After a meal full of color, aroma, and flavor, Xu Zhizhi ate until she was completely full, her little belly showing a slight curve.
She didn’t care much about appearances or fuss over such things. As soon as she finished eating, she wanted to curl up under the covers—it was simply delightful.
But after taking just two steps, Fu Chengyan grabbed her arm. “Don’t lie down just yet. There are fresh flowers I brought at the entrance. See where they’d look best.”
He had to find something for her to do. The more someone lies around, the less they want to move, and they’d lose all their energy and spirit.
Traditional Chinese medicine says the more you lie down, the weaker you become.
He didn’t quite understand that—he’d have to look into it later.
Xu Zhizhi had eaten the meal he prepared. Though she wasn’t too happy about not being able to lie down comfortably, she obediently followed his instructions and found the small blue flowers placed on the entryway cabinet.
The petals were shaped like five-pointed stars, a soft sky-blue, beautiful and dreamlike. She had never seen them before.
There were no vases at home, so Xu Zhizhi went to the adjacent bedroom and fetched an unused white trash can. Carrying the flowers, she headed to the bathroom to fill it with water.
By the time Fu Chengyan finished cleaning up the dishes and went to look for her, he heard the sound of running water from the bathroom.
He knocked on the door. “Xu Zhizhi.”
The water stopped. A dozen seconds later, the bathroom door opened a crack, and a fluffy head poked out. “Hmm?”
The girl was wearing a comfortable and adorable white hooded sweatshirt with a bunny hood, the hem adorned with a few carrot-shaped pendants. Her cheeks were fair and soft, her skin seeming to glow, her eyes bright and clear, her eyelashes curled, and her lips rosy.
The moment their eyes met, Fu Chengyan’s heartbeat suddenly lost its rhythm.
Like a reckless teenager, he momentarily lost his composure, his breathing growing uneven.
Flustered, he averted his gaze and asked softly, “What are you doing?”
Xu Zhizhi opened the door wider, and Fu Chengyan saw the white trash can beside the bathtub filled with the flowers he had brought.
“Don’t you have a vase at home?”
Xu Zhizhi shook her head. She had never bought flowers, and no one had ever given her any. Naturally, she had nothing of the sort.
“Then I’ll bring one when I come back this afternoon. For now, leave the flowers here.” He noticed a few droplets of water on the girl’s clothes and added, “Your clothes are a bit damp. Change into something else.”
Xu Zhizhi touched her clothes—they were indeed a little wet.
“I’ll head back now. I’ll come again at six.”
She saw him off to the elevator. Fu Chengyan didn’t let her follow him downstairs, urging her to go back and change her clothes. He also reminded her to eat the fruit he had cut for her.
Xu Zhizhi nodded in agreement to everything he said. Perhaps the feeding had worked its magic—her impression of him had improved quite a bit.
He was a great cook.
As the sleek, black Maybach and a Porsche passed each other, Zhou Che raised an eyebrow. This neighborhood really had its hidden talents.
But he didn’t pay it much mind. After all, in this area, there were plenty of people with money and power.
The car slowly made its way into the garage.
Xu Zhizhi changed her clothes and hurried to the kitchen, where she saw that Fu Chengyan had arranged the fruit into the shape of a little rabbit.
There was even a small flower made of oranges.
She was utterly amazed. Her impression of Fu Chengyan shifted from a top-tier chef to an all-powerful superhero.
Just as she had eaten two pieces of kiwi, a series of sounds came from the front door.
Only Lin Xitang and Zhou Che had the keycard to her elevator—no one else.
She opened the door and stepped aside to let them in.
Zhou Che’s gaze swept over her face, and when he noticed she was wearing clothes she usually only wore when going out, he couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow.
But when he saw the plate in her hand, he was instantly taken aback.
He felt quite pleased.
“It’s only been a few days, and you’ve improved so much, my girl.”
Xu Zhizhi glared at him with her round, almond-shaped eyes.
“Well, you’ve got quite a few toothpicks at home—over a dozen in one dish. But why aren’t you using a fork?”
Xu Zhizhi ignored him, carrying the fruit plate to the side.
“I had some things to take care of these past couple of days and couldn’t come. How have you been eating? I told you I’d order meals for you. Always eating noodles or burgers—do you even know if they’re clean or healthy?”
Xu Zhizhi paid him no mind. This guy was just like Lin Xitang, always taking advantage of her and treating her like a daughter.
Zhou Che was used to her silence. He opened the fridge and noticed that the vegetables seemed untouched, but something felt off.
A few minutes later, Zhou Che finally figured out what was strange: the items hadn’t decreased, but their positions had changed.
When she cooked instant noodles, she only used frozen ingredients and rarely touched the refrigerated food.
“Xu Zhizhi, did you open the fridge?”
Xu Zhizhi nodded. “I took some bacon and fish balls.”
“Oh, did you eat any vegetables?”
“Yes.”
“What did you eat?”
Xu Zhizhi pulled out a box of baby bok choy and pointed to a small tear in the corner. “I took one leaf.”
“…”
How healthy and nutritionally balanced.
“Your mom… I mean, my girlfriend told me to make sure you eat more fruits and vegetables and less greasy food, especially instant noodles and rice noodles.”
When she cooked instant noodles herself, she’d use less seasoning, but the rice noodles were takeout—deliciously savory, spicy, and flavorful, though actually heavy on oil and spice and not very healthy.
Xu Zhizhi argued back, “Instant noodles are healthy, and so are rice noodles.”
“Oh, really? Let me video call my girlfriend, and you can tell her that.”
Xu Zhizhi deflated, hugging the fruit plate as she walked away.
“One thing worth praising is that you don’t need supervision to eat fruit, and you even arranged the plate nicely,” Zhou Che said. “I’ll have to tell Little Lin all about this.”
Xu Zhizhi stayed quiet, her mouth stuffed full.
“I bought some nuts. Eat a little every day.”
“Okay.”
“Alright, I’m heading out. Take care of yourself. I have to go back to spend Christmas with my girlfriend the day after tomorrow. Remember to go out less and exercise more.”
“Got it.”
“Lock the doors and windows, and don’t turn the heater too high.”
Zhou Che had started sweating after just a short while and didn’t put his jacket on until he got in the car.
Xu Zhizhi didn’t respond. She thought the temperature was just right.
After typing away all afternoon, at 5:30 she reluctantly left her beloved dog bed and perched on the balcony, eagerly looking out.
Fu Chengyan didn’t disappoint. At 5:55, he called her, and within a minute, a little pink rabbit came bouncing over to him, eyes sparkling.
“Hungry?” Fu Chengyan asked with a smile.
Xu Zhizhi nodded eagerly and followed the thermal containers.
Steamed pork ribs, Longjing shrimp, lychee pork, jade cabbage rolls, spinach with nuts, and old duck soup.
“Wash your hands and eat first. I’ll go arrange the flowers.”
Fu Chengyan had brought two beautiful, sparkling vases.
Xu Zhizhi didn’t touch the thermal containers either, trailing behind him into the bathroom.
Fu Chengyan washed the vases, filled them with water, trimmed the flower stems, and placed them inside.
“I’ll bring you different flowers every two days. If you have any favorites, let me know, and I’ll bring them when I come.”
Xu Zhizhi shook her head. He didn’t push it—maybe the little girl wasn’t into arranging flowers.
“In the future, I’ll bring sunflowers. We can plant them on the balcony and harvest fresh sunflower seeds to eat.”
“Mhm.” The little foodie’s radar lit up. This was acceptable—she liked it very much.
ˊˋ
Fu Chengyan curled his lips. “You always get happy when food is mentioned. Come here and press the little flower to wash your hands.”
“Okay!”