149: Chapter 149 Going to Buy Soy Milk

The search bar on the screen displayed the words "Maid's Tasks."

She had originally intended to check the scope of a normal maid's work... After all, the mission name given by the system included the word "maid," so she had to clarify the basic framework first.

"A maid's duties include, but are not limited to: daily living care, meal preparation, house cleaning, satisfying the master's special needs..."

Special needs???

Below these four words, there were thoughtfully attached related search recommendations, such as "Maid's Special Needs List," "12 Required Courses for Maids," and "How to Improve the Master-Servant Relationship."

Su Wan's fingers hovered over the screen, and her whole body felt as if it were frozen.

She scrolled down a few pages, and the more she read, the more she felt there was something wrong with this world.

Aside from proper maid work, that kind of... that kind of thing was actually considered part of a maid's duty?

Su Wan's face turned red from her earlobes down to her neck. She slammed the terminal screen onto the table, her chest heaving several times.

Calm down.

Calm down.

She was a reborn person, having returned with the memories of her past life, shouldering the responsibility of changing her destiny; how could she let this kind of system task break her mentality?

But the problem was... this task had absolutely no specific target...

"Then how am I supposed to know to what extent it counts as completed!" Su Wan scratched her hair.

"Is this mission system... messing with me?"

Su Wan turned off the terminal completely and leaned back onto the bed.

...

Time flew by, and two weeks passed quickly.

During these two weeks, Lu Cheng rolled two Hextech items.

[Lying Flat (Green): Do not continue cultivation for three days, then gain 100 points of Blood Qi and 100 points of Source Qi]

[D to Your Heart's Content (Green): Gain ten chances to refresh Hextech]

In the villa, the life of Qian Shuying and Lu Cheng gradually became routine.

Qian Shuying, this young lady, learned how to cook at some point.

To be precise, it was one day when Lu Cheng returned from training and pushed open the villa door, he smelled a burnt odor wafting out from the kitchen.

He rushed into the kitchen in two or three steps and saw Qian Shuying standing in front of the stove, holding a spatula in one hand and her terminal in the other, with a recipe open on the screen and several flour smudges on her face.

In the pot, he didn't know what she had put in, but it was all blackened, and the edges were still smoking.

"What... are you doing?" Lu Cheng stood at the kitchen entrance, his expression a bit complicated.

"Cooking." Qian Shuying didn't even turn her head, but her voice was quite calm, "The recipe said to caramelize the sugar, but I think I messed up the heat."

"This is no longer a matter of heat." Lu Cheng walked over to move the pot away, turned on the range hood, and looked back at the few semi-finished dishes laid out on the stove: shredded potatoes cut unevenly, meat chunks of varying sizes, and a bowl of green-colored soup base, though he didn't know what seasoning had been added.

"When did you start learning this?"

"A few days ago." Qian Shuying closed the recipe on the terminal, turned to look at him, her expression very calm, "Anyway, I'm idle every day, so it doesn't hurt to learn something."

Lu Cheng looked at this young lady of the Qian Family standing in the messy kitchen, with flour on her face and a spatula clutched in her hand, and for some reason, he suddenly let out a laugh.

"Alright, then I'll teach you."

From then on, the two had an unspoken understanding.

When Lu Cheng cooked, Qian Shuying would help out by washing vegetables, cutting vegetables, and passing seasonings.

When Qian Shuying cooked, Lu Cheng would also help out, assisting in preparing the meat, mixing sauces, and cleaning up the pots and pans she had used.

At first, the dishes Qian Shuying made were really not great, and Lu Cheng would give feedback without changing his expression every time he ate...

After two weeks, Qian Shuying's culinary skills improved visibly.

Although they were still a bit strange, at least she could make a few decent home-cooked dishes.

Lu Cheng had told Qian Shuying about his plan to be a commentator in May.

That day, while cleaning up the dishes after the meal, Lu Cheng mentioned it while wiping the table:

"I'm going to the Imperial Capital in May as a guest commentator for the National High School Competition."

Qian Shuying's movements paused for a moment, then she continued stacking the bowls into the sink: "How many days will you be gone?"

"The tournament lasts five days, plus the preparation and wrap-up before and after, about a week."

Lu Cheng threw the rag back onto the stove, leaned against the kitchen door frame, and looked at Qian Shuying's back.

"By the way, didn't you ask me about something before? Is there anything you need my help with on your end?"

Qian Shuying's hand washing the dishes paused again. The water continued to run, and white foam slid through her fingers. She didn't turn around, just shook her head gently.

"Nothing."

Lu Cheng looked at the back of her head, wanting to say something, but in the end, he only responded:

"Alright. Let me know if you need anything."

Qian Shuying gave an "en" sound and didn't speak again. Only the sound of the faucet and the crisp clinking of dishes remained in the kitchen.

...

On the evening of May 8th, they had dinner.

Lu Cheng cooked four dishes, and Qian Shuying stewed a pot of soup.

Chu Xiuxiu sat at the dining table early, gripping her chopsticks, her eyes darting back and forth between the plates on the table.

After these two weeks of recuperation, the little girl finally put on some weight on her face, and her complexion was no longer as pale as when she first arrived. Her two little braids were tied neatly; Qian Shuying had braided them for her in the morning.

Lu Cheng walked out of the kitchen with the last dish, took off his apron and draped it over the back of the chair, and sat down opposite Chu Xiuxiu.

"I'm going to the Imperial Capital tomorrow." He picked up his chopsticks, took a piece of twice-cooked pork into his mouth, and continued vaguely, "Is there anything you need me to bring back?"

Chu Xiuxiu touched her chin and thought for a moment.

Her expression was extremely serious, her brows furrowed, as if she were making some major decision.

Then she opened her mouth, and drool flowed down from the corner of her mouth.

"I want to eat Douzhi!"

Lu Cheng's expression was strange, his chopsticks frozen in mid-air.

"Where did you see that thing?"

Douzhi, even in the Imperial Capital itself, many people can't get used to drinking it.

That sour, fermented smell—nine out of ten people who drink it for the first time will spit it out on the spot.

Chu Xiuxiu, a little girl who grew up in the south, how did she suddenly get interested in this?

"There are so many people eating it on the Jiangyin Platform!" Chu Xiuxiu's eyes were shining, and she gestured in front of her, "It's that kind of green stuff, served in a bowl. They say you can't forget it after one sip!"

"You definitely can't forget it." Lu Cheng clicked his tongue, "But they didn't say whether it's because it's delicious or because it's terrible."

Chu Xiuxiu wasn't discouraged at all; instead, she was even more excited: "I don't care! I want to drink it!"

"Alright." Lu Cheng nodded in resignation, "I'll bring it back for you when the time comes. But let's be clear, don't blame me if you don't want to drink it after one sip."

Chu Xiuxiu nodded vigorously, and the two little braids on her head swayed along.

Lu Cheng glanced at Qian Shuying, who was a bit dazed on the side.

She was holding her bowl, her chopsticks stopped over the rice, her gaze fixed on the green onions in the soup bowl, not knowing what she was thinking.

Lu Cheng put down his chopsticks, reached out to pat Chu Xiuxiu's head, leaned down to her ear, and lowered his voice.

"I'll leave Sister Qian in your care these next few days. If anything happens, contact me."

Chu Xiuxiu blinked, then nodded vigorously. The expression on her face changed from a gluttonous little girl to one of serious responsibility: "Don't worry, Brother Lu Cheng, I will protect Sister Qian well!"

Qian Shuying had been absent-minded these past few days.

Although he didn't know what had happened, Lu Cheng could tell she had been distracted.

But with Chu Xiuxiu's combat power, she could basically handle anything.

If something really happened, with this little girl's combat power, anyone below the War General Realm wouldn't even be a match.

"Shuying." Lu Cheng reached out and waved in front of Qian Shuying.

"Wha... what's wrong?"

Qian Shuying came back to her senses, her eyelashes fluttering twice...

"I'll leave Xiuxiu in your care these next few days." Lu Cheng looked at her and continued, "Tell me anytime if anything happens."

"En... don't worry." Qian Shuying picked up her bowl, took a bite of food, lowered her head, and chewed slowly.

Lu Cheng didn't say anything more and picked up his chopsticks to continue eating.

The sky outside the villa had turned completely dark.

The light in the dining room cast the shadows of the three people onto the table, and the sound of bowls and chopsticks clinking and Chu Xiuxiu's chirping voice swirled in the room.

...

The next morning, the villa door was knocked.

Lu Cheng opened the door and saw Su Wan standing outside.

The young girl was wearing a clean and crisp uniform, her long hair tied behind her head, and her face still wore that cold and aloof expression, except when her gaze landed on Lu Cheng, she looked away slightly.

"Why are you here?"

"The Education Bureau said they needed another girl." Su Wan's tone was calm, "So I was called over."

This was a lie.

In fact, she had been researching that so-called "maid task" for the past two weeks, and the more she researched, the less she knew how to start.

It just so happened that she heard Lu Cheng was going to the Imperial Capital to participate in the National High School Competition, so she immediately asked her mentor to apply to accompany him.

After the mentor reported it, the three deans discussed it and felt it wasn't impossible.

For one, it could relieve some pressure on Lu Cheng, and for another, a mix of male and female appearing in front of the camera would have better promotional effects.

Plus, Su Wan's strength was not bad, so they agreed to this accompaniment.

Lu Cheng didn't think much of it, just nodded.

"I see, then let's go.

There will be an instructor taking us to connect with the Education Bureau in a moment."

Su Wan made an "en" sound and followed behind him.

When they arrived at the Academic Affairs Office, Lu Cheng discovered that the team leader was actually Shen Guhong.

Shen Guhong sensed their presence and said...

"Are you both here? Then let's set off."

Since they were all acquaintances, it saved a lot of pleasantries.

The group boarded the academy's private airship.

As the cabin door slowly closed, the Navigator Academy outside the window gradually shrank, and the clouds spread out beneath their feet.

Chu Xiuxiu leaned against the villa window, watching the airship ascend from afar, her little hands clenched into fists.

"Sister Qian, Brother Lu Cheng went to buy Douzhi!"

Qian Shuying stood behind her without speaking.

She just kept her gaze fixed on the sky until that airship disappeared completely deep into the clouds.