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Jiang Yining pretended not to understand, feigning composure as she asked, “Did I?”
He Chi let out a low chuckle. “Mhm.”
“What did you want to tell me?”
Her cheeks were still warm. “Tomorrow, I want to invite Aunt Fan and Qiao Qiao over for dinner. Do you want to join us?”
“I’ve got nothing going on tomorrow. I’ll be home.”
With that settled, Jiang Yining didn’t dare linger a moment longer. She shot one last glance at He Chi before turning quickly to slip away.
He Chi called out, “Don’t run just yet.”
Jiang Yining turned back and murmured defensively to save face, “I wasn’t running.”
He Chi chuckled again. “Mm, you weren’t running.”
Then he added, “Tomorrow evening, let’s go have dinner at my parents’ place.”
He had already asked Jiang Yining and learned that her uncle enjoyed tea and that Teacher He had delved deep into the art of tea—he had all kinds of premium tea at home. They could stop by for dinner and conveniently take some tea back with them.
After Jiang Yining returned to her room, He Chi thought he might stop by the bar. He changed clothes and was about to head out when he saw He Xiaohui sprawled comfortably in the entryway.
He nudged the cat with his foot. “You lazy furball.”
He Chi sniffed the air and noticed a faint sour smell. He leaned closer to He Xiaohui, took a whiff, and confirmed that the odor was coming from the cat.
He thought back—it had been days since he last took He Xiaohui to the pet groomer.
He had originally planned to go out alone, but now he had the perfect companion to bring along.
He Xiaohui tried to flee, but He Chi was quicker and caught him. “Don’t you know you stink? Either come quietly to the pet shop, or starting tomorrow, you’re a stray cat.”
He Xiaohui let out a few meows of protest.
He Chi warned, “Don’t push your luck. Your mom just bought you new toys. If you don’t behave, I’ll give them all away.”
He Xiaohui stopped struggling, though his eyes clearly showed his reluctance.
He Chi didn’t care whether the cat wanted to go or not. He was definitely getting washed tonight.
Originally, Jiang Yining had planned to take He Xiaohui to the pet shop herself. But when she woke up the next morning, she noticed the foul smell was gone.
She figured He Chi must’ve taken him already.
Jiang Yining received a message from Zhang Qiao saying they’d already gone for the interview, so she ordered ingredients online in advance.
He Chi suggested getting a housekeeper to cook.
Jiang Yining stopped him just in time.
She looked up at He Chi and said, “As long as I’m free, I don’t want anyone else cooking. I’ll do it.”
She bit her lip, a little shy. “I still want that job that pays a hundred an hour.”
He Chi: “……”
He still wasn’t sure if agreeing to “lend” Jiang Yining five hundred thousand last night had been a wise decision. If Teacher Lin found out he was making Jiang Yining suffer, he’d probably get beaten with a feather duster.
Looking into her hopeful eyes, He Chi couldn’t bring himself to rain on her parade.
He sighed. “Alright, go ahead.”
Last time, Xiang Chuan mentioned that his wife had enrolled in a cooking class. He wasn’t sure how good the instructors were.
So He Chi sent him a message:
[What’s the name of that cooking school your wife signed up for? Is it any good?]
Xiang Chuan and his wife were both police officers. He was the captain of the Special Police Unit, and Zhu Qingya was a detective.
Both were deeply committed to their jobs, which left little time for their personal lives.
Half a year ago, Zhu Qingya figured it was time to have a child—Xiang Chuan was already thirty-five, and she was just two years younger. But neither of them could cook to save their lives. Zhu Qingya didn’t get along with her mother-in-law and always ended up arguing when they met, and her own mother wasn’t in good health either. So in the end, she gritted her teeth and enrolled herself in a cooking course.
After He Chi left the special police, he still kept in touch with his former teammates. Just last month, Xiang Chuan had mentioned it to him.
Today, Xiang Chuan happened to be home. He glanced at his wife bustling in the kitchen, snapped a picture, and sent it to He Chi.
He joked:
[This only represents my wife’s cooking skills, not the school’s.]
Then he sent another message with the name of the school:
[If the school weren’t any good, she’d have already complained. Since she hasn’t said a word, I’m guessing it’s decent.]
He Chi looked at the picture of the scorched food and couldn’t help gloating a little. He sent a voice message: “Detective Zhu personally cooking? Brother Chuan, and you’re still complaining?”
Xiang Chuan hadn’t expected He Chi to be such a sly rascal. And right in front of his wife, too—he opened the voice message.
Panicking for his survival, Xiang Chuan quickly said, “You brat, what nonsense are you spouting? My wife cooked with her own hands—for that alone, even the finest delicacies can’t compare.”
He hurriedly changed the subject and threw it back at He Chi. “Why are you suddenly asking about cooking schools?”
He Chi replied, “To learn how to cook, of course. What else? I’m not trying to be a chef.”
Learn how to cook?
Xiang Chuan knew how wealthy He Chi’s family was. In Lincheng, the He family was one of the prominent names. His aunt and uncle had a son who had been trained to take over the family business on that side.
As for He Chi’s branch, after his aunt retired, only He Chi was available to take over.
Old Mrs. He only had one grandson—He Chi—and spoiled him rotten. Back when Ling Yan died in the line of duty, she was so devastated she went on a hunger strike and nearly died, just to force He Chi to leave the police force.
Xiang Chuan thought it was such a shame. He Chi had grit, courage, and guts. Though he looked like a big goof, he was actually very meticulous and thoughtful—he reminded Xiang Chuan of his own younger self. Given time, he would’ve made great achievements.
But the old lady wouldn’t budge. Faced with a choice between his career and the person who had always doted on him, He Chi chose the latter.
That’s why Xiang Chuan was puzzled. He Chi had no reason to learn how to cook. Knowing him, if money could solve it, he’d never do it himself.
Unable to make sense of it, he asked, “Why the sudden urge to learn cooking?”
Just then, someone rang the doorbell. He Chi didn’t have time to keep chatting and brushed it off with, “I’ve got something to take care of. Let’s talk later.”
Jiang Yining called out from the kitchen, “He Chi, can you get the door? It’s probably Qiao Qiao and Aunt Fan.”
He was already walking over as she spoke.
He opened the door to find the mother and daughter standing there with a bag of fruit.
He took one look at Aunt Fan and thought she looked a few years younger than Teacher Lin.
“Hello, Aunt Fan. I’m He Chi. Please, come in.”
Seeing that He Chi was handsome and well-mannered, Fan Peihua lit up with joy. “Ning Ning has good eyes. I heard you two got married—I’ve been wanting to meet you.”
As she entered, she added, “I feel a little bad for troubling you both with helping me find work.”
He Chi said modestly, “It’s nothing, Aunt Fan. Happy to help.”
Zhang Qiao said to He Chi, “My mom’s a bit chatty. Don’t mind her.”
Then she added, “Mom, once you start working here, you better rein it in.”
Fan Peihua replied, “Of course I know that. I’m only talking like this because we’re among family.”
Zhang Qiao asked He Chi, “Should we change shoes?”
“No need.”
He Chi led them to the living room and made some tea. When he saw Jiang Yining coming out, he headed to the kitchen to help her prep the ingredients.
Jiang Yining asked, “How did the interview go?”
Zhang Qiao replied, “Very smoothly. They just asked a few simple questions and told us to go to the hospital in the next couple of days for a physical. If that checks out, we’ll move on to training.”
Fan Peihua held Jiang Yining’s hand. “Ning Ning, thank you both so much.”
Looking at Jiang Yining, she saw traces of Du Ruo in her features. She and Du Ruo had been classmates in middle school and remained close friends for years. The memory tugged at her heart.
Fan Peihua glanced around the apartment. It was even nicer than the homes she’d seen while working as a maternity nurse. Her eyes filled with tears. “Ning Ning, if your mother knew you were married and doing well, she would be so proud.”