Chapter 25: Eating from the Same Pot

Jiang Chengxiao, overhearing Song Xilan’s weak threat, sighed and chuckled. He whispered, “Let me handle this.”

Then, facing Jiang Jingru, his voice suddenly turned cold: “You have two choices. First, return the money and the watch, and we’ll consider the matter closed. Second, you can refuse, but I guarantee that by tomorrow morning, the leaders of your troupe will receive a letter of complaint detailing all the nasty things you’ve done, including…”

Jiang Chengxiao lowered his voice and stared at her: “You need to go to the hospital and check out the obstetrics and gynecology department.”

Jiang Jingru’s pupils contracted. Others might not know, but she did—Jiang Chengxiao was the main antagonist in the latter half of the story, ruthless and capable of anything. Anyone targeted by him would never have a good end.

The original body of the character she had transmigrated into had died at Jiang Chengxiao’s hands.

Even though no matter how strong an antagonist is, they ultimately fall to the female lead, she wasn’t the female lead yet, and without the protagonist halo, she really didn’t dare provoke Jiang Chengxiao.

“I… I will pay back the money.” Jiang Jingru quickly pulled out a watch and pushed it toward Jiang Chengxiao. After all, she was from the modern world; a cheap watch like that wasn’t something she’d give much thought to.

Actually, she didn’t care about the 360 yuan either; it’s just that she really couldn’t take it out at the moment.

“Then, you must promise me you won’t cause me any more trouble in the future?”

Jiang Chengxiao hadn’t planned on letting her off so easily, but considering how Lin Guangshan had treated her sincerely, he figured that even in the afterlife, he wouldn’t want to see her suffer too much. He reluctantly agreed, “From now on, let’s act like we don’t know each other. The road is wide, and we’ll go our separate ways.”

“But I really can’t get that much money right now. Can you give me a few days? I’ll definitely find a way to get it for you.” When Jiang Jingru said this, her eyes couldn’t help but glance at Song Xilan.

So what if she had awakened? She was still the silly, innocent type.

Thanks to Song Xilan, Jiang Jingru had already come up with a way to get a large sum of money in the short term.

Jiang Chengxiao knew she couldn’t come up with so much money right away, so he didn’t press her too hard: “Three days. After three days, either you have the money or I’ll deliver the complaint letter to your leaders.”

Jiang Jingru stood up coldly. Though she was scared inside, she couldn’t lose her face as a transmigrated woman: “Okay, wait for me. I will definitely repay you in full.”

The three of them had met at a pavilion by the lake in the park. It was Jiang Chengxiao’s choice of location. In his words, meeting here meant a wide view, not easy for people to eavesdrop on, and if something happened, it would be immediately noticed, making it safer.

The only downside was the cold wind.

When Jiang Jingru left, her lips were clearly pale from the northern wind. But since she wanted to look elegant, she had dressed lightly for appearance’s sake!

Song Xilan was different. She had specially worn a puffy jacket today, which was a bit bulky, but very warm.

On top of that, Jiang Chengxiao had been sitting in the wind’s path, blocking it for her. His tall figure was like a wall beside her, not letting any wind reach her.

When Jiang Jingru left, Song Xilan stood up and rubbed her hands: “So, our mission today is complete?”

Jiang Chengxiao smiled and said, “Yes, it’s done. Thank you for your great help. I finally have the chance to treat you to a meal.”

“Sure!” Song Xilan readily agreed. Before leaving, she had already told her mom that she would be out with friends after work and wouldn’t be coming home for dinner.

If Jiang Chengxiao forgot to treat her, she would have to figure out dinner on her own!

Seeing how quickly she agreed, Jiang Chengxiao was also happy: “What do you want to eat? I’m not very familiar with the local food, so you introduce me. Take me to try something unique!”

Song Xilan thought for a moment. From the times they had met after the first, based on his clothing, if he wasn’t someone who was very vain and spent all his money on clothes, his financial situation should be pretty good.

So she decided to take him to eat something nice.

“There’s a century-old restaurant nearby, Luming Restaurant, whose dishes are really tasty. We could go try it? It’s not far, just one stop away. If you don’t mind, we can walk there.”

“You’re sure the food’s good. I can’t wait to eat now, let’s go!”

“Do you trust me that much? Aren’t you afraid I might scam you into a terrible meal?”

“You won’t. You clearly know your food, and you wouldn’t take me somewhere bad and expensive just to rip me off. As long as the food’s good, the price isn’t an issue.”

Song Xilan didn’t hold back: “You’re right. I’ve probably eaten at almost every restaurant in the city. My family’s salary mostly goes toward food.”

She wasn’t completely thoughtless. A young couple like them, going out together, others might already assume they were in a romantic relationship.

Jiang Chengxiao liked her, and she could tell. Since she had agreed to meet with him and was willing to go eat together, it was also a tacit agreement to see where this relationship could go.

Her parents had always told her that when it came to finding a partner, the most important thing was whether you could eat together.

For example, she loved eating and was willing to spend all her money on food. If her partner was frugal, thinking that food was just something to fill the stomach and didn’t want to spend money on it, then they wouldn’t be compatible.

It was best to make this clear early on, to avoid wasting each other’s time.

So now, Song Xilan openly told Jiang Chengxiao that she was willing to spend money on food, and if he couldn’t accept that, he should back out.

Jiang Chengxiao smiled: “Well, I’m lucky then. I’ll get to eat with you and avoid a lot of detours. We agreed, though—whenever you go to eat, you have to take me with you!”

Song Xilan laughed: “Everyone’s tastes are different. Maybe you don’t like what I like, or maybe what I think is bad, you’ll like.”

“Then we’ll just try them together. There’s bound to be something that fits both our tastes. I’ve heard that when a couple eats together for a long time, their tastes gradually become similar.”

He almost implied that they would share meals together forever.

Song Xilan’s face turned red, her heart racing, and she lowered her head, not daring to look at him. Fortunately, they had already arrived at Luming Restaurant. She pointed ahead at the antique-looking restaurant: “It’s right there!”

From the outside, the restaurant looked very historical, but the waiters inside were much like those in other state-run restaurants, wearing white uniforms, blue arm cuffs, and showing neither warmth nor coldness, pointing at a small blackboard on the wall: “The dishes for today are listed here. Please take a look.”