My Exclusive Dream World Adventures-Chapter 164 - There must have been a mistake somewhere
Chapter 164: 164 There must have been a mistake somewhere
Chapter 164: 164 There must have been a mistake somewhere
Ziqi noticed Chen Xu looked upset, and didn’t say a word on the way back. When they got back to the noodle shop, she headed to her room with the snacks she had picked out.
Chen Xu took a shower, went back to his room, and lay on the bed. His thoughts were a mess, shifting from Luo Xiyun to Yang Jinxia to Bai Jinxuan.
Eventually, he turned over irritably, grabbed his phone that was charging, put on his earplugs, and watched a blockbuster online for a while. Gradually feeling sleepy, he turned off the screen and soon fell asleep.
The next day, as usual, he woke up at five in the morning. After washing up, he changed into his running gear and went out for a morning jog.
More than an hour later, he walked back to the noodle shop, unlocked the door, and noticed Ziqi was still not up. She loved to sleep in; when she stayed at Chen Xu’s house during the New Year, she would sleep until nine or ten o’clock every day.
He took another shower and changed his clothes.
It was almost seven, he opened the door and started the business.
At eight o’clock, Aunt Zhou and Aunt Zhang came to the noodle shop one after the other. When someone else came to take over, Chen Xu unfastened his apron and asked, “Is there any house for rent nearby?”
Aunt Zhang eagerly asked, “Boss, are you looking to rent a house? There are several apartments available for rent upstairs, owned by the same landlord as ours. If you’re interested, my son can inquire for you.”
“Thanks. But, those upstairs are all three-bedroom apartments, which are too big for me. I’m looking for something smaller, two bedrooms and one living room would be enough.”
The reason he started thinking about renting a house was because of Ziqi. On the day she arrived, he called his Third Uncle, only to find out that Third Uncle was busy opening a new store and didn’t have time to take care of his daughter. He asked Chen Xu to look after her.
He figured that since he didn’t know how long Ziqi would stay, living in the storeroom wasn’t very convenient. He thought about renting a place nearby.
At this moment, Aunt Zhou in the kitchen spoke up, “If you want two bedrooms and a living room, the son of a friend of mine has one available. It’s newly renovated, fully furnished as it was initially meant to be a marital home. But since the wedding was called off, the son went abroad in frustration and now wants to rent it out. It’s located on the street behind this one, though I’m not sure if it meets all your requirements.”
“That would be great if you could ask about the conditions, and if it’s suitable, I’ll rent it.”
Hearing this, Chen Xu felt it was a good option, especially as it was fully furnished, which could save him a lot of hassle. As long as the rent didn’t exceed his budget, he wasn’t too particular about the style of the decor.
Aunt Zhou smiled and said, “Alright, I’ll ask about it for you.”
From eight to nine, it was busy, and Chen Xu had nothing in particular to do, so he stayed to help in the shop.
Those who came to eat noodles in the morning were all familiar faces, and they often made small talk. Especially those who had been customers since the days when he ran his stall on the night street, they felt like friends.
By nine o’clock, the shop was almost empty. When Chen Xu saw Ziqi hadn’t come downstairs yet, he was about to go up and call her when he heard footsteps on the stairs.
Ziqi came down yawning, “Chen Xu, good morning. Good morning, both aunts.”
“You look at how messy your hair is, you didn’t even comb it.” Chen Xu reached out to fix her hair, and nudged her into the restroom inside.
Aunt Zhang praised, “Boss, is this your sister? She’s really pretty.”
“She’s my uncle’s daughter, my cousin. Don’t praise her in front of her face, or she’ll get too cocky,” Chen Xu said.
After a while, Ziqi came out of the restroom, holding down her hair that stuck out, and said, “Chen Xu, were you bad-mouthing me just now? I heard everything inside.”
Chen Xu ignored her and asked, “What do you want to eat?”
“Noodles, made by you.”
Chen Xu had Aunt Zhou step out for a bit and went into the kitchen himself.
Ziqi followed, her eyes darting around as she said, “That sister last night was really pretty.”
“Hmm.” Chen Xu responded noncommittally without any further reaction.
Curiously, she asked, “What is your relationship with her?”
“We have no relationship, so stop prying.” Chen Xu continued working as he spoke.
Chen Ziqi rolled her eyes and said, “That kind of talk can only fool children.”
A while later, seeing that Chen Xu was ignoring her, she pinched her chin with her fingers and said, “Although you’re my brother, objectively speaking, with your looks, personality, and circumstances, meeting a woman like her is like your ancestors coming through with blessings.”
“Really, even seeing her stirred my heart a bit. If I were you, I wouldn’t just care about whether she likes me; even if she didn’t fancy me, I’d still shamelessly snuggle up to her, no matter if she has a boyfriend or not, and use every means to snatch her away.”
At this point, seeing Chen Xu still indifferent, she spoke with a hint of frustration, “What am I supposed to say to you? It was the same with Yang Jinxia last time, and it’s the same this time. I’m telling you, this lady is not like Yang Jinxia. Even if she likes you, she won’t chase after you. If you don’t take the initiative soon, she’s going to slip away.”
Chen Xu helplessly lifted his head and glared at her, “Will you ever stop?”
Chen Ziqi was almost driven mad, “Big brother, I’m worried about you. If you miss out on such a beautiful woman, you’ll never meet anyone like her again in your life. I don’t want you to have regrets later.”
Chen Xu, with his head aching from her nagging, and if she weren’t his cousin, he really would’ve wanted to throw her out, said irritably, “You really run wild with your imagination. Which of your eyes saw that she likes me?”
“A blind man would be the only one who couldn’t see it. You didn’t see how her face changed when she saw the photo in your wallet. She even asked if you had a girlfriend…”
Chen Ziqi was cut off mid-sentence when she noticed Chen Xu’s face turn pale, the entire person frozen, not even reacting when his spoon fell back into the soup. She started to worry, “Chen Xu, are you okay?”
Chen Xu turned a deaf ear, recalling Luo Xiyun’s words from the night before, “You, did you get a new girlfriend?” “The photo in your wallet, wasn’t it your ex-girlfriend before, and now it’s changed?”
Wallet, photo, ex-girlfriend…
How did she know my wallet previously had my ex-girlfriend’s photo?
In the whole company, only Old Tang knew about this.
Could it be Old Tang told her?
No, impossible, Old Tang isn’t one to gossip. She wouldn’t be so nosy.
Then how did she know?
Chen Xu finally understood where that odd feeling from last night had originated.
No, something must be wrong.
She couldn’t possibly know, there’s no reason for her to know.
His heart started racing, a mixture of shock, fear, unease, and a faint sense of anticipation welling up inside him.
Suddenly, a conversation emerged in his mind.
“When I was taking out the trash, I accidentally bumped your desk, and when I picked up your wallet, I saw a photo inside.”
“Oh, that was my ex-girlfriend.”
“Why keep a photo of your ex? Can’t you forget her?”
“It just felt like a waste to throw it away.”
…
No, I have to ask her, I have to get it clear.
Chen Xu, steadying himself on the stove, walked out of the kitchen, took off his apron, and headed outside the noodle shop.
Chen Ziqi, seeing his unusual state, hurriedly followed, anxiously asking as she went, “Chen Xu, what’s wrong, where are you going?”
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Chen Xu kept walking, initially at a walking pace, then increasing his speed until he broke into a run.
Chen Ziqi chased after him for a while, but he was getting further away; in desperation, she quickly rode a rented bike to catch up while shouting, “Chen Xu, wait for me.”
PS: The next chapter will be around midnight, possibly earlier.
