Clear Stewed Pigeon Soup

Wen Chongyue didn’t agree with Xia Jiao’s statement.

He admitted, “I believe appropriate and fun physical interactions can help deepen our understanding of each other.”

Xia Jiao responded, “That makes sense.”

“So,” Wen Chongyue said, “I’ve been thinking about whether I should buy some more clothes for this. Jiao Jiao, what do you like?”

Xia Jiao instinctively glanced at the bedroom and then shook her head. “Let’s talk about it tomorrow.”

Wen Chongyue nodded, “Then let’s eat first. You need to rest well tonight.”

Teacher Wen, who had earned an excellent grade in the moral education class, once again prepared a sumptuous dinner tonight. In addition to boiled mantis shrimp, he also bought firm-shelled and meaty grass shrimp—referred to as “tan ya” (bouncy) in Cantonese—to make shrimp and scrambled eggs. This is a common and quick dish in Hong Kong-style cafes. From peeling the shrimp and whisking the eggs to serving, it took less than ten minutes. The yolk was semi-set, tender, and fragrant. Xia Jiao ate it slowly with a small spoon, savoring every bite.

To reward Xia Jiao, Wen Chongyue had also made clear stewed pigeon soup. The oil from the pigeon was richer than chicken, so he added a piece of dried flatfish, along with some shredded cucumber and carrot for a refreshing salad, and a side of crunchy mushroom and winter bamboo shoots.

Xia Jiao’s favorite was still the shrimp and scrambled egg. After finishing one serving, she eagerly eyed Wen Chongyue’s plate and finished that too.

Wen Chongyue then mentioned his high school days: “Honestly, I had much less pressure about advancing to college than you did.”

Xia Jiao asked, “Did you have evening study sessions until ten?”

Wen Chongyue shook his head.

“Did you wake up at five for morning study?”

Wen Chongyue replied, “No.”

Xia Jiao sighed with envy. “What a wonderful high school life.”

Wen Chongyue didn’t talk about the struggles of high school, nor did he make up bad experiences to comfort her.

Instead, he shared his fond memories of his high school cafeteria, especially the chicken soup with pea meat noodles. It had a strong flavor and heavy portions. Wen Chongyue had a big appetite back then, often eating double portions.

Xia Jiao felt a bit embarrassed. When she was in high school, the cafeteria also served generous portions, but she couldn’t finish a whole serving, so she usually had half.

She felt like she might have wasted food.

Not only was there meat noodle soup, but also crispy roast duck, large plates for just a few bucks, pork and corn-filled wontons, and small dumplings with thin skins and generous fillings…

Xia Jiao’s eyes sparkled.

She had always thought such a high school life only existed in TV shows, but it wasn’t just fiction. While she buried her head in study and late-night reading, some people lived such colorful lives. It seemed like they were born with it, effortlessly succeeding at everything they did.

As Xia Jiao just found out, some high schools have an 18th birthday ceremony for their students.

Xia Jiao murmured, “That’s nice.”

Wen Chongyue asked, “What?”

“Your high school is really nice,” Xia Jiao said. “I envy you. It seems like your alumni must be impressive, like really important people.”

Wen Chongyue peeled a shrimp and placed it on the plate in front of her.

“Yes,” Wen Chongyue said to her, “but there are exceptions.”

Xia Jiao asked, “What exceptions?”

“There are people like me too,” Wen Chongyue said, “a simple man who needs his wife’s companionship and kisses.”

Xia Jiao didn’t agree with Wen Chongyue’s words, thinking he was being too modest. But then she realized that in this world, there are so many ordinary people, and it’s the exceptional ones who are rare.

She was also a small person who enjoyed the company of the other person.

Xia Jiao was not a fan of outdoor activities, and today’s hiking route had drained most of her energy. Wen Chongyue had to contact some colleagues overseas in the evening, so he reminded his wife to go to bed earlier and not wait for him.

However, Wen Chongyue hadn’t expected Xia Jiao to come by.

The study door was left open, and when the call ended, Wen Chongyue saw a figure faintly outside. He asked, “Jiao Jiao?”

Outside, she sounded a little uneasy, “Have you finished work?”

Wen Chongyue stood up. “Hmm, are you hungry?”

The door opened.

Wen Chongyue froze for a moment.

He didn’t know when she had bought the school uniform.

It wasn’t the traditional blue-and-white sports outfit, but a modified version—a light blue classic sailor collar with a pleated skirt. The hem of the skirt reached four centimeters above her knee, with white knee-high socks and shoes, along with the exercise book Xia Jiao was holding.

She walked up to him and handed him the exercise book, looking up at him with a hint of expectation. “Teacher Wen, there are a few questions here that I don’t quite understand. Could you teach me?”

Wen Chongyue understood.

So, she wanted to play the shy student and the terrible teacher game?

He was more than happy to cooperate with Xia Jiao, but as soon as he stood up, Xia Jiao’s hand pressed on his shoulder, urging him to sit back down.

The exercise book was placed in Wen Chongyue’s hands, and Xia Jiao, her eyes sparkling, sat on his lap. Her fingers played with his neatly tied silk tie, but she didn’t directly hook it around his neck. Instead, she whispered, “Earlier, you asked me if I was hungry, and now I’m really, really hungry.”

Wen Chongyue misjudged the situation.

It wasn’t the shy student and the terrible teacher scenario.

She was the one making the move, like a stray kitten in the rain, looking up at him with innocent eyes. He knew she wasn’t dangerous, but she definitely had a way of luring him in.

“It’s been almost 24 hours since I ate,” the pleated skirt swished. “Teacher, could you be kind to me?”

Wen Chongyue was very kind to her.

His glasses hadn’t even been taken off, and they were slipping slightly down his nose. He was still in his formal suit, shirt, and shoes from the video conference, without missing a single piece. That’s just how he was; he would never be lazy enough to wear a suit on top and shorts and slippers on the bottom. Xia Jiao loved his clean and gentle appearance, it felt like anything he did would be considered disrespectful. And yet, that was exactly what she adored.

Wen Chongyue took her hand and looked at the exercise book she had brought. It was blank. She had opened it, glanced at it, and then come straight to him without writing a thing. But that was fine. He would teach her. He would teach her how to open a metal clasp, how to wrap a stream around a peak, how a small fish could swallow a giant whale.

Wen Chongyue realized for the first time that there was a slight rebellious streak in Xia Jiao. She seemed to have always been subtly influenced by certain ideas, but today it seemed like a switch had been flipped, and she no longer hid it. Her pleated skirt fluttered like white locust flowers in the wind, and her feet barely touched the ground. She leaned on the chair, trying to rise, but every time she tried, she was pulled back down, as if she were falling into an abyss, one that would never touch the bottom.

“The exercise book has nothing written on it,” Wen Chongyue heard her helpless sigh and asked, “Can’t you do it?”

Xia Jiao tried to nod, but her breath wasn’t clear, and her eyes were misty.

“I’ll help you,” Wen Chongyue said, guiding her to lean over the desk. He placed his pen in her right hand, opened the exercise book, and set it on the table. His voice was firm. “Come on, you do yours, and I’ll do mine.”

Xia Jiao blinked, “Hmm? What?”

The first one is third tone, the second one is fourth tone.

Wen Chongyue looked up, sighed, and said, “Let’s start with the first page of the exercise book today, and we’ll correct one mistake at a time.”

In the end…

Xia Jiao didn’t want to continue with this exercise book.

The next day, the first thing she did after waking up was to tear up the exercise book.

Wen Chongyue regretted it. He planned to buy a new one, but this time, one with a higher difficulty level. His wife was very clever and needed something more challenging.

He was torn between higher algebra and higher mathematics.

After all, Xia Jiao had chosen a language-related major in college, and she had never studied either of these subjects.

After yesterday’s tutoring session, they both forgot to charge their phones. Wen Chongyue only charged Xia Jiao’s phone in the morning. While she was having breakfast, she called Yu Qingzhen to discuss her thoughts on the red-haired guy she saw yesterday evening, along with her guess about him, and—

“The police officer hasn’t called you again, has he?” Xia Jiao asked. “He hasn’t, right?”

“No,” Yu Qingzhen replied cheerfully, “I told you there’s nothing to worry about… I withdrew all the money from my bank account early this morning and moved it to another bank in a fixed deposit. Now you can rest easy, right?”

Xia Jiao sighed with relief and sincerely said, “I’m relieved.”

After Yu Qingzhen left, Xia Jiao received a message from Guo Chencai on WeChat. He had added her to a WeChat group from middle school, where everyone was chatting happily, as if they had forgotten about everything they had done, as if they had never done anything wrong.

Xia Jiao hadn’t checked the messages in the group, but Wen Chongyue, who had gone to charge her phone, had seen them. It was the weekend, and since the group was newly created, everyone was reminiscing about the past. The conversation was lively, especially with Guo Chencai, who had tagged Xia Jiao several times.

One of the group members jokingly asked if Guo Chencai had secretly liked Xia Jiao back in middle school, since he used to bother her so much.

Wen Chongyue put the phone back down and returned to Xia Jiao’s side. She was still tired, likely from dehydration. After taking a nap, she was still thirsty, asking for water frequently. After breakfast, she lazily sprawled on the couch, holding the cat while watching a movie.

When Wen Chongyue came over, Wen Quan jumped off the couch, tilted its head, and let him pet it. Xia Mi lay on the coffee table, raising one leg while carefully licking its fur.

Wen Chongyue sat on the couch, letting Xia Jiao rest her head on his lap as they watched the movie together.

Wen Chongyue enjoyed sci-fi or thriller movies and didn’t have any particular dislike for other genres. Whatever Xia Jiao watched, he was happy to watch as well. After all, the point of entertainment was to bond with the person you’re watching it with.

Today, they were watching Love Actually. In one of the storylines, a newlywed bride discovers that the groom’s friend has secretly been in love with her.

In the scene playing out in the movie, the man, embarrassed as his secret love was revealed, ran out the door. He stopped several times in the cold street, hesitant, shivering from the cold, before quickly moving on.

Xia Jiao murmured, “If he truly loves her, how could she not know he likes her? You can’t hide a secret crush.”

Wen Chongyue looked down at her. “Really?”

“Well, that’s how it is in the movie. Have you heard of the theory that when you get close to someone who loves you, it’s like being near a warm fire in winter? How could you not feel the love?” Xia Jiao thought for a moment. “Look at him, it’s so obvious. He’s practically about to say, ‘I love you.’”

Wen Chongyue looked down.

He and Xia Jiao had never said “I love you” to each other.

His fire had always been burning, but Xia Jiao didn’t seem to notice.

Wen Chongyue gently stroked her hair. “Perhaps, in reality, there really are people who don’t realize someone secretly loves them.”

“Impossible,” Xia Jiao firmly denied. “Even a fool would know.”

Wen Chongyue chuckled softly.

He pinched Xia Jiao’s cheek and said, “The fools don’t know.”