But that's another story.
What was supposed to be a nice double date had turned into a triple date.
Chu Xubai found Zheng Qingyuan's presence thoroughly irritating, so he simply ignored him and waved over a waiter to place their orders.
And as it happened, the world could be a very small place.
The waiter was the same one from the Heye Western Restaurant last time. He had sharp eyes, and as he looked at the three people before him, he cast an admiring glance at Qiao Liuyue.
"So, what would the three of you like today? We've got several signature dishes that are really good."
"Ah, and even though there's no Valentine's Day discount today, since we're all familiar, I can give you ten percent off."
Zheng Qingyuan also recognized the waiter as a familiar face and asked, puzzled, "Weren't you at Heye Western Restaurant? How'd you end up here? And since when do you have the authority to give discounts?"
The waiter cleared his throat, straightened his back, and said with great pride, "I'm a second-generation restaurant heir. These places are all family businesses—just graduated, and my family dragged me in to rotate through each location. Running into you all is fate."
Just as he finished speaking, footsteps sounded from behind.
It was Xie Linchuan, hurrying in.
The waiter glanced at him and chuckled, "Well, well, looks like the whole party's here now."
Xie Linchuan didn't catch on at first, but after a moment, he realized the waiter looked somewhat familiar.
Qiao Liuyue hadn't expected Xie Linchuan to have gotten smarter, either.
Realizing he couldn't handle things alone, he'd dragged Zheng Qingyuan along as backup.
But wouldn't you know it?
The moment Chu Xubai, his good brother, saw Xie Linchuan appear, everything clicked.
It was Xie Linchuan who had betrayed him!!!
For the entire dinner, Chu Xubai didn't give Xie Linchuan a single smile.
But Xie Linchuan didn't mind in the slightest.
After dinner, Zheng Qingyuan's phone buzzed with a new message.
He tapped it open—it was from Qiao Liuyue.
Before he could even feel happy for more than a few seconds, he read the contents: Take Chu Xubai away, Yuanyuan.
Zheng Qingyuan stared at the first half. What does this mean?
If he took Chu Xubai away, that would leave Xie Linchuan alone with Liuyue. How could he possibly be okay with that?
But then he looked at the second half.
The corners of his mouth couldn't help but curl upward.
But she called me Yuanyuan.
This was the first time she'd ever called him that.
Even in the livestream chat, whenever Qiao Liuyue referred to him, it was always "Boss Yuan" or "President Yuan."
Other fans would joke, "Streamer, why don't you call him 'Yuanyuan' instead?"
Qiao Liuyue would reply with a laugh, "That nickname feels a little too intimate. Besides, I'm a game streamer—I don't need to fawn over my top donor."
Her other fans would hear this and flood the chat with likes.
Nice! Streamer, you're amazing. Most people would only think that kind of thing to themselves—you actually said it out loud.
Too honest for your own good. Aren't you afraid your top donor will bail?
But in truth, Qiao Liuyue's second and third biggest donors were also quite wealthy—both were rich female friends she'd made during her days as a paid companion.
Though she didn't flatter the guys, she totally flirted with the ladies.
Every time they showed up in her stream, she'd greet them with a string of "wifey" this and "darling" that.
"What's up, wifey, your voice sounds great today. Let me carry you up the ranks—play whatever you want." Basically, compliments on compliments, nonstop.
Even if Zheng Qingyuan was her top donor, if he didn't show up to the stream, Qiao Liuyue's traffic wouldn't suffer.
After all, career was career, and men were men.
Men could change at any moment. A career wouldn't.
At this very moment, Zheng Qingyuan stared at that intimate little "Yuanyuan" on his screen, and his mood soared.
He thought to himself: Liuyue told me to take Chu Xubai away—maybe she wants to teach Xie Linchuan a lesson? Well, then, no more words needed.
Before Chu Xubai knew what was happening, he was pulled away, completely baffled.
Xie Linchuan watched the scene, a little puzzled too.
He thought to himself, Zheng Qingyuan is being way too nice today—did he swallow the wrong pill? He's actually giving him and Liuyue alone time?
Qiao Liuyue looked at the man before her and asked, "Full?"
Xie Linchuan nodded, bobbing his head like a pecking chick.
"Yeah, I'm full."
"Then come with me."
Her tone was natural, as if it were only right that Xie Linchuan obediently follow her.
Xie Linchuan instinctively retorted, "Huh? Why would I just follow you? What if you're planning to sell me off?"
But the moment he said it, he felt like his mouth was worthless.
What if—just what if—Liuyue had something sincere she wanted to say to him?
Qiao Liuyue smiled, her tone dripping with mockery, "With a face like yours? Even if you tried to sell yourself, no one would buy."
Xie Linchuan bared his teeth in frustration. "That's not necessarily true!"
Qiao Liuyue paused for a beat, then added, "Oh, right. If you go back to Dong Jiaoyan, she might be willing to take you in for recycling."
"Qiao! Liu! Yue!" Xie Linchuan had struck a nerve again, and he said her name word by word, his expression dead serious.
"Hm?" She raised an eyebrow, signaling she was listening.
Xie Linchuan glared at her. "They say, 'If you're going to hit the dog, at least mind its owner.'"
Qiao Liuyue was puzzled. "So?"
Xie Linchuan, who had been fierce and bristling just a second ago, suddenly turned pitiful and whined, "So, out of respect for yourself—the owner—can you stop scolding me? I admit I was wrong. I shouldn't have misunderstood you back then. I was blind—not just blind, but my mouth was foul, too."
Qiao Liuyue watched him list his own faults with a self-reflective expression and said with a smile, "And?"
Xie Linchuan lowered his head, snuck a quick glance at her, then looked away again and muttered, "And... I was a bit shameless."
After all, he knew full well how much Chu Xubai liked Liuyue, and he'd still been trying to steal her from his own brother.
Qiao Liuyue stood up and glanced back at him.
"Alright, that's enough self-reflection for today."
"Come on, puppy."
The last two words rose slightly in pitch, like they had a little hook at the end.
Just moments ago, Xie Linchuan had been dejected, guilt-ridden, and annoyed. Hearing that, if he had a tail, it probably would've been wagging wildly from side to side.
"Okay!" His mood instantly switched from cloudy to sunny, and a bright, radiant smile spread across his face.
The two of them took a cab to the biggest mall in town.
When Xie Linchuan saw Qiao Liuyue walk straight into a luxury men's clothing store, he felt a bit shy and hesitant, and said quietly,
"Um... Liuyue, this store's pretty expensive. I usually just buy clothes online. You don't have to be so generous."
But his lips were already curling up uncontrollably.
He just knew it—Liuyue didn't seem like she cared on the surface, but deep down, she really cared about him.
She knew his birthday was coming up soon, so she was planning to buy him an early birthday gift.
Ah! So happy.
But the clothes in this store really were expensive. Liuyue worked hard as a game streamer—sometimes her voice would get hoarse after streaming. She earned every penny through sweat.
Xie Linchuan felt a pang of reluctance and heartache.
He added, "Besides, I've got this weird quirk—I only like wearing cheap clothes. Really, I'm not lying to you."
Qiao Liuyue stopped in her tracks and turned to look at him with a confused expression.
"What does your preference for cheap clothes have to do with me buying things?"
