“So cheap. Alright, I’ll pay. What do you want to eat?”

Xiao Nuo smiled and pouted playfully as she spoke. Her original intention was for Ding Ning to have lunch with her, she did not care who paid for who.

Like an icy blossoming lotus, her smile shocked Ding Ning for a moment and he lost his train of thought. For some reason, this line popped up in his head, “if she turned her head and smiled, it would raise a hundred brows and the paints and powders of the Six Palaces would fade into nothing”.

Xiao Nuo was indeed worthy of this praise. Used to wearing training gear, her heroic figure shone out and made it very easy for others to mistaken her gender.

Although she dressed very casually today, she was very different from when she wore her training gear. Today, she was filled with femininity and Ding Ning could not resist staring.

She wore a white and blue patterned shirt, denim shorts, and flat cloth shoes. Her shoulder length hair had been tied into a refined bun, revealing a clear and exquisite face.

She had a tall figure, full breasts, long white legs, a narrow waist, and a perky bottom. Everything demonstrated her natural beauty.

Seeing Ding Ning’s stunned gaze looking at her chest without good intention, a shy and faintly joyful light flashed through Xiao Nuo’s eyes. Seemed like she wasn’t without a bit of allure.

Her eyes blushed red slightly and she stamped her foot with a playful pout on her face. “Pervert, what are you looking at? I’m talking to you? What do you want for lunch?”

“Whatever is fine!” Ding Ning replied in embarrassment as he came back to his senses. He could not help but blush.

However, he was muttering himself in his heart. Had his lust grown after losing his virginity to a devil? He had clearly been looking at her with an eye for artistic appreciation, how had it become aimed at her heaving chest?

“What whatever, you idiot. Are you still a man or not? You can’t even decide where to eat.”

Xiao Nuo’s tone was as if she was flirting with a lover and she rolled her eyes at him.

Ding Ning teased back with a very serious expression. “This is a very serious question. Am I a man or not? All you have to do is have a try.”

A clear light shone from Xiao Nuo’s beautiful eyes and her face seemed to be covered with a layer of red rouge. Her teeth bit gently at her lips and her heart leaped like a fawn. However, with an expression of disdain, she said.

“If you have the guts, let’s go get a room. I want to see whether you’re a man or not.”

Ding Ning’s smile froze and he immediately retreated, no longer daring to tease this girl. Putting on a laugh, he chuckled and said, “Let’s first fill our bellies. It’s rare Captain Xiao is paying, it would be a waste not to eat.”

“A man with perverse thoughts but no perverse daring. The best meal is right in front of you but you dare not eat. Hmph, coward!”

Xiao Nuo said pointedly. With a huff, she turned and walked away with gracefully with her waist swaying. “Since you won’t choose, then I will. Let’s go eat hotpot.”

“Hotpot?” Ding Ning opened his mouth and raised his head in an exaggerated motion to look at the burning sun in the sky. Complaining incessantly, he said, “On such a hot day, are you not concerned about excessive internal heat?”

“That’s good, if there’s too much excessive heat, we can go get a room and I’ll personally cool you down.”

Xiao Nuo turned her head and smiled sweetly. There was a teasing charm in her smile that made Ding Ning’s heart go crazy. He could not help but feel that Xiao Nuo was a bit odd today, her words were very sharp.

Ding Ning hung his head like a defeated rooster and followed Xiao Nuo, who walked with her head up and chest out, to a 98 dollar per person self-serve hotpot place called “Sister Mi”.

The decorations were good, the quality was good, and there was a wide selection of foods. However, although the air conditioner was on inside the store, steam still rose and it was like a sauna. One was covered with sweat even before eating.

The hotpot shop’s business was extraordinarily good, it was truly a full house. After they paid and took a number, they still had to line up for a dozen minutes before they snagged a two-person table.

“I often come to this shop and my colleagues like to eat here too. It’s economical and tastes pretty good, particularly the soup base where there is a hint of spicy in the numbness. There is truly a lot of flavor, and add in some icy cold beer, that feeling…”

Xiao Nuo held the menu and drooled as she explained the food.

“Too much spiciness is not good for the skin and it can easily cause endocrine dyscrasia.”

Ding Ning spoke seriously from a doctor’s professional perspective but at hand, his hand did not slow at all. Plate by plate, he brought dishes to his own table, at a speed that left one speechless. In just a while, the dishes covered the table and drew the attention of others.

The moment the hotpots arrived, he could smell the scent unique to spiciness. The hotpot here truly had a special flavor, it was authentically Szechuan. He liked to eat spicy food and his saliva was almost overflowing his mouth.

Xiao Nuo rolled her eyes charmingly and teased, “What revolting behavior. Spiciness is bad. You’re like someone who just came out of a refugee camp.”

“It’s 98 per person, what a waste if I don’t eat my fill.”

Ding Ning screwed up his face and laughed. He liked the relaxed feeling of being with Xiao Nuo. Of course, if Xiao Nuo stopped occasionally teasing him, it would be even more perfect.

He actually hoped that Xiao Nuo would see him as a friend to whom she could speak to about anything. After all, they could be considered comrades who had gone through life and death together a number of times. Although he knew he was lying to himself, Ling Yun’s incident had hurt him greatly and he did not want to enter into another relationship so quickly.

“Ding Ning, I want to ask you something and I want to you answer me honestly.”

Xiao Nuo looked at him and asked very seriously after she put the vegetables into the hotpot and replaced the lid.

“Don’t shoot, Captain, I’ll answer honestly.” Ding Ning’s expression also became serious. He sat properly and looked like he was being interrogated.

However, Xiao Nuo ignored his behavior. Her eyes flitted by, not looking at him. After a while of hesitation, it seemed that she made up her mind to look at him directly. Things that Ding Ning did not understand surged around in her eyes.

“If, and I’m saying if, one day, I left Ninghai and we never saw each other again in our lives. Would you… miss me?”

Ding Ning started slightly, his scalp tingling. Concerning Xiao Nuo, he did not know how he felt. Much like Ling Yun, he always felt that there was something missing. He opened his mouth in a laugh.

“How could there be so many “ifs” in the world? You are the captain of the Special Forces, are you going to quit your job…”

Before he finished speaking, Ding Ning sensed that Xiao Nuo did not seem to be joking. She was serious in a way she had never been before and this stopped him from going on. The smile on his face also grew rigid and a mysterious pain rose in his heart.

Would he miss her? He certainly would. This girl was stubborn and eager. If he said he’d never felt anything for her, it would be a lie.

But… Ding Ning remembered Ling Yun and his heart was filled with bitterness. In the end – he still could not walk away!

For a moment, he did not know how to answer. His mouth moved for a long while, unable to speak.

“Alright, I was joking. Eat, the pot’s boiling.”

An unnoticeable disappointment flashed through the depths of Xiao Nuo’s eyes. Ding Ning’s silence had already given her the answer.

She gathered her courage, wanting to try one last time but in the end, she had still failed. Perhaps, she truly should forget him and end this affection that should never have been.

She should follow the very first plan and go to Dragon Soul to find that person then follow her father’s plans and fulfill the marriage agreement with that man she had never met before. Marry, have children, and live her life.

Xiao Nuo did not follow Ding Ning’s professional advice for women to drink very little beer, particularly ice cold beer. Unhappily, she poured bottle after bottle into her stomach.

Ding Ning tried to stop her a number of times but he failed before Xiao Nuo’s densely clouded and stubborn gaze. He felt a bit responsible and a bit guilty.

All he could do was put his head down and silently drink bottle after bottle with her. Very quickly, the table was filled with empty beer bottles.

The hotpot was eaten awkwardly. It was hard to tell whether Xiao Nuo had drunk too much but her face was as red as a monkey’s butt. Bright as a peach, as cold as frost, and there was also a tearful sadness. It drew the gazes of the other diners but she still seemed very clear-minded, judging by her actions.

Alcohol makes misery more miserable. Rather than Xiao Nuo, Ding Ning’s mood was low and combined with confusion and helplessness toward love, he became roaring drunk. His eyes lost focus and he swayed as he walked.

Xiao Nuo ignored the admiring gazes around her and fully demonstrated the superiority of a member of the Special Forces. Confidently, she hoisted Ding Ning onto her shoulder and left, not showing any strain at all.

At Ninghai’s international hotel, Xiao Nuo changed to carrying Ding Ning in the princess hold and approached the front desk without hesitation. Taking out her wallet and identification card, she boldly and confidently said in a loud voice, “A room! One with a large bed!”

The pretty girl at the front desk froze for a moment before returning to her senses and hurriedly processing the paperwork to give Xiao Nuo a room. She had seen plenty of women and men coming to take room and having a man without good intentions bringing a drunk girl to get a room was nothing new either but it was her first time seeing such a beautiful woman bringing a drunk man and taking a room with such aggressiveness.

Slightly tipsy, Xiao Nuo sensed the strange and admiring gazes of the people around her and only then did she realize she was embarrassing herself greatly. A wave of burning heat rushed to her face. Her face, which had been flushed from drinking, became more tender and beautiful, unlike anyone else’s. After she got the room and received the room card, she ran straight toward the elevator with Ding Ning as if escaping.

With a “ding”, the elevator doors closed once again, shutting the strange gazes out. Only then did Xiao Nuo let out a breath as if relieved of a great burden.

Slanting a resentful glance at Ding Ning in her arms, Xiao Nuo pouted and complained, “It’s all your fault. Your alcohol tolerance is too low and now it has dragged down my good name.”

With all of her attention on Ding Ning, Xiao Nuo did not notice that a thin and dark man wearing glasses and holding a camera had followed them from the restaurant to the hotel and had captured everything along the way.

It was not until Xiao Nuo entered the elevator did the man wearing glasses stop taking photos. He looked through the results of his surveillance with satisfaction. Humming a small tune, he packed away his camera and smacked in lips in admiration.

“A fresh and watery cabbage has been devoured by a pig. This girl is truly a fine specimen. It’s a pity that this is a five-star hotel, it’s not easy to get in close and get some bed-shots. Even without commission, it would be good to keep for myself. This should be enough to complete the job, right? Hehe, this pretty boy took one beauty shopping all morning then had lunch with an even more beautiful woman and took a room. He’s really quite elegant and carefree. This million dollars was damn easy to earn.”

Thinking of the price his employer had offered, the man in the glasses could not stop smiling.

The man in the glasses got into a Passat parked in the hotel parking lot and turned on the engine, ready to leave. At this time, a Rolls Royce Phantom suddenly came and blocked the way forward. Behind him, a Hummer roared to a stop and blocked his retreat.

As an experienced private investigator, Lu Renjian’s heart sank as he saw the pincer move and felt that this heralded trouble. Had his photographing of a mafia boss’ woman having an affair a few days ago been exposed?

Motherf*cker. In the future, he could not take any work involving underground forces. Even the mafia boss’ woman was a tough character.

After balancing the pros and cons, Lu Renjian knew he could not escape today so he opened his car door and got out willingly. Facing the large men wearing black shirts and a murderous air who had exited the hummer, he raised his hands in greeting. With a flattering smile, he said.

“I don’t know how I’ve offended you all, please let me know. If I need to apologize, I will apologize. If I need to give a gift, I will give a gift. If I need to repay money, I will repay money. I know the rules.”

The men in black shirts did not acknowledge him at all. The man in charge stood pin-straight and had a knife scar on his face. With a dark expression, he ripped the camera from Lu Renjian’s hands. He opened it and glanced through it. “Check to see if there are backup copies.”