IMGH Chapter 28

This Person Was Doing It on Purpose

Qiu Rui drifted out slowly, his pretty face restored to the same unruffled calm as when they first met, but Jiang Yi still noticed the discomfort between his brows.

Jiang Yi knew that his sudden confession of love had put Qiu Rui in a difficult position. He sighed and said earnestly, “Rui’er, last night was my fault. I shouldn’t have said such nonsense. Treat what I said as thin air — please don’t take it to heart. I know that someone with your qualities, even without a partner, would never look at a man like me. I was being delusional. From now on, I absolutely will not say anything so out of line again! I hope what happened yesterday hasn’t caused you any trouble!”

Jiang Yi’s words were sincere, yet hearing them, Qiu Rui felt something lodge in his chest — prickling and uncomfortable.

This unprecedented feeling left Qiu Rui somewhat flustered. His lowered eyelids concealed a sea of confusion as he said lightly, “I understand.”

Now that things had been said openly, and the two of them were still obliged to go everywhere together during this period, Jiang Yi didn’t want things to be awkward. He quickly tried to liven up the atmosphere. “Rui’er, let’s eat! It won’t taste good once it gets cold!”

Jiang Yi ladled a bowl of fermented rice balls and set it in front of him. Qiu Rui stared at the fragrant soup, the corner of his mouth twitching.

Was this person doing it on purpose?!

Seeing Qiu Rui’s strange expression, Jiang Yi thought he didn’t like it and said uneasily, “Does it not suit your taste? How about I make you something else?”

Qiu Rui stared at Jiang Yi for quite a while before gritting his teeth and saying, “You’re doing this on purpose, aren’t you!”

Jiang Yi had no idea what Qiu Rui was talking about and waved his hand in bewilderment. “Rui’er, I don’t understand what you’re saying!”

Qiu Rui glared fiercely at Jiang Yi and stretched out a finger to point at the soup bowl.

“You clearly knew I can’t grasp solid things, and yet you still made me drink soup! And you’re saying you didn’t do it on purpose!”

When Jiang Yi had been cooking, he’d thought about how Qiu Rui liked sweet food, and worried that eating only egg rolls might be too dry, so he had chosen fermented rice balls — completely forgetting that Qiu Rui was no ordinary person. Seeing himself misunderstood, Jiang Yi scrambled to explain, “Rui’er, Rui’er, it’s not what you think! I — I —”

Jiang Yi was so flustered he was scratching his ears and cheeks, and the more anxious he became, the less coherently he spoke, his face flushing a deep red.

Qiu Rui watched him and could tell the reaction wasn’t faked. He also thought to himself that this person had always been a bit of an idiot — there was no point making a fuss over it. Having thought it through, he found he wasn’t quite so angry anymore.

The dark expression on his face gradually softened. He finished one egg roll and picked up another.

Seeing that Qiu Rui actually seemed to enjoy them quite a bit, Jiang Yi’s heart bloomed with delight. He grinned and picked up an egg roll himself, eating while watching Qiu Rui — there was really something to the saying that a beautiful face improves the appetite. Looking at such a lovely person truly made the food taste better!

As Qiu Rui ate his egg rolls, his eyes kept darting sideways toward the white porcelain soup pot beside him. The way he clearly wanted to drink it but had no idea how to bring it up made Jiang Yi’s heart itch — he really wanted to pull him over and steal a kiss!

Of course, Jiang Yi only thought about it. He wouldn’t dare actually do it.

Qiu Rui had originally intended to ignore the fermented rice balls — after all, no matter how good they tasted, they were ultimately just soup dumplings. But then, Jiang Yi’s cooking skill was exceptional, and these fermented rice balls were unlike any other version Qiu Rui had encountered.

In the jade-white broth floated specks of milky white and vivid crimson. Alongside the wine fragrance of the fermented rice, there was a faint rose perfume, and the curling steam carried an utterly enticing aroma.

Qiu Rui quietly swallowed a small mouthful of saliva. Asking Jiang Yi to feed him the soup out loud? He would rather die!

Just as Qiu Rui had finally steeled himself to forgo the soup, Jiang Yi suddenly said, “Premium rice wine with fresh rose dew — wine fragrance mingling with rose perfume, it really does linger on the lips and teeth! And these glutinous rice balls in particular — so silky, so springy, so incredibly good!”

Qiu Rui gritted his teeth. This person was definitely doing it on purpose!

“Rui’er, how about I feed you?” Jiang Yi leaned his head over toward Qiu Rui.