ASSHKHME Chapter 64

Chapter 64: Little Mouth

Chen Zhuo was perceptive and detected the probing in Xu Qingyou’s words, raising his eyes to look at him.

He remembered at the engagement banquet the day before yesterday, he and Xie Yu had walked out from the depths of that long corridor one after the other, which Xu Qingyou happened to witness.

But a normal person wouldn’t overthink it, right? After all, to go to the restroom, one had to pass through that corridor.

Chen Zhuo glanced sideways at the shrimp in the pan that were already cooked, and said nonchalantly, “Actually, after getting along with Xie Yu, I think he’s a pretty good guy. You could say we became friends after a fight.”

Finishing speaking, he changed the subject, “Qingyou-ge, are you making shrimp scrambled eggs? How many eggs should I add?”

Xu Qingyou didn’t ask any further questions, as if he was just having a casual conversation with him, “Five should be enough.”

After busying themselves for over an hour, three dishes and a soup were set on the table.

Xu Qingyou ladled a bowl of salted egg yolk seafood soup for Chen Zhuo, and smiled helplessly, “Only this can be considered my doing. Try it, how’s the taste compared to before?”

Since childhood, Chen Zhuo had lived under Xu’s roof as a dependent. Although the Xu family was large and wealthy, he didn’t dare to move his chopsticks too much at the dinner table, for fear of causing displeasure.

Because he was a minor at the time, a person with limited civil capacity, the compensation from his parents wasn’t in his hands, and he was too embarrassed to ask for pocket money. It was the age when he was growing taller and developing, and he was so hungry that he felt dizzy.

One night, in the middle of the night, he was so hungry that his stomach hurt, so he quietly sneaked into the kitchen to find something to eat.

He happened to see Xu Qingyou making a midnight snack for himself. He still remembered the taste of that meal. Although it had a bit of a burnt flavor, the feeling of filling his stomach was really good.

From then on, during every meal, Xu Qingyou would pile up a small mountain of food in his small bowl.

Xu Qingyou would also share his pocket money with him, and he never went hungry again.

Chen Zhuo picked up the bowl and took a sip, smiling faintly, “Ge, is the bottom of the pot burnt again? Don’t turn the heat up so high.”

Xu Qingyou leaned back in his chair in a gesture of surrender, his dark pupils filled with Chen Zhuo’s smile.

“Looks like I’m really out of practice. I’ll have to cook more often in the future. When the time comes, you can try and see if I’ve improved.”

Chen Zhuo stirred the soup in his bowl with his spoon, mercilessly teasing him, “What are you talking about? You used to cook like this too, never able to control the time and heat, always burning the bottom of the pot.”

Xu Qingyou untied his apron and placed it on the chair beside him, recalling, “Really? I remember you ate it very happily at the time.”

Chen Zhuo laughed, “I would have been hungry if I didn’t eat it. A little burnt is fine.”

Xu Qingyou’s gaze flickered slightly, and he said apologetically, “Sorry, I didn’t take good care of you.”

Chen Zhuo quickly interrupted him, “Hey, that’s all old news! I’ve been eating very well every day since then, otherwise, how could I have grown so tall? It’s said that you still grow a bit at twenty-three, Ge, be careful, I might grow taller than you in the future.”

Xu Qingyou smiled and placed a piece of shrimp in Chen Zhuo’s bowl, “Alright, eat more and replenish yourself.”

The phone on the table vibrated, the words “Spoiled Little Wild Boar” flashing on the screen.

Xu Qingyou glanced at it, but said nothing.

Chen Zhuo stood up, walked to the French window, and tapped the answer button, “Hello, Xie Yu, how’s Auntie?”

Xie Yu spun his car keys on his fingertip, unlocked the Bentley and sat in the driver’s seat, his tone relaxed, “It’s nothing, our mom usually eats all kinds of nutritious recipes, does yoga, her physical fitness is great. I think they really want to keep the baby. Hey, it’s fate, I’m destined to have siblings.”

“That’s good too. Your family is rich, and the family atmosphere is good too, the child will be very happy.”

Chen Zhuo heard the sound of the car engine starting and asked, “Are you driving? Where are you going?”

Xie Yu fastened his seat belt and said, “Yeah, didn’t I say? I’m going to pick you up. I haven’t had lunch yet. I’ll be there in about an hour. Let’s go have lunch together.”

Chen Zhuo turned his head to look at Xu Qingyou who was eating, and said into the phone while covering it, “I just finished eating, how can I leave right after eating? That’s too impolite. Why don’t you eat something yourself? And then come pick me up.”

Xie Yu hummed twice, “Or you can ask Xu Qingyou and his wife to make something for me, and I’ll come freeload too. We’re all family.”

Chen Zhuo said softly, “There’s only Qingyou-ge at home, no sister-in-law. Hey, it’s hard to explain.”

Xie Yu was silent for a second, alarm bells ringing, completely exploding, “No sister-in-law?? You two single men are eating alone in such a small space?”

Chen Zhuo chuckled, “Not small, not small, not as small as your mind. It’s a big flat of over two hundred square meters.”

Xie Yu said unhappily, “Don’t interrupt me! I’m coming over right away! I’ll be there within an hour! I’m not eating by myself! If you don’t come out, then let me starve. Just let me starve to death.”

Chen Zhuo teased him, “You won’t starve to death if you skip one meal.”

Xie Yu pressed the car horn with a “Pa”, grinding his teeth, “Chen Xiaozhuo’er, you’re really heartless. Is this how you treat your boyfriend? You don’t even know how to care about me. Can you bear to watch your man go hungry?”

Chen Zhuo could smell the vinegar even through the phone screen. He thought Xie Yu’s possessiveness was a bit excessive, but he still coaxed him, “Okay, okay, you come over. I’ll have lunch with you.”

Xie Yu chuckled, “That’s more like it. Wait for me. Be careful to keep your man’s virtue, I’m telling you, Xu Qingyou is acting strange.”

Chen Zhuo sternly called him by his full name, “Xie Yu.”

Xie Yu surrendered, “Alright, alright, I’m talking nonsense again. Don’t be angry, don’t be angry. I’m driving now, see you later.”

“Drive carefully on the road.” Chen Zhuo hung up the phone, shaking his head helplessly, but he was still secretly happy.

Xu Qingyou didn’t show any emotional change on his face, and said softly, “Xie Yu called? It seems that you two are really good friends now.”

Just as Chen Zhuo was about to speak, Xu Qingyou said as if joking, “Better than you and I.”

Chen Zhuo squeezed the phone in his hand a bit, feeling that this topic was a bit strange, so he changed the subject, “Can this be the same? Let’s eat quickly, it’s going to get cold. Qingyou-ge, I have something to do, I have to leave in a bit.”

Xu Qingyou, who always knew his limits and left room for maneuver, suddenly said, “Usually when I ask you to come home for dinner, you always decline saying you’re busy. Now that you’ve finally come, are you going to leave early again?”

Chen Zhuo didn’t expect Xu Qingyou to say this, and didn’t know how to respond, and was stuck, “Ah?”

Xu Qingyou lowered his head and fiddled with the ceramic spoon in his hand, looking at him, “Okay, you’re grown up, you have your own life to live.”

Why did he seem to smell a hint of tea? But wasn’t he drinking freshly squeezed orange juice?

Chen Zhuo rubbed the hem of his clothes, and said with a dry laugh, “Uh, Qingyou-ge, actually, it’s not a big deal, or…”

Xu Qingyou: “Hmm?”

Forty-five minutes later, Xie Yu arrived.

He sat down beside Chen Zhuo without a care, as casually as if he were in his own home, raising his eyebrows, “We meet again, Qingyou-ge ~ Did your wife run away?”

Xu Qingyou was expressionless: “.”

Chen Zhuo was full of embarrassment.

He pinched Xie Yu’s waist under the table, turned his face to the side, and lowered his voice, “You big blabbermouth! Little mouth! Shut it!”

Xie Yu cried out in pain, “I’m just kidding, this house is like a model room in a sales office, a single dog’s standard configuration, where is there any trace of a woman living here? Why are you pinching me? Did she really run away?”

Xu Qingyou’s expression did not change: “I just like a simple style of decoration.”

Chen Zhuo supported his forehead, “I’m sorry, Qingyou-ge…”