IWHBDR Chapter 10

As they approached, Rong Shu’s eyes curved, and he smiled beautifully and charmingly. Jiang Huan held onto Wu Ping’s school uniform sleeve tightly, never letting go. His round grape-like eyes, framed by dark circles, stared unblinkingly at Rong Shu. Seeing the school heartthrob up close made him look even better!

“Hello, I’m Xu Shu.”

“And I’m Chen Jing.”

“I know, I know! I’m Jiang Huan, and this is Wu Ping. We’ve been hanging out with the boss since the North Campus… I mean, we’ve been helping the boss with some things… hehe!” As Jiang Huan spoke, he felt he was getting more and more mixed up, and his eyes nervously darted toward Shen Huaixiu.

He was terrified that he’d say something wrong and cause trouble for him.

Shen Huaixiu didn’t pay attention to Jiang Huan’s words and turned around, saying, “Everyone’s here, let’s go.”

Rong Shu slowed his pace, walking beside Jiang Huan, and naturally handed over his phone. “Let’s add each other as friends. In the future, I might need your help with something.”

“Sure, sure!” Jiang Huan, feeling flattered, quickly took out his phone, completely oblivious to the glance Shen Huaixiu cast his way as he lowered his head to scan the code.

After they added each other as friends, Rong Shu’s smile grew even brighter. “How are you adjusting since you just got here? If you need any help, don’t hesitate to ask. Shen Huaixiu is my deskmate now, so we’ll be spending a lot of time together.”

He didn’t lower his voice as he said this. Jiang Huan was momentarily stunned, then quickly replied, “The school… I mean, you’re really too kind. We don’t need anything, but if possible, could you perhaps look after…”

“Where exactly is this place you’re talking about?” Shen Huaixiu suddenly turned to Rong Shu, cutting off Jiang Huan before he could finish his sentence.

Wu Ping tugged at Jiang Huan’s sleeve and shook his head silently. Shen Huaixiu never liked them meddling in his affairs.

Realizing this, Jiang Huan’s face turned pale, and he instinctively looked at Shen Huaixiu. Unfortunately, the other party wasn’t looking at him.

His heart immediately sank—he had overstepped his bounds.

Chen Jing noticed their actions and spoke up, “Let’s hurry, or we won’t get a seat again.”

“Is it the shop around the corner?” Hearing Chen Jing mention it, Wu Ping quickly chimed in, “That place is really popular. If we go late, there won’t be any seats. Jiang Huan, let’s go ahead and grab a spot. You guys can take your time, no rush. Let’s go!”

As soon as he finished speaking, he didn’t give Jiang Huan a chance to refuse and pulled him along, running ahead.

Rong Shu watched the two of them sprint away, momentarily stunned, then turned to look at Chen Jing.

Chen Jing shrugged innocently. “I didn’t expect those two to be so quick to act.”

“It’s fine, let them go.” Sensing Jiang Huan and Wu Ping’s unease, Shen Huaixiu spoke up, “We’ll just get there a bit faster ourselves.”

“Alright.” Rong Shu smiled, feeling pleased as he added Jiang Huan as a friend. He didn’t try to hide this action from Shen Huaixiu.

Noticing this, Shen Huaixiu’s brows furrowed slightly, and he pressed his lips together in a thin line. His already cold demeanor seemed to turn even frostier.

When they arrived, Wu Ping and Jiang Huan had just managed to snag a table and were waving them over.

“You guys are amazing. Every time Chen Jing and I come here, we end up leaving because the line is too long. Finally, we can really taste their food this time. Boss, we’re ready to order!” Rong Shu said with a smile as he walked in, Chen Jing following behind him. “I heard their salted boiled peanuts are pretty good!”

Rong Shu looked in the direction Chen Jing pointed. “They do look good. Let’s get a whole plate. But this seems like something that would go well with beer!”

Hearing the mention of alcohol, Chen Jing instinctively looked at Rong Shu. “Are you planning to drink?”

Rong Shu’s dark eyes showed a hint of hesitation, just as Shen Huaixiu walked over. “Order whatever you want. No need to hold back with me.”

Rong Shu’s eyes curved into a smile at his words. “Bro, hearing that from you is all I need.”

As he spoke, Rong Shu headed straight for the cold storage cabinet. Chen Jing watched him go, then glanced at Shen Huaixiu, who remained standing in place. “I’ll go check on him.”

Shen Huaixiu gave a slight nod, his chest tightening at the sound of Rong Shu calling him “bro”.

Steadying himself, he motioned for Jiang Huan to come over.

Seeing Shen Huaixiu beckon, Jiang Huan quickly ran over and cautiously asked, “Boss, what’s up?”

“Order the food. Ask them what’s good here.”

“Got it, got it.” Jiang Huan, relieved that Shen Huaixiu didn’t hold his earlier slip of the tongue against him, felt the weight in his chest finally lift.

After instructing Jiang Huan, Shen Huaixiu walked toward Rong Shu, just in time to hear Chen Jing ask, “Are you really going to drink?”

Rong Shu nodded. “How can you eat skewers without having a drink? I’ll just have a pineapple beer.”

Chen Jing watched as Rong Shu opened the cold storage door and pulled out a pineapple beer, his eyes almost popping out. “What the—are you serious?”

Rong Shu closed the door and turned to him, looking puzzled. “What’s there to be serious about? If you want a drink, just grab one yourself!”

“But… weren’t you planning to drink alcohol? This is…”

“What do you mean, ‘this isn’t alcohol’? This has alcohol in it, you know!”

Rong Shu flipped the can over and shoved it in Chen Jing’s face, pointing at the ingredient label. “Look at the alcohol content for yourself!”

Chen Jing saw the 1-2% alcohol content indicated and silently nodded. “Alright, fine.”

Whatever makes you happy.

Seeing that Chen Jing had nothing more to say, Rong Shu proudly lifted his handsome chin. Just then, Shen Huaixiu, who had overheard their conversation, approached. His usually cold, dark eyes softened with a gentle warmth as they rested on Rong Shu.

Seeing him, Rong Shu immediately waved the pineapple beer in his hand. “Want to try one?”

Chen Jing, who had expected Shen Huaixiu to refuse, looked up in surprise when he heard Shen Huaixiu respond, “Sure.”

As he spoke, Shen Huaixiu reached over Rong Shu and grabbed a bottle of pineapple beer from the cold storage himself.

Chen Jing suddenly felt at a loss for words.

When the three of them emerged one after the other, Jiang Huan and Wu Ping were busy marking up the menu. Seeing them approach, they immediately turned to Rong Shu. “Xu Shu, what do you want to eat? I’ve ordered lamb skewers, spicy pork ribs, vegetable rolls, and beef…”

After Jiang Huan listed off a bunch of dishes, Rong Shu casually popped open his pineapple beer with a click and said clearly, “Isn’t their specialty the grilled lamb kidneys?”

Chen Jing: “…”

Bro, are you serious right now?

Jiang Huan was also taken aback. He hadn’t expected the handsome school heartthrob to suddenly mention lamb kidneys—it was quite a sharp turn. Instinctively, he looked at Shen Huaixiu, who simply said, “Yeah, order it.”

Jiang Huan blinked, making sure he hadn’t misheard and then marked the grilled lamb kidneys on the menu.

With a slightly dry throat, he asked, “Anything else?”

“Silkworm pupae are also good,” Rong Shu said, his lips glossy and inviting after sipping his pineapple beer, catching the light like he had applied premium lip balm—so alluring.

“Order it.”

Before Jiang Huan could look at him, Shen Huaixiu spoke up directly.

Thanks to the lamb kidneys setting the tone earlier, marking down the silkworm pupae didn’t seem as difficult for Jiang Huan.

He was just about to ask if there was anything else when he saw the owner coming out with a bunch of round, large items in his hands. Rong Shu noticed them too, blinked, and pointed toward them, sparking Jiang Huan’s curiosity.

“What are those? Let’s order—”

“That’s enough; we’ll just stick with what we have.” Shen Huaixiu cut him off, taking the menu from Jiang Huan’s hand and giving it a quick glance before handing it to the approaching owner. Then he glanced around at the group. “If you want something to drink, go grab it yourselves.”

Jiang Huan, who was nearly scared to death by Rong Shu, stood up mechanically and nodded. “Okay, okay.”

As he and Wu Ping went out to get drinks, Rong Shu, still curious, looked regretfully at the table across from them and quietly asked, “What were those things?”

Chen Jing, sitting on the other side, covered his face, pretending not to hear, see, or exist. Such a difficult question was best left to the big shot to answer; he, as a small fry, was truly unworthy.

Shen Huaixiu turned his head to see Rong Shu, whose eyes were filled with confusion and anticipation. “Don’t ask, don’t look. It’s not something good.”

“If it’s not good, why are they eating it?” Rong Shu’s face, perhaps flushed from the pineapple beer, appeared slightly rosy under the light. His beautiful peach blossom eyes reflected Shen Huaixiu’s image, looking at him with such focus and affection that it inexplicably lifted Shen Huaixiu’s mood. A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. “It’s something even more invigorating than the kidneys.”

Rong Shu didn’t immediately grasp the meaning of this, but he didn’t press further. He lowered his gaze, seemingly pondering what could be more invigorating than kidneys.

When Jiang Huan and Wu Ping returned, they had clearly adjusted their mood. Both were holding pineapple beers. Seeing the beers, Chen Jing’s heart twinged. He silently tightened his grip on his cola.

The skewers arrived quickly. Eating some small barbecue dishes while enjoying the cool evening breeze in the bustling night market was a particularly pleasant experience.

Especially since the food from this shop was excellent—the meat was tender and flavorful.

Rong Shu was eating spicy ribs, his lips reddened by the spice, making his already striking features even more beautiful.

Shen Huaixiu ate slowly, occasionally pausing to glance at Rong Shu. Seeing him so focused on gnawing the ribs, Shen Huaixiu took the initiative to pick out the spicy ribs and place them in front of him. The others pretended not to notice and focused on their own food.

Suddenly, Rong Shu, who was gnawing on the ribs, looked up at Shen Huaixiu. His originally pink cheeks turned visibly redder, and with a tone of restrained excitement, he said, “I know what it is!”

The atmosphere at the table instantly quieted. Chen Jing quickly took a sip of his cola to calm his nerves.

Even Shen Huaixiu, who was usually expressionless, showed a slight crack in his composure.

Only Jiang Huan and Wu Ping, who hadn’t heard the previous conversation, looked up at Rong Shu, puzzled. “Know what?”

Chen Jing: “…”

Rong Shu tossed aside the rib skewer in his hand and reached for a kidney on the plate, his mischievous peach blossom eyes twinkling. “Your boss said it’s something even more invigorating than kidneys…”

“Eat this instead; that one’s too heat-inducing.” Shen Huaixiu suddenly pressed down on Rong Shu’s hand, stopping him from grabbing the kidney, and forcefully shoved a skewer of grilled shrimp into his hand. At the same time, he heard—

“…I’m not telling you!”

 

Author’s note:

Shen Huaixiu: “Come, let’s peel some shrimp.”

---

Moonlit: Any idea what dish it was? I’m curious >.<