Chapter 8: Fire

Dense smoke spread from the kitchen, overflowing through the doors and windows, and the entire courtyard was filled with billowing black smoke.

Fortunately, the fire was still manageable. By the time Liu Changning rushed out the door, the sparks had just been extinguished.

The good-for-nothing husband was holding a wooden bucket and a ladle in his hand, looking disheveled.

Liu Changning frowned and glanced at him, feeling at a loss for words.

This person truly embodied the saying, “Good for nothing, but first in eating, sleeping, and causing trouble.”

She walked closer with a stern face and peeked inside. Luckily, only the dry grass in front of the stove had caught fire, and no other places were burning.

Otherwise, given the original owner’s impoverished state, constructing another room would be absolutely unaffordable.

Perhaps feeling guilty, Pei Yuanshao lowered his head, his eyes filled with embarrassment.

As the Prime Minister in both his previous life and current life, delicacies were endless and inexhaustible.

He knew what food looked like, but he had no idea how to cook it. He thought that cooking rice simply involved lighting a fire and mixing rice with water.

However, he never expected that even starting a fire in the stove would stump him, nearly burning down the kitchen.

His peach blossom eyes were brimming with tears from the smoke, and his fair face was stained with black soot, looking utterly miserable.

After checking that the cooking utensils in the kitchen were undamaged, Liu Changning turned around and saw his dirty face.

Originally intending to lash out, she rubbed her pale lips and ultimately refrained from scolding him.

Although there were many things about the good-for-nothing husband that she disapproved of, this fire was not intentionally caused by him.

“You’ve never started a fire in the stove before?” Liu Changning tilted her head.

The embarrassment in Pei Yuanshao’s eyes flashed and disappeared. Feeling that his current behavior was too weak, he pursed his lips and pretended to be fierce, saying, “When did I ever say I was good at cooking? It’s your fault for forcing me to make lunch, resulting in this situation. What did I do wrong?”

The scorching summer sun shone on his face at an angle. Without his enchanting smile, he looked a bit awkward and uncomfortable.

Unexpectedly, Liu Changning had a good temper. She handed him the cloth in her hand and pointed to his cheek, saying softly, “Wipe it off!”

Pei Yuanshao was stunned. Based on her cold and ruthless demeanor today, he thought she would definitely be furious upon seeing this mess and would once again drive him away.

However, he never expected her to be so amiable. Throughout the entire day, this was the only moment she showed him a hint of gentleness.

He lowered his head and mumbled a “thank you.”

As soon as he finished speaking, he saw the woman in front of him had already turned around and stepped into the room.

“It’s okay if you don’t know how to cook. I’ll teach you. Practice makes perfect. After doing it a few more times, you won’t be so clumsy anymore!”

Pei Yuanshao almost choked on his breath, coughing up tears.

He stared at her back with resentful eyes. The kitchen was already in this state, yet she still didn’t plan to let him off the hook and wanted him to cook in the future?

However, his fierce gaze was met with her indifferent eyes.

“Instead of being angry, you might as well learn to cook seriously. You should know that learning a cooking skill is an additional ability for the future. Think about it carefully. If you can cook delicious dishes in the future, you’ll have a commendable skill even in front of Lady Guan. Capture her stomach, and will you still need to worry about your future prospects?”

She explained earnestly, every word and sentence for his benefit.

Pei Yuanshao wished he could grind his teeth to pieces. He clenched his fists, shattering the handle of the ladle, and the debris fell from his hand.

He lowered his head, inhaling and exhaling repeatedly. After two cycles, his voice squeezed out through gritted teeth, “Thank you for your concern!”

Under the scorching sun, large beads of sweat oozed from his smooth forehead. The uncleaned soot on his face was smeared by the sweat, covering his entire face.

It was quite miserable.

The corners of Liu Changning’s lips secretly curved into a subtle arc. She politely said with a straight face, “You’re welcome. Let’s go! I’ll personally teach you!”

In fact, she had never started a fire herself, but that didn’t stop the original owner’s memories from having scenes of starting fires and cooking.

The two entered the room one after another.

The sparks from the burning dry grass earlier had long been extinguished, but the kitchen still had a pungent smell of smoke.

She took two steps forward, opened the dilapidated window, scooped water from the wooden bucket, and sprinkled it throughout the room.

After doing all this, she turned around.