flstandardbreds Chapter 154 The kitchen for three people is crowded
Chapter 154 The kitchen for three people is crowded
Cuihu Villas are detached villas built around Cuihu Lake.
The entrance garden is well-maintained by community management staff, with each flower blooming in vibrant colors.
A beautiful garden allows you to unwind from the day's fatigue as soon as you get home and simply enjoy life.
Everything here tells the homeowner that their efforts were worthwhile.
An Xiaoyue sat in the backyard by the lake, where a table and a barbecue grill were set up.
With her easel facing the lake and distant mountains, she took out her brush, ink, and paper, intending to paint this landscape.
If she can finish painting before sunset, she won't miss the beauty of the golden mountains bathed in the setting sun.
She was painting in the backyard, while Leng Shi and An Jiaren were in the kitchen making soup and preparing barbecue ingredients.
The two grandfathers and the pregnant Xiaoyue couldn't fill their stomachs with barbecue; at most, they could only try it for the novelty.
The two elderly people didn't come for the barbecue; they just didn't want to be a spoilsport.
Since we don't have many days to reunite, we naturally want to be together all the time.
"Have you taught your little one to paint traditional Chinese paintings?" Leng Shi looked at his daughter, who was quite skilled, and the painting in front of her through the kitchen window.
“When she was in kindergarten, she liked to draw on the walls with crayons.”
Upon hearing his wife's words, Leng Shi recalled the wall in Jin Cheng's house that was a completely different color from the rest of the walls.
His most vivid memories are of candied hawthorn berries and flowers.
To make candied hawthorn, simply draw a line. The candied hawthorn on the line isn't a large patch of red; instead, you use crayon to color it and then push it into the shape of a candied hawthorn by hand. It's easy to tell that it's candied hawthorn at a glance.
The same applies to flowers. The flowers on the wall are first shaped, then outlined with different colors, and the stamens are drawn.
The color scheme is eye-catching, showing that Xiaoyue is a child with a rich inner world.
In a daze, he saw a little girl leaning against the wall, her lips pursed, her face focused on drawing.
An Jiaren: "Yes, that's your daughter's kindergarten masterpiece."
Leng Shi replied matter-of-factly, "She already has such a good sense of color matching in kindergarten. No wonder she's my daughter."
An Jiaren shoved him, retorting defiantly, "What do you mean 'your'? I gave birth to her!"
"That also owes some credit to me."
An Jiaren glared at him with a smile, "You're so unserious."
Leng Shi was peeling chestnuts in his hands, just laughing all the while.
An Jiaren then talked about Xiaoyue's past, "Later, when she got a little older, she saw me drawing on paper and started drawing along with me. I didn't teach her or enroll her in any classes; I just picked out some brushes, ink, and paper for her and let her draw however she wanted."
After listening, Leng Shi praised her, "My wife has great wisdom."
Both husband and wife knew this great wisdom.
It means that parents try to demonstrate what they want their children to do, especially for children who already have their own independent awareness and ideas.
Children also care about their pride; saying too much will only make them rebel.
"Hmph~" An Jiaren proudly raised her chin, "That's my daughter whom I gave birth to with great anticipation. How could I not go to great lengths to guide her?"
Leng Shi wanted to get closer to his daughter, to be as close as friends who could talk about anything. "My dear, tell me some more stories about my little one from the past."
An Jiaren stopped what she was doing; if she were to say something, she really didn't know where to begin.
"Anyway, she knows everything I can do." She knows her precious child best, whom she raised herself. "Outsiders may think that Xiaoyue's marriage to Shengyang is a step up, or even that Xiaoyue is not good enough for Shengyang. But I can assure you, that's not necessarily true."
Thinking of his friend, Leng Shi felt a pang of regret, "Sheng Yang, Yi Xiu and Su Xi have caused him too much harm."
But I feel even more sorry for Fu Shengyang, who has no parents by his side and was hurt the most by them.
“Before we knew about Xiaoyue’s background, everyone in the family said that after Shengyang got married, he became more human. He would laugh, worry about people, and get jealous. Although these were all small changes, they were a huge contrast for him.”
Speaking of contrasts, Leng Shize also recalled a funny misunderstanding, and before he could even speak, he burst out laughing.
An Jiaren asked curiously, "What? Why are you suddenly laughing like that?"
Leng Shi restrained himself, suppressing the urge to laugh, "Sheng Yang once regarded Fang Yi as a rival in love."
"Did Fang Yi say that?" Leng Fang Yi admired his uncle the most, so naturally he preferred to talk to his uncle about many things.
The main problem is that the older brother and sister-in-law only care about their own life and sometimes forget they have a son. Leng Fang has suffered greatly because of this and thinks it's best not to get married like his younger brother.
Leng Shize: "Yeah, he's troubled and doesn't know how to tell Sheng Yang, so he came to ask me for my opinion..."
Leng Shize and An Jiaren were having a pleasant conversation about the misunderstanding between the three children when a voice suddenly came from behind them: "Dad, Mom."
The sudden sound forced the two to stop talking, and as they turned their heads, they both silently looked at the person next to them.
Discussing the children's relationship behind their backs, and having the children overhear it, makes one feel guilty but even more embarrassed.
But one of them is a teacher and the other is a diplomat, so their emotions don't show on the surface.
The two looked at Fu Shengyang at the same time, "Shengyang is here."
"Hmm." They weren't embarrassed, and neither was he, the person involved.
"Where's grandpa?"
"Sit in the entrance garden." Elderly people who have been sitting in the car for a long time don't want to move as soon as they get off.
An Jiaren: "Let Grandpa go to the backyard, Xiaoyue is drawing there."
“I’ll take him there.”
After Fu Shengyang left, An Jiaren scolded him, "It's all your fault."
Leng Shize: "You seemed to be having a good time chatting too."
Joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness should all be shared, and the weight of the pot shouldn't be borne by him alone.
An Xiaoyue was so engrossed in her drawing that she didn't hear the footsteps behind her.
Suddenly, Fu Shengyang's figure appeared in front of her, blocking her view.
"You're here." Her serious face suddenly broke into a smile, her eyebrows curving into crescents, making Fu Shengyang's heart flutter.
An Xiaoyue stood up and looked behind her, "Grandpa."
Fu Jinyun looked delighted. "Xiaoyue, how many skills have you been hiding?"
An Xiaoyue was very satisfied with her performance today. Perhaps it was because she hadn't painted for a long time, but her enthusiasm flowed onto the paper with the ink, and she finished it in one go.
She had always known her own excellence and had an accurate understanding of herself. Hearing her grandfather say this, she blinked and said playfully, "I guess... I haven't been hiding much."
The essence of traditional Chinese landscape painting lies in leaving blank space. With black ink on white paper, the brush touches the paper, leaving a few blank spaces, and the painting gains inspiration and room for imagination.
Fu Jinyun has painted a lot, appreciated a lot, and collected a lot. Now, after seeing his granddaughter-in-law's paintings, he realized that Xiaoyue's praise of his calligraphy was just to make him happy.
"You, you are such a clever little child."
Fu Shengyang didn't understand painting, but he could still hear a hint of appreciation in his grandfather's tone.
Grandpa had almost never praised anyone like that, including him.
An Xiaoyue took Fu Shengyang's arm with both hands, "I was just listening to Mr. Fu and trying to make you happy."
Fu Shengyang denied it, "When did this happen?"
How could he not remember?
She remembered it clearly: "You said it yourself, that we shouldn't make Grandpa sad."
That day, Fu Wantang took her to Taihe Shopping Mall to buy clothes. The process was not pleasant, and in the end, Fu Shengyang took her to select and buy the clothes.
He specially escorted her out and specifically instructed her to say that her aunt had bought it for her.
Therefore, after returning to Fu Garden, she went to Songtao Garden and saw her grandfather writing calligraphy.
Fu Shengyang: "Really?"
An Xiaoyue didn't believe him at all. Just because Fu Shengyang couldn't remember didn't mean it hadn't happened. "Anyway, I remember."
Fu Jinyun watched her grandson and granddaughter-in-law bickering with a smile.
Absence makes the heart grow fonder; after just a few days apart, their relationship has already grown so strong—that's impressive!
"Grandpa, would you like to play chess, read a book, or drink tea?" Fu Shengyang changed the subject.
How could he have known that he would fall in love with Xiaoyue one day?
"I'm itching to draw too, let's draw a picture with Xiaoyue."
The scenery here is indeed beautiful; the expansive view makes one feel relaxed and happy.
Sunzi and Xiaoyue had been separated for three or four days. They would definitely have a lot to talk about when they met, so he didn't ask them to keep him company. Instead, he quietly painted for a while by himself.
Grandpa Fu and An Xiaoyue were painting in the backyard, occasionally commenting on the scenery and composition in front of them.
Fu Shengyang originally wanted to go to the kitchen to help wash the vegetables and skewer the ingredients, but his father-in-law ruthlessly kicked him out, saying, "Don't interfere in my private time with two people. The kitchen is too crowded for three people."
Therefore, he could only pull up a chair and sit down next to An Xiaoyue.
The backyard for three people isn't crowded at all!
An Xiaoyue saw him leaning back in his chair, basking in the sun with his eyes closed, doing nothing.
"How about I give you a piece of paper and you can draw whatever you want?"
"Not interested." He had never learned or could do elegant things like painting or calligraphy.
“Sheng Yang has been busy learning to take over Changfeng Group since he was a child, and he has never learned these things.” Grandpa Fu was focused on painting, but his gaze towards the distant mountains could not hide his guilt towards his grandson.
Compared to children of the same age, Sheng Yang received far too little during his childhood.
Where An Xiaoyue couldn't see, Fu Shengyang's dark eyes gleamed with a sharp light. He continued his grandfather's words, "Yes, we were so busy back then. Thinking about it now, growing up is really not an easy thing."
Fu Jinyun paused, leaving a smudge-like ink blot.
That brat, he knows how to take advantage of the situation and play the victim!
“It’s alright, you’ve done a great job with Changfeng Group.” An Xiaoyue comforted him. “There aren’t many bosses who care about their employees as much as you do. Lingxi once told me that Changfeng Group has excellent benefits for women, and it’s all thanks to the policies you introduced and implemented.”
Fu Jinyun's eye twitched. Look how clever this brat is, he's even trying to seduce his own wife!
Fu Shengyang, having achieved his goal and heard what he wanted to hear, smiled unabashedly, "Speaking of Attorney Zhong, why hasn't she contacted you lately?"
"She's away on a business trip and isn't in Beijing." When they decided to have a barbecue that morning, she asked Lingxi if she wanted to come along so she and her parents could pick her up.
An Xiaoyue suddenly remembered that she hadn't seen Ji Yubai for a while.
Is that really the end of his relationship with Lingxi after he finished working as a part-time cleaner?
An Xiaoyue's painting was almost finished. She got up to stretch her legs and thought about taking a look at the lakeside villa.
Fu Shengyang followed.
An Xiaoyue frowned slightly. "What are you doing here?"
His arrival is practically a case of "protesting too much."
The two of them going upstairs together will definitely cause misunderstandings.
Fu Shengyang lowered his head, leaned close to her ear, and asked in a low voice, "Why can't I come?"
Why couldn't she come? Of course, she wouldn't say it was because she was worried about being misunderstood; they quietly went upstairs and did something that spoke volumes.
She doesn't speak.
Fu Shengyang: "What's Xiaoyue thinking?"
He was asking a question he already knew the answer to!
An Xiaoyue clenched her sleeves in embarrassment and anger.
Just as she was wondering how to retaliate, she suddenly smelled a fragrance, a sweet and cloying scent with a hint of excitement.
Fu Shengyang never uses perfume; only girls use that scent.
His clothes were not the khaki suit he wore in the morning.
Her mind naturally conjured up images of You Zi's face and those long legs.
She knew Fu Shengyang's preferences regarding marital matters.
He expressed his liking for her legs more than once in bed.
She asked suspiciously, "Who did you have lunch with today?"
Speaking of the lunch party, if he had known those people's character, he shouldn't have agreed.
Once the door to the private room closed, a group of scumbags revealed their beastly faces.
An Xiaoyue didn't miss the disgust in his eyes, even if it was just for a moment.
She grabbed Fu Shengyang's arm. "You've been drugged again?"
"What medicine?"
“You smell like a woman’s perfume.” Even though she suspected it, she didn’t ask directly, not wanting Fu Shengyang to think she was a suspicious and neurotic person.
He changed his clothes, so why does he still smell of perfume?
Fu Shengyang didn't believe him and sniffed the skin on his arm. "There's no smell. How did you smell it?"
"In her hair." She smelled it when Fu Shengyang whispered in her ear earlier.
Fu Shengyang lifted her fair face, stared into her eyes, and asked, "Are you angry?"
An Xiaoyue: "Why should I be angry when you're socializing for work?"
Fu Shengyang: "Your eyes tell me you suspect I'm having an affair!"
"That's the nation's goddess, those legs, and her voice."
Fu Shengyang raised an eyebrow. "Am I an ordinary person?"
An Xiaoyue's watery eyes widened. "Her legs are beautiful."
Fu Shengyang asked in a low, husky voice, "An Xiaoyue, if you hadn't been so lucky, and if you hadn't always complained about your sore hands, would I have settled for second best and made myself suffer?"
An Xiaoyue wouldn't be swayed by him. "It's because you smell like another woman's perfume that it's my fault!"
That's a pretty quick reaction!
Fu Shengyang released her chin and chuckled, "I wasn't drugged. The perfume you smelled was from the female spokesperson. You were in the same space with her for a while, so you naturally picked up some. I'm going to take a shower now."
Seeing his expression, An Xiaoyue already knew what was going on.
She breathed a sigh of relief, relieved that she hadn't been drugged. "You go wash up, I'm going downstairs."
"Why are you running? Wait for me here." Fu Shengyang grabbed her hand, unwilling to let her leave.
He hadn't hugged her for almost forty-eight hours.
An Xiaoyue pushed his hand away, "Grandpa and Uncle will be here soon, it's too easy for people to misunderstand if I'm here."
"We're husband and wife. Even if we did something here, so what?"
"I..." She looked down at the floor, unable to find a rebuttal.
"Don't worry, after I shower I'll hug you, I definitely won't do anything else." If it weren't for the smell of his hair, which he himself found disgusting, he would want to hug her right now.
An Xiaoyue was skeptical; this person was particularly prone to taking advantage, especially in bed, where he was extremely untrustworthy.
He dared to kiss her in the middle of the street, let alone in a room where it was just the two of them.
For his own benefit, Fu Shengyang coaxed, "I promise, I really will only hug you and will absolutely not do anything else."
"You can go home tomorrow. Just one day is enough for me to endure it."
An Xiaoyue was exhausted after a long day and really wanted to find a place to lie down. Since the downstairs neighbors were all elders, she couldn't just casually lie on the sofa.
"Okay, I'll just hug you."
"Yes." Fu Shengyang nodded with utmost sincerity.
Then, right in front of her, he started taking off his clothes, revealing his well-defined chest muscles and lean waist.
An Xiaoyue turned around, pulled the blanket over the bed, and prepared to lie down.
Fu Shengyang knew she was shy, so he stopped teasing her and went into the bathroom wearing only his pants.