roses, tied with ribbons, with layers of pale yellow petals, numbering at least ninety-nine.

Xu Zhouye took it, but before he could speak, the woman opposite him suddenly covered her mouth and nose, leaning back with a look of disgust: "Take it away, take it away, take it away now—"

He hadn't finished speaking.

"Achoo!"

Xu Zhouye realized something was wrong and threw the flowers to the waiter, saying, "Get out."

"Sir, flowers..."

"Do as you please."

Xu Zhouye walked up to Song Qingjia and bent down to check on her. After getting away from the allergen, she felt a little better.

The woman's nose was bright red, her eyes were red-rimmed and teary, her nostrils flared, and she sneezed.

How pitiful.

Completely different from her usual aloof demeanor, she was inexplicably soft and cute at this moment.

She was glaring at him angrily.

He deserves to be glared at; he's the one who caused her to end up like this.

Xu Zhouye's Adam's apple bobbed slightly, and his eyes darkened. He should be worried, and he was indeed worried.

But another voice in my head was saying: How can she be so cute even when she sneezes?

Morality and instinct are at odds.

Song Qingjia looked up with tears in her eyes, and was furious at the man in front of her: "Xu Zhouye, are you here to bring me bad luck?"

"It was my fault." He straightened up.

The next second, Song Qingjia felt herself being lifted into the air.