Go and See What's Going On

At this moment, Xia Zhiyu also stood up. "Meng Rou, let's go help Su Yang in the kitchen~"

"Sure, let's go~"

The two of them followed into the kitchen, though the apartment wasn't particularly spacious, and the kitchen was naturally quite small. With three people crowded inside, it felt a bit cramped, but they could still manage to move around.

Su Yang unpacked the ingredients he had bought earlier and quickly decided on a menu of four dishes and a soup in his mind.

He planned to make stir-fried shrimp with garlic, beef with chopped peppers, braised ribbonfish, garlic sautéed loofah, and a radish and pork rib soup.

These were all homestyle dishes that wouldn’t take too much time to prepare.

Once he had settled on the menu, Su Yang turned to the two waiting for his instructions. "Little Yu, here—can you peel all these garlic cloves for me?"

He pulled a bag of garlic out of the plastic bag and handed it to Xia Zhiyu.

"Got it~" Xia Zhiyu took the garlic and moved aside to start peeling.

Then Su Yang looked at Zhao Mengrou. "Meng Rou, could you wash these garlic sprouts and scallions for me? I’ll need them later."

"Sure~" Zhao Mengrou had tasted Su Yang’s cooking before and knew how skilled he was.

At the very least, it was far more satisfying than eating out.

What she didn’t know, however, was that Su Yang’s culinary skills had now reached their ultimate form—not just version 2.0 or 3.0, but the absolute pinnacle of perfection.

Once the two got to work, Su Yang took out the rice cooker’s inner pot, scooped in four cups of rice, rinsed it, and started cooking.

Then he rolled up his sleeves and began prepping the ingredients.

By around 6:30 PM, the kitchen was filled with mouthwatering aromas.

Zhao Mengrou and Xia Zhiyu had stayed by Su Yang’s side the entire time, watching his every move without stepping away.

They witnessed firsthand as he completed all four dishes and the soup.

The fragrance made Xia Zhiyu swallow hard. "Su Yang, the food smells amazing~"

Su Yang plated the last dish with a smile. "It tastes even better~"

"Here, take these out."

"On it."

The two carried the plates to the small dining table.

Soon, the four dishes and soup were laid out. Su Yang pulled out a bottle of red wine and glanced at them. "Care for a drink?"

"Absolutely~"

"Little Yu, you’re joining us too, right?"

Xia Zhiyu nodded. "Su Yang, whatever you say, I’ll follow."

Hearing this, Su Yang and Zhao Mengrou exchanged amused smiles. "This Little Yu… Alright, let’s have a bit then. Not too much, though—I’ve got things to do later. Next time when you’re both free, I’ll invite you to my new place and cook you a proper feast~"

As soon as he finished, Zhao Mengrou frowned. "New place?"

"Yeah, didn’t I mention I bought another apartment?"

"Did you? I don’t remember. You never reach out unless I do first, hmph~" Zhao Mengrou pretended to be upset, though her smile gave her away.

Su Yang uncorked the wine. "I’ve just been busy lately. Sometimes work keeps me tied up for days."

"I don’t buy that~"

Without arguing further, Su Yang poured wine for both of them.

The three then sat around the table—Zhao Mengrou and Xia Zhiyu side by side, Su Yang across from them.

He swirled his glass and raised it. "A toast—to Little Yu’s new home!"

"Cheers! We’ve gotta finish this~" Zhao Mengrou chimed in, lifting her glass enthusiastically.

Xia Zhiyu hurriedly picked up hers, looking slightly nervous. "Su Yang, Meng Rou, I’m not great with words, but I’ll never forget how kind you’ve been to me. I’ll do everything I can to repay you."

Zhao Mengrou laughed. "We’re sisters now. No talk of repayment—just sincerity between us."

Su Yang added, "Exactly. No need for long speeches. Bottoms up, then let’s eat~"

The three shared a smile, downed their drinks in one go, and then dug in.

Zhao Mengrou’s eyes sparkled as she picked up a shrimp and took a bite. After chewing twice, her eyes widened in shock.

"This… this??!"

Xia Zhiyu turned to her. "What’s wrong, Meng Rou?"

"Don’t ask—just try it!"

"O-okay." Puzzled, Xia Zhiyu picked up a piece of beef and tasted it.

After a couple of chews, she too stared at Su Yang in disbelief. "Oh my… this is incredible!!"

Seeing their reactions, Su Yang was reminded of how Pan Ning and Meng Qianyu had reacted the same way when they first tasted his cooking.

[Ding—Host’s current mood: relaxed and thoroughly enjoying himself. Reward: 2 million.]

Su Yang chuckled. "Why are you staring at me? Keep eating~"

"But… I’ve had your cooking before, and it was never this mind-blowing. Did you take a masterclass or something?"

"Come on, as if I’d need to. Try the other dishes."

"Gladly!"

Su Yang poured himself another glass of wine before finally picking up his chopsticks.

By the end of the meal, Zhao Mengrou and Xia Zhiyu had polished off every last bite, their lips glistening with oil. Both usually stuck to one bowl of rice, but tonight, they each went for seconds—and thirds.

All five dishes and the soup were completely wiped out.

Zhao Mengrou wiped her mouth with a napkin, still savoring the flavors. "Su Yang!! Promise you’ll call me every time you cook from now on. I swear, I’ve never tasted anything this good in my life."

Xia Zhiyu scratched her head shyly. "Su Yang, you should come over more often when you’re free. I’d love to learn how to cook like this."

Su Yang thought to himself, You can learn, but you’ll never quite replicate the magic.

"Sure thing. I’ll drop by often and bring Meng Rou along."

"Sounds perfect."

"And we’ve got to get Xiao Man to try your next-level cooking too."

"Anytime~"

Still chatting and laughing, the three got up and cleared the table, carrying the empty plates to the kitchen.

Xia Zhiyu insisted on washing the dishes herself. Afterward, they settled on the sofa to relax.

At 8:50 PM, Su Yang’s phone rang again.

He answered. "Hey, Liu Bo."

"Yo, Su Yang, you done yet?"

"Just hanging with friends. Where’s the address?"

"Heh, I’ll text it to you."

"Cool. Should I head over now?"

"Yep."

"Got it."

Hanging up, Su Yang stood and turned to the girls. "Little Yu, Meng Rou, I’ve got to run. You two stay and chat if you’d like."

Zhao Mengrou nodded. "Go ahead. I’ll keep Little Yu company a bit longer."

"Great."

Xia Zhiyu, however, looked reluctant. "Su Yang… you’ve been drinking. Don’t drive, okay?"

Su Yang didn’t explain further, just smiled. "No worries. Let me know once you start at the restaurant."

"Will do, Su Yang~"

"Alright then. See you both another time~"

After saying his goodbyes, Su Yang left.

......

Downstairs, he pulled out his phone and opened Liu Bo’s chat.

Liu Bo had already sent him a location pin. When he clicked on it, the map showed a spot about four kilometers away—an upscale private club called Houyuan.

‘A private club? Damn, I’ve never been to a place like this in my life. Alright, let’s see what this is all about.’

With that thought, he walked to his car, opened the door, and slid into the driver’s seat.

Vroom!!

With a low, throaty growl, the RS7 sped off and quickly disappeared from the Jade Lake Bay residential area.

...