Chapter 20 Thank You
A nice Mid-Autumn lunch ended up being a Mid-Autumn dinner.
Another dish was added to the original set of four dishes and one soup.
Steamed sea bass, steamed crab, sweet and sour pork ribs, rose tofu, blanched Chinese cabbage, and abalone and chicken soup are all light and non-spicy dishes.
The most elaborate dish is the Rose Tofu. Although its name means rose, the seasoning has nothing to do with roses. This is a dish that Yin Jiu learned while traveling a long time ago.
The crispy egg skin is wrapped around the tender and smooth egg tofu, fixed into the shape of a flower with a skewer, and then drizzled with a special thick sauce and steamed to make it tasty. When Yin Jiu ate it, for some reason, he spent money to buy the recipe for this dish.
It was quite troublesome to make, but there happened to be tofu in the refrigerator, so Yin Jiu added this dish.
The dishes were served and the presentation was quite beautiful.
Finally, Yin Jiu placed a bowl of chicken soup that had long been cooled in front of Ning Changyue and said to the eagerly waiting person, "You can eat now, but you have to drink the soup first and then the vegetables."
Ning Changyue started guarding the kitchen as early as when the fragrance from the kitchen was spreading. He didn't go in, but just peeked in from outside. Every time Yin Jiu turned around, he hid quickly.
Later, the dishes began to be served one by one, and he moved to the table.
He sat properly and waited patiently without eating in advance.
Yin Jiu was quite satisfied.
His pursuit of fairness covers all aspects, including such small things as waiting for people to gather at a meal.
Ning Changyue always seemed particularly well-behaved when eating. Yin Jiu asked him to drink the soup first, and he had no objection. He pulled the bowl closer and scooped a little with a spoon. Instead of drinking it directly, he leaned closer to feel the temperature, then stretched out his tongue and touched it lightly with the tip of his tongue.
Make sure the temperature is not hot, then drink it slowly.
Soon, he finished the soup in the bowl along with the abalone meat, then looked up at Yin Jiu.
Yin Jiu was also drinking his soup slowly. Noticing his gaze, he said, "Why are you looking at me? Eat whatever you want."
After saying that, she took one more look at his bangs that covered his eyes, and thought they were a bit annoying, so she said, "You eat first, I'll go find something."
He got up to look for a rubber band, but where would a single man get such a thing at home? Finally, he found a rubber band used to tie fruit in the kitchen.
After washing, Yin Jiu came behind Ning Changyue, casually pulled his hair twice, and tied a small bun on the top of his head.
Sitting back in his original seat and looking at his masterpiece, Yin Jiu felt like laughing.
How should I put it? It looks silly.
But yeah, it's pretty nice.
Ning Changyue bit the pork ribs and looked at him puzzledly.
Yin Jiu asked, "Is it delicious?"
Ning Changyue nodded.
Yin Jiu asked repeatedly: "Is it delicious? Speak."
After spitting out the bone in his mouth, Ning Changyue said slowly, "It's delicious."
Only then was Yin Jiu satisfied.
After that, the two of them ate peacefully, Ning Changyue was the one eating most of the time, while Yin Jiu didn't eat much.
It’s not that he has no appetite, it’s just that he is full. This is also the reason why he doesn’t like to cook for himself.
Every time I cook for myself, I use a little more food and I can taste the flavors to satisfy myself.
In addition to Chinese cabbage, Ning Changyue ate a lot of sweet and sour pork ribs and rose tofu. During the meal, Yin Jiu also picked up some fish belly meat for him.
After scanning the area again and again, Ning Changyue finally took action on the crab. He took a crab and looked it up and down. He probably didn't know how to eat it, so he just bit it. ①
"Hey, wait a moment." Yin Jiu quickly stopped and took the crab. He opened it, removed the inedible parts and the crab legs, then put it back on the small plate in front of Ning Changyue along with a metal spoon.
While Ning Changyue was eating the crab meat and crab roe like jelly, Yin Jiu used scissors to take out the meat from the crab legs and put it on his plate.
Crabs are the kind that get more delicious the more you eat them. After eating two in a row, Ning Changyue burped slightly, but his eyes were still looking over there.
Yin Jiu pulled the plate away and said, "You've already eaten enough and you still want to eat? Aren't you afraid of vomiting? Stop eating and go wash your hands."
Ning Changyue was a little reluctant, but went anyway.
When he came back, the food on the table had been taken to the kitchen, leaving only a small bowl of soup for him.
Ning Changyue pursed her lips, stared at the bowl of soup for a while, and finally drank it.
Yin Jiu was rinsing dishes in the kitchen. He usually rinsed them briefly with hot water before putting them in the dishwasher.
The system said sourly: "Host, you take care of him so much, do you really not like him?"
"What are you thinking about?" Yin Jiu responded again, denying it without any hesitation: "I admit that I am indeed somewhat patient with him, probably because..."
"Seeing him reminds me of the cats I once had."
He finally revealed the reason why he was so special to Ning Changyue.
The system was surprised: "Have you ever had a cat?"
"Um."
The system asked curiously: "Why is it gone now? Where did the cat go?"
Yin Jiu smiled and said casually, "Later, I couldn't afford to keep it, so I gave it away."
The system expressed understanding that raising a cat should not be a recent thing. Although Yin Jiu is financially capable now, he is still young after all. A few years ago, he might not have been able to afford a cat.
It floated away, and the person who was originally smiling slowly straightened his mouth corners after it left.
The water in the sink was flowing, and Yin Jiu tried to tighten his five fingers.
The water just flows relentlessly.
What you can't grasp, you can't grasp after all.
…
After cleaning the kitchen and packing the remaining crabs in a plastic container, Yin Jiu left the kitchen.
Ning Changyue was sitting on the sofa watching TV obediently. Even when she heard Yin Jiu coming out, she did not look over immediately as she did before.
Yin Jiu didn't think much about it. He walked to the tea table, bent down, picked up the cup of water, put it to his mouth and was about to drink, but stopped as soon as his lips touched the wall of the cup.
He has a habit of drinking water. He usually drinks a glass of water in two times. Now there is still water in the glass, but only a shallow layer remains at the bottom of the glass.
Putting down the cup calmly, Yin Jiu took a sip of the unopened purified water, lowered his eyes and said, "I'm going back to school. What about you? Do you need me to take you home?"
Ning Changyue suddenly looked up, her eyes widened as if she had heard something incredible.
"I'm not chasing you away." Yin Jiu thought he might have misunderstood something, so he explained, "I promised my roommate that we'd have dinner together tonight. It's not nice to break the promise on a day like this. Next time when you're free, I'll invite you over as my guest."
Ning Changyue just stared at him without any other reaction.
Lifting her hand to touch the little chirp on his head, Yin Jiu said softly, "Go home. Your aunt should be waiting for you at home. No matter what, having family is a good thing. Be a good boy when you go back. Don't get kicked out of the house."
Living alone should not be an easy thing for him.
I don’t know which word stimulated him, Ning Changyue pushed away Yin Jiu’s hand, stood up and rushed to the door, then quickly changed his shoes, opened and closed the door in one go.
Yin Jiu stood there for a while with a frown on his face, then he sighed slowly and didn't chase after the person.
After he packed up all the things he needed to take and the trash, he turned off all the electrical appliances and then changed his shoes before going out.
After opening the door, I was slightly stunned. I saw that the person who ran away angrily before was now leaning his head against the wall with the back of his head facing the door.
It looks a bit like a cat sulking against the wall.
After laughing, Yin Jiu said, "Let's go. I'll take you home."
"no."
"What?"
Ning Changyue lowered her head and said stubbornly, "It's not my home."
His expression and tone are like a stubborn child.
But he himself was just a child.
Yin Jiu didn't say anything else.
Given his status, he really has no qualifications and no position to say anything.
Nothing to say is appropriate.
On the way back, Ning Changyue was also in a bad mood.
It was obvious that he was very happy during the time he was at Yin Jiu's house.
All I can say is that children have changeable moods and are easily emotional.
The distance between the two houses is not too far, and the 20-minute drive feels like it only takes a short time.
The first time is unfamiliar, the second time is familiar. This is the third time that Yin Jiu has sent Ning Changyue home, although he was the one who was taken along the way the first two times.
When they arrived at the destination and the car stopped, Ning Changyue got off immediately.
Yin Jiu thought he would stay for a while longer.
"Ning Changyue."
Yin Jiu called him, got out of the car, took a box from the back seat, walked up to him, and said with a smile: "I forgot to say before, Happy Mid-Autumn Festival, thank you for spending the holiday with me today."
Thank you very much.