Lin Shuwen quietly lifted her head. Luo Ming was still busy “battling” with the eggplant strips! He hadn’t noticed her little moment.
She let out a sigh of relief. She looked down at the chopsticks in her hand—and realized she didn’t actually mind it all that much.
“No, no way! Lin Shuwen, what are you even thinking about!”
Clatter~ Lin Shuwen deliberately dropped her chopsticks on the floor.
“Oh no! I dropped my chopsticks. I’ll go grab a fresh pair.”
With that, she darted into the kitchen.
Luo Ming watched her retreating figure, then glanced down at the chopsticks on the floor. A hint of a smile tugged at the corner of his eyes—who said he hadn’t noticed?
Lin Shuwen’s face had turned as red as an apple. Anyone with working eyes would have spotted that.
Luo Ming just wisely chose not to say anything.
He picked up another strip of eggplant and popped it into his mouth. This fish-fragrant eggplant clay pot was truly delicious—it was like saltiness, spiciness, sourness, sweetness, and all sorts of other flavors had been blended into one cohesive whole, thoroughly intertwined. His tongue could detect and savor each individual flavor, yet he couldn’t single any one of them out. They had fused together into a layered, uniquely complex taste that kept you coming back for more.
Wasn’t that just like the tangled web of emotions he and Lin Shuwen had experienced ever since they started swapping bodies?
When they first swapped, Luo Ming had been utterly bewildered and lost.
Then came Lin Shuwen’s phone call. She seemed to accept their situation almost immediately, calmly proposing they cooperate. That steadying presence gradually eased Luo Ming’s anxious heart.
The first time he stepped onto a stage, singing in front of so many people and soaking in the crowd’s cheers, it gave Luo Ming a completely novel thrill.
After a few days of swapping, both of them had grown familiar with each other’s lives. By then, Luo Ming found himself constantly complaining about Lin Shuwen’s lifestyle—a big-shot celebrity who did nothing but eat rabbit food and run laps all day.
The second time he swapped over, he even ran into her period and suffered through two full days of cramps.
But the trip to Beijing gave Luo Ming a sense of accomplishment he’d never felt before—appearing on a variety show alongside academic heavyweights, helping CCTV and Lin Shuyue strategize, and bringing National Treasure to life ahead of schedule.
All these shifting emotions were just like the fish-fragrant eggplant clay pot Lin Shuwen had made—a little bit of everything.
And coincidentally, just as the flavors in the fish-fragrant eggplant clay pot came together perfectly because of Lin Shuwen the chef, Luo Ming was able to fully embrace all those emotions because of Lin Shuwen herself.
While Luo Ming was lost in his thoughts, Lin Shuwen had already come back out from the kitchen.
Her face didn’t look quite as flushed anymore—clearly she’d composed herself.
Neither of them brought up what had just happened, choosing instead to focus on enjoying the meal.
It was obvious that Lin Shuwen really wanted to eat some meat, but she only sampled one slice of the Guo You Rou and didn’t touch the ground pork with glass noodles at all. She quietly stuck to the scallion tofu salad and the stir-fried cabbage.
When the craving got too strong, she’d just dip her chopsticks into the fish-fragrant eggplant sauce.
The sight made Luo Ming’s heart ache a little.
“What are you staring at! Hurry up and eat. And after you’re done, do the dishes. If you keep looking at me like that, I’ll just get even hungrier!” Lin Shuwen snapped, though there was no real bite in her tone.
Luo Ming nodded, picked up his bowl, and polished off the Guo You Rou and the fish-fragrant eggplant in record time. He managed about half the ground pork with glass noodles before he couldn’t eat another bite.
Lin Shuwen picked up the plate and dumped the leftover noodles into her own bowl, savoring every mouthful with a blissful expression.
After finishing, she put on a stern face and said, “Every grain on the plate represents hard work. Even if all my yoga today goes down the drain, I can’t waste food.”
“Yeah, yeah, totally!”
“Totally nothing! Go do the dishes!”
Luo Ming chuckled, gathered up the bowls and chopsticks, and headed to the kitchen.
Halfway through washing up, Lin Shuwen walked in holding an apple. She leaned against the cabinet, looking for all the world like she was supervising his dishwashing.
Crunch~ Lin Shuwen took a big bite. Mmm, nice and crisp.
“Luo Ming, how come you never ride the electric scooter? Every time I come back, it’s in the exact same spot as when I left.” She asked curiously.
There was clearly a mode of transport in the house—okay, it was an e-scooter, but still! Surely it beat walking everywhere on two legs?
“What electric scooter? I don’t know what you’re talking about!”
“Don’t play dumb! I know you’ve seen the keys on the coffee table.”
“Uh… those are keys to an electric scooter?” Luo Ming’s eyes darted away.
“Wait a second! You don’t know how to ride an electric scooter, do you?”
“Wh-who says I don’t!”
“Really?”
“Really!”
“Then after you’re done washing up, let’s go for a ride.”
“Huh?”
“Huh what!”
“No, I mean, I’m worried you might get photographed. You’re such a huge star—if someone snaps a picture of you with some random guy, wouldn’t that make headlines?”
“What time is it now?” Lin Shuwen asked.
“8:15.”
“It’s already completely dark out at 8:15. What’s there to be afraid of? Or… do you actually not know how to ride an e-scooter?”
With the conversation having gone this far, Luo Ming had no choice but to admit defeat. “Fine. You got me. I really don’t know how to ride one. I can’t even ride a bicycle.”
“Pfft—hahaha!” Lin Shuwen burst out laughing.
She never would have guessed that the seemingly all-capable Luo Ming—the guy who could write songs, produce variety shows, design games, and understand big data—couldn’t ride a bike.
Luo Ming’s inability to ride came from childhood trauma. When he was about five or six, he’d bumped his head while learning to ride and ended up with six stitches. Ever since then, he’d had a psychological block about learning, which was why he’d never managed to pick it up.
After she’d laughed her fill, Lin Shuwen pressed on: “Luo Ming, hurry up and finish. After you’re done, we’re going out!”
“Huh? But I already admitted I don’t know how to ride!”
“Exactly because you don’t know how—I bet you’d love to find out what it feels like, right?”
Luo Ming shook his head like a rattle-drum and flatly refused: “Nope. I don’t want to find out.”
“No way. Just say you want to!” Lin Shuwen puffed out her cheeks, her tone carrying a hint of playful menace.
Luo Ming sighed inwardly and thought, Well, I did eat her cooking. Guess I owe her one.
So he played along: “Fine, fine. I want to.”
Upon hearing his answer, Lin Shuwen nodded seriously and declared: “Luo Ming, I’m going to make sure you experience what it’s like to ride an electric scooter.”
After Luo Ming finished the dishes, he changed and headed downstairs with Lin Shuwen.
She then wheeled out the electric scooter parked in the basement.
At the building entrance, Lin Shuwen hopped on the scooter first, then gestured with her eyes for Luo Ming to get on behind her. He asked in disbelief: “Are you sure… you can handle carrying me?”
“I’m positive! Hurry up and get on! I’ll take you for a spin!”
Luo Ming couldn’t back out now. He steeled himself and climbed on. Lin Shuwen twisted the throttle and slowly rolled forward, the gentle breeze brushing against her face continuously.
Luo Ming, who had never ridden an electric scooter nor even been a passenger on one before, sat behind her. Watching her hair softly flutter in the wind and catching the familiar scent of her tresses, a strange feeling suddenly welled up in his heart—along with a faint, subtle happiness.
