Chapter 18 - Taste It A Few More Times, You'll Get Used To It...
Lin Yi was shocked at how well equipped the kitchen was. It was much more advanced and modernized than that big cauldron back home.
There was even a cute apron with baby faces on it.
It seemed really new, and it didn’t look like the two girls used it at all, seeing how they just waited for food with open hands.
Lin Yi wasted no time in searching for ingredients after putting the apron on.
There were tomatoes, spinach, celery, and other kinds of vegetables, as well as eggs. It was variety over quantity, however.
Most likely a safety measure from Li Fu, prepared in case Meng Yao wanted to cook something. Whether or not the Miss cooked was no business of Lin Yi, but he did find the man very considerate when it came to Chu Peng Zhan’s daughter. He was his most trusted man, after all.
For the main ingredients, Lin Yi picked some flour out of the noodles and rice in the selection. He started making some Yangchun Noodles, remembering to prepare his own portion, as well.
Lin Yi was no stranger to cooking. He’d been making meals for the old man back home since he was six, and it had become a habit of his.
It didn’t take long for Lin Yi to have lines of thin, silky noodles covering the cutting board. Not with a kitchen this packed.
With the noodles done, Lin Yi started preparing the broth.
Broths weren’t usually prepared with a huge pot that would last for days- that was something done in hotels. Picking the first thing he saw in the cupboard, Lin Yi took out a quality and concentrated broth.
The scent spread throughout the kitchen, signalling for him to add vegetables and seasoning to the broth.
In the meantime, Lin Yi boiled another pot of water and put the noodles in. The noodles were good to go by the time he opened the lid again. With a gesture, Lin Yi scooped out the noodles and poured the broth in, completing two perfect bowls of Yangchun noodles.
Though, the noodles weren’t technically Yangchun Noodles- they were a personalized version that Old Lin back home absolutely loved.
There were still more noodles in the pot that Lin Yi had saved for himself; a single bowl was probably enough for Yu Shu.
“Hey... are you done over there?”
Yushu was already gulping by the time the aroma reached her. Putting on some slippers, she walked over to the kitchen lazily.
“Yeah, was just about to call for you.”
Lin Yi started undoing the apron as he spoke.
“Oh! That’s Yao Yao’s apron, make sure she doesn't find out about you using it!” Yushu said as she looked at the apron in Lin Yi’s hands. “I’ll keep quiet about it, since you made me breakfast.”
“Eh?”
Lin Yi was caught off guard by the girl’s sudden change in attitude.
This was a very mischievous girl, after all, seeing how she acted during the whole first kiss episode last night. What’s with her being kind all of a sudden?
But it was of no concern to Lin Yi- he only needed to avoid getting on Mengyao’s bad side, and just do his job as a study companion, like he was told to.
Yushu, on the other hand, was frowning, not looking very comfortable with a big dude eating his noodles across from her.
But it did seem a bit absurd to tell him to leave… He was the one who made the delicious looking food, after all. With that, Yushu decided to allow Lin Yi’s presence, stuffing herself with the noodles first.
It was the best bowl of noodles she had tasted her whole life! She’d usually just eat some instant noodles, or drink some milk before going to school; It was her first time eating pure handmade noodles like this.
Yushu, obviously, wouldn’t do something like telling Lin Yi how good they were, in case he started forgetting his place. She decided to ignore Lin Yi and keep her compliments hidden as she emptied the bowl.
Lin Yi couldn’t be happier about getting ignored by Yushu- the last thing he wanted was for her to cause more trouble for him.
Having finished his own bowl, Lin Yi made his way to the pot once more.
He was just about to fill his bowl with more noodles when he remembered Yushu sitting behind him. “Still want any?”
“Nope.” Yushu said, shaking her head. “Get me a glass of water.”
“Aren’t there drinks right behind you?”
Lin Yi was already refilling his bowl after pointing at the fridge behind Yushu.
“Well, it isn’t very healthy to have juice in the morning, is it. Water’s good for your body, and jeez! You’re a talkative one! Are you going or not? Maybe I should call Uncle Chu?”
Yushu glared impatiently.
“Okay, okay…”
Nodding his head, Lin Yi walked over to where the water fountain was.
“Haaah-! Stupid alarm.”
A very tired Mengyao yawned as she lazily walked down the stairs. She didn’t sleep very well last night.
She did nothing but cry and complain to Yushu half the night, but the first kiss incident didn’t hurt her as much anymore.
She felt like she’d just fallen asleep before the alarm woke her up again.
It was a school day, unfortunately, or she wouldn’t have bothered getting up at all.
Mengyao was thinking about Yushu by the time she reached the bottom of the stairs. She shouldn’t have gotten any more sleep than she did, so how was she up so early?
A pleasant scent reached her from the kitchen, and Mengyao’s stomach, empty from the vomiting yesterday, started growling.
“Shu, what are you eating over there without me!”
Mengyao rushed to the kitchen and saw Yushu murdering a bowl of noodles. She was pleased to see another bowl across from the girl, fresh and ready for her.
“Ha! I knew you wouldn’t forget about me, thanks Shu!”
Yushu was completely absorbed in gulping down the soup when she heard Mengyao’s voice. It was so good that she didn’t want to be interrupted, but she gulped it down faster and removed the bowl from her face as soon as she could.
Mengyao was already stuffing herself with Lin YI’s chopsticks.
“Ugh……..”
Yushu only sighed. There was nothing more she could say.
Come on, couldn’t she have at least waited for a confirmation? What’s the rush?
“Woah, it’s good!”
There was no way a starving Mengyao could hold herself back from Yangchun noodles like these! She was still stuffing noodles into her mouth with chopsticks, even when she was speaking. “Shu, where’d you buy this?”
“Uh, I didn’t… Shield Guy made it.”
Yushu only looked at her with pity. She didn’t want to poke at Mengyao’s crushed spirit anymore at this point.
“Ah!”
Mengyao instantly dropped her chopsticks with a startle. “He made his? No way I’m eating something he made…!”
Yushu kept herself silent. What’s the point, you were already eating it…
Well… You’ve already had his saliva last night so I suppose it doesn’t matter anymore… Just taste it a few more times and you’ll get used to it…
Mengyao seemed to be deep in thought when she suddenly snapped.
“Hmph, why should I stop eating for that guy?! I‘m finishing it, right now!!!”
Mengyao simply understood that she’d never be able to hold herself back, especially from a steaming bowl of noodles right within her grasp.
“Just because I’m eating his food doesn’t mean I’m gonna forgive him! I’m just hungry from not eating anything last night, and these noodles are actually just pretty average anyway, right, Shu?”
“Ah… Yeah…”
Yushu wanted to see Mengyao’s reaction to eating a bowl of Lin Yi’s saliva, but she kept herself in check, out of pity for her friend. The poor girl couldn’t possibly go through that again.