Translator: Cinder Translations
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Upon returning home, the porridge was just ready. Fatty lifted the pot lid to take a look, deemed it just right, and then went upstairs to wake up Jiang Cheng.
However, halfway up, he suddenly heard a noise coming from the bathroom.
When he turned around, the bathroom door opened, and Jiang Cheng walked out, adjusting his pants.
"Doctor," fatty greeted warmly, "you're up! Haven't had breakfast yet, right?"
Jiang Cheng looked up at fatty's face. After a few seconds, he glanced back at the still-open bathroom door and replied with a hint of sarcasm, "Guess?"
Fatty thought Jiang Cheng might have misunderstood him, so he hurriedly added, "Doctor, that's not what I meant."
After a pause, he continued, "I made you some porridge. Have a little in the morning, and then we'll have pork ribs for lunch."
Upon hearing the words "pork ribs," Jiang Cheng's face gradually turned rosy.
He originally wanted to scare fatty using Chen Yao's name, but then worried it might spoil the taste of the ribs at lunch, so he decided against it.
"Then I'll just manage a bite," Jiang Cheng said, showing some courtesy as he changed direction and walked towards the office.
Perhaps because they were having pork ribs for lunch, Jiang Cheng unusually didn't finish all the porridge but instead shared a considerable amount with fatty.
"Doctor," fatty barely swallowed the porridge in his mouth and waved his hand, saying, "Don't serve me anymore, I really can't drink anymore."
"A bit of porridge is good for your health," Jiang Cheng snatched fatty's bowl, filled it up again, and personally placed it in front of him, saying, "It's better than eating meat."
Fatty smacked his lips, suddenly realizing something, and earnestly said, "Doctor, you're not worried I'll snatch the pork ribs at lunch, right?"
Jiang Cheng retorted angrily, "Nonsense! I'm a respected doctor, a white-clad angel who saves lives! How could I do something like that!"
Fatty was taken aback by Jiang Cheng's reaction. In his mind, doctors were somewhat abnormal, so it was better not to provoke them.
Otherwise, he might end up recounting his glorious stories from night shifts at the KTV.
"Doctor," fatty quickly interrupted him and steered the conversation towards something Jiang Cheng would find interesting, "for lunch, do you prefer the ribs braised or stewed with some vegetables?"
As soon as the question was asked, Jiang Cheng's expression changed instantly. He slowly sat down and fell into deep thought at his desk.
Fatty took a deep breath.
In nightmares, even at life-and-death moments, Jiang Cheng had never been this serious.
After a while, Jiang Cheng slowly raised his head and asked fatty, "Is there garlic in the kitchen?"
Fatty nodded, "Yes, I bought a few last time, and there are still some left."
Not wanting to dwell on it any longer, Jiang Cheng decided, "Then let's stew it with some vegetables. You peel the garlic, wash it, and chop it finely. There should still be a bottle of sesame oil in the second compartment of the fridge. Add a little sesame oil to it," he smacked his lips, "I want to dip the ribs in it."
"Do you want green onions and cilantro?" Fatty picked up a small notebook, recording as he asked.
Jiang Cheng thought for a moment and replied, "A little is fine, but you need to be careful. The green onions need to be briefly fried in oil to make them fragrant."
Fatty put down his notebook, raised his head, and asked him, "Doctor, don't you think your requests are a bit excessive?"
"You have to understand," Jiang Cheng said nonchalantly, "I'm not like you; after all, I make my living based on my looks. If the ladies stop liking me because I have pimples on my face…"
Fatty didn't wait for him to finish and got up to leave.
After a while, he returned to clear the bowls and chopsticks from the table, taking them to the kitchen.
The sound of running water came from the faucet.
Jiang Cheng leaned back in his chair at his desk and opened his computer.
He found a familiar website from his history and looked at it with interest.
Soon, fatty poked his head out of the kitchen. "Doctor," he called out, "do you have any plans later?"
Jiang Cheng, already in a sage mode, calmly closed the webpage and replied in the same tone, "You tell me what you need first, then I'll decide if I have plans later."
Fatty meticulously put the plates, bowls, and chopsticks back in their original places.
He worked very carefully and wouldn't just do a simple cleanup because he had to come back to make the ribs later. He thoroughly wiped down the kitchen with a cloth, washed the cutting board, and stood it up to dry, making it less likely to breed bacteria.
After doing all this, fatty walked out of the kitchen while drying his hands.
"Want some coffee?" he asked. "Doctor."
Jiang Cheng rested one hand on the desk and lightly knocked on it. "A caramel cappuccino with hazelnut flavor, please."
Fatty began to grin, "Doctor, you might still be half asleep. You know your own situation, right?"
His voice came from the kitchen, slightly distorted.
"Even instant coffee, you can only drink half a bag at a time because there's only one bag left."
Fatty walked out with the last bag of coffee, shaking it as he emphasized, "Half for you, half for me."
Although it sounded a bit pitiful, this was just Jiang Cheng's daily life.
Fatty sat across from Jiang Cheng, took a sip of coffee, and then put down the cup. Curiously, he asked, "Doctor, I feel like you shouldn't be living like this. Could it be…"
Suddenly, he seemed to realize something, looking at Jiang Cheng and indignantly saying, "Don't those rich women pay you for being a pimp?"
"I'll reiterate," Jiang Cheng sat up straight, speaking in a very serious tone. "I'm doing this entirely out of concern for their mental health. Please don't use such vulgar terms to tarnish this sacred endeavor."
Fatty: "…"
Jiang Cheng lowered his head, absentmindedly stirring his coffee with a spoon before taking it out and tapping it against the edge of the cup.
As the clear sound of tapping ended, he picked up the coffee cup and took a small sip, letting out a satisfied groan.
"Ah~"
"Doctor," fatty's face turned awkward for a moment, and then he licked his lips, nodding slightly towards the coffee cup in Jiang Cheng's hand. "It's just a cup of instant coffee worth 75 cents; I don't think it deserves such treatment."
"Of course, if you feel like life needs some ceremony, just pretend I didn't say anything."
Jiang Cheng glanced at him sideways. "You wouldn't understand; after all, I…"
"Alright," fatty directly cut off Jiang Cheng's next words.
He first glanced at the direction of the door, then turned back, adopting a serious expression and lowering his voice. "Honestly, Doctor, there's something I can't understand."
"What exactly are those people trying so hard to find?" Jiang Cheng replied casually while blowing at the steam rising from his coffee cup.
Fatty couldn't help but widen his eyes.
(End of the Chapter)
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Translated 1.3K+ Chapters and 1.5M+ Words.