Look at This Pancake, It's So Big and Round

In an inconspicuous corner of the classroom.

The person originally wearing gloves and eating a chicken drumstick had changed from Shen Qinghan to Ye Cheng.

Shen Qinghan had only taken a few bites before losing her appetite and told Ye Cheng to take care of the food.

By "take care," Shen Qinghan meant to throw it away.

But for Ye Cheng, "take care" meant eating it, which led to the current scene.

Only after Ye Cheng started eating did Shen Qinghan realize something was off, but by then it was too late to stop him.

If she had spoken up, it should have been right at the start.

Saying anything now would make her seem petty.

She didn’t care about others’ opinions, but somehow, being looked at this way by Ye Cheng made her feel a little annoyed.

In the end, Shen Qinghan silently endured without showing any reaction.

Ye Cheng munched on the chicken drumstick beside her, while Shen Qinghan propped her head up and read her book—the scene was quite peaceful.

This harmony was broken as classmates gradually returned to the classroom.

Whispers and curious voices began to spread.

“Yesterday they ate together, and today again. Could those two possibly be...?”

“No way. Didn’t she just confess to President Dongfang? How could she switch so fast to the young master of the Shen family?”

“Maybe they’re just friends?”

“Friends with ‘benefits,’ you mean?”

“Stop talking, she’s looking this way. Her gaze is fierce—let’s go…”

A female classmate who had been gossiping was shooed away by Shen Qinghan’s sharp look.

Shen Qinghan withdrew her gaze and turned it toward Ye Cheng, who was still stubbornly focused on the braised chicken leg.

“Is this thing really that good?” Shen Qinghan asked.

She noticed Ye Cheng always liked to eat these meat-heavy foods.

With a chicken drumstick stuffed into his mouth, Ye Cheng said, “It’s delicious. How could it not be? They sell these for five yuan each outside.”

Of course, that wasn’t the real reason.

The truth was, when he was a kid, food was scarce. The meals at the orphanage weren’t exactly great—just edible, nothing more.

The only thing that was somewhat special was the braised chicken drumstick handed out every few months. Every child would get one, but Ye Cheng usually didn’t eat his, saving it for a little girl with poor health.

She was often sick, and because of her condition, the orphanage spent a lot of money on her care. She would always eat less, thinking it would save the orphanage some money.

But being already weak and eating less created a vicious cycle.

Ye Cheng couldn’t stand it, so he’d coax the not-so-bright little girl to eat more.

His excuse was always that he didn’t like it, so she could eat it without guilt.

As for Ye Cheng himself… he wouldn’t neglect his own needs. After convincing the little girl, he’d line up for food again, claiming he had just come back from the bathroom and missed the meal.

The same went for the chicken drumsticks that came every few months—he used the same trick to get her to eat them.

But they were just kids; how could they not want to eat? Ye Cheng was simply holding back.

The things a young boy can’t have will haunt him for life.

Though Ye Cheng’s situation wasn’t that severe, his habits of not wasting food and loving chicken drumsticks had been etched into his bones.

Now he had endless chicken drumsticks, able to eat as many as he wanted every day.

The only pity was that he never saw that silly little girl again.

Shen Qinghan calmly looked at Ye Cheng.

In her mind, she recalled the information she had seen about Ye Cheng the previous night.

She guessed that Ye Cheng’s current behavior was probably related to his childhood experiences.

“That makes sense. You should eat more,” Shen Qinghan’s usually cold voice sounded a bit softer.

After saying that, Shen Qinghan stopped paying attention to Ye Cheng and went back to reading her philosophy book.

Ye Cheng happily ate on the side.

As for the whispers and strange looks from those around them, neither of them cared. They got along very well.

…

Evening.

“All right, that’s it for today’s class. Everyone, go home early and get some rest. Class dismissed.”

Within less than a minute, most of the students had left the classroom.

But Ye Cheng was still being held hostage by some gang leader’s daughter.

“Miss, the cafeteria is open now,” Ye Cheng’s helpless voice came from nearby.

“I have something I need your help with today,” Shen Qinghan said calmly, grabbing Ye Cheng’s hand firmly without any intention of letting go.

She had already grabbed Ye Cheng’s hand five minutes before class ended.

Shen Qinghan knew very well that if she was even a little slower, Ye Cheng would have disappeared.

He was like a flash of smoke, gone in an instant.

Never underestimate Ye Cheng’s enthusiasm for eating.

“I have things to do too. How about next time, for sure?” Ye Cheng started making empty promises again.

Making empty promises was Ye Cheng’s specialty.

Sometimes when he was desperate, he even fooled himself with these promises.

Like telling himself that after finishing these last few hours of work, he’d get a promotion and raise; the factory boss’s daughter would happen to see his charming and handsome self while he was loading goods on the conveyor belt, fall deeply for him, and they’d start a beautiful romance.

In the end, Ye Cheng realized it was just a fantasy before he was exhausted to death being treated like a forklift.

Ye Cheng could even fool himself when he was ruthless.

His skilled art of making empty promises didn’t work this time in front of the scheming girl.

No matter what Ye Cheng said, she wouldn’t let go, nor did she lift her foot.

She pressed the back of Ye Cheng’s foot with her little black leather shoe.

They were stuck like this for about five minutes until Ye Cheng finally gave in first.

“Fine, I’ll go with you, but you have to treat me to a meal. The cafeteria’s charity window will close soon, and I’ll have nothing to eat,” Ye Cheng laid out his terms.

Shen Qinghan said calmly, “According to our previous agreement, you can’t bargain with me. You have to listen to me.”

“Agreement? What agreement? Words mean nothing. Miss, you always need proof for everything you say and do. Where’s the evidence? Show me,” Ye Cheng acted like a stubborn old debtor.

He thought this would make the cold girl back down and agree to treat him.

But the calm girl didn’t flinch at all. It seemed she had already anticipated Ye Cheng’s slippery behavior and silently pulled out her phone.

She opened a recording and pressed play.

“I, Ye Cheng, hereby make the following promise to comply with the agreed terms…”

Ye Cheng: “???”

Dude, are you Doraemon or what? How do you always manage to pull stuff out of nowhere?

Is this reasonable?

After the recording finished playing, a few more minutes passed. The girl put away her phone and continued tugging at Ye Cheng with her little paws.

“Let’s go. Move faster, or there won’t be any good spots left later.”

Shen Qinghan stood up, limping a couple of steps before stopping.

Her gaze landed once again on Ye Cheng, who was already dumbfounded.

A flicker of light flashed briefly in Shen Qinghan’s calm eyes.

“Crouch down and carry me on your back,” the girl’s sweet voice echoed in his ears.

Ye Cheng: “...”