Chapter 140: Special
This translation was originally posted on https://love4baihe.blogspot.com please read it there. and check out other stories too.
When Ruan Yesheng saw the lemons in the bag, she knew what Xi Mo was thinking.
She asked on purpose, just to tease Xi Mo and see what funny reaction she would have. Would she stay silent, or would she use her usual logic to explain and force it to make sense?
Xi Mo saying she wanted honey lemon water so directly actually caught Ruan Yesheng off guard.
Hearing this, Ruan Yesheng felt a bit warm inside. Her smile grew brighter and she said, “No problem, I’ll make it for you right now.”
But Xi Mo hesitated a little. “Right now?”
Ruan Yesheng didn’t know why she was hesitating, but she guessed Xi Mo had her own reason. She said, “Didn’t you say you wanted to drink it? Looking at your face now, I feel like you don’t want it.”
“No, I do.” There was a hint of urgency on Xi Mo’s face, and her eyebrows were still furrowed.
Ruan Yesheng loved seeing Xi Mo look like this, trying to explain in a hurry. In her eyes, Xi Mo was always too adorable when she showed this kind of look.
Xi Mo was clearly a proud high mountain flower, hard to pick and often unhappy. But now she would get anxious in front of her.
Ruan Yesheng looked at Xi Mo with a smile, waiting for her to continue.
“But if I drink it right now, it’s a bit inconvenient,” Xi Mo said, looking troubled. “I already had tea earlier, and we’re going to have lunch soon. It’s not good to have a drink with sugar again in such a short time. It would be better to have it in the afternoon.”
Xi Mo always trained hard, controlled her diet, and followed her rules.
Such a self-disciplined person would feel a bit uneasy if she suddenly changed her habits.
Ruan Yesheng understood her concern and smiled. “Do you think once it’s ready, you can drink it right away?”
“Honey lemon water should be drunk as soon as it’s made. Isn’t that right?” Xi Mo was puzzled. “When my assistant bought honey lemon water for me before, I always drank it right away. That’s when it’s fresh.”
“It’s true you should drink freshly made honey lemon water right away.” Ruan Yesheng already had a lemon in her hand. She took another one from the bag, rinsing both under the tap. “But what I’m making now isn’t the water, only the honey lemon.”
“What’s the difference?” Xi Mo watched her hands closely. “You slice the lemon, add honey, pour water, and that’s it. You still have to drink it right away.”
Ruan Yesheng laughed. “So that’s what you thought?”
Xi Mo nodded, vaguely realizing she might have made a fool of herself, looking slightly awkward.
Ruan Yesheng took out a clear bowl and set it aside. She patiently explained, “Honey lemon water isn’t made that way. It’s simple, but not as simple as you think. You have to soak the lemon slices in honey first for a while. This way the lemon juice slowly comes out, the slices soften, and they blend with the honey to create a sweet and sour taste. If you skip this step and mix fresh lemon slices with honey and hot water right away, it won’t taste as good.”
“Mm.” Xi Mo stood beside her, listening carefully. “I understand now.”
“You said my honey lemon water tastes good. Do you still want to drink it again?” Ruan Yesheng asked softly.
Xi Mo lifted her gaze and looked straight into her eyes.
Then she nodded. “Yes.”
Just that one word easily tugged at Ruan Yesheng’s heartstrings.
Ruan Yesheng’s eyes curved like a crescent moon. “I can only stay at your place for these three days. I won’t be able to make it for you like this afterward. But I can teach you the detailed steps, so you can make it yourself whenever you want to drink it.”
Xi Mo heard the gentleness in every word she spoke, yet she could not feel happy.
Her heart felt a little empty.
Because Ruan Yesheng said she could only stay for three days.
“I’ll show you. It’s really simple. You’ll learn it after watching it once.” Ruan Yesheng did not know what she was thinking. “Do you have a sealed glass jar at home?”
“I’m not sure.” Xi Mo lowered her head slightly. “Usually, Auntie Lan had people prepare these things. I don’t know if she bought one.”
Ruan Yesheng recalled that when she opened the refrigerator earlier, there had been honey inside, stored in glass jars. She quickly went over, opened the refrigerator, and took out a small jar of honey.
She placed the honey jar on the counter and said to Xi Mo, “This size of glass jar is just right. This jar is half full, so it’s perfect for making one jar of honey lemon.”
Xi Mo silently memorized the size of the jar.
Since Ruan Yesheng said so, she would buy glass jars of this size in the future.
While washing the lemons, Ruan Yesheng said, “Bring me some salt.”
“You even need salt?” Xi Mo was a little surprised. But she still followed Ruan Yesheng’s instructions and handed her the salt shaker.
She did not quite understand. The honey lemon water she drank before was always sweet and sour. She had never thought of adding salt.
“No.” Ruan Yesheng smiled. “The salt is for washing the lemons.”
She deliberately handed the lemon to Xi Mo, letting her observe the slightly shiny lemon skin. “Look, most lemons sold in the market are coated with artificial wax. When washing, you need to scrub them lightly with fine salt and then soak them in salt water for a few minutes to remove the wax. Because the lemon peel has to be kept, if the wax is not removed, the honey lemon water will have a bit of bitterness.”
Xi Mo stood next to Ruan Yesheng, leaning closer to look at the lemon peel.
After looking, she somehow felt a little embarrassed, even ashamed.
Her eyes drifted to the side as she said softly, “I only know how to cook dumplings.”
Life looked simple, but the details were actually so complicated.
Before, everything had been prepared for her. She never needed to care about these trivial matters, nor had anyone like Ruan Yesheng who would carefully share such little life tips with her.
Maybe this kind of life was what real life was.
She wondered who would live with Ruan Yesheng in the future.
If there really was such a person, that person would be too lucky. That kind of luck was like winning the grand prize.
But she wasn't lucky. She could only win the fourth prize.
Thinking of this, Xi Mo’s unhappiness rose to another level.
She was very unhappy.
“Being able to cook dumplings is already great.” Ruan Yesheng noticed her gloom. She thought Xi Mo was just feeling bad for not knowing these kitchen tricks, so she smiled and comforted her. “I can’t even cook dumplings as well as you.”
The curve of Xi Mo’s lips quietly lifted a little.
Ruan Yesheng washed the lemons with salt, then put them into a clear bowl, sprinkled some salt, and poured in water to cover them. Seeing it would take some time, she used the few minutes of waiting to keep sorting ingredients, while Xi Mo helped her at the side.
Once the lemons were completely clean, Ruan Yesheng showed Xi Mo how to slice them.
With her beautiful hands holding the knife, she cut off both ends of the lemon, then sliced off one piece of peel. “About this thin will do,” she said to Xi Mo.
Her knife work was skilled, each slice even. Gradually, the juicy golden-yellow lemon flesh stacked neatly on the cutting board, forming a row. Under her fair fingers, they looked very tempting.
“Got it?” Ruan Yesheng smiled. “Do you want to try?”
Xi Mo walked over, took the knife from Ruan Yesheng, and tried slicing one piece.
Her knife work was far less neat than Ruan Yesheng’s. She cut it too thick, creating a sharp contrast with Ruan Yesheng’s thin slices.
Quickly, Xi Mo put the thick slice into a separate bowl so it wouldn’t be compared to Ruan Yesheng’s, avoiding the shame of the side-by-side difference.
Ruan Yesheng saw her little action and wanted to laugh even more. But she was also worried Xi Mo might hurt herself since she was not used to handling knives. “Better not cut,” she said. “In the future, you can ask Auntie Lan to cut them for you. Use knives less and don’t hurt yourself.”
“Am I that useless with my hands? I can still hold a knife steady.” Xi Mo moved the bowl with the thick slice a bit farther away, staring at Ruan Yesheng.
“I’m just wprried that if by any chance you accidentally hurt your hand, even a genius can have accidents.”
Ruan Yesheng smiled with narrowed eyes and added, “How could I doubt your skill with your hands? You’re so eager to learn, I believe your skill must be great.”
Xi Mo: “…”
Somehow, this sounded a little strange.
She could not say exactly why, but Ruan Yesheng’s tone had a kind of indescribable tingling to it.
Ruan Yesheng finished slicing the lemons, carefully picking out the seeds. Then she took a bowl and poured all the honey from the glass jar into it.
The honey was thick, and by the end, thin threads of honey still clung between the bowl and the jar. Ruan Yesheng held the jar in the air, waiting for the last strands to drop.
Xi Mo thought this step seemed troublesome, but still asked earnestly, “Since we’ll put the honey back into the glass jar later, why pour it out first? Is there some special reason?”
Ruan Yesheng finally emptied the jar and said, “No special reason. If you have an extra glass jar, you don’t need to pour it out like this. But now you only have one jar, and we have to put in the lemon first before pouring the honey, so we have to take it out for now.”
Xi Mo memorized the order, watching as Ruan Yesheng placed a few slices of lemon into the jar, poured a layer of honey over them, then added a few more slices and poured another layer, repeating this step layer by layer.
When the glass jar was almost full, leaving a bit of space, Ruan Yesheng finally stopped. She tightened the lid, shook the jar in front of Xi Mo, and smiled. “It’s done. I told you it was simple. Now put it in the refrigerator to chill. In two days, you can mix it with water and drink it.”
“What’s the earliest I can drink it?” Xi Mo asked.
Ruan Yesheng put the jar into the refrigerator and turned back. “If you’re in a hurry, you can drink it tomorrow morning. But if it sits longer, it will taste better. The lemon juice will seep more into the honey and blend together.”
“…I’m not in a hurry.” Xi Mo frowned.
Ruan Yesheng looked at her with a smile, thinking that even the tiny strands of her eyebrows looked cute when she frowned.
After making the honey lemon, it was time to prepare lunch.
Ruan Yesheng cleaned the counter, then placed diced chicken, thin onion slices, strips of green pepper, sections of scallion, and small florets of cauliflower into bowls, neat and pretty.
Xi Mo liked order, and seeing Ruan Yesheng keep the kitchen this tidy made her feel comfortable inside.
She didn’t leave. She just stood beside Ruan Yesheng, watching her cook.
While rinsing white quinoa, Ruan Yesheng said, “When you used to eat chicken breast, you usually had it boiled, right?”
“Yes, fitness meal,” Xi Mo said. “It’s good for the body.”
“But it’s not tasty, is it?” Ruan Yesheng smiled.
For an actress to keep her figure, there was always a price to pay, sometimes at the cost of flavor.
Xi Mo had strong willpower. She was already used to the taste of boiled chicken breast, but she did think it was bland. “Yes, it’s not tasty. But it’s fine, I can accept it.”
“Sometimes, people need to seek a bit of happiness,” Ruan Yesheng said softly, looking into her eyes. “Eating delicious food is also a kind of happiness. Of course, for health, there are many dietary rules. But you don’t always need to stick to them. That would be tiring. It’s nice to relax once in a while.”
“Happiness?” Xi Mo thought of something. “So by that, do you mean you want to eat your favorite braised pork knuckle for some happiness?”
Ruan Yesheng: “…”
Xi Mo changed her words. “No, pork knuckle isn’t happiness anymore. That counts as indulgence.”
Ruan Yesheng: “…”
Xi Mo’s eyes showed some amusement, but she didn’t say more. She should count as happy right now.
“Is that what I meant? Even if pork knuckle is delicious, it’s still a body’s worst enemy. I don’t even eat it a few times a year, alright?” Ruan Yesheng hated how slow she was to get the point. “What I mean is, you don’t have to always eat healthy but tasteless dishes. You can make healthy dishes taste good.”
“Like what?”
“There are too many,” Ruan Yesheng said. “When I was learning dance before, I also kept eating boiled chicken breast. It was awful. I had to think of every possible way to make it easier to eat.”
“So this time, you’re going to make chicken breast a little different?” Xi Mo asked.
Ruan Yesheng pointed at the bowl of washed white quinoa. “I’ll make you a chicken breast and white quinoa salad. Have you had it before?”
“No, I haven’t,” Xi Mo said. “But I do like white quinoa.”
Many female celebrities liked white quinoa because it was a complete nutritional food, rich in dietary fiber, and most importantly—low in sugar, fat, and calories. It was popular among people who wanted to keep their figure.
“As long as you like it,” Ruan Yesheng said. She sprinkled an appropriate amount of salt and white pepper powder into the bowl of chicken cubes, then put on a pair of disposable clear gloves and began to knead them, letting the seasoning soak in.
When she cooked, she would roll up her sleeves, revealing a section of fair forearm. Her wrist moved slightly with each kneading motion.
Xi Mo looked at her hands at work, then shifted her gaze to her face.
The corners of Ruan Yesheng’s eyes had a slight upward tilt. Fine strands of hair clung to her ear, her eyes were misty, and her red lips pressed together slightly. Every detail was alluring.
Many female celebrities had seductive looks, but Xi Mo felt Ruan Yesheng’s was the most unique.
This translation was originally posted on https://love4baihe.blogspot.com please read it there. and check out other stories too.
She thought of what Zhou Wenxu had said.
Zhou Wenxu wanted Ruan Yesheng to keep calling him Mr.Two because he thought the title was special.
Watching Ruan Yesheng marinate the chicken, Xi Mo asked, “What do your friends usually call you?”
“People who know me better usually call me Ruanruan. My fans call me that too,” Ruan Yesheng replied, a little puzzled why she suddenly asked this without a reason.
“What about your dad and mom? Do you have a childhood nickname?” Xi Mo asked again.
Ruan Yesheng’s hands paused, her expression turning dazed for a moment before she said, “They also call me Ruanruan.”
“So basically everyone calls you that?”
“I guess so.” A smile returned to Ruan Yesheng’s face. “Probably because ‘Ruanruan’ is easier to say.”
“Then does anyone call you Yesheng?” Xi Mo asked, her eyes flickering slightly as she looked at the faucet.
“No one’s ever called me that. Strangers don’t dare, and people who know me all call me Ruanruan.”
Ruan Yesheng finished marinating the chicken, heated the pan, poured in some oil, and added the chicken cubes to stir-fry. Curious because of Xi Mo’s question, she asked, “What about you? What’s your nickname?”
She smiled a little. “Is it Momo?”
“No. I don’t have a nickname.” Xi Mo’s face stayed calm.
“Momo sounds almost like ‘touch touch.’* It's easy to make people misunderstand.” Ruan Yesheng tossed onion shreds, scallion segments, and garlic into the pan with the chicken, her smile sweet as honey at the corners of her eyes. “You really can’t be called that. It’s weird and easy for people to take advantage. Good thing no one calls you that.”
*Xi Mo’s Mo is 墨(mò) which means Chinese Ink, while 摸 (mō) means to touch or stroke.
Otherwise, Ruan Yesheng would not be happy either.
“People usually just call me Xi Mo. Younger ones call me Sister Xi,” Xi Mo said, glancing at Ruan Yesheng.
Ruan Yesheng also called her Xi Mo.
It was the same two words, but when Ruan Yesheng said them, they somehow sounded different from when others did.
There was a sense of being one of a kind. Maybe simply because it was Ruan Yesheng calling her.
She was already used to that way Ruan Yesheng addressed her.
“But Gu Qisong calls you Xiao Mo* too. He’s the only one who dares,” Ruan Yesheng said, remembering how stiffly Gu Qisong had said it before, almost laughing again.
*Little Mo
“…”
Gu Qisong, that blockhead, forget it, not worth bothering about.
There were still a few lemon slices left from earlier. Ruan Yesheng squeezed their juice into the pan, sprinkled in the quinoa, added water, and let it cook.
"Why did you ask me about that name?"
While waiting, Ruan Yesheng turned her face and spoke to Xi Mo.
Xi Mo lowered her eyes. "No reason. I just asked. I was standing here with nothing to do."
Ruan Yesheng made chicken breast quinoa salad. Then she fried broccoli. Then she blanched some crisp lettuce. She put the dishes on the table.
They sat at the dining table to eat lunch.
"How is it?" Ruan Yesheng looked at Xi Mo with hope.
"Good." Xi Mo said. "And healthy."
Hearing these two short words, Ruan Yesheng was satisfied.
After lunch, Xi Mo volunteered to wash the dishes.
Ruan Yesheng felt uneasy. She stood by and watched. She saw Xi Mo wash the dishes in good form. She was not like a spoiled Young Miss. She was independent.
"Don't keep staring. Don't worry. I won't break the bowls." Xi Mo saw through Ruan Yesheng's thoughts. "When I first moved to your house and lived alone, there was no helper. I had to wash the dishes myself."
"Great." Ruan Yesheng praised her.
Normal people might think washing dishes or cooking is nothing big.
But for someone like Xi Mo, who came from a powerful family and never touched spring water with her fingers before, suddenly having to do these things alone would surely come with bumps at the start.
Compared to before, Xi Mo had really changed a lot.
And it made her like her even more.
“I can do housework now.” Xi Mo looked at Ruan Yesheng, her eyes a little bright, as if this was a skill she could show off in front of Ruan Yesheng.
She was not a Young Miss.
She could also do many things in daily life and did not need to be served.
She could do things well by herself and could also help Ruan Yesheng, not hold her back.
“Mm, you practiced it. Then before you got used to housework, did you break any bowls in my house?” Ruan Yesheng asked with a smile.
“I broke four.” Xi Mo told the truth. “But I replaced them all for you, same style.”
“Good girl.” Ruan Yesheng smoothed Xi Mo’s long hair with her hand, like smoothing fur.
Xi Mo: “…”
They cleaned up the kitchen, then sat and rested for a while. After that, they went upstairs for a nap.
It was raining cold outside. Being able to curl up under the quilt for a nap was a thing that made one’s bones go soft.
Not to mention Xi Mo’s courtyard was very quiet. Ruan Yesheng lay in the quilt and slept very comfortably.
Ruan Yesheng woke up at 2:30. She stepped out of her room and saw Xi Mo’s door open, but there was no one inside.
She went downstairs and saw the living room empty too.
How come the moment she wakes up, this person is gone again?
Ruan Yesheng thought, surely she was not going to work out now. She checked the study, the movie room, and even the sunroom, but Xi Mo was in none of them. She was not in the courtyard either.
Ruan Yesheng had no choice but to call Xi Mo and ask where she was.
The call connected quickly.
Xi Mo spoke first, in a low voice. “…Yesheng.”
That soft call sounded natural, yet if one listened carefully, there was a bit of nervousness.
It was the first time calling her this way, how could she not feel uneasy?
With that touch of nervousness, the natural tone carried another kind of meaning.
It felt like she had practiced it in her heart many times before finally calling it out.
Ruan Yesheng’s hand holding the phone froze at once.
The tip of her heart seemed to tremble, like something hanging there, about to fall yet not falling, moving up and down with the beat of her heart.
She could almost not control her heartbeat.
Xi Mo… what did she just call her?
Ruan Yesheng’s ears buzzed. In that instant, she thought she was still dreaming.
She suddenly remembered Xi Mo asking about forms of address in the kitchen, and only then did she understand, it wasn’t a dream.
It was real.
“Can you call me like that again?” Ruan Yesheng’s hand gripped the phone tight, and her breath stopped.
As she wished, Xi Mo said, “…Yesheng, why did you call?"
“It’s nothing.” Hearing Xi Mo call her like that for the first time, Ruan Yesheng felt she could not take it. It took her a while to calm down before she said, “I just got up and didn’t see you. I didn’t know where you were, so I called.”
Xi Mo was vague. “I’m busy with something right now, so I left for a bit. I’ll be back later.”
Just then, Ruan Yesheng heard Zhou Wenxu’s voice from the other end. “Xi Mo, we’ve already searched all the gifts on this shelf, and we didn’t find the gift Miss Ruan gave you back in college!”
Ruan Yesheng didn’t expect to hear Zhou Wenxu’s voice. But since she could hear it, he must have been speaking very loudly, and he was probably standing right next to Xi Mo.
Thanks to Zhou Wenxu, she didn’t need to ask anymore. She already knew where Xi Mo was.
Xi Mo, holding the phone, hadn’t expected Zhou Wenxu to suddenly walk over and speak so loudly in front of her. The nearby security guards and servants helping out were all startled.
This time, Zhou Wenxu spoke like he was giving marching orders in the army, voice booming. He shouted, “Now we’re searching the third shelf. Don’t worry, we have plenty of people. Before dinner, we should be able to finish searching two-thirds of the shelves!”
Xi Mo: “…”
Zhou Wenxu, you did that on purpose!
Do you dare to shout any louder?!
Do you want to get fired?!
But Xi Mo was only unhappy for a moment. Zhou Wenxu had been with her for so many years. To her, he was almost like family. If Zhou Wenxu was willing to keep working in her villa, she would keep hiring him.
Ruan Yesheng’s eyes carried a smile. She said, “You’re on the third floor next door, right? Can I come over?”
Seeing she couldn’t hide it anymore, Xi Mo had no choice but to say, “Yes, come over. It’s raining outside, remember to wear gloves and a scarf.”
Author's Note:
Ao Awoooooo finally reached this chapter! I really love this one! Finally changed the way of address, wuwuwu I’m crying so hard. You two aren’t even dating, yet it’s like you’re already married!!! [Not.
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