Chapter 332
Unable to shake off her worries, Su Xiaoxiao woke up early the next morning despite having gone to bed late. She filled the two hot water bottles and then poured some of the fountain water she’d brought from the space into the kettle, not yet turning on the heat. She sat down on the sofa in the living room.
The winter morning was dark, and Su Hongchen was startled to see her there. “What are you doing up so early? Are you still feeling unwell?” he asked, concerned.
Su Xiaoxiao shook her head. “No, I’m fine now. I was just too excited to sleep. Go get ready.”
“Really!” Su Hongchen muttered, but he didn’t press the issue and went to the bathroom.
Su Xiaoxiao wandered around the living room for a bit before heading to the kitchen. She found some noodles in the pantry, filled the pot with fountain water, and turned on the gas stove. Although gas pipelines were still being developed slowly across China, Shanghai was one of the first places to have them, so her family had used gas since she was young.
When the water boiled, Su Xiaoxiao added the noodles, two eggs, some chopped vegetables, and a little leftover meat from last night, seasoning it with a pinch of salt. The aroma of the food filled the kitchen.
Mrs. Su was surprised to see Su Xiaoxiao cooking. “What are you doing making breakfast? You should have called your brother.”
“What are you talking about?” Su Hongchen emerged from the bathroom, curious.
Mrs. Su shot him a glare. “Look at how early you got up, and yet your sister’s the one making breakfast.”
Su Hongchen’s mouth twitched. He couldn’t help but be skeptical of his sister’s cooking skills, which were often hit or miss despite following the recipe correctly.
Su Xiaoxiao felt a bit aggrieved but didn’t say much. “I’m actually quite good at cooking now. At least it’s edible. If I didn’t learn, I would have been scolded by the educated youth in the rural dormitory.”
“With four people at home and three of us already knowing how to cook, there’s no need for you to bother with it,” Mrs. Su replied, naturally dismissing the idea.
However, as the aroma of the noodles wafted through the air, she couldn’t help but be tempted.
“Well, since you’ve already made it, we’ll taste your cooking today. But don’t go through so much trouble in the future, alright?” She sighed in mild resignation, though still reminding her gently.
Xiaoxiao nodded obediently. “Okay, just this once.”
Mrs. Su then looked over at Su Hongchen, who immediately said, “I’ll serve the noodles right now.”
Once he placed four bowls of noodles on the table, Mr. Su finally got up.
Mrs. Su gave him a pointed look and smiled, “Hurry and freshen up—your daughter got up early to make these noodles.”
Caught off guard, Mr. Su stiffened, glancing at his daughter’s eager eyes. He managed a smile. “Alright, you all go ahead; I’ll join you after I wash up.”
“Dad, hurry up. If it sits too long, the noodles will get soggy,” Xiaoxiao reminded him anxiously.
Her cooking skills weren’t amazing yet, but they had improved enough that her food was no longer inedible. She didn’t want anything to ruin the noodles’ flavor.
“Okay,” Mr. Su responded, bracing himself as he went to the bathroom.
Mrs. Su and Su Hongchen exchanged a resigned glance, then each steeled themselves, picking up a mouthful of noodles.
“Hmm?”
The fresh, light flavor, combined with the rich taste from last night’s leftover meat, was surprisingly appetizing.
“Wow, sis, your cooking has really improved since you went to the countryside,” Su Hongchen said between bites, giving Xiaoxiao an enthusiastic thumbs-up.
Su Xiaoxiao’s eyes curved into happy crescents, her smile as sweet as honey.
Truthfully, whether the noodles tasted good wasn’t entirely up to her cooking skills; the real magic was in the clear, fragrant broth that brought out the flavors of the ingredients so perfectly. But that didn’t matter—since she made it herself, it counted as her cooking talent.
Before long, Mr. Su came out of the bathroom, pausing when he saw his son wolfing down the noodles. He looked questioningly at his wife, who just smiled and nodded at him encouragingly.
Hurriedly, he took a seat at the table and tried a bite. The unexpectedly rich flavor made his eyes light up with pleasant surprise, but it soon extinguished.
“Our Xiaoxiao must have suffered a lot in the countryside; otherwise, how could her cooking skills have improved so much?”
“Yes, it’s because we, as her parents, couldn’t provide better for her,” Mrs. Su added with a note of guilt.
Seeing their spirits dampen, Su Xiaoxiao quickly interjected, “Oh, don’t be like that! I really didn’t suffer for long. And with Brother Yexun by my side in the future, there’s no way I’ll be suffering at all.”
Her brother Su Hongchen huffed jealously. “You really have a lot of faith in him, don’t you?”
Su Xiaoxiao just grinned, her eyes dancing mischievously like a cat who’d gotten away with a treat.
She hadn’t made a lot of noodles, just enough for one bowl each, but there was still some broth left. After everyone poured themselves a bowl, they leaned back in their chairs to rest.
But just five minutes later, everyone’s faces began to change.
Mrs. Su, clutching her stomach, made a mad dash for the bathroom. Mr. Su and Su Hongchen turned pale, waiting anxiously by the door, then hurried off in search of a free restroom as soon as they could no longer hold out.
Watching them scramble like that, Su Xiaoxiao bit her lip in guilty realization. Right… in her eagerness to help her family “improve their health,” she’d forgotten the unfortunate side effect of everyone needing the bathroom at once.
A full forty minutes later, the three of them finally reemerged, their legs weak and wobbly. They all looked at Su Xiaoxiao with a bit of lingering fear in their eyes.
In the past, her cooking had been bad enough to ward them off early. But now that it tasted good, it had lured them in, only for their bodies to turn on them. It felt like she’d tricked them into a “trap meal.”
“Xiaoxiao, maybe you should avoid cooking in the future,” Mrs. Su said, sitting down slowly, looking very weak.
Su Xiaoxiao felt a bit wronged but nodded, agreeing. “Alright, I won’t cook anymore.”
Still curious, she asked, “Apart from stomach issues, did you feel anything else?”
She was feeling great, energized after drinking the water, so she was interested in their reactions.
“Legs feeling numb count?” Su Hongchen asked with a rueful smile.
Su Xiaoxiao was disappointed but said nothing more.
Mr. Su and Su Hongchen still had work to do regarding the steel matter today, while Mrs. Su took Su Xiaoxiao to the hospital. And, meanwhile, Jiang Yexun was just as busy.
The gold he sold yesterday had been spent on buying things, so today, he needed to sell a bit more. This time, he went out alone, with He Xingzhi following him a few minutes later. The entire way, He Xingzhi kept just close enough to see Jiang Yexun and was constantly on the lookout for any suspicious individuals who might be tailing either of them.
Once Jiang Yexun finished selling the gold and had walked halfway back, He Xingzhi caught up with him.
“Brother Ye, I can say for sure that no one was following you,” He Xingzhi reported.
Jiang Yexun’s brows furrowed deeply, but he quickly relaxed. Although he still didn’t know who was behind all this, the person was clearly wealthy and influential yet seemed to lack reliable operatives. Moreover, the three men who had failed their task on the train didn’t even bother to protect their lives. This only confirmed that the shadowy power behind them likely had ties to hostile agents. Ordinary people wouldn’t go to such ruthless lengths.
“Even if things seem fine now, make sure to stay vigilant whenever coming and going,” Jiang Yexun reminded him firmly.
He Xingzhi nodded, then said, “Last night, I went to the police station and reported my younger sister’s kidnapping from years ago. The police station here is better than back home; they even drew a sketch of her for me. With that, I should have a better chance of finding her.”
He took a piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to Jiang Yexun.
“Brother Ye, do you think this looks like my sister?” He Xingzhi asked with a bit of hesitation, worried that his memory might have betrayed him despite his firm recollection of her face.