Chapter 373: Chapter 373
The next morning, when Leng Mochen awoke, Li Si was not lying beside him asleep as usual. He touched her spot on the bed and felt it was cold.
He abruptly sat up, put on his robe, slipped into his slippers, and started searching for her.
Ever since Li Si became pregnant, her trips to the restroom had noticeably increased. He thought she might be there, but the restroom was empty.
Where could she have gone so early?
"Sisi, where are you?"
Li Si’s voice came from downstairs: "I’m in the kitchen, honey!"
Leng Mochen curiously headed downstairs and saw Li Si in a green and white striped apron slicing broccoli. A wave of warmth hit his heart.
This little one really sticks to what she says.
Li Si, with her makeup-free face, had her hair tied in a ponytail and wore a loose white maternity dress. Her whole demeanor radiated a gentle elegance.
"You’re up! Go wash up quickly. I’m making breakfast for you!" Li Si cheerfully urged him to freshen up.
Last night, she had already made up her mind. Instead of lamenting, she’d seize every moment and opportunity to spend with him.
They had been together for so long, but she had hardly ever cooked a proper meal for him.
She had decided that from now on, she would make him breakfast every day, and seriously learn how to cook. Once their son was born, she’d cook meals for both father and son.
As long as he remained Lu Zhenghang’s core at heart as Leng Mochen, she would keep doing it.
Leng Mochen sneakily glanced at the ingredients she was working with. He noticed some Italian pasta and two defrosted steaks beside her. This must be leftover from the birthday banquet yesterday. Read full story at Nove1Fire.net
He chuckled inwardly. He was in for a treat, although was it really okay to eat this first thing in the morning?
Still, he looked forward to seeing how her cooking would turn out.
While he went upstairs, Li Si secretly opened up the cookbook to study it. It looked quite straightforward to her.
She carefully followed the steps one by one, but alas, in her flustered and hurried state, the final product fell far short of expectations.
She had intended to make black pepper steak, but before she even managed to complete it, the venture ended in failure—the steak turned into a burnt mess.
Li Si frowned as she watched him eat with an expression that suggested he was savoring a delicacy. After sipping a mouthful of milk, she put down her glass and said, "Alright, stop eating! I tried a bite earlier—it’s both burnt and tough! Let’s just go out and eat instead!"
While pan-frying the steak, she hadn’t mastered the timing. She was too worried about it being undercooked, aiming for medium-rare, but ended up cooking it well-done—dry, tough, and slightly charred.
It seemed her journey to mastering the culinary arts was destined to be a winding and uphill one.
With great effort, Leng Mochen swallowed the steak that was as hard as something indescribable. He elegantly pulled out a napkin to dab at his mouth and said, "Hmm, while the presentation is a little lacking, the flavor and taste are pretty good! Since this is the first steak you’ve ever made for me, I must savor it properly! I’ll remember this taste well!"
Li Si set down her glass, her eyes lighting up as she got an idea: "Really? I’m having a hard time believing it! But if you have faith in me, then tomorrow morning I’ll switch things up—I’ll learn how to make dumplings from Aunt Liu, how does that sound?" Northerners usually love dumplings.
Leng Mochen fell silent.
Aunt Liu was their hourly housekeeper who came for a few hours each day to clean and cook.
"You’re pregnant now; better wait until later to learn, okay?" Although Leng Mochen wanted to eat her homemade dishes, he truly didn’t want her to overexert herself.
Li Si nodded. "Alright," she said, her enthusiasm for cooking seriously dampened.
Leng Mochen raised his brows, "Why? Upset? Cooking isn’t something you can master in a day. There will be plenty of opportunities for you to learn slowly later. For now, go with me to the office today!"
"Alright!" Li Si felt that as long as she was with him, anywhere was good.
When they arrived at Mo Si, Leng Mochen got busy immediately, heading straight to the conference room for a meeting. Li Si comfortably entertained herself. She first fed the map fish in the large office aquarium, watching them gather together, and smiled with envy.
Fish seemed so carefree, having only a few seconds of memory, swimming back and forth every day!
Someone knocked on the door. Li Si looked toward the door and said, "Come in!"
It was Liu Xiaole, holding a thermos lunchbox and a rectangular gift box tied with a ribbon.
"Is this for me?" Li Si teased knowingly. Liu Xiaole had chosen not to attend the birthday party at Li Si’s house, feeling that she wasn’t on the same wavelength as Li Si’s friends. She had decided instead to give her gift later.
Li Si hadn’t pushed her, understanding Liu Xiaole’s feelings. Especially since Liu Xiaole seemed a little intimidated by Leng Mochen, Li Si worried she might feel too constrained at the gathering.
"Happy birthday! Hehe, and my mom made cola chicken wings! I knew you’d be here today!" Liu Xiaole grinned and handed the gift to her, placing the lunchbox on the coffee table.
Li Si happily accepted the gift and smiled sweetly, "Thank you! What’s inside?" She shook the box, noting it felt quite light.
"You’ll know once you open it!" Liu Xiaole seemed a little bashful.
Li Si grew even more curious—what could it be?
When she opened the gift, she was genuinely surprised. Liu Xiaole had given her a cross-stitched wallet, adorned with an adorable boy-and-girl design.
"Oh my! Did you make this?" Li Si truly hadn’t expected someone as carefree and unrefined as Liu Xiaole to do cross-stitching.
Liu Xiaole’s face lit up with pride. "What do you think? Surprising, isn’t it?"
Li Si chuckled, "Very surprising! But this isn’t your first piece, is it? Judging by how nicely done it is, you’ve definitely made others before!"
Liu Xiaole opened the lid of the lunchbox, avoiding her question and instead urging her, "Hurry up and eat! It’s still warm!"
Her first cross-stitch piece was actually with An Zhengran now, but she felt too shy to mention it.
Li Si didn’t tease her further and instead, swayed by the sweet aroma filling the air, eagerly dug in.
Nanny Liu’s cooking was always good—the bright red wings looked irresistibly enticing. Since Li Si hadn’t eaten much for breakfast, she ended up eating several chicken wings before stopping.
"Xiaole, has Mr. Leng been acting strange lately?" Li Si tentatively asked. Last night’s odd behavior from Leng Mochen had left her wondering whether there was more to him than just being the original host.
Reflecting a bit more on it, she thought, even if the original host were returning, it would only be temporary. Why was his behavior almost like he was arranging his final affairs? It just didn’t make sense.
Liu Xiaole paused, thinking Li Si was referring to women, "The person taking over Du Xue’s position is Xu Jie. She’s married and has a four-year-old child, and no one’s been approaching Mr. Leng lately."
Li Si burst into laughter, "That’s not what I meant. I meant has he started acting differently because of something or someone recently?"
She hadn’t been particularly curious about anything involving other women, as she trusted Leng Mochen’s sense of propriety.
Liu Xiaole rubbed her chin as she thought about it, "If we’re talking about recently, it seems the only thing that comes to mind is when your mother-in-law visited a few days ago. Afterward, Mr. Leng canceled his schedule. Aside from that, not much else."
Li Si’s heart skipped a beat—could Mrs. Leng have said something? What exactly was being kept from her? (To be continued. If you enjoy this story, please visit Qidian at qidian.com to vote with recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)