Fated Love With the Billionaire
Chapter 273: Indescribable Plot

Chapter 273: Chapter 273: Indescribable Plot

After lunch break, Cheng Qiaobei knocked on Zhang Qi’an’s room door, and his manager Li Tao was also there.

Carrying an exquisite fruit basket and flowers, Wei Lai held a hotel-exclusive gift box. It was clear both of them had come to express their apology.

Li Tao said, "Please come in, Zhang Qi’an is in the room reading the script. Please have a seat, I’ll call him."

The gifts were placed on the table, and Cheng Qiaobei casually looked around, while Wei Lai was also mindful of checking for any takeout food but found nothing.

Cheng Qiaobei said, "No rush, we’ll wait."

After Li Tao went into the bedroom, it wasn’t long before Zhang Qi’an came out of the room. Upon seeing Cheng Qiaobei, he said, "Chairman Cheng, I’m alright now. No need to worry."

Cheng Qiaobei first expressed his apology, "Director Chang instructed me upon your discharge that your diet should be light for now. Here’s a meal plan I had a nutritionist customize for you," he handed over the paper, "See if it requires any adjustments?"

Zhang Qi’an glanced over the meal plan while saying, "Thank you for the effort, Mr. Cheng."

Li Tao brought two cups of water over; Wei Lai stood up to take them, "Thanks."

After looking over it, Zhang Qi’an said, "No adjustments needed. It’s fine."

Cheng Qiaobei continued, "According to the allergen test results, the likelihood of you ingesting something mistakenly is quite high. Have you eaten any unusual foods since you checked into the hotel?"

Li Tao caught on to his implication, feeling Cheng Qiaobei intended to shirk responsibility, and said unhappily, "Chairman Cheng, ever since we checked into the hotel, we haven’t even ordered takeout, so how could there be any mistaken ingestion?"

Cheng Qiaobei smiled warmly and said amicably, "Don’t misunderstand, I am not trying to shirk responsibility. I am merely concerned that the allergen might not be identified clearly. If you accidentally ingest something again, causing an allergic reaction, it would still be Mr. Zhang who suffers. We were fortunate this time that it happened before filming began, allowing us to treat it in time and keep it under wraps effectively. But what if it happens during filming next time? It could affect his work, and if some opportunistic person were to take photos and post them online, creating news, wouldn’t the resulting media heat possibly impact Mr. Zhang’s other work? For an actor, filming time is very valuable."

Upon hearing this, Li Tao nodded in agreement, acknowledging the rationale in Cheng Qiaobei’s words.

Currently, Zhang Qi’an was endorsing a well-known skincare brand, and the contract was nearing its expiration. If photos of a blemished face were to be leaked, the brand might very well choose not to renew. Moreover, several films and TV dramas were lined up to start shooting, so the allergen issue did need verification.

Zhang Qi’an said, "Chairman Cheng, the day I arrived at the hotel, I ate solely vegetarian food. The male lead in my next film is someone with a severe illness, so I have been deliberately losing weight to ensure I look thin and gaunt before joining the crew."

Cheng Qiaobei asked again, "Have you experienced allergies to any particular meats before?"

Zhang Qi’an immediately denied, "No, I’ve never had any since my childhood. Wait, I am allergic to duck meat, but I don’t eat duck. I’ve never eaten it."

Since he knew about this allergy, he would certainly avoid consuming it. Cheng Qiaobei and Wei Lai exchanged glances, pondering where exactly the problem lay.

Duck meat?

An image suddenly flashed through Wei Lai’s mind. He looked at Li Tao, "Did Xia Zhiqing say she brought specialties for everyone in the show? Did she send them to you?"

Li Tao responded, "Yes, she did."

Wei Lai said, "There was hand-shredded air-dried duck jerky in them."

Li Tao suddenly froze, then turned to Zhang Qi’an and asked, "You didn’t eat the jerky I left on the table, did you?"

The air-dried jerky had external packaging, but inside they were individually vacuum-sealed without labels, making it hard to distinguish just by looking.

Zhang Qi’an, who had been trying to lose fat, occasionally consumed some beef for supplementation, mistakenly believing that the jerky on the table was purchased beef jerky.

He said, "I ate a piece."

Li Tao hurried to check the bag, finding the opened packaging of air-dried duck jerky inside. Emerging from the bedroom, he looked embarrassed and said,

"We found the issue. Xia Zhiqing saw me in the hall and said there was one for everyone. I was rushing to catch the elevator, so I didn’t pay attention to what was inside." Turning to Cheng Qiaobei, he said, "Sorry, Chairman Cheng, it was indeed a misunderstanding."

With the source of the allergen identified, after exchanging a few more pleasantries, they left.

Upon exiting the room, Wei Lai was in great spirits, having found the cause of the guest’s ailment and resolved the hotel’s PR crisis.

It wasn’t until entering the elevator that he let out a breath, saying, "To think someone’s allergic to duck meat. It really is a big world out there, without duck meat indeed, no allergy."

Cheng Qiaobei looked earnestly and said, "In the future, when guests place their meal orders, we should add a line to ask if there are any food allergies."

Wei Lai said, "Understood, I will notify the dining department immediately."

At dusk, Chen Ningxi brought two plates of wagyu and lamb rolls from the kitchen and placed them on the table. Liang Lei prepared the dipping sauce, "Let’s eat, Ning Xi, the pot’s ready."

"Coming," Chen Ningxi untied her apron, hung it up, and came out of the kitchen.

Lin Hanrui was away on a business trip and wouldn’t return until the day after tomorrow, so Chen Ningxi invited Liang Lei to her home for hot pot since Cheng Qiaobei was not home. She’d have Liang Lei stay over for the night.

The hot pot broth bubbled as Chen Ningxi dipped a piece of tripe into the boiling water, cooked it, then dipped it in sesame sauce before eating it.

"Oh, by the way, there’s something Mr. Cheng asked me to remind you, about the wedding preparations and procurement. If you’re going out to shop, it’s best to check with Lin Hanrui’s opinion."

Liang Lei chewed on the tender lamb, "Why? Did Lin Hanrui say something to Mr. Cheng?"

"No, they’ve known each other for so many years, how could he not understand?" Chen Ningxi used public chopsticks to place wagyu onto the plate next to Liang Lei, "Lin Hanrui may seem carefree, but he’s quite diligent. Especially since your wedding was decided, I noticed his whole demeanor has changed, and he’s working pretty hard in his career."

Liang Lei added a few more pieces of spinach to the pot, "He’s indeed working hard, and now he’s particularly proper. Previously, he dressed stylishly and with a hint of flamboyance, but now he has that retiring designer vibe. Can you imagine him wearing a business jacket to go talk about business? I’ve seriously never seen him like this, but I must admit, he gives off an air of reliability and seriousness.

He used to love playing all sorts of games, but he’s given up renewing club memberships, stored away his skateboards, parachuting, and rock-climbing gear. Now everywhere you look, there are blueprints and tools, making it seem like I’ve changed boyfriends. But I must say, when he wears formal attire, he has this air of high-ranking professionalism. Seeing him so poised every day makes me feel like a little mistress kept at home in a novel after a one-night stand with him."

"Ha..." Chen Ningxi couldn’t help but laugh, "Pregnancy has sparked your creative thinking. If nothing else, why don’t you write a book?"

Liang Lei laughed and said, "If I were to write a book, it would be filled with gibberish, and the background review would go crazy with alerts. The next day the book would be taken down for violations, full of indescribable scenes and a thousand words omitted here and there."

"Eat more," Chen Ningxi added more meat for her, "You’re going to be a mom, keep your mind clear so you don’t affect my goddaughter’s pure thoughts."

Liang Lei, eating as she spoke, said, "Are you sure this baby is a girl?"

Chen Ningxi smiled and said, "Who can be sure, but I like girls."

Liang Lei said, "If you like them so much, why don’t you have your own? With the two of you having such great genes, the child would surely be both beautiful and intelligent. Unlike what I’d have with Lin Hanrui, marrying a stubborn person like that would give birth to a super stubborn child."

Chen Ningxi replied, "Lin Hanrui is a stubborn one?"

"Heh..." Liang Lei laughed, "He’s not, I am."

Laughter echoed through the restaurant as they chatted. Just then, both of their phones rang almost simultaneously with video requests.

Chen Ningxi glanced at the screen and pressed accept.