IRDFPFCIW Chapter 32

Chen Jiesen: “… Don’t look at me like that! I really didn’t buy it!”

Jiang Tang: “… Oh.”

Wen Renyuan on the side didn’t dare to say a word.

He just contacted the deputy general secretly and asked what gift to get for a little friend’s birthday. He let the deputy general buy the gifts and maybe gave a few extra instructions. He didn’t know why it ended up like this!

Meanwhile, the deputy general in the legion sneezed for no reason. He wiped his nose, still unaware that his bonus for the month had flown away with wings.

He was wondering if the Marshal’s little girlfriend would like those gifts. You know, he followed the guide to buy them. A meaningful smile appeared on the deputy general’s face. He didn’t expect the Marshal’s old house was on fire and that he would cover up his love life with “little friend”.

The deputy general thought he had seen through everything and turned around to leave, hiding his achievements and fame.

Unbeknownst to him, Wen Renyuan, whose “old house on fire”, was already prepared to deny everything even if he was beaten to death.

Jiang Bai angrily hung up the video call. He felt a surge of resentment in his chest and took several deep breaths to suppress it.

He secretly hated in his heart. What was this? Jiang Tang had been sent to a barren planet, so why was he doing better than him?

He had clearly succeeded before. Jiang Tang should have been forever trampled into the mud by him!

“Bai Bai, why are you here alone?”

A male voice came from behind. Jiang Bai quickly composed himself and hid the resentment in his eyes. When he turned around, a smile was already on his face.

“Brother Hao, it’s you.”

Gu Hao approached and noticed Jiang Bai’s red-rimmed eyes, his tone immediately shifting. “What happened?! Why are you crying? Who bullied you?”

Jiang Bai shook his head. “No one bullied me… Brother must have misunderstood me, so he is like this…”

Gu Hao had some unspoken thoughts about Jiang Bai in his heart. Seeing him with tears in his eyes and pretending to be strong made his heart burn with anger.

“Are you talking about that adopted son of your family?” Gu Hao snorted coldly, “Wasn’t he already kicked out? Brother? He’s not worthy!”

“Brother Hao, don’t say that.” Jiang Bai tugged at Gu Hao’s sleeve, looking disapproving.

“I really consider him my older brother in my heart. I invited him to today’s banquet to celebrate my birthday, but he just video-called me…”

Jiang Bai’s voice choked and he gently rested his head on Gu Hao’s shoulder, as if he was about to cry.

“What kind of ungrateful wolf is worth making you sad? I’ll take care of him for you.” Upon hearing this, Gu Hao felt immense pain for Jiang Bai. He wished he could hold him tightly and comfort him. His tone became increasingly gentle.

But his eyes were dark.

“Let’s not talk about that. Brother Hao, why did it take you so long to arrive?” Jiang Bai seized the moment and pouted. He pretended to complain, “You’re late.”

“Recently, there have been many matters at home. I’m sorry. Bai Bai, don’t be angry.”

Seeing Jiang Bai huff, Gu Hao quickly took out a small box from his pocket. When he opened it, there was a sapphire necklace inside.

“A gift for my Bai Bai. Happy birthday.”

Jiang Bai thanked him, his face turning red as he accepted it. He lowered his head and examined the necklace in his hand with great interest.

But as soon as he looked down, Jiang Bai’s smile faded. He glanced at the sapphire on the necklace, and for some reason it reminded him of the brooch Jiang Tang wore today.

Both were sapphires, but the quality and craftsmanship of Jiang Tang’s were countless times higher. Even with that gem’s backdrop, the one on the necklace looked like something from a roadside stall.

Jiang Bai felt irritated, thinking that although Gu Hao had the surname Gu, he was just from the side branch, and even his gift was so petty and not worthy of being presented to the public.

If not for wanting to use Gu Hao to deal with Jiang Tang, he wouldn’t bother with him. He secretly thought that it would be great if the “Gu” in Gu Hao was the same “Gu” as Gu Lin.

Gu Hao was also preoccupied with his own thoughts, so he naturally didn’t notice the change in Jiang Bai’s expression.

He had just received news that the head of the Gu family was in trouble and rushed back from another planet. Although the news was suppressed by the Gu family, a storm was brewing, and none of these side branches wanted to bite off a chunk of meat from the main family.

Gu Hao’s eyes narrowed, his expression unknown as he quickly calculated in his mind.

…

“Xiao Fei, be careful! That mud is very dirty!”

Jiang Tang shouted with concern, only to see Qin Fei’s feet sinking deep into the mud, making it difficult for him to lift them.

Last time they came to the lakeside, they saw a patch of lotus flowers in a corner of the lake. Jiang Tang got the idea to dig for lotus roots.

There were so many delicious dishes that could be made with lotus roots! Soups, stir-fried, stuffed lotus roots, and many more. With enough time, Jiang Tang could create dozens of different lotus root dishes.

Taking advantage of the nice weather today, he brought his tools and came to the lakeside.

Jiang Tang specifically changed into waterproof clothing. He walked to an area with more lotus leaves. He cautiously tested the ground to see if the bottom mud was soft and then searched for traces of lotus roots.

Once he confirmed the location, he dug down with his hands, gently shaking the lotus root witj his hands to loosen it. Once it was almost free, he could pull it right out of the water.

Jiang Tang excitedly lifted a plump lotus root. “I dug it out!”

The two fluffy creatures couldn’t go into the water and were watching from the shore not far away.

Jiang Tang’s fair and tender hands were covered in black mud, but he didn’t care at all. He turned around happily to wave the lotus root in his hand. “Kitty, En En, look! I found a lotus root!”

Jiang Tang’s eyebrows and eyes were very delicate. When he wasn’t smiling, he looked cool and distant, giving people the feeling of a flower on a high peak. But once he smiled, his eyes sparkled and everything around him dim in comparison.

This smile was very contagious. Seeing Jiang Tang’s bright smile lifted Wen Renyuan’s mood as well.

Jiang Tang was teaching while digging lotus roots diligently. Just as he was digging happily, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his hand.

“Ouch!” Jiang Tang exclaimed and pulled his hand out of the mud.

He must have pricked himself by the thorns of the lotus stem.

“It’s fine, it’s fine.” Jiang Tang waved his hand. He should have worn gloves before taking actions.

Lu Rongming and the others hurried Jiang Tang back to the shore. Jiang Tang squatted by the lake and rinsed his hands in the clear water.

It was his left finger that had been pricked, and as the mud washed away, the wound became visible.

The cut was quite deep and was oozing blood. Only then did Jiang Tang feel the pain. He inhaled sharply.

Suddenly, warmth spread from his fingertip.

Jiang Tang, who was searching for something to stop the bleeding, paused his movements. He looked down to see the little kitten sucking on his finger.

Jiang Tang:!!!

The kitten was gently licking the wound on Jiang Tang’s finger. Jiang Tang could clearly feel the tiny barbs on the cat’s tongue, sending shivers down his spine.

Kitty was disinfecting him?

For some reason, Jiang Tang felt a pang of tenderness from the stern-faced kitten’s eyes.

Jiang Tang suspected that he was imagining things, but a blush crept up to his ears.

The little fox nearby also looked worriedly at Jiang Tang’s hand.

Jiang Tang couldn’t help but chuckle. What on earth was he thinking? After the founding of the country, spirits weren’t allowed to exist. His fluffy companions were probably just too clever so they seemed more human-like.

After injuring his hand, Jiang Tang couldn’t go into the water. He sat on the shore with his two fluffy friends to cheer on the others digging for lotus roots.

With everyone working together, they quickly dug up a pile of lotus roots. Taking advantage of the clear water at the lakeside, they rinsed the roots clean. The plump lotus roots were piled together. In Jiang Tang’s eyes, they had already transformed into lotus root and pork ribs soup, osmanthus sticky rice lotus root, cold lotus root slices, fried lotus root sandwiches…

As soon as they returned, Jiang Tang couldn’t wait to check the glutinous rice he had soaked earlier.

Just as he was about to proceed, he suddenly felt a tug on his sleeve.

He looked down and saw the kitten’s paw gripping his sleeve with force, while the little fox behind placed a bottle of disinfectant and healing agent in front of Jiang Tang using its mouth.

Wen Renyuan patted his front paws and signaled Jiang Tang.

Jiang Tang understood its intention. The wound on his finger was actually almost healed, but he still picked up the healing agent and sprayed it on his finger.

He couldn’t let down the good intentions of his fluffy companions.

The fans in the live stream couldn’t help but shout at this heartwarming scene.

[Ahhhh, the fluffies are so loving! /cry]

[If it takes any longer, I’m afraid the wound on the streamer’s finger will heal!]

[I looked at my own cat, and indeed the good ones are all other people’s cats. I’m jealous!]

Jiang Tang had long since become used to the playful comments in the chat. He just smiled good-naturedly when he saw this.

Today, he was making lotus root and pork ribs soup. For the ribs, Jiang Tang chose the front breast bones, which were thick and tender, with plenty of cartilage.

After washing the ribs, he put them in cold water to boil. Once it boiled, he skimmed off the foam, took out the ribs, and rinsed them again with clean water.

In a hot pot, he added oil, then ginger slices and ribs, stirring them over medium heat, adding hot water, and then switching to high heat to simmer the soup.

After about an hour, the soup turned milky white. He added the chopped lotus root pieces and then covered the pot and continued to simmer.

While waiting, Jiang Tang took out fresh lotus roots to make sticky rice lotus root.

For making sticky rice lotus root, Jiang Tang chose plump sections of the lotus root so that it would be easier to stuff glutinous rice into them.

He cut one end of the peeled lotus root, stuffed it with soaked glutinous rice, and packed it tightly. He then covered it back up and secured them.

Next, he placed the stuffed lotus root into the pot and added water and brown sugar. It was a pity he didn’t have osmanthus syrup or honey. Then he used low heat to cook the lotus root until it was tender enough for chopsticks to easily insert.

After cooling slightly, he sliced it and plated it. He poured the thickened sugar juice from the pot over the lotus root slices on the plate.

The sticky rice lotus root tasted soft and sweet, and unexpectedly became a favorite among the fans in the live stream.

Chen Jiesen was crying while watching the live stream. He wanted to stay on the barren planet forever to mooch off meals but was sent back by his grandfather.

At this moment, the lotus root and pork ribs soup was nearly finished cooking. Jiang Tang added a pinch of salt. He had perfectly controlled the cooking time. The soup tasted rich, with the lotus roots soft. It was light and not greasy.

In ancient times, there was a saying of “no feast is complete without soup.” At any banquet, a pot of fresh, mellow and delicious soup was always the finale.

Jiang Tang presented the soup at the dining table. “The soup is ready! Let’s eat lotus root together~”