Chapter 236: Chatting and Admiration

Chapter 236: Chapter 236: Chatting and Admiration

Jiang Fan spoke cautiously. He might have taken anything else without a second thought, but this was something he truly didn’t dare accept.

For one, drinking it himself would be a total waste, like casting pearls before swine. For another, wouldn’t this basically cement his status as their son-in-law?!

’If the truth ever came out... He couldn’t even imagine how miserable his life would become.’

"What’s that supposed to mean?"

"My dad gave this to you, so just take it. If anything happens later, I’ll take full responsibility."

Perhaps misreading his hesitation, Li Muwan said with a decisive wave of her hand.

"The thing is, I was just trying to play along for your dad. I’m not much of a tea drinker myself, so giving it to me is really..."

Jiang Fan looked troubled and tried to say more, but Li Muwan wasn’t listening. Instead, she grabbed another box from nearby.

"This one’s from my mom."

"She said to give it to you early. You probably can’t wear it now, but you can when it gets colder."

He opened the box to find an exquisitely crafted sweater. It was obviously hand-knit.

The Doraemon pattern on the front was a little childish, but it showed Jiang Fan the love a mother has for her child.

"I’m a grown man, and your mom actually put a Doraemon on it."

"Won’t it look a little funny if I wear this out?"

The more he looked at the sweater, the more he liked it, though his words said the opposite.

"Tsk, tsk. What are you putting on an act for? If you like it, just take it."

"If you don’t, just say the word and I’ll toss it in the trash."

"What do you mean, throw it in the trash? Who said I don’t like it? This is from Mom, how could I not like it!"

"Shoo, shoo. See? You don’t even have one!"

Just as Jiang Fan was about to gloat, he saw Li Muwan silently pull out a bag and produce another sweater.

It was another Doraemon sweater, but this one was in Li Muwan’s size.

"Ahem."

A flicker of embarrassment crossed Jiang Fan’s face. He quickly tried to recover, "Er, your mom is so thoughtful, isn’t she? So talented!"

"You should count yourself lucky. My mom hasn’t personally knit a sweater in over a decade."

"She wouldn’t even make one when my dad asked."

"I can’t believe she actually knit one for you this time, and I just got one as a bonus."

"My dad is going to be so jealous."

Hearing this, Jiang Fan sighed internally. It seemed he had no choice but to accept this favor.

’I’ll just have to find a chance to repay her in the future.’

"You’ve been busy all day. You haven’t eaten yet, have you?"

"I left you some food in the warming cabinet in the kitchen."

"I made it all myself."

As soon as Li Muwan finished speaking, Jiang Fan rubbed his stomach. He really was hungry.

"In that case, let me have a taste of your handiwork."

After he spoke, Jiang Fan was about to get up and grab the food from the kitchen himself, but he saw that Li Muwan had already beaten him to it.

She took all the dishes out of the warming cabinet and set them on the dining table.

Every dish was piled high, and they were all recipes he had taught her.

"You didn’t eat, did you?"

Jiang Fan asked, slightly puzzled.

The food looked completely untouched.

"What are you talking about? I already ate. These are my leftovers."

"If you don’t want them, then don’t eat."

With that, Li Muwan placed a full bowl of rice in front of him and sat down across from him.

"Really? You’re sure you already ate?"

Jiang Fan was skeptical.

"Of course I did. You didn’t actually think I’d wait for you, did you? Now hurry up and eat. Stop daydreaming."

Li Muwan kept pressing him, so Jiang Fan didn’t argue further and started shoveling the food into his mouth.

"Mmm, this is great! You’re improving way too fast."

His eyes lit up after just a few bites, and he mumbled the praise indistinctly through a mouthful of food.

"But of course! Don’t you know who I am? With my skills, I could open my own restaurant after a little more practice."

Li Muwan said with a haughty air.

"Oh, give me a break. You haven’t even been to culinary school. Real chefs have been cooking for over a decade. You? Open a restaurant?"

"You’d lose your shirt."

Jiang Fan didn’t pull any punches, shooting her down immediately.

"You...!"

Li Muwan pointed a finger at him, glaring fiercely.

"Ahem, well, you might be a little ways off from opening a restaurant, but the food you made is exceptionally delicious."

"It’s a huge improvement. I’ll admit, I might have been stretching the truth when I said it was good before, but this time I mean it."

"It’s just... I can’t finish all this by myself. Why don’t you help me get rid of some of it?"

Although he’d ribbed her a bit, most of it was praise.

Seeing Jiang Fan wolfing down his food, Li Muwan felt a genuine sense of happiness.

She loved this feeling of accomplishment.

"Fine, then."

She went to the kitchen, served herself a small bowl of rice, grabbed her chopsticks, and sat down with Jiang Fan to help demolish the food on the table.

Except, most of the time, it was Jiang Fan eating like a wild boar.

Li Muwan, in contrast, took small bites, chewing each one slowly and deliberately.

Watching her, Jiang Fan laughed to himself, but more than that, he was touched.

’It’s obvious she hasn’t eaten. She was waiting for me to get back.’

’All that stuff she said earlier was just her being stubborn.’

After dinner, Jiang Fan collapsed onto the sofa, staring at the ceiling and letting out a series of contented burps.

"So full, so full. I’m really stuffed this time."

"I probably don’t even need to eat tomorrow."

"Stop carrying on. Have some water."

Li Muwan nudged his calf with her foot and handed him a glass of water.

But Jiang Fan was so stuffed he could only manage a couple of sips.

Li Muwan sat down beside him and slumped back in the exact same way. Their movements were perfectly synchronized.

Catching her movement out of the corner of his eye, he couldn’t help but comment, "You’ve really let yourself go. You’re as careless about your image as I am now."

"Look at the old you: the powerful career woman, the General Manager of the Sales Department, swift and decisive, cold as ice!"

"No matter when or where, you were always so careful about your image. And now look at you."

"What’s the damn point of watching my image in front of you? Is there anything you haven’t seen?"

Li Muwan snorted.

"By the way, what were you up to all day?"

Li Muwan asked curiously.

"I went to look at a school. The kids from the orphanage are having some trouble with their education, so I’m planning on opening a school for them."

"What? Open a school?"