Infinite Ebullience
Chapter 1123 - 8 Gap

Chapter 1123: Chapter 8 Gap

"Yeah, heat it up a bit, cold food might upset your stomach." Tang Zheng guessed Xiu Yingjie hadn’t eaten all day, a warm meal would be good for his stomach and would also help him relax. He walked a few steps, then took a can of canned fruit from the shelf and handed it to him, "Eat this to fill your stomach for now, it’s too late tonight, I’ll treat you to a feast tomorrow."

Tao Ran, carrying some food, entered the small kitchen behind the Supermarket.

"It’s really troublesome for your friend." Although Xiu Yingjie was very hungry, his stomach making frequent growling noises, he tried to put the can back on the shelf after receiving it.

"Don’t be so polite, it’s too formal." Tang Zheng’s hand landed on Xiu Yingjie’s wrist.

"Alright then, ah, I really owe you one this time, otherwise I wouldn’t have known what to do?" Xiu sighed, attempted to twist off the lid, but it didn’t budge, leaving him embarrassingly stuck.

"Let me do it!" Tang Zheng took the can, easily twisted it open with a flick of his fingers, handed it back to Xiu Yingjie and continued shopping; they would definitely need food for chatting later in the evening.

"Damn, I didn’t realize you had such strong wrists, do you work out often?" Xiu Yingjie looked at the lid, took a sip of the broth, and shivered comfortably.

"Yeah!" Tang Zheng didn’t continue on this topic. His strength, physical fitness, and cardiovascular functions had already far surpassed ordinary people, even his not so much strengthened immunity prevented him from easily catching a flu.

"What’s your relationship with that girl? Girlfriend?" Because Tao Ran’s hair covered her cheeks, Xiu Yingjie hadn’t seen her injured left eye. "She seems very pure, why don’t you go and advance your relationship?"

"No." Tang Zheng knew his priorities, it was rare to see an old classmate and he had to treat her well no matter what.

Within ten minutes, Tao Ran came out with heated meat dishes and side dishes, and even cooked a bowl of noodles, the rich aroma enticing Xiu Yingjie’s cravings, making him salivate.

"Let’s eat here at the cash register." Tao Ran’s private space was behind, and naturally, she couldn’t let two men enter.

Tang Zheng noticed water stains on both pairs of chopsticks; clearly, Tao Ran had washed them again, worried Xiu Yingjie would be concerned about hygiene, which made him appreciate the girl’s thoughtfulness even more.

"Thanks a lot, Tang Zheng, will you eat something too?" Seeing him refuse, Xiu Yingjie picked up the chopsticks and began eating lavishly, "Then I won’t be polite."

"Let’s talk after you eat," Tang Zheng stopped him as Xiu Yingjie was about to speak.

Tao Ran brought two bottles of mineral water, opened them, placed one next to Xiu Yingjie and handed the other to Tang Zheng.

"Thank you!" Tang Zheng reached out to take it, touching Tao Ran’s fingers — cool, smooth, like satin.

"Take your time, I’ll go clean up the back." Her hair, Black Long Straight, jerked back like a frightened doe, and she turned and left, not wanting Tang Zheng’s classmate to see her eye.

"Why hide? I don’t usually mind these things," Tao Ran hadn’t noticed that Tang Zheng had started to matter to her.

"If you like her, go for it, don’t wait until she’s someone else’s wife and then regret it." Xiu Yingjie, sipping his soup, saw Tang Zheng looking at Tao Ran’s retreating figure and laughed, "But I heard Song Xin hasn’t forgotten you, she even asked if you were going to the class reunion."

Tang Zheng took a sip of water, didn’t respond. For someone who could die at any moment, talking about love felt a bit extravagant.

It was too late, and Xiu Yingjie didn’t want to disturb Tao Ran any further. He quickly finished the food and pulled Tang Zheng to leave, still worried about where to stay for the night.

"Close the store!" Tang Zheng took out two hundred dollars and placed it on the cash register, but Black Long Straight glared at it, grabbed the money, and forcefully stuffed it back into his hand.

"If you mention money again, don’t come back." Black Long Straight was never stingy.

"Alright, remember to rest early!" Tang Zheng didn’t insist any further.

Xiu Yingjie said goodbye to Tao Ran and followed Tang Zheng back to the Porsche, appreciating the night scene while gently patting his filled belly, he sighed in contentment.

"If only there were a warm bed to sleep in, it would be perfect." Xiu Yingjie realized his comment might seem like he was asking for too much and quickly apologized, "Don’t get me wrong, I’m really grateful for tonight."

"I know, now shut up and rest quietly."

After leaving the Cayenne in the parking lot, Xiu Yingjie saw the towering structure of the Marriott Hotel and immediately grabbed Tang Zheng’s arm.

"Hey, don’t splurge, just crashing at your dorm or workplace for the night is fine. Staying at such a hotel for one night would cost a fortune," Xiu Yingjie planned to repay Tang Zheng after going home, but this kind of expense was too much for him.

"I’ve already booked a room." Tang Zheng entered the Lobby, the receptionist on duty stiffened at seeing him, but Dong Zixuan, although annoyed that Tang Zheng had taken her first kiss, being good at heart and worried about causing him unnecessary trouble, still told the receptionist it was a misunderstanding.

"Which floor? You don’t live in the hotel permanently, do you?" Xiu Yingjie glanced at the receptionist’s chest and hurried into the elevator. He saw that Tang Zheng hadn’t checked in, which meant he had already moved in.

"The 7th floor." There were many questions from his classmate, but Tang Zheng still patiently made excuses, "The customer left early, and I couldn’t get a refund for the room, so I just moved in."

"You guys get such good treatment, wow, this suite must cost hundreds a night, right?" Looking at the spacious living room, Xiu Yingjie immediately ran to the sofa, leaped onto it, and felt so comfortable he never wanted to get up again from the soft touch.

"Go take a shower and then sleep," Tang Zheng suggested, although he wanted to talk about other classmates. However, seeing Xiu Yingjie tired, he didn’t ask.

They spent the night without much talk, and after eating and drinking his fill and resting on a comfortable large bed, Xiu Yingjie slept until the sun was high, only to wake up and hear Tang Zheng speaking with a waiter. He walked to the door in his pajamas and saw a woman in a cheongsam bending over to set down a tray, his eyes inevitably drawn to her silk-stockinged thighs.

"Awake now? I was just about to call you. Let’s have breakfast together," Tang Zheng said, sitting on the sofa, turning on the TV to watch the latest news. "And maybe discuss your issue?"

Xiu Yingjie was incredibly grateful. Although they hadn’t seen each other for years and only had a casual relationship in middle school, Tang Zheng’s hospitality was indeed beyond reproach.

Within thirty minutes, Tang Zheng learned what had happened and even got a few classmates’ phone numbers. However, he didn’t call them since they hadn’t invited him to the reunion. It would be awkward to acknowledge he knew about it otherwise.

"How is my luck so bad?" Thinking about how he had been robbed of fifty thousand in cash, Xiu Yingjie felt so anxious that he was losing clumps of hair.

"Don’t worry, a solution will come when we reach the bridge," Tang Zheng said, growing stronger. Rather than seeking help from the police, he preferred to rely on himself. "Are you in a rush to get back?"

"Yeah, if I don’t return, the boss will kill me," Xiu Yingjie devoured his food, channeling his anger into his appetite.

"Let me think of a solution. You stay here, I’ll go out for a bit!" Tang Zheng suddenly thought of Dong Zixuan. Getting the police to solve the case and retrieve the money in a short time was obviously not possible, so he had to help his classmate himself, of course, without the interest or time to deal with the thief himself.

Dong Zixuan was bored sorting through old case files and couldn’t calm her mind, still thinking about the subway incident. Upon hearing about it, her dad had even mentioned thanking the young man who saved her.

"Thinks my ass. My first kiss is gone," Dong Zixuan cursed, disappointed to realize that Tang Zheng was that type of guy. She was startled by the sudden ringing of her phone.

"Who is this?"

"Tang Zheng." The policewoman had casually mentioned her number before, and luckily, Tang Zheng remembered it, otherwise he wouldn’t have recalled it.

"Hmph, didn’t you say you wouldn’t leave a number?" Dong Zixuan mocked Tang Zheng, thinking he was playing hard to get.

"Sorry, but this time I need to ask for your help." For his classmate, Tang Zheng endured.

"What help? Let’s make it clear that after this, we’re even. You’re not my benefactor," Dong Zixuan declared, not wanting to deal further with Tang Zheng.

"I’ve never thought I was your benefactor," Tang Zheng muttered. "A classmate of mine was robbed of fifty thousand; can you solve the case in three days?"

"I’ll ask around." Ten minutes later, the policewoman checked with her colleagues about the case and called back, "I asked, but it was dark at the time, not many people around, no witnesses, and the gangster wore a helmet, leaving us clueless. Ask the victim to wait a few more days; we’ll handle it as fast as we can."

Tang Zheng remained silent, as expected.

"Hey, what does your silence mean? Don’t think we’re just brushing this off," Dong Zixuan became irritated. "Even if it’s Sherlock Holmes, you still have to give time to investigate, right?"

"No, thank you," Tang Zheng still explained his planned approach. "Do you understand?"

"Yeah, so you give me fifty thousand, and I tell your classmate that the case is solved, and let him go home happy?" Dong Zixuan repeated, suspicion evident in her tone.

"Right," Tang Zheng nodded. He wasn’t short of money, so this was the simplest solution.

"Do you think you’re being generous, like one of those friends who’d go through thick and thin?" the policewoman suddenly asked.

"Not really?" Tang Zheng was puzzled.

"Tang Zheng, let me tell you, these tricks won’t work on me. Moreover, I don’t like men with that kind of personality," Dong Zixuan bluntly refused. "Don’t insult my intelligence."

"Wait, you mean I’m using this method to chase you?" Tang Zheng was quick to catch on.

"Hmph, otherwise what? Who would spend fifty thousand for a stranger? Because of the subway incident, the captain checked your current situation, nothing but a university student from an ordinary family. Where would you get that much money to give someone?" Though Dong Zixuan seemed cheerful, her profession and personality made her quite skeptical, always entangling spider silk and horse traces, demonstrating her reasoning skills in hopes of cracking a major case soon. (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit qidian.com to cast a recommendation vote or subscribe. Your support is my greatest motivation.)