When Ren Chaomei went to the Ye family, they had treated her to a proper meal with meat and vegetables. Now that Ye Changqing had come to her territory, she also wanted to entertain him properly.
But, somewhat embarrassingly, she didn’t have a place where she could host a guest.
Fortunately, the mountains, rivers, and streams outside belonged to everyone.
“My house burned down, and the old house hasn’t been cleaned up yet. How about we eat roasted potatoes, grilled mantou, and grilled sausages by the river for lunch?”
“Okay.” Ye Changqing nodded without refusing.
He wasn’t lacking this bit of food. He could easily make it home in time for lunch, while staying here to eat would only cause Ren Chaomei more trouble.
But Ren Chaomei had too much pride. Although she had taken back the one yuan, she had been thinking about returning the favor by treating him to this meal. Even though their circumstances were like this, she still wanted to do it.
Ren Chaomei herself didn’t care, but Ye Changqing could see the huge tear in her cloth shoe, with her toes practically sticking out whenever she walked.
Her shoes were worn-out, but Ren Chaomei’s steps were cheerful.
“Come on, come on, hurry up. I’ll take you to the river to gather some firewood first, then I’ll go home to get some things and let them know.”
Ren Chaomei rubbed her hands excitedly. “I haven’t roasted things for fun in ages. And today I’m off, plus I have you to keep me company.”
Her leave from a few days ago had ended. During the day, she had to do farm work, and at night, she had to stay up late doing her mischief. She had been completely exhausted.
But things were different now. Her major goal had been accomplished. She had already burned down the house, and the team leader had been considerate enough to give the entire family some time off.
Ren Chaomei was genuinely in a great mood.
The free-spirited aura around her was extremely obvious, though perhaps a little too free. Ye Changqing asked uncertainly, “I really don’t need to meet your uncle and aunt? I’m already here.”
“Absolutely not.”
“Have things between you and your uncle really reached the point where there’s no possibility of reconciliation?”
“Of course.” Ren Chaomei brushed him off. “There are some other reasons too. You’ll definitely find out if you get the chance later.”
There was no way she would dare let Ye Changqing wander around the Ren family home right now.
When her aunt asked why she wasn’t staying home to work, Ren Chaomei could only say that a friend was having a hard time, so she had taken her share of potatoes out to roast for lunch and help her friend out.
Afraid that Ren Chaomei might bring home someone who just wanted to freeload, Wang Xiaoqin didn’t dare ask too many questions. She merely nagged Ren Chaomei a couple of times for slacking off before leaving her alone.
If she had to eat nothing but potatoes every meal, Ren Chaomei would certainly have been miserable.
But she had her space, and secretly, she was eating quite well. So roasting potatoes and mantou by the river was actually quite fun for her.
She just couldn’t take too many things out of her space because she was afraid of exposing herself, so she only brought out two sausages to grill.
After Ye Changqing finished one sausage with a mantou, Ren Chaomei pushed the other sausage toward him.
“You can have this one too.”
She wasn’t good at cooking and had burned it, so it was better to give it to Ye Changqing rather than waste it.
“No need. You eat it yourself.” Ye Changqing didn’t take it. Instead, he poked at the fire with a stick. “My potato is ready. I’ll eat the roasted potato.”
He had originally wanted to find someone who would go along with everything he said for the sake of convenience.
But now that Ren Chaomei really put him first, he felt somewhat uncomfortable.
He couldn’t give her the same feelings in return. Everything he did felt as though he were trampling on her sincerity.
Ye Changqing looked at Ren Chaomei and carefully studied her features.
Ren Chaomei was very beautiful. She had a round little face, large eyes, delicate features, and eyes full of spirit. Her eyebrows were particularly striking, while her nose was straight and high, balancing out the sweetness brought by her round face. Altogether, she naturally possessed a sharp, cool temperament.
She looked adorable when she smiled, but the moment she raised her eyebrows, she looked like someone nobody should mess with.
She was the kind of girl who naturally drew people’s attention.
But… no matter how beautiful her face was or how appealing her temperament was, no matter how carefully he looked at her, he still couldn’t fall in love with her at first sight.
The phrase “love at first sight” had been passed down for generations, with countless examples to prove it existed.
But he didn’t understand it.
He truly didn’t understand.
“Oho~ Are you mesmerized?” Ren Chaomei blinked at him teasingly. “Well? I’m super beautiful, aren’t I?”
Some of Ren Chaomei’s jokes were still far too bold for the conservative people of this era. The last time, Ren Gan Ying had been so embarrassed that his entire face turned red.
Ye Changqing was better. Only his ears turned red, while his expression remained serious. But his tone was strangely humble.
“Don’t say things like that when we’re outside.”
“Huh? Fine, fine, fine~ I understand~ You’re shy~” Ren Chaomei laughed without restraint.
She had to admit, playing the role of a little flirtatious hooligan and teasing people was pretty fun.
Ye Changqing couldn’t help looking at her a few more times.
She looked even prettier when she smiled than when she didn’t.
Watching her made him want to smile along with her.
But this definitely wasn’t love.