Return to Xiyu Yue Ting.
[Zhang Housekeeper] carries four large bags of New Year's goods from the trunk of the car.
Seeing an exquisitely packaged Barbie doll gift box, he plunges into confusion.
Just as he wants to ask Madam where to put away the gift box, in the master bedroom or Young Master's room, he sees Madam has already swiftly taken out some bags and walked towards the villa entrance.
She tosses over her shoulder:
"I'm going over there, will be back later."
The "over there" in [Sheng Mumu]'s mouth refers to her mother-in-law [Feng Yaoqin]'s house.
Every time she accompanies [Feng Yaoqin] to the Garden Square to dance, she would casually say she's "going over there."
"Hey, wait, Madam—" [Zhang Housekeeper] doesn't get to ask his question before [Sheng Mumu] is already out of sight.
[Qi Mo] has just gotten out of the driver's seat, car keys in hand. He closes the car door and exchanges silent looks with [Zhang Housekeeper].
[Zhang Housekeeper] picks up the Barbie gift box. "Sir, should I put this in...?"
"Give it to me." [Qi Mo] reaches out to take the gift box and strides towards the villa entrance with his long legs.
[Zhang Housekeeper]'s eyes widen in silent astonishment. "!!!"
Oh my...
So I guessed wrong.
It belongs neither to Madam nor Young Master.
It turns out it's Sir's???
Uncle Smiley Face dot JPG
Yet another day unlocking new hobbies of the house owner.
In another villa kitchen, [Sheng Mumu] and [Feng Yaoqin] stand side by side in front of the counter.
Laid out before them are all the ingredients needed to make Dry Fried Beef.
Before leaving for the supermarket, [Sheng Mumu] had pulled [Feng Yaoqin] aside and whispered to her for a long time.
It was to finish what had been left undone previously.
The night [Feng Yaoqin] arrived in J City, she had wanted to teach [Sheng Mumu] how to make dishes her son-in-law [Qi Mo] likes to eat.
Back then, [Sheng Mumu] didn't want to learn at all.
They were pretending to be married couple anyway, just keeping up appearances.
Why would she really learn to cook for a man?
No way would she be willing.
Yet somehow...
When everyone brought up buying New Year's goods just now...
The thought to learn cooking suddenly popped up in her mind.
It even gave herself a fright.
The two tie on aprons and wash their hands clean.
[Feng Yaoqin] skillfully picks up a cleaver. With her left hand pressing on a slab of fresh beef and right hand holding the cleaver cutting downwards, she tilts her head to instruct:
"Mumu, watch closely—"
"Beef should be cut against the grain like this—"
"Then for the chili peppers, snip off the ends—"
"Cilantro and green onion sections should be cut into 3 cm pieces, just need a little bit for nice presentation—"
"... "
[Sheng Mumu] stands to [Feng Yaoqin]'s right, holding a smaller slab of fresh beef in her hands. Following along, she imitates her mother-in-law's posture to bring down the cleaver.
She is able to barely keep up at first. Although the seasoning ratios for marinating the beef are off, it still looks somewhat decent.
But when it gets to the "stir frying" step, she clearly becomes flustered.
Wielding the pot lid as a shield against oil splatters ready to fly out any time.
Seeing this, [Feng Yaoqin] heaves a helpless yet amused sigh. She pulls [Sheng Mumu] back a step.
And says solemnly:
"Or how about we just don't learn anymore, Mumu."
"While cooking isn't difficult, it does require some talent."
"With your talents, it's already a miracle you managed to learn meatballs."
[Sheng Mumu]'s mouth twitches. She smiles awkwardly. "......"
[Feng Yaoqin] softly consoles, "Anyway there are chefs at home. It's fine if you can't cook."
[Sheng Mumu] recalls her mother-in-law's past words and smiles as she asks back:
"Mom, that's not what you used to say."
Back then, mother-in-law said being a daughter-in-law means having to know how to manage the household and take good care of the husband and children's three daily meals.
Yet now, she doesn't have a single expectation of [Sheng Mumu], and hasn't brought up talk of conceiving anymore.
"I was deliberately trying to scare you, silly girl." [Feng Yaoqin] laughs it off.
She takes the pot lid from [Sheng Mumu]'s hands.
Giving the wok a few quick stirs with the spatula, she effortlessly calms the cooking situation that had distressed [Sheng Mumu].
"Alright, stop messing around uselessly in the kitchen." [Feng Yaoqin] turns off the stove and pulls [Sheng Mumu] out of the kitchen.
"If you're free with nothing to do, come with me to the Square tonight. Old Ye, Xu Auntie and even Yanzi Sister have all said it's been a long time since seeing you and they miss you."
Warmth spreads through [Sheng Mumu]'s heart. At a momentary loss for what to say.
Her best trait is being receptive to advice.
After brief consideration, she decides to heed [Feng Yaoqin]'s words.
Give up on learning Dry Fried Beef.
While she is giving up, the dish preparation was already halfway done, it would be a waste to not let the intended person know.
She takes out her phone and takes a photo of the half-made Dry Fried Beef to send to [Qi Mo].
Message sent.
The "typing" indicator above the chat stays on for a long time.
After a while, a new message pops up.
[Qi Mo]: "My eyesight is poor. This is...?"
[Sheng Mumu]'s smile freezes. ......
Glancing between the blackened wok and the picture.
She frowns doubtfully, as if questioning life itself.
It can't be unrecognizable even if unfinished right?
[Sheng Mumu] holds in her breath and taps out a reply.
Sending four messages in one furious go:
"This is my half-way destroyed attempt at Dry Fried Beef!!!"
"Your favorite dish to eat!!!"
"Is it so bad you can't even make out what it is???"
"[anger emoticon] [hands on hips angry emoticon]"
[Qi Mo] looks at the words she sent appearing on his phone screen, piecing together scattered fragments in an instant.
Recalling her sneaking off mysteriously into [Feng Yaoqin]'s car before leaving for the supermarket.
And remembering at the supermarket, she had seemingly casually wandered by the fresh section several times, getting ingredients for one dish in three separate trips.
So it turns out...
All her abnormal behaviors were just to learn how to make his favorite dish to eat.
The man's heart softens all at once. He leans back into the chair.
Eyes clear and eyelashes lifted at the corners.
He types: "Not bad at all, if looking closely can make out..."
Just as he is typing, he suddenly stops halfway, fingers suspended above the screen.
As if thinking of something, his brow flickers subtly, a flash of slyness in his eyes.
He deletes the typed out reply one by one.
And retypes, pretending not to know: "Didn't you say you didn't want to learn before?"
The subtext being, why do you want to learn now.
The message is sent out.
The man stares fixedly at the screen without blinking once.
Wanting to see her tell him the reason.
Greedily wanting to see more possibly expressed moments of her liking him.
"Typing..." appears in the chat.
The man doesn't even blink, anticipation in his eyes growing thicker by the second.
Soon, the typing status disappears.
A new message pops up in the chat box.
[Sheng Mumu]: "Yeah, that's why I gave up. [clueless scratching head emoji]"
[Sheng Mumu] doesn't pick up on the subtle implication behind his words.
She responds to the man's question containing shallow hints in the most straightforward way.
[Qi Mo] is silent. He stares at his phone.
Head lowered, he sighs lightly once.
A chest full of anticipation dissipates into thin air.
Oh well.
The setting sun outside the window shines on the man's distinct and sculpted face, cloaking it in a thin layer of warm light.
The feeling of disappointment only lingers for an instant.
The warm light curves out soft edges.
His fingers lightly glide across the screen as he browses online.
Gaze falling upon that photo of "Half-Way Ruined Dry Fried Beef", the corners of his lips lift up smiling.
Compared to "how she answers", "what she did" matters more.
Slender fingers press against the screen.
Clicking, and clicking again.
Saving the image.
He treasures her first attempt at wanting to learn to cook for him, collecting this heartfelt gesture like a precious jewel.
