CHAPTER 39

When Assistant Gao called, it was Cai Juan who answered the phone.

Cai Juan was a bit flustered as he picked up. "Hello, yes, I'm Cai. Is this Assistant Gao?"

"Oh, she didn't bring her phone, she went out for a walk. Probably thinking about the script."

"Dinner? Is it a formal occasion?"

"Okay, okay, I'll let her know."

After hanging up the phone, Cai Juan scratched his head, feeling even more nervous. Having been in Shencheng for over two months, he had forgotten about the contract signing with Xiaoyuan and Wei Zhuang.

When Xiaoyuan returned, Cai Juan quickly told her, his facial features still tense, "What should we do, what should we do? I didn't bring any clothes for you!"

Xiaoyuan was momentarily stunned before saying, "I'll just wear whatever you have. Didn't Assistant Gao say it's not a big event?"

"Who knows? After all, it's an occasion that Wei Zhuang is taking you to." Cai Juan took a deep breath. "What identity will she have when she takes you out?"

"Ugh, I told you that contract was no good, nothing was specified. Does this mean anything goes?" Cai Juan's curly hair was all in a mess from pulling at it.

He imagined many scenarios that shouldn't exist.

"Don't worry, I think... it'll be fine." Xiaoyuan reassured her. She really felt that Wei Zhuang wouldn't do anything to make her uncomfortable, she had a gut feeling about it.

Cai Juan shook his head, indicating he couldn't engage in this topic. He went to the wardrobe to pick out clothes for her.

After some consideration, he picked a knee-length silk skirt from a lesser-known designer, featuring an irregular splatter pattern in white, paired with a black court-style short-sleeve blouse with puffed sleeves adorned with a circle of black lace.

The shoes were also from a Korean designer, a pair of square-toed flats in avocado green with a bow on the front, accentuating her fair feet.

"We didn't bring any jewelry." Cai Juan sighed.

"Isn't this one okay?" Xiaoyuan pointed to a pair of vintage Chanel clip-on earrings with green glass embedded in the center of a golden petal design.

"Not bad," Cai Juan picked them up, saying helplessly, "But there's only one, the other one seems to have gone missing!"

"Ah, what a shame, this pair looks great."

"Yeah, this pair isn't expensive, it's just hard to find. They're from the '50s or '60s, the craftsmanship was exquisite back then."

Cai Juan helped her put them on. Her hair had grown a lot, with one side covering her earlobe and the other side revealing the earrings. Standing up, the skirt gracefully fell to her ankles, flowing elegantly, a burst of vibrant color.

When she got into the car that came to pick her up, it took a little over an hour to reach the outskirts of Xicheng City.

Upon getting out of the car, Xiaoyuan was amazed.

In the center of the lake stood a two-story villa, the starry sky reflected in the water, creating a seamless view of heaven and earth.

Wooden planks formed a small bridge, adorned with small lights and daisies, resembling a fairy tale.

Unconsciously, Xiaoyuan walked to the entrance of the villa with a smile. Surprisingly, this house turned out to be a private kitchen restaurant.

A young and handsome boy, said to be the owner's son, guided her around the house, leading her to the back door, where they could see a large, beautiful cherry blossom tree, clusters of blossoms gently falling.

As soon as she walked in, Wei Zhuang was already waiting for her. She was the only one there.

It turned out she was just there to have dinner with her.

They were having Huaiyang cuisine. This was Xiaoyuan's first time trying it.

The head chef brought out several dishes, including all the famous ones: crab meat lion's head, Fuchun chicken, eight-treasure duck, Biluohua shrimp, braised dried tofu, and a dish of stewed silver carp head.

As the head chef served the dishes, he also introduced Huaiyang cuisine, talking at length about the characteristics of Huaiyang cuisine, such as strict ingredient selection, emphasis on knife skills, attention to cooking timing, expertise in braising, focusing on broth, rich and mellow flavors, and a light and harmonious taste.

Xiaoyuan listened while glancing at Wei Zhuang from the corner of her eye.

She was quite surprised. In her impression, Wei Zhuang was someone who valued cleanliness, yet she allowed someone to talk so much at the dining table. She didn't object, so Xiaoyuan naturally stayed silent.

After a while, the head chef finally left, and Xiaoyuan secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, she could eat.

"Is it to your liking?" Wei Zhuang asked as she sat beside her, taking a sip of soup.

Xiaoyuan nodded. "It's good," she thought for a moment and added, "I've never had Huaiyang cuisine before, thank you, President Wei."

As soon as she finished speaking, she paused. An absurd thought flashed through her mind: could it be that Wei Zhuang knew she had never had it, which is why the chef spent so much time introducing the characteristics of Huaiyang cuisine?

Could that be possible?

If it was, that was... quite considerate.

"Where are you from?"

The boss was asking quite a few questions tonight.

Xiaoyuan sighed and answered honestly, "I lived in Shancheng for several years when I was young."

She liked spicy food, loved hot pot, unlike her brother, who grew up in Shencheng and was used to local cuisine. She guessed that Wei Zhuang probably preferred dishes from the Jiangnan region as well.

"Mm." Wei Zhuang's tone rose slightly at the end. Xiaoyuan couldn't tell if it was her imagination, but she felt that this "mm" held some unexpected meaning.

"They have spicy dishes here too," Wei Zhuang said. "Another chef can make them."

"Oh, no need, this is enough." Xiaoyuan hurriedly replied. "I'm not picky." She truly wasn't, as long as there was food, she was happy.

The interior had glass walls, allowing them to enjoy the view of the lake. The sky had darkened, and warm yellow lights illuminated the lakeside railing.

For a moment, Xiaoyuan felt a bit dazed, as memories overlapped with her current surroundings.

On those countless school nights, she would walk home under the dim streetlights, surrounded by various enticing aromas of food from the entire building, while her own little window at her house was dark.

Whether she entered the house or not didn't make much of a difference, her mother was either not home or would give her some money to buy food. She often sat at the corridor entrance, her stomach growling. When she couldn't bear the hunger, she would go inside to drink water or scoop half a bowl of cold rice.

She truly wasn't picky, she would eat anything.

The dish in front of her, the stewed silver carp head, had no bones. She scooped a spoonful, including fish meat and broth, along with bamboo shoots, ham slices, mushrooms, poured it over rice—it was delicious and exquisite. Xiaoyuan loved this dish the most.

"Eat the parts around the eyes and lips." Wei Zhuang suddenly said.

Xiaoyuan was momentarily stunned but did as she was told, picking up two chopsticks. Sure enough, the sauce was thick and the fish was tender.

This must be the most delicious part of the fish.

Feeling happy after eating something delicious, she turned her face slightly and naturally smiled at Wei Zhuang, meeting her gaze.

For a moment, Xiaoyuan couldn't tear her eyes away, feeling that the woman's eyes were calm and inscrutable, leaving her wondering what she was thinking and why she was being so gentle with her.

Yes, when they hadn't signed the contract, during their first conversation, Wei Zhuang had also been quite gentle with her. Perhaps it was more indifference than coldness—not an unappealing kind of indifference, but rather a gentle demeanor towards everyone and everything. Maybe that was just Wei Zhuang's nature, she was simply calm and gentle with herself, reflecting her own inner grace.

If they continued to interact like this, meeting occasionally, having meals together once or twice, six months would quickly pass.

If...

A scene flashed through Xiaoyuan's mind. Somehow, the skin on her neck seemed to itch. She lowered her eyelids, avoiding looking at Wei Zhuang, and silently continued eating.

When the dish "Braised Dried Tofu" was served, Xiaoyuan stirred it with her chopsticks in the bowl, marveling at how finely the fragrant dried tofu skin was cut. She couldn't help but admire it, finding it quite interesting.

Xiaoyuan ate until she was full, Wei Zhuang had ordered too many dishes, and Xiaoyuan's appetite wasn't large. She didn't like wasting food, so she could only try to eat as much as possible. In the end, she had to put down her chopsticks, worried that the zipper on her skirt might burst.

She didn't know how long they had been eating, as she hadn't looked at the time, but she noticed that the night outside was getting darker, the sky appearing a bit blacker.

It seemed like it was time to leave. She stood up and glanced at Wei Zhuang.

"Wait." she said.

The head chef naturally came out to see them off, and Wei Zhuang stood up as well. Today, she wore a dark silk long-sleeved shirt jacket, which wasn't too formal. The design featured a cinched waist and asymmetrical double lapels, with a bit of a skirt hem, paired with matching wide-leg trousers. She looked a bit more graceful than usual, losing some of her coldness.

Xiaoyuan quietly observed her, not noticing what she and the head chef exchanged.

She just saw the head chef smile and say, "Understood, President Wei, please wait a moment."

Before long, someone brought out a cutting board, a knife, and a piece of white tofu that looked like jade, resting quietly in water.

The head chef rolled up his sleeves, wet the knife, and lifted the tofu from the water, explaining to Xiaoyuan with a smile, "Wensi tofu originated in the Qing Dynasty. It is said to have over three hundred years of history, created by the monk Wensi at Tian Ning Temple in Yangzhou, hence the name 'Wensi tofu.'"

Since they had already finished their meal, they obviously didn't need to make this dish anymore, so was this just a demonstration of knife skills?

Xiaoyuan blinked and couldn't help but glance at Wei Zhuang again.

"The tofu chosen is soft tofu, and the cutting technique used is the 'shaking knife skill' to slice it," he began to cut as he spoke.

Xiaoyuan couldn't help but widen her eyes, staring intently without blinking. Under the lights, her long eyelashes resembled a pair of tranquil moth wings, holding her breath as they rested neatly beneath her eyelids, her eyes shining even more brilliantly than the piece of glass by her ear.

Wei Zhuang's gaze shifted towards her, staring for a moment, a subtle curve appearing at the corner of her eyes, unnoticed even by herself.

The tofu yielded obediently under the chef's knife, allowing him to slice it into thin strips effortlessly, almost indistinguishable, momentarily resembling the chef chopping tofu.

It was a seamless flow, like a performance of flowing clouds and flowing water.

At last, he smoothly put the knife down, placed the tofu in clear water, lightly stirring with chopsticks. The tofu strands unfurled, swaying like dancing silk threads in the water.

"Wow." Xiaoyuan made a silent gesture of surprise.

The head chef handed her a chopstick. "Miss, please."

Xiaoyuan took it, held her breath, and gently picked up a single strand of tofu. She exclaimed again, expanding her horizons, satisfying her curiosity.

As they left, they took the back exit. Wei Zhuang walked ahead, with Xiaoyuan trailing behind, neither saying a word.

Xiaoyuan found it hard to find a topic to talk about with her, so she stopped initiating conversation. If Wei Zhuang asked her something, she would respond, feeling that silence was also quite nice.

Exiting through the door, passing under the cherry blossom tree, Wei Zhuang's voice came, "Do you have filming tomorrow?"

The light from the eaves of the villa cast a sparse glow, illuminating the gently falling cherry blossoms with a warm light, some lightly landing on Xiaoyuan's face and hair. Her heart raced, as if the soft petals had brushed against her neck.

"Yes, and I have quite a few scenes tomorrow. It's also the crew's 'fan visit day.'" Xiaoyuan replied.

In truth, there weren't "quite a few" scenes, the director even wanted her to think of more scenes. She only had a few transitional scenes. The fan visit was probably for the male and female lead, as they were the main attractions.

The sound of Wei Zhuang's heels clicking on the wooden bridge broke the silence, and she gave a slight "Hm."

Xiaoyuan secretly glanced at Wei Zhuang, feeling a bit guilty, as if she had said something inappropriate.

Was she angry?

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