Chapter 166: Who Do You Want to Tame?

After the two single girls were given a swift kick at the airport, they remained just as enthusiastic as ever and arranged the welcome dinner at a popular Western-style restaurant.

The four of them sat in pairs, facing one another.

At first, no one spoke. Although the chief instructor had only trained them for a little over ten days, the habits formed during military training had left them instinctively afraid of him, as though that fear were carved into their bones.

That day, he wore a gray knit sweater beneath a black trench coat that fell beautifully around him. It accentuated his broad shoulders and back, giving him an aloof, aristocratic air—and a distinctly sensual coldness.

Zhou Tingting and Hu Qiuyue secretly studied him from across the table for quite some time. The longer they looked, the more they felt that Lu Qingyue had truly struck gold to have found such an exceptional man.

The waiter brought over the menus, finally breaking the silence in their little corner.

As the only man present, Cheng Xingye naturally took the menus from the waiter. He slid one toward the two girls opposite them and handed the other to Lu Qingyue.

He was tall, with long legs. Once he lazily settled into his chair, his legs had no choice but to splay slightly to either side, inevitably brushing against Lu Qingyue’s.

As he rubbed against her, seemingly by accident, their body heat faintly mingling, the rebellious and mischievous streak buried in Lu Qingyue’s bones suddenly emerged again.

She realized that she really did love teasing Cheng Xingye.

Even though he always made her pay dearly in the end, she still enjoyed watching a meaningful smile rise on his usually impassive face as he told her, half helpless and half threatening, “That’s enough…”

So, without the slightest concern for the two single girls sitting opposite them, Lu Qingyue took her menu and leaned toward him affectionately. In a soft, coquettish voice, she asked,

“Big brother, what would you like to eat?”

Zhou Tingting: “…”

Hu Qiuyue: “…”

Cheng Xingye: “…”

The three of them fell silent at once, staring in unison at the culprit.

After several speechless seconds, Cheng Xingye could not resist raising a hand to pinch her cheek.

“That’s enough…”

The pinch puffed up the soft flesh of Lu Qingyue’s cheek.

She neither became angry nor annoyed. Instead, she stared at him with a bright smile. Holding the menu up to conceal her face, she placed her other hand on his knee, her fingers twitching with mischief, and deliberately asked in a lowered voice,

“Would you like some oysters? You’ve worked so hard these past few days. Should I give you something nourishing?”

Cheng Xingye lowered his eyes and glanced at her, pretending not to understand.

“What have I worked hard at these past few days?”

They had been busy studying for their exams and had barely seen each other. Their last intimate encounter had probably been a week ago.

But Lu Qingyue looked at him with shining eyes, a sly glint in their depths, and asked in exaggerated surprise,

“Studying for the final exams isn’t hard work?”

Cheng Xingye: “…”

He knew it. This little troublemaker was being naughty again.

The two girls across from them kept their heads lowered over the menus, but their gazes drifted toward the couple every now and then.

Clearly, this was not the right time to deal with the little rascal.

Cheng Xingye sighed silently to himself. Beneath the table, he took hold of her hand and seemingly carelessly pulled it out of his trouser pocket. With a smile that was not quite a smile, he murmured,

“Have I gone too long without disciplining you? Your tail is practically sticking straight up into the sky.”

Lu Qingyue blinked at him and gave a wicked little giggle.

“That wouldn’t be very nice, would it? Why is disciplining me all you ever think about?”

As she spoke, her hand once again crept onto his leg.

Her delicate, boneless hand was soft as cotton candy, brushing against the fabric of his trousers once, then again, until he suddenly caught it off guard and folded it into his palm.

All around them, the other diners were eating quietly. Seated in the window alcove, the two of them intertwined their fingers in an intimate, secretive gesture.

He cast her a calm glance, then used his knuckles to force her fingers apart and slid his own between them, locking their hands together.

Only then did he raise his hand to shield his chin. From an angle no one else could see, he replied in a low, languid voice,

“Save your energy for tonight. I’m afraid you’ll cry until you’re hoarse.”

…

Zhou Tingting and Hu Qiuyue had not expected to be stuffed full of romantic affection before they had even ordered their food.

The menu in their hands suddenly seemed to have lost all appeal.

Hu Qiuyue watched the young couple’s sweet interactions with astonishment while lowering her voice to sigh,

“So it’s true that one more year of hard work gets you eight male models. Look at Yueyue’s boyfriend. Isn’t he worth far more than eight male models?”

Zhou Tingting regretted it so much that her guts practically turned green.

“Would it still be possible for me to go back and repeat my final year of high school?”

That was what she said, but everyone knew that Lu Qingyue’s ability to find such an outstanding boyfriend ultimately came down to the fact that she herself deserved one.

Lu Qingyue was not the typical top student people imagined.

She was beautiful, and she had been born with the kind of natural advantage that meant she could save herself several years of struggle. Yet she had never relaxed because of it. During her final year of high school, she had worked herself nearly to exhaustion.

She had grown, step by step, through her own efforts into a dazzling and remarkable young woman. With a man as exceptional as her, was there anyone she could not choose?

Zhou Tingting and Hu Qiuyue were envious and jealous, but at the same time, they were genuinely happy for their friend.

The meal lasted for more than two hours.

Throughout it, the three girls chattered nonstop. Cheng Xingye occasionally joined in when the conversation touched on him, but most of the time he simply sat beside them and listened. His large hand rested casually beneath the table, absentmindedly kneading the soft flesh of Lu Qingyue’s palm.

He liked holding her hand that way. His girl might be mischievous, but she was truly adorable.

Everything about her was small. Her hand resting in his palm seemed not even half the size of it. Squeezing it felt like kneading dough, and the sensation was strangely addictive.

Lu Qingyue was too engrossed in talking with her friends to notice much of what Cheng Xingye was doing with her hand.

Hu Qiuyue and Zhou Tingting, however, saw everything. After finally managing to finish their meal as two long-suffering, perpetually single women, they were once again forced to swallow a huge helping of romantic affection.

When it seemed that everyone had eaten enough, Cheng Xingye finally rose and went to the restroom.

The moment he left, Lu Qingyue became the center of a storm of gossip.

Zhou Tingting and Hu Qiuyue had been agonizing over one question all evening. Now that they had finally found their opportunity, they eagerly leaned across the table and asked in hushed, excited voices,

“Have you two… done it?”

Lu Qingyue froze with her hands around her glass.

“How did you know?”

At first, Zhou Tingting and Hu Qiuyue had only been guessing. They had never expected to be right, and their eyes widened in disbelief.

Zhou Tingting clicked her tongue disdainfully, almost reaching across to pinch Lu Qingyue’s cheek.

“Your hand was practically inside his trousers. Did you think we were blind?”

Lu Qingyue: “…”

When had she done that?

But before she could indignantly defend herself, Hu Qiuyue cut in, brimming with curiosity.

“Is Instructor Brother good in bed?”

Lu Qingyue was just about to take a drink and nearly spat it out.

Girls! Did they really have to be so direct?

Neither Zhou Tingting nor Hu Qiuyue had ever been in a relationship. They had never even seen a man’s body, let alone touched one.

At an age when they were overflowing with curiosity about the opposite sex, Lu Qingyue—who was the only one among them with any firsthand experience—naturally became the outlet for all their questions. There was no way they were going to let her off easily.

Lu Qingyue looked at their inquisitive, gossip-hungry eyes and seriously considered the question before answering,

“He’s all right… He’s just a little too domineering. He doesn’t listen very well.”

Several times, he had deliberately continued even after she said she had had enough. Just thinking about it made Lu Qingyue a little annoyed.

Zhou Tingting and Hu Qiuyue exchanged a thoughtful glance and murmured an understanding “Oh.”

Being disobedient was normal, after all.

The chief instructor looked like a rather aloof man. Rich and handsome, he certainly was not the sort to obediently do whatever a woman told him simply because they were dating.

Seeing Lu Qingyue puff out her cheeks, clearly dissatisfied, Zhou Tingting kindly comforted her.

“Men are all like that at first. You have to preserve his dignity when you’re out in public. As long as he listens to you at home, that’s what matters.”

Clutching her glass, Lu Qingyue nodded and agreed in a small voice.

“Don’t worry. I’ll train him properly.”

The instant she finished speaking, a faint shadow fell over the top of her head.

“Who are you planning to train?”

Lu Qingyue: “…”