Chapter 19: A Kitchen Maid
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What stranger would cook in someone else’s home?
Especially when the only person with the house key and access to the fingerprint lock was himself.
It had to be an anomaly.
Anomalies were appearing with increasing frequency all over the world. There was nothing strange about one showing up in his own home.
At that thought, Bai Ming’s heart suddenly began to race.
Not from fear—from excitement.
He remembered reading on the forum that resolving anomalies in the real world also awarded experience points and game currency.
He was only one hundred experience points away from reaching Level Four.
Even the lowest-grade anomaly would be enough to satisfy his requirements for leveling up.
And this anomaly had appeared inside his own home.
If he did not deal with it, escaping would probably be difficult anyway.
In that case—
Unleash willpower!
[Strength: 14 + 3]
[Agility: 13 + 3]
[Constitution: 14 + 3]
[Intelligence: 14 + 3]
[Perception: 12 + 3]
[Charisma: 12 + 3]
With three points added to every attribute, Bai Ming was like a tiger ready to pounce. He sprang lightly from the sofa and landed soundlessly, without even disturbing the dust.
He took an iron rod from his [Inventory] and silently crept toward the kitchen.
The hum of the range hood and the crisp clanging of the spatula against the wok conveniently covered every other sound.
Take down the anomaly first!
Then look for the rules!
Since the anomaly was in the kitchen, there was a ninety percent chance the rules were there too.
With that in mind, Bai Ming swiftly lunged at the figure in the checkered apron.
“Oh? You’re awake?”
The figure in the kitchen suddenly turned around. Her voice was filled with bright, lilting joy.
Bai Ming’s attack halted, the iron rod freezing in midair.
Before him stood a girl with the delicate beauty of a porcelain doll. The rising steam had lent a faint blush to her fair cheeks, and beneath her slender brows, a pair of almond-shaped eyes widened in surprise.
She instinctively retreated half a step. Drops of oil fell from the spatula onto her apron, blooming into dark stains.
Then, seeming to realize that retreating was inappropriate, she stepped forward again.
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“You’re Bai Xiaozhi?”
Yes, Bai Ming had not frozen because of that excessively exquisite face.
If that were the case, he would be doomed the moment a seductive ghost tried to lure him after he entered a dungeon.
What truly stunned him was the familiar clothing she wore. He had not seen it clearly from behind, but from the front, it was unmistakably the uniform of Changteng High School.
As for how Bai Ming could be certain she was Bai Xiaozhi despite never having seen her real face—
He was not an idiot. He had not forgotten the special item [Bai Xiaozhi’s Homework Notebook].
Its description clearly stated: [Do you think this is merely a homework notebook? No. It is her obsession.]
Besides, that voice was so familiar. How could he possibly mistake it?
“Mm.”
Bai Xiaozhi answered softly and timidly lowered her head, as though that single greeting had exhausted every ounce of courage she possessed.
“Something’s not right! Vile demon, how dare you disturb my state of mind!”
Bai Ming pounced once more.
This time, he abandoned the iron rod. His arms clamped around her shoulders like iron pincers, pinning her against the cold tiled wall.
His eyes swept across the kitchen like flashes of steel: the ribs sizzling in the wok, the washed greens in the sink, the half-open refrigerator door.
Nothing. Nothing. Still nothing!
There was not a single abnormality.
Not even a trace of written rules!
Pinned firmly beneath Bai Ming, Bai Xiaozhi breathed rapidly, her chest heaving violently. Her cheeks flushed scarlet, and her eyelashes trembled in panic.
Bai Ming lowered his head until the tip of his nose was almost touching hers.
Her eyes were moist, as though veiled in mist. Her lips quivered faintly, and her breath came hot and hurried. From among her strands of hair drifted a subtle fragrance—something like jasmine, or perhaps citrus...
Wait!
What brand of shampoo did ghosts use?
Bai Xiaozhi pressed her lips together and spoke in a voice as soft as a mosquito’s buzz.
“The pot... The pot’s burning. The ribs are going to char...”
Hearing that, Bai Ming hurriedly released her.
The iron wok on the stove was already giving off blue-gray smoke, and the smell of burning food had begun to fill the air.
He said calmly, “Remember to shut the refrigerator door tightly next time. The one in my house is broken. If you don’t close it properly, it opens by itself.”
Bai Xiaozhi gave a quiet “Mm,” then immediately turned around to turn off the burner. Soon, the grating scrape of the spatula against the bottom of the wok rang through the kitchen.
Damn!
She really was not an anomaly.
He had gotten his hopes up for nothing.
He had thought he was about to level up, only to find himself with a live-in cook instead.
Bai Ming walked into the living room and collapsed onto the sofa. He opened the post titled [Anomalous Incidents Surge Within Six Months! The Terrifying Truth Ninety-Nine Percent of People Don’t Know!] and replied with a single phrase:
“Fucking idiot.”
“Dinner will be ready in half an hour. Watch some television for now.”
Bai Xiaozhi’s voice drifted from the kitchen.
Bai Ming thought, What era are we living in? Who still watches television? This television had been bought ten years ago and had barely been used. In recent years, he had not turned it on even once. He did not even know whether it still worked.
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Still, he answered, “All right.”
He got up and turned on the television.
To his surprise, it actually started—but every channel required a subscription, leaving Bai Ming utterly speechless.
In a fit of irritation, he returned to his room, carried his laptop into the living room, opened a random video-streaming website, picked a random television series, and started playing it. He connected the speakers and turned the volume all the way up so that the kitchen could hear it as well.
Then he sprawled back on the sofa and resumed browsing the [Player Forum], where he proceeded to pontificate with great enthusiasm.
Fortunately, the [Player Forum] allowed users to choose exclusive usernames, so there was no need to worry about exposing their player IDs.
Half an hour later, Bai Xiaozhi efficiently arranged three dishes and a soup on the table: garlic-fried ribs, blanched choy sum, steamed lean pork with egg, and winter melon and rib soup.
“Dinner’s ready!”
Bai Xiaozhi called toward the living room.
When she heard Bai Ming’s footsteps approaching, she suddenly seemed to remember something. Her fingers unconsciously twisted the edge of her apron, and her voice grew softer with every word.
“Um... I don’t think it turned out very well today... Just bear with it, okay?”
She cast a furtive glance at the ribs, then hurriedly added, “The ribs got a little burnt, too... But I scraped off the charred parts... It shouldn’t affect the taste...”
Bai Ming waved his hand dismissively.
“It’s fine. I like them a little burnt. They don’t taste right without that flavor.”
Hearing this, Bai Xiaozhi handed him a bowl of rice and a pair of chopsticks.
Bai Ming took them and began to eat.
How should he put it?
It was not actually any better than what he cooked himself.
During his time working in poverty alleviation, Bai Ming had spent his free hours studying the culinary arts. He had gone from someone who could do little more than boil instant noodles to a banquet chef sought after throughout the surrounding villages.
Whenever a family held a wedding or a funeral, they loved to call him in to oversee the cooking. The aroma of his stewed meat could drift halfway across the village.
Later, after living alone for a long time, he had studied home cooking as well, unwilling to treat his own stomach poorly.
Put simply, he cooked whatever he liked to eat. Whether salty or mild, it suited his own palate, so naturally he considered it the most delicious.
“Is it good?” Bai Xiaozhi asked cautiously.
“Mm.”
Bai Ming shoveled in a mouthful of rice without even looking up.
Bai Xiaozhi let out a relieved breath, the corners of her lips lifting slightly.
“I was worried it wouldn’t suit your taste...”
Chewing his food, Bai Ming replied as though it were self-evident, “Who turns down free food? I used to be able to swallow the leftovers from the school cafeteria.”
“Leftovers?” Bai Xiaozhi blinked. “What does that mean?”
“It all began with a starving college student...”
Bai Ming set down his chopsticks and launched into a vivid account of how, in the dead of night, he had searched every corner of his dormitory before finally tearfully gnawing through a greasy, overly salty takeaway meal.
The story grew longer and longer, while the meal grew slower and slower.
At last, Bai Ming picked up a piece of garlic-fried rib and chewed it leisurely.
He had to admit, it really was quite delicious—almost exactly like the food his mother had made when he was a child.
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