Dad, did you and Mom get divorced?

"Done!"

Following the sharp, rhythmic clatter of the blade hitting the cutting board, Li Ran used both knives to scoop the minced garlic into an exquisite small dish with clean, swift movements.

"Sshhh-rip! Sshhh-rip!"

Two crisp sounds rang out as Li Ran peeled two sheets of plastic wrap off his shoes.

"Riiiip!"

With an even louder sound of plastic tearing, Li Ran crouched down and gave a forceful tug, peeling up a much larger sheet of plastic wrap from the floor.

Once that sheet was removed, the floor—previously scattered with bits of minced garlic—was left spotless, clean, and gleaming.

"I just learned this on my phone. When cooking, if you lay plastic wrap over the stove, the sink, the floor, and the soles of your shoes, you avoid the mess that inevitably falls while chopping or frying. If you aren't careful, it ends up stuck to your shoes as grime that's a pain to clean."

Li Ran spoke to himself with his back to Su Bingyao, as if he knew she was standing right behind him.

With the plastic wrap removed from the stove, floor, and sink, the entire area looked organized, tidy, and hygienic.

The placement of pots, pans, bowls, and appliances felt perfectly natural, refreshing, and incredibly satisfying to look at.

Su Bingyao, who had transformed into a giant ice serpent, froze.

Does he actually care about how I feel?

Is this really the ex-husband she knew?

She slowly shifted back into her human form.

Her eyes trembled as she stared in disbelief at the man busy in the kitchen.

For some reason, at this moment, the back of the man cooking in the kitchen looked...

The frozen pond in her heart felt as if a small pebble had been dropped into it, causing ripples to spread continuously.

Li Ran tossed the plastic wrap into the trash can and glanced at the reflection on the stainless steel pressure cooker, catching the sight of her transformation back into human form, and let out a huge sigh of relief.

If not for his Golden Finger tip via the reflection on the pressure cooker, he would have had no idea his ex-wife had appeared behind him in monster form.

He had almost kicked the bucket!

In truth, the hardest part was dealing with her OCD and germaphobia.

To that end, he had put a great deal of effort into the arrangement of the kitchenware and the overall cleanliness.

In the eyes of someone like her, any minor flaw would turn into invisible claws reaching for her heart—not necessarily hurting her, but scratching at her, making her irritable and frantic!

Li Ran had appeared relaxed while cooking, but inside, he was panicking like crazy.

It wasn't until a line of text appeared on the pressure cooker:

(Crisis averted.)

Li Ran wiped his hands with a rag and turned to face Su Bingyao.

"Actually, I know you love cleanliness, and you have a bit of a com—"

Before he could finish the word "compulsion" (OCD), Li Ran went completely slack-jawed.

Su Bingyao didn't notice the strange look in Li Ran's eyes. She said to him in an icy tone, "You finally realized I have OCD? But don't think I'll change my opinion of you just because you cooked a meal. Don't forget, we have no relationship anymore."

Seeing Li Ran standing there in a daze without responding, Su Bingyao arched her brows. "Did you not hear what I said?"

Li Ran wiped the drool from his mouth and said with a goofy, foolish grin, "Your body is so fragrant, I... slurrrp... slurrrp, may I?"

Su Bingyao's brows furrowed slightly, her icy gaze looking down upon him.

"Ah~!"

Su Bingyao let out a shriek.

The next second, a flash of fair, porcelain skin scrambled in a panic toward the bedroom.

"Slurrrp~"

Li Ran wiped the corner of his mouth, a roguish, wicked grin appearing on his face as he continued to busy himself in the kitchen.

An hour later.

"Knock... knock-knock!"

Li Ran knocked on the master bedroom door.

Su Bingyao opened the door, her expression composed, as if nothing had happened.

Li Ran held out the nightgown he was carrying, and Su Bingyao's face turned bright red in an instant.

"I... I came to call you for dinner."

"Got it." Su Bingyao snatched the clothes, turned her head away, and quickly slammed the door shut.

Aren't we ex-spouses? Why is she acting all shy?

It's not like I haven't seen it before; why can't you be more generous? Locking your husband out like this—what kind of behavior is that? It's as if you think I'd actually peek.

How boring.

Li Ran stood by the door, his hand grasping at the air, the faint, pleasant fragrance still lingering on his palm.

"Hey... son, time to eat."

Li Ran turned to knock on the door across the hall.

On the dining table:

Secret-recipe braised pork belly, steamed grouper, radish and pork rib soup, stir-fried cucumber with eggs, and water spinach with minced garlic.

Three meat dishes, two vegetable dishes, four courses and a soup.

Looking at the steaming dishes on the table, Su Bingyao and Li Ziyang both fell into a brief daze.

How long had it been since the whole family sat down at the dining table together?

When was the last time they had a hot, home-cooked meal?

They couldn't even remember anymore.

The piping hot braised pork melted in the mouth, turning into a sweet, soft, and warm current that flowed into the heart—warm and cozy.

At this moment, tears blurred Su Bingyao's eyes.

Li Ran noticed the subtle shift in Su Bingyao's expression. He knew clearly that melting an iceberg couldn't be achieved with a single meal. Whether the cracks deep within her heart could be mended was something Li Ran had to figure out over the next seven days.

If he couldn't repair this broken family, he would fail his mission.

The penalty for failure was death!

He only had seven days!

"Daddy's cooking is so good it makes me want to cry," the son shouted happily.

"How about Daddy cooks delicious food for you every day from now on?"

"Yay, yay! But why isn't the Little Bastard here?" Li Ziyang asked.

Li Ran nearly spat his soup all over the table.

This Little Bastard really knew how to bring up the wrong thing at the wrong time, ruining the perfectly cozy atmosphere just like that.

But he couldn't exactly beat his son.

A gentleman uses his words, not his fists.

Su Bingyao looked at Li Ran with suspicious, beautiful eyes and asked, "What is that thing?"

"Uh... it's a gift from Teacher Zhang. It's a supplement to improve marital life. Another day... I'll prepare it for you to taste later."

With a wicked smirk, Li Ran picked up the tenderest piece of grouper belly and placed it in Su Bingyao's bowl.

Su Bingyao slowly tucked the fish into her cherry lips, turning her face away, her cheeks flushed for some unknown reason.

After dinner.

Although Su Bingyao didn't say anything, one could see that the emotion in her eyes had softened considerably.

(Hint: A qualified husband would urge his child to study at this time.)

With the prompt appearing, the momentarily lost Li Ran instantly found his direction.

After washing the dishes, Li Ran said to Su Bingyao, who was sitting on the sofa by the floor-to-ceiling window, "I'm going to go urge our son to study."

Su Bingyao didn't respond.

Li Ran entered his son's room.

Just as he closed the door, a single sentence from Li Ziyang left Li Ran speechless.

"Daddy, did you and Mommy get a divorce?"

Li Ziyang asked, sitting in front of his drawing board with an expressionless face.

Li Ran's heart skipped a beat.

Did his son know?

Was he acting this whole time?

Does that mean this entire family was putting on an act?

(Hint: He hasn't found actual proof of your divorce. If you let it slip that you are divorced, your head will be in trouble.)

Li Ran walked over and stroked Li Ziyang's cracked head. "Daddy and Mommy love you so much, how could we possibly get a divorce?"

"But Daddy and Mommy haven't slept together in such a long time."

The cracks on Li Ziyang's face widened.

Li Ran maintained his smile, stroking his son's head while suppressing his inner panic. "Silly boy, it was only because Daddy was sick a while ago. I was afraid of getting Mommy sick, so I didn't sleep with her."

"Really?" Li Ziyang asked, half-doubting, the cracks on his face stopping their expansion. "Then is Daddy's sickness gone?"

"It's gone," Li Ran blurted out impulsively. "Daddy will sleep with Mommy tonight."

As soon as the words left his mouth, he felt a twinge of regret; he damn near wanted to slap himself.

Given the current situation, would Su Bingyao really let him go back to the bedroom to sleep?

Li Ran had assumed his son would believe him, but when he looked down, he saw that the cracks on his son's face had not only failed to heal, but his eyes had turned completely pitch-black, staring at him with suspicion.

Clearly, Li Ziyang did not fully believe him, and there was still a lingering knot of doubt in his heart.

As for the split head, it remained unable to heal.

He felt bewildered and looked toward his son's drawing board.

Li Ran narrowed his eyes slightly, his expression growing grave.

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