Before long, Song Fuxue happily obtained a candied hawthorn skewer. She took big bites from it and did not forget to leave half for her older brother.
Perhaps because she had not gone out in such a long time, Song Fuxue spent the entire afternoon wandering around curiously from place to place. She bought plenty of souvenirs and refrigerator magnets and ended up taking over a hundred photos.
By the time the sun was about to set, she was already too exhausted to walk anymore.
“Older Brother, Older Brother, Older Brother…”
“Hurry and carry me! Save my legs!”
Pei Shangyue bent down and skillfully lifted her onto his back.
Song Fuxue leaned against him dependently.
“Older Brother, how come we walked the same amount, but you’re totally fine? Have you been secretly working out behind my back?”
“Older Brother, next time you wake up early to exercise, remember to bring me along too. Hurry and save your useless younger sister!”
Even though Song Fuxue was tired, her mouth still never rested.
Pei Shangyue squeezed her soft and limp wrist.
“You’re sure you can wake up? Someone sets ten alarms every day but still never gets up early.”
“Ah, well…”
Song Fuxue blushed awkwardly after being exposed.
“Forget it. I’ll just keep happily lying around like a salted fish…”
“Older Brother, you absolutely have to work hard and make money. I’ll be relying on you to support me in the future!”
“Then will you stay by my side forever?”
“That depends on Older Brother’s performance!”
“So heartless…”
“Hehe… Older Brother, Older Brother…”
The two chatted casually back and forth.
The sun was about to set, and the slanting sunlight reflected across the lake, instantly attracting Song Fuxue’s attention.
“Stop, stop, stop! Older Brother, put me down first! I want to take a picture!”
Once Song Fuxue became interested, she immediately dragged her older brother into taking several more photos with her.
“This place is so beautiful! Hong Kong Island doesn’t have gardens like this at all!”
“It’s a pity the lake’s frozen over, otherwise we could’ve gone boating.”
“Older Brother, when spring comes next year, come here with me again and take a boat ride, okay? Maybe by then flowers will be blooming everywhere!”
“Mhm…”
Pei Shangyue looked at her and answered softly, his gaze never leaving her for even a moment.
After they finished sightseeing, Song Fuxue returned to the car and rubbed her stomach, feeling a little hungry.
“Older Brother, are we going home?”
“I still want to try Beijing’s food, but unfortunately I’m too tired to keep walking around.”
Her voice had noticeably weakened from exhaustion.
“I’ll take you somewhere.”
Pei Shangyue made a phone call.
Not long after, the car stopped outside an old-fashioned Chinese-style restaurant.
Pei Shangyue held Song Fuxue’s hand and led her inside.
Song Fuxue was instantly attracted by the interior decorations and the antique calligraphy and paintings hanging on the walls.
“Older Brother, these are all real antiques and treasures. Isn’t the owner afraid thieves will covet them by leaving them all out in the open?”
“Did you take a liking to one? I can steal it for you.”
“Older Brother! You’re so bad!”
Song Fuxue glared at him.
Pei Shangyue curled his lips faintly.
“Shangyue’s here?”
Soon, a middle-aged man came over to greet them. When he saw Song Fuxue, he visibly froze for a moment.
“Uncle Cheng.”
“This is Song Fuxue.”
Pei Shangyue introduced her simply.
Song Fuxue followed his lead and greeted cheerfully, “Hello, Uncle Cheng!”
The middle-aged man immediately greeted her enthusiastically in surprise.
“Hello, Miss Song!”
“The private room’s already been prepared in advance for you two. Come with me quickly.”
“Thank you, Uncle Cheng!”
“Oh, don’t be so polite, Miss Song. Order whatever you want today. It’s my treat!”
“How could I possibly accept that?”
“You absolutely should! Is this Miss Song’s first time in Beijing? You have to try the food here. If nothing else, the flavors are definitely authentic…”
Uncle Cheng spoke with a thick Beijing accent, his enthusiasm and delight impossible to hide.
Song Fuxue first ordered several of the specialty dishes he recommended before looking at Pei Shangyue.
“Older Brother, what do you want to eat?”
“Anything’s fine.”
“Okay.”
Song Fuxue already understood her older brother’s preferences, so she ordered two dishes he usually ate more often.
“Sorry for troubling you, Uncle Cheng.”
“It’s no trouble at all, Miss Song!”
Uncle Cheng spoke to Song Fuxue with a kind expression before turning around to get busy.
“Older Brother, do you come here often?”
Song Fuxue rested her chin on her hand as she looked at Pei Shangyue curiously. She was interested in everything about him.
“Uncle Cheng just said this place’s real specialty is actually alcohol, so I’m guessing Older Brother mainly used to come here for drinks?”
“Mhm.”
Pei Shangyue did not deny it. He helped her remove her coat and folded it neatly.
“Older Brother, help tie my hair too!”
Song Fuxue leaned bonelessly against him as she ordered.
Pei Shangyue complied, skillfully gathering and tying up her long hair.
Song Fuxue tilted her head back to look at him.
“Older Brother, when you used to come drink here, did you come alone or with other people?”
“Most of the time alone, though occasionally with friends.”
“Wow, Older Brother actually has friends? What kind of friends? Men or women? Have I met them before? Can you introduce them to me?”
Song Fuxue immediately launched into another barrage of questions.
Pei Shangyue sounded helpless.
“Men. You haven’t met them, and there’s no need for you to.”
“Why? Could it be that Older Brother wants to hide me away?”
Pei Shangyue suddenly paused.
“What do you think?”
Song Fuxue shook her head.
“How would I know? You’re always mysterious and don’t talk much.”
“But it doesn’t matter. Anyway, I trust Older Brother unconditionally and like Older Brother unconditionally too!”
Pei Shangyue fell silent as he secured her tied-up hair with a ribbon.
Song Fuxue did not continue questioning him. Instead, her attention was drawn toward the entire wall lined with alcohol bottles.
“No wonder it’s called a wine house. You can tell these are all the owner’s treasured collections!”
“Older Brother, do you want to buy a few bottles to drink at home? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you drink at home before.”
“No need. Alcohol isn’t allowed at Yunqi Residence.”
Pei Shangyue poured her a glass of water, his dark gaze fixed heavily on her lips.
“Alcohol numbs people’s nerves and makes them do impulsive things.”
Song Fuxue drank some water, her red lips glistening.
“Impulsive things? Like what? Older Brother, are you afraid I’ll see?”
She smiled curiously.
“I really can’t imagine what kind of out-of-control things someone as calm and restrained as Older Brother would do.”
“If that day ever comes, I’m definitely going to secretly record it and laugh at you for the rest of your life!”
Pei Shangyue shifted his gaze away.
“Eat.”
The dishes they ordered gradually began arriving one after another.
“Okay then.”
Song Fuxue had already been starving, so she immediately sat down to eat.
“Older Brother, this zhajiang noodles dish is so delicious! But I still think the one you make tastes the best!”
“The lamb chops are amazing too! They’re super fragrant!”
“The chef’s skills are incredible! Older Brother, can’t we steal this chef to our house?”
After eating two pieces, Song Fuxue’s eyes lit up.
But since she was trying not to eat too much meat at night, she reluctantly held herself back and instead picked some for her older brother.
Then she tried several pastries.
“The aiwowo is delicious too! This specialty rice cake is so soft and chewy! I’ve never seen this on Hong Kong Island!”
“The douzhi is also… uh… this douzhi tastes… strange…”
Song Fuxue took one sip, and her entire face scrunched up.
Silently, she pushed the douzhi aside and drank half a glass of orange juice before finally recovering.
Afterward, she happily continued trying other foods.
Her expressions were so animated that it felt like she was performing an entire play by herself.
Pei Shangyue watched her the entire time, the corners of his lips faintly lifting.
He had always been a man of few words, and his appetite had never been particularly good, but he truly liked eating together with Song Fuxue.
Without question, Song Fuxue was a vivid, lively, and interesting person.
Being around her made ordinary food taste more flavorful, and even a lifeless existence gained a splash of bright color and excitement.
“Older Brother, this lamb soup’s pretty good! I added a deadly amount of cilantro! I love cilantro!”
“Oh no, am I going to get a nosebleed from drinking too much?”
“Forget it, forget it, I won’t drink anymore. I’ll just continue favoring my yellow rice red bean cake instead!”
Without realizing it, Song Fuxue ate quite a lot. Only when she was nearly too full did she reluctantly put down her chopsticks.
Pei Shangyue directly ate the leftovers she could not finish.
Song Fuxue lazily leaned against the window.
“Older Brother, there are several plum blossom trees downstairs. They’re blooming so beautifully!”
“I want to go take a look and take pictures too! Older Brother, keep eating. I’ll just be downstairs and come right back!”
Song Fuxue stood up to head downstairs, only for Pei Shangyue to grab her wrist.
“Put on your coat. It’s cold outside.”
“Oh right, I’m in the north now…”
Before Song Fuxue could say anything else, Pei Shangyue had already bundled her up tightly.
“Older Brother is seriously trying his hardest to turn me into a penguin.”
After muttering her complaint softly, Song Fuxue quickly ran downstairs before her older brother could stop her again.
The private room returned to silence.
Pei Shangyue watched the figure downstairs until the sound of footsteps came from behind him.
A man in a suit walked in.
“Well now, I was wondering why President Pei disappeared after returning from Hong Kong Island. So it turns out you’ve gotten into a relationship?”
Xie Junyan glanced at Song Fuxue downstairs and smiled.
“The girlfriend you brought back from Hong Kong Island?”
Pei Shangyue frowned, displeasure evident on his face.
“Why are you here? Did Uncle Cheng tell you?”
“Tsk, why can’t I come? What, am I interrupting your romantic atmosphere?”
Xie Junyan knocked on the table dramatically in annoyance.
“I’m saying, President Pei, this really isn’t fair. How many years have we known each other? You’ve been single forever, and now that you finally got a girlfriend, you didn’t even tell me? Am I not worthy?”
Pei Shangyue: “…”
“But honestly, Uncle Cheng didn’t even need to tell me. I would’ve found out sooner or later anyway. This afternoon, you took your beautiful girlfriend sightseeing in the gardens, and someone already photographed you two and pushed it onto the trending searches.”
Xie Junyan waved his phone around.