The shopkeeper at Bookstore didn’t give Li Fugui a hard time, but instead gave him the job of copying books. Li Fugui thanked him and then left the Bookstore.
Xiaoxiao, witnessing this, noticed that Li Fugui, after his stint in jail, had changed. He was no longer so aloof; he had become more down-to-earth. Now that he was earning his own money, she truly admired him.
As the two of them left the Bookstore, they wanted to offer him help, so they called out to Li Fugui, "Brother Li, please wait."
Li Fugui was carrying the materials he had gotten from the Bookstore, feeling very pleased. It was the first time in his life that he had taken on work to earn money. He thought Xiaotian would certainly be happy to hear it, but unexpectedly, someone called out to him from behind. When he turned around, he saw the two people he least wanted to encounter.
He knew Yang Ming had come from Bookstore as well, surely having seen him just being humiliated, probably coming over to laugh at him. When he thought about how if it wasn’t for them reporting him to the authorities, he wouldn’t have gotten into trouble, his hatred grew.
But he didn’t leave. Instead, he stopped, "Is there something you need?"
"Brother Li, where are you staying now?"
"What’s it to you?" He thought that his being kicked out of his home must have become a joke by now.
"Is there anything I can help you with?" Yang Ming genuinely wanted to help, but Li Fugui was not receptive.
Seeing that Yang Ming had nothing more to say, "If there’s nothing else, I’ll be going."
With that, Li Fugui walked away, and Xiaoxiao and Yang Ming did not follow.
Maybe this was for the best. Their relationship had always been bad, to say the least. Offering assistance rashly would surely be rejected by Li Fugui.
Li Fugui returned to the rented courtyard and put his things in the room. Seeing that it was getting late, and knowing Xiaotian would be returning home tired and hungry, and then having to cook for him, he felt a pang of distress and, as if possessed, made his way into the kitchen.
Xiaotian arrived at the entrance of their home only to see thick smoke billowing from the kitchen. Fearing a fire had broken out, she ran toward it, shouting, "Fugui, Fugui!"
But when she entered the kitchen, she saw Fugui beside the stove, trying to light the fire in a clumsy and comical way. Looking around, the kitchen was in such disarray it appeared as if it was being dismantled.
Hearing Xiaotian’s voice, Fugui felt happy. He thought he didn’t want to be apart from her for even a moment, "Xiaotian, you’re back!"
Xiaotian, upon seeing Fugui’s face grimy as if it were painted, felt both sorrow and joy. She was sad that the Eldest Young Master had to cook for himself, yet happy to see that Fugui was finally facing reality and had begun to work hard.
"Fugui, let me teach you!" She had intended to do it herself, but seeing such effort from the young master, she thought it was necessary to let him finish cooking this meal.
"This fire, you need to manage it , , ."
"For the rice, you need to add water. It’s only eatable once the water is in!"
"You cut the cabbage into chunks , try it!"
, the two of them cooked dinner together in the kitchen, with laughter occasionally echoing through the space. Li Fugui felt this might be the happiest moment of his life.
At last, the meal was ready, "Xiaotian, have a taste, how is it?"
He was eager for Xiaotian to try it and see how it tasted!
Xiaotian took a bite. The flavor was mediocre, but it was the young master’s first time cooking, "Fugui, it’s very good already! We’ll practice more from now on!"
Li Fugui tried a mouthful. He had enjoyed so many delicious foods, and this was the first time he had tasted something so poor, but remembering his current circumstances, he knew he had no right to waste food anymore, so he swallowed the dish anyway, "Xiaotian, I will definitely be able to make delicious food in the future!"
Seeing the young master , Xiaotian laughed. The young master had really changed, he was different now.