17 – vol.2 Truffle Dark Chocolate
“Of course it has nothing to do with you.” Zhou Wensen hurriedly defended himself, saying, “You don’t need to feel guilty. No matter what, I was the one who brought him here.”
As he spoke, he recalled Wen Ruosui suddenly standing before them on the steps and saying those words, so he asked, “By the way, I haven’t asked you yet—why did you say those things to Mr. Pei? Have you met him before?”
“I have met him.” Wen Ruosui nodded.
She said, “One night at a bar, I had a bit of an accident, and he helped me. But it was just a brief encounter, and I never thought I’d see him again.”
At this point, she bit her lip before continuing, “So when you brought him over today, I was really surprised. I recognized him right away and wanted to thank him again.”
“So that’s how it is.” Zhou Wensen understood her meaning but asked further, “But why were you at a bar? I don’t think you’re the type of person who likes going to places like that.”
She really didn’t go to bars often.
If she hadn’t been tricked, she wouldn’t have gone there in the first place.
Since the matter was quite complicated, Wen Ruosui briefly explained the whole story, including how she was chased by two men, got lost and couldn’t find the exit, and how the man helped her. She skipped the part about Xiao Hui, only mentioning that she had been tricked by her ex-boyfriend.
Finally, she added apologetically, “Since it was an occasion where you were entertaining guests, I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it. I just thought of giving you a cake as a way to express my gratitude.”
“But it seems he didn’t really like it.”
Zhou Wensen reassured her, “It’s fine, as long as your heart was in it.”
“From a man’s perspective, someone like him—almost godlike—probably gets bothered by women all the time. He probably just didn’t want any unnecessary trouble, so he told you not to take it to heart.”
“So don’t dwell on it. Let’s just move on from this.”
Wen Ruosui nodded and said, “I think so too.”
But then, unable to let it go, she asked, “Was my cake… really not good? I spent a long time making it, and I didn’t expect the feedback to be so poor.”
Zhou Wensen slapped the table emphatically, refuting her words, “How could it not be good?”
When it came to Wen Ruosui’s food, he was full of praise.
His words were firm, filled with the loyalty of a friend, “I really liked it, I just didn’t have time to finish it.”
“Don’t worry, I’m still your loyal customer. Next time, I’ll bring Xiao Xu to your shop, and you can make another one for me. I’ll let him try it too.”
After a pause, he added, “He’ll definitely like it too.”
Xiao Hui, who had been playing on her phone at the counter, suddenly looked up when she heard this keyword.
Suspiciously, she chimed in, widening her eyes, “Xiao Xu? Vincent, is this your new boyfriend? Is he the sixth one?”
Zhou Wensen waved his hand dismissively, “Don’t say that. He should be the last one.”
“…” Xiao Hui pouted, half-doubtful and half-accusing, “But you say that about every one of them. Is he really the last one?”
Zhou Wensen was always vague on this topic.
He started beating around the bush again, saying, “Ah, I can’t really say.”He then went on to talk about today’s big client: “Honestly, I was a bit charmed today. That face of his—not just women, even I was moved. If it weren’t for this Mr. Pei getting me scolded by the boss and docked my pay, I might have actually switched sides…
“No, wait, that face of his could make anyone forgive anything. I think I don’t even blame him anymore. But it doesn’t matter if I forgive him—I still can’t win him over. Someone like him is just too high-level…”
Xiao Hui: “…”
Wen Ruosui: “…”
So it turns out it’s not just women who can get infatuated—men can too.
And it’s the kind of infatuation that just doesn’t stop.
Wen Ruosui helplessly called his name, interrupting his endless train of thought: “Vincent.”
Zhou Wensen snapped out of his rambling, mouth agape as he asked, “Huh, what’s up?”
“First of all, congratulations on your new boyfriend,” she said seriously. “But I’m sorry to tell you that this coffee shop of mine will be closing soon, so I probably won’t be able to serve you and your boyfriend in the days to come.”
“Closing?” Zhou Wensen was shocked. “Why so suddenly?”
Wen Ruosui replied frankly, “I broke up with my ex-boyfriend, so I’m planning to move back to Beicheng.”
“All that fuss just for that?”
“It’s not a fuss—it’s just moving back to Beicheng.”
At this point, Xiao Hui put down her phone and said earnestly, “Suisui just doesn’t want to keep being bothered by that scumbag and his mistress anymore. She’d rather just leave and be done with it—out of sight, out of mind.”
Wen Ruosui glanced at her. “Xiao Hui.”
“Am I wrong?” Xiao Hui was young and spoke bluntly. “If it weren’t for them, you wouldn’t have to leave us behind.”
After saying that, she made a dejected expression.
Zhou Wensen quickly guessed the reason. “So, the bar incident was their doing too?”
“Yeah, probably, even though there’s no proof.” Wen Ruosui told Zhou Wensen about the text message incident.
“That’s really despicable. Looks like you’ll have to be extra careful these next few days.” Zhou Wensen was furious, his tone growing heavier. Clenching his fist, he said to Wen Ruosui, “People like that—once they do something once, they’ll do it again. Who knows what other dirty tricks they might pull.”
“Yeah.” Wen Ruosui nodded.
She added, “Of course, that’s just one reason. I’ve been wanting to move somewhere else for a while now, so I guess it’s just fate.”
Hearing that the familiar shop was closing, Zhou Wensen felt a wave of emotion.
He said wistfully, “Since you’ve made up your mind, I won’t say much as a regular.” After a pause, he called out, “Xiao Hui, make me a latte. While the shop’s still here, I’d better drink as much as I can.”