Zhen Lang opened his front door and he was surprised Gu Jing was smiling and waiting for him to come home.
Zhen Lang looked at Gu Jing from head to toe and he closed the front door. ‘Did you nail a smiling facial mask on your face?’
Gu Jing grabbed Zhen Lang’s suitcase with too much force, because his body nearly fell on top of her body. He thought she looked like a puppy who was begging for food.
Zhen Lang looked down at his body to check if Gu Jing put anything suspicious on his clothes. ‘Gu Jing, what do you want to ask?’
‘Mmm… I want to treat you to dinner,’ Gu Jing said.
Zhen Lang raised an eyebrow. ‘Treat me to dinner?’
Gu Jing nodded her head.
Zhen Lang smiled and he shook his head. ‘Gu Jing are you cooking? Then forget it. I want to live for several more years.’
Gu Jing’s civil face turned into a scary scowl. She suppressed her hot temper and she smiled brighter. ‘I’m treating you to a meal at a restaurant.’
Zhen Lang looked suspiciously at Gu Jing from head to toe for a long time. ‘Tell me, what do you need from me?’
Gu Jing was used to Zhen Lang seeing straight through her.
‘My old landlord is renovating the small apartment I was leasing. I want to ask you to let me stay here for a few days. After I find a new apartment I’ll leave… I’ll pay you rent money,’ Gu Jing said.
‘That’s it? In the past you shamelessly came in and out of here. Why are you suddenly being courteous?’ Zhen Lang said.
Gu Jing pouted her lips. ‘I don’t want to fight with you. Let’s call a truce, ok?’
Zhen Lang contemplated about what Gu Jing was planning.
‘Are you going to go out with me to eat dinner or not?’ Gu Jing asked. She glared at Zhen Lang who was looking at her suspiciously and she supressed her urge to hit him. ‘I’m hungry.’
Unexpectedly Zhen Lang didn’t open the front door, he walked toward the kitchen. Gu Jing’s stomach rumbled, but she followed him like a puppy attached to its owner.
Zhen Lang took off his jacket, he unb.u.t.toned his collar and he rolled up his sleeves. ‘If you want to stay here, you need to work.’ He waved a finger to signal Gu Jing to step closer to him. ‘If your performance is satisfactory, I’ll consider letting you stay.’
Gu Jing thought there was something wrong with Zhen Lang’s brain. She wondered if he wanted her to burn his kitchen then demand her to pay him for kitchen renovations. ‘You want me to cook?’
Zhen Lang gave Gu Jing a plump potato and a knife. ‘It’s the weekend tomorrow. So tonight many people will be going out to eat. If we go out and eat, we’ll need to wait at least an hour to be served. If we eat at home, we’ll be fed faster.’
The faster Gu Jing could eat the better. She quickly peeled the potato and the rubbish bin looked more nourished than the peeled potato in her hand. She presented the under nourished potato to Zhen Lang and she smiled sweetly. ‘Satisfied?’
Zhen Lang put another plump potato in Gu Jing’s hand.
‘Why aren’t you saying anything about the potato I peeled for you?’ Gu Jing asked.
‘I didn’t think a plump potato under your hands would turn into an anorexic potato. You need to peel another potato,’ Zhen Lang said.
Gu Jing obediently peeled the second potato. A potato peel was accidently flung on Zhen Lang’s pants. She lifted her hand to take the potato peel off his pants, but her hand froze in mid-air.
Gu Jing squatted, she laughed and she pointed at the potato peel that landed in the middle of Zhen Lang’s crotch. ‘Potato peel!’
Zhen Lang calmly flicked the potato peel off his pants. ‘After you peel the potato, sweep the floor and empty the rubbish bin.’
‘Ok,’ Gu Jing said.
‘After dinner, you’ll wash the dishes,’ Zhen Lang said.
‘Ok,’ Gu Jing said.
‘You’ll tidy the kitchen,’ Zhen Lang said.
‘Ok,’ Gu Jing said.
‘You’ll clean the living room,’ Zhen Lang said.
‘Ok,’ Gu Jing said.
‘After you shower, you’ll clean the bathroom,’ Zhen Lang said.
‘Ok,’ Gu Jing said.
‘You’ll serve me a bowl of soup at midnight,’ Zhen Lang said.
‘Why do I have to serve you a bowl of soup?’ Gu Jing protested.
‘You wanted a truce,’ Zhen Lang said.
‘Ok…’ Gu Jing said reluctantly.
***
Gu Jing was captivated by Zhen Lang’s cooking skills. He tossed a pan of stir fried vegetables with one hand, he held a ladle with his other hand to stir a pot of soup. Occasionally he glanced at the electric rice cooker.
Gu Jing was envious how she and Zhen Lang grew up under the same sky, but he was a natural genius and he didn’t struggle with anything. On the other hand she struggled with everything. She studied hard in school whilst he excelled through school without a sweat. She couldn’t peel a potato but he could grow a potato patch if he wanted to.
Zhen Lang pointed a finger at the bowl of unwashed herbs. ‘Wash the herbs.’
Gu Jing snapped out of her envy. She filled the kitchen sink with water and she washed the herbs. She dried the herbs and drops of water were accidently flung onto Zhen Lang’s shirt and pants.
Gu Jing widened her innocent eyes.
Zhen Lang smiled. ‘Remember to mop the floors.’
Gu Jing wanted to mop his smug face! She smiled sweetly. ‘Ok.’
During dinner Gu Jing’s chopsticks never left her hand. She didn’t want to admit Zhen Lang’s home cooked meals were delicious.
Gu Jing leaned back on her chair and she rubbed her satisfied stomach. Not even a grain of rice was left on the dining table.
‘Go wash the dishes,’ Zhen Lang said.
Gu Jing’s good mood was ruined by Zhen Lang’s bossy mouth. She stretched her arms and legs. Then she walked slowly to the kitchen.
Zhen Lang sat on the sofa and he heard the sounds of broken plates and bowls. He turned around to watch Gu Jing destroy his kitchen and he smiled.
‘Hey Mr Vet… your fragile plates and bowls are broken. I’ll compensate by washing the dishes tomorrow,’ Gu Jing said. She carried a wet mop into the living room. ‘I’ll mop the floors.’
Zhen Lang watched Gu Jing crazily mopped the living room floor like she was running a marathon. He wasn’t surprised the mop broke in half.
‘I… tomorrow I’ll buy you a new mop. Tomorrow I’ll mop the floors as well,’ Gu Jing said.
Zhen Lang stood and he walked pa.s.sed Gu Jing. ‘I’m taking shower.’
‘Wait! I’ll clean the bathroom for you,’ Gu Jing said.
Zhen Lang sat on the sofa again and he heard the sounds of his bathroom being abused.
Gu Jing returned to the living room with a wet shirt and a faucet in her hand. ‘Hehe… it was an accident. I was cleaning the bathroom and this faucet fell on its own.’ She tossed the faucet in the rubbish bin. ‘Tomorrow I’ll buy you a new faucet.’
Gu Jing presented a red apple to Zhen Lang. ‘The bathroom is spotless. Do you want me to peel an apple for you to eat before you shower?’
Zhen Lang accepted the red apple from Gu Jing. ‘I’ll peel it myself.’
‘Hehe… I’ll scoop you a bowl of soup and it’ll cool down by the time you come out of the bathroom,’ Gu Jing said.
Zhen Lang quickly showered. He came out of the bathroom and Gu Jing kept her promise, she held a bowl of soup for him. ‘Zhen Lang, it’s cooled down. You can eat it.’
Zhen Lang saw the antic.i.p.ation in Gu Jing’s eyes, he accepted the bowl of soup, he drank a sip and he smiled.
Zhen Lang carried the bowl of soup to his room.
Half an hour later Gu Jing heard the toilet flushed several times and she smiled. She happily ma.s.saged her sore arms, legs and waist.
Gu Jing threw the empty small bottle of laxatives in the rubbish bin and she hummed to her bedroom. She kicked her bedroom door open and she jumped onto her bed. She cursed Zhen Lang on her bed. ‘You dare treat me like your housemaid? You’ll be lucky if your intestines don’t burst tomorrow!’
Gu Jing rolled around on her bed. She was happy the jinx couldn’t follow her to see her third blind date on the weekend. ‘Finally I’m free of the jinx!’
The following morning was a weekend and Gu Jing happily broke her rule about sleeping in on a weekend. She woke up early and she pa.s.sed Zhen Lang’s bedroom on the way to the bathroom. She was ecstatic his bedroom door was firmly shut.
Gu Jing brushed her teeth and she washed her face. She hummed and she was about to open the bathroom door from the inside, but Zhen Lang opened the bathroom door from the outside.
‘Do you have a blind date today?’ Zhen Lang asked.
Gu Jing didn’t understand how Zhen Lang recovered quickly from last night. If she knew the small bottle of laxatives wasn’t effective then she would buy the large bottle of laxatives. She smiled sweetly. ‘Um.’
Zhen Lang walked into the bathroom and he washed his face. ‘We’ll go together.’
Gu Jing was outraged. The jinx was actually going to follow her on another blind date? How was she going to catch a husband if the jinx was there to spoil the atmosphere?
‘Zhen Lang, you don’t need to follow me,’ Gu Jing said.
‘You broke our promise,’ Zhen Lang said.
Gu Jing sighed. Why did Zhen Lang need to be a genius who owned a photographic memory?
End of Chapter Seventeen