She told a little white lie because it involved the privacy of her customer.
She spent a full hour discussing with Si Mo in the afternoon before Si Mo finally relented and told her the address. She came here just to take a look at how Xie Xinxin's younger sister was doing. She had always been a curious little fox. After learning about such a complicated web of relationships, she couldn't help but wonder how the main characters in this drama were faring.
When she arrived at the small diner, after a brief observation, she found that this little girl, who had been abandoned by her biological mother and missed out on the glory and wealth of the Xie family, seemed much happier than Xie Xinxin. Although the little girl was busy serving dishes, wiping tables, and greeting customers, the genuine smile on her face proved that she was glad to help her parents with the diner's work.
Chu Hengyuan didn't think much of it. He simply assumed that Rong Lan was tired of overly refined cuisine and genuinely wanted to experience the hustle and bustle of ordinary life.
When he was in school, he would occasionally visit the old city area far from the city center just for the dishes stir - fried in a large iron wok.
"Brother, what dishes did you order just now?" Rong Lan had been busy watching the busy little girl running around, so she left the important task of ordering to Chu Hengyuan. Now that she had had her fill of watching, she remembered to ask if he had ordered her favorite dishes.
Chu Hengyuan placed the washed chopsticks, bowls, and teacups in front of the little girl beside him, glanced at the menu, and said, "Perilla stir - fried river snails, garlic - flavored crayfish, white - sliced chicken that my Lanlan will surely like, and stir - fried cauliflower."
Hearing there was chicken, Rong Lan felt relieved. "Aren't the first two more like snacks to go with alcohol?"
"They can also be good accompaniments to rice." Chu Hengyuan smiled.
The small diner was quite busy. About two - thirds of the tables were occupied, so the food took a while to come.
Rong Lan and Chu Hengyuan had no other plans for the evening. Seeing other customers urging the waiter for their food, they calmly ate the plate of fried peanuts provided by the diner, chatting and watching short videos with their heads close together.
After waiting for half an hour, the dishes they ordered were finally served one by one.
The little girl who served the dishes was wearing a Peppa Pig apron. Her eyes were bent into crescent moons as she smiled. "Sorry, sorry. There are quite a few customers, so the food is a bit late. Please forgive us. Are you two first - time customers here? We give each customer a free can of beverage. If you want some, you can just get it from the fridge."
Her service was so good that even someone in a bad mood would find it hard to get angry at her, not to mention the laid - back Rong Lan and Chu Hengyuan.
Rong Lan returned a gentle smile. "It's okay. We understand."
"Then enjoy your meal. The other two dishes will be ready soon." After saying that, she turned around and went into the kitchen to serve other customers.
Chu Hengyuan hadn't paid much attention to the little girl's face before. But when she stood right in front of the table just now, out of the corner of his eye, he suddenly felt an indescribable sense of familiarity.
She looked very familiar. But he just couldn't recall where he had seen her.
"Let's eat." Seeing the white - sliced chicken, the little fox's enthusiasm for the meal was ignited.
Chu Hengyuan came back to his senses and saw Rong Lan put a piece of chicken into each of their bowls. He shook his head helplessly, put on his gloves, and asked, "Lanlan, aren't you interested in the crayfish at all?"
"I am, but it's so troublesome to peel them. It's more comfortable to eat them slowly after the meal." Rong Lan seriously shared her view with Chu Hengyuan.
"Makes sense." After peeling a few crayfish, Chu Hengyuan gave up.
He divided half of the peeled crayfish into Rong Lan's bowl. The remaining two dishes were also served.
He picked up his rice bowl. When he was halfway through his meal, Chu Hengyuan finally remembered why the little girl seemed so familiar. Her face clearly resembled Xie Xinxin's by about 70%.
His little girl had been in contact with Xie Xinxin and the Xie family recently. The reason she came here for dinner today might not be as simple as she had said.
Chu Hengyuan glanced thoughtfully at the little girl resting behind the cashier. Maybe it was just his preconceived notion, but the more he looked at her face, the more he thought she resembled Xie Xinxin. Combining this with what his little girl had told him before, that Xie Feng was not Xie Xinxin's biological younger brother...
Was his Lanlan really that omnipotent? She had obtained the address of Xie Xinxin's younger sister in just one day?
However... even though he was 90% sure that the little girl was Xie Xinxin's younger sister, he had no intention of telling Xie Xinxin about it. The little girl was living a good life. If the Xie family found out, this family's peaceful and fulfilling life would be completely disrupted.
What Chu Hengyuan didn't know was that Rong Lan had unconsciously shared his thoughts. Her thoughts were exactly the same as his. She wanted to know where Xie Xinxin's younger sister was just to satisfy her curiosity, but she wouldn't tell anyone about it, not even if Xie Xinxin asked her directly.
The little girl had been raised to be lively, hard - working, filial, and with excellent grades. Although running this small diner as a family might be tiring, they were happy. If the Xie family found out, no one knew what would happen to this family, so it was better to let it be.
Rong Lan put down her rice bowl when she was about 60% full. She put on her gloves and slowly ate the crayfish and river snails. "Brother, let's come to the old city area to find small diners for dinner when we're free in the future."
In just one meal, she had fallen in love with the hustle and bustle of the old city area.
Mainly because the customers at other tables were chatting loudly. Even though she was sitting in a corner, she could hear their gossips about whose child had gotten first place in the exam and whose child had obtained a spot in the math Olympiad competition. These gossips were much more interesting than the ones in the high - society circles about who had a mistress and who had an illegitimate child.
Chu Hengyuan's eyes were filled with a gentle smile. "Sure."
The first crayfish Rong Lan peeled was placed in Chu Hengyuan's bowl.
Chu Hengyuan was taken aback for a moment and then broke into a smile.
After eating crayfish for a while, Rong Lan suddenly heard a loud shout. She was so startled that she jumped. She stared wide - eyed in the direction of the sound and saw a strong man sitting on the ground with a wine bottle in his hand, crying bitterly.
The confused little fox thought, "???" Had she been too focused on eating crayfish? What was going on?
Compared to the startled Rong Lan, Chu Hengyuan was extremely calm. He glanced at the crying man with snot and tears running down his face and fed the peeled crayfish meat in his hand to Rong Lan. "He's probably just drunk. It's nothing serious."
Rong Lan bit into the crayfish meat but still kept her eyes on the man. "Even if he's drunk, he doesn't have to cry so miserably..."