Chapter 201: Chance Encounter
Early that morning, when her alarm clock blared, Vivian Lowell groggily smacked it off. She rolled over, meaning to pull the covers up, but when she reached out, her hand brushed against something rock-hard.
AHEM. It was Julian Faulkner’s abs.
She had counted them last night. There were exactly eight of them, perfectly sculpted and evenly distributed. They looked exactly like the flawless muscles drawn in comic books.
This had completely astounded Vivian.
"Can someone really train their abs to look like this?" she had asked Julian at the time.
A cryptic smile had immediately flashed across Julian’s lips. "Do you really want to know how I train?" he had countered.
In her dazed state, Vivian had nodded, completely unaware of what she was signing up for.
And then, she deeply regretted it.
AHEM!
The method Julian used to show her "how muscles are made" was far too unique. As a result, when she woke up this morning, her entire body ached. She was so sore that she really just wanted to stay in bed all day.
Unfortunately, that wasn’t an option. She had already made plans with Eleanor Rhodes to pick up the cats after work today.
It wasn’t long before the alarm went off a second time.
Vivian smacked it off again. Just as she was about to roll over, Julian suddenly wrapped his arms around her from behind and began murmuring into her ear.
"It’s not good to be a lazy little bug. You’ll be late if you keep this up. Time to get up, okay?"
His voice sounded a little hoarse. She wondered if it was because he had overworked himself last night and hadn’t drunk enough water.
Speechless, Vivian turned and nuzzled against Julian’s chest. Seeing his rosy complexion and glowing skin, she couldn’t help but weakly pound her fist against him.
This was so unfair!
What happened to the old saying that the plow wears out before the field? She felt much more like the worn-out plow right now!
"HISS." Julian put on an act and cried out in pain. Vivian immediately glared at him, thinking his acting skills were absolutely terrible.
Her punch had been so light that it wouldn’t have even dented a cotton ball, yet he had the nerve to claim it hurt!
"Vivian." Catching her glare, Julian softened his tone. "If you don’t get up, I’ll just have to carry you out of bed."
Vivian yielded. The main reason was that the moment his hand rested on her waist, she felt like she’d been electrocuted and nearly jumped out of her skin.
No, no, they absolutely could not continue like this!
Puffing her cheeks in annoyance, Vivian fought through her body’s soreness and lingering drowsiness, and finally forced herself out of bed.
"Let’s go downstairs and have breakfast," Julian said with a gentle smile. After they washed up together, they headed down to eat.
In the first-floor living room, Grandma Faulkner had already finished her meal and was preparing to take the family’s golden retriever out for a walk. Seeing Vivian and Julian coming down the stairs, she looked over.
With just one glance, the clever old lady seemed to immediately figure out what was going on. She blinked, and her eyes instantly lit up.
Haha, was she going to have a great-grandchild to dote on soon?
Overjoyed, Grandma Faulkner smiled so widely her eyes crinkled into crescents. "Hurry up and eat," she told the couple. "Eat more and replenish your strength. You must be exhausted!"
Vivian’s heart skipped a beat. She choked and coughed. What did Grandma Faulkner mean by that? Could she actually tell?!
Just as Vivian was feeling utterly embarrassed, Julian shamelessly took the initiative to slide a glass of milk in front of her.
"Drink your milk," Julian said with a completely serious expression. "Grandma said you need to replenish your strength."
Hearing this from behind, Grandma Faulkner beamed with sheer delight. Taking the golden retriever by its leash, she leisurely strolled out for her walk.
When Vivian arrived at the company that morning, it was already nine o’clock. Fortunately, there were no meetings scheduled. She headed straight to her office and threw herself into her work.
At noon, Julian came downstairs to find her for lunch. He mentioned that a new Southeast Asian restaurant had opened nearby and that their Tom Yum Kung seafood pot was supposedly delicious. As the weather was gradually warming up, eating something sweet and sour would be a great way to whet the appetite.
"Sounds good," Vivian agreed with a nod, never one to be too picky about food.
When they arrived at the restaurant, Vivian was surprised to see a bouquet of fresh flowers and a few candles already arranged on their table, setting the scene for a romantic candlelight meal.
Amused, Vivian asked, "Did you prepare all of this? What if I had said I didn’t want Southeast Asian food? What would have happened to all this setup?"
Julian looked completely serious as he replied, "The items were prepared well in advance. No matter which restaurant you chose, Vance Wyatt would have come ahead of time to set everything up.
"Of course, even if you wanted to eat takeout, I would still give you the flowers after bringing your food. How can there be no flowers when dating a girl, right?"
Deep down in his bones, Julian possessed a truly romantic streak. He believed that delicate, vibrant roses suited Vivian best.
Touched, Vivian sat down and pulled her chair closer to the table. Sure enough, the rich fragrance of the roses wafted toward her.
It was her favorite scent. The rose’s aroma was intense but never suffocating; it only smelled better the longer she breathed it in.
The sweet, sour, and slightly spicy Southeast Asian dishes were absolutely delicious, mainly because the restaurant’s seafood was incredibly fresh. The mussels and prawns seemed to have been prepared right from the tank. Paired with the Tom Yum Kung broth, the base flavors didn’t overpower the meal, allowing the natural taste of the ingredients to shine through perfectly.
"Is it good?" Julian asked softly, watching Vivian happily devouring her meal. He took the initiative to grab a tissue and hand it to her. "Wipe your mouth."
"Mhm!" Vivian nodded, taking the tissue to wipe her lips before letting out a yawn.
She was so sleepy! Although she had just been sitting in her office all morning, her busy schedule had thoroughly drained her mental energy. Since it wasn’t even one o’clock yet, heading back to the office early would allow her a comfortable hour-long nap.
"Sleepy?" Julian asked considerately. Seeing her fatigue, he instructed Vance to pull the car up to the restaurant entrance. The sun had come out, and he didn’t want Vivian to suffer in the heat.
Vance had been sitting at a small side table eating his meal the entire time.
While President Faulkner and his wife enjoyed their Tom Yum Kung seafood pot and seafood noodles, he only had a portion of mango sticky rice. Not being a fan of sweets, he chewed the sticky rice mechanically, unable to taste much of anything.
To make matters worse, the tantalizing aroma of the Tom Yum Kung pot kept wafting over.
Oh, and on top of that, the sickeningly sweet scent of romance and an endless supply of unwanted public displays of affection were constantly hurled his way, despite his clear look of resistance.
UGH!
Vance felt he had endured enough! Sigh, it was better to just go get the car for President Faulkner. The boss had really changed. The post-marriage President Faulkner was no longer the man he used to be!
Late that afternoon, Vivian noticed the sun setting by the window. Glancing at the time, she realized it was already six-thirty.
Oh no.
She had been completely absorbed in drafting her designs. At the banquet yesterday, she had successfully negotiated with two brand representatives, and their official invitation emails had arrived first thing this morning. After reviewing the details and discussing them with her team, they agreed the company had enough capacity to take on these two projects—it just meant more overtime in the near future.
Leo was ecstatic.
There had been way too little overtime lately! She had been getting home shortly after eight o’clock every night. After eating, resting, squeezing in a quick workout, and showering, she’d be in bed right on the dot at ten o’clock with absolutely nothing to do!
Now things were perfect. With overtime, she could score a free dinner at the company, get home at ten, work out for an hour, shower, and sleep. Pure bliss!
Of course, Vivian was definitely not a toxic boss who preached that working yourself to the bone was a blessing.
For colleagues who stayed past six o’clock, as long as they weren’t just catching up because they had slacked off earlier, Vivian paid them triple the normal overtime rate. With their already high hourly wages and project completion commissions, the employees were more than happy to stay back and put in the extra hours.
Occasionally, some people had personal matters and needed to leave early. That was perfectly fine, too. Vivian never forced her team to finish everything in one day; if they were delayed by something else, they could simply make up the time tomorrow.
Life wasn’t just about work. There was also time needed for family, romance, and leisure. There was no need to place so much pressure on oneself.
The company’s employees thoroughly agreed with Vivian’s philosophy. Previously, she had interviewed a few people who only wanted a strict nine-to-five, avoiding high salaries in favor of guaranteed weekends and plenty of opportunities to coast. Vivian had rejected them all.
It wasn’t that she opposed people coasting through life, it was just that at her company... they couldn’t afford that luxury right now.
Seeing that her initial draft was mostly complete, Vivian picked up her phone to ask Eleanor how things were going. Just then, Eleanor called her first.
"Vivian?" Upon hearing the call connect, Eleanor immediately started venting. "Oh my god, Vivian, I just neutered so many tomcats! I can’t believe it’s already this late after finishing the surgeries!
"Are you done with work? Should we go eat now? I feel like everywhere is going to be packed at this hour!"
That was exactly what gave Vivian a headache.
Aethelburg was massive and densely populated. Even on weekdays, the dining crowds were always massive during meal times, especially right now at six-thirty! Those who had arrived early were already eating, and the rest were basically waiting outside the restaurants. If Vivian and Eleanor went to grab a queue number now, they might not even get seated by eight o’clock.
"I’m done working," Vivian said. "But... Eleanor, we might just have to try our luck at the mall. Most places should be packed right now. We’ll just have to see what’s available."
Eleanor fell silent for a moment, clearly thinking Vivian made perfect sense, before replying dejectedly, "Alright then. Let’s wander around the mall and see."
Fortunately, luck was on their side.
When they arrived at the mall, they bumped into the Sterlings, who had also come out for dinner. Henry Sterling, along with Mr. and Mrs. Sterling, were out for mutton hotpot. While walking toward the mall, Vivian and Eleanor were stopped by Mrs. Sterling.
"Vivian, Eleanor, where are you heading? Off to grab dinner?" Mrs. Sterling asked warmly. "We just happen to know a place that serves highly authentic old Aethelburg mutton hotpot. Would you like to join us?"
She enthusiastically launched into a detailed description of how incredible the hotpot was—the mutton was unbelievably tender, the sheep offal was perfect, and the broth had a rich, savory bone marrow aroma. It was absolutely delicious!
Vivian and Eleanor exchanged a glance, completely speechless.
To be honest, with Henry present, they were both a bit hesitant. But... the restaurant Mrs. Sterling described sounded too good to pass up. They were incredibly tempted!
Vivian never considered herself a massive foodie, nor was she overly particular about what she ate. However, when faced with truly exceptional food...
"Let’s go," Vivian whispered, tugging on Eleanor’s sleeve. That subtle nudge was all it took to crush whatever little resistance remained in Eleanor’s heart.
Boo-hoo, as a fellow foodie, Eleanor simply had no other choice!
Fifteen minutes later, after winding through the narrow alleys of Aethelburg, Vivian and Eleanor followed the Sterling family of three into a traditional courtyard home.
From the outside, it looked like an ordinary residential courtyard, but inside, it was actually a private kitchen specializing in mutton hotpot. Rumor had it the place possessed over a century of history.
Back in the imperial era, the owners used to run a shop on the main streets of Aethelburg. When they lost their storefront, they simply relocated the business to their own courtyard. The surrounding neighbors had always loved coming over to eat.
Nowadays, the kitchen wasn’t generally open to the public. It required knowing the right people and booking in advance. In fact, the Sterlings had made their reservation over a month ago just for tonight.
Running into them today was truly a massive stroke of luck.
"It really is fate!" Mrs. Sterling gushed. "Henry’s injuries have mostly healed up over the last few days. He was quite disappointed that he didn’t run into you at the banquet yesterday!"
COUGH, COUGH, COUGH...
Eleanor was nearly frightened to death by Mrs. Sterling’s overwhelming enthusiasm!
Disappointed?
Yeah, let’s not go there...
"Um, Auntie, Vivian and I are going to get our dipping sauces first!" Eleanor quickly deflected. "Oh, by the way, what kind of fruit do you guys like? I see they have watermelon, grapes, and cantaloupe over there!"
Still beaming brightly, completely oblivious to Eleanor’s lingering aversion toward Henry, Mrs. Sterling replied, "Good girl, I’ll happily eat whatever you bring back."
"Mhm..." Eleanor responded perfunctorily. Finally seizing the chance, she and Vivian made a swift escape.
Thankfully, once the mutton hotpot began, Mrs. Sterling didn’t drag Eleanor into any more conversations about Henry. Instead, she just casually served food to Vivian and Eleanor while sharing some recent gossip.
Gradually, the two girls began to relax.
As long as she wasn’t talking about Henry or trying to play matchmaker, they were perfectly fine.
Anyway... Henry himself seemed to have zero interest in chatting. He sat off to the side the entire time, silently acting as a sounding board while listening to their conversation.
Over an hour later, as it neared eight o’clock, Vivian felt completely stuffed and a little drowsy.
She really had exhausted herself last night.
She wondered if Julian had finished his work yet.
Just as she was thinking this, Vivian reached for her phone to text Julian, only for a ringtone to sound from Henry’s side of the table.