Chapter 307: At Least You Know to Protect Your Wife

"Ha ha, you still know how to be shy." After the owner's wife teased Jiang Muye, she turned her face to look at Leng Ruoli. "Little girl, you've got good fortune following our Little Jiang. He's doing really well for himself, and he's handsome too. He'll treat you well, I'm sure. You'll be our West City daughter-in-law from now on."

Leng Ruoli's little face flushed deep red.

Jiang Muye immediately moved to shield Leng Ruoli, saying to the owner's wife, "She's a bit shy. Don't tease her."

"Oh, already protecting her. Fine, I'll stop. I'll go get your fried dough sticks." The owner's wife giggled and went to fetch the fried dough sticks.

The fried dough sticks had just been pulled from the oil, beautifully golden and crisp. Laid out on the table, they were a perfect match for the soy milk.

Jiang Muye could not help but reach out and demonstrate for Leng Ruoli. "Around here, you have to dip the fried dough stick in the soy milk. That's how it tastes best. Like this."

He grabbed a fried dough stick and dipped it into the soy milk a few times. What had been golden and crisp now softened, the front end still dripping with soy milk—soft, but delicious just to look at.

Jiang Muye bit into it, eager to say it hit the spot.

真好吃.

Wrapped in soy milk, the fried dough stick softened on his tongue, and after eating it he could not help but want another bite.

He took another slurp of the savory soy milk. The rich, authentic soy milk gave off a wisp of steam as he gulped it down on a slightly chilly winter morning.

Then, looking around at the thoroughly street-side atmosphere—the whole room probably less than ten square meters—eating in an environment like this was especially pleasant.

"Delicious. It tastes like childhood." Jiang Muye felt thoroughly satisfied.

Leng Ruoli had already copied Jiang Muye and taken a bite herself, and she sighed in admiration. "It really is so good."

"See? You can eat it soaked like this too." Jiang Muye tore the fried dough stick into pieces and soaked them in the soy milk.

Piece after piece of fried dough stick quickly softened, mingling with the chopped scallions—the icing on the cake. The soy milk had originally carried a beany fragrance and the taste of scallions; now it gained the sweet savor of the fried dough stick as well.

When it reached his mouth, it still retained the fried dough stick's fragrance, but once bitten into—how could a single word, fragrant, describe it?

Jiang Muye wolfed it down, lifting the bowl and finishing it in a few quick moves.

He still felt it wasn't enough, and when he caught sight of the owner's wife making jianbing guozi, he grew excited. "Come on, give me another jianbing guozi."

"Sure. Do you want cilantro?" the owner's wife asked Jiang Muye.

"Auntie, you know. Same as before!" Jiang Muye said cheerfully.

"Alright, whatever you say. The usual. Your tastes really haven't changed a bit. That's good." The owner's wife smiled. "You used to be just a little bean sprout, and now you've grown up so big, and you can even bring your girlfriend here to eat."

"More than that. In the future I can bring a little munchkin here to eat with me too." Jiang Muye said with a smile.

"Looking forward to it." The owner's wife gave a meaningful glance at Leng Ruoli, sitting in her seat, and showered Jiang Muye with praise. "You've got a good eye, kid. A girl this pretty, and you chased her down."

Jiang Muye rubbed his nose and said sheepishly, "To be honest, I didn't chase her. She came on strong to me."

The owner's wife rolled her eyes. "Whatever you do, don't go telling tall tales. A girl that pretty probably wouldn't come on strong to you. Keep bragging."

Although Jiang Muye was handsome too, Leng Ruoli clearly looked like a pampered young heiress, pretty with class, different from the girls around West City—cleaner, more refined and gentle.

Jiang Muye smiled helplessly. "It's true."

The owner's wife still didn't believe it.

Who would have thought that before long, Leng Ruoli would walk over.

Jiang Muye put an arm around Leng Ruoli's shoulder and said with a smile, "Auntie Qin doesn't believe you came on strong to me. Tell her who chased who."

"Of course it was you," Leng Ruoli said playfully.

The owner's wife was triumphant. "See that? You've given yourself away now. Even the little girl says you chased her."

Leng Ruoli's little face was burning hot. She gave a radiant smile. "Auntie, of course he was the one who got chased by me."

The owner's wife was stunned. At first, seeing the girl's shy, delicate manner, she'd thought it wasn't very likely, and assumed Jiang Muye was just showing off.

But now, hearing it, it turned out it really was Jiang Muye who was chased.

It was truly unbelievable.

"You couldn't tell at all. You really are something, kid!" The owner's wife was astonished, and then gave Jiang Muye a thumbs-up.

Jiang Muye felt his face grow slightly warm from the praise. "Auntie Qin, hurry up and flip it for me, or my jianbing guozi will burn."

"Good, good, good. Flipping it for you right now." The owner's wife was grinning from ear to ear. "I'll fill it with meat to the brim. As much as you want. Want some more, kid?"

Jiang Muye looked and saw it stuffed full with ham slices, tenderloin, and ham sausage—the whole jianbing guozi was about to fold shut.

Jiang Muye immediately called out to the owner's wife, "Auntie Qin, no need. You've added too much."

"Ha ha, this is nothing. I wanted to wrap the meat in the jianbing itself. You love to eat, so I'll add more." The owner's wife was very generous. "Don't worry, today it's on me. I won't charge you two."

Jiang Muye was flattered. "How can that be? You're running a business here. I can't just take advantage of you."

Seeing the jianbing so lavishly loaded and the owner's wife refusing to take money and being so warm and hospitable, Leng Ruoli felt very embarrassed. "Owner, you have to take the money."

"Ha ha, I won't lose out. I'm in a good mood. I watched Little Jiang grow up. On his way to school he always loved to stop by my place for breakfast. Ever since he went to West City for university, I haven't seen him come around. Now he's back, so of course I'm happy." The owner's wife was full of warmth.

Jiang Muye was somewhat touched. "I'll come by your shop often from now on."

"Sure. It's just so nice to see you. You're a big name now, you know. People have even asked me to use you as a living signboard. How awesome am I? You grew up eating the breakfast I make!" The owner's wife said this with some pride.

Jiang Muye's eyes felt warm. "Use me however you like. I don't mind."

"No, that won't do. How can I use your fame? Me, I just want you to be well, and to get a box of wedding candy to eat when the time comes." The owner's wife smiled.

An image from the past surfaced in her mind.

A still-inexperienced Jiang Muye, carrying an orange backpack, sitting down in her shop.

His skin a little dark, but his eyes big, and he looked great when he smiled.

A clean-cut young fellow, witty and humorous when he spoke.

A bowl of fresh soy milk, or a bowl of richly flavorful douhua, and a shaobing wrapped around a fried dough stick. Whether a savory shaobing or a sweet one, he ate with gusto.

Every summer vacation, he went from a little squirt to a tall young man.

His skin grew fairer, and he grew even more handsome.

At first he ate in her shop alone. Later, because he came, customers increased.

Mostly, of course, it was the schoolgirls nursing their first crush on him, all sitting behind him, secretly stealing glances.

Yet he paid them no attention at all.

As the days went by, the owner's wife never once saw him bring a girl in by the hand.

She muttered to herself: Was he maybe going to become a monk, or was he about to be turned?

So many girls secretly crushed on him—couldn't he reel in even one?

Share this chapter — you've just read up to here

1/1

Autumn Moon Kōzō Never Gets Hurt (serialized)

Buddhist Giant, Starting from Childish Kung Fu (serialized)

I Told You to Idle, and You Became Emperor (serialized)

Anime Multiverse: The Chaos Pearl Leads Me to the Peak (serialized)

I Drink Magic Potions in Mysterious Revival (serialized)

I'm a Human-Shaped Pokémon, I Won't Be a Pokémon Master! (serialized)

Starting from Under One Person, Sincerely Facing the Multiverse (serialized)

LoL: After Being Blessed by the Happy Demon, I Became the Harem King (serialized)

A Normal-Sense-Me Person Isn't Suited for Fanfic RPG (completed)

I'm in the Anime Multiverse: Opening with a Tossed Rem (serialized)

Anime Multiverse: Saving the Heartaching Second Male Leads (serialized)

This Isn't a Soulslike Game at All (serialized)

One Piece: My Crew Is 3D Zone Heroines (serialized)

Investiture of the Gods: Opening with a Phoenix Clone (serialized)

Chat Group: My Group Members Are All in the Villain Camp (completed)