The man’s hands were well-defined, slender, and beautiful. Her gaze shifted slightly and nded on his shopping cart, filled with pre-packaged meals. Looking up, she found the owner of those hands also looking down at her.

  Su Yumian smiled, “You’re not seriously having just this for dinner, are you?”

  Ahem

  “Sometimes I get home too te and don’t feel like ordering takeout, so I just eat whatever,” Shao Wenbai replied casually.

  “I did the math. These provide enough protein, vitamins, and carbs for a day.”

  Watching him expin so seriously, Su Yumian couldn’t help but chuckle. “Looks like Professor Shao has scientifically calcuted and precisely controlled every aspect of his diet.”

  “But if you had the choice between a freshly cooked, steaming hot meal and these, which would you pick?”

  Shao Wenbai fell silent. The answer was obvious—who would choose instant food if they had a hot meal?

  Su Yumian smiled slyly. “So, Professor Shao, I’ll cook dinner. In return, you just have to do one thing for me.”

  Thirty minutes ter, Shao Wenbai stared at the fish on the cutting board. “…This looks difficult to handle.”

  Su Yumian cleared her throat. “Actually, the supermarket usually has a fish filleting service, but it was too crowded today, so they only did a basic job. If you want—”

  Shao Wenbai rolled up his sleeves and took off his gsses. “I’ll try.”

  Su Yumian nodded. “Alright.”

  Filleted fish absorb fvor better when sliced properly, but handling raw fish could be tricky. She just wanted to sck off a little.

  But watching Shao Wenbai stand in the kitchen, she suddenly felt guilty. Was she really making a physicist fillet fish? Wasn’t this overkill?

  Five minutes ter—

  Looking at the evenly sized, neatly sliced fish fillets, she took back her earlier thoughts. This wasn’t overkill—he was just that talented.

  “Is this okay?” Shao Wenbai wiped his hands and asked.

  “More than okay! Your knife skills are practically at a professional level.”

  Amused by her praise, Shao Wenbai smirked. “I’ve never cooked before, but I studied biology and learned dissection, so… ahem.”

  Since Su Yumian bought the fish, Shao Wenbai reciprocated by buying some meat and vegetables. The two ended up sharing a rich fish hot pot meal. After eating, Shao Wenbai took the initiative to wash the dishes.

  Once everything was cleaned up, Su Yumian spoke up. “It’s getting te. You should head home. I’ll take out the trash.”

  Shao Wenbai usually went for a night run, but it was already close to midnight, so he didn’t linger.

  Su Yumian had napped for hours in the evening and thought she wouldn’t be able to sleep, but as soon as she sent Shao Wenbai off, drowsiness crept in.

  She slept through the night, dreamless.

  —

  The next morning, she woke up before seven.

  “I’m so jealous of you. You just go to the library every day to study and then go home to sleep. Meanwhile, I have to go on a blind date first thing in the morning.”

  On the screen, Shao Yuwei was putting on makeup in front of the mirror. Just thinking about her blind date, someone she barely knew, killed her enthusiasm. Her hands moved sluggishly, applying makeup absentmindedly.

  “You envy me? Then come study at the library with me today,” Su Yumian teased, trying to steer the conversation away from her frustration.

  Shao Yuwei pouted. “Forget it. I’d rather go on the blind date.”

  She was no academic genius—getting into B University had been a lucky break. One Shao Wenbai in the family was enough, she didn’t need to join in.

  “Oh, by the way, I edited our photos from st time. I’ll send them to you.”

  “Mm.”

  Ding-dong—

  Shao Yuwei sent the pictures through WeChat.

  Su Yumian scrolled through them. In some, she wore a fox-ear headband while Shao Yuwei pinched her cheeks, making her look helpless and pitiful.

  Then there were pictures of Shao Yuwei, snapped right after getting off a roller coaster—she looked like she had barely survived. Su Yumian couldn’t help but ugh.

  Finally, she reached her solo shots. Just as she was about to put her phone down, she noticed something in the background—two familiar figures.

  Her lips pressed together. It seemed she had accidentally captured Shi Muxi and Jiang Yihuai in the frame.

  She was the main focus of the photo, while the two in the background were just bystanders. But their hands were csped together, making it seem like she had unintentionally intruded on someone else’s world.

  —

  “Aunt Wang! Aunt Wang!”

  Jiang Yihuai clutched his stomach, his face pale as he called out twice. The vil was silent. No response. He had woken up from the pain.

  A sharp, twisting ache gnawed at his stomach. His whole body felt cold, nausea rising, yet he couldn’t throw up. The sensation was all too familiar—his gastritis was acting up again.

  Remembering there was medication at home, he rummaged through the drawers. Only to find an empty box. No pills left. Gritting his teeth, he called his assistant.

  “Buy some stomach medicine and bring it to the vil.”

  His assistant didn’t dare dey and immediately went to a pharmacy.

  When he arrived, he found Jiang Yihuai sitting silently on the couch, face pale, forehead damp with sweat.

  “Boss Jiang, here’s the medicine.”

  Jiang Yihuai took the pills and warm water without hesitation and swallowed them.

  “Do you want something to eat?”

  He waved him off. “Just go.”

  Relieved, the assistant quietly left. Not even an hour ter, his phone rang again.

  “What kind of stomach medicine did you buy?! It’s completely useless! I gave you one simple task, and you messed it up. Are you illiterate or just blind?!”

  Jiang Yihuai tried to control his temper, but the unrelenting pain made it impossible. Looking at the box on the table, he realized—it wasn’t the brand he usually took. No wonder it didn’t work.

  Assistant: “I’m sorry, Boss Jiang. What brand do you need?”

  Jiang Yihuai stared at the medicine box, and suddenly, his mind went bnk.

  Before, Su Yumian always prepared it for him…

  He had never paid attention to what brand it was, which manufacturer it came from—he just knew that every time he took it, the pain went away immediately.

  Frustrated, he hung up and scrolled to Su Yumian’s number.

  “Sorry, the number you have dialed is currently unavaible…”

  His expression darkened. He was still on that woman’s blocklist.

  Just then, the sound of the door opening echoed—it was Aunt Wang, back from grocery shopping.

  Jiang Yihuai disliked having outsiders in his house, so she always stuck to a fixed schedule. At this time, she was about to start cleaning when she saw a tall figure approaching.

  “Aunt Wang, where’s your phone?”

  Startled by his pale complexion, she hesitated. “Young Master, are you okay?”

  His irritation spiked. “Just give me your phone. I need to make a call.”

  Taking the phone, his fingers instinctively dialed a familiar number.

  “Beep—beep—”

  The other end picked up quickly.

  “What’s wrong, Aunt Wang?”

  A clear, elegant voice rang out.

  Before calling, Jiang Yihuai had wanted to ask why she was still pying games and when she was coming back. But now, the words stuck in his throat.

  In the end, he only murmured, “My gastritis is acting up.”