Pandora's Box

1. Lin Jing

I lifted the lid of the saucepan, sniffed first, and tasted it cautiously.

"Wow!"

My eyes lit up: "Woooooo! It's so delicious! Am I a genius!"

Yuan Keke taught me a stewed pork trotter with pickled peppers and soybeans. I tried it for the first time today, and it turned out to be very good!

Although there is a gap between my level and Zhuo Wenyang's, I think I still have talent. If I continue to improve myself like this, I will become a family cook just around the corner!

I immediately took a picture and sent it to Zhuo Wenyang, so that he could enjoy the fruits of my labor immediately.

After receiving Zhuo Wenyang's thought-provoking compliment, I filled another big bowl and prepared to send it to Cheng Yichen.I think he will probably like this kind of dishes that melt in the mouth with crispy skin and soft meat.

In addition to sharing, I also want him to understand that I can take care of myself. He can rest assured of me and don't have to worry that I can't take care of myself.

In fact, I moved out to make Cheng Yichen feel more relaxed.

After I came back and stayed at home for a while, he had to make great efforts to get food every day, for fear of treating me badly.

That's all in the past, after that serious injury, his physical condition is not as good as before, but he still has to stand and work in the kitchen for a long time, just to make a big meal for me, which makes me very uncomfortable.

In fact, I have told him many times, just cook whatever you want, I am not that delicate, and I am not a guest.I can eat home-cooked vegetables and radishes very happily, and it's also very convenient to order takeaway, so I don't need to bother so much for me.

Still, he was too worried about me.

Maybe for him, he couldn't keep himself from being so tired.

It's hard for a sensitive person like him to let go.The guilt of the past is lingering, and he will never be able to shake it off.

I didn't realize it at the time, but looking back now, he's always been restless.He couldn't let go of the fact that he had hurt me, and he was suffering.

This also explains his excessive preference for me, and explains why many times when he should be happy, there is also a shadow of sadness on his body.

It's okay to be favored, but I've got people who love me now.I hope he also regains the ability to live well without being stuck in the past.

Holding the heavy bowl in both hands, I nimbly pressed the doorbell with my forehead, and someone answered the door almost immediately.

Behind the silently opened door was Lu Feng's face.

I froze for a moment, nodded to him as a greeting, and then asked, "Where's Uncle Chen?"

He lowered his voice as if he was afraid of arguing, "Xiaochen fell asleep."

Over his shoulder, I saw Uncle Chen leaning on the sofa, covered with a blanket, eyes closed, rarely relaxed.Tangerine Tea also curled up on top of him, her stomach rising and falling in sleep.

I also whispered: "I burned a pig's trotter to see if Uncle Chen likes it."

He took it and said, "Okay, thank you."

When Lu Feng controlled the volume to speak, he seemed unusually quiet, like a loyal dog greeting guests for his master, even gentle and polite,

Then Lu Feng went to the kitchen to put the stewed pig's trotters with pickled peppers and soybeans in another container, and then took out the bowl and returned it to me. He looked burly, majestic and powerful, and he would crush the bowl if he was not careful. He did it lightly and silently.

I was about to leave, thought for a while, then turned to him and said, "Wait, ask Uncle Chen, would you come to my house for dinner on Saturday night? My dad and the others are coming over."

He nodded: "Xiaochen woke up and I told him."

I don't know why, but I asked one extra question out of curiosity: "Are you coming too?"

He froze for a moment, then said, "Okay."

"it is good."

He added, "Thank you."

I said, "You're welcome."

Then he closed the door softly.

I stood silently at the door for a while.When I went downstairs, the wind and sunshine outside were very good.

It's actually pretty amazing.In that lonely, deserted, cage-like space, Uncle Chen seemed calm, which I can understand, but even Lu Feng seemed quite satisfied, without any hostility.

Probably for him, even if he is in prison, as long as he can go to prison with Uncle Chen, then he is very happy.

Even, if there is a cage in the world that can only accommodate the two of them, then he should be willing to stay in it forever.

2. Cheng Yichen

When I woke up from my dream because of the noise, it was already dark.

The lights in the room were not turned on, and the trance brought by the dream had not subsided. In the dim vision, I lost the sense of time and space for a while.

I was confused for a moment, and I heard someone whisper, "Are you awake?"

The voice immediately brought me back to reality and made me feel grounded and calmed.

I said "um", and then realized that the sound that woke me up was the orange tea bowl being thrown.

"..."

This cat has a bad temper.

Lu Feng said, "I'll go get some cat food for it."

"Um……"

Lu Feng turned on the small light, and the yellow light would not be dazzling.I was still exhausted, so I lay down, watching Lu Feng skillfully busy around the cat food bowl, with one big, three small and four cats meowing around him.

I never thought that he would be willing to prepare cat food and change cat litter for cats, and no one could have imagined such a scene.After all, he looks so cold and unfriendly, and he doesn't like small animals.

But I feel that I am indeed old, probably because of another injury, my body is not as good as before, and I easily feel mentally weak and my limbs are weak.Just taking care of four cats is exhausting at times and sometimes I forget things.

Lu Feng helped me a lot. He took the big and small cats to the pet hospital for me and bought the necessary pet supplies. I couldn't buy clothes suitable for the small size of a small milk cat. He even donated his own socks to cut for me.

Lu Feng distributed the cat food, and the Orange Tea family immediately gathered around to eat contentedly. The three kittens were all wearing the same style of socks with the same logo. The feet look like parent-child outfits.

I couldn't help smiling.

Xiao Jing and Wen Yang have moved out, and Ke Luo has not lived here for a long time. The house is much deserted, and I have indeed been disappointed.

When my kids grew up and became independent, it was inevitable that I would feel like an empty nester.Fortunately, I have cats. The three little milk cats remind me of the days when the three young people were still alive.

After feeding the cat, Lu Feng came over and sat back beside me, and said, "I just put the rice in the pot, it should be cooked by now."

Only then did I realize that it was already past dinner time, the cats were hungry, and the humans wanted to eat even more.I hurriedly sat up and said, "I'm going to cook and order something, let's just eat..."

"No need to fry, there just happens to be a ready-made dish."

I couldn't help but hesitate: "Did you do it?"

My trust in him does not include cooking skills ==.

He smiled and said: "No, when you were asleep, Lin Jing came and brought you a bowl of stewed pig's trotters."

"Ah...why didn't you wake me up?"

He looked at me and said, "You slept so deeply, I want you to sleep a little longer."

I complained: "You..."

He smiled and said, "It's me who is bad."

He is actually really good-looking when he smiles, gentle and obedient, completely different from what outsiders say about him.

It's a pity that so few people have seen his smile.

He added: "Lin Jing asked you if you want to have dinner on Saturday night. Cheng Yichen and Qin Lang will also be there."

"Okay!"

For Xiao Jing's acceptance of Yi Chen's incident quietly, we are all happy from the bottom of our hearts, but we dare not make it public.

When Yichen told me about Xiao Jing taking the initiative to say that he could live in the past, he stopped crying after holding back a few words. Even if he hadn't been explicitly called "Dad", he was already satisfied.

After I was happy, I thought of Lu Feng again.He might be used to being the one who wasn't invited, and he might not enjoy that kind of occasion, after all, the people present didn't have any affection for him.

But always leaving him at home alone makes me feel uncomfortable after all.

He said, "Lin Jing also invited me."

I was taken aback for a moment: "Ah..."

He seemed to see my doubts, and said seriously: "It's true."

"..."

I couldn't help reaching out and touching his head: "That's good."

Little is actually a very good child.

Xiao Jing silently proved to me more than once that he had let go.I know that all the generosity of repaying grievances with virtue is just to make me feel better.

I am very grateful, gratified, but inevitably a little sad.

The tolerance of the victim is not a reason for me to wash away my mistakes.As a sinner, but also to be comforted and redeemed in turn, this in itself makes me feel heavier.

I heard Lu Feng calling me softly: "Xiaochen."

"Ok?"

His hand brushed my face, as if trying to erase some phantom for me.

He said, "I'm sorry."

"what?"

"your expression."

"Ok?"

He whispered: "You only have this expression after being with me."

"..."

"Most of your pain comes from me, right?"

"..."

He put his hands on my face, and I felt the warmth and strength from his palms.

"Don't feel guilty anymore, Xiaochen."

I looked at him weakly, and before I showed a wry smile, he said again: "Those things are all because of me, I am the one who made the crime, you are not! You are not a sinner, Xiaochen, you did not do it wrong about anything."

After a while, he said again: "No, maybe you missed it too."

"..."

"The only thing you did wrong in your life was choosing me."

"..."

On his face, I saw a strange, fragile expression on my face.

His eyes lowered, and his voice was very low: "And I can only pray day and night, praying that you will never correct this mistake in your life, forever, ever."

"..."

I looked at his face, his brows, eyes and edges and corners were the outlines I was most familiar with, and I could draw them even with my eyes closed.The years have left traces on us, we are no longer young and less vigorous, but the way he looked at me is still the same as it was more than 30 years ago.

I stretched out my hand and hugged this strong, tall but slightly trembling man tightly.