Chapter 84: A Home for Two, Three Meals, Four Seasons
After the two of them entered the elevator, Gu Yifan directly pressed the button for the basement level.
Su Qinghe froze for a moment, a little confused.
"Aren’t we... going back to your place?"
She asked quietly.
"Not anymore!"
"My parents are both busy today, so they’re not home. I just made up that stuff about my mom waiting for us to eat!"
Seeing her confused expression, Gu Yifan explained.
"Ohh~"
Su Qinghe nodded, then looked up at Gu Yifan and asked, "So where are we going? Back to the school cafeteria?"
"You silly girl!"
"The school cafeteria won’t have any food left at this hour!"
Seeing her adorably clueless look, Gu Yifan couldn’t resist pinching her little nose as he spoke.
Gu Yifan’s affectionate gesture made Su Qinghe’s face flush faintly. Fortunately, since it was just the two of them in the elevator, it wasn’t too awkward.
"Let’s eat out!"
"Hmm... but if we eat out, I don’t know what would be good to get!"
Gu Yifan pulled his hand back, thought for a moment, and said.
"Oh, right!"
"Hanhan, do you know how to cook?"
Gu Yifan asked, a sudden idea popping into his head.
"I... I do."
Su Qinghe was taken aback for a moment, wondering why Gu Yifan had suddenly asked, but she nodded anyway.
"That’s all that matters!"
"Let’s go. We’ll buy some groceries, and you can cook!"
Gu Yifan said nonchalantly.
DING~
Just then, the elevator arrived at the basement level.
Looking completely bewildered, Su Qinghe was pulled out of the elevator by Gu Yifan.
Even after she was in the car, Su Qinghe was still a little out of it.
"Where... where are we going to cook?"
She asked in a low voice.
"Your place!"
"I’ve never been to your place anyway. This is a perfect chance to visit!"
Gu Yifan said nonchalantly as he started the car.
"Oh, okay..."
Hearing him say that, Su Qinghe didn’t think much of it and simply gave a slight nod.
...
「An hour later.」
Dongba Street Xingfu District, Building Two, Third Floor, Apartment 305.
"Huh, what a coincidence. Your place is also 305 on the third floor!"
Gu Yifan froze for a second, surprised as he looked at the number on the old door plate.
"Huh?"
Only then did Su Qinghe notice it as well. She hadn’t really paid any attention to it before.
’A match made in heaven?’
The phrase suddenly popped into Su Qinghe’s mind.
Her face flushed faintly, and not wanting her thoughts to run wild, she quickly fished the keys from her schoolbag and opened the door.
"C-Come... come in."
She mumbled, her head down and her face flushed.
"Mm."
Gu Yifan didn’t seem to notice her strange behavior. He just nodded and walked inside.
CLICK~
Su Qinghe felt for the switch on the wall and flicked on the living room lights.
The moment the lights came on, the layout of the entire living room came into view.
"You... you can have a seat. I’m going to start cooking."
Su Qinghe said quietly to Gu Yifan, and with that, she picked up the groceries they had just bought and walked into the kitchen.
Gu Yifan glanced over at her but didn’t think much of it. He started looking around the living room at his leisure.
Su Qinghe’s home was a small, two-bedroom apartment. The living room looked tiny, but it was exceptionally clean and tidy.
There was a lot of stuff in the living room, but every item was arranged so neatly and methodically that it didn’t seem cluttered at all.
You could tell the owner of the house had taken great care of the place.
’Hmm... This style is so Su Qinghe!’
Gu Yifan thought to himself.
Just then, he noticed a small altar to the side of the sofa. On it were three memorial portraits—they must have been of Su Qinghe’s parents and grandmother.
Gu Yifan wasn’t scared in the least. After all, he was someone who had died once before. Besides, they were Su Qinghe’s family; even if they had turned into ghosts, they wouldn’t harm one of their own, right?
Gu Yifan wandered around the living room for a bit, but soon found there wasn’t much else to see.
As for the two bedrooms, he didn’t try to open the doors to look inside. That would be an invasion of privacy, after all!
Shaking his head, Gu Yifan turned and walked toward the kitchen.
Su Qinghe was in the middle of slicing meat. You could tell just by looking at her proficient knife skills that she was someone who cooked often!
"Hanhan, is there anything I can help with?"
He asked, looking at Su Qinghe.
"Huh?"
Gu Yifan’s voice, sounding from right behind her, made her jump, and she nearly cut her hand.
She turned around and saw that Gu Yifan had entered the kitchen at some point without her noticing.
She shook her head gently and said in a low voice, "N-No, it’s fine. I can handle it. You can just go wait in the living room."
"Er..."
Seeing that Su Qinghe wouldn’t let him help, Gu Yifan said, sounding a bit helpless, "Come on, now. I’m hungry. Let’s do it together. I can help you wash vegetables or something. It’ll be faster that way!"
"Well... alright, then!"
"In that case, take the potatoes out of that bag and peel them."
"The peeler is in the wall cabinet over there."
Since Gu Yifan insisted, Su Qinghe thought for a moment and had no choice but to assign him the simplest possible task.
"Alright, no problem."
Gu Yifan nodded. He walked over to the cabinet to get the peeler, then took a potato from the bag and began to peel.
Su Qinghe kept an eye on him. Only after seeing how skillfully he peeled the potato did she finally relax and return to slicing the meat with her head down.
In the cramped kitchen, the two of them worked together in tandem, busily preparing dinner. The entire scene was incredibly harmonious and warm, creating the perfect image of a newlywed couple cooking together sweetly in their kitchen.
After all the ingredients were washed and chopped, Su Qinghe began to stir-fry the dishes.
Gu Yifan leaned against the kitchen doorway, watching Su Qinghe in her apron, transformed into a gentle "housewife," and suddenly felt his heart skip a beat.
’One house, two people, three meals, four seasons. Simple and warm.’
Ever since his rebirth, Gu Yifan had always felt a sense of unreality.
He didn’t want to admit it, but for some time now, his heart had mostly been detached from the world. He always felt like he didn’t quite belong, afraid that he would wake up one day to find the dream over, and everything would reset to square one.
But at this moment, his heart was exceptionally tranquil.
Watching the back of Su Qinghe in her apron before him, he felt as if he had found the answer his heart was searching for.
...
「Half an hour later.」
Gu Yifan and Su Qinghe were sitting face-to-face at the small table next to the living room.
"Wow, Hanhan, you’re a pretty good cook!"
Gazing at the three dishes and a soup in front of him, still steaming hot from the kitchen, Gu Yifan’s appetite was instantly whetted.
Su Qinghe didn’t say anything; she was quietly scooping a bowl of rice for Gu Yifan.
She really looked just like a wife serving dinner to her husband after a long, hard day’s work!
"The soup is a little hot. You should eat some rice first."
Su Qinghe said softly as she handed the bowl to Gu Yifan.
Looking at Su Qinghe, her temples covered in fine beads of sweat from the heat of cooking for him on this April day, Gu Yifan felt a strange stirring in his heart.
When Su Qinghe saw Gu Yifan suddenly staring at her without moving, her face flushed faintly.
"Is... is there something on my face?"
Su Qinghe asked in a small voice, her face red.
"No."
"Let’s eat."
Gu Yifan snapped out of his daze, taking the bowl and chopsticks from her and speaking in a soft, gentle voice.
"Oh, okay."
Su Qinghe nodded obediently.
...