Chapter Twelve: Serenity

Tang Wan held an umbrella and walked with Lu You toward the underground parking garage.

Lu You handed over a small fan and said, “I have to leave now. The fan and umbrella are things I bought on a whim, and since my bag can’t hold them, please pass them to a male classmate named Li Yu for me. Until then, feel free to use them.”

“Okay, thank you,” Tang Wan replied as she took the fan.

“Well then, I’ll be off. I’ll send you some daily updates when I have time. Hopefully, we’ll meet again when school officially starts.”

“Mm, goodbye.”

After speaking, they waved to each other before turning away.

…

Tang Wan soon arrived on the second floor. Even with the umbrella shielding her from the sun, the temperature of 32°C still made her sweat quite a bit. She quickened her pace toward the classroom, eager to return to the embrace of the air conditioning.

Inside the classroom, the teacher was back at the podium. Two boys were signing in, while Xu Nian had already returned to his seat, playing on his phone.

Tang Wan stepped into the classroom and was about to call out loudly, “Xu…”

Before she could say “Nian,” she noticed two new figures in the room.

Quickly, she swallowed the rest of her words, then gave a characteristic smile, nodded at the three people at the podium, and returned to her seat.

The teacher returned her warm smile.

The teacher’s surname was Liang, nearly sixty years old, a kind-faced middle-aged woman who had previously taught English at the city’s central school. This year, one of her former students had specially hired her to join Chunhua High School, intending for her to lead a class of top students starting in the first year.

The two boys were struck by Tang Wan’s beauty, their gazes following her all the way to her seat.

Teacher Liang smiled knowingly. Having taught for nearly forty years, she knew it was perfectly normal for boys to notice attractive girls.

She made a small noise to draw the boys’ attention and said, “You found the payment slips, right? Hurry and line up at the teaching building, or the sun will get even hotter later.”

The boys, feeling a bit embarrassed by the teacher’s teasing expression, quickly replied, “Found them, thank you, teacher. Thanks for your hard work,” and left the classroom.

The two girls paid no attention to what was happening at the podium.

Tang Wan placed the fan in front of her chest, turned it to the highest setting, and blew air toward herself vigorously. Then she took out a towel to wipe the sweat from her back.

Xu Nian looked at Tang Wan in surprise and asked, “Where did you get that towel and fan? You’re so prepared?”

Tang Wan wanted to put the fan inside her clothes and use it secretly, but remembering she had to return it to Lu You, she gave up the idea.

“The towel was stuffed into my bag by my mom. She said with this kind of weather, even a little movement causes sweat, and since there’s air conditioning in the classroom, she worries I might catch a cold. So, she told me to wipe the sweat promptly. As for the fan…”

Tang Wan recalled her earlier conversation with Lu You while waiting in line and blushed slightly. “It’s lent to me by a cheeky little brother. After I’m done, I’ll pass it on to a classmate.”

“Little brother? What do you mean? An elementary school kid?”

He’s far more shameless than an elementary schooler!

Unfortunately, Tang Wan could only think this to herself. If she told Xu Nian, she’d probably be bombarded with questions.

She quickly changed the subject, “Where shall we eat later?”

Xu Nian, unaware of any oddity, replied, “I heard the school cafeteria is quite good. Want to check it out?”

“The cafeteria is already open?”

“The teachers started working a couple of days ago, so the cafeteria has been open since then.”

“Alright, let’s go take a look. I’m curious too. My brother said it’s like a buffet.”

…

Lu You arrived in front of the fast-food restaurant, found a shady spot to park his bicycle, and pushed open the door.

He immediately spotted Li Yu sitting by the window, head down playing on his phone, with two bottles of energy drinks in front of him.

Lu You sat opposite him and, without hesitation, grabbed an unopened bottle and took a big gulp.

Li Yu looked up curiously, “Why so long? Isn’t it just paying the fee?”

“Then why don’t you go yourself? Helping you pay but you talk so much.” Lu You pulled a bank card and the payment slip from his bag and slapped them on the table.

Li Yu put away the card and slip, then handed over his phone. “Order whatever you want. It’s on me.”

Lu You took the phone, glanced at him, opened the fast-food app, and said, “No matter what you order, two people can only eat so much. This stuff looks like a lot but gets cloying after just a few bites.”

“Too bad it’s not Thursday, no chicken wing tips,” Lu You lamented. Then he casually ordered a fried chicken combo and returned the phone to Li Yu.

“As long as there’s food, it’s fine. It’s not like we’re at home.”

Ten minutes later, Lu You was biting into a piece of original finger-licking chicken and asked, “What are we doing after eating? Sitting here till class?”

“No.” Li Yu shook his head. “We’re heading to the Carp Club to bring a couple of simple board games to school. After dinner, we’ll find some classmates to play with and break the ice.”

“Huh?” Lu You was surprised. “You actually take the initiative to break the ice? You acted all cold in middle school. Are you trying out for a high school debut like a Nightrain novel character?”

Li Yu was silent for a moment before saying, “I have to find people to play the board games from my shop, right? We only looked at the rules ourselves after buying them, then showed them to customers. There are so many games in the shop, but the owner hasn’t even played most of them. It’s pretty silly.”

“Besides, I have to step out of my comfort zone. It’s basically impossible for us to be in the same class in high school. If I don’t meet new classmates, am I just going to bury my head in studying for three years?”

Li Yu had been quite introverted in middle school, rarely talking to others. If it hadn’t been for sitting next to Lu You, he probably would have faded away.

Lu You found it amusing. At most, they wouldn’t be in the same class for half a semester. Getting into an advanced class was nothing for him as long as he put in some effort. But he didn’t say this out loud; the first semester’s final grades in tenth grade would tell the story.

“Well, good luck. Once you get familiar with people, call me if you need a player,” Lu You said with a smile.

…

When Lu You returned home, it was already past three in the afternoon. After Li Yu went back to school, he spent about half an hour at the Carp Club playing a game called “Dice of Thrones” with a table of customers.

Why only half? Because they spent nearly an hour just understanding the rules and looking at character boards. When the game started, it was mostly chatting while playing, and after everyone took two turns, an hour had passed.

Then some people said they had things to do and left early, so the game wasn’t finished.

Lu You thought the game was quite fun and planned to see if he could gather a few interested people during the holidays.

Passing through the living room, he saw Shen Yuyin sitting alone on the sofa, reading a book.

“Why are you the only one here?”

“Your dad, Xiao Shu, and Xiao Bao are playing upstairs on the third floor.” Then she seemed to realize something and looked up at Lu You. “You know how to cook now, right?”

Lu You was a bit puzzled but answered, “I’d say I know a little.”

“Can you make desserts?”

“I’ve made some before. If the ingredients and tools are ready and there’s a tutorial, I can try things I’ve never made,” Lu You replied cautiously.

Shen Yuyin snapped her book shut and said, “Good, come to the kitchen.”

Lu You was at a loss.

I just got back!

But parental demands can’t be delayed, no matter how many reasons you have, they’ll just push you back. Like, can’t you just pause the game?

“Sigh, I’ll go change,” Lu You sighed.

After changing into loose clothes in his room, Lu You went to the kitchen. On the table lay a box of blueberries, a pack of gelatin sheets, and a dozen or so transparent plastic cups.

He turned and asked, “What are we making?”

“Blueberry yogurt mousse cups. You can do this, right?” Shen Yuyin looked at her son.

“Isn’t this just about having hands? It’s not like baking a cake that needs kneading. And how many? Not just a few, it’s like a dozen,” Lu You looked at her disdainfully.

Shen Yuyin felt her motherly authority challenged and snapped, “Just do it when I ask. No more nonsense.”

Lu You rolled his eyes, “Is that your attitude when asking for help?”

He had made mousse many times in his past life. After his culinary advancement, mousse was just another ingredient like any other dessert.

Lu You took out a non-stick stone-coated pan, placed it on the gas stove, lit the fire, then poured in blueberries and sugar, crushing the berries one by one with a spatula.

Shen Yuyin stood beside him, watching his skillful movements, and couldn’t help but comment, “I didn’t expect you really know how to do it!”

“Well, do you think I’m just pretending?”

Watching the bubbling, oddly shaped blueberry mixture in the pan, Shen Yuyin asked curiously, “What’s that? Is it edible?”

“Hmph, watch carefully and learn well. Don’t ask so many questions,” Lu You snorted.

Shen Yuyin’s temper flared, “Lu You, you seem to have grown wings, huh? Talking to Teacher Shen like that?”

Lu You was fearless and met her head-on, “Teacher Shen, please recognize your current status. In the kitchen, I’m the teacher, and you’re the student. If you don’t like it, you can do it yourself.”

Shen Yuyin took a deep breath and decided to hold back for the sake of food, “Alright, Teacher Lu.”

What followed was:

“Student Shen, please bring the yogurt.”

“Okay, Teacher Lu.”

“Student Shen, please wash the plastic cups.”

“Okay, Teacher Lu.”

…

When Lu’s dad came downstairs holding their daughter and saw the scene, he was utterly bewildered.

After filling all the plastic cups and putting them in the fridge to set, Lu You happily clapped his hands. This time, making dessert put him in an exceptionally good mood.

Shen Yuyin smiled and asked, “Teacher Lu, are you done?”

Lu You nodded, “All done. Now we just wait for them to set before eating.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Shen Yuyin’s expression changed completely, turning stone-faced. She said, “Then it’s Teacher Shen’s turn to teach you what filial piety and humility mean!”

Is this a betrayal?

Lu You’s face stiffened.

…

Thirty minutes later, Lu You wore a bitter expression as he cooked dinner in the kitchen. He would be responsible for all meals for the next week and also had to feed Xiao Shu.

Originally, Shen Yuyin took care of breakfast and lunch, while Lu’s dad handled dinner. As for feeding the child, one would eat while the other fed, then switch.

Xiao Bao came over and rubbed his head against Lu You’s leg, as if to say, “Don’t be sad, I’m here with you.”

Lu You looked down at the affectionate little cat and said with relief, “Sure enough, only cats can warm the heart in this world. Women just want to nag me and eat my desserts.”