My wife is a magical girl, how can I be the villain?

Tang Ming opened the door and returned to the house, which was already very familiar, but which evoked a strange feeling after the day's events.

He remembered smashing things a few times in the illusion...it felt pretty good, which made him feel a strange urge to look at the neat and tidy arrangement now.

Have you gone home from get off work yet?

Just as he was lost in thought, a message notification sounded. Tang Ming took out his phone, and a message popped up in Lin Ruoyu's chat window.

Just arrived.

Thaw the pork and make pork belly. I'll be home in twenty minutes.

【it is good. 】

Putting down his phone, Tang Ming unconsciously tapped on the other person's profile picture, scanned their Moments, and saw that the cover and signature were the same as usual, unchanged.

He knew his actions were meaningless and purposeless; he was just bored and would occasionally glance at other people's profiles. Tang Ming didn't know if other people had this habit.

He dared not speak, nor dared he ask.

After emptying my briefcase and pockets, I grabbed a can of Coke from the fridge for a refreshing treat. Then I took a bag from the freezer, tossed it into a stainless steel bowl, and filled it with water to defrost.

Looking at the clean and tidy counter, he figured he didn't have anything else to do, so he laid out the dishes Lin Ruoyu was going to make and prepared them, so that she would only need to cook when she got back.

Tang Ming leisurely picked through the vegetables, scrubbing off the dirt from the bottom, and soaked them in a basin full of water. Then he washed the knife and chopped the meat. Cooking for two didn't need to be fancy; usually, one meat dish, one vegetable dish, and rice were enough. Neither of them liked complicated meals.

Staring at the prepared dishes on the counter, his thoughts drifted. When did he become so skilled at making these things?

In his memory, he had hardly ever cooked a meal from childhood to adulthood. Occasionally, he would learn a few dishes to cook for his parents, and it seems that he only learned to cook in college. Yet, this simple pre-meal preparation felt very familiar to him.

It's like I've done this countless times before.

After thinking for a long time, Tang Ming couldn't recall ever doing these things before. His memories of university were filled with playing games with his buddies. Besides, in such a small dorm room, who would have the time to cook for themselves?

In the end, he attributed it to practice after getting married. Sure enough, he was exceptionally talented, and his wife only taught him a few times before he became proficient. He was much more insightful than his good buddies who were constantly being scolded by their families.

Tang Ming hummed a little tune as he walked out of the kitchen, carrying a can of cola and strolling around the house like a street urchin. When Lin Ruoyu was home, he would always subconsciously pay attention to his image and was too embarrassed to even fart.

Only when he is home alone does he dare to hunch over, tilt his head, and shuffle around the rooms in his slippers.

As he walked to the high platform next to the restaurant, his expression changed. He raised his hand, opened the top cabinet door, and took out a photo frame, the very one he had seen in the illusion earlier that day.

"Can a dream world be this realistic? I don't even remember putting this photo here..."

Tang Ming flipped the photo frame with great interest, looking at the two people in the photo with their faces pressed together, their expressions overflowing with joy, and waves crashing behind them.

Tang Ming immediately felt a surge of apology and guilt.

He dared not tell her that he couldn't recall any memories related to Lin Ruoyu, including the scene in this photo. Every time his wife looked at him, he felt as if he were invisible, her gaze passing through him and landing somewhere behind him.

Isn't that a bit unfair?

But so much time has passed, and he is increasingly at a loss as to how to talk to the other person.

In fact, when he was discharged from the hospital a year ago, the doctor had already diagnosed him with a concussion that might affect his thinking and memory, and Lin Ruoyu was aware of this.

But neither of them brought it up again soon. Perhaps he had fully recovered and returned to work, so the other person assumed he was fine...

Tang Ming shook his head, put the photo frame back exactly as it was, and didn't think about it anymore. Life was going on like this, so he figured he'd just make do for now.

Tang Ming is a very lazy person who hates trouble. He is very careful about anything that might cause chaos at home, especially since he has his own mission.

When Lin Ruoyu opened the door, she saw Tang Ming shudder, then sit with a Coke in his hand, staring blankly at the wall.

"What are you doing?" A question mark appeared above her head.

"Just wander around inside."

"I think I heard a shout when I came in. Was that you singing?"

"No, I don't think so." Tang Ming looked at Lin Ruoyu with a puzzled expression. "I'm not interested in singing."

Lin Ruoyu nodded. She must have misheard. In her eyes, Tang Ming had always been calm and even a bit old-fashioned, quite different from the carefree and playful people of his age. The "wolf howl" she heard just now must have been her imagination.

Five finger marks were left on the Coke in Tang Ming's hand. He had been humming a song and being a bit too unrestrained, and before he could even yell a few words, Lin Ruoyu came back. Cough cough...

Lin Ruoyu ignored him and went into the bedroom with her head down. After a while, she came out with a different set of clothes.

"Has the meat thawed?"

"They're all on stage," Tang Ming said, gesturing with his lips.

Lin Ruoyu tied on her apron and was surprised to see that all the side dishes were already prepared on the dining table, and the pots and pans were also ready, with the rice cooker kept warm on the side.

"They're quite efficient... everything is ready."

"Since I'm free, I'll prepare it for you first. You're the best cook."

Lin Ruoyu smiled and pursed her lips, but then, as if remembering something, her smile faded. She quickly started cooking. The other person knew her favorite styles well, so she didn't have to worry about anything else.

"Could you cook for me once in a while? I haven't had your cooking much these past few years," Lin Ruoyu said casually.

"Forget it, all I know is how to prepare. When it comes to cooking, I know nothing about oil, salt, or heat... It's not like I've never tried it before, but it never tasted good."

Tang Ming leaned against the door frame as usual, chatting with Lin Ruoyu.

"You seem like an apprentice specifically tasked with preparing dishes for the master. Did you practice this before?"

"I don't know, I've forgotten."

Tang Ming was telling the truth, but Lin Ruoyu thought he was just making things up and didn't bother to ask any further questions, so she changed the subject.

"Are you tired from work today?"

"I'm a bit tired... I have a ton of documents to process and I have to call each client one by one to ask questions."

"Hmm? You're going to be responsible for all of this?" Lin Ruoyu's eyelashes fluttered, and the smoke from the wok made her face blurry.

"Yes...it's troublesome. We have to keep an eye on all the new building materials. We also have a department responsible for their development."

"Oh, so you're still working in Fengcheng?"

"Yes, what's wrong?" Tang Ming felt that his wife had a lot of questions.

"It's nothing, it's just that I've never been to your workplace, so I don't know if your environment is good all day. I heard that the air quality in the factory is bad, and it's easy to get lung disease."

Lin Ruoyu paused for a moment, then casually poured the stir-fried pork with chili peppers into a plate and handed it to Tang Ming.

Bell peppers, not spicy.

Tang Ming was about to reply, but seeing this, he had no choice but to take it with both hands and put it in the restaurant.

Seeing Tang Ming put the dishes down and reappear at the kitchen door, Lin Ruoyu spoke up.

"How about inviting me to visit your workplace sometime, so I can understand your wife's duties?"

She smiled and looked sincerely at Tang Ming.

"what?"