My Wife is a Frustrating Genius!!! - Chapter 35

In the dark night, a cool breeze swept through as Lu Jiahe’s door was stealthily pushed open. A shadowy figure glanced around, and seeing no one on duty in the courtyard, quietly slipped inside and closed the door.

Lu Jiahe, who was sound asleep on her bed, had no inkling that “danger” was creeping closer. She turned over, facing the shadow, and smacked her lips a couple of times.

The shadowy figure paused upon seeing Lu Jiahe stir, waiting until she mumbled a few times and fell back asleep before quietly approaching the bed and sitting down.

“Lu Jiahe, Lu Jiahe.”

An ethereal, hollow voice echoed in the room. The sleeping Lu Jiahe slowly cracked her eyes open.

“Ah! Ah! Ah!”

Piercing screams reverberated through the Lu residence. Realizing the situation had taken a turn for the worse, the shadowy figure immediately rushed forward, locking an arm around Lu Jiahe’s neck and covering her mouth.

“Mmph! Mmph!”

Heavens! Help!

Trembling uncontrollably from fear, Lu Jiahe wanted to scream, to cry out, to call for someone to save her.

“Let go! Let go!”

Despair washed over Lu Jiahe. Unable to shout for help, she resorted to kicking her legs wildly, trying to break free from the person holding her from behind.

“It’s me! It’s me! What are you screaming for? Look how scared you are.”

Cheng Yi was dumbfounded. She hadn’t expected Lu Jiahe to react so intensely. All she wanted was to find something to eat in the kitchen together because she was hungry!

Terrified out of her wits, Lu Jiahe couldn’t recognize who was behind her, nor could she process what the person was saying. Grabbing the arms restraining her, she mustered all her strength and executed a perfect shoulder throw, slamming the person onto the bed.

“What the hell!” Cheng Yi hadn’t anticipated that someone as frail-looking as Lu Jiahe could muster enough strength to flip her over completely.

In a flash, Lu Jiahe straddled Cheng Yi, pinning her wrists to prevent her from moving.

“Get off me, for heaven’s sake! Are you trying to crush me?!” Cheng Yi mimicked Lu Jiahe’s earlier actions, kicking her legs wildly in an attempt to throw her off. “Lu Jiahe! Get off me right now!”

Shouts once again filled the Lu residence. The servants, who had rushed over upon hearing the earlier blood-curdling screams, blushed and hurriedly retreated from the courtyard upon hearing Cheng Yi’s cries from inside the room.

“What kind of game are they playing in the middle of the night? And here we were, worried for nothing!”

“Heh! The young master has only recently tasted the pleasures of the flesh. Of course, he’s still infatuated!”

As the servants scurried out of the courtyard, they chattered about what must be happening inside.

“Lu Jiahe! What do you think you’re doing? I’m warning you, if you dare try anything funny, I’ll chop you into pieces tomorrow morning!” Cheng Yi grew genuinely frightened as she watched Lu Jiahe’s frenzied expression.

Only when the struggling beneath her began to subside did Lu Jiahe finally collect herself. “Who are you?”

“How dare you ask who I am? I’m your!” Cheng Yi was about to curse but stopped herself, realizing that the whole mess was her fault for sneaking in and scaring Lu Jiahe.

“Get off me now, or I’ll skin you alive later!”

Hearing this, Lu Jiahe leaned closer, peering at the person pinned beneath her in the moonlight.

“Ah! How could it be you!” After Lu Jiahe clearly saw who had come, she hurriedly released Cheng Yi, quickly rolled off the other person, and sat on the other side of the bed.

“Ah!”

The moment the other person moved away, Cheng Yi could finally breathe in the cool, fresh air. She lay on the bed for a while to recover, and once she had regained some strength, she sat up and glared at the person, ready to scold her.

“Why didn’t you knock before coming in?” Lu Jiahe had seen Cheng Yi’s pre-anger expression too many times before, and since she had just pinned the other person down, it was impossible for Cheng Yi not to be angry. So, she decided to shift the blame onto Cheng Yi first.

Wow, she’s learned to strike first!

Cheng Yi gritted her teeth as she looked at Lu Jiahe. With just one sentence, the other person had shifted the main responsibility onto her. How could she possibly bring herself to harshly scold the person who had just thrown her with a shoulder toss?

“Fine, I forgive you. Next time, knock to let me know before you come in. Sneaking up quietly by my bedside like that could scare someone to death.” Lu Jiahe cautiously observed the other’s expression, thinking that if she noticed even the slightest hint of displeasure, she would immediately apologize and beg for mercy.

Cheng Yi glared at the person in front of her, thinking to herself that it was already generous of her not to get up and hit the other person, and now this one was pushing her luck.

“What? Trying to take this chance to lecture me a bit more?” Cheng Yi raised an eyebrow and stared at the other, a faint trace of anger showing on her face.

Seeing this, Lu Jiahe sensed trouble and quickly said, “No, no, I was just startled.”

“Tch!” Cheng Yi let out a disdainful snort.

She knew exactly what the other person meant by repeatedly mentioning being startled. She also recognized her own fault in the matter and figured she might as well let the other vent a little.

“I’m hungry, going to find something to eat.”

After lingering in the room for a while, Cheng Yi finally revealed the purpose of her visit.

“You came to see me so late at night just for this?” Lu Jiahe stared at Cheng Yi in disbelief. In her eyes, Cheng Yi didn’t seem like the type to consult her over such trivial matters.

Cheng Yi rubbed her already flattened stomach. “What? Is that not allowed?”

“No, it’s fine.” Lu Jiahe replied cautiously, furrowing her brows slightly. “If you’re hungry, you could just grab something from the small kitchen. Why come to me?”

Lu Jiahe stole a glance at Cheng Yi. To be honest, she was quite happy that Cheng Yi had come to her. At least made her feel that she mattered to the other person.

“I want to go to the shop and work on some new things to sell.” With that, Cheng Yi stood up, picked up the clothes Lu Jiahe had left on the stool, and tossed them into the other’s arms.

“Huh?” Lu Jiahe’s face showed surprise. “Going to the shop this late?”

“Mm.” Cheng Yi nodded at her. “If you don’t want to go, you don’t have to. I just came to ask if you’d like to come along.”

Lu Jiahe gave the other a helpless glance. After all the commotion earlier, she was wide awake and couldn’t possibly refuse. “Alright, let’s go then, the sooner the better.” With that, Lu Jiahe put on her outer robe and quietly followed Cheng Yi out of the Lu residence.

Xue Wanning, who had been eavesdropping on the roof, frowned as she watched the two slip out of the Lu residence late at night. She flicked her hand forward, and two or three figures in black, hidden in the shadows, followed them.

Lu Jiahe and Cheng Yi hurried straight to the ice storage room where the meat ingredients were kept. Watching Cheng Yi pull out a slab of pork belly, Lu Jiahe wondered to herself, Eating pork this late at night—won’t she get sick of it?

“Can you start a fire?” Cheng Yi asked, placing the meat in water to thaw. She then picked up a few square stones, washed them clean, and arranged them on the stone table.

“Yes,” Lu Jiahe replied, watching as Cheng Yi placed a bronze basin among the stacked stones. She had no idea what Cheng Yi was planning. “What are you making? Why does it look so complicated?”

Cheng Yi was starving. As she arranged firewood in the bronze basin, she answered, “Skewers. Probably something you’ve never had before. Help me grind the chili peppers, then light the fire, but make sure it’s not too strong.”

She handed Lu Jiahe a handful of chili peppers and a stone grinder before heading into the kitchen to slice the meat.

“Lu Jiahe! Is the fire lit yet?” Cheng Yi shouted from the kitchen.

Lu Jiahe, who was in the middle of lighting the fire, nearly burned her hand at the sudden call. “Almost done!”

Cheng Yi cut the pork belly into small chunks and, with considerable effort, skewered them onto wooden sticks. Carrying the prepared skewers and a small bowl of salt, she hurried back to the stone table.

Lu Jiahe eyed the items skeptically. “Are you planning to grill meat?”

Cheng Yi’s eyes lit up in surprise. “You know about it?”

Lu Jiahe frowned and shook her head. “I’ve never tried it, but I’ve seen others grill fish over a fire.”

“Oh,” Cheng Yi said, unable to resist patting Lu Jiahe’s head at her pitiful expression. “You’ll get to taste it soon. It’s delicious.”

Lu Jiahe stared dubiously at the unappetizing-looking meat. Though Cheng Yi was a good cook, she couldn’t imagine how meat without even a sprinkle of salt could taste good.

The charcoal fire grew stronger. Cheng Yi brushed a little lard onto the skewers and placed them over the flames.

With a sizzle, fire and meat intertwined, and the pleasant aroma of food gradually filled the backyard.

Once the skewers were nearly done, Cheng Yi sprinkled a pinch of salt and ground chili over them, flipping them a few times before placing them on a plate she had prepared earlier.

Lu Jiahe frowned at the grilled meat. “It’s burnt. Is it still edible?” She pointed at the skewers, unable to see how they could possibly taste good.

“The charred bits make it tastier,” Cheng Yi insisted, adding another dash of chili before handing a skewer to Lu Jiahe. “Try it.”

Lu Jiahe accepted the skewer with a stern expression, hesitating to take a bite.

Cheng Yi, too hungry to wait, picked up a skewer, blew on it, and took a big bite.

Heavenly!

It had been so long since she’d enjoyed skewers like this. Though the flavor wasn’t perfect, given the limited seasonings available in this era, it was still pretty good for what it was.

“Try it. If you don’t like it, I’ll make you something else,” Cheng Yi coaxed, seeing Lu Jiahe’s hesitation.

After a long internal debate, Lu Jiahe finally mimicked Cheng Yi and took a bite.

Delicious!

Lu Jiahe relaxed her furrowed brows and nodded at Cheng Yi, never imagining that grilled food could offer such a rich variety of flavors.

She quickly finished the skewer in her hand and immediately picked up another to eat.

Seeing this, Cheng Yi thought to herself, See? Serves you right for doubting the culinary skills of a modern person!

“By the way, I’ve thought about your plan to go to the capital,” Cheng Yi said. “I can go with you, but if the opportunity arises, I’d like to open my own shop there.” Aside from wanting to have a late-night snack, Cheng Yi had come to Lu Jiahe tonight specifically to discuss this matter.

Lu Jiahe, sitting on the stone stool and eating skewer after skewer, abruptly stopped pulling the meat off the stick when she heard the second half of Cheng Yi’s sentence. “Aren’t you coming back to Bianjing with me?”

In an instant, Lu Jiahe felt her heart grow cold with disappointment. She set down the skewer in her hand and stared at Cheng Yi, regretting whether she should ever have brought up the topic of going to the capital.