The Nutrition is Too Good - Chap 13.1
So they ate peacefully and harmoniously for a while.
The orange light inside the room was warm and tranquil, creating an atmosphere of perfect coziness.
However, Zhong Yi felt overwhelmed.
Rong Mian seemed to care a lot about whether Zhong Yi was eating well. So every time he finished a piece of fish, he would raise his head and stare straight at Zhongyi’s face.
Under his gaze, Zhong Yi had no choice but to pick up his chopsticks and force himself to put the raw fish into his mouth, pretending to enjoy it and show that he was eating well.
Zhong Yi felt that if he continued eating like this, he might really have an upset stomach when he got home.
Unable to bear it any longer, he called the waiter over and asked if they had any sake1.
The waiter respectfully listed the types of alcohol available, and Zhong Yi randomly ordered a glass, thinking of having a few sips to warm his stomach. He then glanced at the person sitting opposite him and casually asked, “Would you like a glass too?”
“I don’t want to drink.”
Rong Mian quickly replied, “Sandou said that alcohol is poisonous.”
Kong Sandou had repeatedly advised Rong Mian with great concern, emphasizing the importance of protecting oneself when one is striving alone outside. He told her to be cautious before eating or drinking anything, especially to avoid consuming alcohol.
She explained that animals have a different physiology than humans. Their alcohol metabolism is slower, and getting drunk can easily lead to babbling and discomfort.
Rong Mian listened, somewhat understanding, and knew that not drinking was the right choice.
“Indeed, alcohol is not good for the body, that’s for sure,” Zhong Yi calmly remarked. “But drinking alcohol is also a form of socializing. Of course, I don’t recommend you drink too much of the white or red wine. However, occasionally having a glass of this kind of sake to warm the stomach can actually be good for the body.”
Rong Mian stared at him, half-believing and half-doubting.
“I don’t want to,” he said.
“Moreover, pairing alcohol with meat can enhance its deliciousness,” Zhong Yi continued, pretending not to hear him. He let out a soft sigh and said, “But if you really don’t want to drink, I won’t force you. In that case—”
“—Please bring me a glass as well.”
Rong Mian raised his head and politely said to the waiter, “Thank you.”
The drink arrived quickly.
Zhong Yi, on the other hand, enjoyed a small sip and felt that his stomach had warmed up quite a bit.
However, the person across from him, Rong Mian, was clearly the opposite: he looked at the drink in his hand as if facing a formidable enemy, brought his face close to it for a while, and cautiously sniffed it.
Rong Mian hesitated and lowered his head, first tentatively licking the liquid in the cup with his tongue, then hesitantly tilting his head back, and his face wrinkled again.
Zhong Yi always found his appearance quite amusing, like a small animal that had swallowed a strange-tasting bean.
“Why don’t you try taking a few more sips?”
Zhong Yi mischievously tempted him, saying, “The drink is just slightly bitter. Once you drink a bit more, it’ll taste better, trust me.”
Rong Mian still had a resistant expression on his face.
“It tastes like spoiled rice.”
He slowly described, “Like the taste of moldy hand sanitizer.”
He described it in great detail, as if he had truly eaten these things before.
“You take a sip and then have a bite of the meat.”
Zhong Yi calmly said, “The bitterness of the drink is its greatest charm. You’ll find that after a few sips, the meat in your mouth will become sweeter and more fresher.”
Perhaps captivated by the allure of the meat, Rong Mian hesitated for a moment but eventually followed suit, slowly and reluctantly.
Whether it was due to psychological suggestion or not, Rong Mian swallowed the fish meat and stared at the drink in his cup for a while with some hesitation before saying, “It does seem like there’s a slight difference…”
So Zhong Yi watched him take another sip of the drink with a wrinkled face and eat another piece of fish.
He would then take another sip, wrinkle his face again, and take another bite of meat.
This cycle repeated numerous times, and Rong Mian’s pace of eating fish slowed down. He sat there, holding his chopsticks, and started daydreaming, with his eyes somewhat blank.
Then Zhong Yi saw him raise his hand to cover his mouth, lower his head, and burp.
“I’m full.”
He whispered, “I feel a bit warm.”
Zhong Yi felt that he might be too greedy and drank too quickly. He was about to say, “Take it easy and drink slowly,” when Rong Mian’s phone on the side started vibrating. Someone was calling him.
Rong Mian paused slowly.
He stared at the screen for a while and only answered the call after a while. Zhong Yi saw him quiet down for a moment, then whispered softly into the receiver, “Uncle Yun.”
The person on the other end of the phone said something, and Rong Mian listened silently. After a while, he obediently replied, “I’m not tired… I have Sandou accompanying me.”
His speech was slightly slower, perhaps due to the effect of the alcohol.
Zhong Yi saw him fiddling with the daisy decorations in the plate with his fingers, making vague sounds of agreement while sporadically responding to the person on the other side.
Not knowing what the other person said, Rong Mian seemed to freeze for a moment, then slowly straightened his body.
Then Zhong Yi heard him ask, seemingly a bit unhappy, “Do they… really have to see me?”
“I’ve been tired lately from filming.”
He complained softly, like a child.
The boy’s emotions seemed to suddenly become a little anxious, and his fingers unconsciously traced the edge of the table. “I don’t want to entertain clients anymore. Can you tell them I’m sick…?”
Zhong Yi: “……?”
A mouthful of alcohol choked in his throat, and Zhongyi’s head began to buzz.
He stared at the boy’s profile with uncertainty, even doubting if he was hallucinating.
The person on the other end of the phone said something again, and the boy lowered his eyes, seemingly ultimately compromising.
“Well then…”
He said vaguely, “You, you must make it clear to them, no kissing my face, and don’t… don’t spray perfumes with strange scents.”
“I’ll go back once filming is finished this weekend.”
He said, “You, you have to take your medicine properly.”
Rong Mian held the phone and listened quietly for a while, made a couple of “mm” sounds, then finally put down the phone and hung up slowly.
Footnotes
Sake also referred to as Japanese rice wine, is an alcoholic beverage of Japanese origin made by fermenting rice that has been polished to remove the bran.
