The Courtyard House: Xu Damao's Aunt is the Queen of Women

noon.

Liu Hao didn't go to the cafeteria for lunch. Instead, he asked the deputy section chief, Zhong Chunli, for a pass to leave. After registering with the security guard, he jogged back to Nanluoguxiang.

The Third Steel Rolling Mill is located in Dongzhimen, less than 3 kilometers away from Nanluoguxiang in a straight line, a 20-minute walk or a 7-8 minute run.

The temperature was terribly low today; when I ran to Mao'er Hutong, my hair was already covered in frost.

After looking around and finding no one, he took out three aluminum lunch boxes—two large and one small—from his storage space.

Inside were 5 white steamed buns, 1 serving of braised bear paw, 1 serving of shark fin, and 1 serving of bird's nest.

The night before last, I slapped Yi Zhonghai, Liu Haizhong, Sha Zhu, Liu Guangtian, Liu Guangfu, and Yan Jiefang, earning 3100 Palm Coins. Last night, I also got 666 from Little Queen. Plus, after returning from treasure hunting at Prince Gong's Mansion, I caught two unlucky guys on the black market, so I have plenty of Palm Coins.

I visited the Ye family and spent some money on cigarettes, alcohol, and gifts. I still have 5540 left!

The bear paw, shark fin, and bird's nest in the system store are not expensive; this one only costs 650 coins.

The coins earned from the little queen were used to buy food to repay her.

If you want to eat something good from now on, just obediently stick your nose up...

Carrying my lunchbox back to courtyard number 95, I found no one in the front yard because it was during working hours and the weather was cold.

Upon reaching the central courtyard, Jia Zhangshi, who had just returned from the backyard, shrank back and quickly hid far away when she saw Liu Hao.

Only after Liu Hao had gone far away did he dare to curse under his breath.

She was terrified of Ye Juan's beating yesterday, and her body was covered in bruises. She had to take several painkillers last night before she could fall asleep.

Liu Hao ignored Jia Zhangshi, walked to the backyard, greeted Dong Mengshi who was still picking up bricks, and opened the door to return to the west wing.

Inside the room, Ye Juan had only woken up half an hour ago. Her body no longer felt sore and weak as in the morning, as if it were about to fall apart, but it still ached a little.

After resting in the warm bed for a while, her stomach started growling with hunger. She struggled to get up, got dressed, and moved to the doorway, leaning against the wall, intending to reheat the leftovers from last night, eat them, and then go back to sleep.

As soon as he opened the bedroom door, Liu Hao pushed open the living room door.

Looking at Liu Hao, whose head was covered in frost and who was carrying a lunchbox, her eyes welled up with tears. She said with heartache, "It's so cold, and the road is slippery. You really are... Come inside and warm up."

"I said I'd bring you food, so I have to."

Liu Hao closed the door, reached for a towel on the washbasin stand by the wall to rub his hair, walked to the bedroom door, bent down and kissed the little queen.

"I brought you something good, guess what it is?"

Ye Juan reached out and pulled Liu Hao into the house, casually saying, "What else can they make in the canteen? I've been working here for twenty days, and it's either stir-fried cabbage or stewed potatoes. The only exception was on New Year's Day, when they stewed radishes with fatty pork. Everyone was scrambling to scoop up the bits of oil floating on top, just so they could mix that little bit of oil with their cornbread."

"Who told you it was food from the cafeteria?"

"Huh? What does that mean?"

Liu Hao placed the lunchbox on the desk in front of the kang (a heated brick bed), folded the quilt and put it aside, reached out and picked up Ye Juan, gently placed her on the kang, and then took the kang table and placed it in front of Ye Juan.

"What did you say you wanted to eat this morning?"

Ye Juan was completely bewildered, recalling the nonsense she had said when Liu Hao woke up that morning.

"Oh my goodness, don't give me that nonsense. Is there some kind of bear paw, shark fin, or bird's nest in that lunchbox?"

"..."

This strong corn smell is really ruining the atmosphere.

Liu Hao raised his eyebrows smugly, placed the lunchboxes on the table, and opened them one by one. A tempting aroma of meat mixed with the smell of thick soup wafted out.

The first box contained five white steamed buns, the second box contained braised bear paw and shark fin, with each white shark fin needle clearly visible, coated in light brown braising sauce, and the small lunchbox contained clear and translucent bird's nest.

Ye Juan was dumbfounded, staring blankly at these things that money couldn't buy. After a long while, she said in a trembling voice, "You...where did you get them from...?"

As soon as she spoke, she suddenly remembered what her mother had said to her in the kitchen the night before last.

One sentence was emphasized repeatedly: men should be responsible for external affairs and women for internal affairs. Just take good care of the household and don't interfere too much in men's affairs. Don't ask too many questions about men's affairs. If he says something, just listen to him. If he doesn't say something, don't pry.

She swallowed the rest of her words, her eyes reddening, and asked, "Why are you so good to me?"

Liu Hao sat down on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), put his arm around her slender waist, and said softly, "You're my precious wife. If I don't treat you well, who else can I treat well?"

Yes, I'm his wife, we have a marriage certificate, and it's for life.

Ye Juan chuckled and snuggled into Liu Hao's arms.

"I will be good to you too, only to you, for the rest of my life."

"Okay, let's eat. I'll get you some chopsticks."

"Would you like me some chopsticks?"

Ye Juan blinked her big eyes, puzzled, and asked, "Aren't you going to eat? Or have you already eaten?"

"Didn't you see this is for one person?"

Ye Juan looked down at the lunchbox containing at least a pound and a half of bear paws, half a pound of shark fin, four ounces of bird's nest, and five large steamed buns, and her fair, jade-like face flushed red instantly.

"Hey Liu, in your eyes, am I as edible as a pig?"

"Pretty much the same, the difference is, you're a pot-bellied pig!"

Liu Hao laughed loudly, jumped up and ran away, which made Ye Juan sit on the kang (a heated brick bed) and gesticulate wildly in anger.

Although my appetite is indeed slightly larger than normal, it shouldn't be this much, right?

Hmm... if I eat as much as I want, I could finish it.

Ye Juan lowered her head and took a deep breath of the fragrance, her face full of a smug smile.

My man is really capable!

"Honey, get me another spoon."

"How annoying, why didn't you say so earlier?"

Liu Hao, who had reached the door, turned back to the kitchen and grabbed an aluminum soup ladle.

"Eat quickly, I'll heat up the leftover chicken from last night and mix it with rice."

Ye Juan quickly said, "You haven't eaten? I can't finish it, let's eat together."

"This is a nutritious meal, specially made for you. Although I lost some nutrients last night, you ate them all. How does it taste?"

"Get lost!"

Ye Juan rolled her eyes, ignoring the jerk, picked up her spoon and took a sip of bird's nest soup before happily eating dry rice.

Liu Hao reached out and tied her long, flowing hair up with a cloth ribbon, then hummed a song as he went to the kitchen to heat up the dishes.

There were eight pieces of chicken and six pieces of braised pork left, so he simply poured them all into the pot. There was also half a pot of rice in the four-liter aluminum pot, so he poured it all in, stirred it with a spatula until it was hot, scooped it into the pot, grabbed a large soup ladle, carried the pot back to the bedroom, kicked off his shoes, and climbed onto the kang (a heated brick bed).

Ye Juan, who was gnawing on a bear paw, laughed and playfully spat, "You're a pig too!"

"Hey, I'm the boar, and you're the sow."

"..."

Ye Juan was completely convinced. This guy's thought process was completely different from those men who valued masculinity and acted with an air of superiority.

When it comes to arguing, he's shameless and can't stand being at a disadvantage; he only wants to win!

"Eat your food! Why are you looking at me? Do you think I'd eat if I had gold trim on my face?"

Seeing Ye Juan staring at him, Liu Hao mumbled a retort.

Ye Juan couldn't help but laugh out loud. She reached out and plucked the rice grains stuck to Liu Hao's face, then put them in her mouth to taste them.

"I'll watch it, I'll watch it if I want, it's none of your business!"