It was summer. The rain had passed, but the sky had not yet cleared, with several layers of heavy, grey, and sinking clouds hanging on the horizon.

The air was full of moisture; taking a breath felt as though one could inhale water.

“Buzz…”

“Sizzzzzzz…”

“Water for sale! Sweet spring water from the east side of the city.”

Fine, dense mixed noises, accompanied by the hawking sound, echoed in Ji Rongxia’s ears, just like the annoying summer mosquitoes and flies that couldn’t be driven away, circling near his ears. The sound was loud for a moment and then soft, far one moment and then close the next. He wanted to reach out and swat them, but he just couldn’t catch the irritating little things.

Ji Rongxia subconsciously wanted to wave his hands, making a gesture to drive them away, but halfway through raising his hand, he realised that this sound couldn’t be driven off, and he could only dejectedly put his hand down.

This ailment of tinnitus had been around for half a year. Last winter, he didn’t know why, but the back of his head suddenly hurt, and he developed a high fever that day. After that, he acquired the troublesome symptom of tinnitus.

Just as Ji Rongxia’s hand drooped, it was grasped by a large, warm hand. Gu Tangjin, whose rough cloth short clothing still could not hide his handsomeness, gently asked, “Xia-ger, did you hear those mixed noises again?”

“Yes, they’re terribly annoying.” Ji Rongxia was usually cheerful and direct, but now, as a newly married husband, being held by Gu Tangjin’s hand, he still couldn’t help his face flushing slightly.

He had to thank the Matchmaker Ding for setting up their meeting. In the past, he didn’t think he was a particularly good-looking little ger. To marry a man is to find clothes to wear and food to eat, so naturally, eating and drinking were more important. Originally, he agreed to his parents to meet Gu Tangjin only because the Gu family had promised to teach cooking to the one their son marries! Who knew that the moment he saw Gu Tangjin, he changed his mind? Since he was choosing a person to look at for a lifetime, selecting a handsome one was good for the eyes, too.

“I won’t talk to you anymore. I’m going to buy water.” Ji Rongxia said, about to break free from Gu Tangjin’s hand.

Gu Tangjin smiled and continued to hold him: “Let’s go together.”

It was rare to see his little fulang being shy, so he naturally wanted to look at him more.

Originally, he had no intention of getting married, but seeing Xia-ger made him change his mind.

Xia-ger was neither tall nor short, with a pair of bright, sparkling eyes. Xia-ger had been robust since childhood; the red mole on his forehead was bright, and his voice and breath were full of energy. When his clear, bright voice called out, it could be heard from far away. Xia-ger had a kind of vitality that Gu Tangjin lacked, and he unconsciously agreed to the marriage.

“Walk slowly.” Ji Rongxia was mindful of Gu Tangjin’s leg, and suddenly wasn’t in a hurry to buy water anymore. He took two large wooden buckets from the stove room, handed one to Gu Tangjin, and then held Gu Tangjin’s hand in return, walking slowly to the door.

The water vendor, a man surnamed Zou, a hawker, and his fulang parked their cart near the Gu family’s back door.

Wuqu Alley in the east of the city mostly consisted of food stalls, and the demand for water was very high. When Vendor Zou called out, many households came out, and at that moment, six or seven people were already queuing to buy water.

They finally reached their turn.

Ji Rongxia clearly and crisply said, “Four wen worth of water, thank you, Li Fulang.”

He handed the wooden bucket in his hand to the water vendor Zou’s fulang. The couple often came to Wuqu Alley together to sell water.

The vendor Zou’s fulang’s surname was Li, and all the households living near Wuqu Alley called him Li Fulang.

Although the Gu family had a well and could draw water for free, the well water in Qingchi County tasted a little bitter. It was enough for sweeping and washing clothes, but not suitable for drinking. The water sold by the vendor Zou was spring water he transported from the mountains, and it tasted sweet. One wen could buy a large wooden bucket.

Li Fulang took the wooden bucket with a smile, opened the cork at the bottom of the large, round wooden barrel on the cart, and a bamboo pipe instantly drew out clear water.

As soon as the bucket was full, Gu Tangjin quickly grabbed it and walked into the courtyard with a limp, pouring the spring water into the water jar in the stove room.

Ji Rongxia was worried inside, but pretended to be relaxed on the surface. Although his husband was lame, he was still a man. If he couldn’t carry things on his shoulder or lift things with his hand, it would likely provoke ridicule.

Living in the same Wuqu Alley and all running food businesses, the several nearby households inevitably had some friction. Now that Ji Rongxia, who was deaf, had married Gu Tangjin, who was lame, some people naturally enjoyed watching the spectacle. Ji Rongxia had already noticed many people secretly peeking at them.

He wasn’t shy and let those people stare openly. After all, being looked at wouldn’t cost him a piece of flesh, and he wasn’t afraid!

Li Fulang couldn’t help but think: this new Fulang is probably not someone easy to mess with.

Four large wooden buckets of water filled the water jar most of the way, which was enough for a day’s consumption.

The courtyard behind the Gu family’s eatery was not small and was neat and clean. Although it had been raining intermittently for many days before, there was not much musty smell here.

There was a well on the east side, and a small plot of land was also opened up in the courtyard, where some ginger and garlic were planted. At this time, some green sprouts had already grown in the ground.

Ji Rongxia conveniently picked some green garlic sprouts and neatly chopped them into a fine mince.

The leftover cured meat from the wedding banquet was cut into cubes.

The leftover tofu from practising knife skills yesterday was kept cold in the well water and was still fresh. The white, tender tofu was also cut into cubes.

Ji Rongxia put a cast-iron wok, which he could flip, on the stove. He put the cured meat cubes into it and stir-fried them over low heat, only until the oil and aroma were released. He scooped out the cured meat cubes, and using the remaining cured meat oil at the bottom of the wok, he slightly pan-fried the tofu cubes.

After the cured meat cubes and tofu cubes had cooled, he added the minced green garlic, and finally a little salt and pepper powder. The filling was then ready. While the cured meat cubes and tofu cubes were cooling, Ji Rongxia did not forget to water the onions and garlic in the yard, remove pests, and pull weeds.

While Ji Rongxia was busy here, Gu Tangjin was not idle either. He found a small piece of dried old sourdough starter wrapped in oil paper from the basket hanging on the beam.

He put the dried old starter into warm water to soak. Once it was softened, he added clear water and flour to knead the dough.

It was hot in the summer, and the dough would rise in just half an hour.

“Look, Tangjin, you are clearly excellent at kneading dough. It’s so smooth and strong, much better than mine. I can’t achieve this with my small arms and legs.” Just as Ji Rongxia finished his work, Gu Tangjin’s kneaded dough was also proofed.

The flour was slightly yellow, so the dough was also slightly yellow. Flour was expensive, so Gu Tangjin used it carefully. The dough was only the size of two adult fists and looked very inconspicuous.

Gu Tangjin certainly didn’t see the dough as being as good as his fulang praised it to be.

He smiled and said, “You are only trying to flatter me.”

Ji Rongxia placed the dough board down, sprinkled a thin layer of flour, and kneaded the dough into a long strip: “How am I flattering you? Anyway, Tangjin, just don’t go near the stove. You can still do other things.”

Gu Tangjin’s face showed a helpless expression when he heard this.

It was strange to say. He had grown up in his family’s eatery and was accustomed to seeing his parents stir-fry and cook since he was a child. It looked tiring, but it wasn’t too difficult. Before, when he was studying for the imperial examinations, his parents absolutely would not let him enter the kitchen. Later, after he became lame, his parents wanted to pass the business on to him. However, as soon as he got near the stove, he actually burned and ruined two good cast-iron woks! Iron was expensive, so the cast-iron wok was naturally not cheap.

His father was so angry that he rarely chased him with a broom to beat him.

But he didn’t know why, when he cooked, his usually flexible hands and feet seemed to stop obeying him.

If his parents’ cooking was as easy and natural as his reading and writing essays, then his cooking was like alchemy!!!

Seeing this, his parents completely gave up the idea of teaching him. They thought that while they could still move, they should quickly find him a capable fulang. In the future, the couple could support each other and at least keep the eatery going.

This was how the match-making came about.

Thinking of this, Gu Tangjin’s eyes involuntarily softened as he looked at his fulang.

He didn’t know whether he should be thankful that he was not good at cooking, or troubled that he was not good at cooking and couldn’t help much.

“Why are you looking at me? Go boil some water. When it cools down, Dad and Mom can drink it when they wake up,” Ji Rongxia glared at him and said.

Gu Tangjin replied, “Okay.”

He turned to boil water at another stove. The Gu family’s stove had six burners in a row, allowing all to be lit at the same time, which was very spacious.

The Gu family’s home was a very ordinary two-story wooden house. A banner with the words “Gu Family Eatery” was hung on the second-floor eaves.

The main hall on the first floor was where the eatery was located. In addition to the main hall, there was a stove room and an east room on the first floor. The east room was originally where Gu Cunchai and Yao Tianlan lived, and Gu Tangjin lived on the second floor. Now that Gu Tangjin’s legs were inconvenient, Gu Tangjin and Ji Rongxia’s wedding room became the east room on the first floor, and the Gu family’s parents moved upstairs.

The eatery did not do breakfast business, only lunch and dinner. In the past, to wake up early to buy water, vegetables, meat, and other things, the Gu family’s parents would not sleep in.

After the marriage, Ji Rongxia actively took on these miscellaneous tasks, allowing Gu Cunchai and Yao Tianlan to rest a little longer.

In the first few days, Gu Cunchai and Yao Tianlan were still unaccustomed and woke up early every time. Now that seven days had passed, the two of them finally slept soundly.

While the buns were steaming, the vendors who had long-term dealings with the Gu family’s eatery came one after another to deliver the day’s vegetables, meat, eggs, tofu, and other goods.

The Gu family needed a lot of things, and over time, they naturally couldn’t buy ingredients at the market. They would find suitable vendors, agree on how much of certain things they needed every few days, and have them delivered to the back door.

This was a steady business. Wuqu Alley was full of food stalls. If one family thought a vendor was good, the vendor’s reputation would improve, and they could attract more business. Therefore, for the sake of reputation, the goods delivered by these vendors would never be too poor.

The coming and going vendors would not easily cheat people, which was why Gu Cunchai and Yao Tianlan felt relieved to hand this task over to Ji Rongxia, their newly married fulang, unafraid that he would be deceived.

When Yao Tianlan and Gu Cunchai woke up, feeling well-rested, and came downstairs, a dining table had already been set up in the courtyard, and a plate of piping hot buns was placed on the table.

Gu Cunchai’s face, which was usually stern, rarely showed a slight smile.

He was a thin, dark old man who looked more like an old farmer than a chef. Although he was thin, because he had been flipping the wok and stir-frying for many years, Gu Cunchai possessed a lot of strength.

Yao Tianlan was plump and fair. Previously, because her son was lame and couldn’t learn the family’s culinary skills, she had worried so much that she had lost some weight. But ever since Ji Rongxia entered the door, she had slept soundly, and her mood was good, so she naturally became plump and fair again.

“Dad, Mom, the buns are fresh out of the pot. Tangjin helped me knead the dough and build the fire for these buns. Please hurry and taste them,” Ji Rongxia clearly and crisply called out.

“Oh, Xia-ger, please don’t speak up for him anymore. I’ll thank heaven and earth if he doesn’t burn another wok for me,” Yao Tianlan said, clutching her chest. Just thinking about the two ruined cast-iron woks made her heart ache. Although ruined cast-iron woks could be repaired, the cost of mending them was not cheap either.

Ji Rongxia was amused and cheerfully replied, “Mom, don’t worry. I didn’t dare let him go near the stove. At most, I let him build the fire for me.”

“You must be tired. Hurry and sit down,” Gu Tangjin pulled Ji Rongxia to sit down helplessly.

Gu Cunchai silently went to the well to wash his hands and face clean. He sat down and picked up a hot bun. His hands were full of calluses from years of flipping the wok, and even though the bun had just come out of the oven, he held it with one hand and didn’t feel scalded.

He took a bite, chewed it, and frowned.

Ji Rongxia couldn’t help but feel nervous. Gu Tangjin gently patted his husband’s hand on the back for comfort.

“Not bad. The seasoning this time is not bad,” Gu Cunchai said in a muffled voice, his knitted brows gradually relaxing.

Ji Rongxia let out a slight sigh of relief. Even though he had only been married for seven days, once the third-day return visit was over, his father had started teaching him the craft.

At first, he didn’t learn the difficult things, starting only with knife skills, seasoning, and flipping the wok.

He practised knife skills and flipping the wok quite smoothly. Although he had to cut a lot of tofu, vegetables, and meat every day, and flipping the wok required practising wrist strength, it was tiring, but his progress was significant.

However, with the seasoning, he always held back. When cooking at home, why would one need so much lard, salt, Sichuan peppercorns, green onions, ginger, and garlic?

But the people in the county came to the eatery to eat because they wanted a satisfying meal. Regardless of anything else, the meat and flavour had to be generous to show that the eatery did honest business.

He was hesitant, and his seasoning had not been done well. Today was the first time he had received praise from his father.

“I didn’t add much salt or oil either. I first stir-fried the cured meat in the iron wok to roast out some oil, and then I pan-fried the tofu. This way, the tofu tastes fragrant, and the cured meat is chewy… This dough was still kneaded by Tangjin. He has great arm strength, and the dough he kneads tastes exceptionally good.” Ji Rongxia happily explained his method in detail, and at the end, he did not forget to praise Gu Tangjin.

Gu Cunchai listened, nodding repeatedly. Yao Tianlan used chopsticks to pick up a piping hot bun and tasted a bite.

The cured meat cubes and tofu cubes were soft and firm, tasting savoury and delicious with a chewy texture in the mouth. The bun skin was fluffy and soft. The taste of this bun was not much worse than what she made!

It was rare for a new husband to have this kind of skill only seven days after entering the door. Yao Tianlan was eating the bun, but her eyes were curved into a smile.

Gu Tangjin helped himself and Xia-ger to two buns and said, “Eat them while they are hot. Learning the craft is not something that needs to be rushed.”

“Yes, let’s eat first,” Gu Cunchai said, and then ate his bun without another word.

Ji Rongxia knew that Tangjin felt sorry that he had been busy all morning and hadn’t eaten yet. He happily took the bun and bit into it sweetly.

Mhm! His skill had improved! The flavour was in no way inferior to the meat buns sold outside.

These buns were also inexpensive to make. They didn’t use much meat, but they were satisfying to eat.

Actually, Ji Rongxia did not entirely agree with his father’s statement. He felt that as long as it was appropriate, even using very few condiments could produce good dishes. However, since he had just started learning to cook, it was not good to follow his own temperament in everything, so he suppressed his thoughts in his heart.

Halfway through the meal, Gu Tangjin spoke, “Dad, Mom, I think it might be better if Xia-ger and I set up a stall at the entrance and sell some breakfast? It can give Xia-ger some practice and also earn some extra money.”

When Ji Rongxia heard this, he immediately became excited. Tangjin had hinted at this to him last night, but he hadn’t expected Tangjin to bring it up so quickly.

However, it was inconvenient for him to say much about this matter; otherwise, it would seem as if he were too eager to take over all the family’s business.

Even the most lenient parents would feel uncomfortable.

“That method is good, but there are many people doing the breakfast business in our Wuqu Alley. There are buns, steamed buns, flatbreads, steamed cakes, and rice porridge, everything. Business might be difficult to do,” Yao Tianlan worried a little.

“Mom, others are doing it, and we can do it too. Xia-ger needs to practice. We don’t need to make too much food every day. Just open a small door and set up a small stall at the entrance, and it will be fine. It won’t interfere with others’ business, nor will it snatch away their business. We don’t need to be particular about what we make every day; we can just rotate it. I can still do the strenuous work like kneading the dough and building the fire for Rongxia. This can both provide practice and have some income, isn’t that just right?” Gu Tangjin knew his mother’s concerns and added one last sentence, “I am still a Xiucai after all. We are not trying to snatch others’ business; it’s fine.”

Yao Tianlan was someone without much decisiveness. As soon as she heard her son say this, she felt it made a lot of sense.

Ji Rongxia quickly promised, “Let’s give it a try. If it doesn’t work out, we won’t do it this way.”

“Then it’s settled. Whatever you need, you can arrange it with the vegetable sellers like Madam Zhou and the others. The money you earn, the two of you can keep for yourselves, and the cost of the vegetables will be deducted from the money you earn. Whether it works or not is up to the two of you,” Gu Cunchai rarely said so many words in one go.

He thought that the little couple wouldn’t be able to make much food in the morning anyway. How much money could they earn? It was better to let them hold onto it and use it themselves.

Although Yao Tianlan felt a little pained about the money in her heart, she didn’t say anything.

“How can we do that? The firewood, the stove, none of that is free…” Before Ji Rongxia could finish speaking, his hand under the table was grabbed by Gu Tangjin.

“Thank you, Dad and Mom. When the two of us earn money, I’ll buy Dad a new iron wok, and Mom some rouge,” Gu Tangjin said with a smile.

“You child, you’re getting more and more glib,” Yao Tianlan laughed so hard that her teeth were visible. “How much money can you save? Just keep it for yourselves.”

The matter was thus settled.

Was it this simple? Ji Rongxia was still a little incredulous.

Having been married for a few days, he increasingly felt that the Gu family’s family values were upright. Although the household was small, both Dad and Mom were easy to get along with.

After the meal, Yao Tianlan quickly got up to clean up the dishes and chopsticks: “You two have been busy all morning. I’ll do the washing.”

It was the first time he was going to run his own business, and Ji Rongxia was very excited. He was full of energy for the whole day and was even more serious about learning the cooking craft.

Seeing this, Gu Cunchai smiled inwardly. This child thought running a food business was easy, but it was good to let the couple try it out. This way, when he and his wife got older, the two of them could manage the household.

It wasn’t until night that Ji Rongxia couldn’t sleep a little. Gu Tangjin saw this and teased him a few times, and only then did Ji Rongxia feel tired and fall into a deep sleep.

In his dream, Ji Rongxia frowned slightly. The annoying mixed noises seemed to be getting clearer and clearer.

[Target Host detected entering the System Space!]

[Cooking God System successfully activated. The practice space is at your service!]