HGG - 8

What is the most awkward thing in the world?

It’s not going to the pet hospital with your boss while wearing matching outfits, nor being mistaken for a couple by the nurse. It’s running into your ex-boyfriend while shopping—and not just him, but also the girlfriend he cheated on you with.

Xia Fan sent an instruction: since they were already out together, they might as well finish preparing for the banquet. Chi Zhao had no objections and drove directly to a private beauty salon.

The shop was clearly exclusive, accepting appointments only from a select few. At least, Song Yi, who had lived in the area for so long, had never heard of anyone she knew visiting this place. If it weren’t for Chi Zhao strolling in like a regular, she might have thought the shop wasn’t even open.

Inside, the space was empty, with impeccably made-up staff conversing with Chi Zhao. After a few exchanges, the staff glanced over Song Yi and finalized the order.

Next, they headed to a clothing store. By the time Song Yi emerged, dizzy and disoriented from trying on countless dresses, all the gowns began to blur together in her eyes, indistinguishable in quality. But Chi Zhao could effortlessly critique them.

“No.”

“Too stingy.”

“The color is tacky.”

“Do you have anything else?”

“Haha.” In the end, while playing a mobile game, he barely glanced up, letting out a dry chuckle that prompted Song Yi to retreat and change into something else without hesitation.

Song Yi was no stranger to his manner of rejecting outfits—this was exactly how he dismissed subordinates’ proposals at work.

Decisive, cold, and merciless.

He joked about other matters, but when it came to serious business, there was no room for levity.

As the store assistant helped adjust her straps, Song Yi suddenly recalled a long-forgotten memory.

At a painting competition when she was twelve, the young Chi Zhao was thin, his bangs long enough to cover his eyes. He wore the Western-style uniform of a private middle school, his tie loosely knotted, his shirt untidily tucked in.

Chi Zhao briskly approached, summoning determination as he climbed onto the table in front of her.

Crouched atop the desk, he looked down at her, revealing those clear, bright eyes.

He smiled at her—a smile so close, so genuine, she could feel its authenticity.

Even though it was just a low-level painting competition, perhaps only the two of them had taken it seriously. Yet he still spoke to her with unwavering certainty, enunciating every word: “I like your work.”

Years after giving up painting, Song Yi suddenly remembered this moment. His tone, his sincere expression, his beautiful eyes—all vivid in her mind.

Reuniting with him years later, now much more mature, she mused that some men remain boys at heart until death.

Once she finished putting on the dress, she stepped out to look in the mirror. Chi Zhao had already put his phone away.

He gazed at her reflection in the mirror for a long moment, then turned to the store assistant and said, “This one.”

As they left the shop, Chi Zhao was in good spirits and suggested, “I’d like to stop by and order a bouquet of flowers.”

Unconsciously, they arrived in the bustling commercial district. Chi Zhao finally settled on a shop. “Their blue roses are beautiful,” he said.

“Actually, these kinds of things can be handled by the secretary during work hours,” Song Yi reminded him.

Chi Zhao shook his head. “I want to give them to my father, so it’s better if I choose them myself. ‘Treat important people sincerely’—that’s what my eldest brother told me when I was young.”

“Chi Chong?” Song Yi asked reflexively. This was the first time Chi Zhao had mentioned his siblings.

Chi Zhao didn’t reply, merely smiling as he stood beside a display of white roses. “Do you like them? Should I buy you a few?”

Song Yi wasn’t interested in flowers she couldn’t eat.

If she hadn’t turned around and run into her ex, Song Yi might have almost forgotten that she was still wearing a matching promotional shirt. As she turned, she locked eyes with the other party.

There was no time to avoid it—the scene from college when she had caught him cheating replayed vividly in her mind.

A stain on her life, something she wanted to forget. But the other woman, now his girlfriend, showed no shame, instead strutting forward confidently, dragging her partner along recklessly. “Is that Song Yi? Shopping with your boyfriend?”

Song Yi frowned. Their current attire did indeed invite misunderstandings.

Chi Zhao turned around. From head to toe, from their smug tone to the way the woman clung possessively to her partner, they looked anything but friendly. Her relationship with Song Yi wasn’t good—certainly not as good as she pretended.

Meanwhile, the woman briefly froze upon seeing Chi Zhao’s face.

She had always looked down on Song Yi in college. Sure, Dry Ice (as they called her) was somewhat attractive, but she always carried a cold demeanor, her attitude strictly professional and impersonal. How could someone like her end up with such a high-quality boyfriend?

Just as Song Yi was about to explain, Chi Zhao immediately jumped in without hesitation. “Hello,” he said, then turned to smile warmly at Song Yi. “Friends?”

After spending so much time with Chi Zhao, she had developed a basic ability to discern his smiles. The one on his face now was clearly meant to appear gentle for the benefit of the two people in front of them.

Damaging her boss’s reputation wasn’t ideal, but neither was defying him. Moreover, following her heart, she naturally wanted to seize this small opportunity to assert herself.

Song Yi said, “College classmates.”

“Song Yi was taken care of by you all in college,” he quickly interjected, addressing the man and woman opposite them. “I’m Chi Zhao, Song Yi’s boyfriend.”

His words sent a jolt through Song Yi’s heart. After all, this was quite the bold self-introduction. However, given the situation, she tried to follow up by introducing the other party—but realized something.

She remembered the name of her cheating ex-boyfriend, but the other one… “This is Liu Jun, and this is his girlfriend… Sorry, I don’t think I ever learned your name.”

The woman’s expression darkened slightly, clinging to Liu Jun coquettishly as she replied, “My name is...”

Before she could finish her sentence, Chi Zhao suddenly spoke up.

He said, “It’s rare to meet like this. Since it’s already this late, why don’t we have dinner together? How about that restaurant?” The latter part was directed at Song Yi, his voice slightly hoarse, his tone intimate.

At the sound of his words, Song Yi’s body jolted involuntarily. It was an upscale seafood restaurant with high prices.

The most unfortunate part was that Liu Jun and his girlfriend seemed unaware of the restaurant’s reputation and lightly agreed without hesitation.

Liu Jun still harbored some guilt toward Song Yi, and he was also displeased by his girlfriend’s presumptuous decision. Seeing the obviously luxurious decor of the restaurant, he grew anxious.

But he swallowed his unease.

However, when he opened the menu and saw the prices, he couldn’t hold back anymore.

This was way too expensive!

Even when trying to save face, he wouldn’t dare step foot into a place like this.

His girlfriend’s face turned pale for a moment, but soon she picked up her phone and sent him a text: “You can’t lose to him.”

Seeing the threatening message from his girlfriend, Liu Jun felt anger flare within him. He forced himself not to explode on the spot.

Meanwhile, as they entered the restaurant, Chi Zhao quietly asked Song Yi, “Who are they?”

Song Yi didn’t think of hiding anything and simply confessed, “My ex-boyfriend and the girl he cheated with.”

Chi Zhao paused for a moment, then chuckled softly. Without saying much more, he walked into the restaurant.

After seating themselves, the nervous fidgeting from the opposite side was glaringly obvious. Chi Zhao rested his chin in his hand and said indifferently, “Today’s meal is on me, so don’t worry.”

Compared to Liu Jun and his girlfriend, Song Yi felt even more uneasy.

How could she let her boss spend so much money? She had no way to repay him. Moreover, why did they have to treat these two people to dinner?

Watching Chi Zhao’s calm demeanor and contrasting it with Liu Jun’s earlier discomfort, the girlfriend’s anger flared. Though she said, “Oh, you really didn’t have to,” her hands unhesitatingly flipped through the menu, searching for the most expensive dishes.

How could she lose to a couple wearing ridiculous promotional shirts like “The world needs change” and “I am the world”?

As she recited the names of the dishes, Chi Zhao kept playing with his phone, not even bothering to look up.

When the waiter finally handed him the menu, he gave it a cursory glance.

Song Yi wanted to stand up and scold them, but suddenly he grabbed her wrist.

In an instant, Chi Zhao smiled. His smile carried a faint sense of detachment that drew others’ attention irresistibly.

“You’re too kind,” he said slowly. “Let’s order all of that.”

Turning around, he smoothly asked the chef, “Are the oysters fresh today? My girlfriend’s classmate seems to be here for the first time. Bring us some from France, England, and South Africa for them to try. Japan’s will do too—I’m not particularly fond of those. Pair wines accordingly, and make sure to open new bottles…”

While Liu Jun and his girlfriend were still frozen in place, Chi Zhao suddenly remembered something and turned back to give them a warm smile. “Oh, I almost forgot to ask—are you comfortable eating raw food?”

Next came a continuous stream of different oysters and white wines. Rather than treating them to a tasting experience, it felt more like forcing them to swallow everything.

Song Yi sipped small spoonfuls of creamy oyster soup, while Chi Zhao enjoyed his lamb stew. He asked, “Will you come with me to pick up Shu Wa later?”

He didn’t care whether Liu Jun and his girlfriend understood what he was saying; he spoke as if no one else was there, further elevating his air of superiority.

Song Yi nodded. He held her hand, then suddenly reached out with his other hand holding a napkin.

With an air of affection, Chi Zhao gently wiped the corner of her mouth. When it came time to pay the bill, he didn’t even blink.

Behind them, Liu Jun’s girlfriend started arguing with him, likely leading to a big fight. But the girl wasn’t ready to give up yet. Then, she made the worst decision of the day.

She must have thought her suggestion was foolproof. Restaurant prices varied widely, but movie tickets were generally the same across the city.

There was no way Song Yi could afford such a boyfriend.

Believing this wholeheartedly and unwilling to lose so badly, she shamelessly proposed continuing their outing: “Since you treated us to dinner, let us treat you to a movie.”

This was her worst decision of the day.

“We still need to pick up our cat at home, so we’ll take our leave now,” Chi Zhao said. “But if you want to watch a movie today, you can book the theater under my name. After all, you’re Song Yi’s college classmates.”

——The cinema in this mall belonged to Chongming.

As they got into the car, Song Yi sighed and said to Chi Zhao, “Sorry for making you spend so much. You didn’t have to go all out for them.”

Chi Zhao replied, “Are you happy?”

“Eh?”

Chi Zhao, eyes fixed on the rearview mirror as he reversed the car, asked, “Don’t you feel even a little satisfied?”

Song Yi fell silent for a moment. Though Chi Zhao wasn’t her real boyfriend, she had to admit—”I’m happy.”

The Song Yi who once trudged through heavy snow carrying cold chicken soup to the boys’ dormitory and then walked back alone in the storm—she was gone.

Hearing her response, he immediately broke into a smile.

“To be honest, I don’t really like oysters either,” Chi Zhao said. “I wasn’t spending money on them—I was doing it for you.”

Looking straight ahead, he added, “As long as you’re happy, that’s all that matters.”