A Young Woman's Heart

"Oh, oh, I forgot, I forgot." Chen Cheng chuckled sheepishly, quickly stuffing the cigarettes back into the pack. "Need any help?"

"No need, you can just sit here." Zhuang Lianlian smiled. As everything gradually passed and the pain was made up for by sweetness, her true personality was revealed. She was no longer as timid as before; in fact, she was a generous and poised girl.

The most important part of braised noodles is the broth, since the noodles are just briefly boiled in water and then taken out; all the flavor comes from the broth.

Chen Cheng sat on the sofa pretending to watch TV, glancing at Zhuang Lianlian from time to time, because her movements were so clumsy that she didn't seem like someone who cooked often.

He felt that he was even more skilled than her.

The cut vegetables were also of different sizes and their shapes were not very regular.

This made him very worried that she might cut her hand.

Fortunately, this did not happen.

But she still almost got scalded by the soup.

"Are you alright?" Chen Cheng asked anxiously.

"It's alright..." Zhuang Lianlian washed the back of her hands with cold water. "You just need to sit down."

"Row……"

And so, what should have been a half-hour or less noodle dish took Zhuang Lianlian a full hour to complete, as she secretly peeked at the recipe written on a piece of paper and tried to learn how to make it.

When the two bowls of noodle soup were placed on the table, Chen Cheng couldn't help but shrink back.

The presentation wasn't very appealing. I don't know if there was too much soy sauce, but the broth was all dark and had various vegetables floating on it that looked like unidentified plankton.

"Want to try it?"

"Okay." Chen Cheng tried his best to overcome his fear and carefully used his chopsticks to pick up a little noodle and put it in his mouth.

Fortunately, although the noodles were a bit bland, they were still edible.

It just had a strange smell that I couldn't quite put my finger on.

He took another sip of soup and almost choked to death.

"Cough, cough, cough—"

"what happened?"

"It's nothing..." he said defiantly.

This soup was sour and salty, with a strange sweet and astringent taste. It was not delicious at all, but absolutely awful.

"Is it not tasty?" Zhuang Lianlian asked in confusion.

"It's alright." He tried to make his expression look normal.

"Hmm, I'll try it."

"Cough, no... ah... um, I mean, I don't have enough to eat!" Chen Cheng quickly poured Zhuang Lianlian's noodles into his own large bowl. "Mmm, it's so delicious, I'll finish this first!"

This was probably the fastest he had ever eaten noodles in his life.

Moreover, they not only finished the noodles, but also the soup.

He patted his stomach and let out a burp, feeling his tongue go numb.

"Is it so delicious?" Zhuang Lianlian's face flushed. "Then I'll make it for you again next time."

"Ah... okay, I'll do it with you next time."

"No need, no need, I'm fine on my own."

"It's alright, teamwork makes the dream work," Chen Cheng said, wiping his sweat. "Speaking of which, you haven't eaten yet. Shall I go make you something?"

"It's okay, I'll just make another one. This time it'll be quick because there are still some ingredients left."

"Haha, I'll do it this time." Chen Cheng rolled up his sleeves. "Actually, I can also make braised noodles."

"Really?" Zhuang Lianlian looked doubtful.

"Yes, it might not taste very good, but... no, it probably isn't as good as yours, but it's still alright." He said, then quickly went into the kitchen and, after fiddling around for a while, brought out a bowl of noodles with braised meat sauce.

Putting aside the taste, the color alone makes it look more appetizing than Zhuang Lianlian's; at least it looks normal.

"Hmm—it tastes pretty good."

"Haha, how about I cook from now on? Anyway, I get out of school early and I'm just sitting around doing nothing at home," Chen Cheng said, seizing the opportunity. "That way you won't have to work so hard."

"Well……"

"If you really want to do housework together, you can help me wash the dishes."

"Do men cook?" Zhuang Lianlian tilted her head.

"What's so strange about men cooking? We live in a new era and a new society. It should be men taking care of women."

"Hmm... well, okay then."

"Haha, then I'll do it from now on! I'll try to learn as many recipes as possible!" Chen Cheng laughed.

"Then I'll go wash the dishes." Zhuang Lianlian stood up.

Chen Cheng breathed a sigh of relief and slumped onto the sofa.

The thought of having to specifically learn how to cook later made me feel both amused and exasperated.

However, amidst this mix of laughter and tears, there was also a sense of fulfilling happiness.

It turns out that doing things for others is not a painful thing; on the contrary, it can be very fulfilling and satisfying.

Especially when you're making sacrifices for someone you like.

Just as Chen Cheng was lost in thought, Zhuang Lianlian, who had finished washing the dishes, came out and leaned on his back, whispering, "Actually, it tastes pretty bad, doesn't it?"

"what?"

"I'm going to take a shower." Zhuang Lianlian smiled and winked at him.

How could a sensitive girl not notice something amiss?

……

Chapter 79 Teachers are ordinary people too

"Today is February 23, 2000. The average temperature is 14 degrees Celsius. The weather is cloudy turning sunny with a light breeze. It's a great day to go out! Friends who are going to work in the morning, you can open your car windows and breathe in some fresh morning air..."

The Sony cassette player, which had been left on all night, stopped playing radio music and started playing the morning weather forecast.

This Sony cassette player, a gift from her godfather, could not only play cassettes but also receive radio broadcasts; she could simply turn the dial to change the channel.

If you get tired of listening to tapes, you can switch to the music channel, which will play music all night long without any announcer talking to disturb you.

However, doing so will consume more battery power.

"Ring ring ring—" The alarm clock also started vibrating at this moment, emitting a piercing ringing sound.

Half asleep, Mo Xueyao slapped the alarm clock to stop it, but the sweet weather forecast from the radio continued.

"Get up." Li Wanyan sat up immediately after hearing the alarm, which was what Mo Xueyao admired most about her.

She wakes up on time as soon as the alarm rings and never stays in bed.

She is rarely seen drowsy after waking up; she is usually wide awake as soon as she opens her eyes, as if she had never slept at all.

People like Mo Xueyao, who sleep so soundly, are very difficult to wake up.

I always linger in bed for a while, and sometimes I even dream that I'm up, only to find myself still in bed when my mother urges me to get up.

But does this indirectly prove that Li Wanyan's sleep quality is not good?

"Hmm—" Mo Xueyao responded groggily, turned over in bed, and tried to get up by supporting herself on the bed board with one hand, but she couldn't muster any strength. She opened her eyes a crack, then immediately closed them again, and fell into a short sleep in this position.

"Wake up." Li Wanyan nudged Mo Xueyao helplessly. "Otherwise, you'll be rushing to wash up again later."

"Ah, I'll get up now..." Mo Xueyao sat up with great difficulty. "Phew, it's so cold outside the covers..."

"It's warm enough today," Li Wanyan said softly, handing her clean white stockings. "Put these on first."

"Huh, are the black ones gone?"

“My godmother said they’ve all been washed,” Li Wanyan said, holding up the black one in her hand. “So, are you going to wear mine?”

"Uh, then no need..." Mo Xueyao scratched her head awkwardly and yawned widely, "Hoo-hoo—so sleepy..."

"Then lie down for a while longer. I'll go wash up and wake you up later."

"Okay—" Even though it might only be a few more minutes of sleep, Mo Xueyao lay down with a sense of relief, as if those few minutes would be enough for her to get enough sleep.

In fact, when Li Wanyan came to wake her up again, she felt like she had just closed her eyes.

"Get up." Li Wanyan patted her forehead.

"Oh—" Mo Xueyao put on white stockings in a daze, and put on her school uniform in a sleepwalking state. She finally woke up after washing her face with the cold water.

However, once you get out of bed and move around a bit, you don't feel cold anymore.

As usual, after having a breakfast of congee and pickled vegetables, the two arrived at the school.

Not long after the classroom door opened, Mr. Xue arrived.

However, he seemed very sleepy today. He yawned and staggered into the classroom, not even bothering to greet Mo Xueyao and the others. He stuffed his schoolbag into his desk and fell fast asleep.

"He didn't sleep all night, did he?" Mo Xueyao poked his cheek suspiciously, but the latter didn't react at all and instead started snoring.

"That's quite rare." Li Wanyan nodded as well.

In the early morning when there's nothing to do, Mo Xueyao likes to lie on the windowsill and look at the playground.

There are some boarding students doing their morning exercises on the playground right now, but the actual morning exercise time should be over. Those who are still doing it are obviously doing extra training for themselves.

An Ruosu was one of them.

He ran a few more laps after everyone had left before stopping and standing on the edge of the playground, drinking large gulps of cool boiled water.

Mo Xueyao turned her head and noticed that Li Wanyan was also looking at the playground intentionally or unintentionally. When she noticed her gaze, she immediately turned her head away.

After An Ruosu left, the playground fell into silence.