We Barely Know Each Other, but I'm Living with a Stone-Faced Mechanic! - Chapter 15

Tao Ying had been on plenty of blind dates. Other men had declared they liked her immediately, just as Zhou Tao did.

But his gaze was honest and every thought showed on his face, making him easy to read.

She didn’t dislike him. She smiled. “You seem nice.”

Zhou Tao lit up. As if granted new confidence, he pointed to the car behind him.

“I bought that when I was in university. I’ll get a new one when I marry. I have an apartment too, at Shengjing Huafu. It’s a hundred and eighty-eight square meters—just over two thousand square feet—and fully renovated. The furniture and decor just haven’t arrived yet.”

He laid everything out immediately—his job, salary, and plans for the future.

Tao Ying listened quietly. Thirsty, she pressed her lips together without thinking.

“Do you have any hobbies, Ms. Tao?”

She shook her head. “I’m rather boring. I usually stay home during holidays.”

“That’s fine.” Zhou Tao’s face brightened. “I have lots of hobbies—basketball, swimming, running, all sorts of things. I can take you.”

Tao Ying smiled. She suspected her spirit might be willing, but her body would refuse. She hated exercise.

“When the weather’s nice, I hike too. Are you busy lately, Ms. Tao?”

Afraid he would invite her hiking, Tao Ying nodded quickly. “Busy.”

“Then…” Zhou Tao ran out of questions. “Is there anything you’d like to ask me?”

There was. Tao Ying looked up. “Can you cook?”

“Uh…” He paused, then smiled sheepishly. “No.”

“Neither can I.”

“We can eat at the cafeteria. The food there isn’t bad.”

Tao Ying nodded.

Behind them, Qin Zheng heard the answer and shook his head with a smile.

He took two bottles of water from his SUV and walked over.

Catching his figure at the edge of her vision, Tao Ying rose instinctively.

Zhou Tao turned too. “Is it done, Boss Qin?”

“Done.” Qin Zheng handed them each a bottle. “It’s warm today. Have some water.”

Zhou Tao accepted his and thanked him.

Tao Ying hadn’t taken hers yet. Qin Zheng extended it closer. “It’s only a bottle of water, Ms. Tao.”

Only then did she accept. “Thank you.”

Qin Zheng pointed behind him and told Zhou Tao, “The battery’s been replaced. You just need to pay.”

“Thanks, Boss Qin. Let’s add each other on WeChat.” Zhou Tao took out his phone.

Tao Ying’s brow twitched. Was he going to buy a prepaid package at Qin Zheng’s shop too?

Qin Zheng scanned Zhou Tao’s QR code. Then his gaze drifted toward Tao Ying, seemingly by accident. “I’ll be going.”

“Don’t leave yet.” Zhou Tao felt indebted after all his help. “It’s already noon. Let’s eat together. My treat.”

“No need. I have something to do.” Qin Zheng said, “Another time.”

Since he was busy, Zhou Tao couldn’t insist. He walked Qin Zheng a few steps toward his car. “All right. I’ll treat you next time.”

“Goodbye, Ms. Tao.” Qin Zheng smiled, turned, and got into his SUV.

Watching it recede, Tao Ying finally relaxed.

She didn’t know why she could never feel at ease in front of Qin Zheng.

After paying, Zhou Tao took her to a nearby mall for lunch.

Throughout the meal, he kept asking about Qin Zheng. First he praised him as a thoroughly good man, then asked whether Tao Ying knew him well.

“Not well.” Tao Ying suspected Zhou Tao had nothing else to discuss.

“He seems very warmhearted, and he’s handsome. From what I know of my students, plenty of girls must talk about him.”

Tao Ying had no answer.

It wasn’t only students. Her female colleagues discussed him often enough too.

Lunch lasted an hour and twenty minutes. They spent an hour of it talking about Qin Zheng.

Exhausted, Tao Ying said goodbye as soon as they left the restaurant.

“Did I do something wrong, Ms. Tao?” Zhou Tao looked alarmed. He had wanted to invite her to a movie that afternoon.

“I’m a little tired. Work was busy recently, and I haven’t rested properly.”

“Then I’ll take you home.”

“All right.”

Once home, Tao Ying changed into lounge clothes, removed her makeup, and slept on the sofa until dark.

Her head spun when she woke, and she needed a long while to recover.

The refrigerator was empty, and the kitchen spotless. Starving, Tao Ying went downstairs for a bowl of wontons. She had a small appetite. Finishing even the broth left her uncomfortably full, so she walked along the street for a while.

Shu Ran called as she was about to go home.

“How was your blind date?”

Shu Ran was Tao Ying’s only true confidante. Naturally, Tao Ying hid nothing from her. But remembering the day’s events, she suddenly laughed.

“What are you laughing at?” Shu Ran asked.

“If I tell you I ran into Qin Zheng during my blind date, you’ll laugh too.”

“You ran into Boss Qin?” It took Shu Ran a moment to process. “Wait. Your blind date wasn’t Qin Zheng, was it?”

“What are you imagining?” Shu Ran’s fantasies were even wilder than hers. Tao Ying laughed. “I said Qin Zheng happened to show up while I was on a blind date.”

“Most people never encounter coincidences that unlikely.”

Tao Ying summarized what had happened, setting Shu Ran off again.

“This Zhou Tao is so dense. If I didn’t know he was meeting you, I’d think he was a matchmaker trying to set you up with Boss Qin. Who spends a blind date talking to the woman about another man? I can’t believe him.”

Still chatting, Tao Ying entered her building.

Holding the phone made it difficult to use the flashlight, so she climbed in the dark.

Shu Ran’s hearing was sharp. Catching the sounds, she said, “Get inside first. That stairwell of yours is pitch-black. I’m hanging up.”

“All right.”

Tao Ying swiped the screen and was about to turn on the flashlight when a dark figure loomed over her.

Her scalp prickled. Her knees weakened, and she fell back against the peeling white wall.

“Did I frighten you, Ms. Tao?” The man blocking the way switched on his phone light. It was the upstairs neighbor.

Tao Ying did not relax. Forcing herself to remain composed, she pulled at the corner of her lips. “It’s fine.”

“Just getting back?”

“Yes.” She tightened her grip on the phone.

“Your boyfriend didn’t bring you home?”

Boyfriend?

Tao Ying rolled the word silently over her tongue and realized he meant Qin Zheng.

Zhou Tao had driven her back that afternoon, but she had asked him to stop at the complex entrance. The neighbor probably hadn’t seen him.

Always cautious, Tao Ying exhaled slowly and answered as naturally as possible. “He had something to do today.”

“No matter what came up, he shouldn’t let such a beautiful girlfriend feel her way home in the dark.” The man made what he apparently considered a joke.

Tao Ying’s brows drew tight. Most people would have stepped aside by now instead of keeping her trapped in conversation.

Especially when they barely knew each other.

“He’s viewing an apartment.” Tao Ying forced herself to meet his gaze, her own eyes cool. “He’ll be here soon.”

She searched his face for some reaction, but found nothing. Instead, he smiled.

“Viewing an apartment? Are you getting married? Do you need wedding favors? My family produces honey. You could use it for the gift boxes.”

He did carry the sweet scent of honey. One taut nerve inside Tao Ying loosened.

“I need to discuss it with my boyfriend.”

“Of course.” The man finally stepped aside.

Once inside her apartment, Tao Ying fully relaxed.

She thought the matter was over. But just before bed, someone suddenly knocked on her door.

From the sound of it, the visitor was still her upstairs neighbor.