Once she was out of Yu Mo’s sight, Xia Sihan finally let out a breath. Her eyebrows furrowed slightly—she couldn’t explain it, but just now, Yu Mo had given her a strangely heavy feeling, the kind that made her instinctively nervous and uneasy.
But thinking it over again, that didn’t make sense. After all, he looked so pale and frail, like someone constantly unwell—just an ordinary, sickly man.
Convinced she was simply overthinking it, she brushed the feeling aside and moved on.
Meanwhile, Mu Fu didn’t even realize it was already 2 PM until her stomach grumbled. She had been so focused on work that she’d completely lost track of time.
She figured she should cook something to eat. But she wasn’t sure if the others wanted anything—Yu Mo and Xia Sihan hadn’t come downstairs once while she was working.
She opened the fridge to see what ingredients were left, then headed upstairs to ask them.
Standing in the hallway between the two guest rooms, she chose the guys’ room first. She already knew which one was Yu Mo’s—she’d been inside yesterday.
After knocking, she waited a while before the door finally opened.
Yu Mo hadn’t expected to see Mu Fu. He thought it was Xia Sihan again, so he’d purposely delayed answering, hoping whoever was outside would just give up and leave.
He glanced subtly at her forehead. The spot where she’d bumped it yesterday had turned a visible bluish-purple. Even though a bandage covered it, the bruising peeked out at the edges.
“You didn’t go out today?” he asked.
“Nope.” Mu Fu’s round eyes blinked with a hint of confusion. “Were you planning to head out?”
“Yeah, I’ve got something in the afternoon.”
She hesitated for a beat before continuing, “Have you eaten yet? I was thinking of making some lunch. If you want to join, I can cook a bit more. But just a heads-up—my cooking’s only edible, don’t expect anything too tasty.”
Yu Mo’s expression visibly softened. “Haven’t eaten. Wait for me, I’ll come with you.”
Mu Fu nodded sweetly. “Okay. I’ll ask Sihan if she wants to eat too.”
“Alright. Let me know when it’s ready.”
“Mm-hmm!”
When Mu Fu found Xia Sihan, the other girl was busy putting on makeup.
“Are you going out later, Sihan?”
Xia Sihan smiled lightly and asked, “Hmm? What brings you over?”
Mu Fu replied, “Just wanted to see if you were hungry. I’m about to make something to eat—I’m starving.”
“Oh, no need to cook for me. I’m heading out to eat later,” Xia Sihan said with a casual wave of her hand.
“Okay, got it.”
As soon as Mu Fu knocked on the door, Yu Mo stepped out.
“Let’s go,” he said.
Since he didn’t seem like he was going to say more, Mu Fu took the initiative. “Sihan’s heading out to eat, so we just need to make enough for the two of us.”
“Got it. What do you feel like eating? Want to run by the supermarket?”
Mu Fu thought for a second. “Let’s check what’s in the fridge first. They bought a ton of groceries yesterday. I’m not picky.”
Even though she turned down his suggestion, Yu Mo’s expression didn’t change one bit.
After going through the fridge, they decided on sautéed loofah with pork, stir-fried water spinach, and braised prawns. Yu Mo only asked Mu Fu to handle the loofah.
Watching him move smoothly around the kitchen, Mu Fu was genuinely surprised. She hadn’t expected him to be so confident and capable when it came to cooking—like a professional chef. And honestly, it made him even more attractive.
Her eyes lit up as she watched him, her voice full of curiosity.
“Do you cook a lot at home?”
“Yeah. Back in college, I lived off-campus and had to cook for myself.”
He’d started publishing his novel on a green-lit platform during his first year, and it unexpectedly became a breakout hit. Wanting a better environment for writing, he moved out of the dorms during his second semester and rented a two-bedroom apartment near campus. He didn’t like takeout, so cooking became part of his daily life.
“No wonder you’re so good at it. You’ll have to take charge again for the dinner the night after tomorrow. I’ll be your assistant—whatever you say, I’ll follow orders!”
Yu Mo glanced at her and simply said, “Okay.”
His voice was as cool and detached as usual, but from the faint softness in his expression, it was clear he was in a pretty good mood.
After tasting the food Yu Mo made, Mu Fu had a revelation: no matter what, she had to stay on good terms with him—even if they were just friends. His cooking was way too delicious. Compared to his dishes, hers tasted like dog food.
Mu Fu couldn’t help but think—she really wanted a boyfriend who could cook like this.
She was already secretly daydreaming beside him, imagining all the delicious, low-calorie meals she’d get to eat in the future. If every dish tasted this good, it wouldn’t even matter if the portions were small; she’d happily eat diet food every day.
She glanced across the table at Yu Mo, with his calm, composed manner and strikingly elegant features, and once again marveled—how could the universe pour so much goodness into one person? It was almost unfair.
……
Later that night, Yu Mo came knocking again just as Mu Fu had wrapped up work and retreated to her room for the night.
She shuffled over in her slippers and opened the door. “Oh hey, you’re back!”
Her long, silky hair was now loose around her shoulders, making her look even softer, more approachable.
Yu Mo handed something to her.
She glanced at it curiously. The label on the bag read Pingyi Pharmacy—clearly medicine inside.
She asked, “What’s this?”
“There are some band-aids, and a few other brands of medical sprays. If the one I gave you yesterday doesn’t work well, try these instead.”
The two stood close—him tall, her petite—yet there was a strange harmony between them.
Mu Fu looked up at him, her cheeks flushing. “Thank you.”
As soon as she closed the door, she leaned back against it, hugging the medicine to her chest. Her face was burning, a deep blush blooming across her cheeks.
Yu Mo was seriously… too charming just now.
After calming down, she discovered the bag was filled with pink band-aids decorated with cartoon characters!
Nope. Her heart, which had only just settled, started pounding all over again—like it was about to leap out of her chest and chase after the culprit who’d made it beat so wildly.
Yu Mo’s gift was so her aesthetic.
Mu Fu bit her lip softly. Was it too self-indulgent to wonder if… maybe… Yu Mo liked her, even just a little?
After 5 p.m., the other guests in the villa began trickling back.
As soon as Wu Qingyi walked in, the delicious aroma of food hit her.
“Mmm, that smells amazing.” She leaned on the kitchen counter. Tonight, dinner duty belonged to Xia Sihan and Ding Binbing.
“Sihan, whatever you two are cooking smells divine. I wasn’t even that hungry, but now I’m seriously tempted to sneak a bite early.”
Xia Sihan smiled at the compliment. “Oh, it’s nothing. If you want some, just wait a little longer—it’ll be ready soon.”
“You’re way too modest,” Wu Qingyi said, laughing. “Are the others back yet?” From the looks of it, only Xia Sihan and Ding Binbing were downstairs.
At that, Xia Sihan’s eyes flickered slightly. “Yeah, everyone’s back. They’re probably upstairs resting right now.”
Before Wu Qingyi had come back, the kitchen had already survived one awkward scene.
Rong Yongxin was the first among those who had gone out to return. He came back with a big bag of groceries. Noticing that only Mu Fu and Yu Mo were home, he quietly made his way into the kitchen. Before Xia Sihan and Ding Binbing returned, he had already started prepping dinner for everyone.
The timing couldn’t have been worse—just as he was washing vegetables, Xia Sihan and Ding Binbing walked in… with their own groceries.
Rong Yongxin was clearly surprised that they’d also bought ingredients, but he kept it cool and waved Xia Sihan over to cook with him, saying he was just lending a hand in case they were too busy. He paid no attention to Ding Binbing’s clearly conflicted expression—equal parts annoyed and embarrassed.
In the end, thanks to Xia Sihan’s diplomacy, the three of them cooked dinner together.
When Mu Fu came downstairs, she saw Rong Yongxin buzzing around Xia Sihan like a golden retriever, laughing and chatting with her. Meanwhile, the person who should’ve been the leading man in this kitchen scene—Ding Binbing—looked quietly dejected as he chopped and stirred off to the side, as if staying busy could keep him from noticing the lively energy between the other two.
But the most chaotic moment came later: Xu Kangning returned—holding a bouquet of flowers. Without any explanation, he walked straight up and handed them to Xia Sihan.
Rong Yongxin, who had been all smiles just seconds ago, instantly froze, his face darkening.
And Ding Binbing? He cast a glance at Xia Sihan… then locked eyes with Xu Kangning.
The four-person drama in the kitchen? Absolutely explosive.
Mu Fu could barely contain herself—she wanted to crane her neck right into the kitchen and get the freshest gossip firsthand. If it meant staying on the frontlines of the drama, she was even willing to suffer through some “expired ex-boyfriend tea.”
Yu Mo glanced at her with an amused glint in his eyes. Mu Fu was not exactly being subtle—her whole upper body was practically leaning out to eavesdrop. The pink cartoon bandage on her forehead stood out brightly, catching his attention in an unexpected way.
A strange feeling stirred in his chest.
He cleared his throat lightly, shooting her a look that said, “Reel it in a little—you’re being way too obvious.”
That was when Mu Fu suddenly remembered the events from earlier that afternoon. She’d been so absorbed in the gossip that she’d forgotten all about the bandage… and how she got it. Under Yu Mo’s gaze, she instantly flushed and couldn’t meet his eyes.
Yu Mo, for his part, assumed she was just embarrassed about being caught snooping.
What impressed Mu Fu the most, though, was how Xia Sihan handled the whole situation. The atmosphere had been crackling with tension, but with just a few words, she smoothed everything over like nothing had happened.
It was honestly kind of impressive.
Even though Xia Sihan explained that she had asked Xu Kangning to bring her the flowers, the other two guys didn’t buy it that easily.
I mean—why did he only bring flowers for her and not the other three women in the house?
After her explanation to the three guys in the kitchen, Xu Kangning was the first to leave. Rong Yongxin followed later, after Feng Ningran returned.
Mu Fu may have had something to do with that.
When she saw Feng Ningran come back, she couldn’t help herself—purely in the spirit of curiosity and chaos, of course. She “casually” brought up what had gone down earlier in the kitchen.
As expected, the moment Feng Ningran heard that three of the male guests had been fighting over Xia Sihan—and that one of them was her ex, and another was someone she’d recently started flirting with—she was furious.
“Xia Sihan, seriously? Can you be any more shameless? There are only four men in this whole house, and you’ve already claimed three of them. Planning to go after the last one too?”
As she spoke, her eyes flicked toward Yu Mo and Mu Fu.
Mu Fu nearly choked on her melon—she was just here to eat drama, not get dragged into it!
Still… she had to admit, Xia Sihan’s tactics were pretty obvious. At least, to her they were. The guys? Not so much.
For a fleeting second, Mu Fu glanced sideways at Yu Mo. She couldn’t help but wonder: Did he notice too? Did he see through Xia Sihan’s manipulative little act?
Meanwhile, the drama in the kitchen continued.
Axolotl Translations 
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