Past
When Hu Hanyu was fifteen years old, he fed a bowl of miso soup to a child who came from nowhere in the kitchen of Cheng Cuisine.
The child, or rather, a teenager now, had dry, white, chapped lips, a high fever, and was having difficulty breathing. They called an ambulance, saying he was dehydrated and needed to replenish water and salt intake as soon as possible.
"The store had been closed for several days before that day. We had nothing but the miso soup that we brought from the dormitory for dinner."
Zheng Cheng kept gritting his teeth. Finally, Hu Hanyu dripped a few drops along the corner of his mouth. After tasting it, he opened his mouth and finally realized that he wanted to eat.
"We didn't dare give you too much. You drank a whole bowl and then passed out. You didn't even wake up in the ambulance." Hu Hanyu rubbed his face with his knuckles. "We thought you fainted until the doctor said you were asleep."
"It's you now." Zheng Cheng whispered, "The soup has flowed down my face and into my neck."
At the time, Hu Hanyu didn't know anything about the Zheng kidnapping case. He was busy learning a craft and making a living. He just knew that the child he loved so much survived.
He is still looking forward to the day in the future when the child will be brought to their store by his parents to thank them, so that he will have the chance to see him again.
She is so beautiful even when she looks so haggard. How beautiful must she be when she is healthy?
But after a few policemen came, there was no news of him anymore.
"Let me tell you what happened next," Zheng Cheng said. "The police ruled out your store as a suspect, and I was sent back to China. I then went to high school and college in the United States. The kidnapper was arrested, and the case went to trial. Last year, it was all over."
"It's not over for you, right?" Hu Hanyu said, the two of them sitting close together with their shoulders and legs touching.
Zheng Cheng slowly leaned his head against him and shook it.
"The case was closed, but I relapsed. I couldn't sleep and had panic attacks several times in class. I had to take a leave of absence," Zheng Cheng muttered. "I could have gotten a scholarship."
Hu Hanyu touched the back of his head.
"Hanyu, I originally thought that knowing what happened at Cheng Cuisine would help me figure out the cause of my outburst," Zheng Cheng said. "Now nothing has changed. I have to start all over again."
It may also be because Hanyu was too calm when he said this, the disappointment and frustration that Zheng Cheng expected did not come.
It may also be that Hanyu hugged him first before his emotions came out.
"I'll make you some custard." He placed a kiss on his forehead.
The two servants looked at Zheng Cheng and Hanyu standing in the kitchen with fear and trepidation. Suddenly, they were left alone.
Seeing Hu Hanyu crack four eggs with one hand, his movements were as smooth as if he was filming a commercial, they dared not move anymore.
"If there's nothing else, let's leave work early today." Zheng Cheng smiled at them, "Don't tell the Zheng Mansion."
"Thank you, thank you Mr. Cheng! We'll take out the trash and leave." The two servants were overjoyed. They pushed each other to clean up the trash and then took their cards to leave.
As soon as the servant closed the door, Zheng Cheng hugged Hu Hanyu's waist from behind.
"Hey?" Hanyu paused, "I almost spilled it."
Zheng Cheng watched from his shoulder, and saw the chopsticks moving up and down, causing the bright yellow egg liquid to roll. "How hard should the egg be beaten?" he asked.
"See this?" Hanyu lifted his chopsticks, bringing up a thick, transparent egg liquid. "It's beaten so hard that it can't even carry this kind of stuff."
"Oil, like snot."
"It's quite similar. I'll leave it for you to eat later."
"Who wants to eat it? There's something wrong with you."
Although he screamed loudly, Zheng Cheng did not let go.
It feels so safe to hold someone tightly in my arms like this.
Forgetting about his treatment for the moment, Zheng Cheng just wanted to enjoy love.
The scent of bamboo leaves on Hu Hanyu's body dissipated with the heat of the hug. Where exactly did this smell come from? Zheng Cheng put his nose to his neck to search for it.
"Ouch!" Hanyu dodged for a moment after he moved a few inches, "Itchy."
"Are you ticklish too?" Zheng Cheng laughed and then let him go.
"If you do this, anyone will feel itchy." Hanyu held the bowl in one hand and wiped off the few drops of egg liquid on the table.
Stir the egg liquid thoroughly, add the crab roe into the egg, and divide the crab meat into two and add half.
"What is this little bit left for?" Zheng Cheng picked up the crab leg meat with chopsticks and ate it.
"When it's almost steamed, spread it on top." Hu Hanyu wrapped the egg liquid in plastic wrap and caught a glimpse of Zheng Cheng's actions. "You'll get slapped in the face if you do that in my house."
"I didn't hold it with my hands, it's clean." Zheng Cheng said, extending the chopsticks again.
The next second, Hu Hanyu snatched his chopsticks away.
"Okay, be good, stop eating." He scratched Zheng Cheng's face with the back of his hand. "You'll have nothing to put in it later, and it will affect the appearance."
"Okay, Mom." Zheng Cheng touched his face.
"Nonsense." Hanyu laughed, "Help dad get the bib."
"Wow, you are always good at taking advantage." Zheng Cheng cursed and walked around the kitchen three times before he found the apron.
The stewed eggs were put into the pot and the rice cooker was bubbling with steam. Zheng Cheng leaned against the refrigerator and watched Hu Hanyu checking the pickles cut by the kitchen helper. His eyelids were a little twitching again.
So comfortable.
"Didn't I tell you what happened to me yesterday?" He rubbed his eyes, feeling that he should say something, "My mom is mad at me."
"Why are you angry?" Hu Hanyu picked out the part he was not satisfied with and put it on the chopping board.
"She forgot that I don't eat canned fish," Zheng Cheng said. "When the kidnappers threw me in the warehouse, they fed me canned cat food. After that, the smell of canned fish made me want to vomit."
Hanyu quickly cut the pickles into small pieces.
"The whole family should have known about it. Sisi was only ten at the time, so she remembers it all. But she's my mom, and she forgot." Zheng Cheng took a pair of chopsticks and turned them over in his hand like a pen. "She even said that I loved her tuna sandwiches when I was little. That was when she made them once on a whim when I was four."
Hanyu walked over and snatched the chopsticks from his hand: "Tableware is for eating, not for playing."
"We're not at the dinner table," Zheng Cheng rubbed his fingers together. "Are you listening to me? Why aren't you reacting at all?"
"I'm listening," Hanyu said as he arranged the cut pickles and put them aside, "but I don't know how to react."
"Ah..." Zheng Cheng realized at this moment, "I...I'm sorry."
"Why apologize?" Hu Hanyu found a pot and put it on the stove, then went to get some oil. "I'm just not very good at comforting people. You should eat more later."
Zheng Cheng made way for Hu Hanyu left and right, and finally escaped to the door when he turned on the range hood.
"Do you think I'm in the way?" Zheng Cheng raised his voice to drown out the range hood.
"No," Hu Hanyu tested the oil temperature with his hand, "Hanhan likes you to come."
The moment the pickles were put into the pot, Zheng Cheng grabbed the door frame and waited a moment before mustering the courage to approach the stove. Hu Hanyu glanced back at his embarrassed expression and, laughing, shook the pot twice.
So cool, this relaxed and effortless feeling.
"Do you know where the sugar is?" Hanyu asked.
"Ah?" Zheng Cheng's eyes darted. "Ask me?"
Knowing he was unreliable, Hanyu opened a row of spice jars and pointed: "Guess one?"
"I know granulated sugar. This one is it!" Zheng Cheng walked over, poked it with his finger, and stuffed it into his mouth.
"Hey - that's not..." Hanyu was too late to stop him.
"!!! It's so salty!" Who uses coarse salt in cooking? It looks just like sugar.
Oh, it’s my home. That’s okay.
"If you really want to taste it, just lick it. It's such a big mouthful." Hu Hanyu sprinkled the correct white powder into the pot and laughed.
"How would I know such a small amount of salt could be so salty, bah!" Zheng Cheng rinsed his mouth twice, still with a bitter face.
While the pot was cooking with the lid on, Hu Hanyu came over and kissed him on the face.
"We're almost ready to eat. Do you know where the cutlery is? Should we put the chopsticks and plates there?" he suggested.
"I'm familiar with this." Zheng Cheng's brows relaxed, and he opened the drawer and picked out the bowl.
He bought a lot of tableware himself, and matching tableware is one of his favorite things to do.
He placed the napkins, chopstick holders, and heat insulating pads on the dining table one by one, and then picked out a pair of crystal glasses from the display stand in the living room.
"I don't have any wine at home. How about some sparkling grape juice?" He took out a champagne-like glass bottle from the refrigerator.
"I'm fine with anything." Hanyu was serving rice.
The main course arrived, the hairy crab legs evenly sprinkled atop the tender yellow stewed eggs, highlighting the special flavor of this home-cooked dish. The two of them spent several minutes arranging the main course in perfect harmony. After placing the side dishes and rice, Zheng Cheng took out his phone and took a few photos.
【This is the day and night meal.】
He didn't even post a selfie, he just posted it.
He didn’t want to steal the limelight from the dish today.
As if on tacit agreement, neither of them picked up their chopsticks immediately after sitting down.
"There are only two of us in this house now." Zheng Cheng said after a moment of silence.
"Isn't there anyone living downstairs from you?" Hanyu asked.
"Ah, I mean, this house, this! house! What does it have to do with the downstairs?" Zheng Cheng's rare moment of expressing his feelings was completely interrupted. He picked up the cup and clinked it with the cup on the table. "Eat, eat!"
Hu Hanyu smiled, picked up the cup and took a sip of grape juice.
"First kiss," he said.
"Happy first kiss." Zheng Cheng also took a sip with a red face.
After saying this, he thought it would take some effort to bring his thoughts back to the meal.
"Be careful with the hot eggs," Hu Hanyu reminded him.
The tender and smooth egg almost disappears when you put it in your mouth, leaving behind strands of crab meat and crab roe. However, the crab roe leaves a strong fresh taste in your mouth, blending with the crab meat.
The hairy crabs in the sixth month of the lunar calendar are full of the youthful vigor of a fledgling. They have broken out of their tender shells, and the meat is still tender, but the crab roe stubbornly tells everyone that it is mature.
As expected of an adolescent crab, every word in his mouth tastes like his first kiss.
Zheng Cheng scooped a large spoonful and mixed it into the rice. Hanyu's seasoning was only a thin layer of salt and a subtle hint of scallion and ginger. This crab was indeed a waste of soy sauce.
After eating half a bowl of rice, Zheng Cheng realized that Hu Hanyu was sitting opposite him, leaning his head to look at him.
"What? Did I eat something on my face?" he asked.
"No," Hanyu said, "I just wanted to see you. You look pretty."
"I look good in the camera, right? Then take two pictures of me?" Zheng Cheng was a little proud.
"No." Hanyu smiled, "I am the only one who can see you now."
Zheng Cheng stuffed himself with another big mouthful of rice and savored it shyly.
"You eat too, this half is yours." He added another spoonful of stewed eggs, drew a line in the middle of the bowl, and pushed most of the crab meat on the surface to his side.
"It's clearly divided," Hu Hanyu said, "If you like it, it's okay to eat more."
"No, that won't work. My mom taught me that if you love someone, you should share half of them even if there's only one grain of rice left." Zheng Cheng said, "Even though she can be annoying sometimes, I agree with her."
Hu Hanyu didn't say anything, looked at the stewed eggs, nodded, and scooped a big piece.
Zheng Cheng's sense of taste became more sensitive after the kidnapping. He lost sleep, refused alcohol, and grew tired of extravagant shopping. Eating became almost his only joy in life.
"Hanyu, I'm glad to meet you again." Zheng Cheng said to him, "It's great to have you around."
"Isn't this the line I should say?" Hu Hanyu raised his glass. "It's great to meet you again."
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