Chapter 2 — Manh Nuong Tu's Restaurant

"What if I don't go? You have no shame, but my lady still has face!"

Thieu Khanh Vien's face turned pale. Five fingers clenched in the sleeve, clenched for a long time, then relaxed like a lost soul.

“…Manh Dao, you want to marry me, I also marry you because of my grandmother's will. What else are you dissatisfied with?”

"Why don't you know that things in life cannot be wished for?"

【That year, the male supporting character was originally going to ask for marriage, but the old lady didn't let him. I feel so sorry for the male supporting character who missed the female main character, I cried to death...】 【But at that time, the male and female main characters were deeply in love with each other. If the male supporting character asked for a marriage, how would he be able to reciprocate?】 【I don't understand why at the end of the story the male supporting character had to marry the female supporting side, wouldn't that humiliate the supporting female side?】 【But the male supporting child is so pitiful, he doesn't understand why at the end of the story he let the male supporting side marry the female supporting side, isn't that humiliating the supporting female side?】 【But the male supporting child is so pitiful, he doesn't know why. If there is a female lead, at least there should be someone who truly loves him!】 【That's right, in the end the male father will have a child with the female lead and live a life with her, it doesn't count as wronging her.】 Doesn't that count as wronging me? I watched the words fly before my eyes. I almost burst out laughing. It turns out that three long years of me tossing and turning in the coldness of Thieu Khanh Vien, Falling into someone else's mouth, can only be summed up in five words as light as a feather: "giving birth to children and living forever". Then— Because of the ending of "giving birth to a child and living forever" in their mouths, how many more years do I have to pray for, how much suffering do I have to endure? I pulled out a handkerchief from my bosom. Carefully wipe away the remaining traces of fever at the corners of your mouth. Arbitrarily threw on the ground the handkerchief that had been meticulously embroidered for three months, originally intended to be given to him tonight.

"Thieu Qingyuan, what you said is very true. Things in this life cannot be asked for."

"I don't want to ask anymore. I want—to break up."

3

On the night of the Upper Plains, there are no restrictions. Ha Huong and I carried heavy luggage, quietly walking at the beginning of the street and the end of the alley. The lantern festival has dissipated with the morning stars. A prosperous night, in the end only ashes remained. When I walked out of the big gate of the Thieu family, Thieu Khanh Vien had never left the study room. Only when writing the divorce paper did he pause for a moment. Holding the pen hovering over the paper, he asked me: "Dao Nuong, have you really thought it through?" Seeing me nod without hesitation, he just sighed softly, shaking his head and complaining softly.

"That's okay. Her personality is like that, so she should experience some suffering."

“Wait until you've made enough trouble and figure out where you went wrong, then come back and admit your mistakes to me.”

After finishing speaking, he did not hesitate any longer and finished writing with one stroke of his pen. But I won't go back, and I won't admit my mistakes anymore. Marrying into the Thieu family for three years, the suffering I endured was more than the previous ten years combined. But Thieu Khanh Vien tightly closed the study door. I also swallowed all the words I wanted to explain. Turn around and turn in the opposite direction. Go to the pawn shop, bring the jade pendant he gave me when we got engaged and sell it as a pawn. Happily taking that money, I rented a small storefront to settle down. There's not much silver, and the shop is small. In the winding green stone alley, fluttering dining flags hang. Manh Nuong Tu's restaurant opened just like that. On the opening day, neighbors came to support it in large numbers. The old lady next door couldn't understand, so she blurted out and asked:

“Miss Manh, when you're at peace, you don't want to be the official's wife, so why are you willing to be a dirty female chef? ash?"

There was another gentleman dressed in brocade, handsome but hesitant and hesitant to ask:

“Is it true that Thieu Thieu Khanh mistreats Lady Manh?”

I just pursed my lips slightly and smiled.

“Because, I love cooking.”

4

Since childhood, I have loved eating and drinking. One year old learning to speak. Other people's children call them "father" and "nanny", but I clearly blurt out: "Cake!" Two years old learning to walk. When others fall, they cry loudly. We just need to take a spoonful of shredded chicken porridge to forget all our sadness. When I was six years old, I started learning to read and write, my parents asked me what I wanted to learn. The sisters in the family all chose to play chess, calligraphy, and painting, but I tightly hugged the chef who was best at making salty dishes, not letting go until death. Later, both my parents passed away, and my maternal grandmother took me in to raise me. He then wrote a letter to his old soulmate, who had married into the capital, and because of me, he decided to become friends with the Thieu family. Like every other noble lady, I was filled with hope. I just hope that my husband and I will be as respectful as new, with a deep understanding. But after getting married, no matter how hard I tried, Thieu Khanh Vien was always indifferent towards me. I love cooking, and I love the people who eat what I cook even more. But Thieu Khanh Vien doesn't love any of them. He said, gentlemen should stay away from the kitchen. He criticized the smell of the kitchen and the smelly meat. No matter how many times I showered, he still said that I smelled of oil smoke and didn't want to be with me. I carefully cooked many dishes for him, but he criticized them as not being to his taste. I always think it's because I'm not good enough. That's why he doesn't like me. Now I understand— Thieu Khanh Vien doesn't hate the kitchen, nor does he hate oil smoke. He hates me. Hating me took the position of the wife he craved, hating me made it impossible for him to marry the person in his heart. Now, the person he hated had finally left. I sat on the newly made wooden chair in my restaurant, chewing the soft, fatty braised pork leg and thinking. Thieu Khanh Vien must be very happy, right?

5

Whether Thieu Khanh Vien is happy or not, put it aside for now. I only know that the Thieu family's chef is extremely unhappy.

“Lang Quan! When will the lady come back?

“Yesterday the lady left the palace, taking all the kitchen utensils with her, now the servants cannot light the stove to cook.”

In the study room, Thieu Khanh Vien was holding a cardboard book in his hand.