Chapter Four: Starting the Fire for Cooking

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Shenyuan, Beiwan.
Lu You sank despondently onto the sofa, his eyes vacant.
He had just leaned against the wall and measured his height with a tape measure—156 cm, the exact figure.
Lu You shouted, “Can’t I get a system or something? I want a growth potion.”
After a long pause, no old man appeared nearby, nor did any mechanical or melodic AI voice sound. The fantasy of a system was shattered.
He could only silently encourage himself: “It’s okay, my parents are both fairly tall; the genes are fine. And I can still grow in high school. Yes, I’ll definitely get taller.”
As Lu You was giving up, strange sounds came faintly from downstairs, like someone scratching glass.
“Ah, damn! I forgot to let the cat out.”
Lu You hurried downstairs to the cat room and opened the glass cabinet door.
As soon as the door opened, Little Bao darted out, circling his feet, meowing softly.
“Alright, alright, I know you’re hungry. Have some snacks to tide you over; we’ll have meat at noon.”
Saying that, Lu You picked up a pack of freeze-dried food from beside him, scooped up Little Bao with one hand, and headed to the first floor.
…
Just as Lu You was feeding the cat, his phone rang with a WeChat call. He casually answered and put it on speaker.
“I’m here, come open the door!”
Then the call ended.
Lu You petted Little Bao’s head and said, “That’s enough snacks for now. I’ll go open the door.”
A minute later, Lu You and Li Yu walked into the living room.
Li Yu complained, “This damn weather… it’s not even 100 meters from my place to yours, and I’m already sweating.”
Lu You grabbed a can of soda from the small freezer and tossed it to him. “It’s 35°C, plus the blazing sun—that’s what you get.”
Li Yu took a couple of swigs, sighed in relief, and collapsed onto the sofa.
“Your place is more comfortable—air conditioning, junk food, and a kitty.”
“Don’t you have all that except for Little Bao at your place?”
“Forget it!” Li Yu curled his lips disdainfully. “My dad’s off work today, and just seeing him annoys me.”
Lu You smiled; he knew about Li Yu’s strained father-son relationship but felt it wasn’t his place to interfere.
He sat on the sofa, and Little Bao quietly climbed onto his lap, nuzzling his hand with its small head.
“Speak. What’s up today?” Lu You asked, gently stroking the soft fur on Little Bao’s back.
“Today’s the release of the high school entrance exam results. How confident are you?”
“What do you think?”
“I guess…” Li Yu hesitated, then said, “Why don’t you work at your family’s construction site afterward?”
Lu You cast him a sidelong glance. “Live in a villa but go shovel dirt?”
“Not impossible,” Li Yu said seriously, sitting upright. “With your grades, you won’t get into high school. Working at the site and supporting yourself beats freeloading and waiting to die.”
“Are you insulting me or giving advice?”
“What’s your plan then?” Li Yu’s tone grew serious.
The room grew quiet except for the hum of the air conditioner.
After a while, Lu You spoke.
“I’ll talk about my plan later. Let’s talk about yours first. Based on your usual grades, you can get into the two best high schools in the city, right?”

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“Yeah, I’ll probably go to Chunhua High School.”
“That makes sense.” Lu You recalled the school info he’d looked up online. “Recently, Chunhua has improved its staff and facilities, slowly surpassing the City Central High. Plus, your dad knows people there; he’ll probably encourage you to go.”
“That’s my situation. What about you?”
Lu You didn’t answer directly but said, “Chunhua is a private school. My dad has connections there too.”
Li Yu understood his plan but, thinking of Lu You’s father’s strictness, worriedly asked, “How will you tell your dad?”
“Straightforwardly. No need to beat around the bush.”
“Knowing your dad’s personality, if your high school grades stay bad, he’ll probably drag you home right away, right?”
“Most likely.” Lu You wasn’t too worried about high school grades. A math doctorate from a world-class university wouldn’t struggle with high school coursework.
Noticing Li Yu’s worried expression, he reassured him, “Don’t worry. It’s just high school courses. I haven’t failed at anything I’ve really wanted to do yet. In August, my dad will find a tutor to help me catch up. And with you, the college whiz, helping out, I should be able to get average grades.”
Naturally, Lu You didn’t say he’d rank at the top because Li Yu wouldn’t believe it. Telling him someone who was at the bottom a few months ago could leap to the top ranks in a prestigious high school was like claiming a certain player could make it to the NBA or that a celebrity hadn’t broken the law.
“Alright then. If you have any problems, remember to ask me.”
Hearing this, Li Yu didn’t press further. As a brother, in his heart, he just wanted to understand and support however Lu You chose.
“I won’t hold back,” he said.
“Wanna play some Apex?” Li Yu was eager. “I’ve been watching a sniping pro’s stream and learning a lot.”
Lu You looked at the time—just past ten o’clock.
“Let’s play this afternoon. I need to start cooking now.”
“Huh?” Li Yu glanced at the clock on the wall, puzzled. “It’s only ten. Are you ordering takeout so early?”
Lu You gave an unimpressed look.
“I never said I was ordering takeout.”
“Then what do you mean by cooking?”
Lu You sighed and repeated slowly, “I’m going to cook.”
They stared at each other, and the room fell silent.
“Ha ha ha, that’s a funny joke. Don’t mess with me—go turn on the computer, I’m itching to play.”
“Go play if you want.”
Lu You put Little Bao down, got up, and went into the kitchen. He tied on an apron and took the ingredients out of the plastic bags.
“Whoa!”
Seeing he was really cooking, Li Yu quickly came over to watch.
“You’re not joking? You really can cook? And it’ll be edible?”
Lu You ignored him. “You’ll see. Stop asking so many questions.”
For lunch today, there were three dishes: braised beef brisket with radish, pan-fried tofu, and water spinach with fermented bean curd.
He took out a stainless steel pot and washed it with detergent. Since the original owner didn’t cook, it hadn’t been used for a while and had a thin layer of dust.
Lu You cleaned the pot, filled it two-thirds full with water, and placed it on the gas stove. Then, skillfully, he cut the beef brisket in half, put the brisket and beef into cold water, lit the stove, and added slices of ginger, green onion segments, and cooking wine. As the water boiled, his movements flowed naturally.
Li Yu watched, stunned.
…
After blanching the brisket and beef, and while preparing ingredients for the pan-fried tofu, Lu You took out a cutting board, placed the now pale brisket and beef on it, and sliced them into small pieces.
Li Yu’s eyes were full of shock.

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Damn, he really can cook.
He couldn’t help but ask, “When did you learn to cook?”
“My innate soul skill, born with it.”
“Then why did I always eat takeout at your place before?” Li Yu felt betrayed.
“I was afraid I’d cook too well and you’d fall in love with me.”
“Then why cook today?”
“I’ve been eating takeout for days straight. I can’t take it anymore.”
“Not afraid I’ll fall for you?”
Lu You stopped what he was doing and slowly turned his head, speaking seriously: “I’m not from Nantong, but if you’re sincere, given our years of friendship, I can reluctantly accept it.”
Li Yu was left speechless.
“Damn! Just don’t make it some dark cuisine!”
He said this and turned away.
“Call me when it’s ready. I’m going to play some VR.”
“Try not to play on the sofa with the headset; it stinks.”
“I won’t! I’m driving!”
Lu You continued with the next steps: adding oil and spices like five-spice leaves and star anise, frying them until fragrant, adding the brisket and beef to sear until slightly browned, adding cooking wine, letting it evaporate, then transferring everything to the smart pressure cooker, adding water, sealing the lid, selecting the beef function, and setting the timer for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, Li Yu was in the basement living room, putting on Lu You’s VR game headset, transforming into a Gundam and preparing to fight.
“Should we order some homemade dishes now?”
He still couldn’t believe it—just two days apart, and someone who never lifted a finger at home suddenly turned into a capable cook, able to hold his own in the kitchen. Pure nonsense.
…
Elsewhere, Yijing Residential Complex.
“Get out of my kitchen! You’re just making things worse!” a shout came from the kitchen.
Tang Wan fled from the kitchen, muttering quietly, “It was your idea to ask me to help, and you had so many damn demands.”
As she stepped out, she saw her brother, Tang Jing, sitting on the living room sofa, engrossed in his phone, fingers flying over the screen as if chatting with someone.
Tang Wan quietly crept behind him, peeking over his shoulder. “Are you talking to your girlfriend?”
Tang Jing knew it was his sister and glanced at her. “Do you think I have time for that?”
Tang Wan thought about it. Though her brother was handsome, he was usually buried in his studies and probably wouldn’t find a girlfriend.
Neither sibling was exceptionally gifted, just more focused and hardworking than their classmates. Fortunately, their results matched their effort.
“I’m planning to tutor some students—those about to enter high school—while the knowledge is still fresh. Mainly to earn some money for a better computer and phone, with some help from Dad and other relatives.”
Tang Wan didn’t quite understand why he wanted to work.
“Aren’t there scholarships from the school or some companies? Should be at least a hundred thousand yuan. Why still work?”
Tang Jing explained, “Those scholarships are for college tuition and living expenses. And with such a long summer break, it’s good to work and earn some money.”
“Let me know if you find anything.”
With that, Tang Wan returned to her room, while Tang Jing continued with his activities on WeChat.