Gu Chen stood at the kitchen doorway, his mind a chaotic mess of thoughts.
By now, Ji Pianran had already dressed.
When she pulled open the door and saw Gu Chen standing outside, she felt somewhat uncomfortable.
More than discomfort, it was actually embarrassment.
"You, you, why are you still standing here..."
Gu Chen himself didn't know why he was standing there.
He blinked awkwardly.
"That, I, I've poured out the bathwater for you."
He clenched his fists and scurried into the kitchen with his head down.
Leaving behind a stunned and bewildered Ji Pianran, she pursed her lips.
As if unsure what to do.
Today's Gu Chen was really too abnormal.
First, in the dead of winter, he went to the reservoir to catch fish, to grab eels, and to help look for Tangtang.
And now, he even... even helped pour out her bathwater.
Gu Chen only felt an indescribable itchiness in his heart at the moment.
The wooden tub wasn't big, just over a meter high; thankfully, Ji Pianran had been sitting, otherwise she would have been fully exposed.
He lifted the wooden tub with effort.
Then he walked out of the kitchen and poured the water right outside the door.
After that, he carried the tub back inside.
Ji Pianran stood silently behind him, watching everything.
After a while, she managed to utter a phrase.
"Thank you."
The pale moonlight enveloped her damp hair, lending her already fair skin an even more delicate appearance.
It exuded an indescribable beauty.
"Thank you for being kind to Tangtang today, and..." What she wanted to say was that he had helped pour out her bathwater.
But as the words reached her lips, she felt they were too suggestive.
Gu Chen understood her meaning.
But this sincere thank you
was like a silent indictment of the wrongs he had once committed.
It actually made him feel sad.
His eyes reddened.
"There's no need to thank me. From now on, I will be better to both Tangtang and you. Just give me some time, okay? I won't let you be wronged again."
Upon hearing this, Ji Pianran's dark pupils trembled.
He said he would be better to her and Tangtang.
He said he wouldn't let her and Tangtang be wronged again.
Was this a promise to her?
...
Early the next morning, when Gu Chen awoke, Tangtang was sleeping soundly beside him.
The little girl lay with her head cocked, dreaming of who knows what, her rosy lips glistening with drool.
Incredibly adorable.
Fearing he would wake the child, Gu Chen quietly got up.
He tiptoed out of the room, being sure to close the door behind him.
He went into the kitchen.
He had planned to make something to eat, but upon seeing the empty kitchen, he once again found himself in a quandary.
What to eat?
He furrowed his brow, then a thought struck him – he remembered the broccoli in the Space.
He wondered what it looked like now.
With that thought, he silently uttered the word "Space."
To his delight, the fist-sized broccoli from yesterday had fully sprouted today.
Moreover, it was twice the size of those available in the markets.
Each piece looked lush and green, appearing very fresh.
Gu Chen immediately dug up a head of broccoli and returned from the Space.
In the pot was the rice porridge that Ji Pianran had made the day before.
He warmed up the porridge and started chopping the broccoli into small pieces.
Just as he was about to wash them in preparation for a quick stir-fry,
he saw Tangtang padding in on her little feet from her room across the way.
The little one had woken up to find Gu Chen gone and had hurried out to look for him.
Hearing noises from the kitchen, she rushed in.
Seeing that it was indeed Gu Chen, she broke into a bright and innocent smile.
"Daddy, Tangtang missed you so much!"
The little girl's voice was incredibly sweet.
After speaking, she stretched out her chubby little hands to hug Gu Chen's legs.
Watching his daughter's actions,
Gu Chen's heart melted.
He bent down and gently scraped his finger across Tangtang's little nose.
His eyes were practically brimming with adoration for her.
"Tangtang, are you hungry? Daddy will make you something to eat."
Hearing that there would be food, Tangtang licked her plump, little lips.
Her face filled with longing as she looked at Gu Chen and then nodded vigorously.
"Hungry, hungry, Tangtang wants to eat Daddy's cooking!"
Ever since she had eaten the food made by Gu Chen, the little girl had discovered a shocking secret.
That was, her daddy's cooking was the best in the world!
She loved eating the food Daddy made so much!
Seeing the little girl's cat-like desire for food, Gu Chen couldn't help but laugh and cry.
He shook his head, amused and helpless.
Then he turned around, ready to take out the prepped Huacai.
With his movement, Tangtang naturally saw the Huacai in the basin.
She discovered that the things in the basin looked exactly like the little flowers she had picked on the roadside the night before.
Even prettier than yesterday's, the little girl's eyes widened with surprise and delight on her face.
Most importantly, the tender green stems looked so plump with water, they seemed delicious.
Her little finger pointed at the basin.
"Daddy, flower flower!"
She licked her lips and in the next second, she grabbed one out.
Without any hesitation, she stuffed it into her mouth.
This scared Gu Chen half to death.
He hurriedly reached out to take it.
Unfortunately, by the time he got hold of it, the little girl had already bitten into it.
She chewed carefully and, in the next second, a pair of shiny black eyes lit up.
"Daddy, so sweet! So yummy!"
Gu Chen heard his daughter say it was sweet.
He casually took the small piece he had taken from Tangtang's mouth, put it in his own mouth, and bit down.
Indeed, the Huacai grown in Spirit Field tasted incredibly good.
The stems were incredibly tender, and when he bit into it, juice actually flowed out.
The taste was refreshingly sweet and delicious.
It was completely different from the broccoli Gu Chen had eaten before.
Right now, in the midst of the festive season, selling this broccoli would surely fetch a good price!
Thinking this, a smile appeared on Gu Chen's lips.
He took out all the cleaned broccoli.
He put them in the pot to drain the water, made sure they were cooked after boiling for a moment, and immediately took them out.
Then he added some soy sauce, a little vinegar, sprinkled a bit of salt, and a touch of sesame oil.
The ordinary Huacai suddenly exuded an irresistible aroma.
Tangtang was so tempted she immediately pointed at her mouth with her little fingers.
"Daddy, eat, eat!"
Gentlely, Gu Chen fed her a piece, and after a while, the girl's eyes lit up.
Daddy really had a talent for cooking!
Super incredibly delicious!!!!
Just then, Ji Pianran also got up, planning to go to the kitchen to make something for Tangtang to eat.
Seeing Ji Pianran enter the kitchen, Gu Chen hastily took the hot porridge from the stove and set it down.
He placed it on the small table, then put the cooled mixed Huacai on the table as well.
"Come, come, let's eat."
When Tangtang saw Ji Pianran, she hurriedly threw herself into her arms.
"Mommy, Mommy, Daddy's cooking smells so good."
Ji Pianran smiled, picked up the spoon from the porridge bowl, and began to feed Tangtang.
Gu Chen quickly intervened, "Let me do it, you hurry up and eat."
After saying this, he took the bowl from Ji Pianran's hand.
After the family of three had eaten, Ji Pianran prepared to go out to work as usual.
The work she did was actually a variety of odd jobs, embroidery, shoe mending, or helping out families who were too busy to manage on their own, and she was capable of all it.
Seeing her about to leave, Gu Chen swallowed nervously.
"How about I take the child today? It would be good to take her for a trip to the city."
Ji Pianran usually took Tangtang with her while working, and although Tangtang was young, she was sensible from an early age.
Plus, being a pretty girl in a village where everyone knew each other,
she was beloved by all.
So no one minded Ji Pianran bringing the child along.
After hearing Gu Chen speak,
a flicker of wariness suddenly passed through Ji Pianran's eyes.
"You want to take her to the city?"
In years past, when times were hard, many people sold their children to the city.
What was Gu Chen planning to do?