If it weren’t for the circumstances, An Xin might have prepared an extravagant breakfast for example: soft-boiled eggs, milk, buttered toast, cookies, a fresh vegetable salad, roast duck, and a variety of fresh juices.

As she busied herself making dumplings, Sister Chen continued chatting away.

“You’re making dumplings for breakfast, huh? What about lunch? What’s Bai Yichen going to take with him up the mountain?”

This made An Xin pause mid-action. She turned to Sister Chen, confused.
“Wait, they have to bring lunch to the mountain too?”

What she truly wanted to say was, First breakfast, now lunch, and later dinner too? Where does it end?! But she swallowed her complaints. You’re the one who dragged him into this, so deal with it.

Sister Chen sighed, her tone heavy with experience.
“Of course! The geological exploration team members are out all day. They don’t have time to come back for lunch, so they bring their meals with them.”

Leaning closer as if sharing a secret, Sister Chen whispered,
“I just passed by the canteen, and I saw them steaming mantou for the survey team. That’s their lunch for today.”

An Xin nodded, her face a picture of understanding, though her mind was elsewhere. So Bai Yichen eats lunch on the mountain and only comes home for dinner. That leaves me plenty of time to head to the city, work as a cab driver, and return before he’s back. Perfect.

Suppressing a grin of triumph, An Xin feigned concern.
“Sigh, it must be tough for them, eating on the go and working such long hours.”

Sister Chen eagerly agreed.
“Oh, it’s exhausting! Most of the team doesn’t come back until seven in the evening, and if something unexpected happens, it could be even later. I remember one time…”

She launched into a story about a rainstorm that stranded the team on the mountain until midnight. When her husband finally returned, drenched and starving, he devoured three bowls of noodles in one sitting. Sister Chen’s voice grew emotional, and she wiped at her eyes.
“I felt so bad watching him eat like that…”

An Xin blinked. All I wanted was to find out Bai Yichen’s schedule, not take a trip down memory lane.

Despite Sister Chen’s rambling, An Xin got the information she needed. She politely excused herself when Sister Chen’s husband woke up, giving the woman a reason to head back home.

By the time Bai Yichen woke up, An Xin had just finished preparing the dumplings. Looking up, she saw him standing groggily at the door. She flashed him a warm smile.
“You’re up! Go wash up quickly. Breakfast is almost ready.”

Bai Yichen grabbed his washbasin and headed out, still feeling like he was dreaming.

When he finished washing, his feet automatically carried him toward the canteen. At the entrance, he ran into Wang Aiguo, a team member who immediately teased him.
“Wrong way, Captain Bai. You’re a married man now. Your wife already made breakfast for you. We all saw it. The canteen’s for us single guys!”

Others joined in, laughing.
“Yeah, Captain Bai, your dumplings smell amazing! If my future wife makes me breakfast like that every day, I’ll die happy.”

“Future wife? You don’t even have a girlfriend yet!”

“Hey, let me dream, okay?”

Bai Yichen: …

He sighed internally. It seemed his colleagues were already holding his new married status against him. Still, their comments confirmed that he hadn’t imagined An Xin cooking for him. So, this is real, he thought.

With a lighter step, Bai Yichen turned back toward his quarters.

Inside, An Xin was busy multitasking. She had boiled the dumplings, fried another batch until golden, and prepared a fragrant shiitake mushroom meat sauce. She set up a pot of rice porridge on the stove and poured hot water into a thermos for Bai Yichen to take to the mountain.

When Bai Yichen returned, she casually called out,
“Breakfast’s ready!”

He hummed in acknowledgment, taking the dumpling plates to the table. As he glanced around the room, his gaze fell on the small stove An Xin had been using. His brow furrowed slightly.

That stove and those utensils… They must be from her family’s home. I didn’t have any of this stuff here. She even brought her own ingredients. She’s really resourceful.

Oblivious to his thoughts, An Xin brought over a dish of mushroom meat sauce and dipping sauce. The two sat down to eat together.

An Xin’s culinary skills were outstanding. In her past life, she’d been a food blogger, sharing her recipes online with a loyal following. Now, Bai Yichen was the lucky one enjoying her skills. Each bite of dumpling paired with the sauces brought him immense satisfaction.

After breakfast, An Xin handed him a lunchbox and thermos.
“This is for your lunch. It’s not much, so bear with it for now. I’ll go to the city later and buy some better ingredients. Tomorrow, I’ll make something even tastier.”

Her words were meant to give herself an excuse to leave and work in the city. She needed to earn money. As for the things the family needed, she had plenty in her warehouse.