CHAPTER 438: CHAPTER 439: WISHING SHE COULD STRANGLE HER TO DEATH

They quickly arrived at Qianjin.

Xu Cuo led them inside with familiar ease, recommended some dishes to Shi Mei, and then realized that Shi Mei knew the menu even better than he did.

Xu Cuo was even more surprised: after the dishes were served, he prodded her in the conversation and unexpectedly discovered that although she seemed young, her knowledge was anything but narrow.

From flying in the sky to swimming in water, she could talk at length about the diverse local specialties of the vast lands of Xia Country.

Not only that, Xu Cuo found her increasingly familiar and fun to talk to. Eventually, after a few drinks, they all loosened up, and Xu Cuo blurted out, "Hey, I’m saying, you, young lady, how can you be such a smooth talker? Even I, a grown man, am almost dizzy from your talking. And the more I look at you, the more familiar you seem. Have we met before?"

The conversation was lively, and Shi Mei couldn’t resist drinking a couple more glasses. Now her cheeks were flushed and her mind a bit foggy. Hearing this, she laughed, "You heartbreaker, when we were kids, you used to put caterpillars in my backpack, and now you’ve forgotten."

Xu Cuo was even more bewildered.

He felt that he had been well-behaved as a child, never bullying female classmates, so why would he put caterpillars in a girl’s backpack?

Besides, judging by Shi Mei’s appearance, he knew that she was much younger than him. He was 28, about to turn 29 next month. How could he have put insects in her backpack?

"Hey, enough already," Ye Tiao, who owned a bar and had a far better tolerance for alcohol, interjected, "Quit the gibberish. Even eating can’t keep your mouths shut, so eat more and talk less."

"Go on," Xu Cuo retorted, pouring Ye Tiao a drink, "If you don’t boast at the dinner table, it means you haven’t drunk. But if you’ve drunk and still don’t boast, then the alcohol’s wasted."

"That’s right," Shi Mei said, full of agreement, her face glowing as she raised her glass and clinked it with Brother Xu Cuo in camaraderie, "Drink up, no return until we’re plastered!"

"No return until we’re plastered!"

Xu Cuo responded with a determined clink and drained his glass in one gulp.

Seeing that she couldn’t control the situation, Ye Tiao decided to drink less herself.

After dispersing from the dinner, Shi Mei, who was not accustomed to drinking, was already throwing up and in terrible shape.

Xu Cuo was better off. Seeing Ye Tiao supporting Shi Mei, he shook his head continuously, "Young lady, you talk a big game, but you can’t handle your liquor."

Ye Tiao kicked him directly, "Get lost!"

Xu Cuo chuckled and called a designated driver service, got them both to the hotel, and then had the driver take him home.

Ye Tiao, having drunk very little, had a headache as she helped Shi Mei undress, cursing, "Dammit, if you know you can’t handle your drink, why not drink less?"

Shi Mei didn’t respond, clutching her head and frowning deeply.

Ye Tiao huffed, managing to remove Shi Mei’s coat and then her shoes before dumping her onto the bed.

It was early February, just the start of spring.

Imperial City was still quite cold.

Shi Mei was wearing thermal pants and now felt uncomfortably constricted, kicking her legs and pouting pathetically, "My pants..."

Ye Tiao felt like could have killed her, but marched forward and smacked her bottom, angrily saying, "Next time you drink, I’ll call you daddy!"

Shi Mei giggled, "That won’t work, your dad would hate me."

Ye Tiao slapped her again, "Shut it!"

Shi Mei rubbed her butt, turned over, and buried her face into the pillow, then kicked out at her, "Kneel and submit."

Ye Tiao wanted to strangle her and after taking a couple of deep breaths, she ultimately resisted the urge.