You Should’ve Said Earlier that you’re Such a Little Flirt! - Chapter 50.1

The subway carriage was as quiet as if it had been filled with water. Despite the presence of so many people, Lin Konglu felt as if she had fallen into a state of deathly silence.

Time stretched infinitely, and her mind was filled only with wandering echoes.

She froze for a moment, instinctively looking at Xu Qingqiong’s expression.

Xu Qingqiong was also looking at her, lips pressed tightly together, waiting for her answer.

It seemed that if there was anything wrong with her reply, Xu Qingqiong would turn and leave the next moment without giving her another chance.

Lin Konglu’s first reaction was: as expected, something happened.

Just then, Barfu’s next message arrived late: “I don’t know why, but Lin Shuhai took his assistant to the Jiawei Art Museum this morning, and then they were kicked out by two security guards…”

Lin Shuhai…

Lin Konglu gripped her phone, her heart tightening with a bad premonition.

She had always intentionally or unintentionally prevented Lin Shuhai and Xu Qingqiong from meeting.

Because she knew Lin Shuhai’s character all too well.

Combined with Xu Qingqiong’s current behavior, Lin Shuhai must have said something.

She looked at Xu Qingqiong in a panic.

Xu Qingqiong seemed to have lost her patience; her gaze shifted slightly, no longer looking at her.

Lin Konglu’s heart tightened. “Sister.”

Lin Konglu could roughly guess that Lin Shuhai had said something.

But what exactly did he say?

She had put on a good act in front of Lin Shuhai, playing the role of a somewhat capable but unambitious “tool.” Otherwise, Lin Shuhai wouldn’t have handed over certain powers and core networks to her.

She forced herself to calm down, biting her lip hard; the pain brought her back to her senses.

Her brain rapidly narrowed down the possibilities.

She had always known about the surveillance camera Lin Shuhai installed in her office; she just pretended not to know.

She guessed that Lin Shuhai had probably shown Xu Qingqiong some surveillance footage.

If there wasn’t undeniable evidence, Xu Qingqiong wouldn’t be this angry.

The specific content of the video was hard to guess, but regardless, the fact that Xu Qingqiong was still willing to come to the music festival today instead of turning away meant she still had a chance to explain.

She steadied her mind slightly and looked earnestly at Xu Qingqiong. “Okay.”

“I’m sorry, I have been hiding some things from you,” Lin Konglu said softly. “As long as you want to know, I will tell you everything.”

Xu Qingqiong finally turned to look at her.

Lin Konglu looked at her with a hint of plea. “But let’s eat first, and then talk, okay?”

Xu Qingqiong frowned. Perhaps because of the lack of trust brought by the video just now, she instinctively felt that Lin Konglu was trying to stall for time to find excuses.

“I did hide some things from you,” Lin Konglu’s tone was a bit rushed, fearing she wouldn’t believe her, making a promise, “But I have no intention of running away.”

Lin Konglu said cautiously: “Your stomach isn’t well, let’s eat first. Please?”

Xu Qingqiong’s stomach had always been poor, a problem she developed from skipping breakfast in the past. If she didn’t eat on time, it was easy for her stomach to hurt. Ever since they started living together, Lin Konglu had been very careful about this.

This morning, because of the rush to the art museum, Xu Qingqiong didn’t have time for breakfast.

It was already noon. if she skipped lunch too, her stomach would definitely hurt.

This whole situation was caused by her, and Xu Qingqiong was angry because of her. She didn’t want Xu Qingqiong to suffer any more physical discomfort because of this.

“Is that okay? Or we can talk while we eat,” Lin Konglu explained urgently.

A sudden surge of bitterness rose in Xu Qingqiong’s heart, but eventually, her heart softened. She pursed her lips, turned her head away, and said calmly, “Fine, let’s eat first.”

The nearby restaurants were only a few stops away, and they arrived quickly.

There were already many people in the subway carriage, but surprisingly, many people were also getting off. Being near noon, many came here for lunch.

Following the crowd out, after walking a few steps, Lin Konglu suddenly grabbed her hand, then quickly let go.

Noticing the movement, Xu Qingqiong glanced at her sideways.

Lin Konglu whispered, “There are too many people, I want to hold onto you.”

“I don’t want to get separated from you.”

“Sister.”

Xu Qingqiong didn’t say anything.

So, Lin Konglu boldly reached out to hold her hand.

Fortunately, though Xu Qingqiong remained silent, she didn’t pull away. Lin Konglu felt a little bit happier.

Coming out of the subway station, they found a food street nearby.

Because it was Qixi (Chinese Valentine’s Day), many restaurants had launched couples’ activities. Combined with it being the weekend, couples could be seen everywhere—holding arms, holding hands. It seemed everyone on this street was happy. Although it was still daytime, it was already very lively.

The two of them walked among them. Although they were holding hands like other couples, they seemed suddenly isolated from the entire street, completely out of sync with the atmosphere.

Xu Qingqiong remained relatively calm. She had already checked guides beforehand and headed straight for the restaurant they had originally decided on.

Lin Konglu didn’t speak; she just followed her lead, looking as if she would go wherever Xu Qingqiong went.

Entering the restaurant, it was clearly divided into two areas: one was the normal dining area, and the other was a couple’s dining area with a distinct festive atmosphere.

The normal area had the restaurant’s usual decor.

The couple’s area, to fit today’s festival and attract more customers, had table cloths changed to beautiful pink-purple ones with hearts, and each table had a small bouquet of flowers.

The server immediately greeted them, “Hello, dining for two?”

After getting an affirmative answer, her gaze landed on their joined hands, and she said enthusiastically, “Are you two a couple? It’s Qixi today, couples get a 20% discount.”

Lin Konglu looked at her and spoke first, “No need, we’ll just take a normal seat.”

The server looked apologetic, “I’m sorry, but our normal seats are temporarily full. If you two could wait a bit…”

Xu Qingqiong suddenly spoke up: “No need, here is fine.”

The server froze for a moment, then smiled at them, seemingly understanding the situation—they were a couple, but they were in the middle of a fight.

She led the way, “This way, please.”

The two sat down.

Their seat was in a corner, separated from the rest of the restaurant by decorations on three sides.

The benefit was that it was relatively private and quiet, but the downside was that it was too quiet.

They ordered, sitting face to face, neither of them speaking.

In the past, Xu Qingqiong used to talk more, usually sharing interesting little things she saw or some meaningless chatter. Lin Konglu often played the role of the quiet listener; she loved seeing Xu Qingqiong whispering softly, sharing the big and small details of life with a smile in her eyes.

But now that she was unwilling to speak, the atmosphere stagnated abruptly.

Although they sat opposite each other, less than half a meter apart, they seemed frozen by floating ice, filled with a deathly and heart-wrenching sense of coldness.

Lin Konglu felt like a balloon with a snapped string, looking at Xu Qingqiong clumsily and helplessly.

Because Xu Qingqiong used to hold that string, giving her a sense of security, but now Xu Qingqiong had let go. She was being swept up into the sky by a gust of wind, gradually getting further and further away from Xu Qingqiong.

All along the way, her heart was filled with immense panic.

But she also understood that if she didn’t explain things clearly first, Xu Qingqiong would only get angrier. Therefore, she had to forcibly suppress her emotions.

A silent meal ended.

At checkout, the server asked with a smile if the meal suited their tastes and if there was anything that needed improvement for feedback.

Both of them found the food tasteless; they had no concept of what they had just eaten.

After a few seconds of silence, Xu Qingqiong paused, then shook her head, “No, it was fine.”

Lin Konglu didn’t speak, just shook her head.

After eating, they took the subway back to the parking lot near the music festival venue, found their car, and planned to drive straight home.

Just as Lin Konglu sat in the car and hadn’t yet buckled her seatbelt, her phone suddenly chimed.

Likely due to the time difference, Lin Konglu had sent the video of the singer she filmed to Sister Rui in the morning, and Sister Rui had only just replied.

Sister Rui: “Xiao Lu, you filmed this so well! I was originally a bit regretful about not going to the scene, but now I’m not at all. Your hand is so steady, the angles are great—it’s practically a ‘million-view’ fancam.”

Lin Konglu glanced at it, not quite understanding what “million-view fancam” meant.

Sister Rui’s message continued: “So, how is it? Are you and Qingqiong having fun?”

Lin Konglu paused, thinking to herself: It’s probably very terrible.

She turned off her phone and glanced sideways at Xu Qingqiong. Xu Qingqiong was in the passenger seat, head tilted slightly, looking out the window.

The car started and slowly circled out of the parking lot. Before leaving, they passed the road in front of the music festival entrance.

It seemed even more crowded at this time. Many people were walking together, especially in the area with the stalls on the side; while there weren’t many people there in the morning, it was now almost surrounded by crowds.

Looking at the scene outside the window, Lin Konglu spotted one of the stalls and suddenly remembered something. She pulled the car over to the side and spoke somewhat cautiously, “Sister, can you wait for me for a few minutes?”

Xu Qingqiong was brought back from her thoughts by these words and gave a slight nod.

A few minutes later, probably fearing she would wait too long, Lin Konglu practically ran back. Because of the rush, she was panting slightly with her mouth open. Although it was late autumn, there was sweat on her forehead.

Lin Konglu stood by the car, adjusted her breathing slightly, and instead of getting in, she knocked on the car window, saying carefully, “Sister…”

Puzzled, Xu Qingqiong lowered the window anyway, and then a large bouquet of flowers was handed through the window into her arms.

“This is for you.”

Seeing her remain silent for a long time, Lin Konglu looked nervous and immediately said, “I’m not playing some trick, I was meant to give this to you all along.”

Xu Qingqiong didn’t think she was playing a trick; she was simply caught off guard.

Lin Konglu was still looking at her expectantly. Perhaps she didn’t even realize it, but her eyes held a trace of fawning hope, much like a puppy. It seemed as if she would keep looking forever if she didn’t get some kind of reaction.

Feeling a dull ache in her chest, Xu Qingqiong pursed her lips. “Get in the car first.”

Despite the somewhat cold words, Lin Konglu didn’t seem discouraged at all. Instead, she brightened instantly. “Okay.” She opened the door and climbed in.

Xu Qingqiong looked down at the bouquet in her lap. It was mostly roses paired with some fresh, colorful wildflowers—a large bundle that almost filled her entire embrace, exuding a light fragrance.

She instinctively reached out to touch a petal.

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