The sunlight was brilliant, and the man’s eyes were dark, his expression casual. He was still leaning against the freezer, half-turned toward her, lazily raising his eyebrows as he looked at her.

His jacket sleeves were rolled up, revealing a well-defined wrist with healthy, sun-kissed skin. His jacket was unzipped, casually left open, and the gray T-shirt underneath was somewhat faded.

At first glance, the man standing in the sunlight was undeniably striking, even more so than all the rich young men Tang You had seen in Haicheng.

But Tang You didn’t have the courage to take a second look at him.

The midday sunlight shone on his face, and although it was gentle, when their eyes met, there was an intense rebelliousness and distance in his gaze.

Like a wild, untamed stallion, exuding danger from every part of his being.

Tang You swallowed nervously, lowered her head, and instinctively took a step back.

But since she had already called out to him, not saying anything further seemed like she was just messing with him.

She carefully pointed to the shelf, “How much is a bottle of soy sauce?”

Zhou Qinyao looked at the unfamiliar girl who had appeared out of nowhere.

Her skin was fair, with short hair cut to her ears, dressed in denim overalls, wearing a pair of white sneakers, and with clear, bright eyes—she might as well have had “I’m a good girl” written on her forehead.

Zhou Qinyao didn’t like meddling in the affairs of strangers, and today was no exception.

However, after a moment of silence, he still walked over, reached across the counter, and grabbed a bottle of soy sauce.

“Ten yuan.”

“Oh.” Tang You lowered her head to get money, pulled out a hundred-yuan bill from her wallet, and handed it to him.

Zhou Qinyao’s gaze shifted back to the children playing in the distance.

In a detached tone, he said, “No change, scan the QR code.”

Tang You’s phone was dead and left at home charging. She hesitated, and thinking that the soy sauce would be used at home anyway, she blurted out without thinking:

“Then I’ll buy ten bottles.”

“…”

Zhou Qinyao turned back again.

He carefully scrutinized the good girl in front of him, and when he confirmed she was serious, he gave a slight, amused smile.

“Alright.”

Then, without hesitation, he placed the remaining nine bottles of soy sauce in front of Tang You.

“…”

Tang You was a bit stunned, blinking hard in disbelief as she looked from the shelf to the man.

How did he manage to carry nine bottles of soy sauce in both hands at once?

… Is he an octopus?

At that moment, the man’s phone rang, and he turned his back to answer it. Tang You began thinking about how to carry all ten bottles of soy sauce home.

She naively thought she could do it, so she imitated the man, extending her fingers to grip a bottle of soy sauce between each one, and then picked them all up.

Half a second later—

The soy sauce bottles clearly had a mind of their own.

First one, then two, then three bottles slipped out from between her fingers, tumbling awkwardly onto the counter.

Tang You scrambled to catch all the wobbling bottles in her arms.

She took a deep breath…

That was close—they almost all fell.

As Tang You was considering whether to leave some of the bottles at the shop temporarily, she suddenly felt something touch her bottom.

Even through her jeans, the touch felt a bit subtle, almost teasing.

Her heart tightened as she quickly realized what had happened and immediately turned around, alert.

There was no one around; the children were still playing in the distance, the elderly were still playing chess, and the old woman selling sugar candy was still in her spot.

The closest person to her, the most likely to have touched her…

Tang You’s gaze slowly locked onto the man beside her.

His cigarette was nearly burned out, and he was still on the phone.

But at this moment, the man’s back seemed to carry a hint of concealment and deliberateness in Tang You’s eyes.

She bit her lip and turned back around, her fingers unconsciously picking at the label on the soy sauce bottle.

—He may look like a bad guy, but with so many people around, he wouldn’t be so blatant, would he?

—He’s handsome, and handsome guys shouldn’t lack for girlfriends, so he wouldn’t be so… desperate, would he?

However, just as Tang You was lost in thought, the man lightly touched her again.

The sensation was just like an octopus’s tentacle—quick and nimble, extending and retracting swiftly.

Silent and unnoticed, clearly the work of someone experienced.

Tang You immediately turned around, but once again, everything seemed as calm as before, not even a breeze stirred.

It must be this man who was pretending to be on the phone!

You can’t judge a book by its cover—no matter how handsome a man might be, a beast is still a beast.

Tang You tightly pressed her lips together, her face turning red.

She wanted to scold the man, but she had never cursed at anyone and didn’t know how.

So even though she was both embarrassed and angry, she couldn’t muster the courage to express it. After a few seconds of frustration, like a little lion cub, she mustered all her strength—

And reached out, giving the man a hard shove.

Zhou Qinyao was still on the phone when he was suddenly pushed. He frowned and turned around, seeing Tang You glaring at him, holding a bottle of soy sauce as if trying to imply something.

Zhou Qinyao: ?

He took a few seconds to understand the meaning behind her protest.

She had bought ten bottles of soy sauce—ten whole bottles, enough to empty the shelf! Even with a discount of two cents per bottle, she deserved some acknowledgment, right?

It was the kind of thing a shy girl might be embarrassed to ask for.

Zhou Qinyao understood, but since the owner wasn’t around, he didn’t know what sort of wholesale price to offer.

So he casually reached over the counter and tossed her a lollipop.

“?” Tang You was shocked.

She had heard of shameless people but had never seen someone so brazen. He touched her bottom and still had the nerve to offer her a one-yuan lollipop.

Tang You didn’t accept it, feeling both angry and humiliated. She stared at the man in front of her, and after holding back for a few seconds, she suddenly lifted her foot in her white sneakers and stomped on his left foot three times with all her might.

Then she hastily gathered a few bottles of soy sauce, not looking back as she ran towards the alley entrance.

“…”

Zhou Qinyao looked down at the clear imprint of a small foot on his shoe and then back at Tang You’s retreating figure, pondering for a long moment—

Did something happen, miss???