139: Chapter 139 Dating

Lin Xi flipped through the menu, her fingers slowly gliding across the pages.

"There are so many dishes, I don't even know what to order," she muttered softly.

"Just order whatever you like to eat; I'll eat anything."

"Then I'll order, okay?" Lin Xi looked up at him.

Perhaps because she knew Chen Fan had a big appetite,

Lin Xi ordered a lot, and most of it was meat.

After they finished ordering, Lin Xi closed the menu and handed it to the waiter: "That's all."

"Alright." Lin Xi finished marking the last item and pushed the menu over for Chen Fan to check, "Take a look and see if you want to add anything else."

Chen Fan glanced down; it was all meat. He picked up the pen and checked off a serving of enoki mushrooms and baby cabbage on the menu, then added a portion of wide glass noodles.

"Why did you order all vegetables?" Lin Xi was a bit surprised.

"I ordered them for you." Chen Fan handed the menu back, "It's better to have a balance of meat and vegetables."

Upon hearing this, a smile appeared on Lin Xi's face as she closed the menu and handed it to the waiter.

"What soup base would you like?" The waiter took the menu and skillfully noted it down on the order sheet.

Lin Xi looked at Chen Fan: "Tomato split pot?"

"Sure." Chen Fan nodded.

"Then we'll have the tomato split pot, thank you." Lin Xi handed the menu to the waiter.

"Alright, please wait a moment." The waiter turned to leave with the menu, then took two steps and turned back to ask, "Do the two of you need aprons? It's easy to get oil on your clothes."

Lin Xi looked down at the white knitted sweater she was wearing, "We'll take two."

Upon hearing this, the waiter brought over two aprons.

Lin Xi took one out and handed it to Chen Fan: "Put it on."

"No need." Chen Fan shook his head.

He had never worn an apron while eating hotpot before.

"It's hard to wash off if it splashes on your clothes, and it leaves a smell. Be good." Lin Xi's tone was gentle, but her eyes held a stubbornness that said, "If you don't wear it, I won't let it go."

Chen Fan felt a bit helpless, feeling like Lin Xi was treating him like a child.

"Alright, I'll put it on."

Chen Fan reached out and took the apron, carelessly slipping it over his neck and tying the strings in the back into a random knot, just to get it over with.

Lin Xi took one look at the crooked knot, sighed, put down her chopsticks, and walked behind him.

"What kind of knot is this..."

She muttered softly, untied the loose, sloppy knot he had made, and tied it into a proper bow instead.

After tying it for Chen Fan, she picked up the other apron and tied it on herself.

After putting on the apron, Lin Xi took out her phone to check the time.

Chen Fan saw that she was still using her old phone; the iPhone 4 he had given her was still sitting in its box.

"Why didn't you switch to the new phone?" Chen Fan asked.

"I was thinking of switching when I got back."

"Switch to it now," Chen Fan said, "Just take out the old SIM card and put it into the new phone; it'll be quick."

He quickly opened the packaging, took out the black iPhone 4, took Lin Xi's old phone, and skillfully opened the back cover to remove the SIM card.

He gently pushed the SIM ejector tool into the slot next to the tray, the tray popped out, he placed the SIM card in, and pushed it back in—the whole process took less than a minute.

"All done." Chen Fan handed her the new phone.

Lin Xi took the phone, long-pressed the power button, and the bitten apple logo lit up on the screen.

After it turned on, Lin Xi tried operating it a few times.

She discovered that its operation method was completely different from her original phone.

For a moment, she was a bit unfamiliar with it.

There was no familiar T9 keypad, and no physical buttons for confirm, cancel, or back.

There were only square icons on the screen; once she tapped one to enter, she didn't know how to exit.

Seeing this, Chen Fan shifted closer to her, his shoulder almost touching hers.

"Come here, let me teach you."

He reached out and took the phone, his thumb sliding across the screen with fluid, practiced motions.

"This is to unlock; just slide your finger from left to right." He demonstrated once, then handed the phone back for Lin Xi to try.

Lin Xi tried it, and it unlocked.

"This is the Home button. No matter what screen you're on, pressing it once will take you back to the main screen." Chen Fan pointed to the circular button at the bottom of the screen, "You try."

Lin Xi tapped into the weather app, looked at it, and then pressed the Home button; the screen jumped back to the main interface.

She tapped into the calendar, pressed it again, and it went back. After trying it a couple of times, the corners of her mouth curved up—she had found the pattern.

"To make a call, tap this green one to dial." Chen Fan opened the phone icon and brought up the dial pad, "It's similar to your old phone; the numbers are here, and the dial button is at the bottom."

"To take photos, it's here; tap this camera icon. Press the white dot at the bottom to snap a photo, and press the white dot at the top to switch between the front and rear cameras."

"This one is for connecting to WiFi; just enter the WiFi account and password to connect."

Chen Fan explained the apps to her one by one, at a steady pace, just like teaching a child.

In fact, although Lin Xi had never used an iPhone, with her intelligence, it was easy to get the hang of it—a couple of taps, a few swipes, and it wouldn't take long to figure out the pattern.

The iPhone's operating logic was inherently intuitive, unlike those complex devices that required flipping through a manual to understand.

But she didn't interrupt Chen Fan.

She watched Chen Fan as he leaned his head down, earnestly explaining it to her.

Lin Xi felt that she quite liked this feeling.

"Alright, that's about it." Chen Fan handed the phone to her, "You can explore the rest when you get back; you'll get used to it in a couple of days. This thing is simpler than you think."

"Mm." Lin Xi took the phone, glanced at it, and placed it on the table.

Just then, the waiter pushed a cart over, filled to the brim with various plates.

They immediately started placing them on the table one by one.

"Oh, we don't have our dipping sauce bowls yet." Lin Xi suddenly remembered something and turned to look at Chen Fan.

Chen Fan said: "Could you make one for me?"

"Do you want sesame paste or an oil-based dipping sauce?" Lin Xi asked.

"Sesame paste, you can handle the rest as you see fit."

"Mm." Lin Xi nodded, stood up, and walked toward the condiment station.

Soon, Lin Xi carefully walked back carrying two dipping sauce bowls.

Then she handed one of them to Chen Fan.

"Try it and see how it tastes."

Chen Fan looked down at the sauce in the bowl; the consistency was just right, the color was even, and the cilantro and chopped green onions were sprinkled neatly.

He picked up his chopsticks, dipped a little, put it in his mouth, and tasted it—this was the taste, neither too salty nor too bland, with just the right amount of spiciness.

"It suits my taste."

"That's good." Upon hearing this, Lin Xi revealed a faint smile.

The steam from the hotpot rose between the two of them, and a thin layer of mist condensed on the glass window.

Reflecting their figures.

Chen Fan was momentarily stunned.

In his past life, he had eaten with his parents, his cousin, and his friends and colleagues, but he had never sat alone like this eating with a girl he liked.

"What's wrong?" Lin Xi noticed he was dazed and looked up at him.

"It's nothing." He smiled, picked up a slice of fatty beef, and placed it in her bowl, "Eat up, the meat is getting cold."

"Mm, you eat too."