112: Chapter 112 Who...who wanted that!

After getting into the car, Lin Xi fastened her seatbelt. Chen Fan didn't start the car right away; instead, he turned sideways and looked at her with an expectant gaze. "Xixi, how did it go with what I asked you? Did your mom agree?"

"What thing?" Lin Xi looked at him with a blank expression, blinking her eyes as if she truly had no idea what he was talking about.

Chen Fan grew anxious. "The thing about asking your mom if you could stay at the dorm tonight and head back tomorrow morning!"

Lin Xi let out an "Oh—" of realization, then lowered her head, tracing circles on the edge of her seatbelt with her finger. Her tone was slow and deliberate. "You mean that?"

She suddenly stopped.

Chen Fan's heart leaped into his throat. "Did you forget to ask?"

Lin Xi kept her head down, her shoulders shaking slightly as if she were suppressing a laugh. Chen Fan stared at her for two seconds, and just as he was about to speak, she snapped her head up and burst out laughing. "Pfft, I was teasing you! I already told her I'm going back tomorrow."

Chen Fan was stunned for a second, then realization dawned. He reached out to pinch her cheek. "You little... Xixi, how dare you lie to me!"

Lin Xi's face was pinched out of shape, her mouth pouting and her eyes wide. She mumbled indistinctly, "Who told you to always be thinking about that kind of stuff?"

"Don't tell me you aren't?" Chen Fan let go and leaned back against his seat, looking at her with a half-smile.

Lin Xi's face flushed instantly, the heat spreading from her cheeks all the way to her ears. She swatted away his hand, which was still resting on her shoulder, and turned her head to look out the window. Her voice was as soft as a mosquito's buzz. "Who... who's thinking about that!"

The car window reflected her side profile, which was bright red.

Despite her words, having recently tasted the forbidden fruit, Lin Xi actually felt a restless stirring in her own heart as well.

...

Chen Fan drove out of the school gates. Lin Xi leaned back in the passenger seat, her head tilted as she watched the street scenery outside.

In November's Chang'an, most of the plane tree leaves had turned yellow, shimmering with a golden light under the sun.

"Where are we going now?" she asked.

"Taking you to eat something delicious," Chen Fan said casually, one hand on the steering wheel.

"Okay!" Lin Xi's eyes lit up.

The car traveled for over twenty minutes before stopping at the Chang'an Wanda Plaza parking lot.

Chen Fan had done his research beforehand. There was a Western restaurant in the mall called Visino. It had good reviews online and was said to have great taste and value, so he planned to take Lin Xi there to try it.

As soon as they entered the restaurant, a server greeted them with a standard smile. "Welcome to Visino, sir and madam. Please, this way."

The server led the two of them to a table by the window.

Outside the window was the mall's pedestrian street, bustling with people. The setting sun filtered through the glass, casting a glow on the white tablecloth.

The server handed the menu to Chen Fan.

He flipped through it—this place wasn't like those high-end Western restaurants where a single steak cost several hundred yuan.

While the prices were a bit more expensive than a regular restaurant, they were perfectly affordable for ordinary people.

Chen Fan handed the menu to Lin Xi. "Xixi, see what you want to eat and order for yourself."

Lin Xi took a glance at the menu and then handed it back. "You should order."

She had always lived in a small county town and rarely ate Western food, so she didn't really know what to order.

Chen Fan smiled at this and took the menu back. In truth, this was his first time eating Western food as well.

But that didn't matter; he just ordered based on his gut feeling.

"Two sirloin steaks, medium-well." He glanced at Lin Xi. "One 12-inch classic Italian meat sauce pizza, one beef kimchi poke bowl, one tomato seafood pasta, one blueberry cheesecake, another black pepper beef tenderloin fried pasta, a cream of mushroom soup, a Caesar salad, and an order of potato wedges."

The server scribbled quickly on the order pad, the pen tip scratching loudly.

"What would you two like to drink?" the server asked.

Chen Fan handed the menu to Lin Xi. "What are you having?"

"Lemon water is fine."

"Two lemon waters then. That's all."

"Certainly." The server took the menu and turned to leave.

Lin Xi looked at Chen Fan with some concern, her brow furrowed slightly. "Are you sure we can finish all that?" Although she had seen his appetite before and knew he ate a lot, seeing so many dishes ordered still made her worry about waste.

"Don't worry, we'll definitely finish it," Chen Fan said, leaning back with a certain tone. "Even if we can't, we can pack it up and take it back. No waste."

Hearing him say that, Lin Xi stopped worrying.

Soon, the server arrived with a cart to serve their food.

Lin Xi picked up her knife and fork, clumsily cutting her steak.

"Do you want me to get you some chopsticks?"

"No~" Lin Xi said, a bit embarrassed. "Who uses chopsticks for Western food?"

"I almost want to just grab it with my hands and eat~"

Lin Xi was amused by his words, making her grip on the knife and fork even less steady.

Seeing this, Chen Fan pushed the plate of steak he had already cut in front of Lin Xi and took her plate for himself.

Although Chen Fan wasn't familiar with cutting steak either, he was strong. Using brute force to solve the problem, he cut the steak into small pieces in just a few strokes.

He picked up a fork, stabbed a piece, put it in his mouth, and chewed.

Hmm, it was very average.

But since it was already cut, he couldn't let it go to waste.

...

An hour later, the two of them left the restaurant.

Chen Fan originally wanted to go home to do something to aid digestion, but Lin Xi pulled him along, wanting to browse the mall.

"Let's walk around for a bit. It's not often we get to come out like this." Lin Xi tugged on his sleeve, her eyes bright.

Chen Fan had no choice but to wander the mall with her.

To his surprise, even though Lin Xi said she wanted to browse the mall, she only looked and didn't buy anything.

When they passed a women's clothing store, Chen Fan wanted to buy her a few outfits, but she insisted she didn't want them.

"This one looks good on you. Want to try it?" Chen Fan picked up a light-colored sweater and held it up against her.

"No, I have enough clothes." Lin Xi shook her head and pulled him out of the store.

Passing a shoe store, Chen Fan said, "Want to buy a pair of shoes?"

"No need, I have shoes."

"Then what's the point of browsing the mall?" Chen Fan couldn't help but ask.

"It's about enjoying the feeling of browsing," Lin Xi said with wide eyes and perfect logic. "Besides, I already have enough clothes. I don't need to buy any for now."

Chen Fan looked at her, thinking that women were sometimes truly difficult creatures to understand. They would walk around for half the day, buy nothing, and just do it for the "feeling."

He shook his head and said nothing more, continuing to accompany her.

They reached the third floor. As they passed an underwear shop, Chen Fan caught a glimpse of an item displayed in the window, and his footsteps faltered slightly.

Something instantly came to mind, and he looked at Lin Xi beside him, a trace of a mischievous smile appearing on his face.