Chapter 97: The Awkwardness at the Dinner Table Could Build Another Shrek Academy!
The hotel room arrangements were quickly settled.
Zhao Wuji took a single room for himself and went upstairs to find some wine.
Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong shared a room.
As lovers, Lin Qingmo and Xiao Wu shared another.
The remaining four—Dai Mubai, Oscar, Ma Hongjun, and Tang San—were assigned to a four-person room.
"Ahem."
Dai Mubai crossed his arms and glanced at Tang San, speaking with obvious sarcasm.
"The three of us squeezing together is fine. Add one more, and we might not be able to breathe."
"Yeah, yeah, Boss Dai's right. Three grown men in one room is already pushing it; the smell alone would be unbearable."
Ma Hongjun chimed in with exaggerated expressions.
Oscar said nothing, but his attitude was clear.
Both of them knew Dai Mubai and Tang San were at odds, though they didn't know why. Naturally, they sided with their own.
Tang San's face darkened instantly.
Exclusion again.
Was it just because he had defeated Dai Mubai with hidden weapons last time?
Tang San felt Dai Mubai was narrow-minded and vindictive, someone already deserving death.
His fists clenched.
Suppressing his anger, Tang San said coldly to the innkeeper:
"I'll open another single room."
Then he walked away without looking back, his figure radiating isolation and suppressed resentment.
He still didn't know about Dai Mubai's "condition."
He assumed this hostility came from jealousy after his defeat.
Ever since Lin Qingmo returned to Shrek and sent him flying with a single vine strike, Tang San had become more restrained.
At least, he no longer dared to openly pester Xiao Wu.
But his gloomy gaze still occasionally swept toward Lin Qingmo and Xiao Wu walking side by side.
The poisonous jealousy in his heart had never faded.
Oscar had also learned to restrain himself.
Though his eyes still stuck to Ning Rongrong like glue, after being told to "get lost," he no longer dared approach her easily.
Only Dai Mubai refused to give up.
Or rather, he couldn't accept it.
"Zhuqing, I saw this osmanthus cake on the street earlier. I thought you might like it, so I bought some. Give it a try."
Dai Mubai approached Zhu Zhuqing again, offering an oil-paper-wrapped pastry with a flattering smile.
Zhu Zhuqing didn't even raise her eyes.
As she walked past him, she dropped three cold words:
"You're no good."
The sentence froze Dai Mubai in place.
His smile stiffened, his face shifting from red to green to black.
A wave of humiliation swallowed him whole.
Yet he didn't dare react, not even to argue.
His weakness was in her hands. He could only watch her slender black figure walk away.
He stood there like a clown.
Eventually, he retreated to the side, fists clenched tightly.
Dinner Time
The hotel's first-floor dining hall was filled with noisy tables.
Lin Qingmo and Xiao Wu occupied a small table in the corner.
Several light dishes and a pot of sweet fruit wine sat between them.
Their heads leaned close together as they chatted softly.
Xiao Wu occasionally covered her mouth while laughing, the atmosphere sweet enough to melt.
At the large table nearby, the atmosphere was far more delicate.
Dai Mubai, Oscar, Ma Hongjun, and Tang San sat on one side.
Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing sat on the other side.
The space between them felt like a dividing line.
"Boss Dai, it's not easy getting out of here, you've got to treat us!"
Ma Hongjun rubbed his hands, eyes fixed on the roasted meat at another table.
Dai Mubai had been waiting for a chance to show off.
Hearing this, he immediately patted his chest.
"No problem! Order whatever you want, tonight's on me!"
Ma Hongjun's eyes lit up.
"I want that big ham, and two jars of strong wine!"
Oscar got excited too.
"Boss Dai is generous, then I won't hold back. I've wanted to try the strong liquor here for a while!"
Tang San silently ate his plain rice, uninterested in alcohol.
But his eyes kept drifting toward the couple in the corner.
Seeing Xiao Wu's radiant smile for Lin Qingmo and the way she affectionately picked food for him made his chest feel tight.
Soon, the food and wine arrived.
Several jars of strong liquor were placed on the table.
Dai Mubai gave Ma Hongjun a look.
Ma Hongjun understood and stood up with a grin, preparing to pour drinks.
He thought to himself: Boss Dai probably plans to start a conversation with Zhu Zhuqing once everyone's warmed up…
Just as he was about to invite everyone to drink,
"Stop."
Ning Rongrong set down her chopsticks.
Her crisp voice froze everyone in place.
She elegantly wiped her lips and stood, smoothing imaginary wrinkles from her skirt.
Then she looked at the three boys with clear disdain.
"You're too noisy. This is dinner. Can people not eat in peace? How crude. Didn't your families teach you table manners?"
"And…"
She waved a finger.
"I don't drink. Suit yourselves."
With that, she turned like a butterfly and walked to Lin Qingmo's table.
Blinking playfully at him, she said:
"Ah Qing, Xiao Wu, mind if I join you? The atmosphere over there is… affecting my appetite."
Lin Qingmo smiled.
"Of course not."
"Really? I won't interrupt your alone time?"
Ning Rongrong nudged Xiao Wu teasingly.
Xiao Wu blushed.
"Of course, not. Come sit."
She shifted inward to make space.
The moment Ning Rongrong sat down, Zhu Zhuqing put down her barely touched bowl of rice.
She stood up and walked past Dai Mubai without even glancing at him.
Then she sat beside Ning Rongrong at Lin Qingmo's table as naturally as if returning home.
The air froze.
Dai Mubai, Oscar, and Ma Hongjun sat stiffly in their seats, smiles completely frozen.
A hand holding a wine jar remained suspended midair.
Awkward.
Deathly awkward.
Other diners in the hall all turned to look, curiosity and amusement obvious in their eyes.
Their gazes felt like needles stabbing into the three boys.
It was enough to make them want to dig out another Shrek Academy with their toes.
"Th-this… what is this situation…"
Ma Hongjun opened his mouth but couldn't find a single word to ease the tension.
Dai Mubai's face was dark as a pot bottom, veins bulging on the back of his hand, gripping the wine cup.
The people he wanted to impress had left.
And they'd gone straight to Lin Qingmo, someone he disliked and couldn't surpass.
This was public humiliation.
A slap to the face.
Oscar quietly withdrew his hand.
He poured himself a full cup of strong liquor.
Tilting his head back, he gulped it down in one swallow.
The burning liquid scorched his throat, but the bitterness in his heart remained unextinguished.
He secretly glanced at Ning Rongrong.
She was smiling lightly while talking to Zhu Zhuqing, an expression she had never shown him.
Oscar's heart tightened.
Of course… Rongrong only notices someone strong like Lin Qingmo.
He felt discouraged but quickly encouraged himself again.
'No. I can't give up. I need to become stronger!'
In the corner, Tang San watched everything.
He looked at Lin Qingmo, surrounded by others.
He looked at Xiao Wu's dependence and closeness toward him.
Then he looked at his own table, cold and awkward.
A sense of being rejected by the entire world, mixed with wild jealousy, gnawed at his heart again.
He lowered his head and shoveled a mouthful of cold rice.
His eyes, hidden in shadow, were unreadable.
—
End of Chapter