This was truly too awkward.
Especially when the other main character of the couple being shipped was standing less than three steps away from her.
Of course, although it couldn't be explained clearly online, offline, Xu Yanxia could still clear things up.
She immediately wanted to explain it to this cute girl.
Who would have thought that right at this moment, Lu Jingming suddenly turned sideways and said to the girl, "Thank you for your blessings."
Xu Yanxia, "???"
In the next second, the three girls were seen jumping up and down in excitement. "Is this Xixi's Big Brother?!! So Big Brother is here too!!!"
"So Big Brother is eating with you right now!!! You guys are so sweet together!!!"
Xu Yanxia, "???"
It was already hard enough to explain, but was this going to cause a misunderstanding with the entire crowd?
She hurriedly made a keep-your-voice-down gesture and politely said to the three girls, "I'm sorry, it's not very convenient for us to draw attention..."
"Understood, understood!"
The girls immediately lowered their voices and said, "Sorry, we were just too excited. We didn't expect to see you two offline... Coming here today was totally worth it!"
"Yeah, you guys look even better in person than on the livestream. A handsome man and a beautiful woman, you're truly a perfect match!"
Saying that, they politely waved goodbye to them. "Then we won't bother you anymore. Bye!!!"
"Looking forward to hearing good news from you guys!!!"
Yet, CEO Lu nodded at them and smiled, saying, "Thank you."
Xu Yanxia, "..."
After finally watching the girls walk away, she immediately returned to Lu Jingming's side and said, "CEO Lu, why did you answer like that just now? If this continues, everyone's misunderstanding will only grow deeper!"
It was hard on her to deliberately suppress her voice so others wouldn't hear.
Who knew Lu Jingming would put on an innocent look and say, "I just thought that since they are your fans and were giving us good wishes, I should say thank you."
"???"
Xu Yanxia widened her eyes. "But doing that makes the truth even harder to explain..."
"But they didn't say anything wrong,"
Lu Jingming looked at her with a pure expression and said, "They just think you and I are a good match. They didn't say we are actually together right now."
Xu Yanxia, "..."
This logic actually left her somewhat unable to retort.
"Actually, CEO Lu is not wrong,"
Wen Jiajun, who was beside them, also spoke up and said to her, "The fans came here for you, and they are so deeply invested. If you tell them directly that their beautiful wishes are wrong, it might disappoint them and cause them to misunderstand you, which could then affect your family's business. That wouldn't be good."
"Uh..."
Xu Yanxia thought hard about it. This statement also seemed impossible to refute.
And then Lu Jingming started apologizing to her. "I was just coming from a place of wanting what's best for you. I didn't expect it to cause you trouble. I'm sorry."
"...You don't need to apologize,"
Xu Yanxia had to soften her tone and said, "I was just afraid it would have a bad impact on you. After all, your marriage is a very important matter. I'm sorry if I sounded a bit anxious."
"It's fine."
Lu Jingming smiled again and said very gently, "Everyone's marriage is important. Just like you, I will definitely wait until I meet someone I truly like before settling down."
Xu Yanxia paused.
She felt as if he was trying to express something to her...
However, before she could figure it out, another guy came over to ask for a photo with her.
She stood up and went to the side.
To avoid any further misunderstandings from the other party, she deliberately stayed far away from Lu Jingming.
Lu Jingming, "..."
Wen Jiajun, however, glanced at him and said while eating teppanyaki, "Are you really falling for her this time?"
Lu Jingming withdrew his gaze and looked at him. "Is it that obvious?"
Wen Jiajun chuckled. "So obvious that everyone in the world except Xiao Xu can see it. When I opened the trending topics this morning and saw the video of you two, even I shipped it a little."
Saying that, he asked him again, "For the sake of our many years of friendship, tell me the truth. When exactly did you start having feelings for her?"
Lu Jingming paused.
Actually, he couldn't quite answer this question himself.
Was it that day when he was amazed by the lunch she delivered?
Was it when he watched her confidently point out problems one by one to the company executives in the cafeteria?
Was it when he mentioned to her at a roadside stall about the fried toon leaves he loved eating as a child, and then got to eat it that very night?
Or perhaps, was it that day when she wore that beautiful long dress, standing in front of the huge floor-to-ceiling windows of Jiushan, and smiled sweetly at him...
In short, he wasn't someone who would easily become attached to others, but these days, he suddenly found himself unable to let her go.
...
Perhaps because he took a bit too long to think, Wen Jiajun waved his hand in exasperation and said, "Forget it, I get it. You were just unknowingly captivated by her charm!"
He then sighed. "In the past, so many celebrities and influencers threw themselves at you, and you ignored them all. After all this time, it turns out you like capable and low-key girls like Xiao Xu."
Lu Jingming simply smiled and said, "It's nothing about being this type or that type, it's just her."
"However,"
Wen Jiajun frowned and asked him, "What do Chairman Lu and Mrs. Lu think? Will they object in the future? After all, the difference in family backgrounds..."
Lu Jingming smiled nonchalantly. "If I were worried about that, I would have been married long ago."
That was true.
Wen Jiajun nodded and then looked as if he had a sudden realization. "No wonder you went through such a huge hassle to transfer Mrs. Lu's shares to your name and even set up a new investment company to acquire Jiushan. So it was all to pursue Xiao Xu?"
Lu Jingming frowned. "What do you take me for? Transferring my mother's shares was to make my operations more convenient, and setting up the investment company was for more professional management."
"Come on, really?"
Wen Jiajun laughed at him. "If it wasn't for Xiao Xu, why would a tech guy like you think about investing in the catering industry? They have absolutely nothing to do with each other."
"But then again, Xiao Xu's family's culinary skills are truly incredible!"
He couldn't help but eat another piece of beef offal, exclaiming, "It's just too delicious!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Xu Zhanpeng, who had finally gotten through a peak rush hour, came out of the kitchen to greet them. "CEO Lu, Assistant Wen, is the food to your taste?"
"It's amazing!"
Wen Jiajun hurriedly pulled out the chair next to him, telling him to sit down, and added, "It's so delicious that I can't find a single flaw! The only thing is that the place is too small. But seriously, Boss Xu, now that your Xiao Xia is so popular and trending, and your food tastes so good, if you could quickly expand your scale, your business would definitely take off! Have you considered opening a proper restaurant?"
"The main thing is that once you open a restaurant, you won't be limited to operating only at night; you can also open for lunch. Doubling your revenue won't be a problem at all!"
Thanks to CEO Lu's recent plan to acquire Jiushan, he had learned a lot about the catering market over the past two days and could be considered half an industry insider.
Xu Zhanpeng just smiled and said, "You make a fair point. If we opened a proper restaurant, our revenue would definitely be better than it is now, but the overhead is simply too high. Take this location, for example. A hundred-square-meter storefront would require at least a million in startup capital to even get off the ground. We just bought a house back in our hometown, so we don't have that much spare cash on hand."
"Then you should be able to apply for a loan, right?"
Wen Jiajun added, "With your kind of foot traffic and table turnover rate, the bank should approve it easily."
"A loan is an option,"
Xu Zhanpeng nodded. He glanced over at Luo Jiajia, who was busy helping Xu Yanxia and her fans take photos, and said, "But I'm planning to get married at the end of the year. My fiancée has already endured so much hardship by my side, and I really don't want her to take on any more risks with me."
"For now, the plan is to see if any vendors in the market are giving up their leases. If not, I'll ask the management office to help shuffle things around so we can expand our current spot. After all, the space rental fees here are much lower than a proper storefront. If we save up for another six months to a year, we should be able to come up with the startup capital."
"That's one way to do it."
Wen Jiajun nodded.
But then Lu Jingming asked Xu Zhanpeng, "Have any investment companies approached you to discuss a partnership?"
Investment companies?
Wen Jiajun paused for a moment inwardly, quickly grasping CEO Lu's intentions.
Xu Zhanpeng just smiled and shook his head, saying, "No, we haven't had anything like that. I doubt our little stall would ever catch the eye of a big financial group."
"Not necessarily,"
Wen Jiajun immediately spoke up on Lu Jingming's behalf. "Our group recently happened to establish a food and beverage investment company. You could reach out to them and see. I think with your current popularity and the taste of your food, securing an investment shouldn't be a problem."
Saying this, he deliberately looked over at Lu Jingming and added, "Right, Mr. Lu?"
Lu Jingming nodded. "There is a very good chance."
