CHAPTER 399: 399: SHE COULDN’T UNDERSTAND

Xu Xiuxiu, having changed clothes with her child, arrived on the second floor of the hotel for dinner, showing none of the self-awareness expected from a guest. She grabbed the menu and ordered all of the hotel’s signature seafood dishes, then proactively started with the appetizers. Song Yuanhuan didn’t mind Xu Xiuxiu’s somewhat willful and childish behavior at all, indulging her excessively.

By the time Lu Xiangxiang and Cai Zhenglian came downstairs, Xu Xiuxiu had already found a table and ordered the food, which was quite a lot. Cai Zhenglian looked at the full spread of seafood dishes and his forehead vein throbbed, but he still made polite conversation. Xu Xiuxiu knew he felt slighted and was irritated inside, but she didn’t care and just exchanged some pleasantries.

"Xiangxiang, don’t you love eating crabs? Have more," Cai Zhenglian said smilingly as he picked up a big crab for the silent Lu Xiangxiang, looking ever so considerate.

Lu Xiangxiang lifted her eyes to look at Cai Zhenglian, let them fall back down to the crab on her plate, and wished she could flip the table right there and then. Knowing that Cai Zhenglian was a man whose exterior did not match his wicked heart at all, and realizing that he was getting back at her for the humiliation she had made him endure earlier, she had a chill remembering his previous ruthless acts. The unrest in her heart restrained her, so she did not dare to utter a word and merely nodded silently.

"If you like it, eat more," Cai Zhenglian said, apparently pleased with Lu Xiangxiang’s silent demeanor and solicitously picked another big crab for her.

Watching the interaction between Cai Zhenglian and Lu Xiangxiang, Xu Xiuxiu who sat opposite them raised her eyebrows in surprise. If she hadn’t misread the situation before, Lu Xiangxiang should have disliked the solicitous Cai Zhenglian quite a bit, having experienced first-hand her attitude of complete disdain for him. But now it seemed like their dynamic had changed after returning to their room and changing clothes. Lu Xiangxiang was acting like a timid mouse caught by the neck, uncharacteristically docile.

What was even stranger was the fact that, in the sweltering heat of summer, Lu Xiangxiang had gone back to her room, changed out of her swimsuit, and put on long pants and long sleeves, a drastic change indeed. Dressed too conservatively for the weather—way out of the ordinary—it made Xu Xiuxiu wonder about Lu Xiangxiang’s behavior. Especially considering that since Lu Xiangxiang had sat down at the table, she had been quietly eating, not even glancing at Song Yuanhuan once. The down-to-earth manner was quite contrary to her usual domineering and arrogant self. Xu Xiuxiu was indeed puzzled by this, but despite noticing these differences, she did not plan to inquire any further. After all, Lu Xiangxiang was a woman who never ceased to amaze, and Xu Xiuxiu had no intention of satisfying her own curiosity.

"Mommy, wash hands," said Little Baby, who was very fond of cleanliness. Having washed his hands before eating the seafood, now that he was full, he held up his little hands, his face showing disgust, wanting to wash them.

"Alright, Mommy will take you to wash your hands," Xu Xiuxiu nodded, then politely excused herself to Lu Xiangxiang and Cai Zhenglian: "I’m going to take the child to wash his hands." Xu Xiuxiu also felt somewhat troubled looking at Little Baby’s sticky hands and got up to take him to the restroom to wash them, but unexpectedly discovered Lu Xiangxiang making up an excuse to follow.

"What’s the matter? Lu Xiangxiang, you’ve only just started behaving yourself, and now you want to trouble me again?" Xu Xiuxiu continued washing Little Baby’s hands while provocatively glancing at Lu Xiangxiang through the restroom mirror.

Upon hearing this, Lu Xiangxiang’s face darkened momentarily, but she pressed her red lips together and remained silent.

Xu Xiuxiu was somewhat taken aback, having never before seen Lu Xiangxiang with such an expression, "You looking for me for something?" Xu Xiuxiu asked with a hint of amusement, honestly treating the inquiry as a joke at Lu Xiangxiang’s expense. She didn’t expect Lu Xiangxiang to actually nod in agreement.

"What is it? You aren’t going to ask me to let Song Yuanhuan go for you with that brain-dead talk again, are you? Or is it because running into me today, you didn’t get to hurl a few insults my way, letting out those uneducated words, and that’s making you uncomfortable?" Xu Xiuxiu asked, momentarily stunned before continuing with an undertone that wasn’t too pleasant, even carrying a hint of vengefulness.

Used to Lu Xiangxiang’s nonsensical provocations, Xu Xiuxiu instinctively raised her hedgehog-like defenses whenever she faced Lu Xiangxiang.

"No..." Lu Xiangxiang bit her red lips and shook her head, seeming hesitant and looking unwell as she addressed Xu Xiuxiu, "Actually, I was hoping you could do me a favor." Admitting this appeared to take all of her courage but, feeling completely isolated, and having always looked down upon Cai Zhenglian, she was totally at a loss when she abruptly realized he was a cultured degenerate and a pervert. She was clueless on what to do when being hit in the room. She had wanted to protest and struggle, but then she discovered the vast difference between men and women, even though Cai Zhenglian was nothing more than a weak scholar without the strength to truss a chicken.

But the mere fact that he was a man was enough to intimidate her. She, who had been pampered by Mrs. Zhou as a beloved daughter and had grown up without much hardship, felt panic. Beyond her unreasonably proud arrogance and what she thought were sharp and hurtful words, she seemed utterly clueless about dealing with real issues.

"Help?" Xu Xiuxiu looked at Lu Xiangxiang with an expression of willing curiosity, then carefully took a few paper towels from the side to wipe down Little Baby.

Truth be told, up to this point, Xu Xiuxiu still couldn’t comprehend why Lu Xiangxiang remained obsessively, stubbornly besotted with Song Yuanhuan after so many years. Women of the time generally married young, and by the standards of her age, Lu Xiangxiang was actually considered an old maid. Although she came from a prestigious revolutionary family and had no worries about finding a suitor, the recent incident with Lu’s mother, Zhou Jiaqi, must have had an impact on her. Wanting to marry well, as long as the demands weren’t too high, it shouldn’t have been impossible. So why was she so determinedly hanging on to Song Yuanhuan alone?

Today’s chance encounter with her and Cai Zhenglian, after learning she had a fiancé, had actually made Xu Xiuxiu think better of Lu Xiangxiang. She thought that perhaps Lu Xiangxiang had finally given up on Song Yuanhuan. However, observing the dynamic between Lu Xiangxiang and Cai Zhenglian, where it seemed like Cai was the weaker party, indulging Lu Xiangxiang and unable to resist her commands, she really couldn’t understand why Lu Xiangxiang would come to her for help with such a panicked expression. Could it be that Cai Zhenglian was capable of bullying her?

"You’ll help me, right, Xu Xiuxiu?" Lu Xiangxiang asked tentatively.

"It depends on what kind of help?" Xu Xiuxiu didn’t immediately take the bait.

The fact of the matter was that Lu Xiangxiang had done too many foolish things. She had said before that she wanted Xu Xiuxiu’s help to leave Song Yuanhuan behind. She was capable of requesting such absurd things; too much crying wolf made Xu Xiuxiu cautious, even if she wanted to think better of her, she couldn’t help but be guarded against her.