Heartwarming

Zhu Qing and Li Lan also fell silent.

They looked at each other, speechless.

After a while, Zhu Qing let out an awkward laugh. “Haha, Cancan is still as energetic as ever.”

Li Lan’s expression was subtle. “Qian Chu usually isn’t that loud. She’s not like that.”

Zhu Qing rolled her eyes, then asked in a low voice, “Does Qian Cancan seem like a top to you?”

Li Lan asked back, “Does Qian Chu seem like a bottom to you?”

Zhu Qing handed the phone back to Li Lan and muttered, “I used to think I was a steel-strong top.”

In the end, she’d never managed to turn things around.

Zhu Qing blamed it on Li Lan being too much of a siren, so mesmerizing that she couldn’t help herself.

“Life experience has to keep getting updated,” Li Lan said, a faint smile flickering at the corners of her eyes. She quickly reined it in and said calmly, “Let’s go home.”

All the way back, the two of them gossiped idly. Li Lan had been surprised that Qian Chu could actually end up with Qian Cancan, while Zhu Qing had long suspected it, but still felt regretful.

“Cancan has liked top students like Qian Chu since she was little,” Zhu Qing said. “She was always standing up for girls, especially the top three in class. If any boy in class dared pull a girl’s pigtails, Cancan would lead a bunch of her ‘followers’ to corner him in the bathroom and make him apologize and promise not to bully people again.”

Li Lan remembered Qian Chu when she first found her. Back then, Qian Chu was even more green than she was now, but she still had that serious, innocent look. “Qian Chu has never been in a relationship. Compared with someone like Cancan, who’s been through the school of love, she’s way too easy to take advantage of.”

Zhu Qing weakly protested, “She’s fine, though. Cancan’s pretty good.”

“Is that so?” Li Lan said coolly. “From the way she sounded on the phone, she did seem pretty good.”

For some reason, Zhu Qing felt a little guilty. She had thought that because Qian Cancan liked Qian Chu so much, she’d give in the first time.

But these were the kinds of things outsiders couldn’t judge. Zhu Qing rubbed her nose and looked down at her phone.

“By the way, do you have any work arrangements coming up?”

Li Lan remembered the message Qian Chu had sent her. “I asked yesterday. She said she was still arranging things. After today’s phone call... I’m guessing she won’t have time to arrange any work for me over the next few days.”

“That’s great, then.” Zhu Qing slapped her thigh, thinking that Qian Cancan really had done what she said she would and beaten Qian Chu at her own game. “I’ll tell the kindergarten too. I’ll go in a few times when I have time recently; it doesn’t count as fully returning to work. These next few days, I’ll mainly stay home with you.”

Li Lan thought about it and nodded. “Okay. I’ll also go see Yang Huayi. Then we can go out together.”

Taking advantage of this holiday, the two of them were at their sweetest. They could take care of all the miscellaneous matters and leave most of their time for each other.

“What do you want for dinner?” Zhu Qing started listing menu items.

Li Lan recalled the dishes Zhu Qing had once made for her. In her mind, each dish appeared with its look and flavor.

What should she do? She wanted all of them.

“...Any new dishes?” Li Lan asked.

Zhu Qing said, “New dishes? You want something fresh? I haven’t learned any new ones lately. If you want something, I can look it up now.”

“No need,” Li Lan said quickly. “I just can’t choose... I want to eat all of it.”

Zhu Qing said, “Then I’m going to be worn out.”

Li Lan was about to say she could just make a few dishes at random when Zhu Qing said, “Then today we’ll do pineapple ribs, goji berry, lychee, and red date soup, stir-fried lettuce, pan-seared salmon, and cheese egg tarts. We’ve still got several days. Whatever you want to eat, I’ll make it slowly for you.”

Li Lan’s eyes lit up when she heard the dishes. “Okay.”

Zhu Qing thought about it. “You like sweets, so I’ll make something sweet tomorrow too.”

Li Lan paused for a moment, then smiled. “Okay.”

Zhu Qing mentally tallied up the ingredients she’d need and was very satisfied with Li Lan’s reaction. “I didn’t expect my cooking to be this popular.”

Li Lan answered seriously, “It’s always been popular; it’s just that I... didn’t get to eat much before.”

Zhu Qing asked curiously, “Why? Were you always not home?”

Li Lan shook her head. “No... you weren’t very willing to cook for me.”

“How could that be? I really like cooking for the people around me,” Zhu Qing said, completely baffled. “Even Xiao Bao says I often make her delicious food.”

Li Lan felt a little jealous and said softly, “That’s Xiao Bao. You make it for her, but not for me.”

Zhu Qing: ??

“Maybe you were worried I wouldn’t be used to it,” Li Lan said, suppressing the sourness in her heart as she made her own guess. “My diet control used to be very strict. Qian Chu probably told you something. At first, you often made me a whole table full of dishes, but later you stopped making even one dish.”

Zhu Qing found the root of the problem and said firmly, “Then that’s not my issue; it’s that you couldn’t eat it.”

“I can eat it now,” Li Lan said at once. “Whatever you make, I’ll eat.”

Zhu Qing tried not to laugh. “Okay, I heard you. Do you know what today’s hot search was?”

Li Lan rarely looked at her phone when she wasn’t working. “What?”

“#Li Lan’s expression after seeing food is basically me#,” Zhu Qing said. “I thought it was some fancy dish, but it turned out to be my home cooking. It was from the newly released bonus episode. The production team put on a bright filter, and you ate so deliciously that even I got hungry watching.”

Li Lan said matter-of-factly, “Then that means it was really delicious.”

Zhu Qing suspected that even if she made a shoe insole, Li Lan would still say it was fragrant.

After they got home, Zhu Qing told Li Lan to go to sleep and make up for her rest while she cleaned up the ingredients alone.

Half an hour later, Zhu Qing saw Li Lan come out of the second bedroom carrying a pile of things.

Zhu Qing looked puzzled. “Are you doing laundry? Leave it, I’ll handle it, or we can call an hourly helper.”

Li Lan dropped her gaze to the pile and said nothing.

Zhu Qing followed her gaze and suddenly noticed a pair of rabbit ears that hadn’t been hidden properly, a beautifully packaged box of “toys,” and a leather paddle.

Zhu Qing: ...

“Ahem. Um, I’m moving back to the master bedroom,” Li Lan said, obviously trying to cover something up.

Zhu Qing said darkly, “You alone are enough.”

Li Lan looked very serious. “Still, it needs tidying up.”

Is that so? A pile of things; she’d better tidy up all this mess first.

Did Li Lan think a few clothes would block her from seeing it?

Zhu Qing brandished the spatula and made a threatening gesture or two, then ordered, “I don’t like it. Put it down.”

Li Lan hesitated, but under Zhu Qing’s tyrannical pressure, she still turned around and put it back. There was still a trace of regret on her face.

Zhu Qing thought angrily that, aside from the necessary protective measures, she was going to throw out all the things Qian Cancan had given her.

...Unless she found a chance to use them on Li Lan.

After Li Lan finished putting things away, she came into the kitchen to help Zhu Qing prepare the ingredients.

Zhu Qing was just about to chase her out when she saw Li Lan skillfully sorting and washing the vegetables. Her hands were even more nimble than Zhu Qing’s.

“Didn’t you leave the welfare institution when you were in your teens?” How had she still kept this skill?

Li Lan said lightly, “I spent a long time overseas.”

Zhu Qing blinked twice, then understood. Curious, she asked, “Is foreign food really that bad?”

“Online comments are only partly true,” Li Lan said calmly. “In many countries, as long as you have money, you can still eat well. But most of the time, I didn’t have money.”

Zhu Qing thought about it and understood.

A lot of the people who said foreign food was bad were studying abroad. Students were consumers; they didn’t produce anything and usually didn’t have much money. Unless their families were especially rich, they basically had to calculate every expense.

“That’s not just a small expense,” Li Lan said, setting down the lettuce in her hand and giving Zhu Qing an example. “If I wanted to eat a little better, I’d spend an extra thousand pounds a month; converted to RMB, that’s about ten thousand. At the time, I was still working locally, and even earning and spending locally, I could only just make ends meet.”

Zhu Qing felt sorry the moment she heard it. “Then how did you handle meals?”

“Cooked for myself,” Li Lan said easily. “I’m pretty good at cooking. The neighbors around me all liked it, and some even brought their own ingredients over. After I started cooking for myself, not only did I eat better, but I also spent a lot less in that area.”

“As expected of you.” Zhu Qing leaned over and kissed Li Lan. “What are you good at making?”

“Braised meat, dumplings, buns, and most stir-fried dishes,” Li Lan said simply. “I rarely made anything more complicated. Foreigners can’t really get used to it anyway.”

After Zhu Qing finished the pineapple ribs, it was just in time for kindergarten dismissal. Li Lan told her to go pick up Xiao Bao while she handled the rest.

Li Lan did a very decent job; a kitchen knife could slice through vegetables in more than ten thudding strokes, making evenly sized shreds. Zhu Qing’s last bit of worry vanished, and she happily headed out.

On the way, Zhu Qing told Zhao Yun not to come pick them up. Zhao Yun gave an inscrutable “oh” and reminded her not to spoil Xiao Bao, to keep an eye on her homework, and that Zhao Yun would check it tomorrow.

Zhu Qing agreed readily, then promptly forgot about it. Xiao Bao was only five. What homework was she supposed to do? What studying was there to do? At her age, she should be happy every day.

When Zhu Qing arrived, there were a bunch of nannies and luxury cars outside the kindergarten. Most of them were drivers or aunties coming to pick up the children. Zhu Qing, fresh and pretty, became a striking sight and drew a lot of attention.

The kindergarten guard spotted Zhu Qing and opened the gate for her with a smile.

Zhu Qing took advantage of the staff privilege and went in to look for Xiao Bao.

Xiao Bao was painting sand art in the practical building at the back. When the teacher came to call her, she still couldn’t bear to look up, carefully scattering the last bit of sand.

Zhu Qing smiled. “Is Xiao Bao drawing a little kitty?”

“Zhu Zhu!” Xiao Bao was overjoyed. She jumped up and leaped straight into Zhu Qing’s arms. “You came to pick me up from school!”

Xiao Bao was a child, so her happiness couldn’t be hidden. She wriggled excitedly in Zhu Qing’s arms. It had been a long time since she’d felt Zhu Qing’s care so directly.

Zhu Qing carefully brushed the sand off her hands and didn’t set her down. She held her with one arm, picked up her backpack with the other, and greeted the teacher.

When the teachers saw Zhu Qing, they were both familiar with her and curious. “Here to pick up Xiao Bao?”

Zhu Qing smiled and nodded at them one by one. “Mm. Thank you for taking care of Xiao Bao.”

“Hahaha, it’s nothing. Xiao Bao is very well-behaved.”

“Xiao Bao, Zhu Zhu is a big star now,” Xiao Bao’s homeroom teacher said as she walked out with Zhu Qing, teasing her. “A lot of children like her.”

Xiao Bao’s little face drooped, her cute and delicate features scrunching together. It was adorable.

Zhu Qing said softly, “I made you something delicious.”

Xiao Bao’s expression lit up again. She wrapped her arms around Zhu Qing and planted a loud kiss on her. “Zhu Zhu likes me the most!”

The homeroom teacher only escorted them downstairs and didn’t follow them out. Xiao Bao was afraid Zhu Qing would get tired, so she wanted to come down and walk by herself.

Zhu Qing held her hand and walked slowly across the playground.

Xiao Bao spread her arms wide, gesturing as she bounced along, saying that she’d had gym class today, that she’d seen butterflies on the playground, and that she had accidentally swallowed a cherry pit.

Children always had a lot to say. Zhu Qing listened with great interest and felt that if someone took a candid photo of her right now, the caption would definitely be “the smile of a loving mother.”

Just as the two of them passed the edge of the playground, someone suddenly called out to her.

A weak little “Teacher Zhu” drifted over from not far away.

Zhu Qing froze for a moment. Before she could react, Xiao Bao cried out excitedly and ran over quickly.

“Wang Ru!” Xiao Bao ran to the fence and stretched out her little hand toward the person on the other side.

Wang Ru poked out half her head. She looked simple and honest; after a moment of hesitation, she also reached out and held Xiao Bao’s hand.

Zhu Qing understood. This was the good friend who had once given Xiao Bao a book.

“Are you called Wang Ru?” Zhu Qing walked over, bent down, and asked gently.

Wang Ru looked at Zhu Qing timidly. “Does Teacher Zhu not remember me?”

Zhu Qing was startled. “Did I know you before?”

Wang Ru pressed her lips together. Her expression was a little hurt, and she didn’t speak.

Seeing that Zhu Qing had forgotten someone else too, Xiao Bao immediately explained, “Zhu Zhu has amnesia! She doesn’t even remember me. Wang Ru, you have to be friends with Zhu Zhu again.”

Wang Ru looked up in surprise. “Teacher Zhu has amnesia?”

“I hit my head and don’t remember what happened before,” Zhu Qing said with a smile, pointing at her head. “Little Wang Ru, we need to get to know each other again.”

Zhu Qing extended a hand. Wang Ru hesitated for two seconds, then reached out and gave a light smile.

She was three years older than Xiao Bao and knew a bit more. Seeing Zhu Qing, she said the words she’d wanted to say these past few days.

“Thank you for the donation, Teacher Zhu. We have new backpacks and books now, and I’ve gone to a new class. We’re all doing well.”

Zhu Qing’s eyes widened slightly.

Donation?

How did she have a donation too?

————————!!————————

What everyone sees is only one chapter.

What the author sees is that after updating daily for 48 consecutive days, she’s started wondering whether she should take a day off and rest; after all, 48 days is a lot. But in the end, she still habitually opens the computer and updates daily...

(Another day of looking forward to the weekend)