Chapter 508 — Could You Sponsor Me a Little?

"Is that so? Then I'll have the pufferfish too!" Feng Xiaoxiao was hardly about to call out Wu Chengtian and Xiao Wangba's bluff. Instead she turned to Xiao Wangba and said, "Wangba, since you've even eaten a crested ibis, this pufferfish must be nothing special to you. Why not let me have it?"

"Huh?" Xiao Wangba had been drooling over the pufferfish for some time already, but Wu Chengtian had yet to lift his chopsticks, so he had not dared to help himself. Now that Feng Xiaoxiao had spoken up, he found himself caught squarely between a rock and a hard place.

"What's the matter, Wangba? Why the long face? Don't tell me you're reluctant to give it to me?" Feng Xiaoxiao blinked and gazed at Xiao Wangba with an air of innocent delight.

"Of course he's not reluctant—he's just astonished that you'd treat such rubbish as a treasure! Haha, isn't that right, Wangba?" Wu Chengtian shot Xiao Wangba another glare.

"Right, right!" Xiao Wangba's heart was bleeding. He could have slapped himself across the face—why did he have to open his big mouth?

"Brother Wang Dao doesn't want his either, does he? Give them all to me?" Feng Xiaoxiao asked.

Xiao Wangdao had been quietly congratulating himself on keeping his mouth shut, counting on a few good bites later, never imagining that his silence would prompt Feng Xiaoxiao to go on the offensive. Furious, he wanted to ask her whether she could even eat that much, but for Wu Chengtian's sake he could only part with his portion in pain. "Of course, take them all. But seafood is not something to be eaten in excess—too much and you'll be running to the toilet!"

"Oh, that's all right. A bad stomach is even better—once I've emptied myself out, I'll just keep eating!" Feng Xiaoxiao said in perfect earnest. "Makes room in my belly, doesn't it!"

"Pfft..." Wei Zhao nearly lost his composure. This Feng Xiaoxiao really was something—there was nothing she wouldn't say! Then again, she had even dared to walk into the men's room, so nothing about her should surprise him anymore. Still, seeing her today from the vantage of an onlooker, Wei Zhao had to admit that Feng Xiaoxiao did have a certain charm about her.

Wu Chengtian's appetite vanished in an instant. Gazing at the table of delicacies, he felt his stomach turn. Such a feast—and he had not even tasted any of it himself! Even if all the top-grade seafood went to Feng Xiaoxiao, surely he could at least enjoy the other signature dishes? But after Feng Xiaoxiao's talk of the toilet and running to empty herself out, how could he possibly get anything down?

Wu Chengtian was rather annoyed at himself for bringing the Xiao brothers along. What kind of creatures were these—more a hindrance than a help, a pair of idiots! On second thought, though, from another angle, having these two fools around was good practice for his improvisational skills in the art of showing off. Adversity breeds talent—there was a certain truth to that saying after all!

"You two aren't eating these lobsters either, right? Then give them to me as well!" Feng Xiaoxiao polished off three abalones in a couple of bites, and where she managed to put it all was anyone's guess. Even if seafood didn't take up much room, eating that much had to be a strain!

"Fine, take them all, but eat slowly!" Wu Chengtian said, then looked at Wei Zhao. "Brother Wei Zhao, it's not that I mean to criticize you, but you've been far too hard on your girlfriend, haven't you? How can you treat her like this?"

Wu Chengtian, in his excitement, had quite forgotten himself and went straight to showing off in front of Wei Zhao. It seemed he was so used to posturing that it now came out of his mouth as naturally as breathing.

"I'm poor. Why don't you sponsor me a little? Then I could treat her every day." Wei Zhao shrugged.

Only then did Wu Chengtian realize he had picked the wrong audience. How could he say such a thing to Wei Zhao? He regretted it at once, thinking to himself, am I an idiot? Sponsor you a little? What does it matter to me whether you can afford to treat her or not?

Out loud, however, Wu Chengtian could only say, "Ha, surely, surely. It'll be fine as long as we dine together often from now on!"

Feng Xiaoxiao, however, paid no heed to propriety. Working both hands at once, she went straight for whatever was tastiest, her little mouth glistening with grease. Before the red wine had even arrived, she had demolished two crabs, three lobsters, and three abalones—a pace that left everyone stunned.

At long last the red wine arrived, but half the seafood on the table had already fallen to Feng Xiaoxiao, leaving Wu Chengtian on the verge of tears. The wine was meant to be paired with the seafood—and now that the seafood was gone, what on earth was the point of drinking?

Once the waiter had poured the red wine for everyone, Wu Chengtian raised his glass with great ceremony. "Wei Zhao, come, let me toast you and Feng Xiaoxiao. May you two live happily together for a hundred years!"

"Oh, all right, just a moment—let me finish this crab claw first." Feng Xiaoxiao quickly finished a crab claw before raising her glass.

Wei Zhao saw Wu Chengtian give Xiao Wangba a meaningful look, and Xiao Wangba produced his phone, aiming it at Wei Zhao and Feng Xiaoxiao. Only then did Wei Zhao understand Wu Chengtian's intent! So the fellow meant to snap a photo of him and Feng Xiaoxiao together, did he?

Wei Zhao found it rather amusing. Once Wu Chengtian had the photo, he would surely take it to Sun Jingyan to show her Wei Zhao's true colors—little knowing that there had never been anything between Wei Zhao and Sun Jingyan in the first place, and that the boyfriend had been a stand-in all along!

The fellow had even gone to the trouble of treating them to a lavish meal. If he ever learned the truth, he would probably cry his eyes out, wouldn't he?

Now that he knew Wu Chengtian's purpose, Wei Zhao simply played along casually. After a few glasses of red wine, he suddenly felt his phone buzz in his pocket—he must have received a text message.

Wei Zhao casually fished out his phone and glanced at it, only to be rather surprised: the message was from Wang Xinyan—They're going to photograph you and Feng Xiaoxiao!

After reading the message, Wei Zhao cast a startled glance in Wang Xinyan's direction. He had not expected her to tip him off. Whose side was she on, exactly?

Wang Xinyan, however, was not looking his way at that moment; she still sat there quietly, touching nothing, as though none of this had anything to do with her.

Wei Zhao smiled faintly. It seemed Wang Xinyan's ties with Kang Jinglong, Wu Chengtian, and the rest were complicated indeed. He composed a reply: I know. What are you doing with them?

After sending it, Wang Xinyan did not check her phone at once. She waited a while before opening it, read the message, then tapped quickly at the keypad and put the phone away again.

Wei Zhao's phone buzzed. This time he followed Wang Xinyan's example, waiting a while before taking out his phone to read her message: My family wants me engaged to Kang Jinglong.

At that, Wei Zhao could not help frowning. Engaged to Kang Jinglong? Frankly, he did not want to see Wang Xinyan grow too close to the Kang family.

After all, he and Wang Xinyan had known each other for some time, and between them there was a certain faint, teasing spark of fate. Especially now that Wei Zhao and the Kang family had an irreconcilable blood feud—in his eyes the Kangs could fall at any moment, and naturally he did not want Wang Xinyan dragged down with them.