Murong Yanran clung to Li Haochen's back like a sloth. It took him considerable effort to place her on the bed. Watching the sleeping Murong Yanran, she even pouted playfully, making his heart flutter. He really wanted to plant a kiss on her lips.
He wondered why girls' rooms were always so fragrant. That scent was more potent than any aphrodisiac, and a deep inhale would surely make one lose all self-control.
Li Haochen almost lost himself, but managed to retain a sliver of clarity. He covered her with the blanket and gently closed the door. A cold shower lasting over ten minutes finally suppressed his urges.
"Hoo~"
After his shower, he felt refreshed. Glancing at the time, it was 3:30 AM. He sat in the courtyard, looking in the direction of his old home.
"How are you doing up there?"
Wiping away the condensation, he walked back to his room with a confident and determined stride. That night, he slept soundly and sweetly, so sweet that even his biological clock, unchanged for 20 years, was thrown into disarray.
The next day, the sun was high in the sky. The scorching sun made the cicadas on the longan trees chirp relentlessly, and the young birds in their nests, already hungry, chirped incessantly.
A knock on the door disturbed Li Haochen's pleasant dream.
He stretched, yawned a few times, rubbed his eyes, and walked over.
Creak~
"Did I wake you?"
"Uh, no, I was already awake."
"Hurry up and wash up. Come down for breakfast."
No sweet nothings, just ordinary conversation. This was life, and the sincerity made it even sweeter.
...
"Did you cook this?" Li Haochen was taken aback. He looked at the congee on the table, which hadn't fully melted into mush – well, he'd call it congee – and some slightly burnt fried eggs.
Could this be culinary disaster? Li Haochen swallowed with difficulty.
"Of course, I learned it from Xiaohongshu," Murong Yanran said, her eyes smiling, a look of pride on her face.
"Have you... eaten yet?"
"No, I was waiting for you. Look..." Murong Yanran put on a playful and cute expression like a little girl, patting her stomach and saying, "I'm almost starving to death."
When a large bowl of congee and three burnt fried eggs were placed before Li Haochen, his mouth twitched. Surely... it would be alright?
"Eat up, what are you staring at?"
"Uh, I... I'm eating."
Li Haochen picked up the spoon with difficulty, looking at the uncooked rice. After a moment of internal struggle, he decided to just go for it. "It's death or glory."
With one bite, his teeth almost broke. Seeing Murong Yanran's expectant gaze, he thought, well, perhaps this is how you train to have iron teeth.
Crunch, crunch.
He wasn't sure if it was his teeth crushing the rice or the rice breaking his teeth, but the sound echoed in his ears. The sensation was so intense that the muscles on both sides of his jaw felt like biceps.
"How is it? I followed the video exactly."
Li Haochen didn't know how to answer and could only nod vigorously.
Seeing Li Haochen nod furiously, Murong Yanran was overjoyed. She hadn't expected her first attempt to be so successful. She thought she had great potential as a culinary master.
Smiling, she spooned some into her mouth. Li Haochen was about to stop her, but it was too late.
"..."
"Ah... Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey!"
"You, Li Haochen, you actually learned to lie! What will you do in the future?" Murong Yanran spat out the raw rice, pouting her cheeks. Her passive skill was triggered, and it was effective against both physical and magical defense.
"Hiss~"
The soft flesh of his waist was subjected to a "5355b," earning an exclamation from the International Swimming Federation.
"Hmph, you dared to trick me and almost broke my teeth."
"That's impossible. I cooked it according to the video, without missing a single step. Why?" Murong Yanran opened Xiaohongshu again, recalling the steps.
"Bang~"
Murong Yanran slapped Li Haochen's thigh hard, picked up her phone, and shoved it towards him. "Look, it's exactly the same, not a second missing from the five-minute video."
Li Haochen felt like crying. Not only was he a guinea pig, but he was also mentally and physically abused.
"How long did you cook it?"
"Five minutes. I cooked it for as long as the video showed."
Li Haochen's expression was one of utter exasperation. "Stop watching Xiaohongshu from now on. Watch Kuaishou instead, and remember to find longer videos."
"Oh, okay. What do you want to eat tomorrow?"
"..."
The fried eggs were also sweet, with sugar used instead of salt. Murong Yanran's face turned red, and she wished she could crawl under the table.
In the end, Li Haochen had to step in and cook two bowls of Sanxian Yimi noodles. The taste was so fresh and fragrant that Murong Yanran exclaimed in delight, not forgetting to open Kuaishou to watch tutorials.
"..."
After waiting and wishing for Li Haochen's arrival, everyone's faces turned grim. As soon as he showed up, he was met with a beating.
Knowing he was in the wrong, he promised to treat them to lunch, which finally extinguished their anger.
During this time, Zhao Ergou came to check again. To his dismay, the shop hadn't opened by 11:30 AM. This time, he was certain of the reason for the poor business. Grumbling, he rode his electric scooter away and proceeded to unleash a torrent of scolding.
With everything ready, they opened for business. Huh? Something was missing. They looked around, and the place was empty. What were they selling? Air? The kind from the Himalayas?
Suddenly, they were staring at each other, their faces covered in dark lines, almost woven into a sweater. Having already sensed that something was amiss, just as they were about to explode, Li Haochen bolted out the back door and vanished.
The "Three Swordsmen" who rushed out the back door were panting heavily. Li Haochen had already made his escape, and all they could hear was "I'm going to get coconut milk..." floating back.
"Whew, that was close. If those beasts had caught me, I'd have been stripped bare."
Li Haochen felt a chill of fear and secretly praised his foresight.
He returned home, locked the door, and entered his space. He didn't rush to pick coconuts. Instead, he circled the Kyushu Island. Seeing the large, wild sea snails that were hard to find in the market, he felt a surge of pride. These were rivers of cash!
Originally, he had planned to keep these sea snails for a collaboration with the Murong family. But since Murong Yanran had left, he naturally had to find a new outlet. Li Haochen had thought about it, but without any good connections for now, he decided to put it aside. He wasn't short of money anyway, and letting them breed wouldn't be bad, right? Perhaps one day, selling snails would make him the world's richest man.
Alright, he had gotten carried away. Shaking his head, Li Haochen picked up his fruit-picking tool and roamed among the coconut trees. Li Haochen's ferocity suggested a grand ambition to strip the coconut grove bare.
However, reality was often harsh. His neck was already stiff like a mummy, and the feeling brought tears to his eyes.
"I need to find a permanent solution, otherwise..." Li Haochen shivered. Without further thought, he decided to leave quickly, lest those three start causing trouble again.
When loading the coconuts, he couldn't help but grumble and insult the three-wheeled vehicle, finding it displeasing to the eye. There was nothing he could do; it couldn't hold much.
"Damn it, I'll have to make several trips."
He cursed as he thought about when he would replace it, and even gave it a kick. Well, treating him like this? Even a person would have a temper, let alone a three-wheeled vehicle.
He looked and saw that he had forgotten to charge it last night. Who was he going to cry to?
Uh, thankfully, this thing had a fast-charging option, but even fast charging took at least half an hour. Waiting was always tedious. With an audible prompt every step and a phone call every three steps, Li Haochen was so annoyed he wanted to give the three-wheeled vehicle a good beating. He raised his foot, but then thought better of it and put it down.
What if it threw another tantrum...?