Mastering Your Stomach

After washing up.

Lu Yan changed into a clean, fresh set of casual clothes. A white hoodie and light gray sweatpants gave his somewhat disheveled air a sunny, boy-next-door quality.

Aemeath picked through the wardrobe and finally chose a pale yellow floral dress, with a gray knitted cardigan Lu Yan had worn before over it.

The cardigan was a little oversized on her, its long sleeves hanging down to cover half the backs of her hands, leaving only a few slender fingers visible.

She looked as though she had borrowed her boyfriend's clothes without asking. Paired with her long pink hair, casually tied in a low ponytail, the look perfectly blended a mature woman's allure with a young girl's innocent charm.

"A-Yan, let's go!" Aemeath skipped lightly over to Lu Yan, slipped her arm through his, and naturally intertwined her fingers with his.

Lu Yan looked at their intertwined hands and felt the warmth against his fingertips. His lips curved upward. "Come on, I'll take you to the most famous breakfast place around here."

They pushed open the courtyard's iron gate, and a spring breeze greeted them with a refreshing hint of coolness.

The edge of the old town was not as bustling as the city center, but it had things that could not be found elsewhere.

The camphor trees lining the street were still a deep green.

At the intersection, a steady stream of office workers rode shared bikes as they hurried to the subway station.

Students in school uniforms gathered in twos and threes, biting into the buns in their hands as they loudly discussed how their games had gone the night before. Older men and women headed toward the morning market.

They came to a long-established breakfast shop at the mouth of an alley.

The shop was small, and even the lettering on its sign had been weathered and mottled by years of wind and rain, but a long line had formed outside.

Several bamboo steamers stood at the entrance, sending up billows of white steam that blurred the busy figure of the owner.

The air was filled with the fragrance of fried cakes, the rich aroma of soy milk, and the tempting scent of fat from the meat buns.

"Boss, two bowls of sweet soy milk, two youtiao, one basket of fresh pork xiaolongbao, and one basket of soup dumplings," Lu Yan called out with practiced ease.

After finally finding an empty table in the farthest corner of the shop, Lu Yan carefully wiped its slightly greasy surface clean with a tissue before drawing Aemeath over to sit down.

"A-Yan, did you used to eat here often?" Aemeath propped her cheek on one hand and looked around curiously.

"Mm, I used to walk a long way to eat here."

As Lu Yan fetched disposable chopsticks for her, he smiled at the memory. "This place has the best buns around."

Their steaming breakfast was soon brought to the table.

Aemeath's eyes shone as she looked at the golden, crispy youtiao and steaming soy milk in front of her.

Instead of eating first, she picked up a soup dumpling, blew on it gently, and held it up to Lu Yan's mouth.

"You first, A-Yan." Aemeath smiled at him, her eyes full of anticipation.

Lu Yan's face reddened slightly. Being fed in a breakfast shop with people coming and going made him a little embarrassed.

But when he saw the look in Aemeath's eyes, he obediently opened his mouth and bit into the soup dumpling.

The savory broth burst in his mouth, and Lu Yan nodded hastily. "Delicious..."

"Hehe." Aemeath smiled in satisfaction before starting to eat herself.

She ate very gracefully, taking small bites of her youtiao. As she ate, her gaze fell on the table beside them. A young mother was patiently peeling an egg for her child, speaking softly to the child about something.

A flicker of complex emotion passed through Aemeath's eyes. Then she turned to Lu Yan, who was drinking his soy milk, and suddenly said, "A-Yan, I looked at the kitchen in our new home yesterday. The cookware and appliances were all brand-new."

Lu Yan swallowed his soy milk and nodded. "Yeah. The client was very thoughtful."

"I want to cook for you myself." Aemeath put down her chopsticks, her expression more serious than ever.

Lu Yan froze. "Cook? But do you know how?"

"Cooking is a lot of trouble, and there are all those oily fumes. What if you burn your hand?"

"I can learn. I'm a quick learner!" Aemeath grasped Lu Yan's hand somewhat eagerly, her voice taking on an urgent note.

"You work so hard drawing every day, A-Yan. I don't want you eating takeout anymore. Food from outside isn't clean or nutritious."

Aemeath's true thoughts ran far deeper than those few words of concern.

Since ancient times, controlling a person's stomach had often been the first step toward controlling the whole person.

She wanted to choose every ingredient herself and put her own effort into cooking every dish.

She would thoroughly permeate Lu Yan's life and become the only person he could not live without.

"I want to watch you eat the food I make, A-Yan. I want to be someone who can truly take care of you." Aemeath lowered her eyes, her voice becoming rather pitiful. "Or do you look down on me, A-Yan? Do you think I can't do it well?"

Faced with this green tea display of hurt feelings, Lu Yan, who had never encountered anything like it, instantly lost all reason.

He clasped Aemeath's hand tightly in return, afraid of making her feel even the slightest bit uneasy. "How could I look down on you? I just feel bad for you."

"If you want to cook, then let's do it. No matter how it turns out, I'll eat every last bite."

"Really?" Aemeath instantly raised her head. There was no trace of hurt in her eyes now, only the slyness and delight of a scheme that had succeeded.

"Really. I won't leave any food, not a single bit." Lu Yan smiled helplessly. He felt that, in this relationship, he would always be the one wrapped around her finger.

But he was perfectly willing to be.

"Then once we finish breakfast, let's go buy groceries!" Aemeath announced happily.