Chapter 5: Braised Chicken with Chestnut

Tang Rou paused, a pure and innocent smile gracing her face. "I heard you were chasing after Shen Liang yesterday..."

Tang Qiaoqiao swiftly interrupted her, saying, "Just to say hello."

"Hello?" Tang Rou was taken aback, almost unable to keep her elegant demeanor.

"Otherwise? I just ran into him outside the hotel and wanted to greet him. Who knew he had such a big reaction?" Tang Qiaoqiao remarked calmly, scooping up a spoonful of cream and savoring it slowly on the tip of her tongue, glanced at her, and continued, "I believe you are the one who misunderstood. What did Shen Liang tell you?"

Tang Rou pressed her lips tightly. 'What did Shen Liang tell her?'

He triumphantly claimed that Tang Qiaoqiao wanted to pester him relentlessly, so he knocked her to the ground before she could speak.

Tang Qiaoqiao sighed. "In any case, I'm also Shen Liang's aunt. He didn't take the initiative to greet me; instead, he threw me down on the ground. People's hearts are truly corrupt these days. It's nothing like in ancient times."

Tang Rou: ...

'This... Did you open your mouth to talk nonsense?'

Tang Rou bit her lip. "No matter what had happened, Shen Liang later admitted he was wrong and took the initiative to retract the news.

She maintained a sincere expression as she continued, "After all, we're still a family."

As expected from the heroine, she could maintain a pure and innocent appearance when dealing with anyone.

Tang Qiaoqiao lowered her gaze. "He withdrew the headline because he was ashamed. He was concerned that the netizens would keep delving deeper, uncovering the relationship between his family and me, and find out how I ended up marrying his uncle."

Tang Rou held her gaze, a flicker of panic in her eyes. "Sister, I don't know what you mean."

"We don't need to beat around the bush; you, Shen Liang, and I all know the truth. But now that it's done, you can return to being Miss Tang with peace of mind. Tell Shen Liang that our relationship is one between the elder and the younger generations. When he sees me next time, he should make sure to address me as 'auntie.'"

The reason the original owner would marry a man who was paralyzed was because of Shen Liang, who was working behind the scenes. He hated the original owner and didn’t want her to take the position of the daughter of the Tang family. The best way was to let the original owner leave.

It just so happened that his grandmother was superstitious and wanted to find a partner for her paralyzed son. So, he secretly tried to inspire the elders of the Shen and Tang families to arrange this marriage. A vulgar woman and a handicapped man, a natural match.

The original owner was sold, and ‘Tang Rou’ was the one who took advantage of the situation. Tang Rou was aware of this from beginning to end. She didn't actively participate, but she didn't intervene either. While others engaged in wrongdoings, she reaped the benefits. This was a characteristic of her personality.

The original owner had lacked love since childhood, so she was very jealous of Tang Rou's possession of her parent's affection.

However, now that she owned this body. She was born as a piece of ancient and profound iron. There was nothing worth reminiscing about in this distorted family relationship. So, she let Tang Rou enjoy it alone.

Tang Qiaoqiao picked up the dessert box, and the corners of her mouth curled. "I'm leaving now. Take your time with the coffee. Sister, consider this treat on me."

Tang Rou's expression became very ugly.

---

"Madam, you're back. Since you left, the Master refused to eat and drove the nurse away. Alas, this is the eighteenth nurse he’s scolded."

Aunt Wang reported the situation upon Tang Qiaoqiao's return, now acknowledging her as the official mistress of this villa.

"Okay, I see." Tang Qiaoqiao didn't go upstairs to see him directly but headed to the kitchen. It was already past seven in the evening, and she herself felt hungry.

Considering Shen Yue hadn't eaten since the morning, he must have been even more hungry. Hungry people tended to have a bad temper, so this time, he needed something hearty to eat.

Tang Qiaoqiao took out a locally-grown chicken that weighed about one kilogram. She chopped it into small pieces and blanched it in a pot under cold water to remove impurities.

The fresh chestnuts were plump and large, with yellow and white flesh that was crisp and sweet when eaten raw. After the oil heated up in the pot, Tang Qiaoqiao stir-fried the chestnuts until they were golden brown and set them aside.

Then, she added the onion, ginger, garlic, and other seasonings to the chicken and stir-fried them together. This locally-grown chicken was grown in the mountains. The meat was tender and had no smell. After a few minutes, the skin was slightly curled, and chicken fat began oozing out, with the scent bursting into the air.

As the aroma wafted around the kitchen, she poured the cooking wine, added hot water, and turned the fire to medium heat. When the chicken was almost done, she added the chestnuts and let the dish simmer.

Tang Qiaoqiao then beat four eggs until they turned a bright yellow color. Then, she blanched the tomatoes in hot water, peeled them, cut them into pieces, and fried them to let out the juice before pouring in the beaten eggs. Next, she added minced garlic and seasonings to fry them in the pot.

While waiting for the chicken to simmer, Tang Qiaoqiao quickly made a mixed mushroom soup with tea tree mushrooms, crab-flavored mushrooms, and shiitake mushrooms.

After Tang Qiaoqiao put the dishes on the dinner table one by one, she walked upstairs.

She knocked on the door politely three times. "It’s me."

The room was dark. She fumbled around before turning on the light. The man leaned against the head of the bed, still maintaining an expression of repelling others a thousand miles away.

"I'm back."

Shen Yue turned around and turned his back to her, as if to say that she had nothing to do with him.

Tang Qiaoqiao didn't feel annoyed. She scanned the room and went straight to the corner where the wheelchair was placed.

Shen Yue hadn't been downstairs for a long time, and a thin layer of dust had accumulated on the wheelchair. Tang Qiaoqiao carefully wiped it clean with a wet towel and pushed it towards his bed.

Shen Yue raised his gaze and looked at her. With a cold tone, he said, "What do you want to do?"

"I went to the company today. I wanted to tell you, but you fell asleep. Then I went to buy clothes. I can't wear the clothes in my closet because they're so ugly. I came back late after shopping around. Are you hungry? I've already made a meal. Let's go downstairs and eat."

Her voice was soft and waxy as if no matter how he posed and lost his temper, she would not be angry. It was like punching cotton.

"Not going. Serve it here."

"You’ve stayed all day in this room. Don't you feel stuffy?"

"Nothing to do with you."

"Think about it, constantly eating on the bed would leave a lingering scent of food. Moreover, if you accidentally spilled soup on the bed, it would get soggy, leaving you to lie on it at night with all those smells. Tsk tsk. After a while, those stinky and greasy smells would be like rotten fermented pickles, sour and reeking."

Tang Qiaoqiao remembered in her previous world how some cooks didn’t like to be clean. Their chef uniforms were not changed for a long time. The smell was so sour and unbearable that she almost fainted several times.

She hated dirty men the most.

Shen Yue didn't think there was anything wrong with eating in bed. But after she said that, there seemed to be an unopened big pickle jar in front of him, and he was soaking in it.

Shen Yue's face became sullen. "Push the wheelchair here."

"Ok!" Tang Qiaoqiao narrowed her eyes with a smile.

Tang Qiaoqiao lifted the blanket. First, she gently pulled his legs off the bed and onto the ground before she placed Shen Yue's right hand on her shoulder and supported him to stand up.

Shen Yue hugged the woman's thin shoulders. The side of her face was so close to his hand. Her ears were small and round, decorated with a light blue earring. When she turned her head slightly, the ends of her ponytail lightly brushed his cheek.

Shen Yue stumbled in a daze, but he managed to sit in the wheelchair before he could fall. However, due to this unexpected move, Tang Qiaoqiao lost her balance, and fell into the man's arms.

The scene was terribly silent for a while.

Shen Yue's face was gloomy and frightening. His voice hissed out from between his teeth, "Your hand!"

"Huh?" Tang Qiaoqiao was dazed and initially couldn’t comprehend his words.

"Move it away!"

Tang Qiaoqiao realized she had accidentally pressed his lower body. She pulled her hand away and murmured, "Just an accident… It's just a place where people pee from. Who doesn't have it?"

'Human beings are good at everything but have so many miscellaneous rules. So troublesome.'

"You..."

Shen Yue was so furious seeing her innocent expression that the veins on his temple began to throb.

'She really is shameless!'

Although the villa was only three stories high, two elevators were installed to facilitate Shen Yue's travel.

When Aunt Wang saw that Tang Qiaoqiao managed to invite Shen Yue downstairs, she was overjoyed. She hurriedly arranged the tableware for them, then quietly stepped back, leaving the two of them alone.

Shen Yue's face was tense all the way down. Only after seeing the steaming food on the table did he relax a little.

Tang Qiaoqiao smiled and said, "Eat."

Shen Yue glanced at her with an indifferent gaze. ‘It was only a meal, there was no need to be so enthusiastic; truly an uncultured person.’

He thought so in his mind, but after taking a bite of chicken and savoring its flavor, he had to admit—it was a pleasure to enjoy good food.

The stewed chicken was very tender, and the meat slid off the bones with the slightest bite. There was no gamey smell at all. The fresh aroma of chicken and the sweetness of chestnut blended together nicely. The taste was mellow, a little bit oily, but not greasy.

The scrambled eggs with tomatoes were distinctively red and yellow, and the sauce was sweet and sour. Shen Yue took a spoonful and mixed it with white rice—the perfect combo.

He took another bite of the mixed mushroom soup seasoned with only a sprinkle of salt and pepper. The umami flavor of the mushroom itself filled his mouth. It was satiating and refreshing.

After the hearty meal, Tang Qiaoqiao was satisfied. She leaned back and let out a long sigh of relief.

'Comfortable!'

She looked at the man on the opposite side. He was not slow at eating, but his movements were very elegant and quiet. He deserved to be the son of a wealthy family.

Tang Qiaoqiao propped her chin and notified him, "I'm going to record a show tomorrow."

Shen Yue paused and said, "You have working legs. You can go wherever you want to."

"What do you want to eat? I will prepare it in advance and put it in the refrigerator."

"Whatever." Shen Yue choked out as he revealed his icy expression to her once again.

Tang Qiaoqiao nodded. "It's good if you are not picky, just like me."

Shen Yue: ...

'Can't this woman hear his words properly?'

"Tomorrow, if you’re hungry, let Aunt Wang heat it up for you. Don't go on a hunger strike again. Otherwise, before your legs are cured, your internal organs will be ruined."

Shen Yue's hand under the table was tightly squeezed into a fist.

His legs couldn’t be cured.

Tang Qiaoqiao blinked. Leg treatment with spiritual qi was definitely incomprehensible for ordinary people. It was still necessary to proceed step by step and give him a surprise at that time.

---

At ten o'clock the next morning, Tang Qiaoqiao arrived at the recording site of 'Wonderful Food,’ a lively commercial street.

'Wonderful Food' was a live broadcast program. In addition to Tang Qiaoqiao, the other five guests included the popular actress Zhou Meng, the young popular star Hu Miao, the old drama actor Wang Qiang, the promising Peking opera actress Xiao Ke, and the idol Wei Yiqi.

Compared to them, the 18th-line actress Tang Qiaoqiao was at the bottom of the food chain.

After the people introduced themselves to each other, the director decided to speak.

"Everyone, welcome to our 'Wonderful Food’ broadcast. We are a brand-new reality show for the food business. Behind you is a dining area, which is divided into three separate stalls. You will be placed into groups of two, with one area for each group. Ingredient purchasing, menu production, and sales are all your own responsibilities. The group that makes the most money will be the winner."

The director smiled. "Aren't the rules very crude and simple?"

Zhou Meng, the most popular among the guests and the one with the most authority, asked, "What about the capital?"

"Good question!" the director laughed, "Each group will get one thousand yuan in start-up capital."

"Only one thousand? Nowadays, it costs more than one thousand just to go out for a meal." Hu Miao couldn't help complaining.

The director waved his hand. "Only one thousand. You allocate where to use it yourself. Moreover, the stalls were divided into three categories—top, medium, and bottom. The condition for the top-level stall is the best, and the bottom-level is the worst. You will draw lots after grouping."

When this rule came out, the six individuals looked at each other.

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