With a few extra people staying for lunch, Su Yunzhi found herself rather overwhelmed. Unwilling to actively ask Shen Wuqiu for help, she instead resorted to ordering Shen Wujun around right in front of Shen Wuqiu.
This was her usual tactic of pointing at the mulberry tree while scolding the locust tree. Although Shen Wuqiu felt a deep aversion to it, she still decided to save face for her stepmother in front of outsiders. Rolling up her sleeves, she walked straight into the kitchen. Without waiting for Su Yunzhi to assign tasks, she went straight to work on the duck in the sink.
Su Yunzhi put on a fake display of polite consideration. “The kitchen is too oily and smoky. Let Junjun come and help instead.”
Too lazy to waste words with her, Shen Wuqiu nimbly cleaned the duck and placed it on the chopping board. As she lifted her knife, she threw out a question: “Should the duck be steamed or braised?”
“Braised, make beer duck.”
Before Su Yunzhi could even finish her sentence, Shen Wuqiu had already brought the knife down to chop it up, her practiced movements leaving no room for anyone else’s directions.
Shen Wuqiu might have looked like a pampered young lady who had never lifted a finger, but in reality, she had been standing on a stool to cook her own egg fried rice since she was four years old. Having lived independently away from home for so many years, she had always cooked for herself, and standard home-cooked dishes certainly couldn’t stump her.
Su Yunzhi had originally intended to make her a kitchen assistant, but by the end, she somehow ended up acting as Shen Wuqiu’s assistant instead.
Meanwhile, the white cat proved quite sensible. Knowing Shen Wuqiu was busy in the kitchen, she didn’t go in to cause a ruckus, choosing instead to lounge like an emperor right in the middle of the living room sofa to watch television. The moment Shen Wuqiu finished her tasks, the cat timed it perfectly, peeking her head into the doorway of the kitchen and letting out a soft meow.
Shen Wuqiu didn’t even spare her a glance, continuing to wipe the oil stains off the counter with a dishcloth.
“Meow.”
That pitiful, mournful meow was easily capable of stirring someone’s sympathy. Su Yunzhi had originally wanted to chase her out, but upon hearing those cries, she couldn’t help asking Shen Wuqiu, “To keep her from getting greedy and ruining things, should we prepare some food for her?”
“Mm.” Rare as it was for this stepmother who hated furry creatures to show a shred of goodwill, Shen Wuqiu paused her work and turned to look at her. “Is there any fish left at home?”
Su Yunzhi fell silent for a few seconds before replying, “There’s frozen sturgeon in the freezer.”
Pretending not to notice the reluctance in her tone, Shen Wuqiu washed her hands and went straight to the refrigerator to retrieve three fillets of sturgeon.
Su Yunzhi kept her eyes fixed on Shen Wuqiu the entire time. Seeing her select three whole fillets without hesitation, her brows knitted tightly together. Pointing at the white cat, she said with sarcastic inflection, “This stray cat of yours really knows how to pick an owner. In ordinary households, let alone feeding a cat fish like this, even the humans don’t get to eat it.”
“Meow!” Annoyed by her chatter, the white cat bared her teeth and wailed at her in protest.
That red-mouthed, white-fanged display looked quite intimidating. Since Su Yunzhi was already terrified of fluffy creatures, she instinctively pulled her hand back in fright and hurried outside with a tray of dishes.
The moment Su Yunzhi left, the white cat instantly reverted to her gentle, endearing demeanor, resuming her routine of rubbing affectionately against Shen Wuqiu’s leg.
Still refusing to give her the time of day, Shen Wuqiu focused entirely on preparing the cat food.
“Meow.”
No matter how the white cat fawned over her, Shen Wuqiu ignored her, concentrating solely on mashing the sturgeon mixture. Once it was ready, she spooned it into a dish and took it out to the courtyard to eat.
Since the weather was fine, Su Yunzhi had asked Shen Wujun to move the foldable large round table out into the yard, and lunch was served right there in the open air.
When villagers gathered together for a meal, the traditional rule of no talking while eating went right out the window.
“Old Le, I haven’t come by to check on you these past few days. Seeing you today, your complexion has improved quite a bit.”
Uncle Zheng and Shen Father matched well in temperament. Before Uncle Zheng started coming over to help Shen Father out, the two of them frequently gathered to drink and chat. Upon hearing about Shen Father’s illness earlier, Uncle Zheng had secretly grieved for a long time.
Hearing this, Su Yunzhi immediately chimed in, “He must be happy seeing Wuqiu come back these past couple of days. His spirits are much better, and he’s even willing to get out of bed now.”
Shen Xianghua chimed in, “Wuqiu hasn’t been back for so many years. Of course Brother is happy.”
Seeing an opening, Su Yunzhi added, “Wuqiu is a capable child. If Junjun had even half of her competence, I could finally rest easy.”
Raising his wine glass, Uncle Zheng narrowed his eyes to appraise Shen Wujun before turning his head toward Shen Wuqiu with a nod and a shake of his head. “This girl has a mind of her own. She’s capable.”
With that, he raised his cup toward Shen Father. “Old Le, to be honest with you, I really like this daughter of yours. Why don’t we arrange a match between our families?”
“Old Zheng, you really know how to calculate. Brother Le specially called her back to inherit this family business, and if you married into the family, wouldn’t you be taking a massive advantage?”
A younger fruit grower named Duan Guodong, who always loved watching the fun without fearing things getting too big, laughed. “Or are you planning to let your son move into the Le family as a live-in son-in-law?”
Having downed several cups of alcohol, Uncle Zheng was feeling the buzz of the liquor, his wits slightly dulled. Missing the teasing undertone in the air, he took the suggestion entirely seriously. He patted the table and said to Shen Wuqiu, “Lass, as long as you take a liking to my son and want him to move in as a live-in son-in-law, I can accept it. After all, men and women are the same these days.”
Growing more animated by the second, Uncle Zheng continued, “Let me tell you, lass, if it were anyone else, I wouldn’t agree either. But my son isn’t bad at all. He’s tall, upright, and has been a straight-A student since childhood, going all the way from his bachelor’s to his doctorate. He’s already working in the provincial capital, with both a house and a car. Every year for the past two years, people have been rushing to our house to set him up on blind dates, but he turns his nose up at all of them. To be frank, those girls I look at are either too vulgar or too flashy, and I don’t care much for them either. But you, lass, I like you quite a bit. As long as you’re willing.”
“Meow!”
An abrupt cat meow broke his train of thought. Uncle Zheng instantly lost his place, staring in a daze for a long time at the white cat that had just leaped into Shen Wuqiu’s lap before squeezing out a question: “Is this your cat?”
Shen Wuqiu had originally intended to ignore the white cat, but under the circumstances, the cat had accidentally rescued her from an awkward situation. She subconsciously stroked the cat’s head. “Mm.”
“This cat is gorgeous. Looks just like that breed my son keeps.” Mentioning his son reminded Uncle Zheng where he had left off. “Coincidentally, my son loves keeping these creatures too. You two share the same hobbies. By the way, is this cat a male or a female?”
“A female.”
“A female makes it even better! He keeps a male. If you two get together, even your cats are a matched pair.”
Shen Wuqiu was so awkward she didn’t even know how to respond. Meanwhile, the white cat in her lap grew displeased, letting out a series of meows directly at Uncle Zheng.
That only made Shen Wuqiu feel more awkward. Bracing her grip around the restless white cat, she stood up from the table. “You all take your time eating. I’m done.”
With that, she scooped up the white cat and retreated from the dining table.
Extremely displeased with her evasion, the white cat wriggled back and forth in her arms, letting out a continuous stream of murmurs.
Tightening her hold, Shen Wuqiu carried her upstairs and only released her once the bedroom door was securely shut.
“Meow.”
The moment she was set down, the white cat began protesting directly at her, her voice filled with unmistakable grievance.
Shen Wuqiu was amused out of her anger. “You still have the nerve to scold me?”
The white cat argued her case fiercely. “Meow.”
Finding it too exhausting to keep her head down, Shen Wuqiu simply sat down on the floor, pinching the white cat’s two pointed ears. “Don’t forget who brought you back here.”
With her sensitive little ears trapped in someone else’s hands, the white cat didn’t dare to thrash around too wildly. Although her little paws itched to make a move, she never actually struck out at Shen Wuqiu, opting instead to posture and put up a front verbally. “Meow.”
Seeing the cat’s helpless and pitiful appearance, Shen Wuqiu let go of her ears, averted her gaze, and muttered under her breath, “Ungrateful little thing.”
The white cat twitched her ears, tilting her head to study her. Seeming to grasp something a moment later, she extended the tip of her tongue to lick Shen Wuqiu’s palm.
Pulling her hand away, Shen Wuqiu looked down at her. “It’s no use.”
At that, the white cat drooped her head. After two seconds, she used her little paw to tug gently at Shen Wuqiu’s trousers.
The sight practically radiated pure flattery.
The frustration pent up in Shen Wuqiu’s chest felt as though it had been poked with a hole, steadily deflating until it vanished.
Resisting for a moment longer, she ultimately gave in and scooped the white cat back up into her arms. “If you don’t like cat kibble, I’ll try my best to make cat food for you from now on. But you are not allowed to sneak around stealing food in the house anymore, understand?”
The white cat looked thoroughly unconvinced. “Meow.”
Glares locked onto her, Shen Wuqiu warned, “Meow properly!”
The white cat haughtily turned her head away. Just when Shen Wuqiu assumed this little ancestor was going to pick a fight with her, the white cat let out another meow.
Short, weak, and dripping with reluctance.
Running a hand over the cat’s head, Shen Wuqiu recalled Shen Father’s piece of red jade, and a lingering tartness still pricked at her heart. She couldn’t help muttering, “I treat you so well, yet I’ve never seen you bring me anything.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, she mentally rolled her eyes at herself.
After playing with the white cat in her room for a while, Su Yunzhi called out from downstairs that someone from the village had arrived and asked Shen Wuqiu to come down.
The visitor was Shen Yan, accompanied by two older villagers whom Shen Wuqiu recognized by face but couldn’t quite name.
Shen Yan had come specifically to take Shen Wuqiu to verify the boundaries of the land contracted by Shen Father, as the official notarized handover was scheduled for that evening.
The scope of Shen Father’s land contracts was vast, but fortunately, the various villages had been heavily investing in road construction over recent years, meaning most areas were now accessible by car.
Even so, walking through the entire perimeter still consumed a good portion of the afternoon.
After showing Shen Wuqiu the final patch of mountain forest, Shen Yan joked, “This is roughly the empire your dad carved out for you. What are your impressions?”
With no one else around, Shen Wuqiu replied with playful wit, “The burden on Your Majesty is heavy and the road ahead is long.”
Shen Yan laughed at her remark, though his expression softened a moment later as he looked out over the rapeseed fields beneath the mountain and said earnestly, “You don’t need to put too much pressure on yourself. If you ever need help with anything in the future, just speak up, and I will be right here.”
His ambiguous affection only made Shen Wuqiu feel increasingly overwhelmed. It was difficult to reject him outright without being overly blunt, yet she couldn’t offer any reciprocation either.
In the silence, the atmosphere grew steadily more charged.
Taking a deep breath, Shen Yan was just about to press his advantage when a flash of white suddenly burst into his field of vision, rushing toward them at breakneck speed.
“Is that the same cat from yesterday?”
Seeing the white cat, Shen Wuqiu was equally surprised, remembering clearly that the cat had been left at home when she came out. “Mm, it’s the one from yesterday.”
Glancing down at the white cat, Shen Yan furrowed his brow. “Why does she keep following you around?”
The white cat stood right in front of Shen Wuqiu, staring intently at him with burning eyes, looking very much like she was guarding against a heinous criminal.
“I adopted her. She’s my cat now.”
The white cat chimed in with a meow of her own, looking utterly proud of herself.
This was truly bizarre. The longer Shen Yan looked at the cat, the more supernatural she felt. “You actually like keeping these things?”
“She keeps following me. I suppose it’s fate.”
Halting his words, Shen Yan thought better of pressing the topic. “It’s getting late. Let’s head down the mountain.”
Looking around, Shen Wuqiu scooped the white cat into her arms. “Mm. By the way, invite everyone over to my house for dinner tonight.”
“Isn’t that too much trouble?”
Stepping aside to let her walk ahead, Shen Wuqiu didn’t stand on ceremony. “Not at all. It’s just adding a couple of pairs of chopsticks.”
Following closely behind, Shen Yan opened his mouth to accept, only to lift his gaze and lock eyes with the white cat, which had once again climbed up to rest on Shen Wuqiu’s shoulder. The cat was currently fixing him with an icy, deep-blue stare.
How to describe that feeling? Shen Yan couldn’t put it into words. A long while passed before he finally replied, “Let’s see how things go later.”
Hearing that, the white cat dismissively averted her gaze.
This really was haunted!