(1)
The evening glow slanted through the blue-green window, illuminating every speck of dust dancing in the air.
From the kitchen came the sizzling sound of fish pieces frying in oil, accompanied by Zhu Ying’s occasional muttering.
“Okay…? Is the seat ready…? Flip it over…”
“Just a little bit…”
“Ah, it broke…”
“The flavor seems okay. Should I fry it a little crispier…”
An Jing, who was mopping the floor, suddenly sniffed hard. “Is it burnt…? Xiao Ying!”
“What’s wrong—!” Zhu Ying poked half her face out of the kitchen.
“It’s burnt, right!”
“No, it’s not! Hey—it’s a little burnt!”
“Don’t fry it too long…” An Jing sighed helplessly. But Zhu Ying insisted on not letting her help today, which always made her worry the kitchen might end up blown up.
Still, despite some bumps, they managed to make dinner.
The kitchen wasn’t blown up, of course—just covered in oil splatters everywhere.
“Xiao Jing~! Time to eat! Where are you? What are you doing?”
“Cleaning… Have you not cleaned since your parents left?” An Jing wiped the sweat off her forehead after washing the mop. “There’s a thick layer of dust on the floor—you can see footprints.”
“I haven’t been home much lately.” Zhu Ying set the fried fish pieces on the table. The oily aroma filled the air, making An Jing lick her lips uncontrollably.
After a whole day of exams and then cleaning such a large house, she was indeed hungry. Her stomach growled gurgle gurgle in protest.
“The soup is in the kitchen, Xiao Jing. Bring it over!”
“Where are your barbecue heat-proof gloves?”
“On top of the oven!”
“Wow—” As soon as she stepped into the kitchen, An Jing gasped. “Are you cooking or fighting in here? It’s such a mess!”
“What, what! Cooking is like this! I’ll clean it up later!”
“No, Huihui Jie doesn’t cook like this…” An Jing twitched the corner of her mouth and carefully walked into the kitchen, trying to avoid the grime on the floor. “How did eggshells end up on the floor…”
“I dropped them by accident.”
“Cleaning this up is going to be a big project…”
“Xiao Jing, you’ll help later, right?”
“Next time, I’ll do the cooking…”
“Hmph! If you let me cook a few more times, I’ll get better! You’re not even giving me a chance!”
“Heh… I didn’t mean that.”
Zhu Ying’s living room was especially spacious, but today they weren’t eating there.
Instead, they sat at the end of a narrow hallway.
There was a small table next to the window, just big enough for two.
From here, they could watch the setting sun stretch the city’s shadows long and thin. Faint noises from the shopping street drifted in—though inaudible, they carried the flavor of life.
On the small wooden table were three dishes and a soup:
Cold tofu, cold cucumber, fried fish pieces, and loofah egg drop soup.
The scallions on the cold tofu were chopped haphazardly—some were thick strips, others tiny bits. They were scattered messily over the tofu, stained red-brown by soy sauce.
The cucumber was cut unevenly: some were diagonal slices, some chunks, some strips… a few even diced.
It had an air of carefree randomness.
As for the fried fish pieces, at first glance they looked golden and crispy, but on closer inspection, some spots were burnt black—far from perfect.
The loofah egg drop soup… the loofah was overcooked, completely soft, no longer that appetizing pale green but a fibrous grayish green.
The egg hadn’t been stirred properly—the white and yolk stood apart. Someone might have thought she did it on purpose.
A few pitiful dried shrimp dotted the surface, adding some fragrance. There was even a dried little crab mixed in, making An Jing smile.
No matter how it looked, she had managed to make three dishes and a soup. For Zhu Ying, that was a big improvement. And besides… this was dinner made for her.
A sweet intention lay within—the feeling of being cared for and loved, which brought extraordinary happiness.
“How is it?”
“It looks… not great.” An Jing answered honestly.
“The taste is what matters! Here.” Zhu Ying handed over the chopsticks. “Try it?”
“Mm…”
“How is it?”
“The cucumber and tofu are pretty good.”
“Try the fried fish!”
“Crunch crunch…”
“How is it?”
“Some parts are a bit bitter…”
“What about the loofah egg drop soup?”
“Mm—surprisingly refreshing, not bad.”
“Then it counts as a success.”
“Yeah.”
“Why are you staring at me like that?” Zhu Ying’s eyes were evasive, her pretty face slightly flushed.
“Cough… I think you’re cute.”
“Eww, so cheesy!”
“Hehe, Xiao Ying, even you can be shy sometimes?”
“What’s the matter? Not allowed to be shy?” Zhu Ying snorted softly, then took the candlestick from the windowsill and placed it on the table. She lit the three candles.
The sky was just getting darker. Within a few minutes, the whole city had slipped into night.
The candle flames swayed gently, flickering in An Jing and Zhu Ying’s eyes.
They stared at the candles for a long time, then suddenly looked up at each other and burst into laughter in perfect sync.
“Pfft…”
“What’s Xiao Jing laughing at?”
“It’s just—you have a candlestick like that on your windowsill. It feels so random.”
“Actually, my parents use it for candlelight dinners.”
“Wow, so romantic?”
“Hehe, of course. So now we’re having a candlelight dinner too.”
“Other people have steak and red wine for candlelight dinners. We have…”
“We have fish pieces and loofah egg drop soup!” Zhu Ying suddenly looked serious. “Xiao Jing, you have to eat it all!”
“Hey, hey, don’t put it all on me! There’s so much!”
“Believe in yourself! You can do it!”
“I can’t!”
Stuffed full, An Jing propped her cheek on her hand and gazed lazily out the window at the pale purple sky.
Maybe because the Zhong Kao was finally over, a weight had been lifted. She felt light, as if floating among the stars.
The two of them had just finished cleaning the kitchen and now sat here, unwilling to move.
The candles had burned out. The room was dark.
Tonight’s sky had no stars—only the lonely moon hung halfway, half-hidden behind a veil of clouds.
Neither spoke. They just stared at the sky in a daze.
As if this were already the most wonderful, happiest thing in life.
Time felt infinite, spent carelessly, as if as long as tomorrow’s sun hadn’t risen, everything was still early…
“Ah-choo!”
“Xiao Jing? Don’t catch a cold!”
“Summer wind can’t make you cold.”
“It’s not midsummer yet. The wind now is still quite cool.”
“Any plans for tomorrow?”
“No plans.”
“Suddenly I feel so idle. I could sleep in, but I also want to do something more fulfilling.”
“That’s just how people are.” Zhu Ying stood up, wobbled over to An Jing, and with a “heave-ho,” sat lightly on her lap.
“Mmph…”
“Am I heavy?”
“For now… it’s okay…”
Zhu Ying covered her mouth and giggled.
An Jing didn’t feel uncomfortable. Instead, she pressed her face against Zhu Ying’s collarbone, rubbing gently. “What are you laughing at?”
“I don’t know.”
“Pfft, you’re laughing without knowing why?”
“I just feel like laughing when I see you.”
“Do I look like a clown…”
“I just can’t help smiling, thinking that I’ll get to spend the rest of my days with you.”
“You’re even cheesier than me…”
“Want to see what I’m thinking right now?”
“No—I don’t have a weird hobby of peeking into others’ minds.” An Jing pouted.
But Zhu Ying grabbed her hand and squeezed it gently. “Come on, come on!”
“I’ve never seen someone ask to have their mind read…”
“Because I feel like saying it out loud isn’t enough to express how I feel right now!”
An Jing shook her head helplessly, slowly closed her eyes, then opened them again. With her golden eyes, she silently watched Zhu Ying and listened to her most sincere thoughts:
‘As expected, Xiao Jing is most beautiful when her eyes are golden.’
‘You asked me to use mind reading just to see that…?’
‘What, can’t I take a look at the Anhai Deity?’
‘Tch… Xiao Ying is much prettier than me.’
‘Oh, really?’
‘Mm… Though I’m too embarrassed to say it out loud, because saying it feels like admitting defeat. It’s not that I’m afraid of losing—I’m not a girl, so I don’t have an interest in comparing beauty—but sometimes I don’t want to lose too much. And Xiao Ying is cutest when she’s pretending to be angry…’
‘Wow, a whole bunch of thoughts just flooded into my head! You thought all that at once, Xiao Jing?’
‘Ah! By accident… Damn, it’s hard to keep my mental activity in check. The more I try not to think, the more I think!’
‘So cute.’
‘Don’t call me cute! Though I’m a little happy, it’s super embarrassing!’
‘Super cute~!’
‘You’re doing it on purpose, aren’t you?! Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey—’
‘Xiao Jing, look into my eyes.’
‘What…’
‘Mm… Are you about to lose control?’
“I need to go to the bathroom!” An Jing stood up in a panic. ‘The side effect is so fast this time!!’
Zhu Ying watched An Jing’s hasty retreat into the bathroom, using her water glass to hide the smile curling at her lips. “It’s because of her period, right? Huh… that’s strange. Why do I feel my mouth is dry too? Let me pour some more water…”
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