***
"I don't know her."
Qiao Chutian replied, "Qinglang has always liked to be very familiar with beautiful women."
His response made Lin Na even more suspicious, "But I thought I saw her talking to you!"
"She thought I was the person she was looking for and just asked a few questions."
Qiao Chutian was somewhat impatient with her questions, pointing to the steak on the plate, he said to her, "Nana, you're too skinny, eat more meat."
"Chutian, I'm not skinny, I've actually gained a little weight recently and need to go on a diet. I should cut down on high-calorie, high-fat meats and just eat some vegetables and fruits. You work so hard every day, you should eat more meat," Lin Na complained coquettishly, her lips pouting slightly, while daintily using the communal fork to move the steak to the plate in front of Qiao Chutian.
Qiao Chutian had a phobia of uncleanliness; he could never allow others to use their chopsticks to give him food, nor could he share anything with anyone.
Despite being in a relationship for many years, they had never kissed passionately.
Each time, at most, he would peck her on the forehead or cheek, and if their lips happened to touch, it was like a feather-light peck before he quickly moved away, as if a longer kiss would expose him to germs.
This left Lin Na feeling like a woman unfulfilled, holding all sorts of resentment towards Qiao Chutian.
However, this resentment could only be choked back, not voiced.
She feared that speaking out might irk Qiao Chutian and shatter her dream of becoming the Qiao Family's young madam, the young mistress of the Qiao corporation.
However, from another perspective, this was also a good thing.
Because Qiao Chutian was obsessed with cleanliness, he never had any unclean interactions with other women, unlike other wealthy men who flirted around and had affairs all over the place.
Qiao Chutian was hers alone, and she should be satisfied with that!
Seeing that she wasn't eating meat, Qiao Chutian didn't say much. He simply lowered his head to cut the steak with a knife and brought it to his mouth. Still, he couldn't help but sneak a glance in the direction of Feng Qinglang's laughter.
His seat was just diagonally opposite to Mai Xiaomai's.
With just one look, he could capture all of her expressions.
She wasn't giggling incessantly in front of Feng Qinglang, infatuated like other girls. Instead, she appeared detached, with a composed demeanor, offering a polite smile only occasionally, just a slight upturn of her lips before withdrawing it.
Maybe it was Feng Qinglang's own mentality influencing him, but he also felt that Mai Xiaomai possessed a unique aura.
Despite the busy diners around and waiters bustling about, and although Feng Qinglang spoke animatedly, she sat there quietly, as if she were disconnected from everything, undisturbed by the world, calmly letting time pass by.
He rarely saw anyone with such an aura, feeling it didn't belong to a twenty-something woman.
Her eyes appeared intelligent and profound, yet calm like a shallow autumn lake, revealing not a ripple.
Mai Xiaomai's phone rang, it was her mother calling.
Even with just her toes, she could guess that her mother wanted to inquire about the blind date.
She answered the call reluctantly.
"Xiaomai, how is it going? Are you satisfied? Are the two of you having dinner?"
Mai's mother asked eagerly.
After hesitating for a moment, Mai Xiaomai replied, "Mhm, we're having dinner!"
"Really? Then do you two see eye to eye? Can you start dating and get married?"
Mai's mother asked impatiently.
Mai Xiaomai was at a loss.
***