However, one should not look at what is improper.
Duan Zhuo didn’t keep staring for long.
His irritation had subsided, and he was worried that if he kept looking, something else might rise instead.
Just earlier she hadn’t let him kiss her up there—but now, with just a slight lift of his head, he could.
An Li had no idea what the person under the table was thinking.
Her heart was practically in her throat.
Not only was she afraid that Wen Shuyi might discover Duan Zhuo under the table—
But also because—
She felt something lightly brush against her ankle, as if Duan Zhuo had touched it intentionally or unintentionally.
The table wasn’t hollow. Because it was made of marble, the center was solid, which meant Duan Zhuo had very limited space to hide.
If Wen Shuyi took just a few more steps forward, she would discover them.
Fortunately, she didn’t walk closer and instead stood facing An Li.
“An Li, I just spoke with Xingning. He won’t blame us for what happened today,” Wen Shuyi said softly with a sigh. “It’s my fault. I’m new here and didn’t know how to handle things.”
Even though Wen Shuyi had denied the handover of work with An Li, she still stepped forward to share the responsibility and spoke in An Li’s defense.
This left An Li confused about what kind of person Wen Shuyi really was.
Could it really have been a misunderstanding caused by a poorly handled handover?
No matter what, An Li’s impression of Wen Shuyi had changed slightly. She felt that this future sister-in-law was not simple.
“It’s alright,” An Li replied politely. “Although there was an accident today, the shooting progress wasn’t delayed. We’ll just be more careful in the future.”
“That’s a relief.” Wen Shuyi placed a hand over her chest and smiled gently. “I was worried you might blame me.”
An Li shook her head. “Of course not.”
“That’s good.” Wen Shuyi took out her phone. “Let me treat you to some afternoon tea as an apology.”
“Ah, no need, I—”
“Don’t be so polite. We’ll be family in the future,” Wen Shuyi said with a smile. “What milk tea do you want? The same as before?”
“…Okay.” An Li instinctively felt that the other party had ill intentions.
But she couldn’t figure out what method she might use.
Without giving An Li a chance to refuse, Wen Shuyi placed the order for her and then stayed to chat under the pretext of discussing work.
As expected of someone from a prestigious family, her every movement carried elegance and composure. Her words were gentle and appropriate, leaving no room for criticism.
When the delivery arrived, Wen Shuyi stood up to get it.
Only then did Duan Zhuo, who had been under the table, finally have the chance to stand up.
“Damn, that was suffocating,” Duan Zhuo muttered as he smoothed out the wrinkles in his clothes and dusted off his sleeves. “You’re really something. You’re the first person to ever push me under a table.”
“I didn’t do it on purpose,” An Li muttered. “Besides, you could’ve just sat on the floor and played with your phone. What’s so suffocating about that?”
“I wasn’t playing with my phone.”
“Then what were you doing just now?”
She and Wen Shuyi had been talking for over twenty minutes—had he just been sitting there doing nothing?
A not-so-innocent smile curved Duan Zhuo’s lips. He cleared his throat and changed the subject. “That woman… she ordered you milk tea?”
“Mm.” An Li glanced at him. “What’s wrong? Do you want some too?”
“I’m not interested in dairy.” He paused. “But if you insist, I can drink yours.”
An Li froze for a few seconds, then smacked his arm, her cheeks flushing as she glared at him. “You… pervert.”
“Wait—what nonsense are you thinking?” Duan Zhuo took a step back from the hit. “I meant your milk tea. What are you imagining?”
Drinking from the same cup she drank from—that was practically an indirect kiss. Of course, he wouldn’t refuse such a good thing.
But his girl had quite the imagination and often misunderstood.
On the surface, she looked soft and pure, fair and delicate—but in reality, she had a rather mischievous mind.
Realizing she had misunderstood again, An Li awkwardly withdrew her hand, still annoyed at him.
He was the one always saying strange things—no wonder she got the wrong idea.
“You’re not getting any milk tea,” she huffed.
“So stingy.” He leaned closer, completely at ease.
The more she resisted, the more Duan Zhuo wanted to tease her, moving closer and closer as if he might kiss her at any moment.
Wen Shuyi’s voice sounded again.
“An Li.”
An Li reacted instantly and shoved Duan Zhuo back under the table.
The next second, Wen Shuyi appeared carrying a bag, smiling as she handed over the milk tea. “Here you go.”
“Thank you!” An Li replied politely.
Wen Shuyi seemed to notice something. “Why is your face a bit red?”
“Is it? M-maybe it’s just hot.” An Li fanned herself.
Wen Shuyi didn’t suspect anything and left with her own milk tea.
Only after confirming she was really gone did An Li pull Duan Zhuo back up.
Using the momentum of her pull, he stood up and then tugged her into his arms. With one hand braced beside her, he caged her in, amusement flickering in his dark eyes. “Third time’s the charm. If you push me under the table again, I won’t guarantee I won’t sneak a taste.”
Heaven knew what had gone through his mind during those twenty-plus minutes while she was chatting with Wen Shuyi.
And she had even told him to play on his phone.
How could a phone compare to her?
Duan Zhuo’s warning had no effect on An Li at all. She blinked her long lashes innocently. “What do you mean? What are you going to eat?”
What was there to eat under the table that he had to “sneak”?
“Nothing.” He rubbed her bangs. “You’ll find out next time.”
“Are you hungry?” An Li thought he meant it literally and handed him the milk tea on the table. “Then have this mango pomelo sago.”
The milk tea cup was inside a plastic bag. When she took it out, she realized—
It wasn’t mango pomelo sago.
It was just a regular pearl milk tea.
“Didn’t Miss Wen say mango pomelo sago? Why did it turn into pearl milk tea?” An Li checked carefully to make sure she hadn’t mistaken it.
Although she wasn’t picky, something felt off.
“This milk tea seems suspicious. Don’t drink it,” Duan Zhuo said calmly. “That woman surnamed Wen isn’t a good person.”
“Why do you say that?”
“She’s always wanted to marry into the Duan family. She often does strange things to attract attention from me and my brother. Once, she even pretended to faint in front of us.”
“How do you know she was pretending?”
“Because while she was fainting, she still adjusted her hairstyle.”
“…And then?”
“I didn’t bother with her and just stepped over her,” Duan Zhuo paused. “But my brother didn’t realize and carried her to the hospital.”
After that, Wen Shuyi had fallen deeply for Duan Xingning and constantly tried to get close to him.
Although marrying Duan Zhuo would make her the future matriarch of the family, his ability to see through such schemes was too strong. Her tricks didn’t work on him at all.
Duan Xingning, on the other hand, was easier to fool.
Combined with the good relationship between Madam Duan and Madam Wen, and their mutual familiarity, the marriage was eventually arranged.
“So you’re saying Miss Wen isn’t what she seems?” An Li grew more suspicious, staring at the milk tea. “Then… can I still drink this?”
Duan Zhuo looked at it with her.
From the outside, nothing seemed wrong.
The cup was sealed.
Even if someone wanted to poison it, there wouldn’t have been an opportunity.
“It’s just a cup of milk tea. Throw it away,” Duan Zhuo said.
That was the safest option.
An Li hesitated. “Wouldn’t it be a bit rude to just throw it away?”
And she was still worrying about that at a time like this.
Saving face was nothing compared to the risk of being poisoned.
“You said you asked for mango pomelo sago, but they gave you pearl milk tea instead?” Duan Zhuo suddenly thought of something.
“Mm, yes. Why?”