Chapter 31: Everyone should eat well

“…You’re here for a late-night snack too?”

Lin Yuhan nodded, her cheeks slightly flushed. “I-I sometimes get cravings at night, but eating at home would get me nagged by my parents, so I sneak out.”

“You too?”

Meng Zhi nodded.

Their eyes met, sharing a silent understanding.

Food really is the ultimate happiness.

The late-night McDonald’s was nearly empty. Lin Yuhan naturally sat across from him with her tray, everything feeling effortless.

Unlike Feng Xiyao or Chen Xinya, she didn’t pester him with chatter. She just sat, head down, digging into her food.

Meng Zhi noticed she’d ordered three burgers.

“Nom~”

She took a huge bite, cheeks stuffed, sauce smudging her lips. She was clearly starving.

Her enthusiasm sparked his appetite, and he bit into his own burger.

“…D-Don’t look at me.”

Catching his gaze, Lin Yuhan realized how unladylike she looked, mumbling with a mix of embarrassment and grievance. “I’m really hungry…”

“It’s fine.” Meng Zhi chuckled. “Eating a lot is a good thing.”

“Don’t look. I look ugly eating.”

“Alright, I won’t.”

Seeing him lower his head, she relaxed, quickly taking another big bite while he wasn’t watching.

Soon, the first burger was gone.

Sipping her grapefruit soda, she looked content, almost blissful. She slowed down, savoring her second burger.

“Can I look up now?”

“…Mm.”

Their eyes met, and she hurriedly looked down, nibbling daintily.

“By the way, don’t we both have exams tomorrow?”

“Yeah.”

“And we’re here eating late-night snacks?”

“A full stomach gives you energy for the exam,” she said earnestly. “Eating’s important. It fuels you and lifts your mood.”

Meng Zhi glanced at his burger, smiling faintly. “True.”

Noticing his heavy expression, she asked softly, “Are you in a bad mood? Is that why you’re eating?”

“…Sort of.”

“Me too.” She pouted, dejected. “I didn’t do well on math.”

He almost laughed. “That’s it?”

“What do you mean, ‘that’s it’? It’s the college entrance exam!”

Her frustration seemed genuine, not exaggerated, as if she truly regretted her math performance. “I felt like I’d done those problems before, but I kept getting them wrong.”

Meng Zhi realized he’d misjudged something.

Not every reborn person was like Chen Xinya or Feng Xiyao, obsessed with rekindling ties with him.

People have different priorities in life.

Careers, dreams, regrets. Love isn’t the main theme for everyone.

Lin Yuhan might not have grand plans this time. Like many, she probably just wanted to fix past regrets—score higher, get into a better school, learn more about writing, meet new people, live more.

Even simply enjoying a reborn life was a valid choice.

So, messing up a familiar exam was genuinely upsetting for her.

“Where were you aiming for?”

“I wanted Tsinghua or Peking University, maybe study abroad.” She sighed, crestfallen. “But now, even X University feels like a stretch.”

“That’s a shame.” He didn’t console her much, just said, “Eat up. Food makes it better.”

She huffed, taking two fierce bites of her burger.

“What about you?” she mumbled, mouth full.

“Me? I’ll thank the heavens if I get into X University.”

He smiled lazily. “No big expectations. I’ll take what I get.”

“Really? Maybe we’ll meet at X University then.”

Meng Zhi glanced at her. Her focus was on her burger, her comment casual, barely noticing him.

As expected.

Unlike Chen Xinya or Feng Xiyao, Lin Yuhan didn’t seem to care much about these things.

At the bar, he’d worried she might be scheming like the others.

Now, it seemed he’d overthought it. Just coincidences.

Her friend’s family owned the bar where Feng Xiyao’s band played. She liked sneaking out for burgers and cola at night.

Nothing to do with him.

Why cling to him when she had a whole new life to live?

“If we meet at X University,” he said, finishing his last bite with a smile, “that’d be some serious fate.”

Her eating sparked his appetite, and feeling unsatisfied, he went to order another burger.

To his surprise, Lin Yuhan, having polished off her three burgers, followed to get more.

“I’ll take one more—”

“Sorry, I just sold the last one to this gentleman,” the cashier apologized.

Lin Yuhan and Meng Zhi froze, then turned to each other.

In that moment, he saw a pitiful, teary-eyed puppy staring at him.

“…Fine, fine.”

Unable to resist her pleading look, he handed her the burger. “Here.”

“Yay~”

She cheered, tearing into it without hesitation.

Meng Zhi ordered a hot coffee instead, returning to their window seat, gazing at the distant city lights.

This city still felt like home. The views he’d grown up with never got old.

“…Thanks.”

Satisfied, Lin Yuhan wiped crumbs from her lips, blushing. “Next time, I’ll treat you.”

“Deal,” Meng Zhi said, unfazed. “I’ll pick somewhere pricey.”

“Huh? N-Not too pricey,” she stammered, looking troubled. “I’m over my allowance this month… Can it wait till next month?”

Her cautious, adorable expression lifted his mood.

For a moment, he even forgot the day’s troubles.