Ch80 Holy Crap, That Was An Indirect Kiss
"Meng Ci, you're here!" Yun Jingcen spotted Meng Ci approaching the exit and quickly ushered him inside.
"Hurry inside! We'll be done soon."
"You shouldn't be out getting soaked in acid rain."
Meng Ci had no choice but to retreat.
He'd actually considered taking advantage of the lighter acid rain to get a little wet.
But since Teacher Yun forbade it, he'd let it go.
Downstairs, Shen Que, Ruan Qing, and Duan Yan came up one after another, placing glass panels in the empty spaces.
They wore thick coats, hats pulled low over their heads, and gloves on their hands.
But the acid rain earlier had already corroded the gloves.
Meng Ci could see their hands were already red and swollen, their faces covered in various large and small wounds.
"At least we don't have to worry about the roof getting corroded now."
Mao Xinyu crossed her arms, smiling happily.
Even while working, Mao Xinyu wore a pair of six-centimeter-heeled ankle boots and a navy blue fur coat, looking impeccably refined.
"It's such a shame about my shoes."
"I paid fifty thousand yuan for them-a whole year's salary."
Meng Ci couldn't believe that even now, Teacher Mao was lamenting her clothes instead of the wounds on her hands and body.
She was a girl-didn't she fear disfigurement?
Yun Jingcen comforted her, "It's fine."
"When I get the chance, I'll go out and borrow you a pair of shoes worth a hundred thousand."
Of course, Yun Jingcen and the others had already accepted the apocalyptic setting-here, "borrow" meant stealing.
Mao Xinyu was instantly comforted, declaring she'd toss her current shoes immediately.
After locking the door to the rooftop, the group descended directly to Meng Ci's room.
The moment they entered, a warm, cozy atmosphere enveloped them.
"Wow, Meng Ci, your room is so warm!" Mao Xinyu couldn't help but rub her hands together in delight.
Meng Ci brought out two basins filled with water and explained, "I'm very sensitive to the cold, so I stocked up on coal and firewood earlier."
"In this basin, I've added some baking soda. You can use it to clean your wounds."
Meng Ci then handed them some disposable towels. Baking soda is alkaline. Shen Que and the teachers had been exposed to acid rain for too long, and it was uncertain if it would help.
"Thank you, Meng Ci."
The teachers helped each other, rinsing the areas corroded by acid rain with the baking soda solution.
The stove top was quite large, big enough for several people to sit around and eat. However, Meng Ci didn't have any small stools, so he fetched a few from Shen Que's home.
The rice was in the kitchen. Meng Ci brought out eight disposable bowls and chopsticks.
As he began serving the rice, Shen Que silently helped Meng Ci carry the dishes.
Ruan Qing also obediently came in to help carry two bowls of rice. Upon seeing the fish and meat on the table, he took a deep breath.
He exclaimed somewhat dramatically, "Wow, Gege, you're so amazing!"
Yun Jingcen also expressed surprise, "Indeed. I never expected someone so young to have such excellent cooking skills."
Teachers like Yun Jingcen and the others usually relied on takeout for meals.
If not for Ruan Qing studying recipes indoors during the torrential rain, they might have been poisoned by their own cooking long ago.
"I just randomly experimented during the downpour. It might look good, but the taste is uncertain."
"If it's not tasty, please don't mind, teachers."
After Meng Ci mentioned his name earlier, Shen Que had guessed his family was once M City's wealthiest.
Perhaps these teachers had also figured it out upon hearing his name.
How could the son of the richest family know how to cook-and cook so well at that?
So Meng Ci lied.
Meng Ci opened the beer and placed it on the table.
He then urged everyone to eat and drink Coke. Duan Yan had grabbed a beer too, but Cheng Yu forcefully swapped it for a Coke.
Duan Yan grumbled under his breath, "I can handle my liquor."
Cheng Yu popped the tab on the Coke and set it before Duan Yan.
"Passing out drunk after two beers? You call that being able to hold your liquor?"
Seeing Duan Yan still, Cheng Yu placed his own beer in front of Duan Yan, crossed his arms, and
threatened.
"Drink up."
"If you get drunk, don't blame me for punishing you."
Hearing this, Duan Yan flushed slightly, lost in thought.
"Fine, I won't drink." He grabbed the cola and took a big gulp.
Meng Ci observed Duan Yan's submissive demeanor before Cheng Yu, thinking no wonder Teacher Duan kept such a stern face.
If he didn't maintain that seriousness, students would probably just tease him instead of studying.
Still, seeing Duan Yan blush piqued Meng Ci's curiosity about what kind of punishment he
meant.
He watched them expectantly, hoping the conversation would continue.
"Here!"
Shen Que, sitting nearby, suddenly picked up a piece of fish and placed it on Meng Ci's plate.
"Ah!"
"Oh, thank you."
Meng Ci was a bit startled, not quite grasping what had happened, and could only Instinctively respond with thanks.
After swallowing the fish, Meng Ci suddenly gave a light cough.
His face showed nothing, but inside, he was incredibly excited.
Holy crap!
Shen Que had just used his chopsticks to pick up food for himself! Did that count as an indirect kiss?!
"What's wrong? A bone?" Shen Que noticed Meng Ci coughing and not eating, so he quickly asked.
Meng Ci shook his head hastily, "No, no."
"Come on, let's raise our glasses to thank Meng for treating us to this feast."
Mao Xinyu, already down a can of beer, saw the couples at the table being all lovey-dovey, completely ignoring the singles like them. Fueled by alcohol, she spoke up.
Everyone quickly raised their cans in a cheer.
After the meal, Yun Jingcen and the others offered to help clean up, but Meng Ci had mostly used disposable bowls and chopsticks.
They could simply be burned in the stove.
Therefore, Meng Ci declined their assistance.
The baby rabbits in the cage had grown and no longer needed milk.
Moreover, he'd heard rabbits could conceive again soon after giving birth, so Meng Ci selected one male and one female to give to Ruan Qing.
Ruan Qing cradled the two rabbits in his arms, his eyes sparkling with delight.
"Gege, are you really giving these two rabbits to me?"
Meng Ci nodded. "Of course!"
Six rabbits-three males and three females.
He'd heard rabbits could breed with close relatives. Giving Ruan Qing one pair left him with three pairs. In less than two months, Meng Ci might have a whole new colony.
This was mainly because he hadn't helped install the glass on the roof today.
Though he knew this building wouldn't collapse from acid rain corrosion, the others had still put In the effort.
This pair of rabbits served as a token of thanks.
"Thank you, Gege!" Ruan Qing clutched the rabbits and bowed deeply to Meng Ci.
Meng Ci quickly pulled her up.
"You're welcome."
He then shared some rabbit-
raising tips, the most crucial being: never give rabbits polluted water.
Ruan Qing memorized each point
before carrying the rabbits back. With Yun Jingcen and the others' help, they fashioned a nest for the rabbits out of cardboard boxes.
Worried the rabbits might freeze, Duan Yan repurposed an extra electric blanket, laying it down inside the nest.