Song Xinya abruptly pulled her hand back from Qin Yuhe's abdomen.
Only then did she realize how ambiguous their posture was.
Driven by some inexplicable impulse, her eyes followed his abdomen downwards for a glance, and her face burned like fire.
She stood up in a panic, her fingers brushing the loose hair on her forehead. "I bumped into Mr. Qin, so I was rubbing it for him."
Song Tingye: "Oh."
So that was it.
He thought it was something else.
Song Tingye said, "I accidentally bumped my arm on the table just now. Sis, rub it for me too."
Before Song Xinya could speak, Qin Yuhe said, "I'll rub it for you."
Song Tingye: "I want my sister to rub it."
Song Xinya: "You bumped your arm, not your back. Rub it yourself."
Song Tingye: "Well, my brother-in-law didn't bump his back just now either, so why did you rub his?"
The water in the pot boiled. Song Xinya lifted the lid and dropped the tomatoes in, blanching them for thirty seconds to easily peel them.
"I'm going to start cooking. Song Tingye, stop messing with me and go chill somewhere else."
Song Tingye muttered to himself, "Hearing this in the middle of summer, it definitely isn't an insult. This is absolutely the most sincere care, the most deeply hidden love. Sis, you just love me too much."
Singing loudly, "This is love—", he walked away happily.
When Song Xinya threw the peeled tomato skins into the trash can, she looked down and saw Qin Yuhe wearing a pair of black slippers.
Huh? Didn't he say he wouldn't wear them?
A man's heart is like a needle at the bottom of the ocean.
Men really are the hardest creatures in the world to understand.
Song Xinya's cooking movements were very skilled. She sautéed the scallions, ginger, and garlic in hot oil. The pot made a loud crackling sound, but she wasn't afraid at all, swiftly tossing the beef in and starting to stir-fry.
The beef was fried to an enticing caramel color, and the savory aroma of meat filled the entire room.
It was Qin Yuhe's first time watching a woman cook from such a close distance. He usually didn't think there was anything interesting about cooking, but right now, he was watching with great relish.
He noticed two bottles of chili sauce on the kitchen island and asked, "Do you usually like spicy food?"
Song Xinya: "Yeah, both my brother and I like it hot and spicy."
The weather was hot, and soon, fine beads of sweat appeared on Song Xinya's fair forehead.
Holding the spatula in one hand, she raised the other to wipe it.
A towel freshly soaked in cold water was pressed against her forehead. Qin Yuhe carefully wiped away the sweat from her forehead and the tip of her nose.
His clear and mellow voice drifted down from above: "Sorry, I shouldn't have made you cook. I should have taken you out to eat."
Song Xinya: "It's fine. Even if you didn't come, I'd still have to cook for myself. With you here, it's really just a matter of adding another bowl of water to the pot."
While she cooked, he stood by her side keeping her company, constantly wiping her sweat with the cold, damp towel.
Song Xinya never expected that Qin Yuhe, a young master from a noble family, would go to such lengths.
Standing with her in the kitchen, she wasn't the only one feeling the heat; he must have been hot too.
But he didn't say anything.
After the food was ready, just as Song Xinya was about to serve it, she suddenly felt the hem of her white T-shirt being lifted. Qin Yuhe reached his hand, holding the towel, inside.
The ice-cold towel pressed against her skin as he wiped her back with just the right amount of pressure.
His fingers inevitably touched her. His firm knuckles pressed against her lower back, and his fingertips scraped against her sensitive skin, sending tiny jolts of electricity coursing through her.
Qin Yuhe took his hand out from under her clothes as if he had accomplished something incredible. His tone carried a hint of satisfied achievement: "Alright, I've wiped your entire back."
He leaned his tall frame down, his extremely handsome face peering over from behind. Looking at her face, his warm breath brushed against her cheek and lips as he asked, "Are you still hot?"
"..." Song Xinya: "N-no, not anymore."
Her body wasn't hot anymore, but her heart was burning, and so was her face.
Qin Yuhe asked another question: "Does it feel good?"
Song Xinya: "...It does."
Looking at her flushed cheeks, Qin Yuhe said, "We are husband and wife. It's normal to do these things. You might not be used to it yet, but that's okay. We'll do it more often in the future, and you'll get used to it."
Song Xinya felt even hotter.
She didn't know if he was flirting with her on purpose, but it felt like... he was quite good at it.
Feeling her heart pounding fiercely, Song Xinya pursed her dry lips and whispered, "You should go out first."
If he didn't leave, she felt like her heart was going to jump right out of her throat.
Qin Yuhe: "Do you need me to help carry the food?"
Song Xinya: "Just let Xiaoye carry it."
Qin Yuhe didn't decline, saying, "Building some character for the boy is fine too."
Song Xinya shouted towards the living room: "Xiaoye, come carry the food."
Song Tingye shuffled over in his slippers. "Does anyone have Hou Yi's phone number? It's too hot, I can't take it anymore. I want to call him and tell him to shoot down the sun."
Song Xinya: "What did you do to get so hot?"
Song Tingye: "I didn't do anything and I'm still dying of heat."
Song Xinya: "If you're so hot, don't eat. I'll eat all the beef tonight."
This was practically a death sentence for Song Tingye: "No way. If I go a single meal without beef, my whole body feels awful."
Song Tingye quickly carried the three bowls of tomato beef noodle soup to the dining table.
Qin Yuhe and Song Tingye stood together, and Song Xinya looked over at them.
Qin Yuhe wore a white shirt and black suit pants, looking impeccably dressed.
Song Tingye was only wearing a pair of large boxer shorts.
One looked like an immortal god, the other like a lunatic. The contrast was tragic.
Song Xinya couldn't bear to look. She glanced at Song Tingye's bare chest: "Go put a shirt on."
Song Tingye looked down at his red boxers: "I am wearing something."
Song Xinya picked up a short-sleeved shirt from the sofa and threw it at Song Tingye's head. "Put it on. I'm worried that when you eat the noodles later, the soup will splash on your belly and give you a huge blister."
Song Tingye suddenly realized—
My sister really loves me so much.
The three of them sat around the table, with Song Xinya and Qin Yuhe facing each other.
Song Xinya didn't know if the tomato beef noodle soup she made suited Qin Yuhe's taste, so she kept a close eye on his expression.
The bright red, thick tomato broth soaked every strand of noodle, its sweet and sour aroma piercing straight into the nose. A few tender green vegetables were arranged on top.
The colors were beautiful, and the presentation was top-notch.
It gave him the desire to eat.
Qin Yuhe picked up his chopsticks and soup spoon, eating slowly and savoring it carefully.
The tomatoes had been simmered down to a rich texture, the soup base was savory with a hint of sweetness, the beef was tender and fragrant, and the noodles had absorbed the sweet and sour flavors of the tomato and the savory essence of the beef, making them chewy and smooth.
Seeing that he wasn't speaking, Song Xinya asked, "Is the taste okay?"
Qin Yuhe lifted his eyes to look at her: "This is the best bowl of noodles I have ever eaten."
There was somewhat of a coaxing tone in his words, meant to make her happy.
Song Xinya's eyes curved as she smiled happily and charmingly: "It's just average, maybe third best in the world."
In the time it took for the two of them to exchange a few words, Song Tingye loudly slurped down an entire bowl of noodles right next to them.
"My stomach is 128 gigabytes today. It can hold three bowls of noodles, a bowl of beef, and I could still eat half a roast chicken."
Wiping his mouth, he went to serve himself a second bowl.
Song Xinya: "Welcome to the spectacle of our family's perpetual eating machine."
Qin Yuhe raised an eyebrow. "Lucky for us, I'm pretty sure your brother is quite the foodie."
Actually, Qin Yuhe had attended a cocktail party before coming over and had already eaten. After just half a bowl of noodles, he felt full.
But looking at Song Xinya's sparkling, expectant eyes, he maintained a straight face and finished the entire bowl.
Qin Yuhe had seen the effort Song Xinya put into cooking, so he took the initiative and offered, "I'll wash the dishes."
Song Xinya asked curiously, "Have you ever washed dishes before?"
Qin Yuhe answered truthfully, "No."
Song Xinya knew it.
Qin Yuhe added, "Although I haven't, I don't think washing dishes is something that could stump me."
Song Tingye tilted his head back and drank every last drop of soup from his bowl. He placed the empty bowl on the table. After devouring four bowls of noodles in a row, he was finally full.
"Brother-in-law, it's your first time at our house. How could I let you wash the dishes? Just leave them there, I'll do it."
"There's no need to be polite with me. In our house, it's always been my sister who cooks and me who washes the dishes."
Letting his sister cook and then making her wash the dishes too was something Song Tingye simply couldn't bear to do.
After all, he had perfectly good hands and feet. As a member of the family, he had to contribute his share, didn't he?
While Song Tingye was washing the dishes in the kitchen, Song Xinya and Qin Yuhe sat in the living room.
For a moment, neither of them spoke. They each held a cup of rose tea, sipping it slowly.
Song Xinya checked the time. It was ten o'clock at night, which wasn't early anymore.
He didn't seem to have any intention of leaving.
So, was he planning to spend the night in her bed tonight?
