Huayu: Starting from retirement, sweeping across the domestic entertainment industry

Around noon, Li Ran heard the doorbell ring.

He got up from the sofa. Ta Xue, who had been dozing beside his legs, was startled and pricked up her ears, turning her little head alertly toward the door.

Li Ran opened the door, and as expected, Liu Haocun was standing outside.

Today she wore a cream-colored knitted cardigan, jeans, and canvas shoes, with her hair loosely tied in a low ponytail, a few stray hairs falling beside her cheeks.

He was carrying a paper bag.

Those signature doe eyes were now peering eagerly into the house, over his shoulder.

"Hello Li Ran! Where's Ta Xue?" She poked her head out, her voice filled with barely suppressed excitement.

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a small, black and silver ball of fluff came running over from the living room.

Four tiny white paws made a soft pattering sound on the floor, while the severed tail wagged as if it were powered by a motor.

Li Ran raised an eyebrow slightly.

Ta Xue is very smart. Last night, Wang Chu Ran only used snacks to train it a few times, and it remembered its name.

"Come in."

He stepped aside, "The slippers are on the lower shelf of the cabinet on the right."

Liu Haocun responded and bent down to change her shoes. Her movements were very natural as she casually handed the paper bag to Li Ran.

"These are treats I bought for Taxue. They're imported and the kind that puppies can eat."

She changed into slippers, squatted down, and immediately looked at Taxue, who was lying on the edge of the entryway, looking up at her.

"Hello, snowflakes~"

Ta Xue tilted her head, her little nose twitching, and cautiously sniffed her fingertips.

They neither immediately approached nor avoided each other, maintaining a wait-and-see attitude.

Li Ran watched from the side, a smile appearing on his lips: "It's not familiar with you yet, but it'll recognize you after I feed it some treats later."

Upon hearing this, Liu Haocun immediately stood up and snatched the paper bag back from Li Ran's hand.

Her fingertips lightly brushed across his palm, barely touching it, with just the right touch.

She didn't look at him, but lowered her head to open the snack bag, as if it were just an unintentional touch.

But Li Ran clearly realized that she was doing it on purpose.

He didn't say anything, just put his hands in his pockets and moved aside.

Liu Hao sat down on the sofa, tore open a bag of chicken breast jerky, and the aroma immediately wafted out.

She gently waved the snacks in her hand, her voice soft: "Ta Xue, come here, there's something yummy."

Ta Xue's ears twitched.

It glanced at Li Ran, then at the bag of fragrant jerky in Liu Haocun's hand, and hesitated for about two seconds.

Then, without hesitation, he took off running over with his short legs.

Li Ran: This dog is a real dog; it'll follow whoever feeds it.

Liu Haocun smiled so hard his eyes curved into two crescent moons as he handed the dried meat to Taxue's lips.

The little guy caught it in his mouth and wagged his tail like a rattle.

She scooped it into her arms and rubbed its ears. "Ta Xue, you're such a good girl!"

Ta Xue was focused on eating the jerky in her mouth and gave a perfunctory "woof".

Li Ran sat down next to him, his tone icy: "Snobbish dog."

"That's called having good taste, choosing the right person." Liu Haocun turned Taxue over and rubbed her belly without looking up.

There was silence for a few seconds.

Liu Haocun suddenly raised his head, looking at him with bright eyes.

"It's already noon, is lunch provided?"

She tilted her head. "I really read 'Mao Xue Wang' carefully, you know. I've been craving Chef Li's braised pork for so long."

Li Ran stood up. "There's some pork belly in the fridge. I'll go cook. You play with Taxue."

"Then I'll wait for Chef Li's delicious food!" she said to Li Ran with a smile.

In the kitchen, Li Ran began to prepare the pork belly, blanching it, caramelizing the sugar, adding cooking wine and soy sauce, and then adding hot water to cover the meat. His movements were fluid and efficient.

The aroma of meat gradually filled the room.

Liu Haocun did not come in to disturb them.

She sat in the living room with Ta Xue in her arms, as if talking to Ta Xue. Her voice was soft and the content was indistinct, with only occasional laughter drifting into the kitchen.

Just as the braised pork was about to reduce its sauce, Liu Haocun suddenly appeared at the kitchen door.

With her hands behind her back, she leaned slightly forward to peek inside, her doe-like eyes gleaming with a greedy light.

"It smells so good! My mouth is watering."

Li Ran didn't turn around, but gently pushed the glistening, dark brown meat chunks with a spatula: "Almost done, just two more minutes."

"I can't wait."

She took a step closer and stood beside him. "Let me try a piece first."

Li Ran turned to look at her, and she blinked her bright, doe-like eyes expectantly.

He lowered his head, picked up a small piece of lean pork belly with his chopsticks, and held it to her mouth.

Liu Haocun immediately leaned forward and opened his mouth to catch it.

It was probably a little hot; her cheeks puffed out, and she took a gentle breath, like a little hamster that had stolen a bite of hot food.

After swallowing, she licked her lips, her eyes sparkling, and then suddenly frowned.

"It's delicious, but why didn't you blow it cool before giving it to me?"

Her tone carried a hint of reproach, but it wasn't a real complaint; it was more like a coquettish accusation.

"How come you don't know how to take care of girls at all?"

Li Ran looked at her.

She was complaining, but there was a smile in her eyes—the kind of smile that comes from knowingly doing something wrong and deliberately picking a fight.

That's really a master.

He smiled, ignored the remark, and turned to get a bowl: "Alright, help serve the dishes."

The two brought the food to the table.

Liu Haocun picked up a piece of braised pork, put it in his mouth, squinted his eyes with satisfaction, and let out a soft "Mmm".

She swallowed and said earnestly, "Li Ran, your cooking is amazing, it's so delicious."

After dinner, neither of them wanted to move and they both lay down on the sofa.

Liu Haocun slumped on one end of the sofa, patted his belly, and said with a satisfied tone, "Oh no, I ate too much. I feel like I'm getting a little belly."

Li Ran glanced at her.

She was wearing high-waisted jeans today, with her top tucked in, showing off her incredibly slender waist.

"Aren't you a dance student? Why are you eating so much?"

"Dance students need to eat too, you know."

She turned her head to look at Li Ran, her eyes crinkling: "Can I come to your house for meals from now on? Don't worry, I won't eat for free. I'll bring snacks for Taxue, and you can cook me something delicious."

He was silent for two seconds.

Ta Xue emerged from under the sofa at some point, happily chewing on the teething toy Liu Haocun had brought.

"Come whenever you want, no need to bring anything for Taxue, it's eaten enough."

Liu Haocun laughed, scooped Ta Xue into his arms, and rested his chin on its fluffy head.

"I'll remember that."

The afternoon passed both slowly and quickly.

They chatted casually, from the script of "A Little Red Flower" to their respective experiences entering the industry, from their understanding of the characters to their views on acting.

Liu Haocun also told Li Ran about the various interesting stories she had while filming "One Second".

They also pressed him about his past as a professional gamer.

She asked questions about everything, big and small, as if she wanted to know more about her colleague who would soon be filming with her.

It was approaching evening.

Liu Haocun got up and went to the kitchen to wash the dishes they had used for lunch.

Li Ran stood at the door, quietly watching her back, and chuckled softly.

"From now on, I'll do the dishes, and you'll cook."

Without turning her head, she said, "I can't just take advantage of you."

Seeing that she had washed the dishes and chopsticks clean, Li Ran handed her a clean towel.

She casually took it, wiped her hands, and smiled, saying, "How is it? Clean, right?"

Li Ran pointed behind her, "Actually, there's a dishwasher there."

Liu Haocun glanced back, tossed the towel to him, and said somewhat angrily, "You're so annoying~"

Before leaving, Liu Hao bent down in the entryway and picked up Ta Xue from the ground.

"I'll return the script to you at the script reading tomorrow." She held the dog, looked up at Li Ran, and spoke in a relaxed tone.

Li Ran looked at Taxue, the little guy nestled comfortably in her arms, wagging his tail contentedly, completely unaware that he was about to be "kidnapped".

"Okay, as long as you don't find it annoying."

"How could that be?" Liu Haocun lowered his head and rubbed Ta Xue's ear.

"I've even prepared a doghouse, a new water fountain, and a dog bowl."

Li Ran chuckled, "Looks like you planned this all along, coming here to steal the dog!"

She looked up at Li Ran with a bright smile: "No, that's not it! I came here to steal his heart, but it seems I didn't succeed."

She tilted her head, her voice softening, "I had no choice but to settle for second best and steal a puppy."

Li Ran gazed at her with a smile on his face, without saying a word.

Feeling a little embarrassed that he had been seen, Liu Haocun said softly, "Okay, I'm leaving now!"

She took a step back and lifted Ta Xue up a bit. "See you tomorrow!"

Before he could answer, she turned around, picked up the dog, and walked out the door with light steps.

Ta Xue perched on her shoulder, its tail wagging, its beady black eyes gazing at Li Ran with obvious delight.

Li Ran looked down at the empty entryway.

There were still her slippers lying there, crooked and twisted, with the toes pointing towards the door.

Inside the elevator, Liu Haocun buried his face in Ta Xue's back and chuckled softly.

Ta Xue was a little breathless from being squeezed, and let out a soft "woof".

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," she quickly let go of it, looked down at it, her eyes were curved, and there were tiny glimmers of water in them.

"Your dad doesn't seem to be completely oblivious, does he?"

Ta Xue tilted her head, not understanding what the humans were saying.

It just wagged its tail and grinned foolishly.