Wei Xingzhou wanted to come in, but stopped at the doorway.
Wei Xingzhou stood by the door pitifully, looking at Cui Cui.
Si Si watched Wei Xingzhou, always staying close to him, afraid to get too near, yet unwilling to leave. She wanted to be with her dad too.
Dad...
Si Si had seen videos of her dad livestreaming with Cui Cui in Lu Wanqing's channel. Her dad was so good to Cui Cui; she wished her dad would dote on her as much as he did on Cui Cui.
Lu Wanqing saw Wei Xingzhou and the child following behind him. Seeing the child timidly and yearningly staying by Wei Xingzhou's side, her heart was complicated.
On one hand, she didn't want Cui Cui's feelings to be hurt.
On the other hand, she knew the child was innocent. If anyone was to blame, it was the adults.
But...
People were biased, weren't they? When it came to other people's children versus her own, she naturally felt more for her own.
Lu Wanqing bent down and kissed Cui Cui, saying nothing for the child outside.
Cui Cui cried for a long time and finally quieted down. When she looked up, her eyes were still red.
Cui Cui seemed to sense something. As she turned around, she saw Wei Xingzhou standing at the door, and the girl behind him.
Cui Cui's face was cold, and she said nothing.
Lu Wanqing rubbed Cui Cui's head and smiled, "Let's continue cooking."
Cui Cui looked at her mommy and nodded, "Okay."
Lu Wanqing thought for a moment, took out a bag of fruit from the grocery bag, washed one, and handed it to Cui Cui. "You eat some fruit to tide you over, dinner will take a while."
Cui Cui hugged the apple her mommy gave her and nodded.
Lu Wanqing kissed Cui Cui, then stood up and said, "Mommy will go cook now. Cui Cui, stay nearby and keep mommy company, okay?"
"Okay," Cui Cui agreed.
Wei Xingzhou stood at the door, neither entering nor leaving.
Cui Cui, holding the washed apple, took a light bite. She glanced at Wei Xingzhou and the girl at the door, then quickly shifted her gaze away, not looking at them.
Lu Wanqing occasionally looked at the children, then continued rinsing rice and cooking.
With the rice in the pot, the remaining task was to prepare the dishes.
Lu Wanqing looked at the ingredients she had bought. After a brief mental sketch, she came up with several dishes.
Corn and Chicken Wing Stew.
Braised Prawns in Oil.
Diced Chicken with Double Peppers.
Shredded Pork with Garlic Sauce.
And finally, a bowl of Winter Melon and Corn Soup.
Since Cui Cui was in a bad mood, Lu Wanqing wanted to make more dishes so the child would be happier eating.
Cui Cui munched on her apple, and before she knew it, she was by her mommy's side, watching her cook with curiosity.
Cui Cui was quiet and subdued, not saying anything until the apple was finished.
Lu Wanqing finished the Braised Prawns in Oil first. A plate full of prawns, looking very appetizing.
"So fragrant," Cui Cui said earnestly, looking at the freshly cooked prawns on the stove.
Lu Wanqing nodded, but then she looked at the prawns on the plate and suddenly remembered something. She recalled that when she visited other children's homes, she often went grocery shopping, but she didn't seem to have seen shrimp before?
She had ordered groceries with Cui Cui earlier, and in her concern for the child, she hadn't thought much of it. Now she suddenly remembered that crayfish had been treated as insects by everyone before.
Although these weren't crayfish, they were still shrimp!
"Why are there shrimp for sale now?" Lu Wanqing mused aloud.
Cui Cui pursed her lips and explained, "Because Mommy said crayfish were delicious, and Marshal Zhong Li also said that most crayfish aren't very aggressive and don't harm people. The Academy of Sciences has also investigated and researched them, and they said that in ancient Earth times, shrimp were one of humans' favorite delicacies."
"Wow," Lu Wanqing's eyes lit up, and she feigned excitement, looking at Cui Cui, "Cui Cui knows so much."
Cui Cui pursed her lips, suddenly feeling less sad because of her mommy.
"The Academy of Sciences researched and said that these common shrimp can be eaten. So, the Federal Academy of Sciences partnered with the Federal Military Region. Soldiers would bring back some non-harmful but edible insectoids from the front lines. The Federal Academy of Sciences would be responsible for testing them, and once it was confirmed that these small insectoids were harmless to humans and could be made into delicacies, they would be put on the market for small-scale sales," Cui Cui added.
"But only a very small number can be purchased, and only by people with professional qualifications. Ordinary people are not eligible to buy them," Cui Cui continued to explain.
Buying these required professional qualifications?
Lu Wanqing had never heard of this before. She asked, "Why?"
Cui Cui explained, "Because no matter how small they are, they are still insectoids. If ordinary people buy them and don't process them in time, or release them, they could undergo secondary gene mutation and have a very small chance of becoming insectoids harmful to humans."
"Wow, so that's how it is," Lu Wanqing pretended to be enlightened and nodded quickly.
Lu Wanqing then picked up a prawn and offered it to Cui Cui, "Cui Cui, would you like to try one first?"
Little Cui Cui hugged her small bowl and nodded, "Mhm."
Lu Wanqing smiled, looking at the obedient Cui Cui, then turned back to continue cooking other dishes.
The Corn and Chicken Wing Stew was a bit complicated. She thought for a moment, then began preparing the seasonings, the most important part being the seasoning packet.
On ancient Earth, she had made this dish before, but back then there were ready-made seasoning packets. Now she had to make all the seasonings herself.
It was a bit difficult.
But Lu Wanqing knew how to do it.
Lu Wanqing spent some time preparing the seasonings, then took out the thawed chicken wings and began to cook.
"Grumble grumble."
Just then, a rumbling stomach sound came from the doorway.
Cui Cui acutely heard the sound. Her dad had come back with them, and hadn't eaten anything since returning. They were all hungry.
Cui Cui ate the fragrant shrimp, trying hard not to look at Wei Xingzhou.
"Grumble grumble..." Wei Xingzhou's stomach growled again.
Cui Cui turned her head away and continued eating shrimp. After finishing the first one, she picked up a second from the plate and continued eating.
When she was eating the fifth one, Cui Cui couldn't help herself. She cautiously picked up a small prawn from the plate and turned to look at Wei Xingzhou at the door.
Si Si, seeing Cui Cui look over, instantly became nervous and carefully moved a little closer to her dad.
Cui Cui's face turned cold again, displeased.
Wei Xingzhou knew his beloved daughter was upset. He hesitated for a moment, then finally turned around, quietly facing his back to the kitchen. He wasn't intentionally trying to appear pitiful in front of Cui Cui, but... he was truly afraid that if he left, Cui Cui wouldn't speak to him tomorrow.