He Kezhou couldn’t lie to himself, and he certainly didn’t want to keep staying in Meng Yizhen’s place for free.
Zhou Zhishui let out an “hey” and couldn’t help but remind He Kezhou, “Your voice is getting hoarser and hoarser. Buy a box of cold medicine on your way back. Cold showers feel great, but with your body, people worry.”
He Kezhou suppressed a cough. “I can handle it.”
Zhou Zhishui said nothing more. Between men, saying too much just came off as overly sentimental.
The whole way back, He Kezhou kept thinking that if he told Ning Xi about this, she would definitely throw a fit and refuse to move out.
He arrived outside the residential complex, parked his electric bike, and went to buy noodles as usual.
It was only when he was paying that he noticed the money he’d transferred to Ning Xi had been returned.
When he’d sent her the transfer, he still had work in his hands. After sending it, he’d casually tossed his phone aside.
Only now did he have time to look at his phone.
Ning Xi hadn’t bombarded him with messages or called him one after another. He’d had a rare, peaceful shift.
That thousand yuan was the fee he’d agreed to earn from a car repair shop owner—he’d promised to spend his day off next Monday driving for him.
Zhou Zhishui had helped him land the gig.
And Zhou Zhishui had also talked the boss into paying him in advance.
He Kezhou clutched the noodles. Was Ning Xi upset that he’d sent too little?
Thinking about having to explain to Ning Xi when he got back that this was all the money he had—she’d call him useless and worthless—he slowed his electric bike.
There were still nine days until payday. He didn’t need to guess that Ning Xi’s money was just about gone.
If Ning Xi hadn’t spent so much on impulse purchases this month, his salary plus the delivery gigs and side jobs would have been enough to pay back the rent he owed Meng Yizhen, leave Ning Xi some living expenses, and still have money left over to rent a new place.
Though the place they’d rent wouldn’t be very nice.
At that thought, He Kezhou twisted the throttle all the way down. He just wanted to get home quickly and cook some noodles. After eating, he could still go out and run three more hours of deliveries.
He’d gotten off work late today and had already missed the evening delivery rush.
The moment he opened the door, He Kezhou smelled the rich aroma of food filling the apartment.
Ning Xi heard the noise and poked her head out of the kitchen.
“You’re back! The food’s all ready. I just need to scoop the rice and we can eat.”
He Kezhou looked at the dishes on the table, dazed for several seconds.
The woman’s hair was tied up high, and she was wearing his black short-sleeved shirt—long enough to cover her knees—paired with a white ice-cream-colored short skirt with a ruffle trim.
Her long, straight legs gleamed so white under the light they were almost blinding.
Ning Xi wiped the sweat from her forehead with her arm. “What are you standing there in a daze for? Come eat.”
He Kezhou’s forehead was covered in the same fine beads of sweat as hers—clearly, he was just as overheated.
He was wearing the same black short-sleeved shirt as hers, holding a plastic bag in his hand, and the surprise and bewilderment in his eyes were caught precisely by her.
Ning Xi pointed at the clothes she was wearing and explained to him, “There’s no apron in the kitchen, and all my clothes are light-colored, so I grabbed one of yours.”
She set two bowls of rice on the table and went back into the kitchen to get chopsticks.
The kitchen in He Kezhou’s line of sight wasn’t a mess from use. The trash was bagged up, and the used cutting board and knife had been put back in their places.
The aroma of the food made He Kezhou’s stomach growl twice.
The hand holding the plastic bag tightened.
Ning Xi heard his stomach rumble, walked up to He Kezhou, and guessed he might not want to eat food she’d made.
She looked up at him and said, “I spent a long time making this meal. If you’re afraid I put poison in it, or something unclean, I’ll eat it first to show you.”
A month ago, the original owner had slipped some kind of drug she’d bought online into the water He Kezhou drank.
The color and smell of that cup of water had put He Kezhou on alert.
The original owner couldn’t understand it. They were already living together, yet He Kezhou could actually resist touching her.
They’d seen each other without clothes on, but beyond that, there was no crossing any line. In fact, the way He Kezhou looked at her wasn’t how a normal man looked at his own girlfriend.
If anything, she’d sensed disgust.
The original owner wanted it, but He Kezhou didn’t.
It made her start to think there was something wrong with He Kezhou.
When the drugging failed, she was convinced from the bottom of her heart that He Kezhou had a problem.
After that, the original owner escalated her antics, picking fights with He Kezhou constantly, finding fault with him at every turn.
Since then, He Kezhou almost never drank water at home, nor did he eat anything that had left his sight.
Ning Xi felt that every single thing the original owner had done could reset her understanding of the world.
So, from the very beginning, she’d grabbed an extra pair of chopsticks to use as serving chopsticks.
For every dish, she used the serving chopsticks to pick food into her own bowl first, and ate it one by one right in front of He Kezhou.
The woman stood by the table, her lowered nape damp with sweat, a few strands of hair sticking to it.
Because he kept silent and didn’t come over, her eyes were full of grievance and disappointment.
He Kezhou set the plastic bag down by the table and sat down beside Ning Xi.
This meal wasn’t as hard to get through as Ning Xi had imagined.
He Kezhou picked up his chopsticks.
Once the food hit his mouth, the speed at which he grabbed dishes and shoveled rice into his mouth picked up.
Ning Xi reminded him to drink the soup. “I made this specially for you. Try the temperature—if it’s a bit cold, I’ll heat it up again.”
Her mood became especially good as He Kezhou ate the meal in large mouthfuls.
He Kezhou’s gaze landed on the corn and carrot pork rib soup with floating scallions.
Ning Xi’s voice was gentler and slower than it had ever been. The look she gave him was pleasant and calm.
He Kezhou swallowed the rice in his mouth. “After I finish delivering food tonight, I’ll go drive for the ride-hailing service. Use that thousand for now—I’ll transfer you another sum tomorrow.”
Ning Xi couldn’t swallow the rice in her mouth.
“He Kezhou, I’m not asking you for money, and you don’t need to treat me as your obligation or responsibility.”
“Before, I had a terrible temper and a horrible personality. I want to change now, and I want to be good to you.”
“I spent almost two hours making this meal. The kitchen was hot, and I even got splattered by oil. What I want is for you to eat the meal I made without any pressure or burden.”
That way, she would be very happy and feel it was all worth it.
After saying these words, Ning Xi didn’t look at He Kezhou. She buried her head and shoveled rice into her mouth.
In He Kezhou’s line of sight were the woman’s soft, fluffy hair and reddened eyelids.
Her words left him stunned for a long time.
After Ning Xi finished the rice in her bowl, she heard the man apologize to her in a hoarse, low voice: “I’m sorry…”
She picked up her own bowl and chopsticks, forcing a somewhat strained smile. “If you feel sorry, then eat a bit more.”
Ning Xi thought that if she left the table, He Kezhou might feel more at ease eating, and he might eat more too.
He Kezhou’s eyes met the forced smile at the corner of Ning Xi’s lips. As she rose to leave the table, he hurriedly stood up and grabbed her arm.
His action preceded his awareness.
The skin his fingertips touched was warm and soft.
Ning Xi was somewhat surprised and looked at He Kezhou.
He Kezhou pressed his lips together, helpless and weary. “Don’t cry.”
When Ning Xi threw a crying fit, she was very hard to coax, and she would do unexpected, dangerous things.
Ning Xi rubbed her eyes with her arm. She wasn’t about to cry.
She didn’t know why, but this body’s eyelids would turn red whenever her emotions got even slightly stirred. It looked like she might burst into tears at any moment.
He Kezhou taking the initiative to grab her made her feel that today’s meal was half a success.
Their relationship seemed to be easing.
He was even starting to willingly touch her.
Ning Xi thought it was more likely that He Kezhou was going along with her just to avoid the trouble of her making a scene.