Tan Mo continuously drew in breaths as she ate.
Wei Zhiqian only focused on taking care of her and did not consume the food at all.
“Why are you eating non-stop when the food is so hot and spicy?” Wei Zhiqian let out a laugh.
“The addictiveness is in the spiciness. The hotter it is, the more you crave for it,” Tan Mo said while digging in. “The interesting part about the capsaicin in chili peppers is that it’s not a taste but a combination of a hot and pain sensation. The spiciness we feel when eating spicy food is technically just a pain signal sent by the nerves.”
“If we’re putting it this way, it seems like many of us are quite masochistic.” Ironically, all the mention about self-abuse didn’t stop her from doing the very thing she said.
After eating, Tan Mo gulped cold water to gargle her mouth and calm the pain sensation from consuming the spicy food.
Following that, they checked out of the hotel together.
Walking with Wei Zhiqian, Tan Mo came to his car’s front passenger door and was stunned upon seeing the rear seats.
There was an air mattress placed on top of it.
“What’s with that thing?” Tan Mo asked in surprise.
“I’ve had it for some time and have been keeping it in the trunk. I thought it’d be useful when the circumstance calls for it,” Wei Zhiqian explained with a broad smile. “The reason I asked you to go back in my car instead of the airplane was to let you have a comfortable ride home.
“When you sit in the back, you can stretch your entire body straight. Be it sleeping, playing games, or watching videos, it’ll be very comfy.”
On a second glance, it was indeed more comfortable than the business-class seats of the airplanes. After all, it could not allow her to roll on a flat surface like the inflatable bed.
“I should take the front seat.” Tan Mo turned to Wei Zhiqian and said, “You’ll be driving so I wanna keep you company.”
It’d be discourteous of her if she were to sit in the back by herself.
Besides, it would affect Wei Zhiqian’s driving to a certain extent should she fall asleep after getting tired from playing with her cellphone.
“It’ll always be better to have someone by your side talking to you while you drive,” Tan Mo said.
“Alright.” Wei Zhiqian went along with her good intention.
She had always been considerate toward him.
“You may sleep in the back if you’re feeling tired during the journey. You don’t have to accompany me all the way.” Wei Zhiqian wanted her to be as comfortable as possible during the ride. “I came here alone anyway. It’s not a big deal.”
Tan Mo thought, ‘Well, no one can keep you company since you came here by yourself. I mean, that’s the whole point, right?’
‘Now that I’m here, I’ll definitely be your companion while you drive us home.’
After Tan Mo gave him a half-hearted response, she swore to ensure that she would not fall asleep.
“Please drop by at a café if you see one. I wanna grab two cups of coffee for us to drink on the ride.” Fearing that she might accidentally doze off, she thought it’d be better to get caffeine into her system to be on the safer side.
“Sure thing.”
They didn’t come across any café during their journey.
Perhaps they might have accidentally driven past one with a discreet storefront or one with a store name that didn’t sound like a café.
However, they did come upon a conspicuous Starbucks coffeehouse sometime later.
After stopping his car in the parking lot, Wei Zhiqian went into the café with Tan Mo.
“What would you like to have?” Wei Zhiqian asked as he strolled toward the counter.
“I would like to have a cold brew with extra ice.” The scorching weather made Tan Mo feel aggravated, so she needed a cup of iced coffee to lower her body temperature. “Also, three extra pumps of syrup and whipped cream drizzle for me.”
Upon hearing that, Wei Zhiqian let out a chuckle. Why would she add so many things on top of a cold crew?
Nevertheless, he knew that she was not fond of bitter stuff, so she needed sugar to neutralize the bitterness of the coffee.
Following that, Wei Zhiqian started ordering at the counter.
He ordered a cup of cold brew for himself as well but without syrup or whipped cream.
After getting their coffees, they headed back to the car and continued their drive.
Sitting in the car, Tan Mo turned on the air-conditioner and took several sips of the cold brew with a satisfied look on her face.
“This is really better than traveling by airplane.” After all, she could do anything she liked in the car.
Wei Zhiqian turned to Tan Mo with a light smile and commented, “I’m glad to hear that.”
Halfway through their trip, they arrived at the highway service area. After stopping the car, they went to the restroom and stretched themselves for a bit.
“How long will it take us to reach B City from here?” Tan Mo questioned after getting out of the toilet.
Wei Zhiqian waited for her at the veranda outside.
“About two hours or so,” Wei Zhiqian responded after checking the time and distance.
It was 3 p.m., which meant they would arrive in B City by 5 p.m.
If one were to factor in the time to take her back to Beijing University, they would arrive by 6:30 p.m.
It was the season where days were long and nights were short. So, the sky would still be bright around 7 p.m.
As they wandered around together, they discovered many stalls selling all kinds of street food.
Wei Zhiqian would buy one for Tan Mo as long as she took an extra glance at it.
In no time, there was already a grilled sausage in her hand as she ate it.
In her left hand was a box full of octopus balls.
Wei Zhiqian was holding a bag of monjayaki in his left hand for her and a cup filled with a bunch of deep-fried pork skewers in his right hand.
Sighting a stall selling pan-grilled duck intestines, Tan Mo gazed at it with curiosity. Noticing that, Wei Zhiqian headed toward it to get her a serving. He was halted by the one who mentioned, who garbled with her mouth full of grilled sausage while waving her hand at him, “Wait a second. It’s already enough.”
After removing the remaining part of the sausage from her mouth, she added, “I’ve got more than enough already. Plus, we’ve only got about three hours left until we reach Beijing University.
“Besides, didn’t you already prepare a variety of snacks in the car for me?”
Speaking of which, it was something Wei Zhiqian had learned from Qin Mufeng.
Back when the former took a ride in the latter’s car, he noticed a constant supply of snacks reserved for Qin Muye stored inside all of the time.
At that moment, Wei Zhiqian was frustrated about why such a thing never crossed his mind.
To think that he was less attentive than Qin Mufeng.
Since then, he always made sure he prepared snacks in his car for Tan Mo.
Inside the car, Tan Mo took out the basket Wei Zhiqian provided for her in advance.
He was always such an observant person.
Since the basket was empty, she could place all the street food she bought earlier inside.
With that, she left it on top of the air mattress that was at the rear seats. She could turn around to grab something once she finished eating the ones in her hand.
Throughout the journey, Tan Mo did not go to the backseat. She had been sitting in the front seat.
After she finished drinking her coffee, she got herself a cup of milk tea from the rest area.
With a collection of food and beverages in the car, a blend of mixed aromas filled the atmosphere.
With Tan Mo by his side to exchange small talk, Wei Zhiqian was more awake than ever. He was not fatigued even in the slightest.
The traffic in B City that day was relatively smooth.
By 6:40 p.m., their car arrived at the main entrance of Beijing University.
Initially, Wei Zhiqian planned to take Tan Mo for dinner before taking her back.
She was not hungry since she had been munching food in the car the entire journey. In fact, she felt a little bloated and didn’t feel like eating at all. Thus, he took her straight to the campus.
“Take all this with you.” Wei Zhiqian packed the snacks he prepared for her to let her carry them back. “You might not be hungry now, but it’d be troublesome when you are starving at night. By that time, it’d be after the dormitory curfew, so you couldn’t even get food delivery from outside.”
Upon hearing that, Tan Mo grabbed the bag of snacks with gleaming eyes and exclaimed, “That’s very thoughtful of you!”
