Ji Rongxia’s face flushed crimson.

It felt like countless tiny people were dancing in his mouth. The heat made his eyes instantly well up with tears.

“Hot! Ouch! So hot!”

Tears streamed down his cheeks.

Gu Tangjin quickly grabbed a glass of water from the bedside table and handed it to Ji Rongxia.

Ji Rongxia grabbed Gu Tangjin’s hand and gulped down several mouthfuls of water.

The water felt like it turned hot the moment it touched his tongue.

“My mouth hurts. This chili has such a unique taste. It really stings!” Ji Rongxia opened his mouth, unsure how to describe the sensation, but he declared with certainty, “You can only use a tiny bit of this when cooking!”

As he spoke, Ji Rongxia held up his hand, making a tiny gesture.

Gu Tangjin found this both amusing and exasperating.

“Ouch. Why is my hand burning too? It didn’t feel like this when I touched it earlier. Oh, I get it now—the juice from this pepper sticks to your hands and makes them burn!“ Ji Rongxia chattered excitedly, sharing his discovery while sniffling.

”We’ll see if you dare pop it straight into your mouth next time.” Gu Tangjin felt a twinge of pity as he fetched a clean handkerchief to wipe his hands.

“Who knew beef made with this would taste so good? But eating it alone is terrifying. Such a tiny thing packs this much heat, and I only took a tiny bite. I totally underestimated it.” Ji Rongxia shivered as he spoke.

“Truly, you can’t judge a chili by its looks.” Hearing this, Gu Tangjin didn’t dare try it at all. He could only handle a tiny bit of spice—he couldn’t even eat those beef jerky strips.

“Actually, after it settled a bit, the flavor seemed pretty good.” After a while, Ji Rongxia’s mouth wasn’t as uncomfortable. He smacked his lips twice, savoring the aftertaste. and found the flavor acceptable.

Upon closer reflection, the chili actually held a subtle sweetness—a delicate note easily missed. Only Ji Rongxia’s sensitive palate could detect it.

He was already itching to take a second bite.

Seeing this, Gu Tangjin swiftly snatched the half-eaten chili from his hand.

“I wonder if the seeds are inside this little pepper. If they are, we could grow our own.”

Gu Tangjin’s words successfully diverted Ji Rongxia’s attention, instantly dispelling his desire for another bite.

“I don’t know. It’s so tiny—could those white bits inside be the seeds?” Ji Rongxia examined the nibbled chili, pointing to the seeds within.

“Hmm, then why don’t we collect the seeds inside and try planting them? If that doesn’t work, we can try planting the whole chili pepper in the ground to see if it grows. If neither works, it might be too hot now for the chili to sprout. If neither of those works, then the seeds probably aren’t inside the chili pepper itself.” Gu Tangjin also thought the white bits inside were seeds, but he wasn’t entirely sure.

“I’ll ask that little guy tomorrow. We’re on decent terms now,” Ji Rongxia said, a sudden idea striking him.

“It can teach that?” Gu Tangjin set down the chili pepper and asked curiously.

“It knows an incredible amount,” Ji Rongxia added, making a small gesture with his hand. “The knife skills I’m learning now are just a tiny fraction of what it knows.”

Gu Tangjin couldn’t help but marvel once more at the wonder of this ‘little ghost’ residing within Xia-ger.

He retrieved another bottle of chili sauce from the bedside: “This appeared alongside the peppers. The bottle seems to be made of glass—I’ve never seen such translucent glass before.”

Gu Tangjin had carefully stored all the small items that had suddenly appeared recently, including paper cups, transparent bowls, and spoons.

“Wow, how do you open this?” Ji Rongxia had never seen a bottle like this either, examining it curiously from all angles.

Gu Tangjin pointed to the rotating arrow symbol on the cap: “See this mark? You should twist it this way.”

“Let me try!!!” Ji Rongxia hurried off the bed, afraid he might spill chili sauce on the quilt if he couldn’t open it properly. He twisted along the arrow, and the lid popped open instantly.

A wave of spicy, numbing, savory aroma hit him.

“Looks like there are peanut bits inside, plus some stuff I don’t recognize.” Ji Rongxia examined the sauce closely. Most ingredients were ground into a paste, making it hard to identify them.

“Wonder if it tastes good.”

“Want to try some?” Gu Tangjin knew from Xia-ger’s expression that he was itching for a taste.

He asked doubtfully, “Does your mouth still hurt?”

Ji Rongxia assured him, “It stopped hurting ages ago!”

“I’ll go find you a steamed bun. Don’t eat it straight out of the jar.” Gu Tangjin relented, taking a step back.

“Yeah, okay.” Ji Rongxia had no objections.

The two of them quietly slipped off to the kitchen and found the steamed buns.

They sliced the bun into pieces and spread a tiny bit of chili sauce on top.

Ji Rongxia took a big bite!

Gu Tangjin stood ready with a bowl of water, prepared to help him swallow.

“Mmm! Delicious! So good! It’s incredibly fragrant,” Ji Rongxia exclaimed in delight, covering his mouth to muffle his voice.

His eyes sparkling, he held out a slice of steamed bun to Gu Tangjin like a precious treasure: “Try it, hurry up and taste it! It’s not too spicy, just wonderfully fragrant. I wonder how it’s seasoned.”

Ji Rongxia urged Gu Tangjin to give it a try.

Gu Tangjin sighed, lowered his head, and took a bite.

A subtle spiciness, but mostly rich fragrance, combined with the bun’s flavor—simple yet incredibly delicious.

“Mm, it really is delicious,” Gu Tangjin nodded.

“Right! It’s just delicious. What if we tell our parents it’s a cornelian cherry sauce? Oh, and my brother-in-law—he’s expecting now. I wonder if he likes spicy food!” Ji Rongxia took another bite of his steamed bun slice.

“Hmm, how about adding some to the crumbly pancakes when you make them?” Gu Tangjin suggested. If eaten plain, not just our parents, but even Qian Xuecheng would definitely notice this isn’t jujube sauce. 

Ji Rongxia: “Alright, I’ll bake extra pancakes tomorrow.”The two lowered their voices, taking turns eating steamed bun slices smeared with chili paste. The rustling sounds weren’t loud, but Yao Tianlan, who had unusually stayed awake tonight, still heard them. Truth be told, she’d already caught these two kids sneaking up to eat in the middle of the night two or three times.

“Go back to sleep. They’re still young. If they get hungry at night and eat something, they’ll have energy during the day. Besides, even if you listen, you won’t hear what they’re saying.” Gu Chuncai sighed helplessly, seeing Yao Tianlan pressed against the wall, happily eavesdropping.

“I can’t hear their words, but I can hear them giggling! I wonder what they’re laughing about all the time. We really made the right choice with our son-in-law. Our eldest son never used to smile much, but now he’s always smiling. And Xia-ger is quite skilled—it’s only been a few days, but his knife work is already as sharp as if he’d practiced for months!”

Yao Tianlan’s face lit up as she spoke.

Gu Chuncai remained silent, but nodded occasionally as he slowly fanned her with a large reed fan.

Yao Tianlan spoke until she was exhausted and soon drifted off to sleep. Gu Chuncai silently fanned her for a while longer before setting down the fan and falling into a deep slumber himself.

“I think I heard Mother talking just now.” After finishing the chili sauce, Ji Rongxia and Gu Tangjin slipped back into the house. Each took a chili pepper and began picking out the white seeds.

“I bet Mom and Dad knew we were secretly using the stove all along,” Gu Tangjin chuckled.

Ji Rongxia blushed. “Huh? That’s so embarrassing.”

They were eating alone, and while there was a reason for it, it still felt so embarrassing.

“It’s nothing. Actually, when I was studying before, I’d also get up in the middle of the night looking for food. I was just so hungry.” Gu Tangjin’s face flushed a little as he spoke of this.

He’d always been quite composed around Xia-ger, so it felt awkward for Gu Tangjin to bring this up.

He bowed his head slightly as he picked out chili seeds. “My family doesn’t skimp on my meals, but if I don’t have another bite at night, I’d be too hungry to sleep.”

Ji Rongxia was somewhat surprised. Tangjin was tall and lean; though you could see his muscles when he took his clothes off, you’d never guess he had such a hearty appetite.

Seeing his reaction, Gu Tangjin quickly added, “It’s better now. I can get through the night without eating.”

Ji Rongxia couldn’t help but smile. He felt Tangjin had grown closer to him lately, though they hadn’t done anything special—just sorting chili seeds together by lamplight and chatting.

“No wonder you grew so tall. My brother went through a phase of eating like a horse, too. I can eat less, but I still have a big appetite. Father and Mother always complained about not having enough grain. The grain shops sold it at such high prices. Later, my father got to know my brother’s fulang’s father. They became good friends, so our family started buying grain from their household. It saved us a lot of money.”

“Later, my father arranged their marriage. He said our family’s only advantage was living in the county seat—otherwise, how could we ever marry into the Qian family? They own over thirty acres of land, mostly fertile fields. The Qians also bought a small mountain plot where they grow bamboo and trees. It’s more than enough to feed their entire household.”

“From what you say, it sounds like your father arranged this marriage just to ensure your brother had enough to eat,” Gu Tangjin remarked, a mix of laughter and tears on his face.

Of course, Gu Tangjin also knew the Ji family didn’t get the grain for free. They paid the grain merchant’s market price for it. Moreover, their family bought timber from the Qian family. The two households interacted frequently, and if one had to put it bluntly, both families had their reasons.

“My brother’s Fulang has a gentle temperament. He’s got my brother wrapped around his finger. The Qian family has many mouths to feed and many troubles. When my brother’s Fulang first came over, I couldn’t even understand what he was saying.” Ji Rongxia paused before continuing, “On his very first day, he rose early. When I offered to help, he only let me tend the fire. I thought he was sparing me, but later he confessed he feared I might mess things up—that if the meals failed on his first day, he’d embarrass himself before my parents.”

But Qian Xuecheng changed after that. Living with them, he didn’t act like someone staying in a stranger’s home anymore.

Gu Tangjin pondered for a moment before saying, “Where there are many people, there will be disputes. To endure, the family must uphold upright principles.”

“Who knows when our family will grow large? I might be old by then,” Ji Rongxia chuckled. “It’s too early for us to talk about this. Just the two of us is perfectly fine for now.”

“Mhm.” Gu Tangjin nodded softly.

They gathered a small handful of chili seeds, which they divided into three portions. One portion was soaked in water, another was set aside to be sun-dried when the weather cleared tomorrow, and the third was ready for immediate planting.

The next day dawned bright and clear. Gu Tangjin placed the soaked portion under the eaves to dry, while the other two portions were planted in wooden pots.

“This one’s been soaked, and this one hasn’t. Tangjin, remember that,” Ji Rongxia said. He was great at cooking, but this sort of thing was another story.

Gu Tangjin: “Okay, I’ll remember.”

Ji Rongxia bent down and spoke ‘tenderly’ to the wooden basin: “Peppers, peppers, you must grow well! I’m counting on you for my next meal!”