At this moment, Niu Niu dared not move at all. The dishes Xiao Lin made were so beautiful, they seemed like pieces of art. Niu Niu had never seen dishes like these before. Well, she might have seen them on the neighbor’s television.
"Niu Niu, let’s dig in!" Xia Xue looked at Niu Niu with a gentle smile. This little girl seemed to have some magic power; the more you looked at her, the more lovingly you felt. She truly drew people to care for her.
"Big brother, Sister Xue, can I bring some to my mom?" Niu Niu asked in a tiny voice, "We’ve never eaten such beautiful dishes. I want my mom to try them too!" Her eyes revealed a pleading look that made people both pity and adore her. This little one really tugged at the heartstrings.
Xiao Lin inwardly mumbled to himself, could you be a little less considerate? It’s making people feel quite emotional. As for Xia Xue, her eyes were almost brimming with tears. She raised her hand to caress Niu Niu’s cheek and softly said, "Don’t worry, Niu Niu. Your mom’s eating is no worse than ours. Be good and eat up. Tomorrow, Sister Xue will take you to see your mom!"
"Okay!" Niu Niu trusted Xia Xue and Xiao Lin quite a bit. Since they said her mom’s eating wasn’t worse than hers, it must indeed not be worse.
The dishes Xiao Lin made were very exquisite, with excellent presentation, but the taste, well...
Xia Xue dipped a deep-sea shrimp in sauce and slightly furrowed her brows. The taste was strange. It was completely different from the shrimp she normally ate. Though it wasn’t exactly bad, it was certainly below home-cooked meals. For such high-quality ingredients, to turn out to taste worse than regular cooking, and what’s more... it’s not just a little salty; it’s very salty, as if Xiao Lin had never tasted salt before. Both the shrimp meat itself and the sauce were salty.
Niu Niu mimicked Xia Xue’s actions and took a shrimp to dip in the sauce...
Seeing Xia Xue pause, Xiao Lin eagerly awaited her compliments and promptly asked, "How does it taste?"
"Um... not bad!" Xia Xue looked at Xiao Lin with speechlessness, thinking that someone who could create such a strange flavor might as well be a "genius" in the culinary world.
Xiao Lin smiled contentedly and said, "I thought..." But before he could finish, Niu Niu, without hesitation, spat the shrimp into the plate meant for bones, saying, "Wow... Big brother, it’s so salty, not as good as a meat bun!"
Xiao Lin’s face dropped instantly. People say children speak honestly, but Xiao Lin couldn’t believe his culinary skills were that bad. He grabbed one and stuffed it into his mouth...
"Try something else, try others!" Xiao Lin said to Xia Xue with some embarrassment. The appearance of the dishes was definitely good, but the taste had hurt Xiao Lin. How did he end up adding too much salt? It was just two spoonfuls from a regular tablespoon, wasn’t it?
"Did you not add salt to this one?"
"Did you mistake sugar for salt in this dish? Why is it so sweet? But the taste is quite good!"
In general, the dishes Xiao Lin made looked quite good, but the taste was less commendable. Hearing this, Xiao Lin weakly asked, "Is this dish sweet or salty?"
Of course, the ones who found the most joy were Xia Xue and Niu Niu. For Xia Xue, it was a rare occasion to critique Xiao Lin, and seeing Xiao Lin’s frustrated expression made Niu Niu giggle along. However, they ate quite a lot of sweet dishes, preferring them over the overly salty ones.
Despite tasting fewer dishes due to the flavors, the two beauties still had a very happy meal. It’s true that establishing one’s happiness on someone else’s misfortune is, in itself, a very joyous thing.
Especially Niu Niu, who finally spoke seriously at the end, "Big brother, I’ve really tried hard to convince myself that these dishes are delicious, but unfortunately, things didn’t go as I wished. Even lowering my standards doesn’t work!"
"... If you don’t speak, no one will take you for a mute!" Xiao Lin naturally kept this thought to himself and didn’t say it out loud.
Of course, Xiao Lin wasn’t really that petty. Seeing the two beauties, one big and one small, happy, Xiao Lin still felt quite warm inside. If someone who didn’t know them saw such a scene, they would envy this family of three.
The harmonious scene was soon interrupted by a phone call. Xiao Lin glanced at the caller ID and didn’t avoid Xia Xue, picking up the phone directly and asking, "This is Xiao Lin, what’s up?"
"Alright, I got it. I’ll head over right now!" Xiao Lin’s expression remained calm without any change. After hanging up, he said to Xia Xue, "Director Chen needs me. I have to step out for a bit; you help with the cleanup!"
"Big brother..." Upon hearing Xiao Lin was going out, Niu Niu was a bit reluctant, having hoped she could spend the night with Xiao Lin. But, just as the meal was ending, they had to part.
Xiao Lin affectionately pinched Niu Niu’s small cheek, saying, "Be good, Niu Niu. You’ll be living here from now on, and you’ll see big brother every day, so no rush!"
Niu Niu was quite understanding, smiling widely and asking, "Can we bring my mom here?"
"Sure, I promise you, Niu Niu!" Xiao Lin agreed promptly. Who could bear to refuse this little one’s naturally adorable face?
However, Xia Xue noticed Xiao Lin’s expression was a bit unusual. As Xiao Lin stood up to leave, she rose to see him off, then remembered Niu Niu was there and turned back to remind her, "Niu Niu, after dinner have some fruit; it’s already prepared in the living room!"
"Okay!" Niu Niu nodded and headed towards the living room.
As she escorted Xiao Lin to the door, she quietly asked, "Is there something wrong with Sister Danqing?"
Xiao Lin nodded solemnly, "Yes, the hospital nurse just called. Sister Danqing’s condition is very bad. She started throwing up wildly not long after eating, became extremely weak, and even triggered full load on her heart, causing a few seconds of suffocation. Her situation is quite critical!"
"I’ll take good care of Niu Niu!" Xia Xue now understood why Xiao Lin was so calm while answering the phone earlier. "You should go quickly!"
Meanwhile, on the living room sofa, Niu Niu was trying hard to wipe away her tears, not wanting Xia Xue to see she had been crying. When Xia Xue returned to the living room, Niu Niu, after all, was a child, suddenly couldn’t help but ask, "Sister Xue, Mom will be okay, right?"
Xia Xue was taken aback for a moment, realizing she had overlooked that Niu Niu was more mature and understanding than an average child. She forced a smile and said, "Don’t worry, Niu Niu, with big brother around, Mommy Danqing will be fine!" But internally, Xia Xue resolved never again to treat Niu Niu as just a little girl. This child’s maturity was that of a teenager, surely endured hardships to have developed such a thoughtful mind?
Thinking of this, Xia Xue tightly embraced Niu Niu. (To be continued. If you work, you are welcome to vote for it on Qidian (qidian.com); your support is my biggest motivation.)