132: Chapter 132 Smoke from a Quiet Home

May 24, 2025, Saturday, cloudy, 17 ~ 26°C.

At nine in the morning, Qiao Yichen woke up.

He turned his head to look at Liu Yanran, who was still fast asleep, her breathing even, eyelashes resting quietly against her eyelids.

He carefully lifted the blanket, afraid of disturbing her, then stepped onto the floor barefoot, finding his slippers before standing up.

After washing up and changing clothes, he went out.

His destination was the farmers' market about 500 meters southwest of the residential complex. After going downstairs and leaving the complex, it was a seven or eight-minute walk. This was the busiest time for the market, with an endless stream of people and the sounds of bargaining rising one after another.

Qiao Yichen first went to the meat section and bought some chicken wings and pork ribs. He then turned to the vegetable section, picking out corn, tomatoes, and a few types of greens. His cooking skills were average, just at the level of home-cooked meals, so he only bought what he knew how to make.

After buying the ingredients, he carried the bags back.

His phone vibrated. A message from Liu Yanran: "Where are you?"

He took a picture of the bags containing the ingredients and sent it to her, adding another message: "Just finished shopping and am on my way back."

Liu Yanran replied quickly: "Are you planning to cook today?"

Qiao Yichen looked at the screen and smiled, typing: "Our kitchen hasn't been used in a long time. Since I have no plans this weekend morning, I'll show you my skills."

"Do you need me to help?"

"These dishes are simple, so it shouldn't be necessary. You should sleep a bit more."

There was no further reply.

Upon arriving home, Qiao Yichen went straight to the kitchen. The kitchen in this apartment was fully equipped, but it was rarely used. He was busy, and occasionally cooking noodles was the extent of it, so it was as good as new.

He had just taken out the ingredients when footsteps sounded behind him.

Liu Yanran hurried over from the bedroom, leaning against the kitchen door frame, her hair still a bit messy, her eyes sleepy.

"Lin Wei and Su Qing are coming over later," she said, her voice still carrying the laziness of having just woken up. "Make sure to prepare extra portions."

Qiao Yichen paused for a moment, turning to look at her: "Why did they decide to come over today?"

Liu Yanran shook her phone and squinted as she explained: "We arranged it a few days ago to go to the beauty salon for daily care this weekend afternoon. We've all been too busy before and never had time, but we finally managed to coordinate today."

Qiao Yichen nodded, scanning the ingredients on the cutting board: "Alright, I'll make more. That should be enough for the four of us."

He glanced at her messy hair and her not-quite-awake appearance, and added: "Go back and lie down. I'll call you when it's ready."

Liu Yanran let out a timely yawn, reaching up to rub her eyes: "Then I'll lie down for a bit longer, I'm exhausted."

After saying this, she turned and went back to the bedroom.

Qiao Yichen didn't pay any more attention to her and began washing the ingredients, cutting what needed to be cut and marinating what needed to be marinated. He rinsed the rice, put it in the pot, and started the rice cooker. After a flurry of activity, it was unknowingly eleven o'clock.

The doorbell rang.

Qiao Yichen wiped his hands and went to open the door; Lin Wei and Su Qing walked in one after the other. After changing their shoes, they walked naturally toward the living room sofa.

"I've washed some fruit, have a little to tide you over." Qiao Yichen brought out the strawberries and grapes he had bought yesterday and placed them on the coffee table. "Yanran is still in the bedroom."

Lin Wei waved her hand nonchalantly, leaning back on the sofa: "No need, no need, let her sleep a bit more. We're not in a hurry." She then picked up a strawberry and popped it into her mouth. "Mmm, this is sweet!"

Su Qing, however, didn't rush to sit down; instead, she followed him toward the kitchen.

Qiao Yichen was a bit baffled by her curious gaze and turned to ask her: "What's the matter?"

Su Qing leaned against the kitchen doorway, looking around, a hint of surprise in her eyes: "I couldn't tell that you knew how to cook."

Qiao Yichen shrugged, his tone casual, while his hands continued to flip the chicken wings in the pan: "I can make some home-cooked dishes, but nothing complicated."

Su Qing peeked inside, her gaze sweeping over the various pots: "What are you making? It smells quite good."

Qiao Yichen pointed to the pressure cooker: "Corn and pork rib soup." He then pointed to the chicken wings simmering in the pan: "Cola chicken wings." He turned to the tomato scrambled eggs and stir-fried greens that were already plated: "Just these. I hope you don't mind."

Su Qing looked around and gave him a thumbs up, rarely complimenting anyone: "The presentation is good; it looks appetizing."

In the bedroom, Lin Wei couldn't sit still for more than a few minutes.

She pushed open the master bedroom door and peeked inside. Liu Yanran was still curled up under the blanket, opening her eyes slightly upon hearing the movement.

"Why aren't you up yet?" Lin Wei walked over, leaning against the bedside to look at her, and reached out to poke her shoulder.

Liu Yanran's voice was thick with sleep as she turned over: "Oh, you're here—"

Lin Wei looked at her with amusement and poked her again: "It's past eleven, and you're still not up? Qiao Yichen is almost done cooking. Do you plan to eat in bed?"

After saying this, she reached out to pull the blanket. Liu Yanran, having no other choice, propped herself up to sit, threw on a piece of clothing, and walked toward the bathroom, her slippers making a lazy shuffling sound on the floor.

By the time all the dishes were on the table, Liu Yanran had finished getting ready, brushing her teeth and washing her face. She walked out with her hair tied back loosely, her face bare, her skin fair and radiant.

The four of them sat around the table.

Qiao Yichen handed out chopsticks. Lin Wei couldn't wait to pick up a piece of cola chicken wing, chewing and saying indistinctly: "Mmm—this is delicious! The flavor really soaked in!"

Su Qing ladled a bowl of corn and pork rib soup, took a sip, and offered a rare compliment, her tone still calm: "This soup is quite good. The ribs are stewed just right."

Liu Yanran sat next to Qiao Yichen, eating slowly and deliberately, occasionally looking up at him with a hint of a smile in her eyes.

Outside the window, the sun was shining brightly—a rare sunny day.

After the meal, the four of them sat on the sofa to rest.

Lin Wei leaned back, rubbed her stomach, and suddenly spoke up: "After we finish the treatments at the beauty salon, should we go for a walk later? It's a rare nice day; it would be a waste not to go out."

Liu Yanran nodded, her tone casual: "Sure."

Su Qing also agreed: "Alright, it's a good chance to see if there's anything we want to buy."

As soon as she finished speaking, the three of them turned their gazes simultaneously toward Qiao Yichen, who was lounging on the sofa.

It took him a while to realize they were looking at him, and he hurriedly waved his hands, looking innocent: "I have to go to the gym later. You guys go ahead and shop; I won't join in."

The three of them withdrew their gazes and continued discussing where to go and what they wanted to buy. Lin Wei had already started scrolling through her phone to check malls, muttering about "which one has sales recently."

Qiao Yichen leaned back on the sofa, took out his phone, and sent a photo of the lunch he had made to both Zhou Qian and Yu Peishan.

It was purely a daily share between friends. After chatting for a few sentences, both responded quickly; one asked "You made this yourself?", and the other said "It looks pretty good." He kept the conversation going, and the exchange was not boring.

Time passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye, it was past one o'clock.

Liu Yanran came out of the bedroom after finishing her makeup, picked up her bag, and called out to Lin Wei and Su Qing. When she reached the door, she turned back to Qiao Yichen and said: "I'm taking the car out. You make your own plans."

Qiao Yichen nodded: "Go ahead, drive carefully, and come back early after shopping."

The door closed, and the room became quiet.

He lay there for a while longer and checked the time—it was already past two o'clock. He had an appointment with his personal trainer, Tao Lege, at three; it was the perfect time to head over.

He grabbed his bag, left the house, and headed toward the gym.

The next day, Sunday.

The morning was much like the day before, with both of them busy with their own things at home.

Liu Yanran leaned on the sofa watching a drama, while Qiao Yichen scrolled through his phone nearby, occasionally chatting about this and that.

In the afternoon, Liu Yanran went out to meet a college classmate for afternoon tea.

Qiao Yichen went to the library and borrowed two books about antiques, planning to learn more about the subject while he had the free time.

After returning the books, it was still early, so he went to the gym again.

The two days of the weekend passed by peacefully and plainly—a rare moment of leisure.