Though she said she was helping, Mu Qiu didn’t manage to do much except snack on the side and enjoy being fed by Cheng Zhirang.

Hearing him call "Qiuqiu" twice, she lazily helped to pass a bowl or plate.

Originally wanting to help peel a tomato, she was stopped and handed a pre-steamed orange egg custard on a plate instead.

"Eat a little first."

Mu Qiu sneaked a glance at the people in the living room, then turned to get a spoon.

She was very familiar with the placement of everything here.

"I’ll eat one first, don’t say anything."

Cheng Zhirang glanced at the living room and said, "Nobody’s paying attention to you, eat. Be careful, don’t get it on your hair."

"Oh. It’s delicious, there’s a fragrant orange flavor."

"Then I’ll make it again next time," he said softly, lowering his head.

...

During the rush hour waiting for the subway after work, Mu Qiu, who hadn’t posted an original Weibo in a long time, updated a post visible to the entire internet.

A picture of an orange egg custard, accompanied by a sentence.

[Mu Qiu V: Soft and silky, perfect for summer]

Her idle internet-savvy friends quickly came to occupy the top comments.

[Zhao Yu Yuzi: I can just imagine your divine expression.]

[Li Yang V: There’s a pair of hands behind you, I saw it/I really am a clever little fox.jpg]

[Shu Ran V: Is this about the orange egg custard? Or those hands behind you, flattering much?]

[Guan Yu V: Don’t tell me those marks on the custard are your teeth marks; did you chip your teeth?]

[Mu Qiu V replied to Guan Yu V: ...You’re the one who chipped teeth! You! Those are uneven spoon marks!]

[Li Yang V replied to Guan Yu V: Hahahahaha Sister Guan Yu, you’re killing me with laughter]

[Guan Yu V: Is Brother Huai out in the wilderness with no signal? There’s been no word from him since Saturday]

[Dragging down my dear Yangyang, you’re too heavy, you need to post on Weibo more to gain influence]

[Are you guys turning Weibo into your private circle of friends?]

[Our Huai must be eating greens, paying for Saturday’s binge, he’s had to eat vegetarian for days]

[Those hands behind! Is it Brother Cheng?!]

[Weirdly enough, it’s strange if it’s not Brother Cheng, right]

[So, what’s this about? Secretly showing off your romantic life?]

[Is this to respond to the recent trending topics? Her relationship with Cheng Zhirang seems fine, unaffected]

[My Brother Cheng is cooking! Where do you find such a man?!]

[Is the orange egg custard a metaphor for something?]

[I also want to eat the orange egg custard made by Brother Cheng, wuwuwuwu]

[It’s definitely Brother’s hand, you can tell at a glance]

[Are they living together now?]

[No way, chatting sweetly with another man in front of Brother Cheng and having him cook?]

[Alright, alright, break it up, their relationship’s good]

[Cheng Zhirang has a good temper but he’s no fool, can’t he tell if his girlfriend has issues? You don’t need to nag about it]

[Mu Qiu! Have Brother Cheng post some selfies!]

[Did Brother Cheng make the orange egg custard? It looks so delicious!]

[The Orange Brigade was late but surely arrived, enough said, going to buy oranges]

[Brother, seeing you live the life of an old married couple puts my mind at ease]

[Just a passerby, are they really in a love triangle?]

[Who has love triangles in front of the main character? Just regular friends, right?]

[Going to Disney with friends instead of her boyfriend, tsk tsk]

[It’s not just me saying, she needs a boyfriend who can openly accompany her on outings]

[And someone recorded audio, how creepy]

[Since Saturday, Brother Cheng hasn’t been active, but his name hasn’t disappeared from the trending topics]

[As expected, when you open Mu Qiu’s comments, it’s all Cheng Zhirang’s fans underneath]

[Selfie! Selfie! A selfie of you two together would work too!]

[This Orange Juice just discovered a second way to obtain Brother’s photos (Wenwen, I apologize to you)]

[Even still, in that blurry video released by a netizen, I oddly love the Battlefield of (supposed) confrontation between two men]

[Li Yang, you practically live online, commenting so quickly]

[Brother! Steam me!]

[The orange egg custard is what it was about, your brain is fried]

Mu Qiu casually scrolled through the comments, not having had time to look closely, when Cheng Zhirang gently tapped her plate to remind her.

"It’s getting cold, it’ll affect the taste."

She quickly put down her phone and finished off a serving of orange egg custard in a few bites.

The lemon chicken was already done, and Cheng Zhirang had two more dishes to prepare. Aunt Liu, who was helping on the other side, just finished the first main dish, and the cumin-flavored fish chosen by Cheng Zhirang was ready to come out.

Mu Qiu carried the lemon chicken to the living room, the fragrant rice had been uncovered to cool.

The family dinner was about to begin.

This was Mu Qiu’s second time dining with Cheng Zhirang’s parents, but with Mu Zhi and Yuan Chun present, the dinner seemed rather special, and she felt a bit tense.

Fortunately, the chosen place was the Half Mountain Villa, a place she was familiar with, so aside from being somewhat tense, she wasn’t uncomfortable.

Cheng Zhirang sat beside her, with a proper posture, occasionally stopping his food handling to listen and make eye contact whenever the four elders spoke to him.

He behaved impeccably, leaving Yuan Chun extremely pleased, constantly praising him.

Cheng’s parents weren’t to be outdone, with He Jia praising Mu Qiu as if she were celestial and unheard of on Earth.

Mu Qiu was numbed by all the compliments.

Overall, the dinner was a mutual success, everyone was satisfied.

When leaving, He Jia and Yuan Chun held hands, looking reluctant, promising to meet again next time.

Mu Zhi found joy in meeting someone who could match him in political and academic discussions, chatting thoroughly.

Cheng Zhirang started the car, holding the door of the driver’s seat, patiently waiting for them.

Mu Qiu stood beside him, away from the elders’ praise and advice, her mind cleared up and became agile again.

It was indeed a bit strange.

The father and mothers at the door, looking utterly like "in-laws praise being wonderful, hope daughter gets married next year".

Then seeing Cheng Zhirang earnestly waiting for the "father-in-law and mother-in-law", ready to drive them at any time, the whole scene felt like the final step of matchmaking/the pre-wedding segment.

Only she seemed to be at the wrong place.

She poked Cheng Zhirang’s waist and asked softly, "Don’t you think it’s a little odd?"

Cheng Zhirang bent down to listen, his gaze politely resting away from her neckline.

"What seems odd?"

"I feel like I’m here for a matchmaking process, not to dine at my boyfriend’s house."

Cheng Zhirang’s expression didn’t change, he stroked her hair, "Just shows that the elders have a good bond, I’ve never seen my dad discuss the origin of life with anyone else."

"Neither have I, except with professors from the biology department in school."

Seeing her attention divert elsewhere, he responded with a "hmm", raised his hand to support her elbow, and shifted the topic again.

"Are you tired of wearing high heels? You can lean over a bit."