Hmph. Unless Mi Ling called me big brother and behaved herself like Mi Li, I wasn't going to let her feast with us.
Otherwise, I wouldn't mistreat her. She could have rice every day.
You're not one of mine yet!
With Mi Ling's abilities, she could find rice and flour even if Chen Luo gave her nothing. She simply hadn't had much time to search on the road.
Mi Ling froze. "You haven't eaten yet?"
Her face flushed. "Sorry, I think I ate everyone's food. Is there enough rice left? If not, I'll go find some right now."
Ma Yu laughed to herself. That little bit of rice wouldn't even fill the gaps between Big Pillar's teeth.
And it hadn't even been rinsed. Chen Luo wouldn't touch it if someone offered it to him.
Chen Luo waved a hand. "No need. We have food. Plenty of it."
"Ma Yu, come here. I'll tell you what dishes to make."
Chen Luo went over to the refrigerator and put the ingredients for that day's lunch inside.
"Ma Yu, let's skip the barbecue for now. Today, we'll have mapo tofu, hand-torn cabbage, hot and sour shredded potatoes, poached sliced pork, chili chicken, oil-braised prawns, spicy crab, and beef with Chinese cabbage."
"For soup, just make tomato and egg soup."
Ma Yu nodded. "But if I start from scratch now, it'll take at least an hour or so to finish all those dishes."
Chen Luo smiled. "That's fine. Just bring them out one at a time."
Cooking was Ma Yu's job. She didn't mind how many dishes she had to make; she was eager for something to pass the time.
Chen Luo then turned to Mi Li. "Mi Li, come on. Let's go to your room. I have something to tell you."
"Okay," Mi Li replied. She obediently got up from the sofa and followed Chen Luo to her room.
Mi Ling frowned. A man and a woman alone together in a room?
But surely this Chen Luo wouldn't pin my little sister against the wall while I was here?
If he wanted to, he probably would've done it already. He wouldn't have waited until now.
I'll find a chance to talk to Mi Li later and learn more about this so-called Big Brother Chen Luo.
Chen Luo took Mi Li onto the balcony attached to her room.
Mi Li stood in a corner, and Chen Luo braced one hand against the wall. He really did talk to her while pinning her against it.
Mi Li couldn't help blushing.
Chen Luo said, "Mi Li, with your big brother looking after you, you never have to worry about food or drink, and you can eat whatever you want, right?"
Mi Li nodded.
"And when you're with me, you're safe and don't have to be afraid of anything, right?"
Mi Li nodded again.
Chen Luo smiled and stroked her head. "Because you're obedient, sweet, and capable, I treat you well too. But you-what about your sister? Will she listen to me?"
Mi Li immediately began to think. Her sister had always had a mind of her own, and she didn't know Big Brother Chen Luo well. She probably wouldn't listen to him.
Chen Luo continued, "Mi Li, let me ask you something. If you had to choose either me or your sister as our leader, who would do a better job of keeping everyone alive?"
Mi Li didn't even need to think about that question.
"You, of course, Big Brother Chen Luo."
Her sister had struggled all the way back from school, then eaten three bowls of rice that hadn't even been rinsed, like someone on the verge of starvation.
It hurt Mi Li just to watch.
And Big Brother Chen Luo? Even Dharma King, whom he kept, was sick of eating meat.
Her sister wasn't living as well as Dharma King. No, there was no comparison.
Ever since I met Big Brother Chen Luo, I haven't gone hungry again.
My sister can't even take care of herself. How could she lead everyone?
So did that question even need any thought?
If Mi Ling had known what Mi Li was thinking, she probably would have been so furious that her chest hurt again.
Chen Luo laughed. "So, first we have to get your sister, uh..."
Chen Luo had meant to say "trained to obey," but that sounded a little too wicked.
"Uh, get her to follow my orders. Otherwise, if your sister and I argue at a critical moment and our disagreement leads to serious consequences we can't undo, it'll be too late."
Mi Li nodded solemnly. "Right. We have to make my sister listen to you."
Chen Luo smiled. "Until your sister agrees to follow my orders, I won't share my supplies with her. Otherwise, she'd be eating my food and drinking my drinks while still defying me. Wouldn't that make me a complete sucker?"
Mi Li thought that made perfect sense.
Satisfied, Chen Luo patted Mi Li's shoulder. "So, later, we'll let her watch us eat. Once she behaves, she can have some too. Remember, we're doing this for her own good."
Mi Li agreed. "It's for my sister's own good."
With his scheme successfully carried out, Chen Luo left the room with Mi Li.
By then, Mi Ling had already realized something was off. Why did such a delicious smell keep coming from the kitchen?
Watching Ma Yu take one thing after another out of the refrigerator, then glancing at the battery connected to it, Mi Ling understood. The refrigerator still worked.
Ma Yu glanced at Mi Ling. Chen Luo had said not to let her eat, but he hadn't said not to let her watch.
Apparently, he wanted her to watch on purpose, since Ma Yu normally closed the kitchen door to keep the cooking fumes from drifting out.
Mi Ling exclaimed in shock, "Why are you taking out so much food? How many dishes are you planning to make? Are you giving up on the future? Just stir-fry one dish. Trust me, later on, you won't be able to get any of this even if you want it."
"Oh," Ma Yu replied. "Chen Luo told me to make them. How many dishes we have isn't up to me."
Mi Ling hurried over to Chen Luo. "Chen Luo, this is too wasteful. Even if we can finish it all, we can't eat like this. What will we eat tomorrow once it's gone?"
Chen Luo chuckled. "You and Mi Li were reunited today, and she's happy. We have to celebrate."
Mi Ling paused. "Even so, we can't do this. It's too extravagant."
Chen Luo waved a hand. "These are my supplies. You don't need to worry about it."
Seeing that her efforts were useless, Mi Ling decided not to keep trying to persuade him.
She only regretted eating so hastily earlier. Although she was dying for a taste, her stomach probably wouldn't have room for much.
With so many dishes, they definitely wouldn't be able to finish everything.
A lot of these seem to be my favorites. It's been so long since I smelled that spicy aroma of chilies.
This Chen Luo is actually pretty decent. He's willing to bring out so much good food to celebrate my reunion with Mi Li.
The first dishes served were mapo tofu and poached sliced pork. Their fragrant, tongue-numbing aroma filled the living room.
Cooking as good as Ma Yu's had been hard to come by even before the apocalypse, let alone now.
Just one whiff made Mi Ling's mouth water instinctively, and her stomach actually began to feel a little hungry again.
When no one was looking, Mi Ling swallowed hard.
Everyone would surely wait until all the dishes were served before eating, just like at an ordinary gathering, chatting and playing on their phones as they waited patiently.
Mi Ling kept telling herself, Don't rush. These dishes don't have wings. They can't fly away.
At this serving pace, I'll get to eat soon.
If any zombies dare come and cause trouble, I'll hack them apart.
At last, all eight dishes were on the table. Only the soup remained.
By then, Mi Ling could barely sit still, but she maintained an expression that said she wasn't hungry or impatient.
Chen Luo took four bottles of chilled herbal tea from the refrigerator and set them on the dining table.
Mi Ling found that strange. There are five of us. He should've brought five bottles. Are there not enough?
Then I'll go without a drink. I can just eat the food.
Before you continue