Chapter 139: Double Room or Single Room

After the meal, both sides exchanged the usual courtesies, but in the end Zhang Yunhui still picked up the bill. The four of them had spent a total of eighteen hundred yuan.

Afterward, Zhang Yunhui saw them into a car bound for their hotel and would not be accompanying them that afternoon.

However, he had provided them with a detailed list of restaurants to visit, all of them quite famous locally and well regarded.

To be honest, Bai Ren had felt relieved once Zhang Yunhui left.

“It’s hard to perform with an outsider around,” Bai Ren said awkwardly. “There were things I didn’t dare say.”

“But I thought it was delicious,” Wang Bei said, puzzled. “Besides, you praised it quite well just now.”

“I was trying to put things as tactfully as possible,” Bai Ren replied. “After all, it’s hard to criticize someone who has fed you.”

“Then why weren’t you tactful when you were talking about me?” Han Jiayi complained from the side.

Bai Ren gently scratched the tip of her nose. “If I hadn’t left a deep impression on you, I never would have managed to win you over.”

“Is that really how it happened?” Han Jiayi asked, eyeing him skeptically.

Still, she did not take it too seriously. They were already together now, so there was no need to quibble over the past.

“So what did you really think?” Wang Bei asked curiously.

“The truth is…” Bai Ren cleared his throat. “The cooking is genuinely quite good, and the thought put into it is clever, but the gimmick is doing most of the work. If you strip away all the external factors and judge these dishes purely by taste… I’d give them a ‘good,’ but they don’t quite reach ‘excellent.’ You could find an ordinary Sichuan restaurant outside and get something with roughly the same flavor. The only novelty is that everything is made with vegetables.”

“Well, they’ve already left. We can speak honestly this afternoon when we visit restaurants on our own,” Han Jiayi said with a smile.

“Exactly. Let’s go put our luggage away first.” Bai Ren nodded, satisfied.

When they reached the hotel, Wang Bei had made all the reservations, so she went to the front desk to confirm the details while Bai Ren unloaded the luggage from the car outside.

“Jiayi,” Wang Bei said with a mischievous smile, “this time I only booked one double room and one single room.”

“You! You—you!” Han Jiayi’s face instantly turned red. “Why would you do that!? Old Bai and I haven’t reached that stage yet! Isn’t it too soon for us to sleep in the same room!?”

Wang Bei blinked at her in confusion. “You can sleep in the double room with me.”

Han Jiayi’s face turned red all the way to her neck. She cleared her throat and said with feigned composure, “I—I know that, of course. I’m just warning you not to get any strange ideas. Old Bai and I haven’t reached that stage yet…”

“Pfft, pfft…” Wang Bei struggled desperately not to laugh. “I understand…”

“Mu Mu.” Bai Ren came over with the suitcases and gently touched Han Jiayi’s face. “Why is your face so red?”

“I must have eaten too many chilies and gotten overheated!” Han Jiayi answered hastily.

“Is that so? We should buy you something to cool you down later.” Bai Ren turned to Wang Bei. “How are the rooms?”

“Oh, I booked two rooms,” Wang Bei said with a smile. “One double room and one single room.”

Then Wang Bei suddenly added, “But! I grind my teeth and snore when I sleep, and sharing a room with Jiayi would disturb her rest. So why don’t I take the single room?”

“H-How could that be!?” Han Jiayi’s face flushed crimson. “A single man and a single woman staying alone in one room…”

Bai Ren and Wang Bei both stared at her in confusion.

“What are you talking about, Jiayi?” Wang Bei asked with a frown. “You and Old Bai are a couple, not strangers.”

“Exactly.” Bai Ren looked equally perplexed. “Besides, we’ve already been sharing the same house for two months.”

“Mm…” Han Jiayi puffed out her cheeks unhappily. “What’s this? The two of you are ganging up on me…”

“All right.” Bai Ren patted her head. “If you really don’t want to, I’ll sleep in the single room.”

“I—I don’t mind…” Han Jiayi mumbled. “We can share the room.”

“Then let’s go.” Bai Ren lightly brushed a strand of hair from her face. “I’ll carry your luggage. You go get the room cards.”

Bai Ren did not think much of it. After all, he and Han Jiayi had already been living in the same house for two months. Though one of them slept upstairs and the other downstairs, they had even slept on the same sofa several times. What was there to make a fuss about?

Han Jiayi, however, saw things differently. What worried her was this: What if he attacked me in the middle of the night?

And what worried her even more was this: What if he didn’t attack me in the middle of the night?! Wouldn’t that mean I had no appeal at all?

Wang Bei’s single room was on the fifth floor, while their double room was on the seventh. After putting down their luggage, they found it was only half past two in the afternoon, so they decided to rest before heading out again.

“My feet hurt so much. If I’d known, I would have worn sneakers…” Han Jiayi sat on the edge of the bed, rubbing her little feet as she complained.

Bai Ren bent down and kissed the top of her head. “Want me to massage them for you?”

Han Jiayi looked up at him and smiled, pressing her lips together. “You don’t mind?”

“What would I mind? Your little feet are adorable.” Bai Ren smiled as he knelt before her, gently taking hold of her slender ankle and massaging the sole of her foot.

She resisted at first, probably because it tickled, but she soon grew accustomed to it. The expression on her face gradually relaxed, and her body loosened as well.

October temperatures in Chengdu had already fallen to around twenty degrees Celsius, making the weather exceptionally pleasant. The mornings and evenings were slightly cool, so Han Jiayi had chosen a loose three-quarter-sleeve T-shirt and pale blue pencil pants that accentuated the lovely shape of her legs.

Bai Ren had ulterior motives, too. While massaging her feet, he could admire her beautiful legs to his heart’s content. As a normal man, how could he not harbor a few improper thoughts when he was with his girlfriend?

“Old Bai, do you think I should paint my toenails?” Han Jiayi asked, looking down at him.

“Sure. Your feet are so pretty.” Bai Ren lightly patted the top of her foot.

“What color should I use?” Han Jiayi asked excitedly. “What color do you like?”

“Your skin is so fair. Lemon yellow would probably look wonderful.” Bai Ren looked up at her with a smile.

At the moment their eyes met, he saw deep happiness in Han Jiayi’s gaze. Then she suddenly threw herself into his arms.

“Old Bai!”

“Oof!” The impact knocked Bai Ren onto the floor. He quickly caught her so she would not hit her head.

“You crazy girl… What was that for all of a sudden?” Bai Ren frowned as he held her by the shoulders.

“I love you…” Han Jiayi curled up in his arms and laughed happily.

“You didn’t even want to share a room with me earlier,” Bai Ren said, pretending to be annoyed.

“I didn’t say I didn’t want to. I was just… embarrassed in front of Bei.” Han Jiayi frowned.

Bai Ren had been knocked down and was now sitting against the side of his bed, while Han Jiayi lay in his arms. From that angle, he had a perfect view of her pert backside. The full, rounded curve made his heart itch.

His reason told him not to, but his body suddenly acted on its own. He reached out and gave her bottom a squeeze.

Good heavens, the feel of it… My hand practically bounced back.

On the surface, Bai Ren pretended not to care and teased her. “We’ve already been living together for two months. You’re only embarrassed now?”

“Mm…” Han Jiayi looked up at him, puffed out her cheeks, and poked him in the face. “You lecher… You only wanted to share a room with me so you could do this, didn’t you?”

“I won’t deny that it’s one of the reasons. After all, I’m a normal man too.” Bai Ren smiled as he gently brushed back the hair at her temple. “But I also wanted to dry your hair for you and play games with you after we came back from visiting restaurants at night. If you don’t want to share a room, I won’t force you.”

Han Jiayi cast him a sidelong glance, pretending to be displeased, but inside she felt relieved.

Thank goodness… I really do attract him. Otherwise, how embarrassing would that be?

With that thought, she gave a delicate little snort. “Fine. I’ll believe you for now.”

Then Han Jiayi bounced to her feet and stretched. “Oh, hey… My feet don’t hurt anymore.”

“Then let’s rest a bit and get ready to visit our afternoon restaurant.” Bai Ren admired the lovely curves of her waist and hips while reminding himself: Don’t rush… sooner or later, she’ll be yours.

After resting briefly at the hotel, they set out again at half past four and arrived at the restaurant they planned to visit that afternoon.

“Old Alley House… This is the place.” Bai Ren checked the navigation on his phone.

According to Zhang Yunhui, it served the best boiled fish he had ever eaten in Chengdu. Bai Ren happened to have eaten what he considered the best boiled fish in Beichang City, so this was the perfect opportunity to compare the specialties of the two cities.

The restaurant occupied two floors and covered roughly five hundred square meters in total. The decor showed its age, and the walls, once white, had begun to yellow.

Since they had arrived early, there were still few customers inside. After asking the restaurant for permission to film, Bai Ren found a quiet corner and sat down to order.

“The signature boiled fish, and then… one serving of pork lung slices in chili sauce. Oh, tea-smoked duck! One whole duck.” Bai Ren studied the menu carefully before asking the server, “What else is your specialty?”

“Our salt-and-pepper fish skin is very famous,” the server introduced. “We also have Kung Pao chicken and mapo tofu…”

“Oh, then bring us the salt-and-pepper fish skin, and a plate of lettuce with oyster sauce as well. That’s enough. It’ll be plenty for three people.” Bai Ren declined the server’s remaining recommendations.

While waiting for the dishes, Bai Ren felt utterly relaxed. Visiting restaurants in another city was wonderful. He could speak his mind without worrying about offending anyone. After all, he did not live here. At worst, he would only come once and never return.

The thought made him eager to begin.

“Old Bai, everything you ordered is spicy. Can you handle it?” Han Jiayi asked worriedly.

Bai Ren fell silent for a moment, then instructed the server beside him, “Please tell the kitchen to make everything mildly spicy.”

(Thanks for the two monthly passes, and thanks to reader 20190715002747872 for the monthly pass.)

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