Since Zheng Baozhu was now a celebrity who had appeared in many trending topics, she started wearing a mask even in her own restaurant and would often sit in a private room for breakfast.
The breakfast in the restaurant was originally buffet-style, but they ordered from the menu. Liang Huihui knew their preferences well and brought their favorite dishes directly to them, saying, "Miss Baozhu, Mr. Qu, I've brought your breakfast over!"
"Thank you," Zheng Baozhu replied while taking off her mask. As she lowered her head, she saw a heart-shaped steamed egg placed in front of them by Liang Huihui.
Zheng Baozhu fell silent for a moment, but Liang Huihui took the initiative to explain, "This heart-shaped steamed egg was specially made by Chef Liao for you and Mr. Qu. It's a heart shape! Isn't it adorable?"
Liang Huihui said as she made a big heart gesture with her hands towards Zheng Baozhu and Qu Zhi.
Zheng Baozhu: "…"
She was very grateful that they were sitting in a private room.
"Wishing Miss Baozhu and Mr. Qu a sweet and happy relationship!" After giving her blessings, Liang Huihui walked away with a smile.
"…"
Zheng Baozhu smiled awkwardly at Qu Zhi, "Haha, Huihui has been preparing for exams recently, maybe she's a bit stressed."
Qu Zhi looked at her and smiled. He picked up the silver spoon placed next to the steamed egg and said, "I think it's nice."
Zheng Baozhu followed, "I think you're nice too."
Qu Zhi paused for a moment as he held the spoon, then smiled slightly and scooped a spoonful of steamed egg to offer it to Zheng Baozhu, "No one has praised me like this since I graduated from primary school. Thank you."
Zheng Baozhu opened her mouth and ate the spoonful of steamed egg he fed her. Then she looked at him and said, "It seems a little sweeter than usual. Did Chef Liao intentionally make a sweeter version?"
After all, it was even shaped like a heart.
Qu Zhi scooped another spoonful of steamed egg and offered it to himself, "Maybe it's because I'm sweeter."
"…"
Zheng Baozhu wanted to tease him, but when she saw him using the same spoon to eat the steamed egg, she changed her mind, "That spoon was used by me!"
Qu Zhi nodded calmly, "I know."
"…"
Zheng Baozhu pointed to the other spoon on the table, "There's another one right there!"
Qu Zhi finished the steamed egg and looked at her, "It does seem a bit sweeter than usual. It seems you're the sweet one."
Zheng Baozhu: "…"
Blushing, she turned her head away and continued to eat her breakfast.
Qu Zhi had to go to work at the company. Since Zheng Baozhu had delayed him for a while, he ate a simple breakfast and stood up from the table, "I should leave now. Take your time eating, don't rush."
"Huh?" Zheng Baozhu glanced at her phone screen to check the time and realized it was indeed not early anymore. She put down what she was holding and said to Qu Zhi, "How about I drive you to the company? It will be faster, and you can eat a bit more!"
Qu Zhi smiled, bent down, and kissed Zheng Baozhu's forehead, "I've had enough, thanks for your hospitality."
Zheng Baozhu froze in place.
Qu Zhi still had a smile in his eyes and added, "Eat a little more, don't rush. I'll be going now."
Zheng Baozhu watched him leave the private room, her cheeks still flushed.
…This can't go on! Just a simple kiss on the forehead could make her blush. How is she going to handle things in the future?
…No, it can't be like that!
Zheng Baozhu picked up the slightly cool lemon water in front of her and drank a few sips to cool herself down.
Qu Zhi usually arrived at the company first, but today, when he swiped his card, Qi Sheng was already inside. Upon seeing Qu Zhi coming in, Qi Sheng couldn't help but ask, "Old Qu, what did you do last night? Why are you coming in so late today?"
Qu Zhi casually replied, "Late? There's still some time before being late."
"Compared to your usual time, it's late!" Qi Sheng stood up, approached him, and his tone turned ambiguous, "We're both old friends, you don't need to hide it from me. I saw the trending topics last night; you spent the whole night with Miss Baozhu, didn't you?"
"…"
Qu Zhi remained silent for a moment, then pulled out a chair and sat down at his usual spot, "We are indeed together."
Although Qi Sheng had previously teased him, hearing Qu Zhi admit it himself gave him a new shock, "What do you mean??"
"Exactly what it says."
Qi Sheng looked at him silently for a while and tentatively asked, "Yesterday, I saw online that you are part of Zheng Baozhu's studio. Since when did you become a member of her studio?"
Qu Zhi replied, "As the boyfriend of the studio's boss, I can indeed be considered part of the studio."
"…"
So, was it indeed what he thought? Qu Zhi has confirmed it now!
"Old Qu… You and Miss Baozhu are in a relationship now?" Qi Sheng asked, surprised.
Qu Zhi looked at him with a frown, "We've been talking about this for so long, yet you're just figuring it out?"
"…"
Qi Sheng wiped his face. Although he had noticed that something was going on between the two of them early on, he couldn't digest the fact that they were actually together. While he was wiping his face, he saw Professor Luo, who had silver hair, walk in.
Qi Sheng immediately stopped Professor Luo and said, "Professor Luo, have you heard? Qu Zhi is in a relationship now!"
Professor Luo's smooth strides paused for a moment, then he looked at them, "Qu Zhi is in a relationship?"
"Yes!" Qi Sheng was even more proactive in answering than Qu Zhi.
"Alright," Professor Luo only paused briefly and nodded, "Qu Zhi is at an age where it's about time. He can't stay cooped up in the laboratory all day long. It's time for him to have a relationship."
Qu Zhi then added, "Thank you, Professor Luo."
Qu Zhi had always been highly regarded by Professor Luo. Now that he heard about the relationship, he was curious about Qu Zhi's partner, "What kind of girl is she?"
"She's very beautiful!" Qi Sheng was attentive and walked over with his phone, "I have some photos here. Let me show you."
Professor Luo adjusted his glasses and looked at the enlarged photo Qi Sheng showed him, "Hmm, this girl is indeed beautiful. She looks a bit like that celebrity, Su Mingmei."
Qi Sheng looked surprised, "You know Su Mingmei?"
Professor Luo chuckled, "What's so surprising about that? Do you know how popular Su Mingmei was back then? Her movies were playing in cinemas across the country, her posters filled all the stationery stores near schools."
"Oh, I was being presumptuous."
Professor Luo glanced at him, "However, why do you have pictures of her if she's Qu Zhi's girlfriend?"
"I saved them from the internet!" Qi Sheng hurriedly defended himself, "This Miss Baozhu is also a celebrity!"
"Oh?" Professor Luo listened to him and looked at the photos on the phone again, "No wonder she's so beautiful."
He said that while looking at Qu Zhi and suddenly realizing something, "No wonder when Professor Wang from the courtyard said he wanted to introduce you to someone, you rejected it without even considering. So, it turned out you were interested in a celebrity. Your standards are high."
Qu Zhi smiled and explained, "You misunderstood, Professor Luo. Baozhu and I grew up together since we were children."
Professor Luo paused for a moment, then nodded, "Alright, forget about Professor Wang's idea then. This excellent little seedling has been set since childhood."
Zheng Baozhu had just finished her breakfast leisurely and returned to her room, wearing a mask again. As soon as she sat on the sofa, she received a friend request on WeChat. Zheng Baozhu clicked on it, and the verification message from the other person was "I am Sun Jing".
Zheng Baozhu: "…"
She didn't know how Sun Jing got her WeChat ID, but after thinking for a couple of seconds, she decided to add her as a friend.
After adding her as a friend, Sun Jing sent a message: Your coat is still with me. Give me your address, and I'll have someone deliver it to you.
Zheng Baozhu suddenly realized that Sun Jing wanted to return the clothing.
Feeling relieved, she sent her studio's address to Sun Jing. After that, Sun Jing didn't say anything else, and Zheng Baozhu didn't initiate any conversation either. During this time, due to work, she hadn't been going to Teacher Ge's place on a fixed schedule every Tuesday. She went there whenever she had time. Today, as there didn't seem to be any work-related issues, she called Teacher Ge to confirm his availability and then prepared to go to the class.
In the afternoon, Sun Jing had the coat delivered to Zheng Baozhu's studio. Zheng Baozhu instructed the front desk to put the coat in the office. She would pick it up the next time she went to the studio.
She didn't know where her mother heard it from, but while she was in class, her mother called and asked if she was in a relationship with Qu Zhi.
Zheng Baozhu sighed and asked, "Who told you that?"
Su Mingxi happily said, "Cen Tongtong. She said that you and Qu Zhi announced your relationship in the group chat last night and even gave out red envelopes!"
"…"
How dare Cen Tongtong tattle to her mom before she could feed her the keyboards! Does she want her mom to scold them like they did something wrong?
Cen Tongtong was going to great lengths to avoid eating her keyboards!
"Mom, we are indeed together. If you object…"
"Why should I object?"
"…"
This question left Zheng Baozhu speechless. Right, why would her mom object? Her mom has liked Qu Zhi since they were kids!
"I'm not saying you would object. I was just saying if…"
"There are no ifs. You should be with Qu Zhi properly," Su Mingxi interrupted her, "He already expressed his feelings to us before… He told us that he likes you and will always be with you, so we don't need to worry about your acting career. Qu Zhi is someone we've seen growing up. We understand him, and when he said that, it gave us peace of mind."
"…"
Zheng Baozhu fell silent for a long time, "When did this happen?"
"When you delivered the wheelchair to your grandma," Su Mingxi thought since they were already together, she might as well tell her about the past, "At that time, Qu Zhi said he hadn't confessed to you yet and asked us not to tell you. He said he wanted to find the right opportunity to tell you."
Zheng Baozhu: "…"
So he was fooling around behind her back at that time?
After Su Mingxi finished telling Zheng Baozhu, she curiously asked her, "So what suitable opportunity has he found? Was it last night? Your dad and I saw your photos trending on Weibo."
Zheng Baozhu: "…"
Since her mom learned how to use Weibo, she felt she had no privacy in front of her. 🙂
"Those reporters were really bad, but you did the right thing yesterday," Su Mingxi continued, "What did I say? Qu Zhi is reliable. When he says he'll be with you, he really means it. Look at last night's situation; he protected you from the reporters, right?"
Zheng Baozhu suddenly paused. She did not think much about it before, but now, after her mom mentioned it, a warm feeling welled up in her heart.
Qu Zhi didn't say anything, and last night, he only asked where she was and went straight there. He didn't know what would happen afterward; he just wanted to be with her, to be closer.
Just like he promised.
"Alright, I won't delay you anymore. Next time you have free time, bring Qu Zhi to visit your grandma and have a meal together. She really misses you both."
"Oh… alright," After hanging up the phone, Zheng Baozhu sheepishly told Ge Hongyi, "It was my mom. She wanted to talk about some family matters."
Ge Hongyi had been sitting there the whole time and had caught the general idea from the snippets of the conversation, "Baozhu, are you together with that young man from last time?"
Zheng Baozhu didn't expect that even someone as dignified as Ge Laoshi would be interested in gossip, "Yes, we just got together."
Ge Hongyi nodded with a smile, showing a hint of approval on his face, "That young man is not bad. Although I'm getting old, I'm still quite accurate in reading people. I feel relieved if you are with him."
As an elder, Ge Hongyi couldn't help teasing Zheng Baozhu about such matters, which made her feel a little embarrassed, "Teacher Ge, please don't join in with my mom to tease me."
"Alright," Ge Hongyi smiled kindly, "You young people are sensitive about such things. I won't say anything more. We're almost done for today. You already have a good grasp of that role; just think it through by yourself."
Zheng Baozhu had come to talk to him specifically about the role of the new drama. During this period, she had been reading the script and encountered some issues in understanding the character. Today, Ge Hongyi explained it in detail to her. Every time she listened to his lectures, Zheng Baozhu felt like a lightbulb would turn on in her mind. Of course, as Teacher Ge said, she still needed to practice and ponder more, learning to integrate and connect everything.
After leaving Teacher Ge's place, Zheng Baozhu went straight back to her hotel. She had planned to have dinner with Qu Zhi tonight. Just like before, she had already pre-ordered the dishes, and the kitchen would deliver them to her room.
Then, she would personally pick up Qu Zhi from his company after he finished work.
Qi Sheng noticed that Qu Zhi hadn't been enthusiastic about overtime during this period!
"Old Qu, you are leaving working on time today also?" Qi Sheng and Qu Zhi were both swiping their faces in front of the attendance machine, walking out of the company together, "As expected, being in a relationship really leads to moral decline!!"
Qu Zhi glanced at him sideways, "Moral decline sounds good, but unfortunately, you'll never experience it."
"Goodbye."
Qu Zhi not only turned toxic but also sarcastic! Qi Sheng simply didn't want to stay in the same space with him for even a second!
Just as Qi Sheng finished sweeping the shared bike, he saw a familiar car approaching.
The car stopped in front of Qu Zhi and Zheng Baozhu's face slowly emerged from the lowered car window, "I'm here to pick you up after work!"
Qi Sheng: "…"
Why did he have to witness this scene? If only he had left a little earlier, he could have avoided this disaster!
He turned around indignantly and looked at Qu Zhi, "Old Qu, you even have your girlfriend coming to pick you up after work. I look down on you!"
Zheng Baozhu replied, "I came here on my own accord, hehe!"
Qi Sheng: "…"
Miss Baozhu, could you have a bit of awareness as a rich woman! And you are a celebrity now!
What qualifications does Qu Zhi have!
"Miss Baozhu, let me tell you, men cannot be pampered. They like it when women are indifferent to them. That's the only way they feel challenged and get the thrill of conquest. If you're too good to them, they will only think you're not a challenge!"
"Is that so?" Zheng Baozhu pondered seriously.
"Don't listen to his nonsense," Qu Zhi glanced at Qi Sheng and opened the passenger door, sitting inside, "I think he's just overworked. Tomorrow, I'll talk to Professor Luo and have him share some of my workload so that I can have dinner with you every night."
Zheng Baozhu happily said, "Great!"
Qi Sheng: "???"
Is this even a human thing to do?
Bastard. 🙂