The landlord has multiple personalities and wants everyone to pay him.

The two walked to a row of storefronts facing the street, where several small restaurants were located. The signs looked quite old and faded. They sold the most common foods, such as steamed buns, noodles, and home-style stir-fries.

Ye Shu turned his head and asked:

"Is there anything you don't eat?"

Xiao Nuan looked up, shifting her gaze from their clasped hands to Ye Shu's eyes, and answered seriously:

"I don't eat sea cucumbers; I hate the texture."

......

"Don't worry about that. This place is small; if you want to eat it, I don't even have anywhere to catch it for you."

Ye Shu was already used to Xiao Nuan's way of answering, and pointed to the shops with her chin:

"Let's choose one. These are the conditions we have here; they're definitely not as good as those over there."

Xiao Nuan's gaze swept over the signs of those shops without much hesitation, as if she didn't care which ones she ate. Holding Ye Shu's hand, she walked into Old Wang's Steamed Bun Shop, which was still open.

It's morning now, past breakfast time, and there aren't many customers in the shop. There's just a middle-aged man sitting at the entrance, holding a phone in one hand and slurping tea from a large enamel mug with the Double Happiness logo on it in the other.

The middle-aged man, seeing someone enter, put down his enamel mug and revealed a businessman's smile.

"You're here! What would you like to eat?"

Ye Shu was very familiar with the steamed bun shop. When she lived alone, she went there every day. There was no other reason than that it was cheap.

Although it wasn't a steamed bun shop, steamed buns are pretty much the same all over the world. He didn't even look at the price list on the wall and went straight to the point:

"Give me three beef cuts and a bowl of tofu pudding."

After he finished speaking, he turned around and looked at Xiaonuan:

"Have you made your choice?"

Xiao Nuan was looking up at the slightly oily price list on the wall. After a long while, she turned to Ye Shu and said four words:

"Just like you."

"Okay, you two find a place to sit, I'll bring it over to you."

The boss gave a shout and went into the kitchen to prepare.

Xiao Nuan found a relatively clean spot to sit down, sitting up very straight, as if she were attending a lecture.

Ye Shu took two small plastic plates from the sterilizer, picked up a plate of pickled vegetable shreds from the large basin on the counter, and then took two pairs of chopsticks and sat down opposite Xiao Nuan.

As soon as she sat down, Ye Shu took a deep breath and said in a low voice:

"Now, tell me, what happened at home? Sister Zhi Qiu said that you wouldn't come out unless there were special circumstances."

Xiao Nuan sat opposite him, the light streaming in from the doorway casting a soft glow on her profile, but her expression and tone remained unwavering. She looked at Ye Shu, her gaze steady, and began to narrate, without any emotional fluctuation, simply stating the facts she knew:

"The night after you left, An Suxue had an emotional breakdown and voluntarily reduced her communication with the outside world. She currently has no intention of taking over her body."

"On the third night after you left, Xia Qing drank too much alcohol, became irritable and out of control, and eventually passed out on your bed. She currently has no intention of taking over your body."

"For the rest of the time, Zhi Qiu maintained the body's activities, but her efficiency continued to decline, and four days ago, she voluntarily stopped taking control of the body."

Ye Shu was stunned by what he heard, his eyebrows furrowing in disbelief. How could the world end at home so soon after he left?

Xiao Nuan was still watching him summarize:

"The abnormal states of the three of them, based on their starting point, deterioration trend, and severity, are all highly correlated with the time and duration of your departure. Therefore, I think coming to find you is the best solution in the current situation."

"What does this have to do with me?"

Ye Shu blinked, not quite understanding the connection. But she felt inexplicably flustered and guilty...

Before he could even savor the taste, the owner had already brought over a basket of plump steamed buns and two bowls of tofu pudding. The rough porcelain bowls made a slight clinking sound when placed on the table, and the tofu pudding inside trembled slightly.

"Gentlemen, the steamed buns and tofu pudding are all here, enjoy them while they're hot!"

Ye Shu looked at the steamed buns in front of her. Since things had come to this, she decided to eat first.

He picked up the small porcelain jar on the table, scooped out two large spoonfuls of chili oil, and poured it over his bowl of tofu pudding.

Then, he picked up a spoon and began to roughly mash the tofu pudding in the bowl, mixing the tofu pudding, braising sauce, chili oil, and chopped cilantro thoroughly together.

This is his habit; he likes to mix the flavors thoroughly before eating.

Scoop up a spoonful and put it in your mouth. It's salty, fresh, fragrant, spicy, and the tofu pudding itself is smooth and tender. That's the taste!

After taking a couple of bites, he subconsciously looked up at the other side, wanting to call out to Xiao Nuan to eat quickly as well.

But Xiao Nuan had already picked up the spoon, but didn't move. She just lowered her head slightly, her gaze fixed on the bowl of tofu pudding in front of her, and remained motionless.

"What's wrong? Don't you like tofu pudding?"

Xiao Nuan looked up at the sound, her gaze shifting from the tofu pudding to Ye Shu's face:

"I've never eaten this before."

Ye Shu was stunned and didn't react:

"So what kind did you eat? Don't all tofu pudding look like this?"

"I ate the sweet one."

Uh......

Ye Shu understood now. After all, he had been surfing the internet for many years and had heard about this famous "sweet vs. salty" battle before.

Although he has always been a carefree person who thinks, "You guys can argue all you want, I'll eat however I want, it's none of your business if I mix cement with my food," at this moment, a real sweet tooth was sitting right across from him, on his own turf, and had ordered him a bowl of salty food.

Although Xiao Nuan still had a blank expression, Ye Shu could tell that she was hesitating, she was at a loss, and she was at a loss! This little look of hers was just too interesting.

Ye Shu's playful nature was aroused; he wanted to see how a sweet tooth would react to eating savory tofu pudding.

He put down his spoon, leaned forward slightly, and tentatively opened his mouth, looking somewhat like a thug trying to abduct an innocent young girl.

"Well...would you like to try a bite? What if you like it? Hmm? Give it a try."

Xiao Nuan's gaze returned to the bowl of savory tofu pudding, but she still didn't touch it. It wasn't that she disliked it, nor was she resistant to it; it was more like she was assessing the risks involved.

She has always been a meticulous person, so meticulous that she doesn't easily take the initiative to explore new things. Only when the existing things can no longer meet her needs will she conduct thorough investigations, screen, and select the most suitable one.

In the past, she would have chosen not to eat in this situation. But now, the choice seems to be more complicated than usual because Ye Shu was the one who made the suggestion.

Watching her conflicted expression from across the table, Ye Shu's curiosity was completely piqued. How would an absolutely rational person choose between the age-old dilemma of "sweet versus salty"? It's enough to write a thesis.

He seized the opportunity to continue encouraging and enticing:

"Since you're already here, just try one bite, just one bite. If you don't like it, then don't eat it, okay?"

Xiao Nuan remained silent for a long time, so long that Ye Shu thought she was going to use some kind of logic to refuse to try again. However, she suddenly raised her eyes, looked at Ye Shu, and said clearly:

"You feed me."