Chapter 172

Chapter 172: An Unexpected Crisis (For the patron Tiangao Yuyue)

While Mei Fang was happily waiting for everyone to bring food over, Xia Yuan and Lin You Xi couldn’t help but感慨 (remark) on Guo Yun’s transformation as they picked up their food.

“Who would have thought she could lose so much weight in just a few months? It’s really amazing! Looks like the doctor’s advice was quite effective.”

“But… Is it really the doctor’s advice that made Guo Yun work so hard?”

“…”

Xia Yuan looked up at Lin You Xi, who was quietly picking up her food, and couldn’t hold back what she was thinking:

“You don’t think Guo Yun worked so hard because of Ah Fang, do you?”

Lin You Xi had always been open with Xia Yuan: “I do think so.”

“I do too!”

Xia Yuan glanced around nervously before lowering her voice, “She must like Ah Fang! Look, there’s no mention of Guo Yun in last month’s financial report. Ah Fang cares about art, so he must have talked about salaries with her. She might want to be freeloaded by Ah Fang like we are.”

“That’s a bit far-fetched.”

Lin You Xi reminded Xia Yuan, “There were no art resources added last month. You should look further back. There might have been some transactions the month before.”

“Well… it’s okay… Our Ah Fang is so excellent; many people like him and are willing to work hard for him. That’s normal! As long as they don’t have any improper thoughts towards Ah Fang, it shouldn’t be a problem, right?”

As Xia Yuan spoke, she took two chicken wings, while Lin You Xi put a pile of green vegetables on Xia Yuan’s plate, sharing one plate between them.

“But… Yuan Yuan, don’t you think more girls are getting close to Ah Fang lately?”

“Huh… Yeah, actually. Ah Fang has never liked playing with boys since he was young, except for Zhang Ming.”

“And the three girls we invited today, right?”

With Lin You Xi’s reminder, Xia Yuan frowned, suddenly feeling even more uneasy.

Speaking of it, Guo Yun was Ah Fang’s junior high classmate, Bing Bing was Ah Fang’s senior high classmate, and although Xiao Yu didn’t interact much with Ah Fang, his reaction when he first met Xiao Yu was quite off.

“We’ve been childhood friends, and all three of them are ‘heaven-sent’ types. Now that you mention it, it does seem a bit odd. Ah Fang gets along well with all three of them.”

“That makes sense. After all, in most ACGN works, ‘heaven-sent’ characters always win.”

“That’s just fiction! It’s different from reality. Isn’t the feeling of falling in love over time wonderful? Why don’t people like it?”

“There must be reasons why people don’t like it… like growing tired of each other over time or conflicting interests…”

Lin You Xi said seriously, “I think there’s some truth to the idea that childhood friends often end up as ‘defeated dogs.’ If childhood friends truly had a good relationship, they would have gotten together long ago. Take He Cheng and Zhao Xin, for example. They’ve been together for a long time.”

“That’s because we’re all childhood friends, right? Ah Fang keeps saying that studies come first… Although I feel he might be avoiding making a choice.”

Xia Yuan served herself a bowl of mung bean soup, pondering whether to take a dessert. Meanwhile, Lin You Xi still placed several baby bok choy into Xia Yuan’s plate.

“Why do you keep putting vegetables in my plate, You Xi? This will make me lose weight.”

“Yuan Yuan, are you here just to eat today, like Bing Bing?”

Lin You Xi wore an expression of frustration, her tone slightly reproachful.

“Have you considered the possibility that if Ah Fang can’t make up his mind and doesn’t want to hurt either of us, considering his gentle nature, what do you think he’ll do?”

…

???

Lin You Xi’s words pierced through Xia Yuan’s heart.

In just a few seconds, Xia Yuan’s mind raced through a thousand frames.

[Sorry, Yuan Yuan… You Xi… I really can’t bear to choose between you two. We are such close family.]

[We… Can’t we just stay childhood friends forever?]

[This lady? This is my new girlfriend. You used to know her. She is—]

Xia Yuan grabbed Lin You Xi’s arm and said earnestly, “It doesn’t matter whether you choose me or her. We’ve known each other for so many years, and we’ll always be great friends.”

“But… Ah Fang can’t belong to anyone else… If he belongs to someone else, we will lose him forever.”

Lin You Xi nodded, “I agree. So—”

When Xia Yuan and Lin You Xi returned with their plates, the barbecue grill at the buffet had already been lit.

The three girls at the opposite table watched Mei Fang as he taught them how to lay out the barbecue paper, brush oil, place ingredients, and sprinkle seasonings.

Most of the girls were visiting this kind of buffet for the first time, and seeing Mei Fang’s skilled movements, they instantly developed a better impression of him.

“Wow, that’s it! I’ve got it now. Let me try…”

Mei Fang sat in the middle to teach everyone, with Lin You Xi and Xia Yuan sitting on either side of him. Xia Yuan placed her plate down.

“You two took so long. You only brought back a little food. But it’s fine… Look at Bing Bing’s table—”

Mei Fang pointed to the mountain of food on Bing Bing’s table, but Xia Yuan ignored it and leaned against Mei Fang.

“Don’t talk about this. Are you done cooking? I haven’t eaten much this morning, and I’m starving…”

Xia Yuan’s voice had a playful tone as she leaned close to Mei Fang.

This intimate and unrestrained scene made Guo Yun and Liu XiaoYu feel embarrassed and lowered their heads, but Bing Bing remained casual:

“Did you eat yet? I haven’t eaten since last night. Today, I’m going to eat until I’m full.”

“You’re really impressive, Bing Bing… Let me help you cook.”

“Do you know how to cook, You Xi? That’s great… But you’re here for the first time too. How did you learn?”

“I watched Ah Fang demonstrate once when I sat down.”

Lin You Xi, with her exceptional learning ability and culinary skills, handled the ingredients with ease, which made Bing Bing feel very secure.

“It seems You Xi is better at cooking than Mei Fang. She doesn’t need to wait for Mei Fang to help her anymore!”

“Uh…”

Seeing Bing Bing under Lin You Xi’s control, Mei Fang started to focus on cooking.

“This piece of bacon should be ready… Anyone want to try it? Just pick it up yourself.”

“I do! Give it to me.”

Xia Yuan quickly raised her hand.

“I’ll put it on your plate…”

“Ah Fang, can you feed me directly?”

“What? Others might mind! What’s gotten into you… Calm down.”

Mei Fang gently reminded Xia Yuan not to act so spoiled.

He didn’t mind being affectionate with Yuan Yuan in private, but in public, especially with their junior high school classmates present, wasn’t she being too showy?

In his previous life, Mei Fang hated couples showing off their affection during meals. He never expected to become one of those people himself.

“Uh… It’s fine… I don’t mind.”

Guo Yun hadn’t seen Xia Yuan act so sweetly with Mei Fang before, but since they lived together now, it wasn’t surprising for their relationship to develop further.

Seeing Guo Yun silent, Liu XiaoYu lowered her head to cook, while Xia Yuan continued to act spoiled. Mei Fang picked up a piece of bacon and fed it to Xia Yuan.

“Be careful, it’s hot.”

“Ugh… Oops…”

Xia Yuan barely managed to swallow the bacon.

“Mmm… Delicious!”

Satisfied, Xia Yuan settled back, but only after briefly showing off their affection. She then leaned close to Mei Fang.

Everyone happily cooked and ate, with Bing Bing taking over the barbecue after Lin You Xi taught her.

Lin You Xi tugged on Mei Fang, and he bent down to listen to her whisper.

“Can I let Bing Bing use my grill? Could you help me cook something?”

“Sure, no problem.”

Mei Fang picked up a cooked slice of ham and was about to put it in Lin You Xi’s plate, but she grabbed her hair and took a big bite, eating half of it.

“Aren’t you going to finish it?”

“I’ve eaten enough.”

Lin You Xi smiled at Mei Fang, “Don’t waste food.”

“I know, I know…”

Mei Fang casually finished the remaining ham.

What are these two up to today?

They seem to expect me to respond to them…

Seeing Guo Yun hadn’t touched the food, Mei Fang asked, “Why aren’t you eating any meat, Guo Yun? It’s rare for us to meet, so you should eat well.”

“Well… I’m still in the process of losing weight, so I need to be careful with what I eat.”

Guo Yun gestured at her salad in her bowl, “I’ll just have some salad.”

“Oh, I didn’t know you were dieting. I should have chosen a lighter restaurant.”

“No, no… There’s no need to do that.”

Mei Fang was about to respond when Xia Yuan interrupted with a smile, “Yunyun, don’t say that. You’re part of our team, so there’s no need to compromise.”

“Yunyun?”

“Do you dislike it when I call you that?”

“Not really…”

Guo Yun blushed, “No one has ever called me that before.”

Liu XiaoYu nodded, “I felt awkward when Xia Yuan first called me XiaoYu…”

“Just call me Yuan Yuan, XiaoYu! It still feels strange…”

“Oh… I got used to it…”

Liu XiaoYu smiled, “Could I call you Yuan Yuan then?”

“Sure! Actually, you can also call You Xi班长! Except for Ah Fang, anything goes—”

Xia Yuan said with a sinister smile, and Guo Yun and Liu XiaoYu understood immediately.

…

This is about claiming territory, isn’t it?

Of course, the oblivious Bing Bing wouldn’t get it.

“Why can’t we call him Ah Fang? I think our relationship is good enough for me to call him that.”

“No! Even Bing Bing can’t.”

Xia Yuan made a gesture to stop her, and Lin You Xi added,

“In fact, Ah Fang has special meaning to us, so he dislikes others calling him that. He would get angry. Right, Ah Fang?”

“Yes, exactly…” Mei Fang smiled, “Yuan Yuan and You Xi calling me Ah Fang is fine… Others should avoid it. I have psychological issues.”

“Yes, yes… I won’t do that. You can rest assured!” Guo Yun smiled.

“I… I won’t either…” Liu XiaoYu whispered.

Seeing the situation, Bing Bing stopped the conversation and focused on eating.

Only Mei Fang held onto Lin You Xi’s wrist under the table, preventing her from escalating. He had paused mid-sentence earlier for this reason.

Alright, alright… I understand you’re claiming territory.

But hands off! That means you, You Xi!

Making us look like perverted lunatics!

—

This chapter is dedicated to our patron Tiangao Yuyue. Tonight, I stayed up late updating for him, so I won’t have to work tomorrow morning and can continue writing.