Cake Trap

The environment of the private restaurant was indeed elegant. The private room isolated them from all the noise outside, ensuring no irrelevant people would appear and there would be no interruptions.

After several rounds of dishes, the atmosphere of the birthday banquet reached its peak.

Lin Mo gestured to the waiter waiting outside the door. The latter understood and soon wheeled in a dining cart, upon which sat a birthday cake made by Chu Miaomiao herself.

"This is the birthday cake Miaomiao made herself this afternoon. How about it? Are you surprised?"

Upon seeing the cake, Chu Lintian was initially delighted. However, hearing that it was made by Chu Miaomiao, the smile on her face instantly froze.

It was a complex expression mixed with horror and deep anxiety, as if she were looking not at a dessert, but at some weapon of mass destruction.

After all, the last time Chu Miaomiao made a cake, the cloying sweetness that could choke a person to death had left her with a deep psychological shadow.

Lin Mo caught her fleeting stiffness, calmly cast her a glance, and silently mouthed two words.

"Don't worry."

Receiving Lin Mo's assurance, Chu Lintian's tense nerves relaxed slightly.

"Alright, alright, the birthday girl needs to make a wish and blow out the candles!" Xie Yuling had already started cheering.

Lin Mo took a candle from the cake box, inserted it, lit it, and then conveniently turned off the main lights in the private room.

In the dim space, only a warm cluster of flames danced, illuminating the distinct faces of the six people present.

"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you..."

Everyone tacitly sang the birthday song. The tune wasn't very accurate, but it revealed a sincere liveliness.

After the song, Chu Lintian blew out the candle.

As the singing faded, Chu Lintian closed her eyes, clasped her hands together, made a wish in the candlelight, and then blew out the candle in one breath.

"Wow, time to cut the cake!"

The lights came back on, and Xie Yuling was the first to cheer.

However, as the nominal protagonist, Chu Lintian held the cake knife, facing the perfect cream piping, but hesitated to cut into it, her eyes full of apprehension.

After a moment of hesitation, an idea suddenly came to her, and a proper smile reappeared on her face.

She carefully cut the first piece, held it steadily on a plate, and then, under everyone's gaze, solemnly handed it to Lin Mo.

"Let the first piece of cake go to Lin Mo, also to thank Lin Mo for protecting Miaomiao."

Her words sounded high-sounding and flawless.

Lin Mo's mind was as clear as a mirror; this woman was clearly using him as a guinea pig to test for poison.

On the surface, however, he showed a calm expression of well-deserved acceptance and gladly took it.

"Then I won't hold back."

Lin Mo trusted Chu Miaomiao's craftsmanship; after all, she had studied it for so long.

He cut off a corner with his fork.

The layered sponge cake and chocolate cream were clearly distinct. The moment it entered his mouth, the rich cocoa flavor instantly washed away the cloying sweetness of the cream, leaving only the perfect amount of mellowness and silkiness.

It had both the smoothness of cream and the mellowness of chocolate.

Among the birthday cakes Lin Mo had eaten, it was already top-tier.

But when he looked up, his expression changed.

His brow furrowed imperceptibly, and his chewing slowed down, as if he were tasting something indescribable.

He put down his fork, making a faint clinking sound, and looked at Chu Lintian with a complex expression.

"Sister Chu."

As soon as he spoke, everyone's eyes gathered on him.

"This cake... you really should taste it," Lin Mo said in a meaningful tone. "After all, it's a piece of Miaomiao's heart made by her own hands for you."

Hearing this, Chu Lintian felt a huge "Danger" sign suddenly pop up above her head.

Lin Mo's expression and tone were clearly telling her something was wrong.

She stiffly twitched the corners of her mouth and resignedly cut and distributed the cake to the others, skipping only herself.

This was a large two-pound cake, more than enough for six people.

Lin Mo slowly ate his portion, the curve of his mouth faint.

"Alright, as guests, it's enough for us to just have a taste."

He suddenly said, "The rest should rightfully be left to the birthday girl to finish. We can't steal the birthday girl's good fortune."

His look of having dug a pit and waiting for her to jump in made Chu Lintian's eyelids twitch violently.

On the table, the others hadn't had time to start eating yet, while Chu Miaomiao beside her was staring at her unblinkingly with a pair of sparkling, hopeful eyes.

That gaze was pure and passionate, full of a desire for approval.

Pincered by these stares, Chu Lintian knew she had no way of retreat.

She took a deep breath, her heart feeling tragic and solemn, possessing the resolute determination of a warrior marching to their doom.

Isn't it just bad-tasting! So be it!

She forcefully scooped a large spoonful of cake, closed her eyes, and shoved it into her mouth as if swallowing poison.

The anticipated disaster of cloying sweetness did not arrive.

Instead, the soft sponge cake and the mellow, slightly bitter chocolate cream danced on the tip of her tongue.

Sweet but not greasy, melting in the mouth.

Chu Lintian's eyes instantly widened.

She stood stunned in place for a full three seconds before slowly spitting out a few words.

"This... is way too delicious, right?"

Lin Mo looked like he had succeeded. "What? Did you think this was last year's cake?"

Chu Lintian immediately glared at Lin Mo.

The others looked over, somewhat bewildered.

"Lin Mo, what are you talking about?"

Lin Mo was just about to speak, but Chu Lintian had already pulled Chu Miaomiao over.

"Nothing, it's just that last year Miaomiao..."

After hearing Chu Lintian's explanation of the whole story, everyone became even more curious about the cake in their hands.

After tasting it, they found that the cake Chu Miaomiao made was indeed quite good.

After eating the cake, everyone prepared to leave.

The dishes tonight were indeed good, and it could be said that they enjoyed themselves thoroughly.

When they left, Lao Lu and Billy on the second floor had already gone.

Meanwhile, the family gathering on the first floor was still continuing.

When the six people went downstairs one after another, they saw Chen Yunli sitting in the living room.

"Auntie Lili, I'm leaving," Jiang Yunlu took the initiative to go up and hug Chen Yunli.

Chen Yunli reached out and rubbed Jiang Yunlu's head. "Hurry home, don't let your dad worry. After all, you are the apple of your dad's eye."

"Okay!"

After Jiang Yunlu finished speaking, she left together with the others.

At this time, Chu Lintian finally asked, "Classmate Yunlu, you actually know Boss Chen."

"Auntie Lili is a friend of my dad's. I used to come here to eat often."

"I see." Chu Lintian didn't think there was anything strange about it; after all, Jiang Yunlu's family was also quite wealthy.

Walking in the alley, Chu Lintian looked at Xie Yuling and Zheng Yuan.

"Let me give you a ride back."

"How could we impose?" Zheng Yuan waved her hand. "We can just take a taxi back ourselves."

"It's fine, driving is very fast. Lin Mo, you come along too."

However, Lin Mo waved his hand. "No need, I'll go back by myself and take a walk along the way."