Leisurely Traveler with Check-in System-Chapter 106 - 88: The Distance of the Eyeliner Pencil
The car emerged from the other end of the alley, and suddenly it was the Xiangjiang River.
Jing Chaoyi stuck her head out a bit, her hair blowing wildly in the river breeze: "Look over there, doesn’t it look like a pot lid?" She pointed at the green top of Juzi Island’s head.
In the afternoon light, it indeed looked like an overturned green porcelain bowl.
Li Younan squinted and nodded.
Then they headed to the area near Nanmendong vegetable market, where she rolled up the car window a bit: "The flavors here are solid."
She suddenly pointed to a glass cabinet by the roadside: "How about a bowl of shaved jelly?"
As soon as the car came to a stop, she jumped out and shouted to the vendor in the Changsha dialect: "Two servings! Lots of chopped chili!"
When the jelly was served, transparent noodles were mixed with red oil and small pickled radish cubes.
Looking at the contents of the bowl, Li Younan suddenly didn’t know what to do.
Jing Chaoyi laughed non-stop, saying: "I forgot... You don’t eat spicy food, senior, haha..."
Li Younan said irritably: "You know, yet you still ordered it."
Jing Chaoyi suddenly scooped a spoonful and brought it to Li Younan’s face, her big eyes blinking: "Just try a bite, come on, I promise it’s not too spicy."
Li Younan hesitated for a moment, paused for half a second, and opened his mouth.
Jing Chaoyi fed him a spoonful.
The spicy and fragrant taste burst forth from the bouncy jelly, and Li Younan couldn’t help but inhale sharply.
Then he saw Jing Chaoyi slowly withdraw the spoon, trying hard not to laugh, as she scooped another spoon.
Just as Jing Chaoyi was about to eat it, there was a sudden "bang" in front of her—Li Younan placed his own bowl in front of her.
Jing Chaoyi looked up, blinking.
Li Younan said irritably: "You eat this bowl; I’ve already eaten from the other one."
Jing Chaoyi paused, casually flipped her hair before slowly putting down the spoon, then pushed it to Li Younan, "Oh, seeing you react to the spice was too funny, totally forgot..."
Li Younan’s face was a bit red, indeed from the spice.
Jing Chaoyi’s face was a little red too. She promptly ate a bit of the jelly and fanned herself: "But... it’s kinda spicy, huh..."
...
They wandered around until the afternoon, when she said: "Let’s go, senior, and take you to Dongguashan Mountain."
The car circled onto Shuyuan Road, heading south.
To a broad area halfway up the mountain.
Here, a few small stalls were set up. One was selling perilla peaches, soaking red slices in a glass jar with perilla leaves floating on top, illuminated by small lights, looking particularly fresh. Next to it was a stall frying spring onion patties, the small oil pan sizzling, and the freshly fried golden patties laid on a wire rack to drain.
Leaning against the car hood, in the distance the Xiangjiang turned into a dark ribbon, Juzi Island’s "pot lid" only left a blurry outline, the city lights gradually coming to life.
The evening breeze blew, carrying some residual heat of the day and the scent of grass and trees from the mountain.
...
Returning to Jing Chaoyi’s home, the sky was already a bit dark. However, it didn’t really matter, as the two had lived together under the same roof for over half a month, so it didn’t feel awkward.
This time, Jing Chaoyi was adamant about not letting Li Younan cook.
She said with a smile: "Though your cooking skills are a bit better than mine, senior, since you’re at my home now, it wouldn’t be right to let you cook. Today, just sit comfortably and watch TV, that’s fine."
Li Younan wanted to say something but eventually held back, sitting quietly on the sofa watching TV.
Jing Chaoyi’s cooking skills were quite good, and she didn’t make complicated dishes, so she didn’t take too long.
A dish was brought out after another, and Li Younan was momentarily taken aback.
There was twice-cooked pork, steamed eggs, and a pressure-cooked stewed black chicken soup.
Not a single spicy dish.
Li Younan looked at Jing Chaoyi, who brought out two bowls of rice, saying: "I didn’t treat you as an outsider, so I didn’t make complicated dishes."
Li Younan smiled and nodded without saying anything, accepting the rice. The two ate warmly like they did back in Xiamen.
After dinner, Jing Chaoyi lay on the sofa. Although the dining table was not messy, the plates and bowls were scattered casually.
Back in Xiamen, they alternated washing dishes day by day.
Now, since Jing Chaoyi cooked, Li Younan got up voluntarily to clear the dishes.
Jing Chaoyi immediately sat up, grabbed a plate, and said: "Oh, senior, how can I let you do this? You’re a guest, relax today!"
Li Younan said: "Isn’t that not quite right?"
Then comfortably put down the dishes.
Jing Chaoyi hummed a little tune as she went to clean the dishes.
While washing dishes, Jing Chaoyi’s phone in the living room kept ringing incessantly.
Li Younan reminded her several times, but Jing Chaoyi was in no hurry. She slowly washed the dishes clean, tidied up the kitchen, then walked out drying her hands, saying: "Who called on the phone?"
Li Younan glanced at the phone on the coffee table, saying: "I didn’t look."
Jing Chaoyi quickly walked over, picked up the phone and saw the missed call, paused, and murmured quietly: "Oh, totally forgot about this."
Li Younan curiously asked: "Need help?"
Jing Chaoyi naturally sat beside Li Younan, saying: "It’s not a big deal, my mom knew I’d be back, so she gave me a task. Tomorrow, a friend’s daughter is getting married, and she told me to drop by."
Li Younan nodded, it really wasn’t a difficult task.
