Chapter 44: A Heart Full of Resentment Toward Someone

Seeing her mother drop all pretenses and stop beating around the bush, Su Yue stopped making excuses and said directly, "I don't have feelings for him."

"Feelings can be cultivated over time. Besides, you've only met Zhang Xiaohao once. How can you be so sure there's no spark?"

"Mom, stop it. No feelings means no feelings."

"You..." Seeing her daughter's resolute attitude, Su Yue's mother was momentarily speechless.

The mother and daughter fell into silence across the phone line.

After half a minute, Su Yue's mother spoke again. "Xiaoyue, you say you have no feelings for an excellent boy like Zhang Xiaohao, so tell me, what kind of boy *do* you have feelings for?"

Sitting cross-legged on the sofa, Su Yue held the phone in her right hand, her left hand resting on her snow-white thigh.

Hearing her mother's long silence followed by such a question, she froze for a moment, and the image of a certain someone surfaced in her mind.

Noticing her daughter's silence, Su Yue's mother seemed to sense something. She asked in an uncertain tone, "Xiaoyue, do you already have a boyfriend?"

Hearing the question, Su Yue snapped out of her daze and immediately denied it. "No! If I really had a boyfriend, I would definitely tell you..."

"Are you sure?"

"Really."

"Xiaoyue! Don't blame me for constantly introducing people to you. Think about it—you're not young anymore. You'll be twenty-six after the New Year... If you already have a boyfriend, just bring him home to meet me and your father. Then I won't bother introducing anyone else to you..."

"Mom, I really don't have a boyfriend. Why won't you believe me? I have to go now, I'm going to take a shower."

"Alright, alright, I believe you. We'll stop here for today. Go take your shower! Let me tell you one more thing: if you truly have someone you like, be bold and bring him home. Your father and I aren't some feudal patriarchs; as long as you like him, it's fine."

"..." Su Yue responded with a look of helplessness, "I know. If there is someone, I'll bring him home for you and Dad to see."

After hanging up, Su Yue tossed her phone aside, leaned her body to the side, collapsed onto the sofa, and buried her head in her creamy, smooth arms.

"What's the use of liking him? That block of wood is deathly timid. If I even try to approach him slightly, he gets incredibly cowardly. If I speak up, I'm afraid I'll scare him so much he'll turn and run, and after that, we might not even be able to be friends anymore," Su Yue muttered to herself, her heart full of resentment toward that certain someone.

…………

In the living room.

*Crunch, crunch...*

Lin Li, who was watching TV while eating KFC, suddenly felt his ears burning.

He touched his ear with the back of his hand and grumbled inwardly, "Who is it that's talking about me behind my back again?"

*Ding-dong...*

Just as Lin Li finished a spicy fried chicken leg, the doorbell rang.

He pulled a tissue from the box, wiped his hands, and stood up to head to the entryway.

Looking through the peephole, he saw it was his neighbor from next door, so he reached out and opened the door.

"Miss Xia, is this...?"

"I steamed some meat buns. Please, have a taste."

"Oh, you shouldn't have! Save them for Zhou Tongtong to eat!"

"I steamed a bit too many, and there's plenty at home. It's just me and Tongtong, so we can't finish them all. Don't be polite."

*Just her and her daughter at home? Where is her husband?*

The doubt flashed through Lin Li's mind. He hesitated for a moment before accepting the plate of hot meat buns handed over by Xia Qing. "Then... then alright. Thanks, Miss Xia."

"Just call me Xia Qing," Xia Qing said with a smile when she saw Lin Li accept the buns.

"Alright, then you can just call me by my name too," Lin Li nodded.

"Mhm."

"Wait a moment, let me clear a plate to return to you."

"Mhm."

Lin Li carried the meat buns into the kitchen. A moment later, he returned to the door with an empty plate and handed it back to Xia Qing.

"Let me know when you've finished eating. I still have plenty more!" Xia Qing said to Lin Li with a smile after taking the plate.

"That's enough, that's enough. That plate had about eleven or twelve buns; it's enough for me for two or three meals," Lin Li laughed.

The two chatted for a few more words before parting ways.

*Thud.*

After closing the door, Lin Li scratched his head, wondering if he should make something to eat as a return gift for his beautiful female neighbor.

The thought surfaced in his mind, but it was dismissed in less than three seconds.

Because Lin Li knew that with his cooking skills, anything he made to return the favor would clearly be nothing to boast about.

"Let's leave it at that for now. There's no need to rush a return gift; there will be plenty of opportunities in the future."

Lin Li walked into the kitchen and picked up a large meat bun from the small bowl.

"It's so hot! These buns must have been freshly steamed... Man, Miss Xia just finished steaming them and brought over such a large plate. She's too enthusiastic!"

Lin Li maneuvered the bun with both hands and took a large bite.

"Hmm? There are mushrooms in the meat. The flavor is excellent. These buns Miss Xia steamed are on par with the ones Su Yue used to make."

After eating one large bun, Lin Li stopped. He still had his KFC left in the living room! He needed to finish that first.

He could save Xia Qing's buns for a late-night snack when he got hungry later, or even for breakfast tomorrow morning.

…………

*Splash...*

After dinner, Lin Li squeezed some body wash in the bathroom to wash his greasy hands.

"Burp~" Lin Li walked out of the bathroom after letting out a burp. He felt quite full from today's dinner; after finishing the KFC, he had eaten two large meat buns from Xia Qing.

He wasn't sure if it was an illusion, but he felt like his appetite had grown slightly larger than before.

"They say people who do manual labor have big appetites. That's true," Lin Li thought. It was likely because he had expended a lot of physical energy in the wilderness this afternoon.

Now that he was full and satisfied, it was time to go to the mysterious island to check on his precious little fruit. He had worked hard under the scorching sun all afternoon just for its sake!

With a single thought, a flash of light enveloped Lin Li as he sat on the sofa, and he vanished instantly.

On the mysterious island, surrounded by thick white mist, a figure appeared out of thin air.

…………

(End of Chapter)