Chapter 28: The Culinary Tycoon

Someone in My Heart

The three of them were a bit stunned. It was supposed to be a joyful day, but their good mood was completely disrupted by the person in front of them.

“Oh, you finally came back. Good fortune has arrived…” The matchmaker saw them entering the courtyard and came out of the main hall, holding a handkerchief and smiling at the three of them.

Unfortunately, his smile didn’t impress any of them.

Chang Le’s face turned gloomy when he saw the matchmaker. This matchmaker had often come to his house before to talk about matchmaking, and he was already familiar with him..

“Matchmaker Liao, why are you here again?” Chang Hao’s expression became even worse when he saw the matchmaker. He mumbled a complaint and went straight into the house to find his Grandpa.

“You child, I’m here for a good reason. Everyone else is happy to see me, but in your house, it’s like encountering a disaster every time,” Matchmaker Liao jokingly scolded.

Yu Qingze was seeing a real matchmaker for the first time, but that didn’t stop him from recognizing the person in front of him who clearly had the characteristics of a matchmaker. Although he had no particular like or dislike for matchmakers, he couldn’t feel happy about someone coming to propose to Chang Le!

The person he had set his sights on was about to be pursued by someone else!

Therefore, Yu Qingze ignored him and busied himself unloading things from the cart, while his ears perked up, listening for any movement.

The three of them paid no attention to the matchmaker. Matchmaker Liao stood there feeling somewhat awkward.

The young boy wandered around the house but couldn’t find his Grandpa. He cleared his throat and shouted, “Grandpa, Grandpa!”

Translated on ho lo lo novels dot com.

“Ah, your grandpa went to the backyard to pick vegetables and told me to wait here. He said he’ll be back soon,” Matchmaker Liao responded, then turned his attention to Yu Qingze with a beaming smile.

Chang Hao asked, “Matchmaker Liao, did my grandpa ask you to wait inside?” Shouldn’t he have just kicked you out?

Matchmaker Liao chuckled and said, “Yes, indeed! I said it’s good news.”

Matchmaker Liao looked at them and said, “Today, I’ve come to propose a match for you! There’s a young ger from a good family, handsome and seventeen years old. He’s a perfect match for you!”

Yu Qingze: …

Chang Le couldn’t understand why, but he felt his heart skip a beat: So it’s a marriage proposal for Big Brother Yu?!

Chang Hao: Someone wants to steal my brother’s husband!

“Who is it? Whose family is he from?” Chang Hao, anxious and unable to contain himself, blurted out.

Chang Le pressed his chest, glanced at Yu Qingze, then at the matchmaker. He silently lowered his head and went to fetch the buckets from the cart, continuing with his work.

“You’re so anxious, but it’s not for you. Why are you in such a hurry?” Matchmaker Liao chuckled, holding the handkerchief, then turned to Yu Qingze and said, “It’s that clever lad from your village, the one who looks handsome, works hard, and is good at managing a household. You two are a perfect match made in heaven.”

“Clever lad?” Upon hearing that, Chang Hao inwardly thought it wasn’t good. There were quite a few suitors for that clever lad the matchmaker was talking about, but for some reason, it never worked out.

He discreetly glanced at Yu Qingze, feeling extremely worried. What if Big Brother Yu agrees?!

He then looked at his brother, who was carrying a water bucket and walking towards the kitchen. Oh, he looked so anxious.

Just then, Grandpa Chang returned from picking vegetables. Chang Hao quickly ran to his side and said, “Grandpa, Matchmaker Liao came to propose a match for Big Brother Yu.”

Grandpa Chang said, “Ah, I know. Don’t go causing trouble.”

“I’m not causing trouble.” I’m just making sure no one steals my future brother-in-law! Chang Hao ran back to Yu Qingze’s side, looking at his future brother-in-law.

Grandpa Chang shook his head and went into the kitchen on his own. This matter was not something they had the right to interfere in.

Inside the house, Yu Qingze frowned and asked, “Clever lad? Who is that?”

Matchmaker Liao replied, “Oh, it’s the eldest son of the family that lives at the eastern end of your village, with a large loquat tree in front of their house.”

Yu Qingze shook his head and said, “Sorry, I haven’t seen him before, I have no impression.”

“Oh, what’s so difficult about meeting? You live in the same village, it’s easy to meet if you want. How about I arrange a meeting for you?” Matchmaker Liao suggested with a smile.

Yu Qingze shook his head and said, “There’s no need.”

“Then have you agreed?” Matchmaker Liao pressed on.

Yu Qingze still shook his head and said, “No, Matchmaker, thank you for your efforts, but I don’t agree.”

“This lad is really good, known by everyone in the village. If you don’t believe me, you can ask Chang Hao and Chang Le. They all know him too,” Matchmaker Liao tried his best to persuade Yu Qingze.

Yu Qingze smiled and said, “Matchmaker, whether the clever lad is good or not has nothing to do with me. I already have someone I like in my heart.” As he said that, he glanced at Chang Le, who had just come out of the kitchen.

“Yes, it has nothing to do with Big Brother Yu at all. He has…” Chang Hao immediately replied, but then he felt something was off and widened his eyes as he looked at Yu Qingze. Suddenly, he realized what Yu Qingze had said, and his eyes squinted with a smile. “Big Brother Yu has someone he likes!”

Chang Hao saw the look in Yu Qingze’s eyes when he said those words, but unfortunately, his brother had his head down and didn’t see it at all.

As a young teenager who worried about his brother’s happiness, Chang Hao’s heart felt heavy. He wished he could rush over and whisper in his brother’s ear, “Big Brother Yu likes you.”

But he didn’t dare to.

Over the years, his brother had become a shrinking turtle when it came to marriage. He subconsciously believed that no normal man would like him anymore.

Unless he realized it for himself.

Chang Hao looked at Yu Qingze again, still not quite understanding. Big Brother Yu should like his brother, but why didn’t he tell him directly?

Ah, it’s really frustrating!

On the other hand, when Matchmaker Liao heard that Yu Qingze had someone he liked, his eyes lit up, and he immediately said, “Ah, so you already have someone you like? Is it someone from the same village or from a different village? Let me arrange the match for you. Boss Yu, let me tell you, I’m not bragging, but there’s no matchmaker in this ten-mile radius who’s as skilled as me, Matchmaker Liao. As long as I intervene, I guarantee you’ll succeed! You’ll bring the wife home immediately, have two children in three years, and the wife will be as warm as a kang… “

Yu Qingze felt dizzy from the matchmaker’s words, both amused and exasperated. He quickly interrupted his, saying, “Alright, alright, Matchmaker, when I need your services, I will come to you. It’s getting late, and the road isn’t safe to travel when it’s dark.”

Matchmaker Liao saw that it was indeed getting late, and he needed to go home and cook. However, he couldn’t let go of the opportunity to secure the deal with Yu Qingze. He said, “No rush, no rush. But remember to find me when you’re ready. In my opinion, since you like someone, you should go and make it official as soon as possible. Don’t let others have ideas about them. The sooner you settle down, the sooner you can have peace of mind. Even if you’re not married yet, you can make a preliminary agreement without much effort…”

Yu Qingze glanced at Chang Le and thought to himself, I do wish to settle down early, but I haven’t prepared anything yet. Why should I rush into marrying someone as good as Brother Le? I don’t want to make Brother Le feel unfulfilled.

Moreover, I’ve made advances towards Brother Le so many times, but he still hasn’t caught on. How can we settle down like this?

Yu Qingze smiled and said, “Matchmaker, matchmaker, I will definitely come to you when the time comes. Oh, you should hurry back now. Thank you for your help. Take care, no need to accompany me…”

After finally sending Matchmaker Liao away, Yu Qingze turned around and saw Chang Hao’s inquisitive gaze.

“What’s wrong?” Yu Qingze asked curiously.

Chang Hao glanced at his brother, who had gone into the kitchen to cook, and then pulled Yu Qingze into the room, closing the door. He whispered, “Big Brother Yu, the person you said you liked… is it my brother?”

Unexpectedly, Chang Hao figured it out. Yu Qingze simply admitted, “Yes.”

Chang Hao was happy to hear Yu Qingze’s confirmation. He thought to himself, I knew it, how could I be mistaken? But he was still anxious and asked, “Then why don’t you tell my brother? If you don’t say it, how will he know?”

Yu Qingze patted Chang Hao’s head and said, “Let’s wait a while. There are still some things that need to be resolved.”

Chang Hao didn’t understand the inner workings of a grown man’s mind and asked, “What issues?”

Yu Qingze didn’t want to explain the details to him, feeling somewhat embarrassed. He said, “Don’t worry about it. Just make sure to look after your brother for me and don’t let anyone snatch him away.”

Chang Hao looked at Yu Qingze for a moment and realized that he wouldn’t be told anymore. He reluctantly nodded and said, “Don’t worry, I also hope that you become my brother-in-law.”

With a small assist from Chang Hao, Yu Qingze felt a slight sense of relief. The speed at which he earned money was still too slow. He needed to expand the variety of snacks in his stall, earn enough money early, and at the very least, resolve his household registration issue. Only then could he live here without worries.

This was also the basic guarantee for proposing to Brother Le. Someone without household registration could be caught as a vagrant at any time, and they had no right to confess their love or propose.

With these thoughts in mind, Yu Qingze reviewed the snacks he had planned to make and quickly decided on the new additions. Then he went to the village chief’s house as he needed to acquire another snack cart.

After returning home, Chang Le had already washed the vegetables for today’s meal and was waiting for him to teach him how to cook.

That evening, they were going to make stir-fried pork kidney and fish-flavored eggplant.

Yu Qingze first demonstrated to Chang Le how to make the flower-shaped cuts on the pork kidneys, and then handed the knife to Chang Le for him to handle.

Chang Le took the knife and started making the flower-shaped cuts as Yu Qingze had taught him. Yu Qingze watched and explained to him.

“For these pork kidneys, make the wheat ear-shaped cuts. It will be easier for them to absorb the flavors when stir-frying… Oh, be careful!”

As Chang Le was cutting, the knife somehow slipped and cut his finger.

Chang Le’s hand flinched, and he looked at it. He had accidentally cut a long gash on the back of his middle finger’s first joint, and fresh blood immediately began to flow.

Before Chang Le could react, Yu Qingze had already taken his hand, pinching it with one hand and pouring a bowl of cold water over it to clean the wound. Since there was no alcohol at home, Yu Qingze used some rice wine that Grandpa Chang had been drinking to clean the wound and disinfect it a bit. Then, Grandpa Chang took a spiderweb from the corner of the wall and wrapped it around the wound.

“How did you cut your hand? Were you not paying attention?” Grandpa Chang said as he wrapped the wound with the spiderweb.

Chang Le pursed his lips and blushed.

Yu Qingze glanced at Chang Le, feeling puzzled as well. Cutting the flower-shaped cuts usually involved an angled entry of the knife, so how did he cut his hand?

“Brother Le, wash your hand and let the wound heal. I’ll take care of it.”

Chang Le nodded with his head lowered and went to wash his hands.

That night, Chang Le tossed and turned in bed, unable to fall asleep. His mind was constantly thinking about Matchmaker Liao trying to arrange a marriage for Yu Qingze.

In reality, it was quite normal.

Big Brother Yu was such a good person, handsome, and talented. He would definitely have many admirers.

When he first arrived, many people didn’t know about his good qualities, and they thought there must be some undisclosed reason for him being unmarried at such an age. However, over this period of time, the people in the village have come to know about his virtues and abilities, naturally leading to many suitors.

Chang Le was well aware of all this.

However, when he heard that Matchmaker Liao came to propose to Big Brother Yu, he couldn’t help but feel a strong aversion, even more so than if Matchmaker Liao had come to propose to him.

He didn’t want Matchmaker Liao to propose to Big Brother Yu, even though Big Brother Yu was indeed a good person.

Furthermore, Big Brother Yu mentioned that he had feelings for someone.

Chang Le didn’t know who Big Brother Yu liked or what kind of person could be a match for someone as wonderful as Big Brother Yu…

Chang Le tossed and turned, facing the wall, staring at the darkness of the bed curtain, his mind filled with scattered thoughts, unable to find any trace of sleep.

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Hottest menu item of Yu’s Delicious Delight: Yu Qingze