Chapter 39: Such a Strong Scent of Vinegar

Dinner consisted of crucian carp and tofu soup, vinegar-glazed cabbage, poached chicken, and sautéed Chinese broccoli.

Gu Lanxi did not eat staples in the evening. Auntie Wang quickly scooped out a few strands of buckwheat noodles for Lu Nanting before retreating to the maid's quarters.

"Someone's acting very jealous."

The other dishes tonight were quite bland, so as soon as Gu Lanxi walked in, she smelled the vinegar-glazed cabbage.

In the middle of summer, after running around all day and having blood drawn, she was quite happy to be able to eat something sour and crisp, and she couldn't help but let it slip in her speech.

Instead, she saw Lu Nanting sitting on the sofa, silently flipping through a copy of *A Random Walk Down Wall Street*, looking utterly dejected.

Because of the marriage news, Lu Nanting had lost three million followers on Weibo overnight—and they were all active fans. Gu Lanxi thought he was grieving over this, so she put down her bag and walked over to call him to dinner.

"You start eating first. I'll be there after I wash my face."

As a gold-standard housekeeper, Auntie Wang was highly sought after by entertainment industry moguls. Beyond being tight-lipped and professional, she was known for her impeccable discretion, never meddling in her employers' private affairs.

In the past, every time Wu Feng came to deliver fish, she would report it to the employer. Today, however, she said nothing.

Previously, since there had been no master of the house other than her, reporting it today while the male master, Lu Nanting, was present would have made it seem as though she didn't respect him.

Thus, Gu Lanxi was completely unaware of the matter.

In her view, since she had seen Wu Feng this morning and had already rejected him to his face, no normal person would come to deliver fish to her again.

Without a word, Lu Nanting sat at the dining table but didn't pick up his chopsticks. He leaned back against the chair, one hand on the table and the other on his lap, his long legs stretched out coolly, waiting for her.

Gu Lanxi washed her face and came out after applying moisturizer, only to see him sulking. She couldn't help but purse her lips.

She sat down.

She started with half a bowl of soup.

Lu Nanting had the temperament of a young master, but she wasn't as soft and gentle as she appeared.

In this day and age, who wasn't a bit stubborn?

He had said long ago that marrying her wasn't a good idea.

She had thought he was fully prepared, but she hadn't expected that he would start regretting it so soon...

Lu Nanting, unaware of her thoughts, assumed she knew about the fisherman delivering fish.

Not only did she not reject it, but she had even picked his favorite dish among the several on the table!

And when she first walked in, she even went out of her way to mock him by saying, "Someone's acting very jealous"!

Gu Lanxi had always been excellent. In kindergarten, boys were always pulling her pigtails; as she grew up, the love letters pulled from her desk came in boxes. Lu Nanting had long known he had many romantic rivals.

He, too, had many pursuers, but he never accepted gifts from them because he knew he didn't like them and would consciously maintain his distance.

His anger wasn't because of Wu Feng's existence, but because of Gu Lanxi's lack of rejection.

Gu Lanxi was a super ninja; a cold war with her would never end well.

Seeing that she had already eaten half of a chicken wing, Lu Nanting finally said awkwardly, "I want to build a fishing platform by the lake."

Gu Lanxi took it as him offering an olive branch and suddenly found her own anger quite funny.

She couldn't exactly leave him to overcome every difficulty on his own.

Gu Lanxi simply tried to please him: "Of course. I'll contact a designer later; we can design it exactly how you like."

Seeing that she hadn't grasped his deeper meaning at all, Lu Nanting picked up his bowl, his face still sour.

Glancing at the two crucian carps floating in the soup, Lu Nanting said in a fit of self-abandonment, "I can learn to fish too."

Since they moved, there was a lake right in front of the house; wouldn't learning to fish be a matter of minutes?

Gu Lanxi finally sensed something was wrong. Looking at the fried fish, she had a sudden realization: "Was this sent by Wu Feng?"

"You didn't know?"

Knowing he wasn't angry about the lost followers, Gu Lanxi couldn't help but find it amusing.

"I ran into him in the garage this morning and said hello. He said he'd bring me a few, and I rejected him directly. Why did he send them again?"

Gu Lanxi put down her chopsticks and picked up her phone. Sure enough, in the building's group chat, Wu Feng had mentioned delivering fish to everyone that afternoon.

After sending a quick thank-you on WeChat, Gu Lanxi put her phone down and explained patiently

"Every household got some; don't overthink it. He loves fishing and has too much harvest to eat, so he often gives it to the neighbors. We can just return the favor with a gift later."

"Then why didn't I get any?"

"You didn't reply in the group chat! And the upstairs neighbors didn't leave their doors open; even if he wanted to deliver, he couldn't, right?"

Security at Bihu Tiandi was quite strong. Between floors, unless the fire doors were opened, one could only go up and down via the elevator. Without the homeowner's permission, people from other floors couldn't reach this level.

Lu Nanting realized he had accidentally acted out of jealousy and felt a bit embarrassed.

Even though he wasn't the type of person with poor character, Gu Lanxi explained further

"He did pursue me once, but I rejected him directly. I don't usually accept gifts from him privately, and our daily interactions are no different from other neighbors. So, don't overthink it."

"I'm sorry. I should have asked you first."

Having said that, he placed a piece of Chinese broccoli in her bowl.

Now that they were talking, Gu Lanxi also wanted to ask him what he thought about the loss of followers.

"Your Weibo followers evaporated by millions overnight, and now a lot of people are predicting your downfall. Regarding the marriage—do you regret it?"

Lu Nanting frowned. "It was expected. Why regret it?"

He sighed and looked at Gu Lanxi. "Be more confident, okay? So many people dream of marrying you, so why are you always worried I'll regret it? Speaking of which, I feel like I've spent every day since the wedding in a state of secret joy, yet you haven't. Comrade Gu, I am very disappointed in you."

Gu Lanxi just looked at him with a smile, then silently placed a chicken wing into his bowl.

"Eat your dinner!"

Fine, he was just that easy to coax.

*[I am definitely not one of those dramatic men out there, acting up all day long.]*

Lu Nanting gave himself a stern compliment, and the meal finally concluded smoothly.

When Auntie Wang came out to clear the dishes, she saw that instead of fighting, the two were sitting close together on the living room sofa, sweetly watching a movie. She couldn't help but marvel that having an emotionally stable partner was truly something to be envied.

Miss Gu was undoubtedly the most emotionally stable person she had ever met.

Once Auntie Wang had finished and left, Gu Lanxi finally asked him, "If you were unhappy, why did you still have Auntie Wang make crucian carp and tofu soup?"

Given Auntie Wang's intelligence, if Lu Nanting hadn't specifically requested it, she definitely wouldn't have made it tonight.

Lu Nanting pulled her into his arms, letting her lean against him, before letting out a soft huff and whispering

"Because I knew you liked it."

To teach him and his brothers the meaning of "every grain is hard work," her mother had bought a farmhouse in the suburbs when her brother was three.

Later, when that farmhouse was demolished, she bought an even larger one further away.

Her mother cared deeply about the family's dietary health; the organic vegetables they ate were all supplied by this farm.

Because it was quite remote, the new farm covered a vast area and included a large pond with many fish.

These fish relied on nature, much like wild fish; they weren't even fed extra bait by fishermen. Although they grew slowly, they were exceptionally fresh.

Lu Nanting had eaten with her many times, and every time this dish was made at home, she would eat quite a lot.

The meat of the crucian carp was tender but full of bones. Others usually just drank the soup, but she would patiently pick out the bones and eat them bit by bit, consuming at least one fish per meal.

Her father, who now taught his grandchildren to be patient in their work, would occasionally bring this up, saying Gu Lanxi was the most patient person he had ever met.

She hadn't expected him to notice such a thing. Gu Lanxi was slightly stunned.

"Don't you also know that I hate eating water spinach?"

Lu Nanting wrapped his arm around her shoulder and stroked her head.

Gu Lanxi was momentarily speechless, not knowing what to say.

She remembered the preferences of those around her simply because she had a good memory.

She remembered habitually for future use, but her primary purpose was usually to benefit herself.

His motivation, however, was entirely different.

After a long silence, Gu Lanxi finally squeezed out a word: "Thank you."

*Thank you for remembering.*

*Thank you for caring.*

Who would have thought? The young master was not only easy to coax, but he was also an expert at coaxing himself.

His brain's daily activity: *How can my wife be this cute!! I want to kiss her!*