After slicing the fruits, Yu Wanlai set some pieces aside and then placed them into the blender to make juice.

“Here, since you like cutting fruits, you can chop these further into small bits, like the filling for dumplings.”

Yu Qingyue kept his head down, diligently chopping for a while, then suddenly looked up and asked, “…Couldn’t you have just blended everything together directly?”

While pouring the sugar-mixed fruit juice into a pot to simmer, Yu Wanlai explained, “You could, but this way, the texture will be richer with bits of fruit.”

“Okay then.”

The juice needed constant stirring to thicken. Yu Wanlai had already started simmering it before Qingyue began cutting fruits, and by the time he finished, Wanlai was still cooking.

Qingyue walked over and peeked into the pot. It didn’t seem any different from before.

“How much longer are you going to cook this? Has it even changed?”

Wanlai felt a pang of frustration and replied, “About 15 more minutes.” He lifted a spoonful of the mixture, showing him. “Look, it’s thickened a bit, hasn’t it?”

Qingyue: …

“This is taking forever! Do we need to simmer the other two bowls just as long?”

Wanlai didn’t answer directly.

“Had I known, we shouldn’t have made so many kinds.”

Wanlai reached out and gently touched Qingyue’s ear. “Tired? Want to rest for a bit?” He was already cooking two pots at once, which was faster than usual.

Suddenly, Qingyue remembered his Western-style kitchen had two more stovetops. “I’m not tired. I have an idea. I’ll handle the remaining two bowls myself.”

He grabbed the bowls and started walking away.

Wanlai called after him, “Where are you going?”

Qingyue didn’t look back. “Don’t worry about it!”

After Wanlai finished his batch, he waited a while but didn’t see Qingyue return. Searching the house and finding nothing, he returned to the kitchen and took out some molds from the fridge. He mixed the fruit jam with the chopped fruit, carefully filling the molds and placing them back in the fridge.

Just then, Qingyue returned, holding two bowls of thick fruit jam. He set them in front of Wanlai.

“…How’s this? Looks good, right?”

Wanlai glanced at the bowls, about to praise him, but then noticed Qingyue’s right index finger, red and swollen. His heart tightened. He took the bowls from Qingyue and set them on the counter.

“Why is your finger so red? Did you burn yourself?”

Qingyue’s voice softened as he held his finger up to Wanlai’s lips, acting boldly for the first time. His cheeks flushed.

“Mm, I accidentally burned it while holding the pot. Ge, can you… lick it for me?”

The moment he said it, his face turned completely red.

Wanlai stared at him speechless.

“Burns need cold water, not me. My mouth is 36 degrees—how would that help?” He was about to pull Qingyue’s hand toward the sink for cold water when Qingyue refused to budge.

Holding onto the counter edge, he shook his head and placed his foot between Wanlai’s, standing closely without quite touching him. His finger lightly pressed against Wanlai’s lower lip.

“Are you… rejecting me?”

Seeing Wanlai hesitate, Qingyue pressed further, voice softer.

“Ge… it hurts.”

Wanlai was about to argue when suddenly, Qingyue pushed his finger past his lips, grazing his teeth and touching his tongue.

Qingyue’s face was burning, his head leaning against Wanlai’s shoulder, feeling like he was about to melt.

Truthfully, he had done it on purpose. While making the jam earlier, he had deliberately touched the hot pot, hoping Wanlai would comfort him like this. Wanlai had been too good to him lately, and Qingyue had noticed the jam-making process was far more complicated than necessary. He had even checked online and found easier ways—like using store-bought jam or crushed nuts with sugar and butter. But Wanlai was so patient, and Qingyue just wanted to feel closer to him, to be spoiled a bit more.

Wanlai was helpless. Since Qingyue’s finger was already in his mouth, he had no choice but to gently swirl his tongue around the injured area, lightly licking it.

The warmth and softness made Qingyue’s entire body shudder, as if an electric current had surged through him, leaving him weak and tingly.

Thinking he was in pain, Wanlai asked, his speech slightly muffled, “Does… that help?”

However, Yu Qingyue understood. He buried his head in Yu Wanlai’s arms, nodded slightly, and let out a muffled “mm.”

Yu Wanlai raised his hand to hold Yu Qingyue’s waist, pulling him tighter into his embrace. Fine, if he said it worked, then it worked—after all, he wasn’t the one injured.

Unexpectedly, Yu Qingyue suddenly pulled his hand away, withdrew his finger, and pushed Yu Wanlai back abruptly.

Yu Wanlai looked at him in surprise. What was going on with him today, being so jumpy?

Blushing, Yu Qingyue lowered his head, avoiding eye contact. “Let’s just finish cooking. It doesn’t hurt anymore.”

Yu Wanlai looked at him doubtfully, noticing his flushed neck. “Really? It doesn’t hurt?”

Yu Qingyue shook his head vigorously. Whether it hurt or not, he couldn’t take it anymore. He was afraid Yu Wanlai would notice something strange.

He turned around to wash his hands, secretly glancing down to check. Seeing nothing obvious, he quietly sighed in relief. Thankfully, he was wearing loose pants today, not dress pants.

Just as he relaxed, he turned his head and saw Yu Wanlai standing beside him, staring intently.

Yu Qingyue’s heartbeat skipped a beat. His voice stuttered, “W-what is it?”

Yu Wanlai narrowed his eyes. “Your face is so red. Are you feeling hot? Or do you have a fever?”

As he spoke, he reached out to touch Yu Qingyue’s forehead, but Yu Qingyue suddenly stepped back, avoiding his hand.

He quickly brushed past Yu Wanlai, heading toward the fruit preserves. “I’m not sick, just a little warm.”

Yu Wanlai frowned slightly, a bit displeased that Yu Qingyue had been avoiding him.

Yu Qingyue glanced at the molds on the counter and blinked. “So, do I just pour the jam into these?”

He had watched the tutorial only in bits and pieces, and every method seemed slightly different. Besides, his mind was a mess now, so he had no idea what to do next.

Yu Wanlai nodded, “Yeah, just mix in the fruit bits first, then fill the molds.”

Noticing Yu Wanlai standing right next to him, clearly intending to watch him the whole time, Yu Qingyue felt his heart racing uncontrollably again. He pressed his lips together. “Ge, why don’t you go do something else? I can handle this part.”

Sensing the tension in Yu Qingyue’s body, Yu Wanlai gave him a long look. This person was acting so strangely today—clinging tightly to him one moment and avoiding him the next.

After a while, Yu Wanlai sighed and let it go. At least he wasn’t getting hit like in the original story.

Relaxing his brows, he went to prepare the seafood and meat.

He soaked the clams in salt water, then calmly started deveining the shrimp.

After freezing the jam, Yu Qingyue approached and watched Yu Wanlai handle the shrimp.

Yu Wanlai glanced at him but, still annoyed by his earlier avoidance, stayed silent.

After a moment, Yu Qingyue couldn’t help asking, “What are you doing?”

Yu Wanlai replied smoothly, “Removing the shrimp veins.”

Then, for fun, he added, “They say this part is full of shrimp waste. Some restaurants don’t even bother cleaning it.”

(Though, honestly, sea shrimp are pretty clean, so it’s not always necessary.)

Yu Qingyue: “…”

He suddenly couldn’t look at the shrimp directly, glaring at Yu Wanlai. “Shut up.”

Yu Wanlai chuckled softly, clearly amused.

Skilled as ever, he finished cleaning the shrimp quickly, then added ginger slices and Sichuan pepper water to marinate them.

Next, he grabbed the crabs and began scrubbing them under running water.

With nothing else to do, Yu Qingyue reached into the bag to grab a crab, intending to help.

Yu Wanlai immediately slapped his hand away. “What are you doing? Can’t you see they can pinch you?”

Yu Qingyue retracted his hand, rubbing the back of it. He muttered, “But they’re tied up already…”

Yu Wanlai clicked his tongue. “Still not safe. You even burned yourself making jam earlier.”

Yu Qingyue: “…”

He regretted his earlier actions. Letting Yu Wanlai lick his finger for just a second had completely backfired. Now he was being treated like a fool.

Unhappy, Yu Qingyue huffed, then noticed the unwashed pot they had used earlier. Pouting, he went to clean it instead.

This time, Yu Wanlai didn’t stop him.

The jam residue was sticky, so Yu Qingyue had to scrub it for a long time before it was finally clean.

By the time he finished, Yu Wanlai had already coated the shrimp in starch and was frying them in the pan.

They definitely wouldn’t make it in time for a Lantern Festival lunch. The clams needed more time to purge the sand, and the shrimp required freezing. All time-consuming tasks.

So, for lunch, only the crab and shrimp were ready to eat, so Yu Wanlai started cooking a pot of rice before preparing the dishes.

The sizzling sound of hot oil filled the kitchen. As soon as the shrimp turned red, he scooped them out. On the cutting board, diced red and green chili peppers were neatly arranged. Normally, adding some breadcrumbs would enhance this dish, but since they didn’t seem to have any at home, he skipped it.

Leaving a small amount of shrimp oil in the pan, Yu Wanlai stir-fried the chili peppers until fragrant, then added the fried shrimp back into the pan. After seasoning it, he gave it a few quick stirs before plating the dish.

Yu Qingyue placed the finished shrimp on the warming tray at the dining table, sneakily grabbing one to taste. The shrimp shell was crispy, coated with the salty-spicy flavor of pepper salt.

He then walked over to Yu Wanlai with the half-eaten shrimp and fed the remaining piece to him. “It’s so crispy, try it.”

Yu Wanlai bit into the shrimp without noticing it was already half-eaten.

Yu Qingyue’s fingers seemed to brush against the soft tip of Yu Wanlai’s tongue again, making his heart feel tingly and numb.

Yu Wanlai went on to cook stir-fried pork with chili peppers and some green vegetables. When those dishes were nearly done, he started steaming the crabs.

Yu Qingyue went upstairs to call everyone for lunch. On his way through the dining room, he snatched another shrimp to eat.

Qin Shuang and Yu Cheng entered the dining room just as the aroma of the food filled the air.

Qin Shuang: …It smells better than her cooking.

Yu Cheng felt a bit smug but kept a neutral expression. He had been in conflict with his eldest son for so long that he still wasn’t sure how to interact peacefully.

There were only four dishes today, fewer than usual, but since Qin Shuang and Yu Cheng had bought a lot of ingredients, the portions were generous enough.

Everyone silently waited for Yu Wanlai to finish washing his hands before they started eating.

Qin Shuang was the first to pick up a shrimp. It was indeed delicious. “Xiaowan, your cooking skills are really good. When did you learn to cook? Your father and I had no idea.”

As she spoke, she pinched Yu Cheng’s waist. “Right?”

Yu Cheng cleared his throat. “Yes, it’s good. Not bad.”

Yu Wanlai had just taken a sip of freshly squeezed orange juice from the leftover fruit. Hearing Qin Shuang’s affectionate way of calling him “Xiaowan,” he nearly spat it out.

He coughed twice, and Yu Qingyue immediately handed him a tissue and reached over to pat his back.

Yu Wanlai felt a bit uneasy, wondering if they had noticed his behavior was different than usual. He mumbled vaguely, “I just learned recently.”

Internally, he was puzzled. Wasn’t “Yu Wanlai” supposed to be disliked in this family?

Then he suddenly realized something odd—Yu Qingyue was sitting next to him today. Looking across the table, he saw Qin Shuang in the seat opposite him.

He quickly turned to Yu Qingyue, feeling both shocked and slightly flattered.

Sensing Yu Wanlai’s gaze, Yu Qingyue felt his ears heat up. His hand trembled, and he accidentally picked up a piece of chili from the stir-fried pork.

Pressing his lips together, Yu Qingyue muttered, sounding a bit fierce, “What are you staring at me for? Just eat your food.”

Feeling satisfied, Yu Wanlai turned back to his meal.