After I Gave Up/Let Things Slide, I Became Famous Across The Entire Internet - Chapter 30

Tang Shuxia’s raised chopsticks paused slightly. She turned her head and glanced at Xu Yujing, only to find that Xu Yujing was completely unaffected. Her eyes were fully focused on the soft tofu in Tang Shuxia’s hand. It seemed she really wanted to eat it. Relieved, Tang Shuxia placed the piece of soft tofu into Xu Yujing’s bowl, “Try it.”

It was more like a reward.

Xu Yujing took a small bite from a corner, chewing slowly, as if she were appraising the imperial chef’s craftsmanship in the palace focused and serious. “The savory flavor has blended in. It’s delicious.”

Tang Shuxia watched her small mouth work, eating very elegantly. She divided one piece of tofu into five or six bites, starting with the corners. After biting off the edges of the square piece, she savored the tenderest part in the middle. After finishing, she gently dabbed her lips with a tissue, making her normally pink lips look even redder. Tang Shuxia actually watched this entire process and even found Xu Yujing’s way of eating quite interesting. Four words involuntarily flashed in her mind pleasing to the eye and the palate.

“Hey, did you go deaf after your leg was crippled?”

All the descriptions of feminine beauty in Tang Shuxia’s mind were interrupted by this guy. Li Wenkang was displeased that he had been in the room for so long, yet these two people were eating and discussing the freshness of a piece of tofu as if he weren’t there. Was his presence less significant than a dish on the table? He wanted to flip the table and see what they would eat then.

He took action, bracing his hands on the edge of the table and pushing hard, but the table didn’t budge.

How could that be?

Disbelieving, he tried again, this time using all his might.

Xu Yujing and Tang Shuxia both looked at him lifting the table until the veins in his neck popped out. Hmm, the look in their eyes was like they were watching an idiot. With the alcohol rushing to his head, Li Wenkang felt that if he didn’t flip this table today, he wouldn’t be Li. If his hands wouldn’t work, surely his feet would?

He kicked the table, but it still didn’t move. Instead, he lost his balance from the exertion and fell with a loud thud, landing squarely on his backside. Stunned, he cursed, “What the f**k is this thing!”

Even a table dared to bully him.

He was going to chop this broken table into pieces and burn it to ashes in a fire pit.

Under the tablecloth, Tang Shuxia’s leg was casually hooked around the table leg. She watched him bouncing around by himself. Where did such a stupid person come from? She leaned in to Xu Yujing’s ear and asked curiously, “Do you know this person?”

The orchid-like warm breath sprayed against her ear. Xu Yujing’s ear twitched. She forced herself to focus on Li Wenkang’s face, which, flushed with alcohol, resembled a monkey’s bottom. She stared at it for a long time, but her mind was filled with the image of Tang Shuxia’s exposed back and the adorable small dimples on her lower back from that day in her room. She couldn’t help but rub her face, “No, I don’t.”

Tang Shuxia said, “Oh.”

“If you don’t know him, you don’t know him. Why are you blushing?”

Their conversation wasn’t in a lowered voice. Li Wenkang heard it and felt insulted. “Xu Yujing, how dare you say you don’t know me! Ha, I get it! You’re afraid of your dirty secrets being revealed in front of your friend, losing face, so you dare not admit you know me, right?”

Xu Yujing frowned, “You are”

Li Wenkang was smug, as if he had grasped a handle, but then Xu Yujing finished her sentence, “I’m sorry, I can’t recall who you are.”

This statement was like accidentally poking a hornet’s nest. Li Wenkang was so angry he laughed. He smiled at Tang Shuxia, “This friend who looks a little unfamiliar…” He suddenly squinted at Tang Shuxia’s excessively beautiful face. The more he looked, the more he felt like he had seen her somewhere. “Why do you look so much like that person, I mean… never mind. I advise you to stay away from her. Don’t you know? This third miss of the Xu family in front of you is a pervert! Not only does she like women, but she also seduced her own sister-in-law!”

Tang Shuxia looked at Xu Yujing, who lowered her head and eyelids, making her emotions completely unreadable.

Li Wenkang became more energized, growing smug with every word. “What? Am I wrong? Everyone in the circle knows you were kicked out of the Xu family for doing such a scandalous thing. And you still dare to look down on our Brother Kou? Xu Yujing, why don’t you look in the mirror and see what kind of trash you are? Do you still think you’re the beloved genius of the Xu family from the past? Brother Kou even favoring you was your good fortune, but now it’s too late. Brother Kou doesn’t care for broken goods like you anymore.”

After saying that, Li Wenkang reached out. His dirty hand had not yet touched Xu Yujing when two marks appeared on the back of his hand. It hurt so much that he gasped. He hadn’t even seen what had struck him. Tang Shuxia tapped her bowl with her chopsticks, attracting his attention. “You want to drink, right? I’ll drink with you.”

Li Wenkang immediately forgot the pain on the back of his hand. “No way, you’ll drink for her? Are you sure? Could it be that you, the two of you are”

Tang Shuxia suddenly stood up, the fabric at her waist being pulled.

Xu Yujing still had her head lowered. From her position, she could see a hair whorl in her dark, long hair. Xu Yujing only extended her thumb and index finger, gently tugging at her skirt, not daring to use too much force, like a vulnerable, delicate wife who had been bullied and dared not resist. “Don’t drink with him for my sake. I’ll ask the manager to come and resolve this.”

No one had ever been able to stop Tang Shuxia from doing what she intended. She gently patted Xu Yujing’s hand to soothe her. Then, she walked around the table and coolly uncapped the bottle of liquor. Li Wenkang saw this move and thought she was quite experienced. The more he looked at the two of them, the more he felt something suspicious. “You’re drinking for her? In what capacity are you—”

Before he could finish his sentence, Tang Shuxia kicked Li Wenkang’s knee. Li Wenkang fell to his knees with a ‘plop,’ his head hitting the table with a ‘bang.’ It hurt so much that he grimaced. Just as he was about to curse, the neck of the bottle was shoved right into his throat.

“Gag, cough”

“You wanted someone to drink with you, right? My rule is, if you can stand up and talk to me after finishing this bottle, I’ll play with you.”

Tang Shuxia grabbed his shiny, ugly yellow hair, forcing him to tilt his head back, and began force-feeding him the liquor while he knelt there. Whenever he looked like he was about to pass out with his eyes rolled back, she’d give him a moment to breathe.

Gulp, gulp, gulp, gulp.

Every time Li Wenkang tried to speak, more liquor went down his throat into his esophagus. He even choked several times, a mix of blood and alcohol. He gripped the table with both hands, his fingertips turning white, yet he couldn’t break free from the pressure exerted by the person behind him.

This woman.

Xu Yujing watched the scene quietly. Her repressed emotions were suddenly released. The corner of her lips slightly curved. She calmly took out her phone and sent two text messages.

Tang Shuxia tilted the bottle, and only two or three drops came out. She grumbled, “Why did it run out so fast?”

Li Wenkang had already drunk a lot that day, and with this bottle down, he was visibly weakened. He wanted to throw up but couldn’t. His body was limp and he sprawled on the floor like a pile of mud, yet he didn’t forget to raise a finger and leave a threat for either Xu Yujing or Tang Shuxia, “You, you guys just wait for me.”

After saying that, he struggled to crawl out the door.

Tang Shuxia opened the door and kindly sent him off. Soon after closing the door, she heard a commotion outside.

“Oh my, someone fell down the stairs.”

“He seems to be drunk.”

“Wake up quickly, call an ambulance.”

“I watched him wobble down. I was just about to tell him to be careful on the stairs, but he slipped and then just tumbled down.”

Xu Yujing also heard it. She slowly used a wet wipe to clean Tang Shuxia’s hand, not missing a single finger, cleaning it meticulously as if wiping a treasured item at home, especially the hand that had just grabbed Li Wenkang. “Don’t dirty your hands for people like him in the future. He’s not worthy.”

Tang Shuxia was a little unaccustomed to the damp feeling. She pulled her hand back, “Let’s continue eating.”

Xu Yujing was slightly stunned. “You won’t ask?”

Tang Shuxia quickly picked up a slice of pork belly. The dish was a little cold, but the flavor was still there. She looked at Xu Yujing strangely, “Ask what?”

Xu Yujing stared at the bowl and chopsticks in front of her. “Ask if what he just said was true.”

Tang Shuxia picked up another slice of lotus root—crunchy and sweet. She casually asked, “Oh, then was what he just said true?”

Xu Yujing’s fingers curled tightly. “No.”

Tang Shuxia nodded. “Then there’s your answer. Try this lotus root; it’s quite crunchy.”

Xu Yujing looked at the person in front of her intently, realizing that Tang Shuxia was genuinely focused on tasting the dishes. As for whether what that loose mouthed Li Wenkang said was true or false, the other party didn’t care at all. Thinking of this, her heart sank with a thud. Only when a person doesn’t care can they be indifferent.

That’s right.

They were initially a partnership. She had wished for too much.

Tang Shuxia saw that Xu Yujing seemed to have lost her appetite, probably affected by the loose-mouthed man. She regretted not being harsher earlier. She always preferred to seek the truth herself. As for what others said, what you see isn’t necessarily true, and what you hear isn’t necessarily factual. Besides, in her personal test of Xu Yujing, the other party had absolutely no interest in women, even avoiding them like the plague. It was a joke to think such a person would seduce her own sister-in-law.

Tang Shuxia considered her words, “Xu Yujing, I’m about to leave to film a show. This meal is my farewell.”

Sure enough, Xu Yujing immediately collected all her emotions. “What type of show is it this time? Is it a movie?”

Tang Shuxia only heard a general description from her assistant, who said the variety show was simple and didn’t have many complications. “It’s probably a variety show about eating, drinking, and having fun. Not a movie.”

Xu Yujing knew what to expect. “Where is it? How long will you be gone?”

Tang Shuxia spoke casually while eating, telling her the location and specific duration. After speaking, she suddenly realized that somewhere along the way, her guard had dropped. She usually kept such private information as her whereabouts reserved from others, except for the closest people around her.

She thought about it. It must be that her guard against Xu Yujing was weakening.

Xu Yujing saw her suddenly staring at her and anxiously touched her face, even taking out her phone to check the mirror. “Is there something on my face?”

Tang Shuxia shook her head. “When I get back, I’ll treat you to a meal.”

Xu Yujing, who had just been immersed in a cloud of sadness, immediately brightened up upon hearing this, as if fireworks had been set off in broad daylight.

The program Tang Shuxia was filming was called Let’s Go See, which could be described as a travel variety show where one simply decides to go. If one insisted on calling it a gourmet focused variety show, that would also be correct. All in all, it matched Tang Shuxia’s pursuit in life eating, drinking, and playing.

Tang Shuxia brought Zhang Zeyang and her assistant this time. The assistant was only responsible for information passed down from the company and occasionally acted as a porter. Compared to assistants who followed other artists and worked tirelessly from early morning to late night, the assistant had it excessively easy and comfortable. Zhang Zeyang had more responsibilities. In addition to Tang Shuxia’s food, clothing, housing, and transportation, he was also responsible for acting as a messenger.