Ahhh, oh no, fire!

What a pity that the chance never came again...

Back then, Ye Xiyang was always chirping around him, constantly calling his name, “Yichen, Yichen, Yichen...”

Yet he had never imagined that she would leave without a word.

For the first two years, every time he closed his eyes, he could hear her voice beside his ear, chattering and calling his name, only to open his eyes and find nothing but emptiness.

Perhaps it was then that he began to resent her.

How could she leave so decisively, all because of a single sentence from Zhuang Jia?

Was her affection for him truly so light?

He thought he would never see her again in this lifetime, believed she would never return, thought... he would resent her forever.

But when she finally appeared before him again, all the resentment in his heart melted away.

If he told her about his strange affliction—how he would, almost unconsciously, forget every woman around him—it would be hard to explain. Even his childhood friend Zhuang Jia was now only a faint memory, just a name.

Yet she alone was engraved into his very bones.

“Xiyang!”

Xiao Qi hadn’t grown used to this name, so she didn’t respond right away.

He called out again.

Only then did she react. “What is it?”

“You chased me for three years in college, so...” Lin Yichen solemnly declared, “For the rest of our lives, let me be the one to chase you.”

Xiao Qi only smiled and said nothing. After all, she wasn’t the real one, so there was no need to respond.

She turned her gaze to the scenery outside the car window.

Her silence brought a trace of loneliness to Lin Yichen’s eyes.

No matter. The rest of life is long. As long as she was by his side, he would make her love him again, just as she once had.

*****

Xiao Qi hadn’t expected the hotpot to be so delicious and spicy that she had to waddle to the restroom afterward.

As she finished, she suddenly remembered how Lin Yichen, during their meal, had kept asking her, “Where’s Yiyang?”

No, no, I can’t give away my prince’s whereabouts.

He had only just managed to escape that sly... businessman.

After all, to eat someone’s food is to be beholden to them.

Was it really right to eat her fill, wipe her mouth, and then run away?

But...

After thinking it over, Xiao Qi still decided her prince was more important.

Lin Yichen waited a long time but saw no sign of her returning.

He frowned, taking out his phone to call her, but she didn’t answer.

He got up and walked to the restroom, asking a woman who had just come out, “Excuse me, is there still anyone inside?”

The woman gave him a strange look, her eyes full of suspicion, as if she were staring at a pervert.

Yichen could only smile wryly.

“My girlfriend and I had a fight. I saw her head this way, so...”

“Oh, I get it, I get it,” the woman’s suspicious glare turned starstruck, “Handsome, wait here, I’ll go check for you.”

“Thank you!”

Half a minute later, the woman returned, shaking her head. “There’s no one inside.”

Lin Yichen was puzzled. He’d been sitting near the entrance and was sure Xiyang hadn’t left through the front door.

So where could she have gone?

He pulled out his phone, relieved that he’d given her one—he could track her location.

Xiao Qi, meanwhile, had just entered the restaurant and suddenly remembered her uniform.

“Auntie, sorry, I got the uniform dirty...”

Before she could finish, she saw the uniform neatly folded on the counter.

“Huh? Why is the uniform here?”

“Xiyang,” Fang Yun said while sorting receipts, “Didn’t you lose your memory? How did Yiyang bring the uniform back for you? And why did he have it?”

Xiao Qi missed the real question. “Auntie, do you know Prince—Yiyang?”

“Of course!” Fang Yun paused her work, picked up a business card, and said, “He left this for you. He’ll be waiting for you tonight at the rooftop restaurant.”

Wow, my prince asked me out!

“Auntie, are there any more delivery orders? I’ll go deliver them right now.”

Fang Yun glanced at the brimming-with-energy Xiao Qi. “Xiyang, you really are a rare gem, just like before.”

#

Full of energy, Xiao Qi returned from her deliveries. “Auntie, I’m back!”

Pushing open the door, she was startled to find a handsome man sitting there.

“You...”

“I’ve reserved the whole place,” Lin Yichen said, expressionless, though a playful glint flashed in his eyes. “You only need to serve me now.”

Xiao Qi glanced around, hurried to the counter, and found Fang Yun just coming out. “Auntie, he said he—”

“Yes,” Fang Yun beamed. “Our big patron is here in person and personally asked you to stay.” She nudged Xiao Qi forward. “Go on, don’t keep our patron waiting.”

“But I...”

“No more buts, get going.”

Ah, Lin Yichen really moved quickly—he’d already tracked her down.

Hopefully, they could be together again, just like before.

Xiao Qi pouted as she walked over with the menu. “Sir, all our dishes are listed here. Please take a look...”

“Just make the dishes you delivered earlier today.”

“Alright!”

She called to the kitchen, but Auntie said the patron had sent all the staff home.

“Then who’s going to cook?”

Fang Yun looked at her.

The implication was clear: it was up to her.

“...Auntie, I only know how to eat.”

“...”

Xiyang used to be a great cook. Now, with her memory gone—well!

All she could do now was eat.

“Just do whatever you can. I’ve got things to take care of. I’ll be off.”

“Auntie, you can’t—”

But she was already out the door.

Xiao Qi put on her most professional smile. “Sorry, our restaurant doesn’t offer private chef services, and I only deliver food—I can’t cook it. So, sir, maybe you’d like to try somewhere else?”

“Xiyang,” Lin Yichen smiled helplessly. “I’m starting to realize my taste wasn’t so great back then. How did I end up falling for you? But, well, fall I did, and there’s nothing I can do about it.”

How can he just say he fell for me?

“Hurry up and cook! Consider it payback for the hotpot.”

“...”

What a shameless scoundrel.

No wonder he treated me to dinner—he was planning this all along.

Swindling his own brother wasn’t enough; now he’s come to swindle me. He’s like a lump of fertilizer: hard and foul.

Hmph.

Grumbling inwardly, Xiao Qi took off her uniform.

She truly couldn’t cook—not even sure how to light the stove.

After fumbling for ages, she finally managed to get a flame.

What to put in first?

What is this stuff?

She sniffed at the jar in her hand, only to burst into a fit of sneezing from the pepper.

The things on this planet are just too strange.

At a loss, she pulled out Xiaobai. “Xiaobai, hurry and help me look up some instructions.”

Xiaobai didn’t move.

“Xiaobai, don’t tell me you’re this fragile? Just a little wine spilled on you and you’re out? Or are you mad at me?”

Still, no response.

Sigh! Looks like I’ll have to figure this out myself.

Xiao Qi pulled out her phone and noticed several missed calls.

Yichen?

She pouted and changed the name in her contacts.

Then she searched online.

“Stir-frying starts with oil.”

Oil?

She poured oil into the pan, but maybe the wok was too hot, because as soon as the oil hit, flames leapt up.

“Ahhh! Oh no, it’s on fire!”

Hearing the commotion, Lin Yichen rushed over, grabbed Xiao Qi, and anxiously scanned her from head to toe. “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine, but put out the fire!”

“Where’s the fire extinguisher?”