Upon entering the restaurant, Lü Qingqing instinctively chose to sit next to Yu Yue.
"Qing."
Lü Qingqing's heart skipped a beat. That damned address!
"Why are you sitting so far away?" Hu Jia patted the bench beside him. "Come sit here!"
The scene felt eerily familiar.
The first time she reported to the Special Operations Team, there were no seats, and Hu Jia had patted a stool, asking her to join him at his table.
Everyone present wore knowing, amused smiles.
Lü Qingqing instinctively cast a pleading look at Yu Yue. Yu Yue subtly shifted her gaze. "How about some shredded cold salad?"
That was a diversion!
An obvious, blatant diversion!
"The memo!" Li Yang covered his mouth with the menu and softly uttered three words.
Huh?
Lü Qingqing's spirits lifted. That's right, the kid would lose his memory tomorrow, making tonight the perfect opportunity to steal the memo.
Lü Qingqing gave Li Yang a look of approval. At crucial moments, this kid was reliable. With that thought, she unhesitatingly sat down beside Hu Jia.
But the moment she sat down, Li Yang swiftly moved to Yu Yue's side. "You want shredded salad? Great, whatever our little Yue Yue likes, we'll order."
Lü Qingqing's expression turned grim. Had this kid just played a trick on her?
The dishes arrived: shredded pork with garlic sauce, braised pig intestines, spicy chicken chunks, and various side dishes...
All of them were mouthwatering and visually appealing.
"Here, Sister Yue Yue, try this chicken. The meat is firm, and the spiciness is just right," Li Yang solicitously served Yu Yue.
Yu Yue glanced at him with a hint of disdain, but she didn't refuse, seemingly enjoying the meal.
Lü Qingqing observed all of this. She felt that perhaps Yu Yue did have feelings for Li Yang, and she just hadn't noticed it.
After all, if a woman had no interest in a man, she wouldn't give him even the slightest opportunity.
Seeing the smile on Lü Qingqing's face, Hu Jia also picked up his chopsticks.
Because Li Yang had told him before they came to learn from him.
Follow suit, and you won't go wrong.
"Thank you!" Lü Qingqing said reluctantly, merely maintaining superficial politeness.
After all, who wanted to eat chicken heads?
...
"Sister-in-law, how did you and my Er Gou meet?" After two shots of Er Guo Tou, Ouyang became more talkative.
Ouyang Wen was quite satisfied with this sister-in-law. She wasn't pretentious, dared to take action when needed, and most importantly, she didn't mind Hu Jia's amnesia.
Uh...
Ouyang's question silenced the entire table.
How did they meet?
Could she say they met on a grave?
Everyone looked at Lü Qingqing with "curious" eyes.
Yu Yue, Li Yang, and Luo Wenwu were particularly gleeful. They wanted to see how Lü Qingqing would fabricate a story.
However, Hu Jia's gaze was genuinely curious.
He had flipped through several of his diaries, but none mentioned how he and Lü Qingqing met.
He was curious, but too embarrassed to ask, fearing he might hurt Lü Qingqing.
Hu Jia didn't have any special feelings for Lü Qingqing; he only knew she was his fiancée. Since she was his fiancée, he would do his best to protect her.
Lü Qingqing's mind raced. What should I say?
Fabricate something?
Fabricate what!
Isn't this a golden opportunity to turn a dinner into a confession?
"If I told you we only met two or three weeks ago, would you believe me?"
"Don't bullshit!" Ouyang clearly didn't believe her. "My Er Gou is handsome, I know his personality very well. If he didn't genuinely like you, why would he be engaged to you?"
Alright, Lü Qingqing knew he wouldn't believe her. "Actually, I wanted to say, this engagement is a misun—"
"Sister-in-law," Li Yang suddenly stood up.
Everyone was speechless.
Li Yang awkwardly scratched his head. "I mean, you haven't seen your brother in a while. Can we wrap up tonight's dinner early? It's not appropriate to get back too late."
We were having such a good conversation, why wrap up?
Everyone cast contemptuous glances at Li Yang. On the contrary, Lü Qingqing immediately understood Li Yang's intention. Yes, it shouldn't be too late, otherwise, it would delay her stealing the memo.
"You're right, I should go back and check on Duo Bao too. I wonder how that kid has been doing these past few days." Since Lü Qingqing had said so, no one could insist on staying.
At the restaurant entrance, rickshaw pullers hurried by. The two single dogs went their separate ways, while the pseudo-single dogs, Li Yang and Yu Yue, found each other.
"Let's go," Hu Jia acted like a perfect gentleman.
Lü Qingqing nodded, tacitly agreeing to let Hu Jia escort her home.
Chongqing had seventeen city gates, nine open and eight closed. The famous Hongyadong scenic spot was located at the foot of the cliff outside Hongya Gate.
And outside Hongyadong, by the Jialing River next to Qiansimen, there was a place called Zhiyanhe Lane, about five hundred meters long, where Lü Qingqing lived.
This area was mostly populated by merchants and fishermen. In 1925, the patriotic businessman Lu Zuofu's Minsheng Steamship Company opened its first route here.
"It's a bit remote for a young lady to live here. You should find another place," while the main roads were bustling, as they approached Hongya Gate, under the solitary streetlights, they were the only two figures left.
"I was in too much of a hurry coming to the city from the district, and I didn't have time to look for a house, so I just picked a place," Lü Qingqing smiled. "Besides, who am I? I can handle not just petty thieves, but even two or three bandits."
"I have a vacant apartment on Jintang Street. It's close to the office, and there are streetlights at night. Why don't you move there?" Hu Jia suggested.
Jintang Street?
It was named for its proximity to the ancient city gate Tongyuanmen, meaning "as impregnable as gold."
It was indeed a good location.
However...
"It's fine. When I have some free time, I'll look for another place," Lü Qingqing didn't want to get too entangled with Hu Jia.
Seeing Lü Qingqing refuse, Hu Jia didn't press. This woman had her own pride. "Then find a place soon, not just for yourself, but for Duo Bao too."
One had to admit, smart men knew how to converse.
Thinking of her brother, Lü Qingqing hesitated. "That... do you live there too?"
Hu Jia chuckled inwardly, "Don't worry, I live elsewhere!"
This woman was afraid of them sharing the same roof.
...
Meanwhile, Li Yang had just sent Yu Yue home.
Normally, Li Yang would have bickered with Yu Yue for a while, but today he turned and left.
"Wait!" Yu Yue narrowed her eyes. "Is something wrong?"
"Huh?" Li Yang shook his head. "No!"
No?
Yu Yue couldn't be bothered to expose him.
"At dinner just now, why didn't you let Qingqing tell the truth?" Yu Yue knew Li Yang too well.
On the surface, Li Yang was reminding Lü Qingqing to go home to see Duo Bao, but in reality, he was preventing Lü Qingqing from telling the truth.
"Uh..." Li Yang looked very awkward. "That's not true, it was indeed getting late."
"Heh heh!" Yu Yue looked at Li Yang with a half-smile. "You actually want her and the boss to develop a relationship, don't you?"
Li Yang's eyes widened. Was it that obvious?
Indeed, since the past two weeks, Li Yang had been planning to play matchmaker for the two of them, otherwise, he wouldn't have constantly reminded Hu Jia to interact more with Lü Qingqing.
Yu Yue smiled, "I also know you were going to stop her from stealing the boss's memo."
Li Yang was truly stunned this time. "As expected, our little Yue Yue pays attention to me."
Yu Yue scoffed, "Who's paying attention to you? Qingqing also asked me for help."
Ah?
"You didn't agree, did you?" Li Yang became anxious.
"A person's happiness should be in their own hands, including love. It has nothing to do with others," Yu Yue said seriously. "Everyone's experiences are different, and what they want for happiness is also different. One should never arrange another person's life from their own perspective and with their own way of thinking."
"But?" Li Yang opened his mouth. "Alright, I understand."
"You understand nothing," Yu Yue stood on the steps and directly gave Li Yang a whack on the head. "Are we outsiders? Are we?"
Li Yang: ...