20demayo Chapter 125 Stamped 'Boyfriend'
Chapter 125 Stamped 'Boyfriend'
Zhou Yanruo walked briskly to Wang Jie's side, naturally raised her hand to take his arm, and leaned her body slightly to rest her head affectionately on Wang Jie's shoulder. Her voice was soft as she whispered in his ear, "You arrived early, didn't you? I should have come out earlier so as not to waste the time we could have spent together."
Wang Jie lowered his head slightly, his nose brushing against Zhou Yanruo's hair. He paused, then gently replied, "No, actually I just arrived not long ago."
"Are you hungry? Have you ordered anything?" Zhou Yanruo let go of Wang Jie, moved a chair from the opposite side of the table and placed it next to Wang Jie, sitting down close to him.
Wang Jie looked at Zhou Yanruo, his eyes sparkling with laughter, and said half-jokingly, "Why are you still squeezing in on the side? Do you miss me that much?"
"Yes, I miss you so much," Zhou Yanruo replied affectionately, without the slightest hesitation.
Wang Jie's casual, teasing remark elicited a heartfelt confession from Zhou Yanruo. His heart raced; he couldn't tell if it was nervousness or something else, but his face felt hot. He cursed himself for being so pathetic, a grown man less assertive than a young girl who could openly express her love for the person she liked.
"Oh, oh, really?" Wang Jie was at a loss for words and seemed flustered.
Zhou Yanruo laughed and said, "I'm not teasing you anymore, I'm starving. What dishes did you order?"
Wang Jie picked up the menu on the table and handed it to Zhou Yanruo, saying, "I haven't ordered yet. I'll order when you arrive. Take a look at what you want to eat."
“I’m familiar with this place, so I’ll do my best to be a good host.” Zhou Yanruo waved to the waiter.
"'Honoring the host'? Fine, fine, you decide."
Zhou Yanruo flipped through the menu, pointed to the color page and said, "Let's have a set of roast duck. It's a famous dish that you must try when you come to our great capital."
Seeing that Zhou Yanruo was serious, Wang Jie deliberately teased her, "I've heard of roast duck, but I don't know if it tastes good or if it's similar to the salted duck in the south."
"That's different. Peking duck in Beijing is very particular. As the name suggests, it's a duck roasted over fruitwood until it's golden brown. The skin is crispy. It's wrapped in lotus leaf pancakes, spread with sweet bean sauce, and topped with scallions. It's absolutely delicious."
With exaggerated expressions, Zhou Yanruo chattered on about how delicious "Beijing roast duck" was.
Wang Jie couldn't help but chuckle and said, "Famous dishes are now being served in everyday restaurants. How delicious can they be?"
Zhou Yanruo stared with her round eyes, rolled her pupils, and said, "What do you know? This is called 'one can have whatever one wants'."
"Haha, you're quite the talker. Okay, you're right about everything."
Wang Jie found Zhou Yanruo's unreasonable argument both cute and amusing. So, he deliberately picked a question and asked, "Didn't you say you were very familiar with this restaurant? So, was the roast duck you recommended to me today a closed oven roast duck or a hanging oven roast duck?"
"Huh?" Zhou Yanruo's face clearly showed the words "I don't know," but she didn't hold back, "Roast duck is roast duck. I've been eating it since I was a child. I don't care if it's roasted in a closed oven or a hanging oven."
Wang Jie pursed his lips slightly, but inwardly he was amused. It was clearly a pointless question, but he got an even more pointless answer. And the two of them were even going on and on, trying to banter.
"Would you like to order anything else?"
Hearing the question, the two realized they were still ordering food. They looked up at the same time and saw the waiter staring at them expressionlessly.
Wang Jie gave an awkward laugh, then gestured with his chin towards Zhou Yanruo, indicating, "Let's order first."
"Hmm, I'll order next: deep-fried meatballs, Qianlong cabbage, stir-fried shredded pork with vinegar, and a duck soup. Okay, that's all."
After ordering, Zhou Yanruo handed the menu back to the waiter. As if remembering something, she called out to the waiter who was about to turn and leave: "Um, waiter, I wanted to ask, is your roast duck cooked in a closed oven or a hanging oven?"
Wang Jie smiled without saying a word, watching Zhou Yanruo act silly.
The waiter replied in a deep voice, "Our roast duck is delivered from the head office." Then he quickly turned and left.
Zhou Yanruo muttered, "Was the roast duck delivered roasted in a hanging oven or a closed oven?"
Wang Jie couldn't hold back any longer and said, "Are you obsessed? Can't you get over this joke?"
"Didn't you say that I should take everything seriously and get to the bottom of things? I've taken it seriously and gotten to the bottom of things, and now you have a problem with that?"
Wang Jie raised his hands in surrender, "Let's not talk about the roast duck anymore, okay? Aren't you going to ask me if things went smoothly today?"
"It'll definitely go smoothly, do you even need to ask?" Zhou Yanruo said smugly, as if she had expected it all along.
How do you know you'll definitely pass the visa interview?
"Of course you'll pass. No matter who it is, Wang Jie, you're the best," Zhou Yanruo praised without reservation.
Wang Jie smacked his lips, only by responding to Zhou Yanruo's praise could he avoid appearing embarrassed, "That's right, that's right, regardless of whose boyfriend he is."
Upon hearing the person himself confirm that he was her 'boyfriend,' Zhou Yanruo smiled radiantly, then began to act coy.
The waiter brought the dishes at just the right time: "Qianlong cabbage, deep-fried meatballs, and stir-fried shredded pork with vinegar. The roast duck will take a little longer, please enjoy your meal."
The two chatted while eating. Wang Jie had barely slept a wink on the train last night, and had been forcing himself to stay awake during his visa interview at the embassy that morning. Now that he was relaxed and had eaten, his eyelids were starting to droop.
Zhou Yanruo noticed Wang Jie's fatigue and asked, "Are you tired?"
Wang Jie shook his head. "I'm not tired, just a little sleepy. It's okay, I'll just wash my face. Where are we going later? As the host, how are you going to fulfill your duties?"
"After dinner, I'll take you to my house. You can take a nap first. My mom wants to meet you, and we'll have dinner together tonight."
"Huh?" Wang Jie suddenly woke up, all sleepiness gone. "Why does your mother want to see me? Oh right, I finally know, your mother is Professor Yang and your father is Professor Zhou."
Zhou Yanruo looked at Wang Jie innocently and said, "What do you mean 'finally know'? I never intended to hide it from you. My parents have always been professors, so what?"
Wang Jie felt a little guilty; this was a situation she hadn't expected at all. "No, nothing? You still haven't told me why your mother wants to see me?"
Zhou Yanruo scoffed, "Look how scared you are, is it really necessary? It was Grandma who told my mom that you've always helped and taken care of me, especially... it's all thanks to you for comforting me. My mom said she wanted to find a chance to thank you, so I told her about your trip to Beijing today."
"Oh, that's why." Wang Jie breathed a sigh of relief.
"Otherwise what? What are you thinking?" Zhou Yanruo poked Wang Jie's forehead.
After finishing our meal, we walked out of the restaurant.
Zhou Yanruo's home is on the campus of Tsinghua and Peking Universities, just one stop away from here. The two of them had eaten quite a bit, so they decided to walk back.