He Su Ye brought out bowls and chopsticks for them both. Li Jie began eating with abandon, while Shen Xi Fan initially tried to remain composed. However, as soon as she tasted the yam soup, her restraint vanished. The thick, creamy broth slid effortlessly down her throat, leaving a lingering fragrance.
The yams were tender and free of any bitterness, simmered slowly in rich bone broth. Even someone accustomed to gourmet hotel cuisine couldn’t help but praise it.
She hadn’t expected He Su Ye’s cooking to be this exceptional. It made her feel a little ashamed.
It seemed like there was nothing he couldn’t do.
After finishing her meal, she felt too full to move. Just then, He Su Ye brought out another dish: longan and white fungus soup. She groaned, “He Su Ye, why didn’t you tell me there was more? I have no room left!”
Li Jie laughed mischievously. “Great! More for me!” He eagerly reached for the bowl, but He Su Ye snatched his spoon away and scolded, “Eat? You still want to eat? Weren’t you just swearing to control your diet after your last blood sugar test? No more!”
Li Jie’s face fell, but his hands didn’t stop. He picked up chopsticks and started fishing for the white fungus. He Su Ye sighed in exasperation. “No spoon, and you’re using chopsticks? Didn’t you eat lunch?”
Shaking his head, Li Jie pointed to a thick stack of documents on the table and lamented, “I’ve been buried in these all day. The boss wants them by the day after tomorrow. It’s going to kill me!”
Curious, Shen Xi Fan leaned over to take a look. “What is it?” she asked, softly reading the title. “It’s all in English? Acupuncture Treatment?”
Before she could finish, Li Jie’s eyes lit up. “Shen Xi Fan, you can read these words?” he asked eagerly.
“Well…” She hesitated before cautiously replying, “I can recognize them, but I’m not sure I can spell them. Why?”
Li Jie quickly pushed the bowl of soup toward Shen Xi Fan. “It’s all yours, but you’ve got to help me with something—translate the Chinese parts at the back into English for me!”
He Su Ye interrupted, “Li Jie! At least ask if she’s busy before throwing something at her like this…”
Shen Xi Fan hurriedly waved her hands. “It’s fine, really! I’ll do my best to help. You’ve all helped me so much already.” She glanced at He Su Ye, silently adding in her heart, Especially you, though she dared not say it aloud.
Taking the documents, she examined them carefully and frowned slightly. “I’m not very familiar with these technical terms,” she told Li Jie, “but I can handle sentence structures without a problem. How about you draft a rough translation first, and I’ll help you refine it?”
He Su Ye took the papers from her and asked softly, “Are you sure this won’t be too much trouble for you? If it’s too much, just leave it to me.”
“Really, it’s no trouble!” Shen Xi Fan emphasized again. “I majored in English in college, and I’ve done translation work before, even for some medical materials. It’s no big deal.”
He Su Ye smiled warmly at her and turned to Li Jie. “Kid, after she’s done helping you, you’d better treat us to dinner!”
Li Jie, resting his head on the mountain of documents, muttered sleepily, “So tired… Senior Brother, what are you saying? I didn’t hear a thing…”
Shen Xi Fan glanced at the acupuncture terms on the page and read aloud, “Focus on the Yangming Meridians of the hand and foot, supplemented by the Shaoyang Meridians of the hand and foot—Tianzhu, Bailao, Dazhui, Houxi… so many acupoints…” She paused, then turned to them. “He Su Ye, Li Jie, how do you even remember all these points?”
Both men were momentarily stunned before bursting into laughter. Li Jie eagerly replied, “You have no idea how our teacher taught us! Even if you didn’t know, he made sure you’d learn. Senior Brother, our acupuncture professor during undergrad was Wang Weizhong, right?”
He Su Ye nodded, turning away to stifle a laugh, piquing Shen Xi Fan’s curiosity.
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