Chapter 693: Dealt With

Editor: Atlas Studios

Mu Yangling was making a dish of braised lion’s head. From kneading the flour to mincing the meat, she handled the entire process all by herself. It could be considered a grand dish that was time-consuming to make. She didn’t want to go through so much trouble, but the father and son kept sleeping. Mu Yangling wanted to wake them up, but when she saw how tired Qi Haoran looked, she couldn’t bear to wake them up. Now that she had some time to spare, it would seem like the dishes she had prepared previously weren’t good enough.

Thus, Mu Yangling rolled up her sleeves and personally made a braised lion’s head. Aside from braised pork, this was her other signature dish.

When Mu Yangling carried the large plate in, Qi Haoran sniffed and said, “Braised lion’s head? Did you make it for me or that kid?”

Qi Haoran loved braised pork the most, while Little Bear loved braised lion’s head.

“You’re already so old, yet you’re still jealous of a child? This dish took me a lot of effort. Try it.”

Seeing that he was sitting there without moving, Mu Yangling personally picked up a piece for him and brought it to his mouth. Qi Haoran took a bite lazily and was slightly surprised. “You made the braised lion’s head too?”

In the past, she despised the process of kneading dough, mincing the meat, kneading it together, steaming it, and braising it. During this period, she also had to wait for the dishes to cool down for a period of time, so she had always braised a semi-ready made version.

Mu Yangling proudly said with a smile, “My culinary skills have improved, right?”

Qi Haoran nodded slightly. “I can tell. In the past, even if the braised lion’s head wasn’t braised using the right level of heat, I could tell that it was authentic. Now, it’s completely to your and Little Bear’s taste. One mouthful and I know that it wasn’t made by a bonafide chef.”

Mu Yangling’s face darkened. “Are you saying that I don’t cook well?”

Qi Haoran shook his head and said, “Although this lion head is not authentic, it suits my taste.”

Only then was Mu Yangling satisfied. Spring had already brought people to serve the dishes. After scooping a bowl of rice for the two of them, she left with the servants.

The Prince and the Princess Consort didn’t like having servants around when they interacted, so the servants cleared the room while they were eating, giving them personal space.

Mu Yangling turned to look at the bed and saw a small bulge on it. With some hesitation, she said, “Should we wake him up? We shouldn’t let him skip dinner, right?”

Qi Haoran said nonchalantly, “He’ll eat when he wakes up. As a prince, he can eat dinner at any time. Could it be that the kitchen dares to refuse?”

“You’re spoiling the child too much. Be careful not to turn him into a silkpants in the future.”

“Will my child become a silkpants?” Perhaps because he had eaten too much in the afternoon, Qi Haoran did not eat much. He only tasted a bit of every dish before staring at Mu Yangling in a daze.

Seeing that he was not as noisy as before, Mu Yangling touched his forehead and said, “Are you too tired?”

Qi Haoran grabbed her hand and shook his head. “No, I’m just a tad dazed from sleeping too much this afternoon. Get someone to remove the food. Let’s talk.”

As soon as the couple lay down on the bed, Qi Haoran’s hand started to become naughty. With a slight tug, his hand reached into Mu Yangling’s clothes and rubbed underneath it. Blushing, Mu Yangling glanced at the outer room nervously. In a lowered voice, she said, “The child is still outside.”

“That child is sleeping like a pig. He won’t wake up.” Qi Haoran rolled over and pressed her down. As he sucked on her earlobe, he said vaguely, “Don’t you miss me?”

Mu Yangling tilted her head slightly. “Didn’t you say that you have something to say to me?”

“Yes, I want to have another child with you. It’s best if it’s a daughter. Little Bear will grow up once he becomes an older brother. Perhaps then he’ll learn to speak faster.”

Mu Yangling stopped dodging and took the initiative to meet Qi Haoran’s actions. Overjoyed, Qi Haoran pulled down the curtain and pressed himself against Mu Yangling.

Little Bear woke up in the middle of the night. When he woke up and realized that this was not his bed, he cried twice. Qi Haoran quickly put Ah Ling aside quietly and hurriedly put on his clothes before running out. Seeing this upon jogging in, Spring hurriedly lowered her head and retreated.

Qi Haoran only looked up at her indifferently before turning to look at his son. A smile appeared on his face as he hugged him in his arms and coaxed softly, “Why are you crying? Isn’t Daddy here?”

Little Bear looked at him for a while before recognizing that he was his father. He obediently leaned in his arms.

“Are you hungry?”

Little Bear nodded slightly and looked at him with his wet eyes.

Qi Haoran stroked his ear and turned around to instruct the servants to prepare some food.

In the past, Little Bear had a big appetite and would often wake up in the middle of the night to look for food. Mu Yangling would get someone to make him some chicken soup noodles, coupled with two eggs and a handful of vegetables, making for a nutritious and balanced meal. Upon receiving the instructions, the kitchen whipped up a bowl of noodles for Little Bear as usual.

As Qi Haoran watched, his expression instantly darkened. He did not know that Mu Yangling usually ordered for this and only felt that the kitchen had neglected his son. One had to know that he and Zijin were pampered ever since they were young. No matter how dissatisfied the kitchen was, they had to make three dishes and a soup for the two brothers in the middle of the night. Could it be that his General’s Residence could not compare to a fourth-grade imperial censor’s residence?

Furthermore, Little Bear was his only son. If the kitchen dared to be so negligent even now, how much would Little Bear be neglected in the future when there were more children in the residence?

Spring held the bowl and trembled in fear under Qi Haoran’s gloomy gaze while Little Bear anxiously reached out to grab the bowl. With his eyes lowered, Qi Haoran didn’t say anything and only took the noodles before waving for them to leave.

Little Bear was very satisfied with the noodles. After gulping down the large bowl of noodles, he immediately held his stomach in satisfaction and let out an exhale.

Qi Haoran’s originally gloomy expression softened a little. He held his little hand and walked around the house to help Little Bear digest his food. Since it was late at night after all, under the effect of his biological clock, Little Bear quickly fell asleep again. Thus, Qi Haoran carried his son back to the inner room and the family of three lay down to sleep together.

Throughout this entire time, Mu Yangling slept soundly and showed no signs of waking up.

Qi Haoran placed his son outside and laid down in the middle. Seeing Mu Yangling’s brows furrowed, he kissed her face, after which she turned over and fell asleep again.

When she woke up the next day, Qi Haoran was running in with Little Bear in a short outfit. Giggling, Little Bear grabbed his father’s hair tightly with his two small hands as he sat around his neck and looked down at his mother.

Little Bear used his fingers to tickle Mu Yangling’s face to tease her. Then, the father and son ran out laughing.

“Brat, how dare you tease me.” Looking outside, Mu Yangling saw that the sun was shining all over the courtyard and realized that it was already very late.

When Mu Yangling got out of bed with a red face, the father and son were already waiting for her at the dining table. Mu Yangling felt slightly guilty. “You haven’t had breakfast yet?”

The father and son shook their heads together. Little Bear’s giggle, however, made Mu Yangling sense that something was wrong. As expected, Qi Haoran then laughed and said, “We’ve already eaten. We’re just here to see you eat.”

Mu Yangling was speechless. “What’s there to see?”

Qi Haoran smiled but didn’t say anything. Mu Yangling could only eat breakfast under the gaze of the father and son. After breakfast, she found out that Qi Haoran had flown into a rage in the morning and punished everyone in the kitchen. From the head chef to the vegetable washer, everyone who worked in the kitchen had been ordered to be tied up by the servants.

Zhu Liang could only beg Mu Yangling. Even if he wanted to replace the people in the kitchen, it was impossible for him to replace everyone. He could not find so many people at once. Moreover, he felt that the people in the kitchen were quite wronged.

Chapter end