Su Xiyan seemed to be in a pretty good mood, as she had walked all the way to the kitchen door.
Leaning lightly against the kitchen doorframe with her hands crossed in front of her chest, she asked gently, "What are you doing?"
Chen Shuo was handling a hairy crab with both hands and did not turn his head back. "I might get my clothes dirty. There's an apron hanging on the side of the fridge. Can you help me put it on?"
Su Xiyan rolled her eyes.
"Do it yourself."
Chen Shuo was busy preparing the ingredients.
"My hands are full."
"If you get your clothes dirty, are you expecting me to wash them for you?"
Su Xiyan said.
"Dream on!"
Although reluctant, seeing Chen Shuo's efforts in cooking, Su Xiyan went to take the apron and hung it around Chen Shuo's neck.
Chen Shuo twisted his waist.
"Help tie it for me."
Su Xiyan hesitated for a few seconds, then grabbed the straps behind the apron and gave a hard yank to tie a knot.
Chen Shuo cried out loud.
"Ouch!! It hurts, it hurts!! Are you trying to strangle me? Don't be so rough!"
Su Xiyan glanced coldly at the steaming pot.
"I'm hungry. You'd better speed things up."
"I want piping hot food on the table in twenty minutes."
With that said, Su Xiyan left the kitchen.
Twenty minutes?? Chen Shuo complained bitterly.
If only he hadn't let Su Xiyan help with the apron.
This woman was definitely getting back at him.
In order to finish cooking within the time frame set by Su Xiyan, Chen Shuo not only turned on both stove tops, but also used an electric steamer.
Working like a whole crew by himself in the kitchen.
Sitting on the sofa, Su Xiyan listened to the clatters coming from the kitchen.
The once cold and quiet home was now filled with sounds that did not belong to her.
This feeling seemed somehow marvelous.
Su Xiyan stopped herself from overthinking and turned on the TV in the living room, aimlessly pressing buttons on the remote control.
She vaguely remembered reading somewhere that the cozy atmosphere of a home comes from the smells of cooking in the kitchen and chatter of people in the living room.
Having gotten used to living alone, Su Xiyan felt somewhat unaccustomed to the sudden presence of someone cooking.
Yet strangely, this feeling gave her a sense of assurance?
Chen Shuo's voice came from the kitchen again. "Dinner is ready!"
Su Xiyan responded and sat at the dining table, waiting for the meal.
"Let's eat!"
Chen Shuo went back and forth between the kitchen and dining room, bringing out one tantalizing dish after another.
Chen Shuo was already starving, barely able to wait before picking up his chopsticks, ready to dig in.
Su Xiyan said coldly, "Who allowed you to eat together? As the little servant, shouldn't you wait until I finish eating before you start?"
Chen Shuo pouted angrily. "That's abuse! If you don't believe me, go ask in the domestic helper market. Don't servants always eat together with their employers? Not to mention, you haven't even hired me. Hiring requires payment."
With a slap, Su Xiyan flung a card at Chen Shuo. "There's enough money in there to hire you for several lifetimes."
"Sit down and eat."
Chen Shuo was only joking around to tease Su Xiyan earlier. He didn't expect her to take it seriously?
Even without pay, Su Xiyan still treated him as a little servant + assistant. And now there was money too? He'd be a fool not to take it!
Chen Shuo tactfully put the card into his pocket and asked Su Xiyan for the password.
The two of them sat at the table eating. The delicious food tasted very fresh.
The sounds of chopsticks and spoons hitting bowls and plates brought a touch of mundane domesticity to this otherwise cold and stern home.
Whether it was because Su Xiyan was indeed hungry or Chen Shuo's cooking was just that tasty, she actually finished a whole bowl of rice and a bowl of soup.
Putting down her utensils, Su Xiyan felt somewhat annoyed.
"Exceeded my calorie limit."
Chen Shuo cheekily said,
"Then go wash the dishes and clean up the kitchen for exceeding your limit. In our family, the last one to finish eating washes the dishes. It's an excellent tradition that must be passed down."
Su Xiyan looked at him icily.
"You'd better find a virtuous girlfriend willing to pass down this so-called 'excellent tradition' with you."
Chen Shuo muttered: "That's right, with one look I can tell you're not the dishwashing type. Don't worry, I definitely won't ask you to be my girlfriend! I'm afraid someday I'd be strangled by you in my sleep."
Su Xiyan said, "If I wanted to lay hands on you, I wouldn't wait until the middle of the night. Daytime works too."
With that, she pushed her bowls and chopsticks in front of Chen Shuo, her implication clear.
Money makes the mare go. If you're getting paid, you have to work. It's only natural.
Carrying the tableware, Chen Shuo went to the kitchen to clean up. The sound of running water came from the open kitchen door.
Shortly after, Chen Shuo tidied up the kitchen spick and span.
Holding the sorted food waste, he left Su Xiyan's home.
Su Xiyan specifically reminded him to buy ingredients in advance next week when he comes to clean.
On his way back to campus after leaving Haiyi Apartments, Chen Shuo was going to use his student metro pass. But then he thought of the card Su Xiyan gave him - why not spend someone else's money!
So he booked a rideshare car instead.
Sitting comfortably in the rideshare car, no longer having to squeeze into packed subway cars, Chen Shuo couldn't help but exclaim to himself.
Money is so great!
Freeloading tastes so good!
-----------------
Monday was a nice sunny day.
Chen Shuo's class was putting up bulletin boards.
Chen Shuo, talented at drawing, worked with a few classmates skilled at writing to take on the bulletin board task.
The blackboard in the hallway was hung quite high. The girl responsible for erasing it was on the petite side.
Standing on tiptoes with arms stretched, she still couldn't reach the chalk words at the very top of the board.
"Chen Shuo, you're tall. Can you help me erase the blackboard?" Having no other choice, the flustered girl asked Chen Shuo for assistance.
After all, Chen Shuo was the tallest of those working on the bulletin board.
Chen Shuo was preparing illustrations for the hand-drawn bulletin board when he heard his classmate's plea. Taking the eraser from her, he easily erased the entire blackboard with one lift of his arm.
The bright evening sunlight filtering through the chinaberry tree leaves cut across the hallway in shifting specks.
Chen Shuo's casual helpful gesture oozed masculine charm!
The girl was very grateful and specifically treated all the bulletin board workers to snacks.
This was just an ordinary scene between classmates, but it happened to be caught in the corner of Su Xiyan's eye as she walked past the hallway.
She merely swept a fleeting glance, expression tranquil as she left.
Back at her home, after simple hygiene routines, Su Xiyan applied a sheet mask to her porcelain-doll-like exquisite face.
Eyes closed, the dense long lashes cast a crescent moon shadow on her lower lids. With the mask on, Su Xiyan tossed the peeled off sheet into the trash can.
Yet she missed.
The sticky slimed mask, soaked with skincare essence, plopped onto the floor next to the trash with a splat.
The once immaculate floor now had a wet sloppy mask blob.
This was extremely annoying!
Su Xiyan immediately called Chen Shuo.
"Come clean. My floor is dirty."