Chapter 35: Is It Pretty?

I originally thought the morning hours were a bit boring.

But after Xu Youyu joined in, in the blink of an eye, it was already noon.

Li Luo strummed his guitar and sang a few songs Xu Youyu liked; the two sat chatting, and the sun rose high overhead.

When Xu Youyu's stomach growled loudly, they both snapped back to reality.

She glanced awkwardly at Li Luo, blinked her eyes, glanced toward the kitchen, and asked softly, "Are you cooking lunch?"

"I could, but…"

"I get it!" Xu Youyu stood up from the sofa, "I'll go buy groceries."

"No, no, no." Li Luo quickly stopped her, then rose and walked to the kitchen, opening the fridge to take a look. "What I mean is, there's still some leftover rice from last night—if you don't mind, let's just stir-fry it for lunch."

Hearing she didn't need to buy groceries, Xu Youyu nodded eagerly: "Sure, I'm not picky."

"Alright, wait a moment, it'll be ready soon." Li Luo took out a small piece of pork belly from the fridge, half a pack of corn kernels, bean sprouts, carrots, and two sausage links.

Seeing Li Luo preparing to get busy, Xu Youyu originally planned to wait quietly in the living room, but after thinking it over, she felt a bit awkward, so she turned back and walked into the kitchen.

"What's up?" Li Luo picked up the knife, placed the pork belly on the cutting board, and swiftly sliced it, then cut it into strips; noticing Xu Youyu enter, he asked.

"Is there anything I can help with?" Xu Youyu leaned over from behind Li Luo and asked.

Today, Xu Youyu wore a strap dress, revealing a pair of slender, snow-white arms; her chest was gently lifted into a graceful curve, causing Li Luo to freeze his knife mid-cut, lest he slice off his own finger.

"Have you ever cooked at home before?"

"Does cooking rice count?"

"勉强算吧… but today you won't be needed." Li Luo pointed to the leftover rice in the rice cooker, then added, "Why don't you wash the bean sprouts and carrots, and peel the sausages for me?"

"Okay, no problem!" Assigned a task, Xu Youyu immediately felt energized, stepping to the sink to wash the vegetables.

As she washed, Xu Youyu stole glances at Li Luo chopping.

Having studied culinary arts for two and a half years in college, Li Luo's knife skills were quite impressive; the rhythmic thump-thump-thump echoed clearly.

In Xu Youyu's memory, even her mother didn't chop with this speed or fluidity.

Watching Li Luo chop was genuinely pleasing to the eye.

"No need to wash them that long." Li Luo glanced at the vegetables in the sink and suddenly reminded her, "Just rinse them lightly."

"Oh, oh." Xu Youyu snapped back, quickly placing the bean sprouts and carrots on a plate and handing them to Li Luo's side, then lowering her head to peel the sausages.

By the time she finished peeling the sausages, Li Luo had already diced the carrots, taken the sausages from her, sliced them diagonally, set them aside, and cracked three eggs into a small bowl, stirring them well.

With that, the prep work was done.

"OK, thanks for your help." Li Luo clapped his hands, removed the leftover rice from the rice cooker, "The rest is up to me."

Xu Youyu stepped back, watching Li Luo skillfully toss each prepared ingredient into the wok; steam rose in the kitchen, and the aroma of fried rice began to spread.

She watched, entranced, her eyes fixed on Li Luo's focused profile as he stirred the rice, her mind swirling with thoughts, finally crystallizing into one idea—

Hmm, I must write this scene into my novel.

Lately, I've been struggling because readers said the daily interactions between my male and female leads lack everyday charm.

Xu Youyu thought: previously, I had no experience—but now I have a ready-made source of material; let's see if they still say I lack everyday charm!

Indeed, writing novels requires drawing more from real life.

As Xu Youyu thought this, her gaze toward Li Luo grew increasingly pleasant.

She had originally worried that after switching landlords, having her two kids move in here might lead to awkwardness.

After spending just one day together, it was far better than her previous rental experience.

Last year when she first moved in, the other three rooms were occupied by Gao San seniors.

Everyone came and went early and late, silent, and when they met in the rental's living room, they merely nodded—no real connection at all.

Now that Li Luo and Ying Chanxi have moved in, not only do they have shared topics, but there's also delicious food to eat.

The quality of life has improved a notch.

"Here, this one's yours." Li Luo poured the fried rice into two plates, then picked up one and walked toward the living room table.

Xu Youyu quickly picked up her own plate and followed behind.

"Do you stay here all summer? Don't you go home to live with your parents?" Li Luo asked casually as he ate.

"I went home for a few days, then came back." Xu Youyu chuckled twice. "At first everyone adored me, but after a few days, I became a nuisance."

"If you were in that morning state," Li Luo swallowed his rice, paused a second, "I can totally understand your parents."

Xu Youyu was bent over eating when she heard this; she froze her chopsticks, looked up at him: "... Don't think just because you cooked for me, you can insult me like this. Don't your parents find you annoying?"

"Exactly." Li Luo nodded. "My family runs a breakfast shop. After summer break started, I wake up at three a. m. every day to help out. My parents can't bear to let me go."

Hit straight by Li Luo's words, Xu Youyu was speechless; she took a deep breath and gave him a thumbs-up.

But after eating two bites, Xu Youyu suddenly remembered something, rolled her eyes, and pulled out her phone from her pocket.

Li Luo glanced at the Apple phone on the table and saw her unlock the screen, open the newly launched Qidian Reading app, and tap into a book he knew all too well.

Hmm… impossible not to know.

After all, the title was I Am Really Not a Star.

"Do you usually read novels?" Xu Youyu held up her phone, waving it toward Li Luo, a strange smile on her face.

"Nope." Li Luo shook his head innocently. "I usually play games or watch anime."

It's better not to advertise too much that you write novels.

Especially romantic novels—they inevitably involve some romantic stuff; if someone close to you saw it, it'd be awkward.

Li Luo told his mom about writing, not his dad, because his mom only had a junior high diploma and probably wouldn't read his books anyway.

Even if she did, she'd likely read one or two chapters and think it boring, never reaching the parts unsuitable for an author's mother.

Someone like Xu Youyu, who already writes Online Novels, was even less likely to be told.

But now, hearing Li Luo's words, Xu Youyu internally sneered twice, thinking: You're acting awfully convincing, kid.

If not for the editor and Ying Chanxi recommending her the same QQ number, Xu Youyu would never have guessed that Li Luo was the author of this book.

However, after denying it, Li Luo couldn't help but feel a flicker of curiosity and asked, "What's this book that Senior Sister read? Is it good?"