Chapter 12: An Unexpected Turn and a Costly Dinner

?

Zhong Tian pressed the doorbell again, then waited quietly for a few minutes, yet no one answered.

‘That’s not right.’

‘Could Dad still be asleep?’

‘I’ll call and ask.’

Zhong Tian dialed his father’s number, and the call connected swiftly.

“Hello? Son?” A rather youthful-sounding male voice emerged from the other end of the line.

“Hello? Dad,” Zhong Tian said. “I’ve arrived home now, could you open the door for me?”

“Hmm? Why the sudden return home?”

“I just thought I’d surprise you both.”

“……” Silence descended upon the other end of the call.

“What’s wrong?”

“Your mother and I… we’ve gone traveling.”

“Huh?!”

The voice on the other end sounded a little sheepish. “We probably won’t be back for another two weeks, you see…”

“…Never mind then… In two weeks, I’ll already be starting school.”

Zhong Tian sighed.

“Well, next time then,” Zhong Tian’s father said. “Want to say a few words to your mom?”

“Is she awake?”

“Still asleep.”

“Forget it then, I’ll hang up,” Zhong Tian said. “Have a good time.”

“Alright.”

‘……’

‘I should have called ahead… Now what am I going to do?’

‘I have these three drinks and ten meat buns.’

‘I’ll go find Editor Lin Chu and share them with her.’

‘Ugh, and I’ll have to trouble her to rebook a hotel…’

Zhong Tian, dragging his suitcase, retraced his steps.

****

“I see,” Lin Chu said, taking the iced coffee Zhong Tian offered after he finished explaining. “I’ll contact the hotel for you shortly.”

“It’s a bother…”

“No trouble at all,” Lin Chu replied. “As it happens, we’re about to organize a meal. Would you like to join us?”

“Oh? Is that convenient?”

“It’s just a few familiar editors,” Lin Chu said. “We’re splitting the bill. Come along?”

“Alright then.”

“Okay, I’ll go tell them.”

****

“Alright, everyone, look over here! This is our Man Tang’s number one beautiful girl manga artist, Teacher Kezhong!”

Stepping into the private dining room, Zhong Tian was thunderstruck by Lin Chu’s opening remark.

“H-hello, everyone…”

Zhong Tian offered a quiet greeting, then followed Lin Chu, taking a seat beside her.

Before them sat two men and one woman, all young, appearing to be around twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old.

“Wow, is this for real? She’s truly that beautiful!” The Unnamed Female Editor sitting next to Lin Chu exclaimed in surprise. “Oh no, I feel utterly overshadowed! Sister Lin Chu, you simply must cover my meal cost to mend my wounded heart.”

“Oh, come on, I haven’t even accused you of wounding *my* heart yet,” Lin Chu retorted with a laugh. “Why don’t you treat our Teacher Kezhong to a meal, make them happy, and maybe they’ll even give you a kiss.”

As Lin Chu spoke, she turned back to Zhong Tian with a smile. “Right?”

“Ahaha… no, no need, splitting the bill is fine.”

Feeling awkward, Zhong Tian could only selectively ignore certain remarks, dismissing them with a smile.

“Teacher Kezhong, here’s the menu. Please order whatever you like,” said a bespectacled male editor, offering the menu with a smile. “My name is Zhou Rong.”

“Oh, hello.”

Zhong Tian took the menu and began to peruse it.

“Um, excuse me, would it be convenient to add a…”

“Hey, Zhou Rong, they’re only sixteen this year.”

Zhong Tian looked up, just in time to see the bespectacled male editor cough lightly and straighten his posture.

Zhong Tian then turned his head to look at Lin Chu.

‘Although she still appeared to be smiling, she was actually quite angry…’

Zhong Tian more or less understood.

‘His attempt at flirting had been intercepted.’

Feigning confusion, he continued to examine the menu.

At that moment, another male editor spoke up. “Teacher Kezhong is only sixteen this year? To draw so well at such a young age is truly impressive.”

“Oh, thank you for the compliment, Editor,” Zhong Tian replied with a smile.

“No wonder they look so young,” the Unnamed Female Editor chimed in. “Lin Chu, why didn’t you tell us Teacher Kezhong is a high school girl?”

Lin Chu, having composed herself, responded, “I deliberately didn’t tell you guys, wanting to give you a surprise.”

“That’s certainly quite a surprise,” the Unnamed Female Editor said, smiling at Zhong Tian. “Since Teacher Kezhong is still a student, let us treat you to this meal.”

“Oh, no need,” Zhong Tian said, waving his hand in refusal.

“Come on, you should learn to save some money for yourself and your parents,” she said. “You can treat us next time there’s an opportunity.”

‘Hmm…’

‘So this is how adults handle things.’

However, Zhong Tian didn’t feel offended or anything of the sort.

On the contrary, he felt that getting a free meal like this seemed a bit improper, but for now, he decided to go along with their wishes.

“Alright,” Zhong Tian replied. “Thank you, Editors.”

****

While he knew that expenses in Seashore City couldn’t possibly be cheap, a 600-yuan lunch for five people still genuinely surprised Zhong Tian, who was accustomed to being “frugal and managing the household” in his daily life.

Looking back at the dishes served, a fist-sized portion of something resembling fried noodles cost seventy yuan… For seventy yuan, he could have cooked several dishes himself.

Even when he used to dine out with his parents in Seashore City, he had never encountered anything so outrageous.

‘He felt a slight sense of relief that he didn’t have to pay his share…’

“Xiao Zhong, what are your plans next?” Lin Chu inquired.

“I plan to return to the hotel first to drop off my luggage; after that, I’m not sure.”

“Why don’t we go shopping together? Seashore City recently opened a new shopping center, you know. Want to join the crowd?”

‘A new shopping center…’

‘He didn’t need to think to know it would be crowded.’

Although Zhong Tian disliked crowded places, being alone in a hotel, unable to draw or do anything productive besides playing on his phone, made joining the hustle and bustle seem like a better option.

“Okay,” Zhong Tian said. “Are we going with the other editors?”

“No, no, it should just be the two of us.”

‘Just the two of us?’

Though puzzled, Zhong Tian didn’t press for details, simply nodding his agreement.

“And then tonight, we’ll take a cruise.”

“A cruise?” Zhong Tian reacted, “Oh, you mean that cruise ship restaurant by the sea, right?”

“That’s right,” Lin Chu chuckled. “I remember going once during college; this time, it’s a bit of nostalgia.”

“Hmm… I haven’t been in a long time either. The last time was in elementary school…? I went with my parents.”

“Alright then, plans made! Let’s go!”