Chapter 9: Unhappy

It wasn’t “I’m here to see him for something” or “I’ve come to deliver dinner,” but rather, “I’ve come to have dinner with him.”

Though only a few words differed, the implications were worlds apart.

As soon as Xiang Ge finished her sentence, the entire doctor’s office fell silent.

Out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of “Lin Meimei,” standing in the middle of the room, her expression particularly unpleased.

The smile on Xiang Ge’s lips deepened.

When she had come to deliver the commemorative banner and encountered Liang Shengxi at the elevator, his reaction alone told her that Zhou Xingyan was likely single at the moment.

Which meant this Lin Meimei was undoubtedly still waiting in standby mode.

Liang Shengxi was the first to react, a smile spreading across his face: “He’s here. Dr. Zhou just mentioned he was hungry.”

Zhou Xingyan, who didn’t recall ever saying he was hungry, tilted his head slightly to glance at him.

Liang Shengxi winked at him.

At first, when he saw Xiang Ge, he assumed she was just another pretty girl pursuing the untouchable flower atop the cliff.

But after observing her interactions with Zhou Xingyan and his subsequent reactions, it seemed things weren’t so straightforward.

Liang Shengxi silently mourned for Lin Ran for three seconds before decisively preparing to invest heavily in this enchantress sister.

Xiang Ge finally tilted her head, her gaze leisurely returning to Zhou Xingyan. With fluttering lashes, she smiled at him and walked into the room.

As she reached the center of the room, she stopped in front of Lin Ran.

Being tall herself, and wearing heels today, Xiang Ge looked down at the woman before her, her presence overwhelming.

Her lips curved slightly, but her dark eyes were emotionless: “Sorry, could you move aside? You’re blocking my way.”

The other doctors instinctively stepped back, wanting to distance themselves from the battlefield between the two women.

Lin Ran, shorter than Xiang Ge, tilted her head up stubbornly to meet her gaze, her expression unpleasant, yet she refused to budge.

Xiang Ge blinked, her expression unchanged, tilting her head slightly toward Zhou Xingyan sitting behind Lin Ran, her meaning clear: “Dr. Zhou, is she your girlfriend?”

Zhou Xingyan turned his chair slightly, fully cooperating with her: “Colleague.”

Lin Ran’s eyelashes drooped, her lashes trembling faintly.

Xiang Ge let out a soft “Oh,” lifting her chin slightly and narrowing her eyes. She remained standing there, persistently gazing at the woman before her: “Would you like to stay and have dinner with us?”

Liang Shengxi’s shoulders twitched.

This enchantress sister was truly terrifying when she wanted to be.

Lin Ran took a deep breath and raised her head again: “No, thank you.”

Satisfied, Xiang Ge didn’t press further, smiling sweetly as she gracefully sidestepped around her.

By the time the office cleared out after work hours, Xiang Ge had dragged a chair to sit beside Zhou Xingyan’s desk, lazily propping her chin on her hand as she watched him.

Zhou Xingyan tilted his head, his voice cool: “Why are you here?”

Xiang Ge tapped her cheek lightly: “To bring you dinner.”

Zhou Xingyan raised an eyebrow and responded with a soft “Oh.”

Xiang Ge blinked, “To have dinner with you.”

He said nothing.

Still not satisfied with this answer?

“To feed you dinner?” Xiang Ge ventured hesitantly.

“…”

Zhou Xingyan let out a barely audible sigh, withdrawing his gaze. He opened the bag on the table, pulling out the lunch box and unwrapping it.

A Japanese-style bento box, made of natural wood, contained layers of neatly rolled seaweed rice rolls. Thin layers of rice wrapped egg crepes, carrots, ham, and pickles, topped with sesame seeds.

The rolls were perfectly arranged, their presentation exquisite, making one’s mouth water.

Clearly, this wasn’t something she had prepared herself.

Zhou Xingyan remained impassive, “I didn’t realize you had such good culinary skills.”

Xiang Ge handed him chopsticks without blinking an eye: “Of course I’m amazing.”

“…”

Zhou Xingyan was momentarily speechless, then couldn’t help but chuckle softly.

Xiang Ge blinked rapidly, averting her gaze slightly, feeling a bit guilty from his laughter.

She had never been particularly skilled in the kitchen.

Back in her freshman year during winter break, Zhou Xingyan had found Xiang Ge, battered and broken, on the street and taken her home. The young girl, covered in injuries, curled up on his couch, her dark eyes bright and sparkling, her hoarse voice rasping: “I’m hungry.”

Zhou Xingyan showed no emotion, ignored her, and directly turned to leave.

When the boy returned from buying bread and milk downstairs, he opened the apartment door to be greeted by a strong smell of smoke.

Frowning, Zhou Xingyan entered, placed the bag on the shoe rack, and quickly walked into the living room, scanning the area.

The kitchen light was on. Xiang Ge wore an apron, pinching her nose with one hand stretched far out, averting her eyes, and stirring wildly in the pot with a large spoon.

“…”

Zhou Xingyan strode over, glanced at the already burnt scrambled eggs in the pot, and immediately pulled the girl behind him. He first covered the pot, which was still spitting oil, turned off the heat, and then switched on the range hood, finally completing the task.

Turning around, he looked down at her.

Xiang Ge stood behind him, her pale face flushed and slightly swollen. The cut at the corner of her eye had dried blood, and her bitten lip left a trace of crimson at the corner of her mouth.

The usually arrogant and unruly girl at school now wore a crooked floral apron, holding a spoon, looking somewhat wronged like a child who had done something wrong, obediently standing there looking up at him without speaking.

Xiang Ge knew she had caused trouble, carefully averting her eyes, her voice low: “I thought you’d ignored me and left, so I wanted to make something to eat myself.”

She had planned to secretly cook an egg, eat it, and clean the pot before he returned.

Pausing, she softly apologized: “…I’m sorry. I’ll clean up.”

For the past semester, Xiang Ge and Zhou Xingyan’s relationship hadn’t been particularly friendly.

Though the verbal jabs and provocations were all one-sided from Xiang Ge, he found her inexplicable hostility amusing.

Upon reflection, they had surprisingly encountered each other quite often at school. Over time, they had become somewhat familiar with each other.

Zhou Xingyan released her arm, which was covered in bruises, “This is my house. Where would I go?” He glanced at her, then walked out of the kitchen.

Xiang Ge remained motionless, watching him walk to the entrance, pick up a bag from the shoe cabinet, and enter the living room, turning to look at her.

Hesitating for a moment, she dragged her feet over.

The young man’s tall figure towered over her by half a head. Xiang Ge lowered her head, standing before him without raising it.

Only then did Zhou Xingyan notice a scrape near her hairline.

He recalled seeing her earlier on the street, curled up under a lamppost in the dead of winter, without a coat, wearing only a sweater, her exposed skin covered in horrifying bruises. She clung to his sleeve, her hoarse voice refusing to go to the hospital or return home.

Where had she gone to get into a fight?

He bent down, rummaging through the bag for antiseptic, cotton swabs, spray for bruises, bandages, and a large roll of band-aids. Sitting on the sofa, he glanced up, patting the spot next to him: “Come here.”

Xiang Ge slowly sat down.

Zhou Xingyan held the bottle of antiseptic, unscrewed the cap, soaked two cotton swabs, and raised his head, applying the soaked swab to the cut at the corner of her eye.

The cool sensation stung, and Xiang Ge hissed, instinctively pulling back, but a glance from the youth stopped her.

She remained still, watching him disinfect, apply band-aids, spray medicine, and bandage her wounds.

His movements were neither gentle nor practiced, causing her to flinch repeatedly.

To distract herself, she spoke to him.

She asked questions, and he answered briefly, his voice clear and cool, his tone slow and even.

For the first time, Xiang Ge found his voice pleasant.

She also learned that he lived far from school, wasting a lot of time commuting. Due to the heavy workload of his senior year, he rented an apartment near school, where a housekeeper came every night to cook him a meal.

Once everything was mostly done, Zhou Xingyan finally raised his head.

The girl’s face was adorned with several colorful band-aids, her expression somewhat dazed, her stomach still growling.

Unable to resist, Zhou Xingyan’s lips curved slightly. He rummaged through the bag again, pulling out bread and milk, and handed them to her: “Would you like me to heat it up?”

Xiang Ge shook her head, thanked him, and accepted the milk. After a brief hesitation, she began gulping it down eagerly.

Zhou Xingyan tore open the bread packaging and handed it to her.

She resembled a little wolf cub spotting meat, almost pouncing onto his hands.

The youth leaned back on the sofa, watching her eat. He glanced at the clock on the wall, “After you finish eating, I’ll take you home.”

Xiang Ge froze mid-bite.

Her cheeks puffed out like a chipmunk, chewing and swallowing the bread in her mouth. Her long, narrow eyes looked at him, “Can I sleep here tonight?”

Zhou Xingyan raised an eyebrow.

Afraid he might refuse, she quickly added, “Just one night. I’ll leave before you wake up tomorrow.”

As she spoke, she tightly clutched the edge of their sofa cushion.

Zhou Xingyan said nothing more, glanced at her, stood up, and turned into the bedroom.

Xiang Ge exhaled in relief, quickly finishing the remaining bread and milk, tossing the wrappers into the trash. She went to the kitchen, disposed of the burnt scrambled eggs, cleaned the pot, turned off the living room lights, and lay back down on the sofa.

The room was a bit cold in winter. Xiang Ge tucked her neck in, gathering the cushions from the sofa and placing them strategically along her legs, abdomen, and chest.

Just as she finished arranging herself, the bedroom door clicked open.

Zhou Xingyan carried a faint scent of shower gel and shampoo, his damp hair suggesting he had just bathed. He walked to the side of the sofa, standing still, looking down at the girl who had completely buried herself under the cushions, and said softly: “Go sleep in the bed.”