Stomach-Soothing Congee

After breakfast, Chen Xiuxiu could not wait to run home and burn off the calories from that sinful basket of Steamed Dumplings.

"You can't exercise strenuously after eating." Jiang Feng refused without a second thought.

"Then what am I supposed to do?" Chen Xiuxiu looked at the empty steamer basket, a flicker of regret crossing her face.

She had originally planned to eat only two, but before she knew it, she had finished the entire basket.

She even regretted listening to Jiang Feng's nonsense and coming out for a run today.

"Take a slow walk first. Want to come by my family's restaurant later?" Jiang Feng asked.

"No!"

His little scheme had fallen through, but Jiang Feng had expected that. Tricking Chen Xiuxiu once was easy; luring her out for meal after meal would be difficult.

They had not walked far when Chen Xiuxiu's stomach began to hurt.

Because she had been excessively dieting to lose weight, stomachaches were nothing unusual for Chen Xiuxiu, but this time was rather serious. Before long, her lips had gone pale and cold sweat beaded on her forehead from the pain.

"Jiang Feng, my stomach hurts. Go buy me some stomach medicine. I'll wait here." Chen Xiuxiu could not endure it any longer. She found a nearby tree, braced herself against it, squatted down, and clutched her stomach.

"We're going to the hospital." Jiang Feng supported Chen Xiuxiu and spoke decisively.

There was a private hospital nearby. Whenever students in the area had so much as a headache or fever, they went there.

Jiang Feng knew the doctor on duty today.

Back in high school, Chen Xiuxiu's stomach had been practically invincible. She dragged Jiang Feng out to eat and drink recklessly every day without ever suffering a thing, while Jiang Feng constantly upset his stomach. He could be considered one of Doctor Chen's VIP patients.

Doctor Chen clearly still recognized Jiang Feng. She lifted her eyelids when she saw him. "Went out eating and drinking recklessly with your childhood sweetheart again?"

"Doctor, it's me. My stomach hurts." Chen Xiuxiu clutched her abdomen.

After examining her, Doctor Chen immediately rounded on Jiang Feng. "What kind of boyfriend are you? Your girlfriend's stomach condition is this serious, and you still took her out to eat and drink like that? She ate too much."

Jiang Feng: ???

Before he could explain that Chen Xiuxiu was not his girlfriend, Jiang Feng hurriedly defended himself. "She only ate one basket of Steamed Dumplings and drank a cup of soy milk."

"One basket of Steamed Dumplings?" Doctor Chen did not believe him. "How big was the basket?"

"Just a normal basket." Jiang Feng felt that fate really did come full circle. In high school, he was always the one with the upset stomach, and Chen Xiuxiu would accompany him to the hospital and get scolded by Doctor Chen. This time, he was the one being scolded.

"Besides, Doctor Chen, don't you recognize her? She's Chen Xiuxiu!" Jiang Feng felt thoroughly wronged.

How could he have guessed that a basket of Steamed Dumplings would leave Chen Xiuxiu so stuffed that her stomach hurt?

"Xiuxiu?!" Doctor Chen was shocked, then frowned. "Have you been dieting to lose weight?"

Chen Xiuxiu nodded unwillingly.

"Nonsense!" Doctor Chen's brows drew tightly together, and Jiang Feng sensed trouble.

Sure enough, Doctor Chen launched into an educational lecture on healthy weight loss the very next second.

During summer vacation, Doctor Chen barely saw any patients in a day. Now that she had finally gotten hold of an old patient, of course she had to give her a proper lecture.

"Drink more congee when you get home and return to a normal diet. You're still so young, yet you've given yourself stomach problems just to lose weight. You'll regret it someday." Half an hour later, Doctor Chen finally said the only useful thing. "There, go get your medicine. Take it and eat your meals on time."

Chen Xiuxiu looked as though she were facing a grave enemy.

Jiang Feng guessed she had remembered the terror of being dominated by Doctor Chen's endless chatter back in high school.

With her stomach acting up, exercising was out of the question. Jiang Feng and Chen Xiuxiu took the bus home. After seeing Chen Xiuxiu upstairs, Jiang Feng went to the restaurant to gather some ingredients.

After explaining the situation to Wang Xiulian and Comrade Jiang Jiankang, Jiang Feng carried a bag of carefully selected ingredients to Chen Xiuxiu's home.

By the time Chen Xiuxiu opened the door, she had changed clothes. A purple yoga mat lay spread out in the living room, and it looked like she had been planning to do yoga.

"Does your stomach not hurt anymore?" Jiang Feng put the vegetables in the kitchen. Seeing that the bowl of cold rice porridge was still on the table, he asked, "What are you planning to eat for lunch?"

"Medicine." It seemed she was planning not to eat at all.

Jiang Feng said nothing more and immediately turned on the stove to cook congee.

"I'm not eating lunch." Chen Xiuxiu tried to stop him.

"I asked Doctor Chen on WeChat just now. She only works mornings. If you refuse to eat anything, I'll call and tell Doctor Chen later." Jiang Feng directly brought out Doctor Chen, his ultimate weapon. Doctor Chen lived in their residential complex.

Perhaps Doctor Chen had left too deep an impression on Chen Xiuxiu during high school, because her lingering authority remained. Chen Xiuxiu immediately obediently shut up.

"I'll only drink a small bowl," Chen Xiuxiu emphasized. Watching Jiang Feng take out japonica rice, glutinous rice, red dates, black beans, millet, and two small bags of meat one after another, she curiously asked, "What kind of congee are you making?"

"Stomach-Soothing Congee." Jiang Feng had always had a weak stomach since childhood, and every so often, Comrade Jiang Jiankang would make him Stomach-Soothing Congee. Jiang Jiankang's Stomach-Soothing Congee also carried the Jiang Family's signature style: ham, chicken, shrimp, and beef—none could be missing.

Jiang Feng remembered that when he was little, he had not liked Stomach-Soothing Congee. Whenever Jiang Jiankang left, he would bring the congee to Chen Xiuxiu.

"I'm not eating meat!" Fully aware of how lavish the Jiang Family's Stomach-Soothing Congee ingredients were, Chen Xiuxiu immediately stressed.

"Mm." Jiang Feng chose to compromise. As for what Stomach-Soothing Congee without ham, chicken, shrimp, or beef would turn into under his mediocre cooking skills...

It would not be him eating it anyway.

The congee was cooking in the pressure cooker, and there was still a long time before it would be ready. Jiang Feng looked over the remaining ingredients, then poured corn kernels, chicken, and ham into a pan to make a mixed corn stir-fry.

He could bring the rest back to the restaurant that afternoon.

There was also a long, plump yellow-green cucumber in the bag, its skin unblemished. He had personally washed it after carefully selecting it from seven or eight cucumbers.

As for why he had specifically picked out one cucumber...

Maybe Smashed Cucumber Salad really was addictive!

Smack! Smack! Smack!

Chen Xiuxiu, who had only planned to drink a bowl of congee, was drawn over by the sound of the Smashed Cucumber Salad being smashed. When she saw the plate on the kitchen counter, she could not resist picking up a piece with her chopsticks and tasting it.

"Ding. Gained 2 experience points."

"Too sour." Chen Xiuxiu looked disgusted.

Jiang Feng: ...

A plate of Smashed Cucumber Salad with too much vinegar

A plate of mixed corn stir-fry with improper Heat Control

The Trash Appraisal Technique could not even identify how much extra vinegar had been added!

Chen Xiuxiu had no interest in the mixed corn stir-fry beside the Smashed Cucumber Salad. "Since when did you like eating corn kernels?"

"I just threw it together." Jiang Feng explained. How could he tell Chen Xiuxiu that he did not even dare drink the congee in the pressure cooker himself?

After waiting for over half an hour, Jiang Feng estimated that the congee was about ready. He turned off the heat, opened the pressure cooker, and ladled out a bowl.

A bowl of strangely flavored Stomach-Soothing Congee

Jiang Feng silently carried the congee out and began eating the corn kernels.

"You're not drinking any?" Chen Xiuxiu asked.

I wouldn't drink it even if you beat me to death!

"I don't like congee."

"Ding. Gained 1 experience point."

Chen Xiuxiu silently set down her spoon. After a long silence, she asked, "Did you add salt?"

Jiang Feng: ...

"Too much salt is bad for your stomach."

Chen Xiuxiu: ???

For the sake of her friend's hard work in cooking, Chen Xiuxiu very reluctantly drank a small bowl of the strangely flavored health congee. Looking at the pressure cooker on the stove, she asked, "You really aren't drinking any?"

"I don't like congee." Jiang Feng's attitude was resolute.

"Then what are you going to do with this whole pot?" Chen Xiuxiu pointed out this very serious problem.

Jiang Feng thought for a moment, then came up with a brilliant idea. "I'll take it to the restaurant this afternoon and give it away as a freebie."

As he spoke, he walked into the kitchen and put the lid back on the pressure cooker.

"Ding. Gained 9 experience points."

Jiang Feng turned around. Only the plate of mixed corn stir-fry remained on the table, while Chen Xiuxiu was looking down at the empty bowl.

She... had been sneaking bites?