Setting Up Stalls – Chapter 246

Passed the Test

You should absolutely never provoke hatred lightly, and even more so, never gloat over others’ misfortune. Otherwise, you’ll end up like Father Su, lifting a rock only to drop it on your own foot.¹

Shen Yiqiu looked at Father Su. “That’s right, you used to like eating these as much as Xixi did. I haven’t made them since Xixi was gone for so long. It’s a rare occasion, so you should have some too.”

Su Ruixi played her assassin’s mace². She directly extended her chopsticks and picked up a piece of spare rib. As the rib was lifted, there was a sense of pulling silk threads³… that was the white sugar Shen Yiqiu had sprinkled on, playing a crucial role.

With Shen Yiqiu right there, Father Su had no way to refuse. He could only watch with wide eyes as the spare rib landed in his bowl.

Sun Miao also moved her chopsticks. With a bit of cunning, she picked up a spare rib while simultaneously removing the two sprigs of cilantro. Su Ruixi truly couldn’t stand cilantro, and Sun Miao knew her well, which was why she was being so proactive.

Just as Sun Miao had thought, seeing the cilantro leaves being taken away by her, Su Ruixi, who was beside her, relaxed a little. After that, Su Ruixi still didn’t grab a spare rib for herself. Instead, she used her chopsticks to pick up the diced bamboo shoot, shiitake mushroom, and pork bun from her bowl, taking a bite first to get it over with.

That one bite was nearly half the bun. After sufficiently steeling herself, Su Ruixi finally extended her chopsticks and picked up a piece of spare rib.

Beside her, however, Sun Miao had already finished a piece.

The moment it entered her mouth, how should she put it… because the flavor was so complex, Sun Miao couldn’t tell if it was good or bad for a moment. But after a few more bites, she discovered—it was truly not good.

It wasn’t that it was so disgusting it could kill a person, just that it wasn’t right. For one, the flavor was too complex, and for another, the spare ribs were a bit too tough. There was also some fried garlic paste that had turned bitter, which brought the entire dish’s flavor down several notches.

Generally speaking, it’s hard to make salt and pepper spare ribs taste bad. What’s more, Shen Yiqiu had been generous with the oil. Even a simplified air-fryer version shouldn’t have been bad. But this was the result of Shen Yiqiu’s own improvisation.

It couldn’t be said to be so bad that it angered both men and gods, but if she had a choice, Sun Miao wouldn’t eat this.

She expressionlessly crunched her way through one piece of rib, her calm and composed appearance making Su Ruixi think that her mom’s cooking wasn’t so bad today. But as it turned out, after eating one piece herself, she immediately polished off the rest of her bun.

Father Su was not much different from her. He reached out, grabbed a bun, and brought it back. At that moment, Father Su also noticed Su Ruixi’s little scheme—she did it on purpose, didn’t she? Placing the buns so close to herself and so far from him.

After taking a bun, Father Su began to gnaw on it directly. To be honest, what Sun Miao made and what Shen Yiqiu made were completely different flavors. Father Su had no idea how Sun Miao could make things so delicious; every single snack she made was so good it touched the bottom of his heart.

The steamed bun was large, soft, white, and plump, looking a little cute. When he held it, he could feel some warmth, but it was still holdable. Father Su didn’t eat it in a hurry. Instead, like Su Ruixi, he first tore it open with his hands.

Su Ruixi saw this and couldn’t help but mutter “copycat spirit”⁴ in her heart.

Father Su, however, didn’t care. He carefully observed the bun. He used just the right amount of force, and the bun split into two halves right before his eyes. Once the bun was broken open, the steam and fragrance trapped inside immediately rushed out.

Both diced bamboo shoots and shiitake mushrooms are extremely savory ingredients. Even if dried ones were used, when that wave of aroma hit his face, it made one’s mouth water uncontrollably. Right now, Father Su felt as if his mouth was no longer under his command, having gathered a lot of saliva.

This forced Father Su to swallow before he could continue to stabilize his Dao heart⁵ and inspect the bun. To be honest, this bun was simply too tempting. The moment it was torn open, the filling didn’t all spill out but remained neatly on the torn bun skin.

He could see the glistening, oily diced bamboo shoots, diced shiitake mushrooms, and diced pork, so harmonious, mixed together, as if silently saying to him: What, you don’t want to eat me? Don’t lie, you’re dying to.

Even Father Su was powerless to resist. He really did want to eat it.

Especially that wisp of fragrance, which was constantly drilling into his nose. Father Su gritted his teeth, opened his mouth, and stuffed half of it inside. His mouth was truly huge; he could finish half a bun in one bite. And Sun Miao hadn’t made small buns, either; they were standard-sized, yet Father Su could still eat half in one go.

After stuffing it into his mouth, Father Su closed his lips. He let the bun burn, as if it were fighting in his mouth, but he couldn’t bear to open his mouth, afraid the aroma would escape. As for the taste, that went without saying—nothing Sun Miao made was ever bad.

Moreover, this half of the bun completely washed away the unpleasant feeling left over from the salt and pepper spare ribs, leaving Father Su unable to think of anything but the bun before him.

The other half quickly entered Father Su’s mouth as well. He ate too fast, and since it was a bun, after all, he ended up choking a little. Shen Yiqiu was sitting right next to him, and seeing him like this, she wore an expression as if she couldn’t bear to look.

But in front of Sun Miao and Su Ruixi, she couldn’t be too heartless, so she could only hand Father Su a glass of water. “Don’t be in such a hurry. What are you eating so fast for? It’s not like anyone’s going to fight you for it.”

How could there be no one to fight him for it? Wasn’t Su Ruixi on the other side, glaring like a tiger watching its prey⁶ at the buns?

Father Su had just taken a sip of water and swallowed the bun when he heard Su Ruixi’s ill-intentioned question: “Dad, how’s the bun? Is it good?”

“…” This question was equivalent to placing Father Su over a fire to roast⁷, especially with Sun Miao still present. If he answered that it was good, wouldn’t that mean he had no dignity at all in front of Sun Miao? In the future, in the future, how could he put on a stern face and lecture her, telling her to treat his daughter well?

From the day Su Ruixi was born, Father Su had been imagining how he would give his future son-in-law a hard time, determined that his daughter would not suffer the slightest grievance. But when he looked up, he saw Sun Miao’s sparkling eyes.

She was just a young girl, even younger than Su Ruixi, her eyes full of starlight, as if she were greatly anticipating his answer.

—No! A young girl like this has completely overturned all the scenarios I once imagined!

Father Su was genuinely angry.

But after his anger subsided, he couldn’t say “it’s not good.” If he did, this daughter of his, whose elbow bends outwards⁸, would sneer and ask him: “Oh, not good, huh? If it’s not good, why were you eating it so eagerly you even choked on it?”

Father Su knew exactly how his daughter would react. He could only grit his teeth and force out three words: “It’s alright.”

This reaction, how to put it, Sun Miao truly felt it was familiar. Her Susu-jie was just like this. Sun Miao was used to this family’s aojiao⁹ nature. She maintained her heart-warming little sun smile and directly equated Father Su’s “It’s alright” with “It’s delicious.”

“I’m glad it suits Uncle’s palate.”

“…” I never said it was delicious!

In this confrontation, Father Su was utterly defeated.

After dinner, they sat in the living room for a while. Father Su brewed some tea, intending to have Sun Miao drink it and, while they were at it, give her a good talking-to. But Su Ruixi, truly living up to her father’s assessment of her “elbow bending outwards,” directly swapped the tea for orange juice. “Drinking my mom’s freshly squeezed orange juice is fine. Miaomiao doesn’t like tea.”

With Su Ruixi and Shen Yiqiu escorting and protecting her¹⁰, Sun Miao faced almost no pressure from Father Su. On the contrary, she felt that Father Su’s temper was much better at home than it was outside.

Just as she was getting drowsy and about to leave with Su Ruixi, Father Su finally put on the airs of a stern father. “Little girl, you listen clearly. Our family’s Xixi has never suffered any hardship since she was little, and she’s certainly never suffered the hardships of love. If you don’t treat her well, I…”

Before he could finish his threat, Su Ruixi pulled Sun Miao along. “Alright, we’re leaving. We’ll come see you again.”

After the two left, Shen Yiqiu glanced at Father Su and dealt another blow: “All you do all day is say things the kids don’t want to hear. Can’t you see between Xixi and little Sun who takes the lead in their lives? Besides, I think little Sun is taking very good care of Xixi.”

After saying this, Shen Yiqiu also went into the house, leaving Father Su alone, disheveled in the wind.¹¹

On the way back, Sun Miao still felt it was a bit unreal. It seemed like she hadn’t done anything at all, yet she had passed the Su parents’ test. She sat in the passenger seat, somewhat dazed. It wasn’t until they stopped at a red light that she asked Su Ruixi beside her, “Susu-jie, did I… did I pass the test?”

Su Ruixi’s hands were on the steering wheel. Hearing her words, she turned to look at her. “What’s there to pass or not pass? I just brought you to meet my parents and get to know the place. You’re the one who takes them too seriously. Even if they didn’t like you, what could they do?”

It was still afternoon when they headed back. The Sunday roads were a bit congested, and they couldn’t get through the red light ahead on the first try. Su Ruixi’s car moved slowly forward in the traffic jam. But Su Ruixi’s words made Sun Miao’s heart feel like it was going eighty miles per hour.

“The most important thing is that we like each other. Besides that, no one else gets to say this or that.”

Su Ruixi was truly worthy of being a domineering president; the words she spoke were exceptionally bold.

Her next sentence was delivered with resounding force: “It’s best if they agree. If they don’t, I’ll elope with you!”

Sun Miao started laughing. “Where would we elope to?”

“Anywhere is fine. As long as I’m with you, anywhere will do.”

For an aojiao person to make such a moving confession was truly heart-fluttering. Sun Miao couldn’t hold back; she turned her head away and laughed for a good while. Just then, the playlist landed on a song she loved, and Sun Miao started humming a few lines.

The car was connected to Su Ruixi’s phone. Hearing Sun Miao sing, Su Ruixi was also surprised. “You’ve only been here for such a short time since you crossed over¹², and you already know how to sing the songs from here?”

“Mhm, Susu-jie, you play them so often, how could I not learn?”

The road back was still very congested. A one-kilometer stretch of road took a full ten minutes to drive, but with Sun Miao singing beside her, Su Ruixi also hummed along a few times. This particularly traffic-jammed road didn’t seem so boring anymore. Instead, it made Su Ruixi start to look forward to what song would play next.

In short, the day of visiting Su Ruixi’s parents ended just like that.

---

---