Husband, Hungry, Eat! Chapter 129 Part 1

Chapter 129: Extra Story 2

Qi Cheng sent Lu Yang a WeChat message, suggesting they meet up for lunch. He didn't mention that he was already waiting right outside the medical university gate, afraid that Lu Yang would feel awkward—though he wasn't sure why that would even be awkward.

Maybe it was because Liu Sinian and Lu Yang were friends? They seemed pretty close?

The way he'd just called Liu Sinian crazy right to his face—you only talk like that with someone you're really close to. Otherwise, you'd just make an enemy. That was just how Qi Cheng was. But then he thought again—Lu Yang didn't seem like that type.

Xiao Lu would curse anyone out if they rubbed him the wrong way.

So are Xiao Lu and Liu Sinian actually a thing?

Or are they really just regular friends?

Qi Cheng thought about it for a moment. On WeChat, Lu Yang replied saying okay and that he'd reach out after class. Qi Cheng didn't want to disturb Lu Yang during class, so he sent an OK hand sign and killed over an hour playing on his phone in the car.

He played a few rounds of Honor of Kings and spent some money on it. His luck was great today—he got a Crystal in just over seventy draws.

He even posted it on social media to show off his good luck!

His husband even liked the post and commented that he did great. Qi Cheng giggled happily and went to bother his working husband with a voice message: "Today, after I dropped off Fanfan, I went to the hos—I mean, the medical university."

He almost slipped up and said hospital!

Bai Zongyin pretended not to notice and just nodded, saying okay, and asked if he'd eaten breakfast.

"I had some milk and a salted egg yolk sandwich. It was pretty good—the fried egg was a little crispy, and the salted egg yolk wasn't too salty but really fragrant…"

Just little everyday things. After Qi Cheng finished chattering, he reminded his husband to eat lunch soon too and to go easy on the coffee. Bai Zongyin agreed to everything, said his assistant had already ordered his lunch, and that he'd eat in a bit.

The couple chatted for a while longer, then Lu Yang's call came in. Qi Cheng immediately said goodbye to his husband.

"Eat well at lunch. No rush coming back—take your time and have fun. Drive safe," Bai Zongyin reminded him.

"Got it, husband! Love you!"

After hanging up with his husband, Qi Cheng tried calling Lu Yang back, but the line was busy. Qi Cheng figured Lu Yang was calling him, so he stopped trying and waited for the incoming call. But after three or four minutes with no call, he tried again—still busy.

???

Luckily, within two minutes, Lu Yang called him.

"Who were you on the phone with?" Qi Cheng asked casually.

Lu Yang: "No one. Anyway, where are you? I'll come find you."

"I'm at your school gate. Come on out."

In less than ten minutes, Lu Yang came running out. Qi Cheng unlocked the passenger door and said, "No rush, I've got nothing going on. So, what do you want to eat? I'm hungry—how about hotpot?"

Qi Cheng was a little excited. He hadn't had spicy hotpot in a while and was kind of craving it.

"The nine-grid Sichuan-style hotpot near your school is so authentic—especially the fresh duck blood—"

Lu Yang's mouth twitched. Eating a spicy hotpot would be a death sentence for him right now. He casually interrupted: "I've been having some internal heat issues lately. How about we eat something else? If you really want hotpot, let's do a half-and-half pot."

That wasn't the Xiao Lu he knew! Last time they went to that hotpot place, Qi Cheng wanted to order a half-and-half pot, but Lu Yang had firmly insisted that the authentic way was the nine-grid red oil pot—that was the only way it tasted good, and a half-and-half just ruined the flavor.

Qi Cheng gave Lu Yang a suspicious look.

Lu Yang coughed and said, "I've got exams coming up. I've been studying hard and writing papers, so my body's all overheated from stress—I really can't handle spicy food."

"Then let's skip hotpot. Let's get something cooling instead. Let me think…" Qi Cheng felt bad for doubting Lu Yang—he must be thinking too much like a gay guy. He opened a food app and searched for nearby healthy meal places.

The kind that weren't cheap. He booked a table immediately!

After securing the reservation, Qi Cheng drove over and said, "Don't burn yourself out studying. I could use some good food to nourish myself too. And I've got good news today, so it's my treat."

Lu Yang breathed a quiet sigh of relief, gave an "mm," and didn't argue about paying. Because his phone kept buzzing in his pocket—he knew without even looking that that person was being all fussy again. He glanced sideways at Qi Cheng first—good, he was focused on driving and not paying attention.

He pulled out his phone and sure enough, there was a string of messages.

—Don't eat hotpot or spicy stuff—too irritating.

—I made some soup for you. Come home and drink it.

—And don't run around too much. Don't be stubborn and save face.

—After you eat and Qi Cheng leaves, call me. I'll bring you some fruit.

—Don't worry, it's already cut up—no hassle for you.

Lu Yang: …

Lu Yang: I'm calling you 'Mom' now. Stop nagging.

A reply came back quickly: That's not what you were calling me in bed last night.

Lu Yang thought of last night and muttered a curse under his breath. Qi Cheng didn't catch it. "Huh?"

"Nothing. I'm messaging a professor back."

"Oh, okay, go ahead. Your school is that strict? Sounds tough."

Lu Yang: Shut up! Just wait till I get back.

Reply: Alright, I'll wait for Xiao Lu to come home.

—There, there. Don't be mad. I'll make you your favorite spicy hotpot tonight.

Lu Yang: That's more like it—

—"Bone broth with three fresh ingredients? Or do you prefer tomato?"

Lu Yang: ??? You call that spicy hot pot? Say the first word again. Bone-broth-three-delicacy hot pot—how is that even spicy hot pot?

—How about mildly spicy? Baby, don't be mad. There, there.

The moment Lu Yang saw "baby," his ears went red despite himself. He instinctively pressed the voice button and said "Shut up," then quickly shoved the phone back in his pocket and acted like nothing happened.

Qi Cheng stared at him in total disbelief: "??? You actually told your professor to shut up?"

What kind of student is Xiao Lu???!!!

"I'm calling you 'Brother Lu' now. I totally believe you used to be the school bully," Qi Cheng murmured.

Lu Yang: …

"No, it was a professor's assistant—a senior student. He's usually annoying, and I just couldn't hold back…" Lying really was a mistake—the more he explained, the more he dug himself in.

Qi Cheng: "That's still not great. What if he bad-mouths you to your professor? He's both a student and an assistant—he's definitely closer to the professor than you are…"

Lu Yang: despair.

The topic finally died when they arrived at the restaurant. Qi Cheng had booked a private room at a Cantonese place—pretty mild flavors. After they ordered, Lu Yang said, "So, did you have something to tell me?" Otherwise, just the two of them wouldn't need a private room.

Qi Cheng broke into a mysterious smile: "Yeah. I'm pregnant."

Lu Yang was pouring tea and nearly spilled it all over his hand.

They wanted to talk privately, so they didn't have a waiter hovering, and the meal was pretty casual. Qi Cheng handed him a napkin. Lu Yang said, "Don't get up—just stay put. I'll clean it up."

"I'm not that delicate," Qi Cheng said, settling back into his seat.

Lu Yang didn't comment on that. "You're pregnant—have you told Mr. Bai yet?"

"Nope." Qi Cheng took a sip of his hot tea and told Lu Yang not to panic—just sit down, have some tea, and hear him out. Lu Yang wiped up the mess, picked up his cup, took a drink, and settled into a "I'm all ears" posture.

Qi Cheng: "I'm planning to run away with the baby—"

"Pfft—" Lu Yang choked and coughed, grabbing a napkin to cover his mouth. "What are you trying to do?"

"Run away with the baby?" Qi Cheng looked confused, not understanding why Lu Yang reacted so strongly. It took him three seconds to realize why, and he laughed: "Don't get worked up—you misunderstood. I'm not actually going to run away. I just…"

When he told Lu Yang about his plan to "run away with the ball" to give the little one an intelligence boost, Lu Yang's face said it all: despair.

[Ball in Chinese slang is used to refer to a pregnant belly]

Lu Yang remembered that his friend, despite being nicknamed "Silly Sweet," had never been stupid—just naive. But now? Lu Yang didn't want to think badly of his friend, so he just quietly blamed Bai Zongyin. Bai Zongyin spoiled Qi Cheng way too much.