Chapter 123: Is it sweet or not?

“Just get a small bucket of popcorn, the big one’s a waste.”

“I want to eat it with you.” Qin Sheng smiled, her bright eyes glimmering as her long lashes fluttered.

“A small bucket is more than enough, this stuff gets old fast, and you’ll get tired holding it. I get tired just watching you hug it!”

Qin Sheng’s expression lit up with surprise: “You’re willing to share it with me?”

“Yay!” Qin Sheng hugged the bucket of popcorn, bouncing up and down.

A bunch of popcorn jumped out during her jumping, and Shen Xiyan quickly bent down to pick them all up.

“Be careful, or someone’s going to yell at you!”

“Sorry, sorry, I’m just too happy.”

“It’s just popcorn, why are you so happy about this?”

“Well, we started from the bottom, didn’t we?”

Shen Xiyan raised an eyebrow, snorted coldly: “We kissed the moment we met, you call that starting from the bottom?”

Maybe only “one night stands” could compare to them.

“Doesn’t that make me brave? When our kid asks about it someday, I can brag—I mean, without such a brave mom, they wouldn’t even exist.”

Qin Sheng glanced around, grabbed the corner of Shen Xiyan’s shirt, rose up on tiptoes and puckered her lips: “No one’s here, hurry! Kiss me, I really want it.”

Once you’ve tasted it, you’ll never forget the flavor!

Once you’ve tasted someone’s lips, you realize—there’s nothing more delicious in the world.

Uh… wait!

Actually, there are, but you can’t eat those. And they’re unwashed, not clean.

She didn’t mind, but Shen Xiyan would definitely be shy. At the very least, you should rinse it with water, then wipe it down with a wet tissue.

“You really don’t know what it means to get tired, do you? Again and again, over and over—maybe your strongest trait is your tenacity, but it’s also your greatest weakness.”

Qin Sheng cocked her head, feeling that something was off: “Isn’t there a better way to say that? Do I not have any strengths at all?”

“For example?”

“Hmm…”

Qin Sheng thought for a long while, and then seriously evaluated herself: “For example, surging with passion… sociable… striving for excellence… perseverance… letting things take their course… the road is long and full of obstacles…”

The more Qin Sheng listed, the more black lines appeared on Shen Xiyan’s forehead: “Are those even adjectives?”

“Why not? You have to savor the meaning!”

“Oh! And don’t forget the most important ones: ‘straight to the point’ and ‘succulent and juicy’! I’m super sweet—never bitter or bland.”

Maybe it’s because you are influenced by those around you—Qin Sheng was now full of cheeky banter, and Shen Xiyan felt this was Su Jin’s fault, definitely not his.

An “ice beauty” wasn’t Shen Xiyan’s type, but every man fantasizes about an ice beauty.

If Qin Sheng could sometimes maintain that demeanor, he’d enjoy it.

Mouth says no, body says yes!

Scratch that.

No need to worry about Qin Sheng getting overly clingy again!

“Hehe!”

Qin Sheng wasn’t bothered by the rejection, instead, she grinned even wider: “If you won’t take the initiative, then I’ll just have to keep trying. Who knows, maybe you’ll soften up?”

“And this bucket of popcorn really isn’t that big. I’ve seen videos where people have ones up to their waist—it’s awesome!”

“What’s the point of that much?”

“You have to respect the ritual of going to the movies!”

“What kind of ritual is there to eating popcorn?”

“Ai! You don’t get it. It’s your first date, isn’t it…”

“Oh?”

Shen Xiyan’s half-smiling, half-not expression was dangerously sharp in Qin Sheng’s eyes as he asked: “So, that means you have a lot of dating experience? Was that ‘never dated before’ line just a lie?”

“How could I!”

Qin Sheng’s eyes widened: “I’m a girl… Dating, when you get down to it, is just pleasing the girl, right? I may not know much, but I definitely know how to please myself.”

“Look at me now, aren’t I especially cute?”

The obedient and adorable girl “struggling” to hold the popcorn bucket, at first glance, really did look cute.

Then, Qin Sheng started acting like a little squirrel, lowering her head, stuffing popcorn in nonstop… Like a little hamster, before she’d even swallowed what was in her mouth, she’d be reaching for more.

She looked at Shen Xiyan, her smile even sweeter than the popcorn.

“Kind of silly…”

“That’s called cute! Can’t you use better words?” Qin Sheng huffed, grabbed a big handful, and stuffed her little mouth full: “Let me see the movie tickets.”

“You’ve got hands, can’t you hold them yourself?”

“Just hold them up for me to see, you’re so dumb!”

Shen Xiyan shook the tickets, annoyed: “What’s there to see? You picked the movie… Regretting it now?”

“No… but why’d you get row six?”

“That’s the golden spot, okay? You’re lucky we could still get those seats—count yourself lucky!”

“You’re really here to watch the movie?” Qin Sheng looked astonished, mouth open, cheeks full of unswallowed popcorn.

Shen Xiyan looked just as surprised: “If you’re not here to watch a movie, why’d you come to the theater?”

“If you bought seats in the corner, I could help you…”

Qin Sheng didn’t finish, just made her mouth into an “O” shape, moving back and forth: “How exciting!”

Listening to Qin Sheng’s nonsense, dead serious.

***

For a moment, Shen Xiyan really started to doubt himself.

Is it possible that helping your boyfriend with that kind of thing in the corner of a movie theater is normal?

Uh…

In a way, it kind of is. There aren’t many couples who go that far, but there are definitely some.

Except…

Where did the boyfriend come from?

“If you’re worried about getting caught on infrared cameras, it’s fine.”

Qin Sheng patted the popcorn bucket, making a dull thumping sound: “When the time comes, we’ll dump the popcorn somewhere, poke a hole in the bucket, and I’ll use my hand to help you…”

“I’m telling you, even if someone sits right next to you, they’d never notice! Super thrilling! It feels amazing! Why else do you think so many people buy popcorn? This is how it’s done, country bumpkin!”

Movie theaters are widely acknowledged as the best place for couples to get closer.

After all, the lights are dim, and if you’re watching a romantic film, the atmosphere is just right.

Shen Xiyan had to take several deep breaths to bring down his skyrocketing blood pressure.

Leading Qin Sheng into the screening room, he found it pretty crowded—and almost everyone were couples, all sitting toward the back.

Their heads leaned together as they whispered, sometimes giggling, sometimes pulling out a cup of Coke—sip for you, sip for me. If the mood got too intense, they’d even start kissing right there.

“See, told you. Who sits in the middle if they’re actually here to watch a movie?”

But since it’s midday, everyone’s packed together—‘helping out’ is best left for the late shows. Once the mood is set, if the two can’t get enough, they’ll just go get a room and celebrate their love!

“Xiyan, do you think people see us as a couple, too?”

Definitely.

But Shen Xiyan refused to answer, letting Qin Sheng hook her little finger through his and lead them to their seats.

Row six, seats nine and ten.

“Xiyan! Look—fate at work! When are we going to try sixty-nine?”

“Shut up!”

“Oh… Have you ever watched a movie with a girl before?”

“Yeah.”

“That little b*tch?!”

Qin Sheng glared in fury, her words dripping with jealousy: “It’s Lin Ci again, isn’t it?”

“It was Lin Ci, yes…”

“I knew it!”

Shen Xiyan said in a low voice: “But Wenwen and my aunt were there too. Are you calling them little b*tches as well?”

Qin Sheng shuddered.

“Forget I said anything.”

“Pathetic!”

Qin Sheng’s expression immediately became “fiercely cute,” making a throat-slitting gesture: “If you tell anyone, I’ll squeeze you dry.”

“Explode?”

“No, squeeze!”

Seeing Shen Xiyan’s speechless face, Qin Sheng couldn’t help laughing: “Forget it, I couldn’t bear to—I’d rather go slow and steady…”

“Hmm?”

For once, Shen Xiyan couldn’t keep up with Qin Sheng’s pace.

“Here! Have some popcorn.” Though the movie hadn’t started yet, Qin Sheng automatically lowered her voice.

In the dim light, her pretty fingers pinched a popcorn kernel and offered it to him, like a puppy trying to please its owner.

Shen Xiyan instinctively opened his mouth and chewed a couple of times.

“Is it sweet?”

“…Sweet.”

“I used this hand to wipe after using the bathroom earlier.”

“???”

“And the paper tore, sorry~~”

“???”