Emergency Dinner

"You think you can only bully me with fists and paper? Do you still want to play now?"

Moko appeared from the side, yelling, "We're the ones who go out to enjoy a wonderful afternoon tea, while you guys are stuck at home sweeping up dust, meow hahaha!"

"Afternoon tea?"

Lin Xiaolu glanced at it and said indifferently, "Anyway, Xia Liang is having a good time chatting with her classmates. Are you just going to ignore her?"

"Besides, even if we don't play rock-paper-scissors, don't you go out for a stroll every afternoon? Going out with Xia Liang is just a change of scenery, isn't it?"

"How dare you speak like that!"

Moko immediately bristled and glared, "How many times do I have to say it? This is the work of Seeder!"

"Is the job of Seeder' to go to orphanages and expose the dirty secrets of their companions to innocent little girls?"

Lin Xiaolu squinted. "Wow, that's impressive. You really are something else, you big liar."

"What orphanage are you talking about? I haven't been there for a long time..."

Moko instinctively opened his mouth to refute, but suddenly realized what Lin Xiaolu meant. After a pause, he looked at Bai Jingxuan beside him. "Xiao Xuan?"

All she received was a slightly embarrassed smile from Bai Jingxuan.

"Excuse me, is this something I can't talk about?"

While cleaning the living room that afternoon, she talked to Lin Xiaolu about her past experiences, and casually mentioned what happened when she first met Moko Lin Xiaolu. Lin Xiaolu didn't react much while listening, so Bai Jingxuan didn't realize that what she said was tantamount to betraying Moko.

It's more than just something you can't say.

Moko wanted to shout that, but it was too late. He could only look stiffly at Lin Xiaolu.

"What's wrong? Why are you so far away from me?"

Lin Xiaolu, hands on her hips, stared at Moko: "I heard you want to play rock-paper-scissors? Come closer to me, will you?"

Moko flapped its wings and took two steps back. "Meow haha, I don't want to play anymore, meow."

"Don't want to play?"

With a sneer, Lin Xiaolu raised her fist. "That won't do. Now I demand to continue playing rock-paper-scissors with you. I'll use my hand, and you use your face."

Moko shuddered and took another step back. "That's not rock-paper-scissors! Meow!"

After saying that, it turned around and flew to the stairwell, fleeing towards the basement.

"Don't run! Stop!" Lin Xiaolu shouted as she chased after it, and together they rushed downstairs.

Bai Jingxuan and Xia Liang, who were left in the living room, could only watch helplessly as the two of them started bickering as soon as they met, and now they had disappeared without a trace.

"Never mind those two childish brats, let's pack up the things we bought and put them in the fridge," Xia Liang said with a smile.

The two then returned to the kitchen together and began dealing with the various sizes of plastic bags that had piled up there.

Opening the plastic bags, Bai Jingxuan examined the fresh vegetables inside. At first, she didn't think anything of particular, but after a closer look, she exclaimed in surprise, "Sister Xia Liang, the vegetables you picked are of very high quality!"

Because the vegetables in the plastic bags all looked very good; even the worst ones were at least of good quality.

"I'm quite confident about this."

Xia Liang said with some pride, "After all, I've lived alone for a long time, and I'm very proficient in basic life skills like grocery shopping and cooking."

"That's amazing!" Bai Jingxuan praised earnestly. "I need to study hard too."

"It's a pity they only called me to buy groceries close to noon." Xia Liang deftly organized the refrigerator. "The best-looking batch has already been picked out by someone else."

"But I don't remember the grocery shopping trip being supposed to take four or five hours."

Lin Xiaolu's voice suddenly rang out above them. She walked up, carrying Moko in one hand and with the other hand on her hip. "So Bai Jingxuan and I have to eat takeout for lunch!"

Even if I buy groceries as fast as I can, I still won't have time to cook lunch.

Xia Liang smiled helplessly, "Besides, I already messaged you to say I won't be back at noon."

"You just want to eat takeout!" Moko, shouted back, "It's so oily and salty, you'll get a face full of pimples sooner or later!"

"You don't need to worry about it!" Lin Xiaolu said irritably, giving its head a good rub.

After venting her emotions, she tossed Moko aside, squatted down in front of the plastic bag on the ground, fiddled with the edge of the bag to check its contents, and looked up to say:

"Speaking of which, we only bought fresh vegetables; there were no pre-cooked dishes among them."

"You didn't say you wanted to buy pre-cooked meals."

As she stuffed the vegetables into the refrigerator, Xia Liang turned around and said, "Besides, eating processed foods all the time isn't good for your health. Making your own food is the safest option."

Lin Xiaolu didn't respond, but continued rummaging through the bag. After a while, she tossed the bag aside, looked up, and asked, "So, what about our dinner?"

"Dinner?"

Xia Liang blinked twice, unsure how to respond.

"You told me before you went, right? I asked you to bring back some food that you can eat right away tonight."

Lin Xiaolu crossed her arms over her chest. "Now, what about our dinner?"

These words finally reactivated Xia Liang's memory. She looked into the plastic bag, paused for a moment, and then exclaimed involuntarily, "Ah, I forgot!"

"You really forgot!"

Lin Xiaolu pointed at her and said, "You even said that playing with your classmates doesn't interfere with your work, but isn't that a huge problem!"

"Hmm... I can't argue with that." Xia Liang said dejectedly.

"Now, tell me, Minister of the Imperial Kitchen!"

Lin Xiaolu reached out and banged on the refrigerator door, pointing at Moko who had just been scolded, "Where is my dinner? Be careful, or I'll kill you!"

"Your Majesty, I deserve to die."

Xia Liang smiled awkwardly and cupped his hands in a gesture of respect, following Lin Xiaolu's words. "I beg Your Majesty to give this humble subject a chance to make amends. I will do it immediately."

"Very well, I wish to eat bird's nest and shredded chicken soup, braised sea cucumber with pork tendons, and braised fish tongue with bear paw!"

Withdrawing her hand, Lin Xiaolu loudly announced the names of several dishes, "If you don't see these dishes later, I'll kill you!"

Xia Liang glanced at the groceries he had bought, confirming the gap between reality and his expectations. He could only wipe the cold sweat from his brow and say, "Your Majesty, it is truly a case of 'even a skilled cook cannot cook without rice.' This humble subject is unable to do it."

"Behead!"

"Your Majesty, spare my life!"

"... Um, I don't know if I should bring this up."

Bai Jingxuan, watching the two of them engage in their nonsensical little drama, raised one hand and said weakly, "It's already 6:30."

Her words seemed to wind up a toy, causing the other two to look at her.

"Six-thirty?"

"Six-thirty!"

The two of them simultaneously raised a warning sound.

The reason this timing elicited such a strong reaction from them was because it signified one thing— Hong Siyu was about to arrive.

Since Larkspur left Fangting City and arranged for Hong Siyu to take care of them, Hong Siyu would make a special trip to the Secret Base every day, around six or seven o'clock after work.

If Hong Siyu arrives and finds that the children haven't eaten dinner yet...

Is it too late to make dinner now?

After exclaiming in surprise, Lin Xiaolu asked, somewhat dazed.

"A simpler approach would take about half an hour?"

Xia Liang hesitated, fiddling with the pile of ingredients in her hands. "Cooking noodles should take even less time, right?"

"So, how long until that woman... Hong Siyu arrives?"

"Based on her off-get off work time, it should be at most ten minutes. If it were any earlier, she would have arrived by now, right?"

After Xia Liang finished speaking, she seemed to realize something and suddenly stopped. She stared intently at the ingredients in front of her, then exchanged a glance with Lin Xiaolu.

Neither of them said anything, but the meaning conveyed in their eyes was the same: they were in big trouble.

During the time she was taking care of the three little ones, Hong Siyu confidently entered the kitchen several times, but the results she produced always made the girls ask her to leave the kitchen.

All that can be said is that Hong Siyu's passion for cooking is commendable, but otherwise she has nothing to offer.

Lin Xiaolu and Xia Liang were already familiar with her cooking skills, so they were wary of her cooking. But Moko was different. After drinking Hong Siyu's soup without any warning, it collapsed on the dining table and had to be moved aside to lie down for a while before it recovered.

Only Bai Jingxuan, for some reason, was able to tolerate the food that completely distorted her sense of taste and finished eating it calmly.

But from then on, Lin Xiaolu, Xia Liang, Moko all began to strongly oppose Hong Siyu and exit from the Secret Base's kitchen.

Unfortunately, even though they had explained the situation to Hong Siyu and made it clear that her cooking skills were seriously lacking, they still couldn't stop Hong Siyu's enthusiasm.

Despite the opposition from the three, Hong Siyu became even more determined, displaying an attitude of "accepting the challenge." She went home and conducted some research and improvement on her culinary skills. Then, for reasons unknown, she declared that she had "completed her evolution" and once again ignored all objections and entered the kitchen.

The result was a table full of even worse-tasting dishes.

This time, even Bai Jingxuan looked hesitant when faced with the dishes she made.

With her cooking skills remaining so consistently high, naturally, no one wanted Hong Siyu to continue cooking.

However, given the current situation, if dinner isn't prepared, there's no guarantee that Hong Siyu came to take care of the girls, won't suddenly decide to show off her skills.

Lin Xiaolu didn't want to be exposed by her.

"What should we do? Order takeout?" Lin Xiaolu pulled out her phone, opened the food delivery app, and stammered, "Will it be in time? Or should I just transform and fly over to pick it up?"

"Don't even think about your takeout at a time like this."

With a slightly helpless smile, Xia Liang began to take off her coat. "Oh well, I was planning to go home and rest, but now I guess I'll have to do it myself."

Is it possible for one person to make it in time?

Lin Xiaolu suggested with some concern, "Shall I lend a hand too?"

"The best help you can give is to not cause any trouble." Xia Liang walked into the kitchen, took out an arm sleeve, put it on, and went to the stove. "When you hand me something, please hold it for me."

"This is nothing? No problem!" Lin Xiaolu said confidently.

"How about I do it..." Bai Jingxuan wanted to follow into the kitchen, but Lin Xiaolu stopped her outside.

"Hot oil and knives are too dangerous, just wait for us to finish!" That was her explanation.

As the work in the kitchen began, Xia Liang also busied herself at the stove.

As for Lin Xiaolu, she initially waited patiently for Xia Liang to assign her work, but as time went by, she realized that there seemed to be nothing she was needed for.

Out of boredom, she could only stand behind Xia Liang and point at the work in her hands:

"Is there too much water here?"

"The shredded vegetables are cut too thickly, and they look messy."

"The eggs don't seem to have been beaten evenly enough."

"The ingredients and broth are too bland; it doesn't taste as good as Larkspur makes..."

Bang!

Xia Liang slammed the spatula she was holding heavily onto the cutting board, turned her head to the side, and although she smiled, there was no smile in her eyes, "Shut up."

Lin Xiaolu immediately shrank back like a startled quail.

Work continued in the kitchen.

And so, Xia Liang acted swiftly, and in just over ten minutes, a simple bowl of noodles was ready. Two girls carried the cooked noodles out of the kitchen and back to the restaurant.

"Fortunately, that woman... Hong Siyu, arrived rather late today." Holding the bowl in her hands, Lin Xiaolu breathed a sigh of relief. "If she had come in the middle and insisted on interfering, it would have been troublesome."

"You didn't really do anything, did you?"

Xia Liang squinted and smiled, "Next time you're going to be so talkative in the kitchen, you'd better find out who has the knife first."

"Okay, I understand..."

Lin Xiaolu responded in a muffled voice, stirred the bowl with her chopsticks, picked out a string of noodles, and slurped it into her mouth.

Then, her expression became incredibly strange.

"What's wrong?"

Xia Liang looked puzzled, took a sip of noodles, and then her expression became subtle. "... Ah, no salt?"

"Why is it a question?" Lin Xiaolu tapped the rim of the bowl in an annoyed tone.

"Because I did it so fast, I've forgotten what I even did..." Xia Liang pursed her lips.

Lin Xiaolu was silent for a moment, then finally put down her chopsticks. "Beheading!"

"Your Majesty, spare my life!"

Bai Jingxuan silently watched the interaction between the two, ate her noodles expressionlessly, and then suddenly said, "Speaking of which, hasn't Sister Hong arrived yet? It's already much later than usual."

"It's probably a work-related issue."

Lin Xiaolu pulled out a few jars of pickled vegetables from the refrigerator, saying nonchalantly, "If they don't want to come, they don't have to."

"Don't say that. At least we prepared dinner for her. You should still send her a message to ask."

As Xia Liang said this, she opened her phone, edited a message, and sent it to Hong Siyu. A moment later, her phone vibrated, indicating that she had received a reply.

"What did she say?" Lin Xiaolu asked.

"Let me see..."

Xia Liang swiped her phone screen. "She said she might not be able to come tonight because she has to work overtime."

"Why?" Lin Xiaolu asked, looking down at the lid of the pickled vegetable jar.

"Is it because of the recent exams at the Anomaly Countermeasures Bureau?"

"She said the Anomaly Countermeasures Bureau is about to hold a recruitment exam, and she wants to participate in setting the questions."

Two voices rang out almost simultaneously, but they came from two different people.

Xia Liang read the contents of the text message aloud, only to find that she wasn't the only one speaking. Looking in the direction of the voices, she saw Bai Jingxuan saying something similar at the same time.

"Does Xiao Xuan know?" she asked, somewhat puzzled, after putting down her phone.

"Yes."

Bai Jingxuan nodded. "Because someone I know told me."

"Who? Someone from the orphanage?"

"They are caregivers at the welfare home."

Bai Jingxuan lowered her head and answered softly, "The older sisters should have seen him before."

"Have we seen him before?" Xia Liang tilted her head.

"It was the time when bad guys caused trouble at the orphanage," Bai Jingxuan continued to explain. "The uncle who was with me then was him."

"I think I vaguely remember this?" Lin Xiaolu said, touching her chin.

"It's that rude guy!" Moko, sitting behind Bai Jingxuan, said with his arms crossed.

"Yes, I ran into him when I went back to the orphanage before, so we chatted briefly."

Bai Jingxuan nodded. "He said he's preparing for an exam recently, and if he passes, he won't have to work at the orphanage anymore."

"Is working at the Anomaly Countermeasures Bureau a good job?" Lin Xiaolu finally unscrewed the jar of pickled vegetables in her hand, placed it on the table, and looked at Bai Jingxuan: "From what you're saying, the exam to work at the Anomaly Countermeasures Bureau seems to be very difficult?"

What followed was silence.

Because both Bai Jingxuan and Xia Liang were looking at her with the same eyes they would give an alien creature.

"Don't you ever listen to what Sister Hong says?"

Before long, Xia Liang was the first to speak up and explain, "The Anomaly Countermeasures Bureau, huh? That's the best job for Mage!"

"The best job? It's clearly just being a bunch of people who help out with city repairs!" Lin Xiaolu blinked.

"They are still responsible for managing the Magic Side personnel, excluding the Aberrant Beast and magical girls."

Xia Liang chuckled dryly, "That's a really dismissive way of putting people."

"Eh... so you're saying that taking the exam was actually a very difficult thing for that uncle?"

Picking out a pinch of pickled vegetables, Lin Xiaolu lifted it up with the noodles, her voice flat and even. "Then let's wish him success in his exam."

I fell asleep while writing yesterday, and then I had things to do during the day on Sunday, so I didn't have time to catch up on the update.

If I really can't update in time in the future, I will post a notice in the book review section. I am truly sorry.