Your Aloof Persona Has Crumbled - Chapter 50

Lu Jingwei thought she wouldn’t be able to eat that much, but to her surprise, she finished everything. Looking at her clean plate, she fell into a bit of a silence.

“I really ate too much today,” Lu Jingwei said, wiping her mouth. “I feel like I’m going to gain a lot of weight.”

“It’s alright.” Wen Shike didn’t think it was much at all. She glanced at Lu Jingwei. “You’re much thinner now than when you first entered Dream Chaser. You used to have some baby fat on your face, but now it’s gone.”

Lu Jingwei fell silent again. “Hearing your description, it sounds a bit terrifying.” She touched her face. “So, have I become ugly?”

“No.” Wen Shike looked at Lu Jingwei with surprise. Did this person have no self-awareness regarding her own looks? “How could you be ugly? With your bone structure, you’ll still look great even when you’re old.”

“Let’s go, let’s look around elsewhere.” Wen Shike didn’t give Lu Jingwei a chance to respond. She stood up and decisively shifted to the next topic.

Wen Shike rarely complimented people on their looks, so she felt a bit awkward.

“Okay,” Lu Jingwei replied.

“There should be a memorial hall in the ancient city, but it probably closed around eight o’clock,” Wen Shike said as she walked beside Lu Jingwei.

The ancient city was built entirely in the style of the Jiang Dynasty. The interior decorations of the shops were antique and elegant, even the air conditioners were concealed according to unified requirements. Most of the goods for sale weren’t very modern, focusing more on local specialties.

“They have DIY fans over there.” Lu Jingwei stopped and gestured toward a small shop. She strongly felt that if she kept following Wen Shike, they might just eat their way through the whole night.

“If you want to go, let’s take a look,” Wen Shike said.

The prices for DIY fans definitely had that “tourist attraction” feel. A set of ordinary folding fan ribs and paper cost 100 yuan. If you wanted better materials, the price increased exponentially, and the cost of pigments and decorations was much higher than outside.

After hearing the prices, Lu Jingwei took a step back and decisively declined. “Never mind, I suddenly don’t want to do it anymore.” She had some money on her now, but spending that much on a single fan was beyond her acceptable range.

“Okay.” Wen Shike didn’t mind. Although she was wealthy, she wasn’t a “sucker.”

“I’m a fan of yours! If you want to make them, it can be free. I just… can I get a photo with you?”

The shop owner happened to be scrolling through hot searches just now and was stunned for a few seconds when she saw Wen Shike and Lu Jingwei in her shop. Seeing them about to leave, she stood up immediately.

What a great opportunity for free advertising! She had great confidence in the purchasing power of fans. Besides, the cost of her materials wasn’t high; if she could attract dozens of people, she’d make a massive profit.

Wen Shike looked at her. When they first walked in, the owner was clearly checking her phone to confirm their identities. How did she suddenly become a “fan”? With a bit of thought, she guessed the owner’s intentions.

“Are you really a fan? Then let me test you. Who am I? Who is she? What is our group’s name? Boss, don’t look at your phone,” Wen Shike said, looking the owner straight in the eye.

The Boss: “…”

The woman froze, her mouth hanging open. She clearly hadn’t expected Wen Shike to suddenly quiz her. “You…”

After a long pause, she still couldn’t say a word, and her expression turned quite sour.

Lu Jingwei glanced at Wen Shike. If it were her, she wouldn’t have dared to ask that. This was likely the confidence unique to Wen Shike.

“Boss, so we won’t be making the fans. We’re leaving now.”

Wen Shike smiled and led Lu Jingwei out. Of course, she didn’t forget to remind the crew following them, “When you edit this, cut out the content regarding this shop.”

She wasn’t going to be a sucker herself, and she wasn’t going to let her fans be suckers either.

“It’s so expensive, does anyone actually make them?” Lu Jingwei asked, bewildered. She glanced at Wen Shike’s hand still holding hers. The other girl didn’t seem to have any intention of letting go, so she didn’t say anything.

“Probably. If no one did, they would have closed down long ago,” Wen Shike said.

Lu Jingwei didn’t understand what those people were thinking, but perhaps they really just wanted to make their own fans.

“If you want to DIY fans, I’ll take you somewhere else next time,” Wen Shike continued. “The ‘jade’ fan ribs she had on display were all very fake.”

Lu Jingwei laughed. “If it were real jade, a fan would surely be very expensive. But using jade for fan ribs, isn’t that heavy?”

“It has some weight. I usually use them as decorations. If you’re curious, I’ll take you to my house to see them next time,” Wen Shike said.

“Okay,” Lu Jingwei nodded.

They encountered some fans on the way, but they were quite shy, only daring to wave from a distance. When the camera swept toward them, they immediately covered their faces and ran away without looking back.

Wen Shike’s hand was frozen in mid-air, making things a bit awkward, but she was thick-skinned and quickly lowered it.

Not far away, there was a stall with a long queue, and occasional bursts of flame could be seen in the air.

“Do you smell that?” Wen Shike’s eyes lit up. Suppressing her instincts, she took a very controlled sniff. “It smells so good.”

Lu Jingwei: “…”

As expected. Lu Jingwei glanced at Wen Shike and offered a kind reminder: “The theme of this trip is ‘Feeling History’.”

“Xu’s Barbecue has over five hundred years of history. It’s even related to the Battle of Xu Cheng.”

“Due to betrayal by spies and a series of domestic political shifts, General Xu Xu became a sacrificial pawn. She didn’t receive reinforcements, and during her retreat, she was trapped in the mountains by enemy forces.” Wen Shike thought for a few seconds before continuing, “At that time, no one could stomach their food, so she made some simple dishes for the soldiers…”

Lu Jingwei stood by the roadside listening to Wen Shike detail the history of “Xu’s Barbecue,” her lips twitching slightly. She never imagined this could actually be linked to “feeling history.”

“In the end, they broke through the encirclement. One hundred and thirty-seven people killed five or six hundred enemies,” Wen Shike said, sounding a bit melancholy. “If there had been reinforcements, maybe the ending would have been different. Xu Xu was very impressive.”

Lu Jingwei looked at her. “I remember she eventually died at the border. She didn’t flee.”

“Yeah. There was no going back. Returning would have meant a death sentence anyway. Losing two cities made her the perfect scapegoat to appease public anger,” Wen Shike said.

As they talked, the two of them found themselves standing in the queue for “Xu’s Barbecue.”

“Actually, in the beginning, this kind of barbecue was just for roasting wild vegetables and the like,” Wen Shike said.

“So, how much do you plan to eat? I’m not eating.”

“Not even a corn on the cob?” Wen Shike asked, looking into Lu Jingwei’s eyes.

Lu Jingwei: “…”

In the end, each of them bought a grilled corn. Wen Shike wanted to eat meat, but she didn’t have the guts; Sister Qiu would definitely scold her.

“The taste is actually pretty good.”

“Mm.” Lu Jingwei nodded, taking a small bite of the corn.

If she didn’t eat it, it was a waste, she felt guilty. If she did eat it, she’d gain weight, she still felt guilty.

“Are we going to the gym early tomorrow morning?”

“Okay.” Wen Shike nodded. Noticing Lu Jingwei’s furrowed brows, she felt like laughing. “It’s not like we eat like this every day. It’s fine.”

“That’s what everyone thinks.”

Wen Shike: “…”

“Happiness is what matters.” Wen Shike took a bite of the corn and couldn’t help but squint her eyes. She didn’t know what they put on it, but the flavor was different from any grilled corn she’d had before.

“It’s past nine o’clock,” Lu Jingwei reminded her.

“Mm.” Wen Shike nodded. “There’s a cultural and creative shop ahead. Want to go in and look?”

“Okay.” Lu Jingwei felt relieved. Every time Wen Shike opened her mouth, she felt a bit nervous, but fortunately, it wasn’t about food this time.

Lu Jingwei always thought her willpower was firm, but facing Wen Shike, she seemed to have none. She didn’t know how to refuse her.

There weren’t many people in the creative shop.

Wen Shike wandered around and suddenly stopped, her gaze falling on a row of earrings.

There were many styles, such as the ancient characters for “Wealth,” “Abundance,” and “Nobility.” Truth be told, Wen Shike liked them, but she felt they didn’t quite fit her current persona.

However, she still bought all the characters for “Wealth,” “Abundance,” and “Nobility.” Of course, she didn’t let the camera see. Coupled with her solemn expression, it really looked like she was buying something very serious.

Lu Jingwei was the only one who saw what Wen Shike bought.

Lu Jingwei glanced at her; the young miss was clearly maintaining her persona again. She suppressed her urge to laugh.

“What do you think of this bracelet?” Wen Shike tapped Lu Jingwei.

There were two bracelets of similar style, one with yellow-golden crystals and the other transparent.

Wen Shike looked at Lu Jingwei, her hint being very obvious.

Since she was a child, she had been envious of girls who had “bestie bracelets,” “bestie keychains,” and “bestie phone charms”… but she never had anyone to use them with.

Although she talked a lot, she appeared to have a very “high-class” vibe. Everything she used was expensive, so everyone assumed she looked down on such things.

In reality…

Wen Shike: Why doesn’t anyone ask me!

“Which one do you like? I think they both look good,” Lu Jingwei asked. “I can take the other one.”

“I’ll take the transparent one, and you take the gold?” Wen Shike glanced at Lu Jingwei’s wrist and quickly made the choice.

The gold color complemented Lu Jingwei’s skin better.

“Sure,” Lu Jingwei agreed.

Wen Shike put the items in the basket and then bought a set of blind boxes and some other souvenirs to bring back as gifts. In the end, she ended up with a pile of things.

The two of them returned to the hotel carrying large and small bags.

“You guys are finally back,” Ming Wangxue said, looking at them gloomily. “And here I was worried you wouldn’t be in the mood to go shopping. My concern was misplaced.”

“So, you’re unhappy that we’re in a good mood?” Lu Jingwei glanced at her.

Ming Wangxue: “…”

Ming Wangxue turned away. “Sob sob sob, Wei-Wei-Wei, you know that’s not what I meant.”

“I know. You just wanted to be a bit sarcastic.”

Ming Wangxue: “?”

Ming Wangxue’s eyes widened. “Wei-Wei-Wei, you’ve changed!”