After Xu An brought Chu Yu home, Chu Yu was very curious looking at the cozy little home Xu An had set up.
She became even more intrigued upon seeing the orchids on the table.
In this era, even a cactus, a plant known for being easy to care for, was a rarity. How much more so were orchids, such a difficult plant to maintain, so delicate that a single mistake could be their end.
Moreover, it was the extreme cold period. Under such frigid conditions, an orchid could easily freeze to death.
"Your family actually has orchids? How do you manage to grow them in such cold weather?"
Xu An didn't explain, instead letting Chu Yu approach and see for herself. As Chu Yu got closer, she finally understood what was going on.
Surrounding the orchids was a small enclosure, wrapping the entire plant.
When she touched it, she realized the so-called enclosure was made of thermal insulation cotton, with a heating pad underneath that continuously supplied warmth, providing the orchid with heat and ensuring it wouldn't wither from the cold.
Chu Yu could hardly believe that even at this time, someone would spend so much money and effort to cultivate a single flower.
Xu An explained, "My mom fussed over it. She just likes to grow flowers and plants. This is the only orchid we managed to bring out, and it's my mom's favorite. We put in a lot of effort to bring this flower to the lighthouse. It's the most precious thing in our family. Don't touch it; my mom takes better care of this flower than she does of me."
The last sentence was spoken with a hint of helplessness and playfulness.
Back then, when Xu An said they could only bring one pot of flowers, Xu Yan had only taken this one.
As they were talking, Gou Dan, as if just waking up, scurried out from his warm bedding. He shivered but ran towards Xu An with renewed vigor.
It was then that Chu Yu noticed Xu An's house had a new electrical wiring system.
Areas like the corner where the orchids were cared for and where Gou Dan slept had heating equipment. Since these areas were in the corners, their power consumption was less than heating the entire house.
"Your house..." Chu Yu seemed unable to find a suitable adjective and let it go.
Xu An looked at Chu Yu strangely, then glanced at the time. It was almost noon.
"Have you eaten? I'm a bit hungry and planning to make something."
Chu Yu nodded, "I haven't."
The unspoken implication was, "I want to eat too."
Xu An asked, "Do you have any dietary restrictions?"
Chu Yu shook her head. At this point, having any food to eat was good enough; she dared not be picky.
After all, she could even eat the nutritional meals referred to as "pig feed."
"Alright, find a place to sit. I've turned on the heater, so it'll be warm soon."
Xu An opened the refrigerator. Inside were meals left for her by Xu Yan, mostly semi-finished products.
She looked through them, took out the frozen dumplings, and also heated up some lamb soup.
Thinking for a moment, she plucked a handful of small green vegetables from the small warm shed on the balcony and added them to the boiled lamb soup.
Gurgle, gurgle...
In a short while, the dumplings and lamb soup were ready.
Xu An was about to call Chu Yu over to fetch the food when she heard a knock on the door.
Xu An wondered if Zhou Haimei had come over for a meal.
As she walked to the entrance to open the door, it swung open to reveal two people standing opposite.
Just then, Chu Yu, carrying the food, also emerged from behind Xu An.
"Who is it?"
As he walked over, four people found themselves staring at each other.
Zhou Haimei was the first to push past Chu Yu and enter the house, standing opposite Xu An.
"An'an, what's going on? Why is Chu Yu here?"
"Ah..." Xu An was about to explain.
Qin Chuan, standing beside her, looked at Chu Yu with a sarcastic tone, "Why are you here?" The question was clearly directed at Chu Yu.
Chu Yu, not to be outdone, retorted provocatively, "Since you can be here, why can't I, as Xu An's neighbor? You're quite strange."
Zhou Haimei and Xu An both knew Chu Yu was Xu An's neighbor. Qin Chuan was the only one present who didn't.
He looked at Xu An with a puzzled expression, as if seeking confirmation, and also as if trying to salvage his last shred of dignity.
Seeing Xu An nod, Qin Chuan let out a disdainful snort through his nose.
Xu An stepped aside, "Since you're here, come in. Have you eaten?"
As soon as Zhou Haimei entered, she smelled the rich aroma of the meat soup.
"No, no, we haven't. Is that lamb soup made by Auntie? I want some!"
Xu An smiled, "Then you all sit down first. There are many of you, I'll make a few more dishes."
Everyone was unaware that Xu An could cook. In fact, Xu An truly couldn't cook.
Her cooking skills were limited to repackaging the semi-finished products left by Xu Yan and boiling them.
She rummaged through the refrigerator, boiled the remaining dumplings, and steamed a pot of rice. After thinking for a while, she decided it would be better to cook a hot pot since there were many people, and it would be warmer.
She found a large pot, took out her treasured hot pot base, and then took out all the processed meat from the refrigerator. Fortunately, with the current cold weather, they didn't need to freeze the meat to store it.
She called Zhou Haimei to help, one washing and chopping vegetables, while she divided the frozen meat among Chu Yu and Qin Chuan, instructing them to slice it to the appropriate thickness.
"Since there are many of us, let's have hot pot. I've cooked rice, and whoever wants some can serve themselves later."
The others had no objections.
Zhou Haimei, however, started gossiping with Xu An as soon as she entered.
"An'an, what's going on with those two outside? And how did Chu Yu end up at your place?"
Xu An first glanced outside the kitchen, then turned back to explain softly to Zhou Haimei.
"Didn't we suspect Chu Yu was behind the attack before? I just came from your place and met Chu Yu downstairs. He said he wasn't responsible for that incident, and we were about to discuss it further when you guys arrived."
Zhou Haimei looked at Xu An with suspicion, her gaze lingering somewhat ambiguously on Xu An, clearly not believing her.
"Discussing matters, and you two ended up at your home?"
Xu An rolled her eyes, "Don't even start. We were supposed to talk at his place, but I didn't expect someone's home to be so impoverished. Chu Yu looks presentable, but he can't even afford to eat. I was hungry, so I invited him over for a meal."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Haimei wore an expression of disappointment mixed with exasperation.
"You're done for."
"Huh?" Xu An looked at Zhou Haimei, not understanding. "What happened to me?"
"Feeling sorry for a man is the beginning of a woman's misfortune!"
Zhou Haimei grabbed Xu An's shoulders and shook her vigorously.
"Wake up, sister! Never pity a man!!!"