"It smells so good."

As soon as Xiaolan pushed open the door of the office, she smelled a pleasant fragrance. She glanced in the direction of the kitchen with a puzzled look and said, "Kuangyou? Wasn't he supposed to be resting in bed?"

"I don't think it's Guangyou; there must be someone else in the kitchen."

Sonoko, with her sharp ears, faintly heard children talking inside the room and had already guessed what was going on. "It's probably Kouyu's classmate, right? The one in the kitchen is most likely the little girl who was with him."

"Let's go take a look."

Ran also heard the commotion in Kouyu's room and began to believe most of what Sonoko had said.

The two walked to the kitchen door, peeked inside, and sure enough, they found a small figure wearing an apron busily working around the stove.

The cleaver made a "clattering" sound as it hit the cutting board, while steam billowed above the soup pot next to it, and the pot kept bubbling and boiling.

A delicate aroma wafted from the pot, blending seamlessly with the kitchen air.

"It smells so good."

Sonoko wrinkled her nose, sniffed the aroma filling the air, rubbed her flat stomach, and pouted, saying, "I'm a little hungry."

"It does smell really good, and the soup seems quite light, which is perfect for Guangyou right now. It's a good way to replenish his energy."

Xiaolan glanced at the cutting board, and the bits of meat left on it made her guess what kind of soup was simmering in the pot. "It looks like pork rib soup."

"That kid's pretty lucky~"

Sonoko raised an eyebrow and looked at Ai in the kitchen, smiling amusedly, "So young and already has a girl cooking for him."

Xiaolan explained with a smile, "Guangyou is very good to her."

"I know, I often see that brat Guangyou walking with her, the two of them are so lovey-dovey."

Sonoko turned her head to look at Ran, who was standing next to her with a maternal smile, and suddenly grinned mischievously, "The two of them are much more harmonious than you and Shinichi were when you were kids."

"Kouyu and Shinichi aren't the same type of guy, they can't..."

Ran, watching Ai's busy work, subconsciously answered, but realized her mistake halfway through, blushed, and whispered reproachfully, "Sonoko!"

"Did I say something wrong?"

Sonoko chuckled, and seeing Ran's face growing increasingly rosy, she quickly turned and headed towards Kouyu's room, leaving behind only the words, "I'm going to see that brat Kouyu first."

"Seriously!"

Ran glanced back at Ai, who was still busy, the blush on her cheeks gradually fading, her eyes sparkling, and a faint smile appearing at the corner of her mouth.

Then she left the kitchen and went into Guangyou's room.

Ai, who was busy in the kitchen, only then noticed the commotion. She turned her head and looked at the kitchen door, wondering, "Did someone just come by?"

"Never mind, let's continue."

Ai didn't dwell on the question for too long. Rather than standing in the kitchen wondering if someone had been there, she decided to continue with what she was doing.

The steam rose, and the high temperature in the kitchen brought a blush to Ai's face. Beads of sweat trickled down her smooth forehead. She reached up and wiped the sweat from her forehead with her sleeve, taking a breath.

During her break, Ai walked to the stove, put on heat-resistant gloves, and opened the pot lid. Immediately, a rich yet delicate aroma wafted out of the pot along with the boiling steam.

The entire kitchen became even more ethereal, and a mere whiff of it could whet one's appetite.

Once the smoke dissipated, Xiao Ai could clearly see what was happening in the pot: chunks of vegetables bobbing up and down in the boiling broth, and the originally bland soup had gained a layer of oil because of the pork ribs.

Under the light, the oil and water reflected a faint luster, making the soup even more tempting.

"Try it."

When Ai saw how delicious the soup looked, a smile involuntarily crept onto her lips, but she quickly suppressed it.

No matter how good the soup looks, it's all for nothing if it doesn't taste good.

Ai scooped up a little soup, poured it into a small bowl, blew on it, and then took a small sip.

The first taste is a delicate fragrance, mixed with the unique flavor of meat. Even after swallowing the soup, you can still clearly feel a lingering aroma in your mouth.

"There wasn't enough time, so it's a bit too bland."

Ai carefully savored the taste of the soup, then looked down at the soup in the bowl and breathed a sigh of relief, "But it tastes alright."

This was her first time making this dish, and she was already very satisfied with how well it turned out.

The process was tiring, but she was quite happy.

...

Guangyou's room wasn't big, and the furniture already took up a large portion of the space. Especially now that a group of people were gathered in the room, the already small room felt even more crowded.

However, Guangyou didn't care. Having many talented people is a good thing; at least it proves that he has many people who care about him, right?

"Kuangyou, how are you feeling right now?"

Sonoko's words revealed her concern, and that's why, even though this was the nth time Kōyū had been asked this question in the past few days, he still answered very patiently: "I'm much better now. The doctor said I just need to rest for a few days."

Standing to the side, Xiaolan once again advised, "You were lucky this time. You need to be more careful in the future."

"Yes, definitely, this will never happen again."

Guangyou nodded and replied with a grin.

Ayumi's smile remained unchanged, and she looked quite adorable. She said, "Kuangyou, we're still waiting for you to recover so we can solve the case together!"

While eating snacks, Genta mumbled, "Yeah, our Junior Detective League can't be missing a single member!"

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!