Although his laughter was pleasant, she was still angry. How could he mock her like this? She was seriously complaining!
“Haha… I… I’m not… but… hahaha…”
Pu Cangxie was laughing so hard he bent over and hid behind the counter.
“How dare you!” Shang Kexin angrily threw down her chopsticks and stood up to leave.
She was furious! Everyone in the world could laugh at her, but not him… how could he…
Unexpectedly, a slightly rough hand suddenly grabbed her delicate wrist as she was about to walk out the door.
“Don’t… don’t be angry…” Pu Cangxie was laughing so hard he could barely breathe, but he tried to make his voice sound normal, though it was very difficult, “I won’t laugh at you anymore. Do you want to propose again? Seeing how much you love to eat, maybe I’ll agree!”
Unprecedented, this was the first time in his life he had so maliciously teased someone.
“You’ll really agree?” Shang Kexin looked at him, her eyes shining with expectation, “Okay! If you agree, I’ll…”
The scarred laughing face suddenly froze. He was joking with her, but she…
His heart suddenly tightened. Looking at her, his dark eyes gradually softened, his heart warmly rippling.
Looking at her expectant face, his deep gaze fell on her pink, petal-like lips. Everything was so natural… he held her hand, slowly moving closer…
Finally, their lips met.
She opened her eyes in surprise, stunned in place.
Rather than being controlled by himself, he couldn’t help but touch her softness, her sweetness, the taste of noodle soup in her mouth, and her stunned yet surprised reaction…
Until a car horn outside rudely interrupted this beautiful moment.
“Oh! Heavens!” he panicked and stepped back.
“What… what heavens?” Her eyes held half a look of bewilderment and a certain indescribable radiance. The surging happiness in her heart instantly vanished after hearing Pu Cangye’s fearful words.
Did he… did he not like her lack of response? But she… she really didn’t know what to do! Except… she felt like her entire body was electrified, though she had never been electrocuted before, so how could she know how to react?
“You… you don’t like… I… I know I’m clumsy… but, that’s because… the only boy I kissed in middle school was chased away by my mom! I’m not… not intentionally avoiding practice…”
“Oh! Heavens…” Another sigh, this time in his native Japanese. Unable to hold back, he pulled her into his embrace and kissed her again heavily.
Practice with other men? Not allowed!
At this moment, he discovered that he too possessed the deeply rooted male chauvinistic consciousness of Japanese men.
She was his…
Yes! She was…
Pu Cangye, who had always lived a closed and rigorous life, was startled by himself, and simultaneously experienced a kind of rebirth-like epiphany.
So this is… he kissed her, unable to extricate himself, his heart overflowing with excitement and tenderness.
Is this what love feels like?
Yes! He loved her! Although this was only their third day of meeting…
After that kiss, neither of them said anything.
As he cooked soup and prepared various side dishes, she sat beside him, propping her chin, gazing at his every move with fascination. Her candid and appreciative gaze was filled with admiration and gentleness that she herself hadn’t noticed.
Although he had countless experiences before, being looked at this way by hundreds of girls her age, he had never felt anything.
But now, her gaze made him uncomfortable. He deliberately said, “Don’t look at me like that. You’re about to drool. Didn’t you just have a bowl of noodles this afternoon? It’s only 5 o’clock. Are you that hungry?”
Her face turned red.
Heaven knew her mind wasn’t on food at all; she was simply mesmerized by him.
His solid, tall physique, graceful movements, the muscles on his strong arms – every inch was a beautiful line. Even his actions of ladling soup and chopping were like flowing clouds, smooth and seamless.
It was just like… she recalled the files describing the beauty of Japanese schools that she had seen while planning a project last year. Suddenly, she clapped her hands.
“Ah! It’s as elegant as the Japanese tea ceremony!”
The body in front of the stove stiffened slightly. “What did you say?”
“I mean, your movements are as elegant as the Japanese tea ceremony. Did you know? I was just working on a project this past year… well, never mind!”
Just as she was about to explain the process of her project, she suddenly thought her identity might put pressure on him, who was just a small noodle shop owner.
After all, their beginning was just a kiss, such a fragile start made her hesitant to tell the truth.
And upon hearing her mention the tea ceremony, his usually gentle eyes immediately dimmed.
He was grateful she could accept him like this, but… why did he have to meet her at this moment? When would he find the right opportunity to tell her the truth and hope she could accept his real self?
Thinking this, he looked up and caught her gaze, which seemed lost in thought, looking into the distance. He looked at her deeply, then lowered his head to focus on his work.
Pu Cang Jie looked at Qiu Tian Aunt as if in thought, then said in a low voice: “She means that she finally found a noodle stall she likes to eat at.”
“Mm! Right! Cang Jie understands me best.” Shang Ke Xin smiled happily. “Meeting him is so great, isn’t it?”
After Pu Cang Jie’s explanation, Qiu Tian Aunt’s expression calmed slightly, but then changed to another kind of anxiety. “You mean… meeting the dishes he made… right?” she asked cautiously.
She had her reasons for being so nervous. Her niece was one of the few people in Singapore who knew Pu Cang Jie’s true identity. When Pu Cang Jie had asked someone to find a part-time worker to help with prep and dishwashing, she had volunteered, intending to secretly monitor him.
She wasn’t sure if Pu Cang Jie knew her true intentions, but the appearance of this beautiful young woman was clearly a big threat to her niece.
Especially when she first entered, her first impression was the incredibly intimate atmosphere between these two people. This situation made her worry about her niece, Qiu Tian Li Ya Zi, who had voluntarily become a small public relations manager at Raffles Hotel to follow Ying Pu Cang Jie.
“Dishes? Well… sort of!” Shang Ke Xin lowered her head slightly bashfully, thinking about how she had been staring at him earlier, her thoughts far from the food… Oh my! How embarrassing!
“What… what do you mean ‘sort of’? Miss Shang, our boss is very serious and… severely face-damaged…” Qiu Tian Aunt spoke in a panic, saying things without thinking, not even noticing Pu Cang Jie staring at her, his deep eyes narrowing with displeasure.
He had long guessed that the helper introduced by Li Ya Zi would not be simple, but he hadn’t expected Qiu Tian Aunt to be so bold as to try to drive a wedge between him and his woman.
“You should know, Miss Shang, you’re such a cute and beautiful young lady…” This compliment from Qiu Tian Aunt’s mouth did not make Shang Ke Xin happy at all.
“If you were to walk with our boss, wouldn’t it be like a fresh flower stuck in cow dung… that’s how you Chinese say it, right?”
Qiu Tian Aunt’s thoughtless and anxious words made Shang Ke Xin’s black eyes suddenly open wide, an rare and fierce anger burning within them.
“Ke… Xin…” Pu Cang Jie sensed something was wrong and was about to scold Qiu Tian Aunt for meddling, but was stopped by the fierce aura emanating from Shang Ke Xin. He only managed to say two words before her delicate red lips opened:
“Damn! Your brain is full of shit! What cow dung? Your brain is the real cow dung!”
“Ah?!” Qiu Tian Aunt was shocked. “You… you… you…”
