Chapter 13 I order you to sit down. Eat with me!

Fu Chen scrunched up his little nose as he looked at Jiang Wan, a flicker of hesitation crossing his dark, shiny eyes.

Jiang Wan felt a pang in her heart and said, “That’s right, I definitely won’t make you do anything bad! You just have to listen to my orders and treat me as the boss—just for today!”

“…Alright! I agree!” Fu Chen bit his lip, then reached out his pinky to hook it with Jiang Wan’s. “Xiao Yan and I will listen to you for the whole day!”

“Pinky swear, hang it high—whoever lies is a puppy!”

“Deal! Then your first task is… to take the rest of the snacks back to your room. Eat them slowly! Don’t finish them all in one day, or you won’t be able to eat your meals!”

“…Huh??”

“Ah??”

Fu Chen and Fu Xiaoyan were both dumbfounded. This woman actually wanted them to take the snacks to their own room?

“What’s wrong? Didn’t we agree you’d listen to me? Hurry up!” Jiang Wan smiled faintly and turned to head into the kitchen. She was feeling a bit hungry herself and wanted to check what ingredients were around so she could cook a proper meal.

She could make even a simple cabbage dish taste amazing! And she didn’t believe for a second that these two little ones wouldn’t fall in love with her cooking.

Once inside the kitchen, Jiang Wan glanced at the shelf beside the stove. There were some green onions, garlic, and vegetables. There were even a few eggs.

Frowning slightly, she poked around a nondescript basket in the corner—and to her surprise, she found a piece of meat! Wrapped in wax paper and hidden under the rice!

Ha! No doubt about it—this was Tang Feng’s secret stash.

Hmph, like I’m gonna leave any of it!

Without hesitation, Jiang Wan pulled out a block of tofu, a head of cabbage, and two cucumbers. She started by washing and prepping the vegetables while putting rice on to cook.

As for the leftover watery porridge in the pot, with just a few bits of veggie scraps floating in it—she dumped it all straight into the waste bucket. It’s not like she was wasting food; there were barely any grains of rice in it! It was basically colored water with vegetable bits, and honestly, it looked nauseating.

She knew these kinds of rural cooking stoves well. After all, in her previous life, she grew up in a countryside orphanage.

Jiang Wan had always been a sensible child, and she loved the warm, comforting smells of the kitchen, so she often helped the orphanage aunties cook and tend fires.

These rural stoves could get a blazing fire going in no time. Not long after, the rice was ready.

Jiang Wan sautéed some chopped green onion and garlic, then stir-fried the cabbage and tofu with fermented soybean paste.

Before adding the tofu to the pan, she pan-fried it until both sides were golden and crispy.

Then, before adding the sauce, she had already rendered some pork fat from thinly sliced pork belly.

With the sauce and seasonings in, she let everything simmer for a while—and done!

The rich aroma of the sauce, the meaty scent, and the fragrance of the tofu all mingled together and quickly drifted out of the kitchen.

The two kids were whispering to each other in the side room, but the smell hit them like a wave, and they couldn’t sit still anymore.

“Brother!! It smells so good! That lady’s cooking!” Fu Xiaoyan blinked her big, shiny eyes and swallowed a mouthful of saliva.

Fu Chen was hungry too. The thin porridge they had in the morning hadn’t filled him up at all, and somehow… the snacks they had earlier had just made his stomach hungrier.

“…” His eyes even started to gleam green with hunger, and without thinking, he grabbed Fu Xiaoyan’s hand and walked toward the smell.

Jiang Wan had just finished her stir-fried cabbage and tofu. She had chopped up all the pork. The cucumbers were smashed and mixed simply with sesame oil, vinegar, MSG, and salt for a refreshing cold dish.

She spotted a folding round dining table in the kitchen and carried it outside into the courtyard.

Then she brought out the rice and the dishes.

Just as she turned around, the two little ones were standing there, staring wide-eyed at the food on the table.

Jiang Wan gave a proud little smile, her glistening almond eyes curving into crescent moons—so warm and inviting it made your heart feel cozy.

The scent of the food filled the entire yard. The bowl of fluffy, white rice was steaming on the table.

Fu Chen stood there, stunned for a moment before mumbling, “We… we actually still have white rice at home… I thought we only had corn grits…”

“…” Jiang Wan didn’t even know where to begin.

She had clearly seen that the rice sack had a hole scooped out of it—as if someone had been taking it with a bowl.

If they didn’t let the kids eat meat, fine—but even rice was being kept from them?

She fetched a few more chairs and sat down at the table with a quiet sigh.

Then she cleared her throat and said, “Fu Chen, Fu Xiaoyan, I now order you to go to the kitchen and bring three pairs of chopsticks and three bowls. Bring them here!”

“…Got it!” Fu Chen pouted and turned to tell Xiaoyan, “Xiaoyan, you stay here. I’ll go get them.”

Then he turned and went to get the chopsticks and bowls.

Hmph, running a little errand like this? He thought that woman had some kind of scheme up her sleeve!

But it was just a bit of work—no big deal! He, Fu Chen, kept his word. He was a man!

After bringing over the utensils, Fu Chen returned to his original spot, his eyes glued to the dishes on the table.

His throat bobbed slightly as he swallowed, trying to ignore the growling in his stomach.

He deliberately avoided looking at the steaming hot food and huffed, “That’s it, right? We’re done now? We can go, right?”

“Who said we’re done?” Jiang Wan curled her lips into a sly smile, picked up her chopsticks, and pointed at the food on the table.
“Now, I order you both to sit down and eat with me!”

“???”
“???”

The two kids widened their eyes in disbelief, their jaws practically hitting the floor.

“Eat, eat… she’s letting us eat??”

Can this woman really be that kind?
Wasn’t she supposed to be punishing them? How could she possibly be inviting them to eat together…?

“That’s right. You have to eat with me!” Jiang Wan clicked her tongue and deliberately raised her voice.
“What’s wrong? Are you going back on your word?”
“Am I still the boss or not?”

“… …”

“Brother… look, she’s already eaten several bites…” Fu Xiaoyan whispered. She knew Fu Chen didn’t trust this auntie, but she was so hungry!!

She watched as the woman took a few bites of food without anything happening to her.

Fu Xiaoyan was practically drooling and about to cry. She whimpered softly, “Bro, let’s eat too!”
“She didn’t die!”

“…Fine.”

Fu Chen took Fu Xiaoyan’s hand and slowly climbed up onto the chair. Then, cautiously, he used his chopsticks to pick up a small piece of cucumber.

He hesitated for a long while before finally putting it in his mouth.

Suddenly, his big dark eyes lit up—it was delicious!!

It was just cucumber, but somehow it tasted amazing!!

Fu Chen chewed a few times and swallowed.

Seeing that, Fu Xiaoyan got anxious. Her cheeks flushed as she tugged at his sleeve.

Finally, Fu Chen picked up another piece of the cucumber salad and placed it into Fu Xiaoyan’s bowl for her to try.