The half-spilled cup of hot milk she had given him, which she thought would have been thrown away, was surprisingly placed next to his computer. He would occasionally take a small sip, and after finishing, his gaze would linger on it for a second or two. Then he would quickly glance at her, and when discovered, he would immediately lower his head, his fingertips flying as if deeply focused on work.
"Deputy Fan, I'm not having my diet meal today. I heard there's a nice new restaurant across the street, want to go together?" During lunch break, Zhuang Nian left his seat, stretched, and asked.
"No need," Fan Xia smiled and took out the lunch Wen Lan Sheng had made from the refrigerator. "I brought lunch from home."
"A love lunch box!" Zhuang Nian exclaimed, covering his mouth. "Made by your fiancé?"
Fan Xia nodded slightly.
Zhuang Nian's voice reached Rong Xiu's ears. He stopped his work and looked at the lunch box in Fan Xia's hand, his eyes gradually turning cold.
"Let me see, let me see." Zhuang Nian excitedly opened the lunch box. "Braised shrimp, stir-fried broccoli, tomato shrimp balls, and lotus root corn rib soup. He even prepared the dipping sauce for you. My goodness, your fiancé is so virtuous! I'm not worthy! Not worthy at all!"
With each of Zhuang Nian's praises, Rong Xiu found it more and more grating and unpleasant to hear, his expression becoming even colder.
It's just ordinary home-cooked dishes, what's there to boast about? The private boys' high school he attended in junior and senior high had cooking classes, taught by famous chefs. His dishes always ranked first in evaluations. In Rong Xiu's eyes, what Wen Lan Sheng made was merely showing off in front of an expert.
It's just that he can openly cook for her under the identity of Fan Xia's fiancé. If only he... Rong Xiu felt a pain in his heart, both envious and resentful of Wen Lan Sheng.
"Fan Xia." Rong Xiu's cold voice interrupted Zhuang Nian's endless praise for Wen Lan Sheng.
"Does the President need something?" Fan Xia asked.
"Do you have time at noon? Come with me to inspect the new district hospital," Rong Xiu said.
Although somewhat surprised, as the President's assistant receiving a high salary, she naturally had to be prepared for work at any time. Without hesitation, Fan Xia put away her lunch box and said, "I have time. I'll drive."
Rong Xiu nodded slightly, quickly glancing at the lunch box as she closed it.
The shrimp veins were processed too hastily, not completely removed, with some broken and left in the shrimp meat; the broccoli wasn't blanched with salt, so the color wasn't green enough; not enough starch was added to the shrimp balls, causing their shape to be less full.
Virtuous? Nothing special. Rong Xiu's eyes revealed a pathological jealousy.
Fan Xia quickly tidied up and went to the new district hospital with Rong Xiu. Because it was a sudden decision, the director and staff of the new district hospital didn't know about his visit. Fan Xia followed Rong Xiu around the hospital for a round and then left.
That's right, they left.
Usually, a hospital inspection wouldn't be so cursory. They arrived at the new district hospital at 12:30 and left at just 1:10.
Noticing the confusion in Fan Xia's eyes, Rong Xiu, hiding his guilty conscience, said, "This visit was just a simple surprise check on the hospital's service quality. A specialized inspection team will follow up later."
Fan Xia nodded.
Seeing that Fan Xia believed him, Rong Xiu let out a sigh of relief. His distant eyes were tinged with a rare smile: "I'm sorry for taking up your lunch break. As compensation, let me treat you to a meal."
Xi Zhou Private Residence, a high-end Chinese restaurant with elegant and simple decor.
Of course, what's more high-end is its price, exorbitantly expensive.
But in Rong Xiu's eyes, it was no different from buying a two-yuan grilled sausage by the roadside.
After ordering, the waiter quickly brought the dishes. Tea mushroom fish fillet, pan-fried fresh matsutake mushrooms, perilla seaweed seared wagyu beef, baked stuffed crab shell, and dried scallop matsutake abalone soup. The portions weren't large, just right for two people, and the taste was exceptional. Each dish preserved the original freshness of the ingredients as much as possible.
Throughout the meal, Rong Xiu's behavior was graceful, chewing slowly. As they were about to finish, Rong Xiu suddenly asked, "Is it still to your taste?"
Fan Xia wiped the corner of her mouth: "It's delicious."
Rong Xiu's eyes moved slightly. Perhaps due to the warm lighting of the restaurant, those narrow, cold eyes seemed to have a faint hint of a smile when looking at her, appearing ambiguous: "When you're tired of the monotonous home-cooked meals, it's not bad to try something fresh outside occasionally, right?"
Fan Xia uncomfortably murmured an agreement. His smile seemed like a tongue of fire licking her eyes. She had never seen Rong Xiu like this before. Beneath his cold and ascetic exterior lay a seductiveness that was difficult to describe in words.
At 11 PM, after Wen Ming Yue and Xie Cen had fallen asleep, Wen Lan Sheng secretly took a taxi back home.
Looking at the already sleeping Fan Xia, Wen Lan Sheng quietly walked over, gently brushed aside the hair covering her face, and with great affection and admiration, lightly kissed her cheek. Then he went to the kitchen to prepare ingredients, so that he could save time when making the lunch box early the next morning.
In the kitchen, the lunch box had already been washed clean and put away. Wen Lan Sheng smiled slightly and was about to open the refrigerator to cut vegetables when he keenly noticed that the garbage in the trash can was the lunch he had carefully prepared for Fan Xia.
Wen Lan Sheng was stunned for a moment. He crouched in front of the trash can. Because it hadn't been eaten all day, the food had already spoiled and turned sour!
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