Chapter 93: Li Hao's Invitation

Lin Yuqing watched as her parents spoke more and more extravagantly, even bringing up marriage, and her face turned pale with fright. She and Li Hao were not even sure about their relationship yet; talking about marriage was simply too much. She hurriedly interrupted her parents, saying, “Mom, Dad, please don’t say such ridiculous things.”

“It’s fine to invite him for a meal to thank him, but don’t mention anything about marriage. It’s far too soon for that.”

After speaking, she returned to her room to send Li Hao a message. She truly needed to thank him properly for what he’d done this time. The debt she owed him seemed to be growing ever greater...

It was the weekend.

Xia Yu was at home playing with Mia when he suddenly received a call from an unknown number. He was taken aback and answered, “Who is this?”

“Xia... Xia Yu, it’s me, Lily.”

“Lily?” Xia Yu was surprised. “How did you get my number? Is there something you need?”

He saw through Lily’s character long ago and really had no desire to associate with her.

“Xia Yu, I called specifically to apologize.” Lily’s tone was sincere. “It was wrong of me the other day when we went out. You helped me, and yet I said some unpleasant things.”

“But I only said those things because I was angry. Afterward, I realized I was wrong, so I wanted to say sorry.”

Xia Yu was a bit surprised; he hadn’t expected her to actually admit her fault and try to make amends.

“All right, it’s fine. I’ve almost forgotten about it.”

“To express my apology, may I treat you to a meal?” Lily invited.

“Oh, that’s not necessary. I’m busy,” Xia Yu refused directly.

“Then... when will you have time?” Lily pressed. “Xia Yu, please don’t be upset. After all, Si Jie and I are good friends. If you don’t let me treat you to a meal to make up for it, I’ll feel very guilty.”

“I won’t even know how to face her afterward.”

“Let’s talk about it when I have time.” Xia Yu hung up without further ado. Whether her apology was genuine or not, he simply didn’t want to have more dealings with a woman like her.

“Godfather, Mom’s restaurant has opened! Can we go and see it tonight?” Liu Xiaomi finished her homework and ran to his side, looking up with hope.

“Of course. If my girl wants to go, then we’ll go.”

Xia Yu fondly ruffled her hair. He remembered how busy Liu Hua had been with the restaurant. It had already been open for several days, and she hadn’t asked him for help. She said things were going smoothly, but he wouldn’t be at ease until he saw it for himself.

“Hooray! Godfather is the best. I’m going to watch Crayon Shin-chan now!” Liu Xiaomi cheered and skipped upstairs to watch TV.

Xia Yu smiled, and suddenly a message popped up on his phone.

“Mr. Xia, you really are not gentlemanly at all, making a girl reach out to you first.”

Seeing that the sender was Mia, Xia Yu was momentarily stunned.

‘She’s finally made her move,’ he thought.

He had deliberately kept her waiting for several days, just to see her reaction. Sure enough, she couldn’t hold back any longer—she was coming prepared.

“If you won’t even let me touch you, I have no interest in being a gentleman,” Xia Yu replied directly.

“Naughty, you’re such a bad man....”

This woman was a master at being coy.

Xia Yu grinned wickedly, more than willing to play along with her little act.

...

That afternoon, in order to thank Li Hao, Lin Yuqing’s family invited him to dinner at a restaurant.

During the meal, although Lin Yuqing’s parents didn’t say it outright, Li Hao could tell they already regarded him as a future son-in-law. That realization made him feel both reassured and excited.

“Yuqing, are you free tonight? I’d like to take you home and formally introduce you to my family as my girlfriend,” Li Hao took advantage of the moment to invite her. “Otherwise, they’ll keep trying to set me up with other people.”

“I don’t want my marriage to become some family alliance.”

Before Lin Yuqing could respond, Liu Cuiping answered cheerfully, “Of course she’s free. You two have been dating for some time—it’s only right to let your families know.”

Lin Fu nodded in agreement, not objecting; after all, this was the first step for Lin Yuqing to become part of the Li family.

Lin Yuqing felt caught in a dilemma. Deep down, she was a bit resistant—for meeting his family meant fully acknowledging their relationship. But it didn’t feel right to refuse, either. After all, Li Hao had done so much for her, and this time, he had even saved her career and reputation.

By all accounts, she had no reason to decline. She wasn’t the sort of girl who took everything for granted, always expecting the other person to give.

“All right.”

In the end, urged on by Liu Cuiping, Lin Yuqing agreed.

Li Hao was ecstatic. Once he took this step, he was that much closer to winning Lin Yuqing’s heart.

At dusk, Xia Yu called Zhao Sijie, hoping to invite her to visit Liu Hua’s restaurant together, but it was a busy weekend and she was working overtime.

Not wanting to disturb her, Xia Yu took Liu Xiaomi along and set off.

Before opening the restaurant, Liu Hua had put in a great deal of effort, choosing a location near the university district. Though the average spending was moderate, the area had excellent foot traffic, especially since the restaurant was on a bustling night market street.

Xia Yu parked the car outside the night market and led Liu Xiaomi through the crowds. Halfway in, they spotted Liu Hua’s hot pot restaurant and went inside.

“Welcome!” A server greeted them enthusiastically as soon as they entered. But before she could finish, Liu Hua, busy as she was, hurried over, delighted. “Xia Yu, Xiaomi, you’re here!”

“Mom!” Liu Xiaomi cried happily. “Mom, is this our restaurant?”

“That’s right, it’s ours,” Liu Hua replied with a smile. “So you can eat whatever you want.”

“That’s wonderful! Then I want to eat a lot!” Liu Xiaomi exclaimed excitedly.

Xia Yu smiled. “Sister-in-law, business looks good. Are there any seats left? Xiaomi and I haven’t eaten dinner yet.”

“I’ve already saved you a table. Come with me,” Liu Hua said, leading them to the second floor. They sat down and ordered a generous meal.

The restaurant was nearly full, most of the customers being students. Xia Yu glanced through the menu; the prices were very reasonable.

“Sister-in-law, I’m impressed. You’ve really done well for yourself,” Xia Yu praised sincerely. “You’re running a thriving business now.”

“Oh, I spent five years washing dishes in restaurants, always dreaming of having my own place. I kept learning all the while,” Liu Hua replied. “I don’t have your broad experience, but this is what I can do.”

“Once the restaurant is fully stable, I’ll finally be able to spend more time with Xiaomi.”

“You absolutely can do it.”

Just as the hot pot arrived, Liu Hua had to leave them to eat alone as the restaurant was packed and understaffed.

Xia Yu didn’t stand on ceremony—he and Liu Xiaomi dug in heartily. The girl had quite the appetite; as she said herself, when it’s your own restaurant and you don’t have to spend money, you can eat all you like.

It was clear she’d grown up with little, always saving when eating out and never daring to eat her fill.

Suddenly, a commotion broke out downstairs.

“Hey, you haven’t paid your bill yet!” a server called out as a table of customers tried to leave without settling up.

“Get out of the way! How dare you charge for food this terrible?” one of the men barked, shoving the server aside with a menacing glare.