Feeling an unexpected lightness in his arm, Yan Fei opened his eyes to find the girl walking silently out of the room, clutching her clothes.
Seeing how cautious she was, not to wake him, Yan Fei quickly shut his eyes again. He wondered at his lack of vigilance. As someone who could spot trouble miles away, he somehow hadn’t noticed the girl slip out of his arms.
Ah! The idiom was true - a good woman could indeed weaken a man! But, let me drown in this sweet mischief!
Yan Fei lazily laid on his bed, moved a little and got to the warm spot where the girl had been laying. The scent of her lingered in his nostrils. He listened to her careful movements in the kitchen, his mind filled with amusing thoughts...
Time passed unmarked until he suddenly heard the girl muttering, "Why won’t it work?"
Yan Fei quietly got out of bed, tiptoed into the kitchen, and found the girl, back to him, staring blankly at the noodles she had made on the chopping board.
With just one glance, he understood. She was trying to make him Stewed Noodles but was obviously stuck with the most crucial step.
Stewed Noodles required some sesame oil and salt worked into the dough. After a good knead, the dough needed to rest for a while, making it elastic so it wouldn’t break when pulled. Clearly, she hadn’t let the dough rest long enough hence the poor outcome.
He deliberately made loud footfalls, and the girl turned around. Her beautiful brow crinkled in concern. Yan Fei couldn’t help but laugh at the adorable sight of her with a speck of flour on the tip of her nose.
The girl complained, "Yan Xiaofei, don’t you dare laugh! This is a recipe someone shared with me. I followed all the steps! Why can’t I make the noodle as long as the ones from the restaurant?"
Yan Fei walked over and hugged her from behind. "You didn’t leave the dough to rest long enough after oiling. But you did good regardless. Wash your hands and let me handle the rest."
"No!" The girl sniffed, "I want to succeed!"
"Don’t move. There’s some flour on your nose." Yan Fei leaned in to remove it. Anticipating her move to dodge, he whispered something into her ear, followed by a quick flick of his tongue to remove the flour.
You’re very spirited even after just waking. Hmph!" She didn’t dodge, instead she protested against his cheeky behaviour.
"Go wash your hands! If the noodles don’t work out, we could always make Braised Noodles Slice. Leave it to me, will you..." After washing their hands together, Yan Fei busied himself with the noodles.
Not long after, two bowls of delicious Braised Noodle Slices were ready. The girl took a deep sniff of the savory aroma, praising Yan Fei’s skill but disappointed about her own lack of culinary aptitude. "You cook so well! How come I’m so clumsy? Yan Xiaofei, you won’t mind my clumsiness, right?"
"You only heard the recipe once and tried your best, that makes you one in a million among wives! If everyone learns to cook as fast as you, all the restaurant owners out there will starve to death!" Yan Fei sweetly comforted her. "Let’s eat up and then watch the fireworks afterward."
"Oh my..." She glanced out the window, taking a look at the time. "Look at the time, we probably don’t even need dinner now!"
"We still have time! Do you know where people will gather the most at night? We can head there early and wait."
"The park! All three parks will be crowded, but People’s Park will likely be the fullest because I heard a lights display is happening there!"
"Then let’s eat and head out..."
After both of them tidied up, Yan Fei changed into a newer set of clothes, ditching his ’historical outfit’. He still wore his glasses out of habit. Once they arrived at People’s Park on a bus, they found it was already bustling with people.
But, the sky hadn’t completely darkened yet, and the lamps haven’t been lit.
Winter Jasmines speckled the park here and there in tiny blossoms. But they weren’t the main attraction today, overshadowed by the various colourful light displays. The crowd was engrossed in the mesmerizing lights, lingering around.
A little girl, unnoticed by the adults, sneaked up to the jasmine flower bed. She looked around nervously, her big eyes rolling around - her cheeky expression was endearing.
Miss Xu Xiaoyan nudged Yan Fei, "Look at that little girl, isn’t she adorable..."
She was indeed cute, but the woman beside him was even cuter. Basking in the evening glow, Yan Fei watched her beautiful smile dawn upon him, absently acknowledging her words.
The little girl, after looking around for a while, reached out and carefully picked a Winter Jasmine. She didn’t notice the elderly park official heading towards her. Miss Xu Xiaoyan bit her lip, deciding against the urge to warn the little girl - she didn’t want to scare her or ruin this touching scene...
Yan Fei flicked a tiny pebble towards the official’s leg.
Startled, the official paused to check his leg, and the little flower thief took that moment to pluck a tiny yellow Jasmine and scampered off - her braids swinging behind her like a playful deer darting in the woods.