bookrebus Chapter 488 Don't laugh at me!
Chapter 488 Don't laugh at me!
Ye Fan watched her leave, picked up the can of cold cola on the table, pulled the tab with a "hiss," and took a big gulp.
The carbonated bubbles stimulated the taste buds and dispelled the slight fatigue after a full meal.
His gaze returned to the open notebook and the heavy books. The afternoon sun in the library slanted across the pages, reflecting the renewed focus in his eyes.
He lowered his head again and plunged into his own mental battlefield.
......
The light outside the window gradually dimmed, eventually disappearing completely into the indigo night.
Inside the library, incandescent bulbs cast a constant, cool light.
The students in the self-study area had already changed several times – those who had finished their evening classes poured in with their backpacks, while those who had sat all afternoon left rubbing their sore necks.
Only Ye Fan, sitting in the corner, seemed to be nailed to that chair.
The notebook in front of him was already filled with pages of writing, and the books spread out next to him were covered with sticky notes of various colors.
He was so engrossed in his thoughts that he didn't even notice his phone vibrating silently in his pocket several times. He even temporarily suppressed his physical need to get up and go to the bathroom.
The whole world seemed to consist only of the scratching of the pen, the turning of pages, and the management models that were constantly colliding and taking shape in his mind.
Until 7:30 p.m., a familiar figure, like a soft feather, quietly landed on the chair opposite him.
The spirit of the ancestors has arrived.
She was still holding a cold, hard-looking white steamed bun wrapped simply in a transparent plastic bag.
That was the "dinner" she bought at the convenience store downstairs in her dormitory on her way here, to temporarily stave off her hunger.
At this time, she should be in the bamboo grove courtyard, wearing an apron, preparing a simple and delicious dinner for two in front of the warm stove—this is almost her most reassuring and anticipated ritual every day.
But in the afternoon, a message from Ye Fan saying, "Don't cook dinner tonight, come find me at the library later," made her change her plans.
At that moment, she arrived quietly with a steamed bun in her hand, but did not hear any further instructions regarding dinner.
Ye Fan was finally pulled out of his deep thoughts by her arrival.
He rubbed his dry, throbbing temples, his gaze falling on the solitary, rather shabby-looking steamed bun in Xian Zuling's hand. He instantly understood something, and a slight sense of guilt swept through his heart.
He quickly typed the last few lines of summary on the computer and sent the management model framework outline, which he had spent a whole day painstakingly compiling, to Liu Ruyan.
Only then did he close the notebook with a sigh of relief, giving the ancestral spirit a somewhat tired but warm smile:
"Are you starving? Wait a minute, get your things ready, we're going to get some Hunan rice noodles! Extra big!"
The words "Hunan rice noodles" seem to have a magical power.
Xian Zuling's eyes, which always seemed a little timid, suddenly lit up, like tiny stars that had been ignited in an instant.
She subconsciously stuffed the steamed bun in her hand into her pocket, as if it had already fulfilled its mission of satisfying hunger and could now retire gracefully.
She nodded obediently and sat there quietly, watching Ye Fan neatly put away the books, notebooks, and pens one by one.
......
The familiar Hunan rice noodle shop outside the school is still brightly lit and bustling with people. The familiar spicy and savory aroma wafts over.
"Boss! Two bowls of rice noodles, both with extra toppings, and one with extra chili!" Ye Fan called out familiarly.
Steaming hot rice noodles topped with a thick layer of spicy beef topping were quickly served.
The ancestral spirit can finally put that steamed bun behind it completely.
She picked up her chopsticks, eagerly scooped up a mouthful of smooth, white rice noodles, blew on it, and put it in her mouth.
The familiar, piping hot taste of home instantly filled my mouth, dispelling the evening chill and the hunger of waiting.
She slurped contentedly, her cheeks puffing out slightly. The usual restraint in her eyes melted away with the heat and delicious flavor, revealing an almost innocent and pure joy.
Looking at her contented and engrossed expression as she enjoyed the food, Ye Fan felt as if the fatigue of the day had been washed away.
A mischievous smile flickered in his eyes. He picked up the vinegar bottle, poured vinegar into his bowl, and slowly began to speak, his voice tinged with a nostalgic laugh:
"Hey, Ancestor Spirit, do you remember the first time I brought you here to eat noodles?"
He paused deliberately, observing her reaction:
"Someone was eating when tears started streaming down their face and into their bowl, which startled the owner, who thought they had put too much chili in..."
"Ah!" Xian Zuling was biting into a piece of beef when she heard this and suddenly looked up. Her fair cheeks turned bright red, the color spreading all the way to her ears.
That memory of arriving in a new place, struggling financially, and being overwhelmed by the taste of home after a long-lost bowl of food, is the "dark history" she least wants to mention.
She was so embarrassed she almost buried her face in the steaming bowl of rice noodles, and hurriedly protested in a soft, gentle voice with a heavy Hunan accent, "You...you shouldn't laugh at me..."
The voice was a mixture of embarrassment and anger, with a hint of helplessness at having her secret exposed, like a little kitten with its fur standing on end.
Ye Fan looked at her flushed cheeks and slightly reddened eyes (this time from embarrassment), laughed, and stopped teasing her.
"Okay, okay, I won't laugh anymore. Eat quickly, it won't taste good if it clumps together!"
He lowered his head and slurped up the noodles, the rising steam blurring the barely perceptible tenderness in his eyes.
The small rice noodle shop was filled with the aroma of food, warm lighting, and an unspoken, relaxed, and intimate atmosphere between the two.
......
Ye Fan was enjoying the sight of Xian Zuling's adorable, embarrassed expression, wondering if he should add fuel to the fire and tease her a bit more.
Just then.
A stylishly dressed couple at the next table, who looked like upperclassmen, kept glancing in their direction, or more precisely, focusing on Xian Zuling's downcast face.
The girl casually stirred the rice noodles in the bowl with her brightly colored nail polished fingers, but her eyes held an undisguised scrutiny and criticism.
I lingered for a long time on the few extremely realistic "pockmarks" and "mole" that were deliberately "stuck" on the forehead of the ancestral spirit, which were not completely covered by the bangs.
She leaned close to her boyfriend's ear and whispered in what she thought was a very soft voice, but which was actually quite clear even in the noisy rice noodle shop:
"Tsk, that guy is actually quite handsome. What a pity, he must have bad taste to have a girlfriend with such a terrible face? It's disgusting..."
Her boyfriend, a seemingly refined young man wearing black-rimmed glasses, not only didn't stop her, but instead pushed up his glasses, followed his girlfriend's gaze, and showed the same disdainful expression, muttering in agreement: "Exactly, aren't you ashamed to bring her out like this?"
The two exchanged a smile, as if they had found some common topic of superiority.