Chapter 488 - 387: I want a world of just us two.

Chapter 488: Chapter 387: I want a world of just us two.

"I can also tell you plainly, Mr. Jun, that I’m a man of principle. I won’t show favoritism to anyone in the competition."

"Yes, I trust your character, Mr. Mo."

Jun Xinghe pretended to hesitate for a moment before saying, "Let me ask my son-in-law and see if he’s available."

"Mm."

Morse nodded.

Jun Xinghe walked out of the reception room.

Secretary Wang asked nervously, "How did it go, President Jun?"

"Don’t bother me. Step aside."

Jun Xinghe waved his hand dismissively.

"Oh." The king of wage slaves obediently stood aside.

Jun Xinghe thought for a moment before sending Jiang Liu a message: "What are you up to, Xiao Jiang? Can you talk on the phone? I have something to discuss with you."

*

Jiang Liu had just finished bathing his precious daughter.

The three of them were lounging on the sofa. Jun Qingmeng had her arms around Jiang Liu’s, her head resting on his shoulder. Tongtong was nestled in Jiang Liu’s embrace, her little feet swinging back and forth.

On the table were strawberries, sliced dragon fruit, and watermelon.

They were watching Boonie Bears.

Tongtong had only gotten halfway through an episode yesterday, so she wanted to finish it today.

"Daddy! I want another strawberry!"

"Okay."

Jiang Liu fed Tongtong a strawberry.

Tongtong nibbled off the leafy top. "Daddy, you can have the pointy part."

"Alright."

Jiang Liu, his eyes still on the TV, casually popped the rest of the strawberry into his mouth.

It was sweet and tangy, with a hint of a milky aroma.

"Honey, I want the leafy top, too."

"Nope. I’ll feed you the pointy part."

"Okay!"

Jun Qingmeng sweetly ate the pointy tip, then looked up, eagerly watching Jiang Liu eat the leafy top she had saved for him.

Being completely devoted to her husband, she always wanted to return his kindness tenfold.

Her greatest wish was for Jiang Liu to be with her every day, for the whole family to be happily lounging on the sofa together.

BUZZ!

His phone vibrated.

"Honey, your phone buzzed."

"Got it."

Jun Qingmeng glanced at the message first before handing the phone to Jiang Liu.

After reading Jun Xinghe’s message, Jiang Liu replied: "You can agree to it. The odds of winning are high."

He had absolute confidence in his Sichuan recipes.

Based on Jiang Liu’s studies of it, every single dish recorded inside was the pinnacle of this world’s cuisine, or perhaps reached a realm no one had ever achieved before.

The exquisite flavors were perfectly balanced—nothing could be added, and nothing could be taken away.

And if he used the seasonings and ingredients from the Gourmet Album, the flavors could be enhanced by another fifty percent.

Jiang Liu sat up a little.

"Honey, you two keep watching. I’m going to call your dad."

"Okay!"

Jun Qingmeng released Jiang Liu’s arm and lay down sideways, resting her head on his lap. She didn’t forget to raise a hand to feed him a strawberry.

"Here, honey. Have the pointy part."

"OM."

Jun Qingmeng smiled sweetly and popped the leafy top into her own mouth.

’Mmm! So much tastier than the pointy part.’

Jiang Liu stroked Jun Qingmeng’s hair as he called Jun Xinghe.

The call connected.

Suppressing his excitement, Jun Xinghe spoke in a low voice and relayed what Morse had said to Jiang Liu.

After listening, Jiang Liu thought for a moment and asked, "Are you sure it can earn four hundred million euros a year?"

In truth, he didn’t care much about the money. If they secured this channel, Hua Country itself would benefit greatly.

Hua Country could easily absorb the entire supply of these medicinal herbs.

"Yes! It might even be more than that! We don’t have the right conditions to grow many of their medicinal herbs in our country, and for others, we don’t even have the germplasm. In short, demand is huge, and the supply is extremely scarce!"

Jiang Liu asked, "When and where?"

Jun Xinghe said authoritatively, "We get to decide that. It’ll be whenever we say it is!"

"I see."

Jiang Liu thought for a moment.

He considered just holding it at his own restaurant.

But the restaurant’s kitchen was too small. He’d have to wait for the renovations next door to be completed.

Besides, he also needed a few days to prepare and study his Sichuan recipes.

"Uncle Jun, how about we wait until the renovations on my place next door are finished? It should take about three days. Also, I’ll need some new restaurant equipment. I’ll have to trouble you to procure it for me."

Zheng Qiang’s kitchen was going to be connected to his.

He wanted to get some good equipment for the restaurant so he wouldn’t lose face when his guests arrived and found the place bare.

Jun Xinghe agreed instantly.

"No problem at all. I’ll get you the best equipment. Just tell me whatever your new restaurant needs. If you think the construction is too slow, I’ll send over a crew from my company. They’ll get it done in a flash."

"That won’t be necessary, it’s almost finished anyway. I’ll send you the list of equipment in a bit."

Jiang Liu then asked, "What are the rules for the competition?"

Jun Xinghe sounded embarrassed. "I didn’t get a chance to ask about that. But it shouldn’t be a problem. If he proposes any unreasonable conditions, I’ll just turn him down flat."

"Fine."

After hanging up, Jiang Liu fell into thought.

He was confident, but he didn’t know his opponent’s background.

Meanwhile, his opponent clearly knew his.

Luckily, it wasn’t a major issue. He hadn’t revealed the true extent of his Sichuan cooking skills so far.

"Honey."

"Hm?"

Jun Qingmeng sat up, wrapping her arms around Jiang Liu’s neck and settling into his lap. "What did you two talk about?"

Their daughter, Jiang Tongtong, had fallen asleep again.

She could power down at a moment’s notice.

’Her battery life isn’t very stable.’

Jiang Liu quietly recounted his conversation with Jun Xinghe.

"Honey, you’re being troubled again," Jun Qingmeng said, stroking Jiang Liu’s cheek.

Her heart ached for him.

’Why does Jun Xinghe keep finding more things for my husband to do!’

Jiang Liu shook his head. "It’s nothing. A competition isn’t tiring. In fact, I’d be thrilled if more opportunities like this came up."

"Careful you don’t turn into a cocky monster!"

Jun Qingmeng rolled her eyes at Jiang Liu, but then suddenly leaned in and gently kissed his cheek.

"In the future, can you not get involved in so many things? I just want to live a quiet, happy, simple life with you."

Her voice grew softer as she spoke.

Jun Qingmeng suddenly felt that what she said wasn’t quite right.

’I shouldn’t try to clip Jiang Liu’s wings.’

’Maybe that was a little selfish of me.’

"Don’t worry. From now on, I’ll be with you and Tongtong every day. We’ll live in our own little world of three."

Jiang Liu wrapped his arms around Jun Qingmeng’s slender waist, pulling her tightly into his embrace.

The pleasant scent of gardenia, mingled with another faint, alluring fragrance, wafted from her and enveloped him.

Jun Qingmeng’s face instantly flushed a lovely shade of red.

Their posture was intimate.

They locked eyes for a few seconds.

Jun Qingmeng shyly broke eye contact, turning her head to whisper in Jiang Liu’s ear, "Honey, I want to spend some time with just the two of us."

"Are you flirting with me?"

Jiang Liu raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure about that?"

"No..."

Jun Qingmeng said softly, shyly pushing Jiang Liu away.

"Just because you say no, that means no?" Jiang Liu grinned wickedly.

"No means no."

Jun Qingmeng’s face grew even redder, and Jiang Liu could hear the THUMP-THUMP of her heart.

"Alright, I’ll let you off the hook today, seeing as you’re sick."

Jiang Liu magnanimously waved his hand, indicating he wouldn’t press the issue.

He silently made a few calculations.

The villa would be ready for them to move into in about ten more days.

When the time came, he’d have to find a way to coax Tongtong into sleeping in her own little room.

It was time for him and Jun Qingmeng to get down to business.

Jiang Liu had even calculated the days of Jun Qingmeng’s period.

The poor little rabbit didn’t even know she was being eyed by the Big Bad Wolf.

Jun Qingmeng changed the subject. "Honey, Tongtong’s asleep. Should we go to bed?"

"Let’s go. Do you need to brush your teeth?"

"I already did."

"Alright."