Chapter 137 What Does the Cheese Tart Verify?
Around 12:00 PM on Saturday, the children were already soundly napping in their room when Zhou Chi arrived early with two large boxes of ingredients.
Both insulated boxes were full. Zhou Chi originally wanted to carry them in by himself, but one box was fine, but the two together were really too heavy.
He had only taken two steps, clutching the box and gritting his teeth, when he nearly stumbled and fell flat on his face at the gate of the courtyard.
Seeing Zhou Chi's somewhat embarrassed expression, Ning Jia pretended not to have noticed his slip and casually went to help him carry one of the boxes.
"You're welcome to come, but you brought so much food. You've gone to so much trouble."
"Won't."
Zhou Chi felt a sudden lightness in his hands, and his gaze involuntarily followed Ning Jia's effortless movement of the insulated box, a slight smile unconsciously creeping onto his lips.
"I've been wanting to make afternoon tea for you for a while, but I just haven't had the time."
Ning Jia didn't take it seriously, "What's the rush? There's plenty of time later."
Zhou Chi pursed his lips and didn't say anything more. He just silently carried the heavy insulated box, changed his shoes with Ning Jia, and quietly walked through the living room into the kitchen.
As soon as they entered the kitchen and unloaded the goods, the two porters couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
Ning Jia looked at the insulated box with a puzzled expression:
"Zhou Chi, how much food did you bring? This suitcase is heavier than a person!"
Zhou Chi replied somewhat guiltily, "It shouldn't be... that much, right? After all, I still have to cook dinner."
After the two squatted in front of the insulated box, they opened it and took out the ingredients one by one. Various vegetables and fresh produce that were not needed at the moment quickly filled the refrigerator to the brim.
"You call this not much?"
Ning Jia was speechless. While Zhou Chi was bending down to put food in the refrigerator, she patted him on the shoulder and said earnestly:
“Comrade Zhou Chi, it’s true that there are more than thirty people in our family, but not more than thirty giants like you…”
Zhou Chi blushed. He really didn't have a concept of how much food "more than thirty little people" could eat. He always cooked more than he needed when he cooked for Bai Zhi and the others.
Seeing that this person was so easily teased, blushing and turning red at the drop of a hat, Ning Jia immediately said:
"But it's alright, this way we won't need to buy groceries tomorrow or the day after. Anyway, thank you so much for your generous gift!"
Seeing that it was still early, the two sat down at the dining table, drank a cup of coffee, and chatted for a while about the recent situation of the dwarfs. Then, they relaxed and leaned back in their chairs, squinting contentedly at the sunlight streaming in through the window.
Zhou Chi suddenly blurted out a sentence out of the blue:
"It's still more comfortable here..."
Ning Jia stretched out her arms and legs comfortably. "I think it's a little small, which is a bit unfair to the little people."
"...Would you like to stay at my place?"
Ning Jia paused, looked at the handsome young man, and asked curiously, "Do you think the house is too big and want to find tenants?"
Zhou Chi shook his head and said honestly:
"I'm not looking for tenants, I'm looking for someone I can trust to help me look after the house."
Looking for a house?
Zhou Chi gave Ning Jia a deep look, then suddenly said:
"Actually... I plan to go back to school to continue my studies and get my degree. I'm leaving in the next couple of days and probably won't be able to return to China until January next year."
Ning Jia paused for a moment, then gave a relieved smile:
"……Congratulations!"
"Thanks."
He averted his gaze from Ning Jia and lowered his eyes:
"Actually, if I hadn't met you all, I probably wouldn't have been able to...return to my previous life so quickly."
Zhou Chi slowly put away his smile and began to talk about the changes in his state of mind over the past few days, while Ning Jia listened quietly.
Although she couldn't truly empathize, she had experienced the despair and helplessness of almost losing a loved one. She couldn't imagine what she would become if Ning Fang left her one day...
This was the first time Zhou Chi had ever revealed such a secret, something he had never done even in front of his aunt.
After he finished speaking, he looked at Ning Jia somewhat nervously, "I'm sorry, was it a bit too heavy for me to suddenly tell you all this?"
Ning Jia nodded honestly, "A little."
“However,” she then broke into a big smile, “my greatest strength is that I don’t remember unhappy things. Don’t worry, I’ll forget everything after I wake up from a good night’s sleep.”
Zhou Chi stared at the smile on her face, momentarily lost in thought, until Ning Jia's words snapped him out of his reverie:
"We've been chatting for so long? It's getting late, let's get started."
Zhou Chi seemed to snap out of a daze and quickly replied, "Oh, okay."
Ning Jia said while tying her apron:
"By the way, I always record the process of making afternoon tea, but I don't film my face. If you mind, I won't film it today."
Zhou Chi already knew about Ning Jia's work as a food blogger, and immediately shook his head:
"It's okay, you can take the photos however you want."
He was even a little bit looking forward to appearing in Ning Jia's video.
Although in the end, it's highly likely that only his hand will appear on screen.
As soon as Zhou Chi stood up, Ning Jia handed him a new apron. "Put this on."
Zhou Chi's gaze lingered on Ning Jia's apron for a moment, and he noticed that the two aprons were actually the same style. The corners of his mouth unconsciously turned up slightly. After putting on the apron with his head down, the solemn aura around him was completely swept away.
Seeing that Ning Jia didn't speak, Zhou Chi took the initiative to ask:
What kind of desserts would you like to have made?
Ning Jia smiled and shook her head, "You're the head chef today, so you can decide everything. I'll just play along."
Zhou Chi picked up a round little pumpkin, examined it for a moment, and said, "How about we make a pumpkin-themed afternoon tea?"
He did bring quite a few high-quality organic baby pumpkins, which looked very appealing and had a delicate texture.
Ning Jia clapped her hands in surprise and said, "What a coincidence! I was also planning to make pumpkin desserts recently. This way, I won't have to make them again."
The two exchanged a smile and quickly got to work on making afternoon tea.
...
It must be said that Zhou Chi is quite talented in baking pastries. He is both patient and meticulous, making him very suitable for this kind of work with clear steps and precise quantities.
In contrast, Ning Jia is more spontaneous when cooking. Sometimes, when she gets into the mood, she often comes up with new ideas and doesn't strictly follow the recipe.
Although failures are inevitable once you take the plunge, you can also create unexpected and interesting new dishes.
In the warm afternoon kitchen, Zhou Chi was making various pumpkin desserts according to the recipe with a serious expression, so engrossed that he almost forgot the time.
He successively created a variety of tempting desserts, including a golden-yellow, perfectly shaped pumpkin chestnut cake, pumpkin muffins resembling golden mushrooms, a crispy-on-the-outside, tender-on-the-inside pumpkin cheese tart, and a chewy and refreshing pumpkin pudding.
Except for the pumpkin chestnut cake, which is relatively large, all the other desserts are made in mini sizes suitable for little people to eat.
For this reason, Zhou Chi was particularly focused, striving to be meticulous in every step.
Ning Jia watched from the side, initially worried that he was being too tense, but then realized that the guy was actually enjoying himself, so she smiled and left him alone.
Compared to Zhou Chi's meticulousness and seriousness, Ning Jia's side wasn't exactly unserious, but they were noticeably more casual and relaxed.
After obtaining Zhou Chi's consent, she even "played" with plating on the kitchen counter:
A large, round pumpkin chestnut cake is placed in the center, while other smaller cakes, tarts, and puddings are casually arranged around it. Adding a small, carved pumpkin lantern completes the fairytale-like atmosphere.
Is this a Halloween jack-o'-lantern?
Zhou Chi took a moment to look up and glance at the exquisite pumpkin lantern.
“It’s not a Halloween pumpkin lantern,” Ning Jia said enthusiastically as she carved a small pumpkin into the shape of a small wooden house.
Zhou Chi then realized that the pumpkin lantern wasn't carved with a ghost face, but rather with round little flowers. He looked at Ning Jia in confusion, "What are you trying to do...?"
Ning Jia chuckled, "I want to use pumpkins to create a snowy forest scene."
A snowy forest scene? Zhou Chi still looked puzzled.
Ning Jia nodded, placed the carved golden pumpkin house next to the pumpkin lantern, adjusted its position, and then continued:
"Guoguo, Xingxing and the other kids have never seen real snow. Ever since they saw videos of snow falling online, they've said they want to see snow several times."
"But you also know—"
Ning Jia helplessly shrugged at Zhou Chi:
"Don't even mention that it's not really winter yet. Even if it were winter, at most a few snowflakes would fall here, and they would disappear as soon as they hit the ground. There's no snow scenery to see at all."
Zhou Chi was stunned for a moment, but quickly understood Ning Jia's meaning. His eyes lit up. "You're amazing! I think this idea is fantastic!"
Ning Jia chuckled:
"Actually, I just had this idea on a whim!"
"Mainly, seeing how much effort you put into making so many beautiful desserts, I thought I shouldn't waste your hard work. Why not turn them into a dessert landscape in one go? That way, they'll be both beautiful and delicious, and the little ones will definitely remember them!"
Zhou Chi paused for a moment, lowered his eyes and remained silent, his beautiful eyelashes trembling slightly in the sunlight. Then he quickly raised his head and said jokingly:
"You're so thoughtful! I'm almost touched!"
"Of course, since you're the guest."
Zhou Chi glanced at the nascent, charming scene and became interested. "Is there anything else I can do?"
Ning Jia thought for a moment, "How about we bake some more cookies?"
Fearing that Zhou Chi wouldn't understand, she explained in detail what shape the cookies should be made.
A hint of surprise flashed across Zhou Chi's face, but it quickly turned into a more cheerful smile. "Okay, I understand."
...
While Zhou Chi was baking cookies in various shapes, Ning Jia had already set up most of the landscaping.
Under her skillful hands, the pumpkins she carved into flower-patterned lanterns, little wooden houses, golden fallen leaves, pine cones, and other items all came to life, vividly and charmingly.
But good looks alone are not enough; something crucial is missing.
After Zhou Chi finished baking the cookies Ning Jia had mentioned, Ning Jia had already moved all the pastries to the coffee table in the living room as they were originally, and made snowflakes and snowflake pieces with icing and white chocolate, ready to start "snowing".
"These cookies are baked really well, thank you for your hard work!"
Ning Jia gave Zhou Chi a "good job" look, took the tree-shaped cookies, and placed them around the cabin. She then drew tree rings on a few of the tree stump cookies with butter. After everything was arranged, she invited Zhou Chi to join her.
"Comrade Zhou Chi, shall we make artificial snow together?"
"OK."
Zhou Chi smiled and stepped forward, picking up the icing and starting to decorate the snow scene with Ning Jia.
Tiny, snowflake-like frostings were sprinkled in every corner of the "Pumpkin Forest," and hexagonal white chocolate snowflakes were also everywhere. The forest, which was just golden, immediately turned white, resembling a snow-covered forest.
Ning Jia picked up her phone and casually recorded a video, quite satisfied with her creative output for the day:
"Now, when Xingxing and Guoguo wake up and see this snowy scene, they'll probably be overjoyed."
Zhou Chi was also in a good mood. He looked at Ning Jia with a smile and unintentionally spoke his mind, "I'm very happy to be with you!"
As soon as he finished speaking, both of them froze for a moment.
Ning Jia raised her head and met the young man's unwavering, deep gaze, her face suddenly feeling slightly flushed.
She touched her face, somewhat confused, then stared at Zhou Chi with a probing gaze for a long time, until her face turned a deep red like a tomato, before quickly looking away and explaining:
"Well, I didn't mean anything by it just now, I just wanted to verify something."
"...Verify what?"
On a gentle and bright afternoon, Zhou Chi's voice was low, revealing a nervousness that he himself was unaware of.
"..."
Ning Jia's face flushed slightly. Before she could speak, the door to the second bedroom suddenly creaked open, and the little ones, who had just woken up, walked out one by one, still half asleep.
The two people who were staring at each other suddenly woke up and immediately looked away.
Upon seeing Zhou Chi, many children swarmed around him and greeted him in soft voices.
Seeing that Ning Jia had already turned around and gone back to the kitchen, Zhou Chi's eyes flashed with a hint of annoyance and helplessness. He quickly focused on the present and started talking to the little people.
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Author's note: Happy Saturday, my darlings! ~~~ [heart emoji][heart emoji]
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