Chapter Twenty-Two: Naughty Little Bug

Although this buffet was not free, the price was quite reasonable. Having eaten his fill with Chong Chong, Fang Yuan suddenly remembered something important.

Yesterday, Pei Xi had called him, mentioning that she felt unwell and had been hospitalized. Should he call to check on her?

“Looks like your emotional intelligence is improving under my influence. Not bad. You really should call Sister Pei Xi to ask after her, especially since the first person she thought of when she felt sick was you,” Chong Chong remarked leisurely. As a parasite, to be so comfortable must mean it had saved the galaxy in its previous life.

Yet, somehow, Fang Yuan found those words rather unsettling.

“What do you mean, the first person she thought of when she felt sick was me? You talk about my emotional intelligence, but I think mine is higher than yours,” Fang Yuan retorted, silently dissecting the hidden meaning behind Chong Chong’s words.

“Ah, Fang Yuan, I never imagined you could be like this—so dirty-minded,” Chong Chong cried, covering its ears with Fang Yuan’s own hands.

“What did I do? Clearly, it’s your way of speaking that’s off. You should learn from me in the future,” Fang Yuan said smugly, amused by Chong Chong’s shy reaction.

“So you think I’m amusing, do you?” Chong Chong growled, and immediately, Fang Yuan regretted his words.

Because suddenly, he realized he couldn’t see out of one eye. Just like that, without warning, as soon as Chong Chong finished speaking, his left eye plunged into darkness and was blind.

If that were all, it would be manageable. But had Fang Yuan looked in a mirror, he would have regretted offending Chong Chong even more.

The restaurant opened into the lobby on the first floor, where Manager Xue was still faithfully at his post. When Fang Yuan emerged, Manager Xue’s gaze never left him.

More precisely, it never left Fang Yuan’s face. For some reason, Fang Yuan’s eyes kept twitching and blinking in a way no normal person could imitate.

As a hotel lobby manager, Manager Xue was used to seeing all sorts of people. Before starting the job, he was trained to treat every guest with composure, no matter what.

Now in his forties, having worked this position for nearly ten years, Manager Xue considered himself experienced. Yet, seeing Fang Yuan exit the restaurant, he felt his qualifications might still be lacking. The world was vast and full of wonders; it was best to maintain a humble attitude and keep learning.

“Mr. Fang, was your meal satisfactory?” Manager Xue, a seasoned professional, quickly collected himself and greeted Fang Yuan with a polite smile.

“Yes, it was quite good.” Fang Yuan could only see Manager Xue with his right eye, making the man appear somewhat thinner.

Recalling Chong Chong’s earlier analysis, Fang Yuan, though annoyed, was not ungrateful. He offered Manager Xue a genuine smile to express his appreciation.

To maintain a calm smile in the face of Fang Yuan’s twitching eye and spasming face was Manager Xue’s limit. But when Mr. Fang abruptly smiled at him, the manager nearly suffered internal injury from holding back.

Good heavens, he almost died on duty.

Manager Xue desperately restrained his expression, turned away, and feigned a cough. The receptionists looked over curiously.

They shouldn’t have looked—what they saw left them stunned.

Oh Lord, forgive this young lady; she had only just graduated and hadn’t seen much of the world. Seeing the guest winking and twitching with an innocent expression, she burst out laughing, spraying whatever she had just eaten all over.

How could they enjoy breakfast at work if this kept up?

But Manager Xue was a veteran. Hearing the laughter behind him, he spun around before Fang Yuan could speak, marched to the front desk, and barked, “Are you listening to comedy routines on the clock again? If you must listen, at least don’t eat while doing it. Are you hoping to pass your monthly assessment? Get to work, now!”

With his back to Fang Yuan, the manager’s expression remained unseen.

That’s the professionalism of a veteran. Upon hearing Manager Xue’s scolding, the two receptionists immediately squatted down—or rather, sat down—to lower themselves. From Fang Yuan’s perspective, only their heads were visible.

Their chairs weren’t really that low. Out of consideration for Fang Yuan’s dignity, they voluntarily made themselves smaller.

Fang Yuan wasn’t clueless. Thinking back to Manager Xue’s brief unnatural expression and the receptionists’ reaction, he realized the problem must lie with himself—most likely with his newly blind eye.

Manager Xue had been considerate enough not to laugh in his face.

“I forgot something. I’ll head upstairs,” Fang Yuan said, walking to the elevator without looking back. Luckily, there weren’t many people in the elevator. As he stepped in, he casually covered his left eye with his hand.

Back in his room, Fang Yuan rushed to the mirror. Standing before it, he watched himself continuously wink and twitch the left corner of his mouth.

Hold it in, hold it in, hold it in.

“Ha