Cheng Zhirang poured Mu Qiu a cup of flower tea, which was kept warm by He Jia at the tea bar.

Mu Qiu took a couple of sips and was about to put it down.

"Drink a bit more, it was a bit hot when we were out there, you need to replenish some fluids," Cheng Zhirang said softly.

So she picked it up again and took another sip.

Cheng Xun watched them, then smiled after a moment, "Cheng Zhirang, I thought you wouldn’t date girls."

Mu Qiu paused.

Not date girls... does that mean date boys?

Cheng Zhirang smiled helplessly, "Dad, I’ve just never dated, doesn’t mean I never will."

Oh, looks like the keyword was misunderstood.

Mu Qiu awkwardly bowed her head and took another sip of flower tea.

"I can see that," Cheng Xun said to Mu Qiu, "Miss Mu, do you like him for his face?"

"...Is it that obvious?"

Cheng Xun was slightly taken aback, then laughed.

Cheng Zhirang also smiled, glancing at her.

The atmosphere became a bit more harmonious, and Mu Qiu chatted casually with Cheng Xun while holding her flower tea.

Cheng Xun seemed like a businessman who had been in a high position for a long time, but he wasn’t harsh; he was more gentle and could chat freely with a girl in her early twenties.

"Is Miss Mu in the literary work field?"

"Yes, I write a little about what I like."

"To be able to write your show is already impressive, don’t underestimate yourself. Did you and Cheng Zhirang develop feelings for each other during the show?"

How should she answer this? The interaction time during the show was so limited, how could feelings develop? Wasn’t it all slowly edged out by her?

Should she say, "It was me who took the initiative to capture him"?

"We’ve met privately," Cheng Zhirang answered, "Dad, don’t keep asking her these questions."

It was just then that He Jia came out to say dinner was ready, so Cheng Xun stopped the topic and led them to the dining table.

Mu Qiu breathed a sigh of relief and poked Cheng Zhirang’s waist from behind.

Cheng Zhirang paused, reached back to grab her hand and gave it a squeeze.

The lunch was gentle and quiet, except for He Jia occasionally asking what she would like to eat, and Cheng Zhirang softly advising her to eat more.

The dining etiquette of the Cheng Family seemed to be ingrained in their bones.

Soup first, then dishes followed by dessert; the bowls and chopsticks never clashed; tapping the table lightly with the cup instead of clinking; placing chopsticks on the dishware for a break, and on the table after finishing.

This might seem rigid to others, but it was nothing to Mu Qiu, as Yuan Chun taught her this way when she was young.

Moreover, she personally found such dining etiquette interesting, always observing their every move, the placement of the dishes, the design of the layout, the differentiation of the bone dish, soup bowl, and dish bowl...

All she saw could be written into her material collection record, used to describe "luxurious families," "strict rules," and "etiquette."

Thinking this, Cheng Zhirang picked up a piece of tomato sauce beef with public chopsticks for her.

She watched his hand intently, she liked everything about him, even his hand and the way he held chopsticks were no exception.

And a child raised in such families, gentle and courteous, was naturally appealing.

...

After lunch came rest, Mu Qiu didn’t feel comfortable suggesting leaving, so at He Jia’s invitation, she rested for a while in Cheng Zhirang’s room.

Meanwhile, Cheng Zhirang was called out by Cheng Xun to discuss something, and when he returned to the room, Mu Qiu was already asleep.

She was a bit nervous last night, didn’t sleep well, so being drowsy now was understandable.

Cheng Zhirang didn’t want to disturb her, gently took a book, sat on a chair by the bed, accompanying her.

Mu Qiu woke up around four.

Finding out that Cheng Zhirang had agreed to have another dinner, she was quite embarrassed.

"I’ve slept too long."

"They like you, want to keep you for another meal," Cheng Zhirang said, tidying the blanket and lifting her from the bed.

"I feel sluggish after sleeping too long. Want to take a walk in the garden outside?"

She indeed didn’t feel spry, asked listlessly, "Which garden?"

"The wetland park here, it has a beautiful rare plant garden."

"Okay. I’d like you to hold me for a bit."

Cheng Zhirang loved her being clingy, held her for quite a while without letting go, the two sitting on a chair reading his "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance."

When her whining phase passed, they tidied themselves, headed out to the wetland park. 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

He Jia watched them leave hand in hand, her smile deepened, reminding Cheng Zhirang to take good care of her, wearing a hat for sunscreen and taking a water bottle.

Mu Qiu felt a bit embarrassed by the care, sticking close to Cheng Zhirang’s side with a face hot enough to burn.

Once out, while walking on the path flanked by flowers, Cheng Zhirang reached out and tapped on her red ear tip.

"You’re rarely shy like this." His voice was like a gurgling stream, soothing to hear, making it hard for others to get angry at anything he said.

Mu Qiu covered both ears to stop him from seeing, "Auntie is too gentle, I have no resistance against people like her."

"So no resistance against me too?"

"Ah... Are you complimenting yourself?"

"Weren’t you the one who said it?"

"I only said you’re good-looking, that you have a nice figure, that your eyes are beautiful, did I say you’re gentle?"

"Yes."

Mu Qiu looked up, tilting her mouth to look at him, "When?"

Cheng Zhirang couldn’t come up with an answer.

Because it seemed she said it all on the bed.

Seeing his silence, Mu Qiu chuckled, ran ahead two steps, turned to look at him.

"You brought this up yourself!"

Her laughter was bright and melodious, and Cheng Zhirang, feeling even that little bit of helplessness fade away, simply held her hand to keep her from tripping, and laughed along with her.

Across the way at a villa, someone suddenly stopped in their tracks, turned to follow the voices, looking towards them.

The sunlight was too bright, obscuring vision, but she didn’t follow anyways, just stood there watching as they headed to the wetland park.

Then she changed her initial direction, also heading towards the wetland park.

That wetland park indeed was large, with small lakes among the reeds, even egrets inhabited them.

Walking in along the stone path, there’s a pond of lotus, a rack of wild grapes, crafted stone tables and stools, with a chessboard engraved on the stone table.

Past the stone table, there’s the garden.

Lots of various colors of poppies, bellflowers, petunias, and orchids.

Many famous kinds of orchids, and in the market, precious orchids are often traded for fortunes.

However, the most precious types of orchids aren’t allowed for private cultivation or trade by the state.

Mu Qiu enjoyed looking around, quieted down, only felt heat everywhere, took off her hat to fan but it still didn’t help.

Cheng Zhirang unscrewed a water bottle, handing it to her: "Drink some water, it’s not hot inside here, it’ll cool down soon."

Mu Qiu didn’t take it, drank a couple of sips with his help, looking up at him.

Looked at him, then shifted her eyes to look around, all quiet, only faint sound of insects.

"Would anyone else come here around this time?" she asked.

Cheng Zhirang shook his head: "Few people come at this time, bringing you here is because I want......"

Mu Qiu tiptoed and kissed him.