Fortunately, I Met You - Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Cheng Xi had had her driver’s license for a long time, but she rarely drove . And considering how fancy Fu Mingyi’s car was, it was only normal that she was on tenterhooks the entire drive . Even so, she couldn’t ignore the serious glances that Lu Chenzhou was shooting at her from the passenger’s seat .

He sat there on his side with his hand resting on the armrest between them and his eyes staring at her with rapt attention . After finishing his inspection, he detachedly stated, “You look very ordinary . Why do they all call you beautiful?” Having been at the spa just earlier, he had heard all of Cheng Xi’s classmates’ conversations . This earnest commentary was just a continuation of those conversations . “Especially given that you only have one dimple . How disgusting . ”

Cheng Xi tried her hardest to pretend he was just air .

He even seemed confused as to why Cheng Xi was ignoring him . “Why aren’t you speaking today?”

Honestly, Cheng Xi was even more mystified by his attitude . After thinking about her teacher’s request, she drove even more slowly and asked, “Why are you speaking so much today?”

During their first meeting, he had barely spoken at all .

Lu Chenzhou remained quiet . Just as Cheng Xi was about to reflect on whether she had phrased her question too directly, he suddenly spoke up again . “I want to woo you . ” He looked at her directly as he asked, “May I?”

Cheng Xi couldn’t help but laugh upon hearing his words . “Don’t tease me . I really can’t drive all that well . ”

“Why are you laughing? Am I not being serious enough?”

No, Cheng Xi thought .  Who would care if a calculator were serious? Lu Chenzhou’s tone didn’t contain any of the bashfulness of a youthful man yearning for love . Rather than being nervous, he sounded more like an office worker merely trying to accomplish a task .

She decided to have a good chat with him, from the stance that he was one of her patients . “Mr . Lu, have you ever been in a relationship before?”

“Is this related to my chasing you?”

Cheng Xi smiled . “If you’ve ever been in a relationship, then you should know that your actions are different from those of someone who’s truly smitten and wholeheartedly trying to woo someone else . ”

“Oh . ” His tone was as apathetic as ever . “Then what should my actions be like?”

“What should it be like?” There was a red light ahead, and Cheng Xi decelerated the car slowly, her white fingers slowly rapping on the steering wheel in thought . “To truly woo someone earnestly involves treating a lover with a reserved, modest, and even somewhat shy attitude . It definitely does not involve sudden passion or premature affection . ”

“Says who?”

“The great pioneer of the proletariat, Karl Marx . ”

“Marx really said something like that?” Lu Chenzhou clearly didn’t believe her words . “On the other hand, the great French novelist Balzac stated that love is the indulgence of rationality . A positive, grave enjoyment . ”

After hearing Lu Chenzhou’s words, Cheng Xi started smiling . He was a more interesting man than she had previously given credit for; at the very least, he had been thinking about love, or he wouldn’t have remembered this quote of Balzac’s .

Or, perhaps, these words only served to support his detached emotions .

An indulgence of rationality, a grave enjoyment… his attention was solely focused on the words “rationality” and “grave,” wasn’t it?

She stopped debating with him . After the red light turned green, she started driving again . Lu Chenzhou received a call, probably the one that was rushing him . She heard him say, “I’m almost there—turn right . ”

“Turn right” was directed at Cheng Xi . He had said it promptly, and Cheng Xi was able to follow his directions . Not far ahead, she saw a big metal gate .

After they finally arrived, Lu Chenzhou hung up . “Drive inside . ”

Cheng Xi glanced at him, and he also turned his head to look at her . She somewhat awkwardly asked, “Can you walk inside by yourself?”

She remembered that there used to be a mountain here, but the mountain had clearly been levelled and replaced with bungalows some time ago . This now unfamiliar place, walled up behind a big metal gate, looked like a dark castle in the deep night, and it was a castle that Cheng Xi didn’t want to enter .

Lu Chenzhou seemed to see through her pretense . “Are you scared?” He seemed a bit amazed and tried to reassure her, though his tone wasn’t very reassuring . “We’ve already slept together, so what else could you be scared of?”

“……”