While things were in chaos at Liao Nanxing's place, Zhou Chunhua had already followed Gu Yao to a rather inconspicuous little restaurant.
Looking at the menu in her hand, Zhou Chunhua was completely dumbfounded.
She looked at Gu Yao in disbelief.
Gu Yao pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses and asked in confusion, "What? If you don't like it, let's go somewhere else."
"No, I like it."
It's not that she doesn't like it, it's that she likes it too much!
They sell dishes from her hometown here.
They prefer spicy flavors.
But in Jiang City, it's sweet.
When she first married into this family, she would cook a small dish of her favorite spicy food for every meal.
But every time Xu Xiuzhen sat down at the table, she would scold her.
She kept saying that eating chili peppers was bad for her health, and when she cooked, she made the whole house filled with fumes, which most importantly made it hard for her to breathe.
At first, she also asked Liao Nanxing for help.
Liao Nanxing always told her to be considerate of Xu Xiuzhen, and said that when she wanted to eat, he would take her to the most authentic restaurant to eat hometown dishes.
Since then, she has never cooked any dishes with chili peppers again.
But in the blink of an eye, more than 20 years have passed, and he has never fulfilled a single one of his countless promises.
He always says he's too busy or too tired. He always has an excuse, and then he always says "next time."
Gradually, she stopped mentioning it.
"Gu Yao, are you a local from Jiang City?" Zhou Chunhua asked curiously.
Gu Yao shook his head.
"No, I came to Jiang City for some personal reasons."
"So... you like spicy food too?" she asked tentatively.
"Um."
Hearing Gu Yao's affirmative answer, Zhou Chunhua felt relieved.
"It's my treat today. Order whatever you want to eat." After saying that, Zhou Chunhua ordered all the dishes she had wanted to eat for many years but never had the chance to.
I want all sorts of dishes today: stir-fried pork liver, Kung Pao chicken, and spicy chicken.
So when the dishes were served, there was a large table of food in front of them.
"I...I think I ordered too much," Zhou Chunhua said awkwardly.
Gu Yao, however, was the first to pick up his chopsticks: "As long as it's something you want to eat, no amount is too much. Eat up."
What was originally a very ordinary sentence brought tears to Zhou Chunhua's eyes.
For over twenty years of marriage, Xu Xiuzhen would only boss her around and tell her to be frugal, while Liao Nanxing would only say, "Mom, this is all for the good of our family."
She now realized that the "family" Liao Nanxing had been referring to only meant the three of them, and that she wasn't even part of it.
“Yes! As long as you want to eat, it’s not too much to order!” Zhou Chunhua smiled, tears welling in her eyes.
When you take a bite of the spicy chicken, the fresh aroma of the chicken and the spiciness of the chili peppers fill your entire mouth.
Taste buds, like ballet dancers, leap and spin wildly on the tongue.
In an instant, she had a wonderful feeling of returning to more than 20 years ago.
"Gu Yao, the food at this little restaurant you chose is really authentic. You should try this."
She picked up a piece of cold-dressed houttuynia cordata and put it into Gu Yao's bowl.
Gu Yao was surprised at first, then laughed like a child who had received a favorite toy.
"The one I ordered is also very authentic, you should try it." Gu Yao scooped a spoonful of crispy green beans for her.
She thanked him, then tasted the dish carefully, and then told Gu Yao how to make it.
Gu Yao listened attentively, and even said that he would try making it himself someday.
It wasn't until they had almost finished eating all the food on the table that Zhou Chunhua realized that she hadn't had a truly satisfying meal in over twenty years.
So from today onwards, she will definitely treat herself well.
When she went to pay the bill, the owner told her that the bill had already been paid by the gentleman who came with her.
She transferred the money, but it was returned to her.
"The meals you eat during working hours are the work meals, which are already included in the meal allowance in the contract."
"But you always pay the bill..."
"If you feel bad about it, you can treat me to a meal next time."
Zhou Chunhua paused for a moment, and it took her a long time to utter a single word, "Good."
...
Zhou Chunhua was very busy for the next month.
During the day, he was busy running around with Gu Yao, trying to get back the money Liao Nanxing had spent on Su Mu.
I have to go to the gym with Nana at 7 PM for class.
After class, she would talk to Lao Chen on the phone for one or two hours to discuss finding the two children.
She also took some time to register for driving school.
A car will be essential if I need to go out to look for my child in the future.
Soon, it was time to sign and receive the certificate.
Just like last time, Zhou Chunhua got a number at the Civil Affairs Bureau early in the morning and waited.
Liao Nanxing came with Su Mu as usual.
Su Mu's belly was much bigger than when they last met, and he looked much more bloated.
Especially her face, which she was so proud of, now looks like a moldy dough.
The strangest thing was that Su Mu looked very tired, and his dark circles were so exaggerated that they looked like they were drawn on.
Liao Nanxing wasn't much better off.
Although she can move freely now, she has visibly lost weight and her skin looks aged.
She pretended not to see it and went to sit in the waiting area.
Soon, her number was called.
The older woman who spoke up for her that day is no longer at the window; a young girl has taken her place.
The young girl didn't say much. After they signed their forms, she immediately stamped them and gave them little notebooks.
The color red, just like Zhou Chunhua's mood at this moment, is very festive.
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