The Stepmother’s Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era
Chapter 200: Zhong Qing Visits and Helps Clarify Reputation

Chapter 200: Chapter 200: Zhong Qing Visits and Helps Clarify Reputation

"What are you doing?"

Watching Shen Mingzhu slowly stir-fry sugar and tea leaves on low heat, Zhong Qing couldn’t help but be curious.

"Making milk tea."

Watching the sugar in the pot slowly melt into caramelized syrup under high heat and fry the tea leaves until they sizzled, Zhong Qing couldn’t help but laugh and sigh, "Mingzhu, you really are an amazing person, always knowing a lot of things we don’t."

Shen Mingzhu thought to herself that you have no idea about my sister’s capabilities, but she humbly said with her mouth, "I usually love to explore food when I am free, and for me, making food I like is a pleasurable thing. Every time I make a delicious dish, I feel like all worries and pressures are gone."

Seeing that Zhong Qing seemed very interested, Shen Mingzhu asked her, "Do you want to learn?"

Zhong Qing was eager to try, "I’m not very good at cooking, I’m afraid I won’t be able to learn."

"It’s okay, this is very simple, it doesn’t require cooking skills..."

As she spoke, Shen Mingzhu handed the wooden spatula to Zhong Qing, teaching her how to fry the caramel while telling her how to control the heat and the amount of water to add.

Ten minutes later, two cups of light coffee-colored milk tea were ready.

Zhong Qing couldn’t wait to take a sip according to etiquette, her light tea-colored pupils first showing curiosity, then her eyes smiling.

"It’s really good."

Shen Mingzhu looked at her with a half-smile, "You really missed your calling not going into acting, the Oscar for best actress belongs to you."

Zhong Qing blinked her eyes, "Why do you say that?"

Although milk tea was not available inland during this era, it had already been a street snack in Bay Island and Hong City.

She didn’t believe that with Zhong Qing’s background, she would have never tasted milk tea.

Seeing her performance exposed, Zhong Qing stopped pretending, "Okay, I’ve indeed tasted milk tea, but this is my first time making it myself. Moreover, I find your method very interesting, it’s different from the milk tea I’ve had before."

Shen Mingzhu said, "In the future, when you encounter something that makes you unhappy, you can make yourself a cup of milk tea using this method, and using pure milk will make it taste even better."

Zhong Qing nodded with a smile.

After finishing the milk tea, Pei Yang came back with groceries.

After learning about Zhong Qing’s dietary preferences, Shen Mingzhu made four dishes and a soup.

Honey-glazed barbecued pork, steamed spareribs in black bean sauce, steamed egg with tofu, stir-fried vegetable hearts with garlic, and a pot of stewed pigeon soup with angelica.

Cantonese-style homestyle dishes, simple, nutritious, and delicious.

During the meal, Shen Mingzhu thought about the driver downstairs and casually asked if they should send some food down, but Zhong Qing said there was no need, mentioning the driver would arrange his own meal.

Shen Mingzhu didn’t say more.

After dinner, Shen Mingzhu accompanied Zhong Qing in the living room for tea to aid digestion.

Zhong Qing watched Pei Yang clear the table with swift movements, and whispered to Shen Mingzhu with her lips pursed, "Thanks to you, this is the first time I’ve seen a man do housework."

Shen Mingzhu glanced at her man’s tall and robust figure, explaining, "He’s been on vacation recently and hasn’t been working, so he’s been doing more housework."

Zhong Qing casually asked about Pei Yang’s work situation, and Shen Mingzhu gave a simple explanation.

After a satisfactory chat, Zhong Qing got up to leave.

Shen Mingzhu saw her off downstairs, occasionally running into other residents of the compound on the way.

Even though they would greet each other usually, today the compound’s inhabitants were noticeably warmer toward Shen Mingzhu, stealing curious glances at Zhong Qing.

By the side of the Bentley, Zhong Qing took her hand, "Thank you for your hospitality, I don’t know why, but I always feel very happy when I’m with you. Can I come to your place often in the future?"

Shen Mingzhu pondered, "Then you’ll have to call and make an appointment first, I might not always be available."

"I know, busy person,"

Zhong Qing teased with a laugh and waved goodbye to her before getting into the car.

After watching the Bentley drive away, Shen Mingzhu turned and went back inside.

When she returned home, Pei Yang had already tidied up the kitchen and was standing with his hands on his hips, drinking water in front of the coffee table, using her cup.

In the past, Pei Yang often used her cup for drinking water. She had thought that he was just not particular about it until one time, she handed him Pei Ziheng’s cup on a whim, and he refused to drink from it. That was when she realized that his lack of particularity had a selective target.

"Wife, what shall we do this afternoon?"

After finishing his water, Pei Yang approached her like a big puppy, rubbing his chin against her face.

Even though men shave every day, there would still be sandpaper-like stubble on his chin, which prickled her skin irritatingly.

Shen Mingzhu pushed his big face to one side with her hand and quickly thought of several leisurely and relaxing activities.

Eventually, the couple decided to go to see a movie.

Chen Yi sent them quite a number of movie tickets every month, and they had accumulated a thick stack at home.

While changing clothes, Shen Mingzhu, as always, picked out her outfit and was about to head to the bathroom when Pei Yang grabbed her waist after she had taken only a couple of steps.

Meeting her puzzled gaze, Pei Yang justified himself righteously, "You’ve seen all of me, but you won’t let me see you. Is that fair to me?"

Shen Mingzhu: "..."

She tossed back at him, "I’m fine with it," and went to the bathroom without a second glance.

When she came back to the room after changing, she saw Pei Yang lying on the bed on his side, propping his head up with his hand, looking at her with a face full of grievance.

Shen Mingzhu walked over with a smile, bent down, and teasingly hooked his chin, "It’s hard on you when you can see but can’t touch, isn’t it?"

Pei Yang was mollified by her words, sat up, and wrapped his arms around her waist, his deep voice carrying a hint of childlike whining.

"When will that finally be gone?"

"It will be gone when it’s time to go," she replied.

After her words, Shen Mingzhu pushed him away, turned to open the desk drawer for movie tickets, and urged him to put on his shoes and leave the house.

...

Today was a workday, so the cinema wasn’t crowded. The two picked a kung fu movie that had been introduced from Hong City.

By the time the movie ended, it was half-past four. They picked up Pei Ziheng, had dinner outside, and then strolled through a shopping mall, buying some clothes for autumn and winter.

By the time they got home, it was already 9 p.m. Shen Mingzhu had cut off the tags from the new clothes and took them to the bathroom to soak in salt water, which can prevent new clothes from fading.

While she was filling the water, Pei Yang came in with his sleeves rolled up, took over the chore, saying, "Let me do it, go rest for a while."

Shen Mingzhu didn’t say much to the man’s thoughtfulness, but she appreciated it in her heart.

After she emerged from the bathroom, she walked over to Pei Ziheng’s bedroom door.

Through the half-open door, she saw Pei Ziheng sitting at his desk, diligently doing his homework. Shen Mingzhu did not go in to disturb him but turned back to her own room.

If Shen Mingzhu had gone in, she would have found her son busily working on his fifth-grade homework.

...

When Feng Huiying came downstairs, Shen Mingzhu was watering plants on the balcony.

"...After your friend came over to clarify things for you today, now everyone in the residential compound knows you were wronged. They are all cursing Jiang Jing behind her back."

To this, Shen Mingzhu wanted to say: You reap what you sow.

"What does your friend do for a living? She must be someone important, right? Having a car and a driver—in the past, that would have surely led to allegations of being bourgeois."

Shen Mingzhu just smiled and did not continue the conversation.

Seeing this, Feng Huiying took the hint and stopped prying into Zhong Qing’s identity, instead starting to talk about Jiang Jing’s gossip—

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