Chapter 7: Bumping Into Wen Shaohan

Tang Tian didn’t notice the intense gaze Fu Xi was casting from across the table. She immediately responded to Shen Yanli’s instruction, “Understood, Mr. Shen.” With that, she turned around and placed the items in her hands onto the service cart.

Her expression was visibly bright and lively, a stark contrast to the lifeless look she had just moments ago.

At the dining table, the other three didn’t pay any attention to whether a servant was standing by. Except for Fu Xi, the other two didn’t even bother to lift their heads.

Zheng Liyu and Liu Huahua were holding back their excitement, not daring to show their eagerness in front of the gentlemen—after all, they were hungry too.

Just as Tang Tian was happily preparing to leave, Liu Xiaozhi’s voice suddenly interjected, “Tang Tian, you all go eat first. I’ll stay here and attend to things.”

Her thoughtful words and gentle smile were like a bucket of cold water poured over Zheng Liyu and Liu Huahua, leaving them unsure whether they should stay or go.

Liu Xiaozhi said this based on her understanding of Tang Tian—she knew Tang Tian wouldn’t let her good behavior in front of the gentlemen go unnoticed. So at this moment, Tang Tian would definitely say something about staying behind.

She looked confidently at Tang Tian, yet…

“Oh, alright.” Tang Tian wasn’t surprised. The female lead was always portrayed as considerate and attentive, someone who would move the four gentlemen at the table. How could she possibly abandon them at a time like this?

She responded briefly and walked straight out of the dining area.

Liu Xiaozhi: “?”

Fu Xi’s expression was a bit stunned as he watched her slender, evenly toned legs move quickly—he felt as if she might be called back any second that night.

He glanced again at Liu Xiaozhi across from him. At this moment, besides surprise, her face also showed a faint trace of displeasure.

Fu Xi couldn’t help but smile. How had he only just realized… the little “dramas” among these servants were actually quite entertaining.

Shen Yanli glanced calmly at Fu Xi. “What’s so funny?”

Fu Xi said, “Nothing much, just noticed something interesting.”

Shen Yanli’s eyes showed a flicker of doubt, but he didn’t press further.

Liu Huahua and Zheng Liyu exchanged glances before quietly leaving the dining room behind Tang Tian. They were led away by Liu Xiaozhi, whose face was ashen with displeasure.

She couldn’t even believe that Tang Tian—who had always been jealous of her—would not only not oppose but actually show kindness and grace in front of the gentlemen.

Shen Yanli didn’t look at Liu Xiaozhi. “You should go eat too. We don’t need anyone here for now.”

Liu Xiaozhi suppressed the sour look on her face, nodding at Shen Yanli as if she had no choice.

In the servants’ dining room, Tang Tian was already reheating dinner. Close behind her, Liu Huahua and Zheng Liyu knew this was all thanks to Tang Tian’s efforts, so they no longer deliberately spoke rudely in front of her as they had earlier.

Ding…

The microwave beeped, and Tang Tian took out the warmed meal without paying any attention to Liu Huahua and Zheng Liyu, walking over to a nearby table to eat alone.

After a while, Liu Xiaozhi came in. As she passed by Tang Tian, she casually observed her reaction.

Tang Tian’s mind was fully focused on eating, noticing only that Liu Xiaozhi had entered without caring what she might do next.

The chef’s cooking was truly excellent, completely winning over Tang Tian’s appetite.

Just as she was concentrating on finishing her food, the sound of a chair being pulled out came from beside her.

Liu Xiaozhi sat down next to her. Liu Huahua and Zheng Liyu, sitting nearby, exchanged a glance, clearly surprised by Liu Xiaozhi’s unexpected approach toward Tang Tian.

Tang Tian glanced sideways at her but pretended not to notice.

“Tang Tian, if the butler finds out about what happened earlier, he might blame you,” Liu Xiaozhi said, feigning concern, clearly wanting to weigh on her conscience since she couldn’t stand seeing Tang Tian eat so contentedly.

Tang Tian didn’t pause in picking up her food with her chopsticks, replying indifferently, “Doesn’t matter.” She wanted to eat her fill first.

Liu Xiaozhi: “…”

Seeing that Tang Tian’s appetite remained completely unaffected, Liu Xiaozhi felt a pang in her heart.

“Actually, the way you’re handling things…” Liu Xiaozhi hesitated before speaking, intending to criticize her to make her feel guilty.

Tang Tian said sharply, “I don’t want to hear it.” She cut off the other’s next useless words decisively.

Liu Xiaozhi fell silent. The words she hadn’t even managed to say were strangled again, her momentum completely extinguished.

Tang Tian ignored Liu Xiaozhi beside her. She had no patience to indulge Liu Xiaozhi, who kept trying to mess with her mindset, nor did she see any reason to tolerate it.

After Tang Tian’s blunt refusal, the uneaten food on the plates went untouched, and Liu Xiaozhi didn’t dare to say anything provocative—she didn’t even have any words left.

Once Tang Tian finished eating, she stood up and went into the back kitchen, turning on the faucet to wash the plates clean.

Liu Huahua and Zheng Liyu glanced toward the back kitchen, then looked at Liu Xiaozhi’s sullen face.

Neither of them chose to approach Liu Xiaozhi at this moment, wary of getting caught in the crossfire.

After dinner, Tang Tian took a portion of fruit from the refrigerator. Standing in front of it, she ate one large strawberry after another, along with pieces of sliced Hami melon.

There was no denying it—the food here was excellent, and Tang Tian was quite satisfied with the meals.

After she had eaten and drunk her fill, the few male leads in the restaurant were still quietly enjoying their drinks.

Tang Tian and Liu Huahua, along with a few others, returned from the staff dining area back to the main restaurant.

She stood behind Fu Xi, waiting for them to finish chatting and head upstairs so she could clock out.

When Shen Yanli suggested leaving, he looked up and caught Tang Tian’s gaze.

She was nodding off, her eyes barely open. Shen Yanli’s expression flickered with surprise — the noise from these men was not low; it was quite loud. And yet, she was dozing off?

Though Shen Yanli wasn’t particularly fond of her, he wasn’t the type to make things difficult either. After toasting with the other three, he took the initiative to suggest going upstairs to rest early.

“Get some rest early. We have work tomorrow.”

Mentioning work, Fu Xi’s expression briefly showed irritation. He wanted to retreat into seclusion to focus on his creative work, but some events had been booked two months ago—no way to avoid them.

“You go ahead upstairs first. I’ll stay a bit longer,” Fu Xi said, reclining against the chair, his handsome face cool and exuding a rebellious charm.

Liu Huahua glanced secretly at him, her heart bursting with joy. She had a crush on Fu Xi because among the four gentlemen, he was the easiest to talk to. Mr. Shen and Mr. Wen appeared gentle on the surface but were actually cold and distant, difficult to get along with. As for Mr. Pei… his cold demeanor was even more intimidating!

Shen Yanli was about to get up and head upstairs when his gaze flicked behind Fu Xi…

Tang Tian, hearing him say it was time to rest upstairs, suddenly jolted awake, her eyes brightening instantly. When Fu Xi said to stay a little longer, she couldn’t help but pout slightly, her whole demeanor shrinking inward.

A faint smile tugged at the corner of Shen Yanli’s lips, amused by how her emotions were so clearly written across her face. He adjusted his sleeve and, paying no more attention to the servant opposite, left the dining room.

Pei Jue and Wen Shaohan followed suit, getting up from the table. Wen Shaohan had been sitting on the same side as Fu Xi, so as he left, he needed to pass behind Fu Xi.

Just as he was about to pass, Fu Xi—who had earlier said he’d stay a while longer—saw them all leave and lost the will to remain seated.

He shifted his chair and stood up. Tang Tian, realizing Wen Shaohan was leaving that way, instinctively stepped forward to give way, moving closer to Fu Xi’s chair than before. Unexpectedly, Fu Xi also stood abruptly, intending to leave.

In her haste, Tang Tian stepped back half a pace to avoid the chair bumping into her, but the side of her body accidentally collided with a solid wall of muscle — right against the man’s center.

Wen Shaohan instantly stiffened, as if an accidental touch had hit a particularly sensitive spot.

Tang Tian didn’t notice that her right hand had accidentally brushed over a place it shouldn’t have. Her right shoulder was lightly bruised from the collision—a slight ache she could easily ignore. Yet, she couldn’t quite understand why Wen Shaohan didn’t just step aside in such a spacious restaurant.

Apparently, Wen Shaohan hadn’t intended for the situation to happen either. His handsome brows furrowed slightly as he looked down at Tang Tian, assuming she had done it on purpose…

But then Tang Tian raised her left hand to rub her shoulder, her stunning face turning a little pale, as if startled.

Seeing that she didn’t seem to be deliberately trying to provoke him—or was she just good at pretending?—Wen Shaohan withheld any judgment. Instead, he furrowed his brow tightly, slipped one hand into his pocket to conceal the awkwardness in his body, and ignored Tang Tian, who seemed hesitant to speak. He strode quickly out of the restaurant.

Watching Wen Shaohan’s retreating back, Tang Tian secretly breathed a sigh of relief. It was a good thing she had bumped into him and not Pei Jue—otherwise, the latter would have surely thrown a furious fit, probably assuming she did it on purpose.

Wen Shaohan was a modest man with a better temper.

Still, this wasn’t entirely her fault. Who could have predicted Fu Xi would suddenly move his chair? She had barely had time to react.