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Chapter 31: Classmate, do you want a wife or not?

He really wanted to have lunch with me… Chu Zining stood there dazed.

“I’ll just eat by myself,” Chu Zining said uneasily; since childhood she had never shared a meal with anyone, much less with a boy.

She lowered her head and tried to slip out, but Lu Li blocked her squarely; he lifted an eyebrow and asked, “You really don’t want to eat with me?”

Chu Zining lowered her head and said, “I-I’ll just go to the cafeteria…”

With no money, what could a broke girl like you possibly buy in the cafeteria?

Lu Li blinked and gave a mischievous grin, saying, “Classmate Chu Zining, you wouldn’t want your…”

“Ugh! I’ll eat with you!” Before Lu Li could finish, Chu Zining sensibly took the lunchbox from his hand.

Lu Li glanced at the microwave in the infirmary corner and asked the female doctor who was ordering takeout, “Doctor sis, may I borrow it?”

The female doctor waved her hand, muttering, “Go ahead and use it; I don’t know which genius shoved a microwave into the infirmary… it has basically never been used.”

It was probably some kickback-lover trying to spend the budget, Lu Li guessed, because he had seen the same model not only in the infirmary but also in offices, music rooms, and even the gym.

He had no idea whether the microwave was meant to heat a suona or a basketball; it was downright insane.

All he could say was that the adult world was far too complicated.

Lu Li directed Chu Zining to heat up the food; she obediently explored the microwave, while he lay on the bed with his head pillowed on his arms, resting at ease.

Although Chu Zining was silly, she was still smart; she quickly figured out how to operate the microwave, put the lunchbox inside, and then looked around the infirmary.

The room was actually the doctor’s personal office; although she had dolled herself up, her lifestyle was rather rough… the floor was covered with students’ footprints, and plenty of medical trash still lay around.

Feeling guilty for using the doctor’s microwave, Chu Zining picked up the broom and mop in the corner and began to clean the room.

Her movements were quick and practiced, obviously honed by frequent housework.

After she had cleaned the floor, she moved on to the desk.

Medicines, gauze, and other items were strewn all over the desktop, and stains from various solutions had left blotches that made the table look like the odd patches on a calico cat that had rolled through mud.

Yet Chu Zining remained unfazed; after she sorted everything with ease, she soaked a rag in detergent and wiped the glass top several times until it shone like a mirror.

Watching her bustle about, Lu Li suddenly froze, hit by a revelation about how life ought to be…

He should keep a diligent maid to serve him!

Just watching someone else work hard made his mood improve without his realizing it.

Hiss… no wonder rich families like Xiao Mingyue’s hired so many maids for their estates!

Thinking of his own messy house, which had not had a thorough cleaning for some time, Lu Li kept nodding as he watched Chu Zining busy herself.

Mm, he had to figure out a way to trick this woman into his home.

The female doctor’s pale fingers slid across the delivery app on her phone, her brow furrowing ever deeper: “This place is too greasy, that place is too salty, I just ate from this one yesterday, that restaurant is too far, tsk, this one… this one’s delivery fee is actually 8 yuan… are you taking a taxi to bring the food?”

Annoyed, she set down her phone and slumped, thinking, “Maybe I should just eat instant noodles; uh, braised beef flavor is bland, sour-and-spicy beef is boring, pickled-vegetable beef… pickled vegetables, get lost!”

Reality proved that, whether talking about people or noodles, that pickled-vegetable brand was something to avoid.

The doctor’s eyes slowly lost focus; she collapsed into her chair like a philosophical statue and murmured, “Why do people have to eat anyway? It’s so hard to understand…”

With a crisp “pop,” the microwave door opened, and the aroma of braised beef with potatoes poured into the air; the doctor instantly sat up straight and twitched her delicate nose.

The scent was rich but not greasy, fatty yet not oily, and a single whiff made the taste buds awaken.

“It smells so good.” The doctor gulped and followed the scent to Chu Zining beside the microwave.

Wearing thick microwave gloves, Chu Zining lifted several food containers out and lined them up neatly on the table in front of Lu Li.

She looked like a timid little maid from the old days, softly inviting Master Lu to rise and dine.

The doctor hurried over and muttered the dish names like a waiter, “Harbin Fried Pork, sweet-and-sour tenderloin, potato-braised brisket, garlic broccoli… do students really eat this well nowadays?”

She blinked her large eyes again and again, looking exactly like a Samoyed waiting to be fed with its tongue hanging out.

Lu Li glanced at her and asked tentatively, “Want to eat together?”

“I’ll just have a taste.” The doctor swallowed; she was, after all, a teacher and felt embarrassed to eat a student’s food.

Chu Zining moved a chair over, and the three of them sat in a curious but harmonious triangle around one corner of the table.

The doctor rubbed the chopsticks in her hands and impatiently picked up a piece of guobaorou.

Mmm, it was sweet and sour, tender but not dry; although this dish was best right out of the wok and the crust went less crispy after reheating, the texture had hardly declined… still top-notch!

She licked the corner of her lips and steered her chopsticks toward the sweet-and-sour tenderloin.

Mmm-hmm, also sweet and sour, yet entirely different from the Harbin Fried Pork, the sauce was sweet without being sticky, the sweet and sour balanced perfectly, awakening the palate without any astringency… absolutely awesome!

The potato-braised brisket was even better: the potatoes were soft and fluffy, the beef tender and smooth; she had never eaten potato-braised brisket this delicious!

Beside her, Chu Zining kept her head down, taking tiny bites, her moist eyes shining as they narrowed contentedly.

Since she was little she had cooked for herself, and although her cooking was not bad, it was still far from this level of flavor.

She had never eaten food this tasty before!

She suddenly felt that the doctor might be right… if every meal could taste this good, finding a boyfriend who could cook would be pretty nice.

“Classmate, which restaurant did you buy these dishes from? I want to order a set too!” The doctor blinked starry eyes and looked eagerly at Lu Li.

The quality of these dishes was so high that there was no way the mass-cooking cafeteria could have produced them!

Although the price might be a bit high, she was willing to pay for the sake of her taste buds.

Lu Li shook his head and said blandly, “I made them myself.”

“You cooked them yourself?” The doctor was incredulous. “Really? Even a national level-2 chef wouldn’t do much better!”

“Why would I lie? I just happen to have a little talent in this area,” Lu Li said casually.

The doctor stared at Lu Li in a daze and exclaimed again and again, “You’re amazing.”

Chu Zining also stared at Lu Li blankly, her eyes showing a trace of worship.

“If it isn’t from a restaurant, does that mean I’ll never get to eat it again?” The doctor’s eyes darted around as she looked back at Chu Zining. “He really isn’t your boyfriend?”

Chu Zining blushed and shook her head.

Overexcited, the doctor grabbed Lu Li’s arm, her big eyes blinking; she licked her red lips and drawled, “Classmate, do you want a wife or not?”

Her voice brimmed with temptation.

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