Zhao Tiezhu stepped into Wang Cuilian's room and was immediately met with the savory aroma of cooking.
"That smells amazing!" he exclaimed, pushing the door open.
He saw four dishes laid out on the table—spicy stir-fried clams, a cold platter of pig head meat, scrambled eggs with tomatoes, and smashed cucumber salad—but his sister-in-law was nowhere to be seen. From the back room came the sound of splashing water.
"Did the water spill?"
Zhao Tiezhu rushed over, worried it would be a mess if water flooded the floor. He yanked the door open, only to freeze in his tracks.
Amidst a cloud of steam, Wang Cuilian was holding a wooden dipper, pouring water over herself. The suds cascading down her skin made her look even more ethereal in the hazy mist.
"Ah..."
Wang Cuilian, never expecting anyone to burst in, let out a startled cry. That scream snapped Zhao Tiezhu back to his senses, and he quickly slammed the door shut. His heart hammered against his ribs; he couldn't shake the image from his mind. Because she worked hard all year round, her body was firm and athletic, her abdominal muscles clearly defined. The delicate curves of her figure, partially veiled by soap bubbles, were incredibly alluring.
She was perfect. Women who sat in offices often had soft midsections that ruined their lines, but she was different.
He stood by the door, savoring the memory for a good while before suppressing his wandering thoughts and heading outside to stretch.
Ten minutes later, his sister-in-law’s voice drifted from the doorway:
"Come on over and eat. The food is getting cold!"
Hearing her voice, Zhao Tiezhu’s calmed heart began to race again. Her tone was simply too soft and tender.
Returning to the dining room, Zhao Tiezhu rubbed the back of his head, looking down as he apologized, "Sister-in-law, I heard the water running and thought you’d forgotten to turn off the tap, so I..."
"Oh, stop talking! Just eat!"
Wang Cuilian, already shy by nature, hurriedly cut him off and focused on her meal. Her cheeks were burning, flushed a deep red; she was incredibly embarrassed. Having been seen like that, the fact that she could still sit there and eat with him already took a massive amount of courage.
"Right, right, of course!"
Seeing her bashful expression, Zhao Tiezhu found he couldn't quite handle his chopsticks properly. After a few bites, however, the delicious food distracted him from his wandering thoughts, and he began to praise the meal:
"Sister-in-law, your cooking is incredible! It's even better than the restaurants out there!"
He wasn't just saying it to ease the awkwardness; he was truly impressed. It tasted even better than what she’d made before.
"If you like it, then eat more. Selling vegetables back and forth all day is exhausting work!" Wang Cuilian said softly, her embarrassment finally beginning to fade now that he was actually talking to her.
Seeing her respond, Zhao Tiezhu’s face lit up. "Sister-in-law, I bet if you opened a restaurant, you’d make more money than anyone else!"
"How would I have the skill for that?" Wang Cuilian denied, though her eyes filled with satisfaction. Even if she hadn't put in much effort, she was happy to have Tiezhu's approval. *They say the way to a man's heart is through his stomach. If I’ve captured Tiezhu’s stomach, let's see where he can run to!* "I’d better just stick to my two plots of land. Once the autumn harvest comes, the grain will bring in a decent amount of money."
"The land? What are you growing?" A thought crossed Zhao Tiezhu’s mind: if he used the Shennong Hundred Herb Liquid to irrigate the crops on a large scale, what would happen? He immediately dismissed the idea. The Small Cauldron was too small, and the liquid might not be enough for a vast expanse of farmland. Even the concentrated essence had to be used with caution.
Wang Cuilian replied, "I’ve got corn on one plot, and soybeans and peanuts on the other. Oh, and I need to plow for the second time soon; I have to go borrow a cart. Sigh!"
They didn't own a farm vehicle, so every planting season she had to beg others for help. Dealing with their strange looks always gave her a headache. Hearing her sigh, Zhao Tiezhu realized the reason and comforted her: "Don't worry, Sister-in-law. I'll go borrow one. If that doesn't work, we'll just buy our own!"
Buying a farm vehicle in the countryside wasn't as complicated as it used to be, and for him, money was no longer an issue. If they wanted to farm, having their own machinery was the most important thing. However, Zhao Tiezhu decided he wouldn't be growing grain in the future; planting cash crops would be much more profitable.
They continued to discuss their future prospects as they ate.
...
At the Taoyuan Restaurant in East Town, the place was buzzing. Since the two specialty dishes had been launched that morning, regular customers had already arrived by midday to get a taste.
Ling Yun was one of the restaurant's loyal regulars. As a designer, she spent her days facing a computer screen and often stayed up late, leaving her with dry, strained eyes and a poor appetite.
She arrived at the restaurant and saw Qin Peiyao greeting customers in person. With a tired smile, she said, "Xiaoyao, I saw you launched a cold cucumber dish. Give me a plate, and throw in two slices for me to put over my eyes!"
"And a little bit of the scrambled eggs with tomatoes, plus half a bowl of rice. I want to taste them." She didn't have much of an appetite, and if not for the desire to try something new, she never would have ordered that much.
"Yunyun, I have to satisfy your request. Go take a seat inside, I'll handle it!"
Qin Peiyao had known her for a long time and naturally understood her needs. Still, she instructed the waiter to bring out a bowl of rice and the stir-fried eggs.
The two cucumber slices arrived first. Ling Yun leaned back in her chair and placed them over her eyes. As a beauty, she hated having dark circles. Every time she came to the restaurant, she would ask for cucumber slices to soothe the dryness in her eyes. But today, she felt something different.
As the cucumber slices sat on her eyes, a cool, refreshing sensation flowed through her pores. She clearly felt the fatigue in her eyes rapidly vanishing. The refreshing feeling made her want to just drift off to sleep.
"Huh? It’s this effective?" Since it worked so well, she decided to lie back for a while longer.
She didn't know how much time had passed when the food arrived. Smelling the fresh aroma of cucumber and tomato, Ling Yun couldn't wait to remove the slices. Seeing the full bowl of rice, she shot Qin Peiyao a playful, reproachful look. "I don't have much of an appetite. If I can't finish this, it'll be a waste!"
Qin Peiyao ignored her, her eyes lighting up instead. "Wow, Yunyun! Your dark circles are gone, and the bloodshot veins in your eyes have disappeared too! Who knew you could use cucumbers like that?" Her mind raced as she came up with a brilliant idea: selling cucumber slices as beauty treatments!
Hearing this, Ling Yun didn't even care about the taste of the tomatoes; she quickly pulled out a small mirror to check.
"Wow, they’re really gone. And my eyes don't feel strained at all! Amazing!"
"Xiaoyao, pack me a cucumber when I leave. I'm taking it home!" She was already prepared to cover her entire face in cucumber slices when she got back.
Qin Peiyao paused, blushing slightly as she asked, "Yunyun, a cucumber is forty centimeters long—are you sure you can handle that?"
Ling Yun blinked, then her face flushed a deep crimson. She raised her fist and playfully swatted at Qin Peiyao. "You silly girl, what are you thinking about? I’m going to slice them up and use them as a face mask!"
"Just eat your food. I'll get it ready for you—twenty per cucumber, at cost!"
Realizing she had misunderstood, Qin Peiyao fled in a panic. Ling Yun didn't care about the price; she glared at her, then picked up a piece of tomato and put it in her mouth.
The moment it hit her stomach, a warm sensation spread through her, and her appetite soared. She sampled the smashed cucumber salad next, feeling the fatigue from her late nights slowly ebb away, and the dryness in her mouth vanished.
One bite after another, she kept eating. Before she knew it, she had finished the entire bowl of rice and licked her red lips, still feeling like she wanted more.
"So delicious! Did my appetite just come back?" She looked puzzled, unable to believe it.