After tidying up the house a bit, Shang Yunmiao suggested going to the supermarket downstairs to buy some things so they could cook dinner at home that evening.

Feeling that this truly reflected the spirit of a small family, Chen Bing approved the proposal and put on her shoes a few minutes later, ready to implement this family decision.

"Oh, right, right, remember to wear a mask when you go out."

As soon as she opened the door, Xiao Shang remembered that it was still during the pandemic, so she went back into the room and took out two brand new masks.

"Here, have one, Chen Bing."

After waving her hand to decline Shang Yunmiao's offer, Chen Bing took out a slightly wrinkled mask from her pocket and put it on casually.

Huh? Why use the old one when there's a new one available?

In Shang Yunmiao's memory, Chen Bing shouldn't be such a frugal person, unless...

Upon touching her empty pockets, Shang Yunmiao seemed to understand why.

With her face flushed, she stared at Chen Bing's face for a long time, but ultimately chose to remain silent and put the discovery out of her mind.

Hand in hand, the two quickly arrived at the small supermarket downstairs in the residential complex.

Although it's called a small supermarket, it's actually quite large. It has two floors, one above ground and one below, totaling nearly 800 square meters.

"Chen Bing, what do you want to eat tonight?"

After entering the supermarket, Chen Bing grabbed a small shopping cart. When he heard Shang Yunmiao's question, he initially thought of something else entirely, but quickly corrected himself and replied, "Hot pot, it's easy to make."

Do you eat hot pot in the summer?

"Eating hot pot in a room with the air conditioning on full blast can actually have its own unique charm."

"Oh, okay, let's have hot pot tonight!" Shang Yunmiao replied energetically, then took Chen Bing's arm and led him toward the food area.

In August, there aren't many seasonal vegetables suitable for hot pot. But this is modern times; look around, the vegetables in hot pot these days are mostly greenhouse-grown, and while you might think they're too expensive, others probably do too.

In conclusion, Shang Yunmiao carefully selected suitable ingredients for cooking, such as baby bok choy, kelp, bean sprouts, enoki mushrooms, and tofu.

After picking out the vegetables, it's time to get the meat.

Should we have chicken hot pot or lamb hot pot?

"Let's make some black-boned chicken. I just saw they were selling black-boned chicken over there. Let's buy half of it and make a stew."

Coming to her senses from the strange character "坤", Shang Yunmiao agreed and immediately turned around to buy half of it.

On her way there, her gaze was drawn to a majestic and enormous porcupine in the water tank.

She looked at Bolong through the glass, and Bolong looked at her through the glass. The two of them, one human and one shrimp, seemed destined to meet here.

The first person to notice Xiao Shang, this gluttonous girl, was Chen Bing. After he stopped when Xiao Shang stopped, the second person to notice the gluttonous girl spoke up.

"Young lady and young man, these Boston lobsters just arrived this afternoon. They're huge! Come and take a look."

Faced with the apron-wearing uncle's enthusiastic greeting, Shang Yunmiao looked up at Chen Bing beside her.

Our Master Chen walked straight up to them.

"No, no need, Chen Bing, we're having hot pot today."

"It's okay, you can use it in hot pot too."

"Yes, yes, you can also use it for hot pot, steaming, grilling, making soup, or fried rice."

Two men can make a show, and they quickly convinced the greedy shopkeeper.

"Well, okay... Uncle, can I take a look at that one?" Shang Yunmiao stretched out her finger, not pointing to the large dragon that had just stared at her, but to a medium-sized one hiding in the corner.

"Okay~ I'll take it out for you to see~"

As they were talking, the uncle wearing an apron pulled out the lobster that Shang Yunmiao had pointed to.

"Shall we take this one?" After a brief inspection, Shang Yunmiao looked up at Chen Bing and asked him in a questioning tone.

Chen Bing's gaze didn't linger on the one she had just caught. Instead, she pointed to the largest one and said, "Let's take this one. I feel like it's destined for me."

The one Chen Bing was pointing to was the lobster that had just made eye contact with Shang Yunmiao.

"This is too big..."

Shang Yunmiao's tactful words did not change Chen Bing's mind. He said to the uncle next to him, "Could you please show me that one?"

"Great! The big ones are so satisfying. They're all sold by weight, and the big ones have more meat than the small ones—it's a good deal!"

After putting the fish back into the water tank, the man grabbed the dragonfish and tried to pull it out of the water.

Unexpectedly, another Pomeranian used its pincers to tightly grip the destined Pomeranian, and was eventually pulled to the surface as well.

This situation was rare, but it wasn't unusual for the uncle selling lobsters. Chen Bing saw him extend his other hand, which was wearing a rubber glove, and was about to throw the guy who was trying to evade the fare back into the water.

At that moment, Chen Bing suddenly felt a pang of pity. He thought to himself that these two dragons seemed like a pair of doomed lovers, pitifully wanting to be together even in their dying moments.

Thinking of this, the compassionate Chen Bing finally couldn't resist and said directly, "Let's weigh them both together!"

...

A few hours later, the Destined Poron watched as the Undestined Poron struggled to be pulled from the pool, and then its body was pierced by some kind of sharp weapon on a nearby cutting board.

As the struggles of the Undestined Dragon lessened, the Destined Dragon was filled with terror and retreated, trying to escape this hellish place.

But just then, an enormous hand returned, grabbed it completely, and placed it on the cutting board as well.

The destined Poron, anticipating its fate, refused to give up. It struggled desperately, waving its large pincers in an attempt to defeat its destiny, but all its efforts were in vain.

After a burst of tingling sensation, the destined dragon flew towards its destined heaven. If fate gave it another chance, it definitely wouldn't make eye contact with that cute girl again.

"A tragic love story." After letting out a soft sigh, Chen Bing raised one hand to his chest and gently murmured, "Amitabha." A moment later, feeling that this wasn't enough, he added, "Amen."

"Chen Bing, is the lobster ready yet?"

"Alright, alright, I'll dig the meat out now."

After some processing, the two lobsters were finally ready. Although this was a grammatically incorrect sentence, Xiao Shang, unaware of Chen Bing's inner thoughts, didn't correct it. Instead, she stood obediently to the side, holding the plate, waiting for Chen Bing.

Seeing the shrimp meat placed on a plate, Shang Yunmiao carried the plate towards the dining table, while Chen Bing followed after picking up the cooked black chicken soup.

After pouring the black chicken soup into the pot on the induction cooker in the center of the table, Chen Bing adjusted the cooker, while Shang Yunmiao returned to the kitchen to continue preparing the dipping sauce and other ingredients that would be used later.

A few more minutes passed, and the preparations for the meal were finally completed.

Although hot pot is easier to make than other dishes, cooking always takes time. Even eating a whole packet of instant noodles takes at least ten minutes.

The doors and windows of the room were tightly closed, and the air conditioner standing to the side was blowing cool air at full speed. Although it was summer, it was already getting dark. The white rice and hot pot on the table were steaming, and a rich aroma filled the air.

His beloved was sitting right across from him, her face hazy and lovely through the rising steam.

After showing the video of her feelings on the tablet, Chen Bing suddenly remembered something, so she got up and brought back the cocktails she had just bought at the supermarket.

"How about I pour you half a glass? Do you want some ice?"

"We don't need the ice."

The beautiful blue liquid gurgled into the glass, and Xiao Shang, who was in his twenties but still acted like a child, couldn't wait to pick up the glass and take a small sip.

"Slightly spicy on the tongue."

Her adorable tongue-out gesture perfectly touched Chen Bing's soft spot. If it weren't for the hot pot in between them, Chen Bing would have really wanted to pinch it.

After pouring herself a glass, Chen Bing stood up amidst Xiao Shang's puzzled gaze, then came up to her and pinched her rosy cheek.

Before Shang Yunmiao could react, Chen Bing quickly returned to her seat and sat down.

Holding up the glass, the boy's gentle smile was hazy, yet beautiful, even through the mist.

"Cheers to my little Shang! Keep up the good work in these last three or four months before the postgraduate entrance exam!"

She then picked up the cup, and through the mist, the girl's sweet smile was hazy, yet still very cute.

"Yes! I'll do my best!"