Finally, as evening approached, the young people in the house quieted down. They had run out of things to say after arguing, and the three girls all remembered one thing at the same time: to feed themselves.
At this point, Chen Xiao was in trouble.
During the day, the three girls were bickering, each trying their best to outdo the other in terms of domestic virtues. This allowed Chen Xiao to enjoy a life of being waited on hand and foot. But now, hungry and still angry, the girls had no interest in competing to be the perfect housewife.
So... Chen Xiao had to transform from the role of the master into a waiter.
He took the initiative to clean the stove, then reheated the pot of rabbit meat that had gone cold, and personally served the three beauties who had been promoted from maids to empresses to their meals.
This process is difficult—if he adds an extra piece of rabbit meat or a spoonful of soup to any of the three, he immediately draws glares from the other two.
Fortunately, the three girls did not target Chen Xiao and continued their "internal war".
Chen Xiao did a pretty good job. He didn't have a chance to show his abilities during the day, but they came through at night.
He added three bird eggs to the rabbit soup, using his newly acquired "mental search" ability to find a bird's nest in the surrounding trees and retrieve the eggs. Chen Xiao, who used to work in a fast food restaurant, had lost his memory, but seemed to have retained some of his cooking skills, quickly transforming himself into a "stay-at-home dad."
The three girls, however, didn't speak to Chen Xiao during the meal, as if they were still arguing and continuing to play the game of "I'll kill you with my eyes".
Damn it... They've been staring at each other all day, don't their eyes get tired?
However, they finally quieted down and stopped arguing, which is a bit of progress, right?
After hesitating for a long time, Chen Xiao finally waited until the three beauties put down their chopsticks and bowls, then blinked and said, "Well, I think we all need to calm down..."
What he meant was to "talk calmly and rationally".
Unfortunately, before he could finish speaking, Zhang Xiaotao put down her chopsticks, said, "I'm full," and ran to the kang (a heated brick bed) without looking back, slumping down with her head facing inwards. Xiao Qing silently put down her bowl, gave Chen Xiao a deep look, walked to the side, sat on the kang, and began meditating with her legs crossed and eyes closed.
As for Phoenix, she snorted, got up, and walked towards the door.
Chen Xiao hesitated for a moment. After all, the two people in the room were still on the kang (a heated brick bed), so there was no need to worry. But Phoenix… where was she going to run off to?
After hesitating for a moment, he finally went out with Phoenix.
"Hello!"
When only Zhang Xiaotao and Xiao Qing were left in the room, Zhang Xiaotao suddenly turned over and looked at Xiao Qing, who was also sitting on the kang (a heated brick bed).
Xiao Qing didn't speak, and even kept her eyes closed.
"Hey!" Zhang Xiaotao raised her voice a little, then hesitated for a moment: "We've been arguing for so long, and we haven't even formally introduced ourselves yet. My name is Zhang Xiaotao."
"...I...I am Xiao Qing." Xiao Qing finally opened her eyes.
Zhang Xiaotao bit her lip: "I...you...how long have you known Chen Xiao?"
We met before summer.
"...Before summer...that was a little earlier than when I met him." Zhang Xiaotao hesitated for a moment: "You, and that girl named Phoenix, are you really sisters?"
"I don't know," Xiao Qing shook her head.
Both girls seemed a little embarrassed, but Zhang Xiaotao forced herself to continue the conversation. At least, judging from the half-day of open and covert struggle, her main opponent was Phoenix, while Xiao Qing remained silent for most of the time.
"You like Chen Xiao?" In her nervousness, Zhang Xiaotao suddenly blurted out this question, but she regretted it as soon as the words left her mouth... How foolish! Even a blind person could see that!
"You're the same." Xiao Qing's answer was a tacit admission.
“I… am his girlfriend.” Zhang Xiaotao seemed to still want to assert her pride.
But Xiao Qing smiled faintly: "At least from what I know, Phoenix was already his girlfriend before he met you."
"...And what about you?"
"I... I guess you could say I'm his fiancée, but he only found out about it two days ago," Xiao Qing replied with a hint of bitterness.
“I said…” Zhang Xiaotao still tried her best to win over an ally: “Now… Phoenix went out, and that guy went out with her, we…”
“I’ve heard of you.” Xiao Qing suddenly changed the subject: “I’ve met Tang Ying, and she told me some things about you. I… I want to thank you.”
"Thank me?" Zhang Xiaotao was taken aback.
“Without your care, Chen Xiao might have died on that deserted island by now.” Xiao Qing looked at Zhang Xiaotao very seriously.
Just those words immediately softened Zhang Xiaotao's heart.
"You don't need to be moved," Xiao Qing continued calmly. "Although I thank you, I will not back down."
"?"
Xiao Qing lowered her eyelids, probably because she herself felt a little guilty about what she was about to say.
"Originally, he didn't know I liked him, and I didn't even plan to tell him. I... maybe we're from two different worlds. Even if I'm attracted to him, so what? He already has girls around him, Phoenix, and you. I don't want to get involved in such complicated relationships. Perhaps, I originally planned to keep this a secret, and then, when the time is right, return to the Xiao family, and follow my old plan to live my own life... In short, it won't have much to do with him. Maybe a year, maybe three or five years, maybe longer, but eventually I'll forget him..."
At this point, Xiao Qing suddenly felt that she was being ridiculous; she couldn't even believe what she was saying.
Forget him?
Is that possible?
It seems... I remember that time in the cave on the resort island, the two of us back to back facing the monster. And in the forest, when he held me... I already...
You've fallen for it...
“But now, I won’t back down.” Xiao Qing gritted her teeth, finally raising her eyelids to bravely look Zhang Xiaotao in the eye. “This is just my personality. Originally, I planned to never take this step, never tell him my feelings… But now… whether I like it or not, I’ve already taken this step! Now that I’ve taken this step, I won’t take it back!”
She took a deep breath, her voice soft but firm: "Either don't do it at all, or if you do it, you must see it through to the end and leave no regrets!"