The younger sister mistakenly identified her brother when visiting relatives and was kissed by the c

But seeing her older brother's moved expression, as if saying "Lu Baizhou is truly an unparalleled good brother," Qiao Xinxin swallowed back the retort that was about to come out.

She could only manage a couple of dry laughs, her lips twitching wildly, as she weakly echoed, "Hehe...yes, that's really...thank you so much, Commander Lu."

Bai Zhengyuan, oblivious to everything, slapped his thigh and abruptly stood up: "Then it's settled! Tonight, let's invite Bai Zhou over for dinner too! Our whole family will properly thank him! Xin Xin, are you okay?"

"Of course, no problem!"

Qiao Xinxin answered exceptionally loudly, waving her little hand with great enthusiasm: "More people mean more chopsticks, and besides, Brother Lu has helped me so much, it's only right to treat him to a meal!"

"Alright!" Bai Zhengyuan strode to the square table in the corner of the living room, grabbed the black crank telephone, and skillfully dialed the number for the regimental commander's office.

"Hey, Bai Zhou? It's me, Zheng Yuan!"

As soon as the call connected, Bai Zhengyuan's booming voice made the roof vibrate, "Are you free tonight? Come over for dinner! Yes, my sister is cooking herself, saying she wants to properly thank you for taking care of me these past few days! Yes, it's her! You absolutely have to come! Okay, it's a deal then, 7 PM sharp!"

After hanging up the phone, Bai Zhengyuan turned to look at Qiao Xinxin, his resolute face showing a hint of older brother's pride: "It's all settled! Xinxin, tonight's the day. You'd better show that kid your 'Imperial Kitchen' skills!"

Qiao Xinxin patted her chest, her soft voice full of confidence: "Brother, don't worry, I definitely won't let you down!"

That afternoon, Qiao Xinxin plunged into the kitchen and began to show off her culinary skills.

While Bai's mother was tidying up the house outside, she had a thought and directly retrieved the top-quality ingredients she had stocked up on in her spatial storage.

To avoid arousing suspicion, she found a worn-out bamboo basket and several coarse cloth bags, filled them to the brim, and claimed that she had gone to the market early that morning to buy them.

Anyway, since Mr. and Mrs. Bai were newcomers to the capital, they had no idea where the prices were or where the markets were.

Five pounds of cleaned and fresh pig's trotters, three pounds of plump chicken feet, two pounds of duck wings, two pounds of thick white tofu, plus a large basket of free-range eggs.

That's not all. Next to it were fresh spare ribs, a two-pound grass carp, half a free-range chicken, plus fresh green vegetables and tofu, which crammed the already small kitchen so much that there was hardly any room to move.

Bai's mother, wearing an apron, came in and gasped, slapping her thigh in distress. "My goodness! Xin Xin, why did you buy so much meat? How many dishes are you going to cook? There are just a few of us, plus Comrade Lu, we can't possibly eat all this! How much money are you wasting!"

While deftly blanching the pig's trotters, Qiao Xinxin turned to Bai's mother with a sweet smile, explaining in a mix of coaxing and deception, "Mom, it's rare to invite Brother Lu over for a meal. He's helped our family a lot, we can't let him feel ashamed in the army because of our meager meal, can we?"

Seeing that her mother still looked pained, she quickly used her trump card: "Besides, Mom, this isn't just about treating guests! I'm just teaching you how to make that imperial braised dish! Let's make a lot, so you can memorize the steps and we'll be more confident when we set up our stall later, right?"

Upon hearing that it was for a legitimate reason to earn money, Bai's mother's initial pang of heartache was instantly replaced by enthusiasm. She immediately rolled up her sleeves and stepped forward: "Yes, yes, yes! The important thing is to get things done! Come on, Mom will help you. Just tell me how to do it, and I'll do it!"

The mother and daughter were busy in the kitchen, the sounds of knives clattering against the counter and pots and pans clattering incessantly.

Time flies, and it was already past six o'clock in the evening.

As time went on, the aroma wafting from the kitchen grew stronger and stronger.

The aroma of star anise, cinnamon, and bay leaves mingled with the caramelized scent of rock sugar, combined with the rich aroma of meat fat—it was simply irresistible! The various aromas of meat, braised dishes, and vegetables intertwined and wafted forcefully through the cracks in doors and windows, rampaging through the entire corridor of the apartment building.

Next door, Sister He Hongying was squatting at her doorstep, slurping up cornmeal porridge from a large enamel bowl. She took a big gulp of the aroma and froze, almost dropping her chopsticks.

"My goodness!"

He Hongying suddenly stood up, sniffed hard, her eyes wide like saucers, and followed the smell to Qiao Xinxin's door, peeking inside. "What delicious food is Battalion Commander Bai making? It smells so good! This aroma is simply irresistible!"

Just then, Qiao Xinxin came out of the kitchen carrying a plate of freshly cooked braised pork ribs.

The ribs were coated in a thick, red sauce, sprinkled with bright green scallions, and were still sizzling with heat.

Seeing Sister He standing at the door, swallowing hard, Qiao Xinxin smiled and greeted her, "Sister He, have you eaten? I just made some ribs, would you like to come in and have some?"

He Hongying stared intently at the plate of ribs, swallowed hard, and quickly waved her hands, "No, no! I've already eaten! I just... the smell was so good, I couldn't resist! Xin Xin, your cooking skills are amazing! Not just in our compound, this tastes a million times better than anything the chefs at the state-run restaurants can make!"

Qiao Xinxin was a little embarrassed by the praise, revealing two shallow dimples. She smiled charmingly and said, "Sister He, you're too kind. I'll bring you some to try when I have time!" After saying that, she turned around and darted back into the kitchen like a busy little bee.

It was exactly 7 p.m.

"Knock knock knock!"

Three steady, forceful knocks sounded precisely on the door.

"It must be Bai Zhou!" Bai Zhengyuan strode over and opened the door with a click.

Standing outside the door was Lu Baizhou, who had just come down from the training field.

He clearly hadn't had time to change his clothes yet; his crisp military green shirt clung tightly to his body, the fabric slightly taut from being soaked with sweat and dried by his body heat, outlining his broad shoulders and incredibly powerful, muscular chest.

He was extremely tall, with his back ramrod straight like a javelin, exuding an aura of fierceness and heroism befitting a top soldier, someone who kept strangers at bay.

"You're here? Come in quickly!" Bai Zhengyuan warmly put his arm around his shoulder and ushered him into the house.

Lu Baizhou strode into the living room with his long legs, his dark and deep eyes subconsciously scanning the area like radar.

The room was clean and tidy, and several steaming hot dishes were already laid out on the square table. The air was filled with an irresistible aroma that made people's mouths water.

Finally, his gaze pierced through the rising steam and landed precisely on Qiao Xinxin, who was carrying dishes out of the kitchen.