Tong Sui said, “I’m going to check on Zhong Yi.”
Jiang Ciyuan nodded and put the selected grapes into a bag. “I’ll join you after I finish this.”
Tong Sui walked toward the fresh produce section and saw Zhong Yi standing with his hands in his pockets, while several staff members in supermarket uniforms were busy behind a water tank.
Tong Sui quickly approached him. “What are you doing here?”
“Buying something,” Zhong Yi replied. “This supermarket is too barren; I can barely find anything decent.”
When Tong Sui took a closer look, he realized the staff were busy packing a gigantic king crab with oxygen and putting it into a bag.
“???” Tong Sui exclaimed, “Did you buy that?”
Zhong Yi nodded. “I asked earlier; the production team doesn’t allow me to have any other ingredients air-freighted, so I had to make do.”
The comments flooded in:
—— “Making do”
—— “I can imagine if the production team hadn’t restricted Young Lord Zhong on outside ingredients, we would’ve seen the most extravagant meal in three seasons.”
—— “Hahaha, Sui Bao is already dumbfounded.”
Tong Sui took several deep breaths, trying to think about how to explain to Zhou Siyuan that they accidentally bought a live king crab.
The staff seemed to notice Tong Sui’s furrowed brow and hastened their packaging out of fear the client might change their mind.
Soon, they packed it into a foam box and sealed it. “Sir, shall I put this at the front desk for you?”
Zhong Yi nodded.
Tong Sui suddenly remembered, “What about the other things I asked you to buy?”
“……” Zhong Yi replied, “I forgot.”
“Forget it, I’ll get it myself,” Tong Sui said. “When we head back, you can figure out how to explain to Zhou Siyuan what to do with that.”
Zhong Yi said, “No need to trouble him; I can handle it myself.”
“Really?” Tong Sui gave him a side glance. “How many times have you cooked or held a kitchen knife?”
Zhong Yi: “……”
He felt slightly underestimated.
“What’s wrong?” Jiang Ciyuan came over, pushing their selected items, his gaze naturally landing on Zhong Yi.
Zhong Yi replied, “Nothing; just bought a crab.”
“Uh-huh, then we should head back after buying the rest.”
Jiang Ciyuan had no awareness of the gravity of the situation until he saw the large foam box at the front desk while checking out, his calm expression suddenly filled with confusion. “What’s this?”
“It’s a crab,” Zhong Yi said, pulling out his wallet and taking out a black card. “I’ll cover today’s expenses.”
Jiang Ciyuan glanced at the receipt, chuckled, but didn’t stop Zhong Yi. “I’m looking forward to how you plan to cook it.”
The comments piled up:
—— “Zhong Yi vs. King Crab? Sorry, I’m already laughing.”
—— “President Jiang is so mischievous.”
—— “I’m hinging my hopes on this laugh! Jiang Ciyuan’s smile is simply lethal!”
After paying, Jiang Ciyuan handed one of the lighter shopping bags to Tong Sui, while Zhong Yi cradled his prized possession. The three exited the supermarket.
A row of bodyguards dressed in black suits shouted in unison, “Young Lord!”
The booming voices nearly startled Tong Sui, causing him to almost drop what he was holding, and everyone nearby turned to look.
Behind the group of bodyguards were various luxury sports cars and sedans parked.
Some of the bodyguards stepped forward and took the items from their hands.
Zhong Yi nodded in satisfaction.
He looked at Tong Sui and said, “Choose.”
Tong Sui gazed at him in total bewilderment, overhearing the surrounding discussions. He even wished he could find a crack in the ground to hide in. How could anyone be so oblivious to the stares of others?
Zhong Yi wrapped an arm around his shoulder. “Don’t you like any of these styles? Then tell me what model you prefer, and I’ll have someone bring it over.”
“Or perhaps you only like the one that Jiang Ciyuan drives; I can arrange that too. Then you’d be more willing to sit in the passenger seat with me.”
“……” Tong Sui replied, “Have you considered that it might not be about the car model?”
He pulled Zhong Yi’s arm away, quietly looking at him for a second, then two.
Zhong Yi frowned. “Not about the car model? Then what is it about?”
One of the bodyguards in black said softly, “Young Lord, perhaps it’s about the person.”
Zhong Yi widened his eyes. How could that be possible? What was he lacking compared to Jiang Ciyuan??
At that moment, Jiang Ciyuan opened the car door, and Tong Sui effortlessly got in. The two drove off, leaving Zhong Yi standing there.
The bodyguards asked, “Young Lord, what about these cars…?”
Zhong Yi waved his hand irritably. “Just drive them back, and you all stay out of my sight.”
Zhong Yi couldn’t understand what he lacked compared to Jiang Ciyuan. He specifically had people bring the cars out for selection; why did Tong Sui choose to sit next to him?
Wait, why was he even thinking about this? He wasn’t bothered by what Tong Sui wanted; whoever he wanted to be close to was none of his business.
After returning to the villa, they handed over the items they bought to Zhou Siyuan.
Tong Sui sat on a high stool in front of the counter, propping his face on his hand. “We picked all these; I just don’t know which ones are better, so let me know if there are any issues later.”
“It seems like there are no problems,” Zhou Siyuan said as he rummaged through the bags and pulled out two books. “Who requested these?”
“Oh, those were taken by Jiang Ciyuan.”
Tong Sui took them and jumped off the high stool to hand them to Jiang Ciyuan, who was working on his laptop on the sofa.
On Jiang Ciyuan’s screen was a prospectus; he was scrolling down quickly, absorbing various business details.
While sorting through the ingredients, Zhou Siyuan said, “If Ciyuan wants to learn how to cook, I can teach him. No need to buy books.”
Jiang Ciyuan didn’t look up, “Thank you for your kindness, but I don’t want to trouble anyone.”