Everyday moments at the dinner table

A little after five in the afternoon, Xie Zhen and Luo Yunhe arrived at the Gu family home.

Aunt Sun prepared some fruit and desserts before starting on dinner, then went into the kitchen to get busy.

Zhao Wanling invited the two to help themselves. "Don't be shy, you two. Relax. This is the first time Xiao Yue has brought friends home."

Gu Zhiyue handed Luo Yunhe a dessert. "Pear steamed with sweet potato. Aunt Sun made it especially for you. Eat it while it's hot."

Luo Yunhe took the bowl. "Thank you. It was thoughtful of Aunt Sun."

Xie Zhen scooped a spoonful into his mouth, and his eyes widened slightly at how good it tasted. "Wow! Aunt Sun's cooking could almost rival a Michelin restaurant."

Zhao Wanling chuckled. "Have some more if you like it. Dinner will take a little longer."

Luo Yunhe nodded several times. "Okay. Thank you, Auntie."

Gu Zhiyue ate a piece of fruit. "How about going to the square to watch the performances after dinner? We can go early and find a good spot."

"Sure."

"No problem."

Gu Zhiyue set his fork in the fruit bowl. "Let's play a round to pass the time."

Luo Yunhe put down his empty bowl and took out his phone. "Okay, let's log in."

Xie Zhen hurriedly shoveled the last mouthful of dessert into his mouth. "Coming, coming."

Zhao Wanling stood up. "You boys play. I'm going upstairs for a bit. I'll be back down later."

Gu Zhiyue nodded. "Okay."

The game's opening sound effects rang out. After the game screen loaded for a minute, they entered the game, selected their appearances and difficulty, and Gu Zhiyue tapped to start.

Luo Yunhe asked casually, "Where's your third brother?"

"He's upstairs. He won't come down until dinner. Oh, right, I bought a bunch of snacks at the supermarket this morning. I can get them if you want some."

Xie Zhen shook his head. "No snacks for me, or I won't have room for dinner."

Luo Yunhe said, "I don't really eat snacks."

"All right, then." Gu Zhiyue settled into a comfortable position. "We're in, we're in! Hurry, let's go find supplies. We're taking first place again today!"

The dishes arrived on the dining table more than half an hour later than usual. After setting out the bowls and chopsticks, Aunt Sun came over to tell them dinner was ready.

The victory results screen had just frozen on their screens. Gu Zhiyue put down his phone and stood up. "Victory! Come on, let's eat."

Everyone sat down at the dining table. Aunt Sun left the main house to eat and rest in the servants' quarters, planning to return to clean up after Gu Zhiyue and the others went out.

Gu Shuoyan came downstairs too. "Dinner looks so lavish today!"

Gu Zhiyue took Luo Yunhe's bowl and filled it a little under halfway with soup. "Mushroom and tofu soup. I asked Aunt Sun to make it suitable for you, so you can drink it without worrying."

"Thank you." Luo Yunhe felt a little touched. He scooped up a spoonful, blew it cool, and drank it. The soup tasted mild, without the slightest greasiness. The tofu was so tender that a light press of the spoon broke it into small pieces, soft and smooth in his mouth. The flavor of the mushrooms had cooked into the soup.

Xie Zhen wiped at his eyes. "You really put thought into this, Zhiyue. You remembered all my favorite dishes, even though I only mentioned them once or twice."

Gu Zhiyue wagged his head. "I don't have many special qualities. My one special quality is an especially good memory."

Gu Shuoyan nodded in agreement. "True. You even remembered how many candies you had in your bag. I took two, and you hounded me about it all day."

Gu Zhiyue shot him a sidelong glance. "I had to visit loads of little shops to find that flavor, and you took two before I'd even tried them."

Zhao Wanling placed some food in Luo Yunhe's bowl with her chopsticks. "These are all low in salt and fat and easy to digest. You can have a little extra."

The Sichuan boiled meat slices seemed a little too spicy today. Gu Zhiyue drained a glass of water, quietly hissing and sucking in air through his mouth.

Luo Yunhe asked curiously, "Is it really that spicy?"

Gu Zhiyue nodded repeatedly. "Yes, spicier than before. Maybe... this batch of chilies grew extra spicy?"

Luo Yunhe looked at the bowl of Sichuan boiled beef and swallowed. Gu Zhiyue asked, "Want to try some? I looked it up. It's okay to try spicy things like this once in a while."

Luo Yunhe pressed his lips together. "I'd like to try."

Gu Zhiyue went to the water dispenser and came back with a glass of water. "Rinse the meat in this before eating it. It's so spicy I'm afraid you won't be able to take it."

"Okay." Luo Yunhe picked up a slice of meat, swished it in the glass a few times, then ate it in one big bite. Most of the heat had rinsed off into the hot water, leaving an entirely tolerable amount on the meat.

Luo Yunhe sighed. "If only I could eat as much as I wanted."

Gu Zhiyue said, "Eating as much as you want probably won't be possible, but you should be able to have a few more bites in the future."

Gu Shuoyan spoke up. "Those sweet snack peppers are much less spicy than other chilies. If they're prepared carefully, you can eat a little more. You can look up recipes when you get home and ask your housekeeper to make them, little Luo."

Luo Yunhe nodded. "Okay, I'll make a note of it. Thanks, Third Brother."

Xie Zhen sucked in a great breath of air. "Whoa! I bit into a chili!"

Home-style dishes covered the table. The chicken soup in the middle still gave off white steam, a thin layer of oil floating on its golden surface. Its aroma filled their noses with every breath.

The electronic lock at the front door sounded as it opened. Lin Xiang came in, taking off his jacket and casually leaving it on the sofa.

Bai Qinglan beckoned Lin Xiang over to eat. "It's only been ready a few minutes. Come and have dinner."

Lin Xiang came over, pulled out a chair, and sat down. "That smells wonderful! Your cooking hasn't changed a bit."

"Good thing it hasn't. Eat more today. This chicken soup tastes best when it's first served."

"What has Xiao Yue been talking to you about lately? I've been working all day and haven't had time to chat with him."

Bai Qinglan smiled. "A few days ago, Xiao Yue told me he was planning to use his pocket money to buy us a home closer to him, so he could come back whenever he wanted."

Lin Xiang raised an eyebrow. "How could buying a home be that easy these days? Tell him to keep his money for himself. His dad is still pretty good at making money."

Bai Qinglan nodded. "There's something else. Xiao Yue said he'd come back in a couple of days and stay for two or three days."

"That's good news. We haven't seen each other in over two months."

"I'm happy too. Xiao Yue said Wanling had wanted to come along, but their family has a lot going on these next few days, and their eldest is coming home tomorrow too. So she asked us to find a time when we could all get together for a meal."

Lin Xiang thought for four or five seconds. "It'll probably have to wait until I get through this busy spell. After several revisions, that mechanical design drawing was finally approved yesterday. There's still plenty of work ahead."

Bai Qinglan placed a piece of chicken in Lin Xiang's bowl. "Then when Xiao Yue goes back, we can pick a few cabbages from the back garden for him to take along. We can talk about having a meal together later."

"Whatever you say. The company's taking the National Day holiday, so I'm off work starting tomorrow. Where would you like to go?"

"Let's go swimming. I haven't been in ages."

Lin Xiang chuckled and nodded. "All right. We'll go tomorrow."