Ch 2: Guide to Feeding a Villainous Husband

Scallion Oil Thousand-Layer Pancakes

Yu Jiuque looked down at the bowl of noodles in front of him.

The broth was a creamy white, and the noodles were smooth and glossy. Although the rehydrated cabbage wasn’t as green and tempting as fresh vegetables, the golden fried egg beside it more than made up for any shortcomings.

His stomach growled fiercely, and seeing Qin Xia already eating without a word, he cautiously took up his chopsticks and picked up a few noodles.

Once he took the first bite, there was no stopping—he quickly moved on to the second and third bites.

The hot noodles were smooth and chewy, cooked to perfection. The fried egg, with its slightly runny yolk, released its rich flavor as it mingled with the broth, filling his mouth with warmth and satisfaction.

Yu Jiuque felt a sting in his nose and eyes.

Perhaps it was the days of going hungry and having to fight for scraps at the brokers’ market, he ate quickly, swallowing the noodles almost without chewing.

Seeing him eat so quickly, Qin Xia worried that he might get stomachache and couldn’t help but say, “Eat slower. There’s more in the pot if you need it.”

At Qin Xia’s words, Yu Jiuque obediently slowed down.

Relieved, Qin Xia continued to eat his own portion.

After finishing a large bowl of noodles, Qin Xia felt about eighty percent full.

He noticed that Yu Jiuque had finished his bowl too, but the way he licked his lips and looked wistfully at the empty bowl suggested he was still hungry. So, Qin Xia offered to get him another bowl.

There was still plenty of broth left in the pot, and since they hadn’t taken too long to eat, the noodles hadn’t clumped together.

Yu Jiuque polished off the second bowl just as eagerly, and by the time the bowl was empty again, he hadn’t even let out a burp.

Qin Xia hesitated, studying him, a somewhat incredulous thought crossing his mind—could it be that he wasn’t full yet?

When he voiced his suspicion, Qin Xia saw Yu Jiuque’s cheeks turn a visible shade of red.

“I might have a big appetite,” he admitted, quickly adding, “But I don’t have to eat until I’m full.”

The more you eat, the more you spend.

Yu Jiuque feared that Qin Xia might resent him for being too expensive to keep.

Qin Xia thought about the storyline in the book. Besides describing Yu Jiuque as lavish and extravagant, with meals fit for an emperor and as a personal food taster for the emperor, he couldn’t recall anything about him eating too much.

And besides, looking at Yu Jiuque’s slender frame, how big could his appetite really be?

With that thought in mind, Qin Xia calmly returned to the kitchen to knead more dough.

This time, Yu Jiuque followed him.

He was now wearing another cotton jacket that Qin Xia had dug out from a chest, sitting on a small stool and helping to stoke the fire.

But soon enough, Qin Xia realized he had underestimated the situation.

One ball of dough, two balls of dough, three balls of dough…

Third bowl of noodles, fourth bowl, fifth bowl!

Yu Jiuque downed five big bowls of noodles in a row without a sound.

By the time Qin Xia was rolling out the last of the dough, he was completely numb to it. He even found himself questioning whether Yu Jiuque was really full when he finally declared so after the fifth bowl.

“Are you sure you’re full?”

Yu Jiuque had long since resigned himself to the fact that he was a “bottomless pit.”

If Qin Xia decided to return him to the brokers’ market tomorrow because he ate too much, it would be understandable.

Qin Xia, after repeatedly asking, finally believed him when Yu Jiuque let out a tiny, restrained burp.

“As they say, being able to eat is a blessing. Besides, look at you—you can eat a lot and still stay slim. That’s a good thing.”

Qin Xia offered reassurance, but he also glanced discreetly at Yu Jiuque’s small belly.

The book described Yu Jiuque as a sinister and ruthless figure, wielding immense power with a venomous temperament.

But in Qin Xia’s eyes, no matter how fearsome a villain, they couldn’t escape the cuteness of a full belly after a meal.

When you think of it that way…

The villain was actually kind of adorable.

At this time, the watchman in the alley had already struck the clappers twice—midnight had passed.

Though there was no curfew, with taverns and entertainment houses often staying open all night, most ordinary people, who labored from dawn to dusk, were still accustomed to going to bed early.

The original owner of this body had been a carefree idler, often staying out drinking and bragging with friends past midnight. But now, with Qin Xia here, it seemed he was on the path to becoming a health-conscious early sleeper.

Thinking about this, Qin Xia, who was brushing his teeth with a twig, couldn’t help but yawn.

After washing up, he turned off the lights and went to bed.

There were enough quilts in the house, so Qin Xia decided to make two sleeping areas—one for himself and one for Yu Jiuque.

As a grown man, he knew that morning could bring certain natural reactions. Moreover, having been attracted to men in his previous life, Qin Xia didn’t see Yu Jiuque any differently. If things got out of hand, it could turn into a disaster with him being brutally murdered.

As for why he wasn’t proceeding with the “wedding night,” he had already thought of an excuse while kneading dough earlier.

“I heard from the broker that your health is not good, and it’s not advisable to consummate the marriage until you’ve recovered. Earlier, I was drunk, so don’t take it to heart.”

Yu Jiuque felt a mix of relief and apprehension upon hearing this.

Before leaving the broker’s place, a sister who was also waiting to be sold had told him that being sold to a respectable family as a proper husband was a blessing that many would beg for. If he could please his husband in bed and give birth to a healthy son, the family would likely release him from his contract and restore his status as a free man.

Yu Jiuque had prepared himself to endure whatever came his way, but Qin Xia had unexpectedly stopped at the last moment. It made him wonder if his new husband was already having second thoughts. After all, who would want to spend five taels of silver to marry someone who ate like a horse and was too weak for intimacy?

He hesitantly probed Qin Xia with a few questions, but Qin Xia seemed to genuinely have no interest in such matters. In fact, he was so unconcerned that he fell asleep almost as soon as his head hit the pillow, breathing steadily within moments.

Yu Jiuque had no choice but to curl up under his quilt, lying awake with a head full of chaotic thoughts until he finally drifted into a troubled sleep.

The next morning, Qin Xia woke up to the soft light of dawn filtering through the window.

Winter mornings were slow to brighten, and Qin Xia estimated it was still before seven o’clock, a schedule that matched the healthy routine he had painstakingly developed in his previous life.

As he mentally reviewed his plans for the day, Qin Xia realized something was amiss. At some point during the night, the boy who had shared his bed must have gotten so cold that he curled up into a ball and, despite the separate quilts, had somehow snuggled up close to Qin Xia.

Because he had slept soundly, Qin Xia hadn’t noticed, and the two of them had ended up spending the night huddled together.

As he carefully extricated his arm, he accidentally touched Yu Jiuque’s exposed fingers. They were icy, like a small piece of snow.

It was still early, and they could both sleep a bit longer, but Qin Xia gently eased himself out of bed, making sure not to wake Yu Jiuque, whose brows were still furrowed even in sleep.

Before leaving, he didn’t forget to take the dough that had risen overnight from the bedside.

The morning air was crisp and clear as Qin Xia looked up at the sky, which was as clear as glass, and officially accepted his reality of being trapped in this novel.

Looking on the bright side, his new identity came with a healthy body, a roof over his head in a county town, and no significant hardships. Not bad conditions at all.

Once he figured out how to get rid of the “great Buddha” that was Yu Jiuque, he could rely on his own hands to achieve a decent life in this world.

With this optimistic mindset, Qin Xia felt lighter.

After washing up with water in the kitchen, he set about making breakfast with the dough he had prepared the night before.

Nothing is more important than a good meal.

The dough, made from a mix of flour, had risen to twice its size overnight, with a soft texture that retained the indent of a finger. In this era, without yeast, the dough had to rise naturally.

Next time, Qin Xia planned to save a piece of the risen dough as a starter, which could be mixed into future batches to speed up the rising process.

After setting aside a bit of dough as a starter, Qin Xia heated some oil in a pot. Once the oil was heated and cooled, it became “cooked cool oil,” which he mixed with flour, salt, and wild onions from the backyard to make an oil paste for scallion pancakes.

But Qin Xia wasn’t planning to make ordinary scallion pancakes—he wanted to make thousand-layer pancakes.

He rolled out the dough on the board, spread it with the oil paste, and then made cuts at regular intervals before folding the dough into layers. After lightly rolling out the folded dough, he cooked it on the griddle. Once done, the pancake would be soft, with layers upon layers of flaky, onion-filled goodness.

Considering Yu Jiuque’s appetite, Qin Xia made two large pancakes, which could be cut into six big pieces each.

Since there was no rice in the house for porridge, Qin Xia decided to make a large pot of egg drop soup with a couple of eggs.

When Yu Jiuque woke up, the smell of food filled the small courtyard just as it had the night before.

He blinked at the empty bed across from him, and when he realized he had overslept, he jumped up in a panic.

As a new husband, it was bad enough that he hadn’t risen early to help with chores, but to sleep in so late—Yu Jiuque could already see himself being divorced by Qin Xia.

Panic-stricken, he quickly dressed and rushed outside, but in his haste, or perhaps due to the cold, he felt dizzy as he crossed the threshold.

In his panic, he reached out to steady himself on the doorframe, only to fall into a strong embrace.

When he looked up, he found Qin Xia gazing down at him with concern.

“Are you feeling unwell?”

Qin Xia held onto Yu Jiuque, feeling a rush of fear.

If he hadn’t been walking this way at that moment, with his long legs covering the distance quickly enough to catch Yu Jiuque in time, the boy might have taken a nasty fall.

Seeing the pale color of Yu Jiuque’s face, Qin Xia quickly realized what was happening.

It must be a lingering internal injury causing these fainting spells.

Yu Jiuque, unaware of the underlying issue, only felt nervous.

After the wave of dizziness passed, he stood up straight and tried to apologize.

“I’m fine,” he said, before bowing his head in guilt. “I’m sorry for oversleeping. It won’t happen again.”

After Qin Xia’s words fell, what responded to him was a warm, light laugh.

He looked at Yu Jiuque as if he were some rare, curious object.

“You rushed out in such a hurry that you tied your robe all wrong, just to apologize to me?”

Yu Jiuque looked down and realized that he had indeed made a mess of his robe’s ties.

He raised his hand to fix it, but in his haste, he turned a simple knot into a tight, stubborn one.

Seeing this, Qin Xia couldn’t help but smile.

He gently guided the young man back inside, positioning him in a spot where the sunlight streamed in. As he skillfully untangled the knot and retied the robe properly, he said, “It’s just the two of us in this house. I’m used to getting up early; it has nothing to do with you. If you want to sleep in, you can sleep until midday—it’s not a problem.”

As he spoke, his long fingers deftly undid the knot and adjusted Yu Jiuque’s clothing.

“Are you still feeling dizzy?”

Yu Jiuque was surprised.

“You knew that I…”

Qin Xia nodded.

“The broker told me you had lost your memory. People who lose their memories like that usually have suffered head injuries. It makes sense that you might have some lingering effects since you probably never saw a proper doctor after getting hurt.”

So that’s it.

Yu Jiuque met Qin Xia’s gaze for a brief moment, and for some reason, he felt like the man in front of him had eyes that could see right through him.

After this small interlude, the two finally sat down together in the main room to eat breakfast.

Each piece of the thousand-layer pancake was larger than a palm and very thick. The top layer was crispy, and the inside, even though made from mixed flour, was just as delicious as one made from white flour.

There was no need for pickles or salted eggs—eating it plain was satisfying enough.

Qin Xia, eating more than usual, managed three pieces before stopping. He then sipped his egg soup slowly, watching Yu Jiuque as he ate with great enjoyment.

Yu Jiuque ate a lot, but his eating manners were refined, and every bite seemed to bring him genuine pleasure.

After watching him for a while, Qin Xia began to understand why food-eating broadcasts were so popular online in his previous life.

He leisurely finished his soup, pacing himself so that they both ended their meal at the same time.

This time, Yu Jiuque insisted on washing the dishes, not allowing Qin Xia to intervene.

Seeing no other choice, Qin Xia made sure Yu Jiuque wasn’t feeling unwell and reminded him to mix the dishwater with warm water before letting him go.

Soon, the sound of water could be heard from the courtyard. Qin Xia wiped down the table, and after a while, brought out a clay jar.

The original owner of this body had no sense of how much money he had left and spent recklessly. Qin Xia couldn’t rely on his memories.

But when he emptied the money jar, Qin Xia realized just how unreliable the original owner had been.

After counting, he found less than five taels of silver in the jar.

Besides that, there was only a small pouch containing three jade dice, which the original owner had won during a rare lucky streak at a gambling house.

This was all that remained of the original owner’s wealth after purchasing Yu Jiuque.

Qin Xia could only roll his eyes at the sight.

This person really did things half-heartedly, as if planning to survive on air with his newly acquired husband.

No wonder he ended up becoming a perpetually angry drunk, taking out his frustrations through domestic violence.

In his previous life, Qin Xia had been fairly well-off and had seen his share of fine things.

He poured out the dice and examined them in the light, thinking they might be worth something.

He decided that pawning them might provide some much-needed “startup capital.”

For ordinary people to establish themselves in this place, there are essentially four paths: becoming a scholar, farmer, artisan, or merchant.

The paths of scholar and farmer are self-explanatory. Being a cook doesn’t quite fall under “artisan,” so the only viable option left is the food business, starting as a small vendor.

But the most important question at hand is: what kind of food should he sell to earn that first bucket of gold?