While Xu Ke was still dazed in the bedroom, Ariel had already dressed up and walked out from the washroom.
Her golden hair was pinned up at the back of her head, with a cherry blossom hairpin adorning her temples. Pink and white tassels hung by her ears, and the gentle eyebrows and eyes painted on her face made her look pure and adorable. She wore a unique traditional Japanese outfit with red as the base and luxurious dahlias embroidered on it, enhancing her ethereal purity. The innocence in her eyes contrasted sharply with the opulence of her attire.
The wooden clogs on her feet made a crisp sound on the floor, and her white, petite, jade-like feet contrasted sharply with the dark clogs, capturing a lot of attention.
"How do I look?" Ariel bead at Xu Ke, spreading her arms and spinning around in front of him, allowing Xu Ke to appreciate her outfit from every angle.
"Beautiful." Xu Ke looked at Ariel with eyes full of admiration and astonishnt.
"It’s my first ti wearing this, but it feels pretty good. I like these clogs, making a clip-clop sound when I walk; it sounds nice. I feel like walking a few more steps in them." Ariel showed Xu Ke her clogs, her toes round like rice dumplings wiggling restlessly, looking extrely cute.
Xu Ke held Ariel’s small extended foot, a aningful look in his eyes, before nonchalantly letting it go. "Stop ssing around. Don’t you want to go to the izakaya? If you keep ssing around, don’t you want to go?" Xu Ke said.
"Yes, I do, but I want to see you wearing such an outfit, too. But I didn’t expect to et you here, so I didn’t prepare one for you. What a pity." Ariel cupped her cheeks, looking regretfully at Xu Ke.
"No need to worry. They should have so for sale outside. I’ll buy one and wear it for you then." Xu Ke coaxed.
Ariel’s eyes lit up as soon as she heard Xu Ke say this, as if she had thought of an amusing scene. She covered her mouth and laughed, her usually proud big eyes disappearing in laughter.
"What’s brewing in that little head of yours that makes you laugh so cunningly?" Xu Ke chuckled, gently flicking Ariel’s forehead with his finger as he said.
"Don’t ss with my head. What if it makes dumb? Anyway, you’ll find out then; I’m not telling you what I’m thinking now." Ariel stuck out her small tongue at Xu Ke playfully.
But afterwards, Ariel seed to have switched on so odd switch, glancing at Xu Ke from ti to ti, letting out small, short laughs, leaving Xu Ke bewildered. He asked, but Ariel was persistent in not telling, only mumbling, "You’ll find out then."
"I advise you not to keep laughing at like that, or you might not make it to ’then.’" Xu Ke finally couldn’t help but issue a mild threat when he caught Ariel’s cunning smile for the umpteenth ti.
Ariel imdiately covered her mouth, staring accusingly at Xu Ke with her big eyes, as if saying how could you be like this.
"You’re too adorable when you smile; if you keep it up, I might not be able to hold back, you know?" Xu Ke reached out and gently rubbed Ariel’s neck.
Ariel’s hairs stood on end at Xu Ke’s touch, and she drew her shoulders, closing her mouth and no longer daring to laugh.
The ambiance in the izakaya was unlike any place Ariel had ever been. She opened her mouth wide, looking around with great curiosity.
The izakaya wasn’t very large—quaint yet elegant. There were hardly any modern artifacts inside, more often displaying handicrafts. The lighting wasn’t too bright, with the interplay of light and dark weaving scenes reminiscent of old movies. Every scene seed like a picture waiting to be captured. Besides, the environnt inside the izakaya was exceptionally serene. All the staff wore traditional Japanese attire, speaking softly, like warm water, making anyone who made contact feel relaxed enough to let out a large breath.
Ariel was utterly captivated by everything in the izakaya, everything here infinitely attractive to her like the nectar of flowers.
Ariel clung to one of Xu Ke’s arms, whispering in his ear: "It’s so quiet here; it’s not like a drinking place at all, and not lively either, but I still like it."
Xu Ke gently touched Ariel’s nose and said softly, "It’s not that it’s not lively; it’s just not the right ti yet. There’ll be a performance here at eight tonight."
"How do you know?" Ariel looked at Xu Ke curiously and asked.
"Guess," Xu Ke teased, refusing to give Ariel an answer, leaving her both curious and restless as they moved into one of the private booths.
Sitting on tatami mats with a low table between them, Xu Ke handed Ariel the nu, "Go ahead, order whatever you like; I’ll go along with your taste."
Seeing Xu Ke say this, Ariel didn’t hold back and happily ordered anything that caught her interest from the nu. Because the pictures on the nu were so exquisite, she nearly ordered everything on the first page, yet she showed no sign of stopping, continuing to order more.
The smile on the waiter’s face faltered for a mont, glancing at Xu Ke then at Ariel, hesitating before apologetically asking, "Excuse , how many people are with you?"
Ariel snapped out of the nu’s world, looking at the waiter and said, "Two people, why?"
"The items you ordered are already quite enough. If it’s just the two of you, it’s not recomnded to order more; you won’t be able to finish it all." The waiter politely stated.
"It’s okay; I don’t mind. If we can’t finish it, we can’t. I’m just interested in trying them out." Ariel shrugged nonchalantly.
Hearing Ariel say so, the waiter said nothing more, maintaining the smile and placing the order according to Ariel’s request. By the ti Ariel finished ordering, over eighty percent of the dishes on that nu page were marked off.
"The serving ti might be slightly delayed, so please don’t mind." The waiter bowed to Ariel apologetically before leaving the private room gently, making not a sound.
Seeing the waiter had left, Ariel no longer restrained her exploration, her eyes curiously scanning the private room. At first glance, the room gave a holy feel, naturally relaxing one’s nerves.
On closer inspection, the room’s decoration was quite refined, with great attention given to detail by the owner. Various small ornants and decorations, although not striking individually, ca together beautifully to captivate one’s eye. The balance of elegance and vibrant spots easily generated fondness.
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