Chapter 402 - Give Me A Kiss And I Will Continue Eating With You

“but everyone’s talking about it.” she let out a painful whine from her throat. “even my parents are ashamed of me. what have i been doing these past few years?”

“what your parents saw were the baseless accusations on the news,” li shaobin explained to her softly. “i know this very clearly, better than anyone. you didn’t do anything wrong. you just met a scumbag and got your feelings cheated.”

“scumbag?” ruan yang laughed bitterly. “tell me, then—who is he and what kind of man is he?”

“it’s just… he’s the husband of the woman you argued with at the bar that night.” li shaobin sighed. “she’s called zhao zhao zhu. she used to be an artiste too but she did too many scandalous things so the entertainment industry blacklisted her and chased her out. however, she’s the illegitimate daughter of zhao zongtao. she has a pretty sturdy backing, so even though she couldn’t continue in the entertainment industry, she can still do well in social circles. she took advantage of her exceptional family background and got engaged to xin ziao very early on. xin ziao doesn’t like her at all, but his parents forced him to marry her. actually, xin ziao is a pretty handsome lad and he’s good with his words too, so he kept lying to you, saying that he would call off the engagement with zhao zhu. you believed him, but towards the end, you realized it was impossible with him, so you broke up with him. xin ziao was the one who kept pestering you. the reason why your reputation is so bad right now is because of zhao zhu. not only that, but she almost caused changqing to be disfigured, and when jiang duoyao’s career was getting a little rocky, she bought the media to put jiang duoyao down. she’s really evil. xin ziao is also a scumbag. back in high school, he snatched my crush away from me.”

ruan yang was dumbfounded after she heard that but she didn’t feel any better. she mumbled, “why was i so stupid and foolish?”

she had always thought herself to be smart and proud. she really didn’t think that one day, she would be cheated by a man and commit such a lowly mistake.

“you can only say that scumbag xin played his cards really well.” li shaobin pouted. “in any case, he’s been very popular ever since we were young. on top of that, you women are always so superficial. let me tell you—the truly nice guys are people like me. i belong to the group of people with inner beauty. other people are all wolves in sheep’s clothing.”

under the street lights, he spoke with so much conviction. ruan yang suddenly didn’t feel so upset. she even felt a complicated mixture of emotions, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. “don’t tell me you’ve held onto the hatred of having your crush snatched away from high school until now?”

“no.” li shaobin would never admit that he was so petty. “i just don’t see eye to eye with him. in our current society, when men and women make a mistake, everyone’s so quick to scold the woman first. why are things like that? men are to be blamed too. if he already had a fiance, he shouldn’t have provoked another woman or made her upset. if he couldn’t carry through, he shouldn’t have made promises. if he was getting married, he shouldn’t have thought about having an affair. i hate men like that the most. the biggest shame of my life was being in the same class as him.”

ruan yang was slightly moved and shocked. it was really hard to imagine something like that coming out of a man’s mouth. after all, most men in this world were masochistic.

“why… why are you looking at me like that?” it was that kind of electrifying gaze again. li shaobin couldn’t help but stutter. “i know i’m very mesmerizing.”

ruan yang smiled. she lowered her head and wiped the tears off the corners of her eyes. “no, i just thought that you’re really nice.”

her gentle voice drifted over with the night breeze. li shaobin’s ears turned red. “nonsense; of course i’m nice. you just have bad taste.”

“yeah. i have bad taste,” ruan yang muttered. “but i’m really grateful to you. i’m actually a very egoistic and proud person. just now, i felt like there was no more point in living. i’ve never hated myself so much. right now, i feel much better.”

“that’s great.” li shaobin put his hands in his pockets and felt light-hearted. after all, it was the first time he felt needed by a woman. “have you had dinner? i haven’t. do you want me to treat you to dinner?”

ruan yang suddenly realized that her stomach felt terrible perhaps because she hadn’t eaten the entire day and she even drank a glass of hard liquor. “alright, but i don’t want dog meat.”

li shaobin felt slightly awkward. “don’t make it sound as though i only eat dog meat. why don’t…. we have western food? how’s that sound?”

after he said the last word, he was suddenly nervous. aiya, will she reject the idea?

if he had realized it sooner, he wouldn’t have suggested western food. it was precisely because of the last western meal that he thought she was seducing him. so was he seducing her right now?

although he did have that intention, would that appear too impatient?

ruan yang pressed her lips which tasted like hard liquor. she was so smart, so how could she have not guessed what the man was thinking? besides, he appeared in her hometown so randomly. it couldn’t possibly be for a business trip. after all, her hometown wasn’t a big city. even the people from this place moved out to develop. there was no reason at all for him to come here for a business trip.

she let out a breath quietly before she started softly, “li shaobin, i don’t know what kind of person i was before, but know, i do. i think you also have a clear understanding of my past. actually, i’m not good enough for you in various aspects and i was even with your high school classmate before. you really don’t have to…”

“i’ve actually thought about that before.” seeing how straightforward she was, li shaobin also didn’t want to beat about the bush. he sighed bitterly. “i never thought i would chase you either, but my actions are always led by my heart. i’m a very forgiving person. i’m not the kind of person who would be hung up on the past. besides, i have a lot in my past too. i’ve also been in relationships with many women so, there really isn’t a need for you to feel troubled over this.”

“really?” ruan yang raised her brows and looked at him meaningfully.

li shaobin almost wanted to cover his mouth. f*ck, i boasted again because of my pride. would she misunderstand and think i’m very fickle? i’m actually empty inside.

“yeah… i’m very popular,” he stuttered after a while.

ruan yang smiled lightly and turned her gaze away. “let’s not have western food today. i haven’t been back in a long time. i want to try the eatery that i loved to go to in the past. do you want to go?”

“yes, yes, yes.” li shaobin blurted out, but he suddenly thought that was too embarrassing, so he turned his face away and said coolly, “since you’d look so pathetic eating alone, i’ll take it that i’m keeping you company.”

ruan yang moved her mouth. if this were in the past, she would tease him about it, but today, she was feeling down so she didn’t say anything.

li shaobin quickly hailed a cab and helped her put her suitcase in the trunk. ruan yang got in the car and told the driver the address of the eatery.

when they arrived at the shop, she realized that the place was already very run-down. even the paint on the wall had already started peeling.

li shaobin found a seat and settled down. he couldn’t help but frown when he smelled the place. “this place feels very dirty. the floor isn’t even swept.”

“yeah, do you have an opinion?” ruan yang looked at him with her big, clear eyes.

“i… can’t have an opinion?” although he said that, li shaobin didn’t sound confident.

“you’re the one who wanted to come. so can you not have an opinion?” ruan yang said lightly as she glanced at him.

li shaobin moved his lips. he wanted to retort but for a very long time, he actually didn’t know what he should say.

after that, he felt frustrated. as a triad boss, he was actually oppressed by a woman. hmph.

the chicken feet with abalone sauce was served. ruan yang tried it and frowned. li shaobin also took a bite and knitted his brows together tightly. “it tastes horrible. are you sure you liked to come here in the past? your taste is really bad.”

“it used to be very good. maybe the boss changed so the flavors have changed as well. it’s been eight years, after all.” ruan yang sighed.

li shaobin forced himself to finish one. after that, he suddenly said, “don’t tell me you used to come here often with that high school boyfriend of yours?”

ruan yang blinked. she didn’t deny it. actually, if he hadn’t mentioned it, she would’ve forgotten about it.

li shaobin’s face sank. he put his chopsticks down and stood up.

“what are you doing?” ruan yang looked up at him.

“i’m not eating anymore.” he snorted as he turned to leave the eatery.

ruan yang was stunned for a while. she wiped her mouth slowly and followed him out. he was squatting on the stairs outside with his handsome little face all glum.

“we’ve already ordered the food. let’s go after eating.” ruan yang walked to his side and squatted down too.

“i don’t want to eat.” li shaobin looked up at the sky, leaving her with his profile which made his chin look sharp.

“don’t tell me you’re jealous,” ruan yang suddenly said.

li shaobin’s handsome face froze. immediately after that, half his face was flushed. “ruan yang, you’re… you’re… a bad woman… did you do it on purpose? even if you wanted to reminisce about the times you shared with your boyfriend, you didn’t have to drag me along.”

“what? i didn’t even think about that.” ruan yang looked innocent. “i just wanted to eat the food here. i wasn’t thinking about anything else.”

li shaobin snorted again. in any case, he was unhappy. “anyway, i’m not eating. you can eat alone.”

“don’t be like this. look, it’s not easy for that old granny either.” ruan yang held onto his wrist. “let’s leave after eating a little, alright?”

li shaobin looked at the old granny making the food at the side then at his hand which she was holding. he said, “give me a kiss and i’ll keep eating with you.”

“whatever.” ruan yang rolled her eyes at him and turned to continue eating.