Chapter 23: Collapse of Three Views

Lisa followed Xu Yi, looking around curiously.

"Where are we going?" Lisa asked in confusion, because instead of taking her back to Chinatown, Xu Yi had brought her to an alley on Rainbow Street.

"Just follow me," Xu Yi said with a smile on his lips, without further explanation.

Pagiel Restaurant stood at the end of the road, near the river. Sitting inside, one could see the clear river water flowing slowly by, which was exceptionally comforting.

Xu Yi pushed open the restaurant's brown glass door and waved to Lisa.

"What are we doing here?"

Lisa had a suspicion, but she dared not be certain.

The restaurant before her was classical and elegant; it appeared to be very upscale, and surely, dining here wouldn't be cheap.

Xu Yi gave Lisa a reassuring look and said to the welcoming waiter, "I have a reservation here."

"Yes, Mr. Xu Yi, right this way please!" The waiter ushered them to a table with excellent service.

Lisa couldn't bring herself to refuse and could only sit down following Xu Yi.

"Shall we order first?" Xu Yi passed the menu over.

Lisa glanced at the prices on the menu and her hand trembled slightly. If she weren't afraid of embarrassing Xu Yi, she would be tempted to get up and leave.

"Maybe we should just get a glass of lemon water? I'm not hungry, just a bit thirsty!"

Even though the price of lemon water was beyond her expectation, it was still within what she could accept.

No sooner had Lisa finished speaking than her stomach growled. She had only had two wraps for lunch, so it was no wonder she was hungry.

The waiter was still standing nearby; Lisa felt like she wanted to crawl into a hole from embarrassment.

"I've told you not to diet anymore; your figure is already very standard," Xu Yi casually remarked.

Lisa's tense body relaxed, and she looked gratefully at Xu Yi, knowing he was giving her a way out.

Xu Yi restrained his smile, thinking how could he be considered a "warm man" if he didn't know how to relieve worries and solve problems?

Of course, his kind of "warm man" was not the kind that followed a dog.

"It's a special day today, indulging in a good meal is fine. Besides, how can you diet if you're not full!" Xu Yi comforted her.

Both the waiter and Lisa chuckled, and Xu Yi felt a little embarrassed. Could such a joke really make people laugh?

But then he suddenly remembered, it was the year 1980, it should still be considered quite novel.

With that laugh, the awkwardness faded away, and Lisa completely relaxed.

Xu Yi picked up the menu, knowing it would be impossible to expect Lisa to order, so he had to do it himself.

Seeing the prices on the menu, Xu Yi also felt a twinge, not that the prices were too high, but from a past life where no matter how expensive, he had tasted it all.

He didn't have much money left; he had spent ten thousand on the glass shards earlier, and there were other expenses that added up significantly.

"It looks like I need to prioritize earning money!"

How could one be carefree without money? And besides, there were so many girls he wanted to protect, right?

Xu Yi didn't order anything too expensive—two steak sets with pasta, and of course, lemon water was indispensable.

"Sir, here are the items you left with us before!" The waiter brought over two large boxes and placed them on the table.

"What's this?" Lisa, no longer preoccupied with worrying about money, curiously examined the two boxes.

"Some good stuff I bought! You'll help me try it out in a bit," Xu Yi opened one of the boxes to reveal a complete set of what could be called a "music lover's standard equipment."

Xu Yi loaded the Walkman with size 5 batteries and inserted the cassette.

In this era, mp3 players hadn't come out yet; music was still listened to with cassettes, and most headphones were the heavy, overhead type.

"Here! Give it a try!" Xu Yi walked behind Lisa, helped her put on the headphones, and pressed the play button.

The gentle music began to play.

"I hesitated so much~

When I took your hand and led you to the dance floor~

The dance music faded away~

But your eyes reminded me of countless movies..."

"How beautiful! What song is this?" Lisa was instantly mesmerized.

"Words Spoken Without Heart." Xu Yi answered offhand, "It's basically about George falling in love with three girls at the same time, and after his official girlfriend finds out the secret, everyone pretends nothing happened, getting ready for the last dance."

"What?!" Lisa's eyes widened in shock.

"You also think there's something wrong with George, right?"

Xu Yi looked as if he were disappointed in iron not turning into steel, "If George likes three girls, how could he keep it from his official girlfriend? They should be honest and get along well!"

"What?!"

Lisa's face went blank, feeling as if her values had just been struck by a dimension-reducing blow, crumbling to pieces.

The waiter began to serve the dishes, interrupting their conversation.

Xu Yi quickly changed the subject, "What do you think of this Walkman?"

"It's great! The sound quality is good, and it's portable, you can carry it with you!" Lisa thought Xu Yi was joking earlier and paid it no mind.

Xu Yi looked at the radio the size of half a brick, not sure where the portability was, but given the current level of technology, one couldn't expect too much.

"Do you like it? How about I give it to you as a gift?" Xu Yi said while opening the second box.

"Ah! This is too precious, I can't accept it!" Lisa shook her head repeatedly, knowing at a glance that the Walkman and headphones were not cheap. She would probably have to save her pocket money for a year or two to afford them.

"Are you sure you don't want it? I spent a long time picking it out, it was hard to find this birthday gift." Xu Yi lied smoothly.

In fact, he had rushed to the mall that morning to pick the Walkman in a hurry.

Giving gifts to girls requires skill, ideally, you should choose something that the other party can frequently use and that would make the girl feel happy, like bags, lipstick, it's the same idea.

Lisa didn't know any famous brand bags, and lipstick was out of the question, she had never used any.

So Xu Yi chose the Walkman, which could be carried around and listening to music could indeed bring pleasure, perfectly meeting the criteria for selecting a gift.

Xu Yi opened the second box, inside was a delicately made small cake.

Lisa stared at the cake, lost in thought.

She had invited Xu Yi out today specifically because it was her birthday, but he hadn't mentioned it at all throughout the day, and she thought he had forgotten, only to find out...

"You don't mind the cake being small, do you?" Xu Yi said teasingly.

There were only the two of them, and they had already ordered a steak meal, they definitely couldn't finish a large cake.

Lisa shook her head, her eyes brimming with tears, "I thought you had forgotten."

"How could I?"

Xu Yi's lies were now smooth and practiced, but in reality, he truly had forgotten. He had been reading entries lately and performing exorcisms, which kept him very busy.

Luckily, when he was leaving the house in the morning his dad reminded him that it was Lisa's birthday and told him to take Lisa out for some good food.

A candle was placed on the small cake and lit, its warm flame illuminating Lisa's beautiful eyes.

"Make a wish!" Xu Yi said softly.

Lisa sneaked a glance at Xu Yi, then put her hands together, eyes slightly closed, and silently made her birthday wish for the year.

Xu Yi watched Lisa's delicate face, lost in thought.