Chapter 44

"What are you holding?" Yuan Yi noticed that Yan Xi was holding two boxes. "Is it food?"

"I'm holding something symbolic, one for good luck and the other for success," Yan Xi handed the boxes to him, "A gift for your housewarming, wishing you joy."

"Thank you." Thinking about his friends who had arrived empty-handed, Yuan Yi felt that even if the boxes only contained straw, Yan Xi was still better than his friends. "Aunt Li made bird's nest soup. Come with me and try it."

"Bird's nest soup?" Yan Xi glanced around the yard, where a few young men were setting up a barbecue grill, all of them were men, and there were no lovely ladies in sight. "Are all the female guests inside drinking soup?"

"Female guests?" Yuan Yi, holding the gift boxes, walked towards the door. "I didn't invite any other women."

"Don't overthink it."

"Oh..." Yan Xi sympathetically glanced at Yuan Yi's back. With his model-like physique and a family background of wealth, he still didn't have a female friend. He was really down on his luck. He specifically invited her here. Was it to maintain his fragile masculinity, to prove that he actually had female friends?

Yuan Yi didn't just casually put the gift boxes on the table; instead, he placed them in the cupboard. He checked the kitchen, then turned to Yan Xi. "The bird's nest soup isn't ready yet. How about I take you upstairs for a tour?"

"Sure." Yan Xi nodded eagerly. As soon as she entered, she thought the house was beautifully decorated. It wasn't luxurious from an overload of expensive items but had a delicate warmth to it, showing that the owner was someone who appreciated life. She didn't expect Yuan Yi to like such a style.

"The study is really beautiful." Yan Xi admired the spacious and elegant study, which had floor-to-ceiling windows, and walked onto the balcony. "You could put a small wooden table here and add a couple of rocking chairs. It would be so comfortable reading a book here."

"Would it be reading or rocking to sleep?" Yuan Yi muttered, eyeing the balcony's size, trying to figure out how big the table and chairs should be.

"That's not important. What matters is the ambiance," Yan Xi leaned against the balcony railing. "Make a cup of tea, have some snacks, and grab a foreign book you can't understand, take a photo—this is the ultimate way to look artistic. Do you get it?"

Yuan Yi: ...

A woman who uses food for her social media profile picture has the nerve to talk about "looking artistic"?

In the yard below, several friends gathered and quietly discussed the woman Yuan Yi had just brought inside.

"There was a woman just now, right? I didn't mistake that?" Xu Qiaosheng, who had lost his temper dealing with the barbecue grill, asked. "The mysterious girlfriend who made it onto Weibo's hot list?"

His friends looked at each other, unsure.

Zhang Wang glanced upstairs a few times. "Guys, stay calm. Don't be too enthusiastic when we meet her, we don't want to scare her off. But also, don't be too cold, or she might think we don't like her. It's not easy for Yuan Yi to have a woman around. Let's not mess it up for him."

Although they usually teased each other, they were reliable when it mattered. From childhood, except for Yuan Yi, who hadn't had a serious girlfriend, they all had dating experience. Yuan Yi had only been involved with women twice: once in high school when "upperclassmen bullied younger girls," and once when a mysterious girlfriend was filmed crossing a street with him. They didn't care about rumors of him being involved with female celebrities.

"Wang Zi, are you saying that she's really Yuan Yi's girlfriend?" Xu Qiaosheng asked in a low voice. "Has Yuan Yi mentioned her to you?"

Zhang Wang shook his head and stayed silent. Yuan Yi had once mentioned a girl to him, the "lowerclassman he bullied" incident, but seeing his friends' curious expressions, he decided not to bring it up.

"Even you don't know, Yuan Xiao'er really keeps things well hidden," another childhood friend, Yang Yu, paused from brushing oil on the meat skewers and curiously leaned in. "I wonder what kind of stunning beauty could catch Yuan Xiao'er's attention."

"Brother Yi isn't the shallow type who only looks at looks," Xu Qiaosheng, the younger cousin, couldn't help but defend Yuan Yi. "When it comes to women, just focusing on looks is too tacky."

"People who rely on their looks to make a living in the entertainment industry have no right to call others tacky," Yang Yu replied, going back to his task of brushing oil on the meat skewers. "When she comes down later, we'll all know."

After touring the upstairs and the basement, Yan Xi sat down on the living room sofa. A middle-aged woman in a light blue top came out holding bird's nest soup and smiled warmly at Yan Xi. "Please have some soup."

"Thank you," Yan Xi thanked her, unsure if it was her imagination, but she felt like this Aunt Li's eyes were sparkling as she looked at her.

"This is Aunt Li, who has been helping our family for more than ten years," Yuan Yi turned to Yan Xi. "Aunt Li, this is my friend Yan Xi."

"I know Miss Yan," Aunt Li wiped her hands and pulled out her phone. "Miss Yan, may I take a photo with you?"

Yan Xi was taken aback, turning to look at Yuan Yi. His expression was quite subtle, but he didn't seem displeased with Aunt Li's actions. It seemed that Aunt Li and he had a close relationship.

"Sure," Yan Xi smiled and agreed.

"Second Young Master, can you help me?" Aunt Li handed the phone to Yuan Yi, a bit embarrassed. "Could you make sure the photo looks good, and take a few more shots?"

Yuan Yi:...

How could he forget that Aunt Li is a loyal fan of Yan Xi's program?

Older people who follow celebrities are just as irrational as the younger generation. Yuan Yi looked expressionlessly at the pile of fruits and snacks on the coffee table, then glanced at Aunt Li, who seemed eager to feed Yan Xi herself. Unable to bear it any longer, he said, "Aunt Li, you go ahead and do what you need to. I'll take my friend to the barbecue."

"Okay, okay," Aunt Li reluctantly put down the fruit plate and turned to Yan Xi. "Miss Yan, if you need anything, just let me know. Don't eat too much barbecue; it's bad for your health. I made a lot of delicious food for lunch, you can try it later and see if you like it."

"Thank you, Aunt Li," Yan Xi smiled and agreed. After she followed Yuan Yi out the door, she turned to him and said, "Aunt Li is so cute."

"She's your loyal fan. Every noon and night, she's glued to the TV, watching your show," Yuan Yi stuffed his hands into his pockets and walked lazily. "Just wait. In less than half an hour, she'll post your photo together on her WeChat Moments, making other old ladies and uncles jealous."

Yan Xi: ...

Having such a cute fan... well, it's actually pretty nice.

As they walked to the yard, Yan Xi heard the sound of laughter. Before she could ask anything, Yuan Yi spoke first. "These are my childhood friends. I'll introduce you to them in a moment."

"Yuan Xiao'er, come over here," Zhang Wang, standing by the barbecue grill, waved at Yuan Yi, wearing an apron, looking quite ridiculous. "We've been waiting for you and your new friend."

Yan Xi and Yuan Yi approached, and when Yan Xi saw the overcooked meat skewers on the plate, she couldn't help but step back a little. With such poor grilling skills, why try to challenge barbecue? Wasn't this just making things difficult for themselves?

"I'll introduce you," Yuan Yi said, naming his childhood friends. "Zhang Wang, Yang Yu, Xu Qiaosheng, Zhu Han..." He introduced each person along with their job titles. Yan Xi roughly remembered their names, taking a moment to glance at Xu Qiaosheng. It turned out that the popular young star was actually Yuan Yi's cousin.

When Xu Qiaosheng and Zhang Wang saw Yan Xi, they were both a bit surprised because they had seen her on TV.

"I know this beauty," Xu Qiaosheng said, taking off his baseball cap. "She's the host from the Capital TV station, Miss Yan Xi, right?"

"I didn't expect Mr. Xu to remember me," Yan Xi smiled at the popular young star. "Nice to meet you."

The other childhood friends, who had no impression of Yan Xi, were a bit surprised. They didn't expect Yuan Yi's taste to be like this. The girl looked soft and delicate, and standing next to Yuan Yi, it seemed like a bully with a poor little thing. It was really... a mismatch.

"Yan Xiaoxi," Yuan Yi, seeing Yan Xi still chatting with his cousin, tapped the food tray with the tongs. "Come over and help with the grilling."

Yan Xi smiled at Xu Qiaosheng and walked over to Yuan Yi.

The childhood friends all shook their heads inwardly. Now it looked even more like a bully with a poor little thing.

"Isn't it supposed to be brushed with oil while grilling?"

"Impossible, you definitely have to sprinkle cumin powder after it's grilled."

"It'll get burnt this way!"

"You're not flipping it, of course, it's going to burn! Flip it!"

"I'm flipping it!"

"Yan Xiaoxi, as a woman, you can't even grill meat?"

"How is that related to being a woman? You're taller and older than me, and you've eaten more rice than I have! If you're so great, grill one for me to see!"

"Hurry, it's burning, it's burning!"

"Yuan Xiaodi, move aside, don't mess things up." Yan Xi pulled Yuan Yi to one side, threw all the burnt skewers into the trash bin, then skillfully took the meat, brushed it with oil, flipped it, and sprinkled cumin powder. Soon, the skewers emitted a tempting fragrance.

She stuffed the grilled chicken wings into Yuan Yi's hands, lifting her chin with a triumphant look. "Here, grill a skewer for me using your method."

Yuan Yi: ...

His pride as a man was shattered by a single skewer of grilled chicken wings?

Listening to the bickering between the two, Xu Qiaosheng accidentally poured half a bottle of chili powder onto the meat. He turned to look at the other friends, who also seemed a little dazed.

A bully... and a poor little thing?

Yuan Yi obediently ate the grilled chicken wings, no longer daring to give any more random instructions.

"Beef skewers."

"Here's the beef skewers."

"Too many, can't grill them all."

"Oh." He pulled back half of them.

"When grilling, you need to make sure to brush the oil while grilling, and sprinkle the cumin powder when it's almost done; putting it on too early will affect the taste..."

Listening to Yan Xi's detailed grilling instructions, Yuan Yi finished the last chicken wing and thought to himself, well, if she nags a bit, so be it. Who's to blame? He likes her, so he'll just endure it.

As a man, it wouldn't be right to embarrass her in front of others.

"Done eating?" Noticing that Yuan Yi had finished the chicken wing, Yan Xi picked up a skewer of grilled green peppers. Thinking that Yuan Yi's stomach might not be great, she swapped them for broccoli. "Eat some vegetables, so you don't get heaty."

"I don't like broccoli."

"I understand. My friend's 8-year-old little brother doesn't like it either. How about this?" Yan Xi handed him some grilled mushrooms. "Just made, be careful, they're hot."

Due to the smoke from the charcoal, her face was slightly flushed, and her eyes, which slanted upward slightly, sparkled as she looked at him. Yuan Yi felt his heart turn into a cotton candy—sweet and soft. He didn't even mind when she teased him, calling him an 8-year-old boy.

Women... sometimes it's okay to just give in to them.