Super Soldier in the City
Chapter 310 - 318: The Cook

Chapter 310: Chapter 318: The Cook

At three in the afternoon, Li Yifei and Su Mengxin were in a supermarket, with Li Yifei pushing a shopping cart and Su Mengxin walking beside him. She occasionally picked items from the shelves on either side and placed them into the cart.

"Have you never been to a supermarket before?" Li Yifei asked with a mix of amusement and curiosity, as he watched Su Mengxin’s joyful excitement.

Smiling, Su Mengxin replied, "Yes, this is my first time. Do I seem pitiful? I’ve never even been to a supermarket."

Li Yifei chuckled, "It is quite pitiful, but also easy to understand. You’re always followed by a whole entourage. It would be inconvenient for you to visit the supermarket. Besides, there’s nothing you lack that would necessitate a supermarket trip."

"But then life would be missing so much fun," she remarked.

"Good thing nobody else heard you say that, or you would definitely be criticized."

Su Mengxin pretended to look around cautiously, then giggled, "Luckily, it’s just the two of us."

As they continued shopping, Li Yifei felt an immense pressure; Su Mengxin was simply too beautiful. Every man who saw her couldn’t help but take a few extra glances, and even women did the same. As the guy at her side, Li Yifei was naturally included in the onlookers’ scrutiny.

Li Yifei was used to being the center of attention while protecting officials and dignitaries, but no one noticed him then since he was just a bodyguard. Now it was different. He and Su Mengxin walked together, chatting and laughing like a couple, which inevitably made everyone curious about the man with such a stunningly beautiful woman.

Finally, after completing their shopping and paying at the checkout, they left the supermarket and got into the car. Su Mengxin, laughing, said, "Why the long face? Don’t you enjoy going to the supermarket with me?"

"It’s not that I mind it," he said. "I can’t stand those stares, though. It’s like they’re all thinking, ’A fine flower stuck in cow dung.’"

Su Mengxin burst into laughter, saying, "Who speaks so poorly about themselves?"

Shaking his head, Li Yifei replied, "I’m usually quite confident, but next to you, you make me look so inferior."

Su Mengxin paused, reflecting on their relationship which had lasted a while. She’d always been modest and never boasted in front of Li Yifei, nor did she use her status to pressure him. Still, she felt a great distance between them, having never truly entered Li Yifei’s world.

Li Yifei’s words revealed to Su Mengxin why she couldn’t really enter his life. Even without leveraging her status, the gap in their identities was still there, making Li Yifei instinctively exclude her from his circle of life.

With a light laugh, Su Mengxin said, "It’s not that you’re lacking, but you always see me as Su Mengxin from Capital City. Why can’t you just see me as your neighbor Su Mengxin?"

"Aren’t you my neighbor?" Li Yifei asked, puzzled.

With a pout, Su Mengxin realized Li Yifei didn’t understand her implication. It wasn’t the right time to explain too thoroughly, so she said, "Alright then, my good neighbor. I’m hungry, so let’s hurry home and cook."

Unable to break down the barriers in Li Yifei’s mind, Su Mengxin decided to make a change herself. If she could get him to see her as just a friend, they could move to the next step.

Li Yifei grinned, "No problem."

When they arrived at Li Yifei’s place, he got ready to cook. Just as he started, Su Mengxin appeared in the kitchen wearing an apron that belonged to Su Yiyi.

"What are you doing?" Li Yifei asked in surprise, staring at Su Mengxin. The sight of such a beautiful woman of high status, now dressed with an apron as a little chef, was a shock to the system.

Pleased with Li Yifei’s reaction, Su Mengxin twirled the apron ties and said, "I’m here to help you cook. How does this apron look on me?"

Li Yifei nodded, "It looks good, quite a different flavor actually."

Su Mengxin smiled proudly, "Then let me help you."

"Your help... maybe not. Better wait to eat once it’s done," Li Yifei hesitated.

"No way; I really want to learn by doing. A woman needs to know how to cook to keep her future husband content."

Li Yifei’s eyes widened in disbelief, "You don’t need to resort to that, do you?"

"Of course, I’ll also have to be someone’s wife someday. As a wife, I have to be able to cook. Since I have some free time lately, you’d better teach me well."

Li Yifei was surprised by Su Mengxin’s attitude. During his time with the Flying Hawk Squad, he had met many Second Generation Officials and Rich Second Generations. None of those girls enjoyed cooking; they were all about enjoyment and fun.

However, Su Mengxin was not an ordinary woman, or she wouldn’t have such a high reputation domestically, so having such an idea only highlighted her uniqueness even more.

Thinking this way, Li Yifei no longer found it difficult to comprehend and chuckled, "Okay then, since you have this idea, I’ll teach you."

"I knew you were the best pal," Su Mengxin patted Li Yifei’s shoulder, seeming very casual with him, and said, "What should I do now?"

"Let’s start with something simple. You can take on today’s dish—stir-fried shrimp with celery and cashews."

"Sure, sure!" Su Mengxin exclaimed with joy.

As Li Yifei organized the other ingredients, he instructed Su Mengxin on how to prep. Su Mengxin was very serious about learning and about doing the work. Following Li Yifei’s instructions, she washed the shrimp and the celery thoroughly.

Watching Su Mengxin’s slender hands washing the vegetables in the sink, Li Yifei had a weird feeling. Those hands didn’t seem like they should be there, but there they were.

Next, Su Mengxin went to chop the celery. Watching her clumsily wield the kitchen knife, Li Yifei truly felt a sense of alarm, as if she might accidentally cut her own hand.

And his worry soon became reality.

"Ah!" Su Mengxin let out a faint cry as her left hand quickly retreated from the celery, her index finger bleeding profusely from a cut.

Li Yifei was speechless and immediately grabbed Su Mengxin’s hand, sticking her injured finger in his mouth. Minor cuts like these were usually not a big deal; all you had to do was suck on it for a while, as saliva has strong antibacterial properties.

Su Mengxin stared blankly at Li Yifei, not expecting him to do something like that. With her finger in Li Yifei’s mouth, she felt a tingling sensation that spread from her fingertip to her palm, then to her arm, and turned into a warm current that flowed through her body, causing her face to turn red, her heart rate to accelerate. Undeniably, she enjoyed the feeling and really liked the concentrated expression on Li Yifei’s face.

"Sigh, you’re just not cut out for this, come on and let me wrap it for you." Li Yifei opened his mouth and pulled out Su Mengxin’s finger. The cut wasn’t very big or deep; it should be fine.

Submissively, Su Mengxin followed Li Yifei to the living room, letting him bandage her hand. Realizing that an injury could garner Li Yifei’s attention this way made Su Mengxin think about getting "injured" more often.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Li Yifei looked up to meet Su Mengxin’s unusual gaze and asked, puzzled.

Su Mengxin immediately beamed a smile, examined her hand briefly, then looked at Li Yifei and asked, "What does my blood taste like?"

Li Yifei was completely taken aback by the question and said with a mixture of laughter and resignation, "What could your blood taste like? It’s a bit fishy, a bit salty, I guess."

"Oh, so it doesn’t taste good?"

"Of course not, why would you even want to know what human blood tastes like? You’re not a vampire, are you?"

Su Mengxin chuckled and said, "I was just really curious. Alright, let’s get back to cooking."

"You’re still going?" Li Yifei’s eyes widened in surprise.

Su Mengxin tilted her head with childlike stubbornness and said, "Of course I’m going. A little injury shouldn’t scare me away. It’s just an accident, I’ll be very careful next time."

"You’ve just had your hand bandaged, you can’t get it wet."

"Anyway, the vegetables are all washed, we won’t be needing any more water, right? Don’t worry, I’ll be really careful this time."

Unable to persuade Su Mengxin, Li Yifei could only let her continue cooking. However, he decided to stop his own work and watch over Su Mengxin, just to prevent her from hurting herself again.

"How do I light the stove?"

"When do I pour the oil?"

"How much should I add?"

For someone completely clueless about cooking, everything required a question. Things like ’add a suitable amount,’ as recipes often suggest, sounded like a Heavenly Book to a novice—it was entirely unclear how much ’a suitable amount’ was, so Su Mengxin had to ask about everything.

Watching Su Mengxin nervously holding the oil bottle, pouring oil into the pan, Li Yifei couldn’t bear it anymore. He reached from behind to grab her right hand, gently tilting the bottle and pouring the oil into the pan.

But he didn’t notice that in doing so, he was practically embracing Su Mengxin, his chest already pressed against her back.