Chapter 192 - Fried Rice

ly after finishing the entire glass did Qingyi continue with a faint smile, “My brother stayed in the cooking team for quite some time, apparently for two whole months. You see, he’s a stubborn guy. After being sent to the cooking team, he dug his heels in and spent those two months diligently honing his cooking skills. Most of his culinary prowess was developed during that period.”

“According to Yu-Ge, the chef who originally ran the cooking station even praised him, saying he had a natural talent for cooking and mentioned wanting to keep him in the cooking team.”

“Of course,” Qingyi chuckled, “I suspect Yu-Ge just made that up. My brother’s so capable-his captain just wanted to temper his attitude by assigning him to the cooking team for a while. There was never any intention of keeping him there. After two months, he returned to the unit. Since his temperament had noticeably improved, he was later promoted during an exercise and joined some… leopard-something team. I don’t remember the exact name, but it sounded pretty impressive. He stayed with that team until he left the military.”

Chu Qianqian blinked a few times and hesitated briefly before asking, “So, does your brother… really enjoy life in the military?”

“Yeah,” Qingyi nodded slightly, his smile fading as he lowered his head slightly. His voice carried a hint of melancholy as he replied, “He spent most of the year in the military, handling missions with his teammates. Even when he had time off and came home, he’d only stay for a few days before leaving again. It looked exhausting. But I could tell-whenever he talked about his teammates, he always seemed so at ease.”

“Even though it was dangerous, he genuinely loved the military life. If it weren’t for what happened…” Qingyi’s fingertips traced the rim of his glass. His tone turned heavy, and his gaze dimmed. “If Dad hadn’t passed away, he definitely would’ve stayed in his dream job.”

It hadn’t occurred to Chu Qianqian that Mu Han, who ended up running the family business, once preferred being a soldier. Everyone who had ever heard of Mu Han’s reputation hailed his business acumen, but who would have guessed that the man once only wanted to stay in the military?

Perhaps that’s just how unpredictable life can be.

“Qingyi… those things are in the past now…” Chu Qianqian said, her brows furrowing tightly as soon as the words left her mouth. Was that supposed to be comforting? Her tongue felt entirely useless, incapable of saying anything reassuring.

Thankfully, those events had happened a long time ago. While Qingyi still felt a tinge of melancholy when he thought about them, the turmoil in his heart wasn’t as intense as Chu Qianqian had imagined. He simply smiled and shifted away from the topic. “Mu Han’s cooking skills are exceptional. My mom even joked once that if Kunhuang Group ever goes bankrupt, he could support the whole family just from his cooking.”

“Aunt Mu is just… so straightforward.” Chu Qianqian couldn’t suppress a small laugh as she pictured Madam Mu saying this. Her personality remained as bold and unique as ever.

While the two were chatting, Mu Han, busy in the kitchen, was nearly finished. After exchanging a few more words, they heard his voice calling from the kitchen, asking them to help serve the food he had prepared.

Given that it was getting late, Mu Han hadn’t prepared an elaborate meal but had whipped up some fried rice instead. Yet, his version of fried rice was far from ordinary. Just by looking at it, one couldn’t help but feel their mouth water.

Chu Qianqian couldn’t immediately determine what kind of fried rice Mu Han had made. It had a mix of ingredients-ham, corn, green peppers, string beans, shredded potatoes… basically a blend of all sorts of ingredients. The vibrant array of colors alone was a feast for the eyes, and the rich aroma wafting from the dish instantly awakened the hunger within both Qingyi and Chu Qianqian.

Even though they’d already eaten earlier, the moment the fried rice was placed on the dining table, Chu Qianqian suddenly felt as if she hadn’t had a proper meal in years. Her hunger was so overwhelming it was almost audible.

Not wanting to appear overly eager in front of Mu Han, Chu Qianqian hesitated, maintaining an air of reserved politeness for a few seconds. But once Qingyi took the lead and started eating, she quickly followed suit.

As always, Mu Han’s table manners were impeccable. His elegant dining demeanor made it seem less like he was eating a late dinner or midnight snack and more like he was enjoying an exquisite meal at a Michelin-starred restaurant. By contrast, Qingyi’s eating habits seemed almost wild.

Out of the corner of her eye, Chu Qianqian observed Qingyi devouring the food. The poor guy must have been starving-his focus was entirely on the fried rice in front of him, not sparing even a glance toward the other two at the table.

To be fair, Chu Qianqian was misjudging Qingyi a little. Back in their days training at the company, Qingyi and Chu Ziyu often became so engrossed in their practice that they’d forget to eat. To ensure they didn’t fall behind on their tasks later, they had both perfected the skill of wolfing down food at lightning speed.

Turning her attention back to Mu Han, Chu Qianqian suddenly noticed that despite Mu Han’s graceful eating movements, he was actually quite fast. In just the short moment she had zoned out, his plate was already clean, and it looked like he was about to go for a second helping.

With the two of them eating so quickly, Chu Qianqian found herself eating more than usual, too. While her portions still couldn’t compare to the two men’s, she had definitely eaten more than her usual dinner serving.

Discreetly, she reached her hand down to feel her stomach. Sensing the slight curve where it now protruded a bit, she remembered that extra bowl of rice she had added earlier. Her expression fell, quickly turning into one of despondence.

How many calories are in a bowl of rice again? Staring at her plate, which had been cleaned spotless, Chu Qianqian let out a sigh. Just for this one additional bowl of rice, she was going to have to double her workout tomorrow.

Perhaps her distress was a bit too obvious, because Qingyi seemed to notice and offered her an encouraging smile. “Don’t worry, Qianqian. It’s just one bowl of rice! Look at me-I ate several bowls just now!”

At his words, Chu Qianqian couldn’t help but glare at him. “You, tomorrow morning, run an extra kilometer for me! Make sure to burn off today’s surplus!”

“What?! Aww, come on!” Qingyi whined, flopping onto the table with a look of utter defeat. “Qianqian, the earlier scenes have already been filmed, right? Do we really still need to be so strict about our weight now?”

“Do you need me to remind you about those snacks you’ve been hiding? If you keep eating like this, you’ll end up overweight sooner or later. Then what are you going to do when you can’t fit into your costumes?” Chu Qianqian’s tone softened toward the end, and she added a bit of reassurance: “It’s fine. I’ll run with you.”