Chapter 30: The Taste of Home

Brother Tiger ignored the two teens completely. He strode straight up to Lin Xiao, bowed slightly, and greeted him with genuine deference.

“Hello, Big Brother.”

“Wait, Brother Tiger, you’ve got it wrong! He’s just some pretty-faced guy!” one of the teens stammered, eyes wide in disbelief.

“Pretty-faced? Your mother’s head!”

Before Lin Xiao could even speak, Brother Tiger turned and delivered a vicious kick, sending one of the teens sprawling to the floor. Without missing a beat, he swung a second kick, flooring the other boy.

He was fuming.

If not for these two dimwits dragging him into this mess, he wouldn’t have to stand here, sweating bullets in front of this monster in human skin.

The two teens lay crumpled on the ground, dazed and dumbfounded. But when they saw Brother Tiger storming toward them again, rage in his eyes, they began trembling like leaves in a storm.

Reputation is like a shadow—it follows you everywhere.

Brother Tiger might have looked like a harmless housecat next to Lin Xiao, but to everyone else, he was still a beast to be feared.

They didn’t understand why Brother Tiger, whom they called for help, ended up attacking them. But they knew if this continued, they would likely get into trouble.

One of the fallen teenagers cried out to Yuan Yu in despair, “Sister Yuan Yu, help me, help me.”

The sudden turn of events also left Yuan Yu confused, but the teenager’s pleas brought her back to reality.

She looked down at the boy sprawled on the ground, hesitation flickering in her eyes. For a moment, she considered speaking—but ultimately remained silent. Deep down, she knew the truth: this mess was entirely of their own making. No matter how kind their parents had been to her, the boys had crossed a line this time.

She didn’t know why Brother Tiger was afraid of Brother Lin, but what if Brother Tiger hadn’t known him? They would have gathered this group of people to gang up on Lin Xiao. So, even if their parents were kind to her, she couldn’t intervene for them.

“Don’t worry, little Yu, I won’t let you get into trouble.” Lin Xiao seemed to understand Yuan Yu’s predicament. He patted her on the head, then turned to Tiger Brother and said, “Your name is Brother Tiger, right?

“No…. No…. Big Brother, my name is Li Hu; you can call me Little Hu.” Li Hu quickly waved his hands. He didn’t want to end up in the hospital, so he dared not let Lin Xiao call him Brother Tiger.

While Lin Xiao didn’t mind what he called Li Hu, it felt more comfortable to call him Little Hu rather than Tiger Brother.

“Alright, little Hu, here’s the deal. I hope you can teach these two a lesson for me. Make sure they study diligently and always strive to improve. Is that understood?”

Li Hu wouldn’t dare to refuse. Besides, he held a deep resentment for these two and would love nothing more than to give them a good dressing-down.

“No problem, no problem at all,” he responded, nodding fervently. “Rest assured, big brother. I’ll make sure they study hard and keep improving. I won’t let them disturb sister-in-law.”

He managed a gentle, almost forced smile in Yuan Yu’s direction.

With his street smarts, he could see that the root of this issue was Yuan Yu, a beautiful woman causing trouble.

The first time he saw Yuan Yu when he went upstairs, he was stunned for a moment by her beauty. However, when he noticed Lin Xiao, he immediately pushed all other thoughts aside. His life was more important.

Hearing Li Hu’s words, Yuan Yu blushed and shyly lowered her head.

“Stop your nonsense. She’s my sister,” Lin Xiao snapped at Li Hu.

“I’m sorry, big brother, I misunderstood,” Li Hu quickly apologized.

For reasons unknown, Yuan Yu felt a pang of disappointment upon hearing Lin Xiao’s words.

At this point, Li Hu cautiously said, “Alright then, big brother. You can leave these two to me. I’ll definitely teach them a lesson. Maybe we should… leave now?”

“Fine, you are free to leave now,” Lin Xiao dismissed Li Hu with a wave of his hand.

He knew these guys were bad news. Under normal circumstances, he would’ve given them a good thrashing. But with Yuan Yu present and also needing them to discipline the two teens, he decided to let them off this time.

“Yes, yes, big brother. I’m leaving right away,” Li Hu agreed, clearly relieved at Lin Xiao’s words.

After that, Li Hu and his gang hustled the two teenagers and made a quick exit. They really didn’t want to cross paths with Lin Xiao, who seemed to be an omen of bad luck.

Whenever he thought of the pitiful Blondie lying in the hospital, he felt a chill down his spine.

Watching Li Hu and his group depart, Lin Xiao reassured Yuan Yu, “Don’t worry, Little Yu. Those two won’t bother you anymore. Those gangsters may not be very competent, but they sure know how to teach someone a lesson, and they know when to pull their punches.”

“Thank you, Big Brother Lin. I’ve caused you trouble again,” Yuan Yu said, remorse evident in her voice.

“What are you talking about? As your brother, it’s my duty to protect you. Let’s not have this kind of conversation again in the future.”

“Mm-hmm!” Yuan Yu nodded, a sense of security filling her heart.

Once they entered the room, Yuan Yu sheepishly said, “Big Brother Lin, I invited you over for dinner, but because of what happened earlier, I haven’t managed to finish cooking. Why don’t you relax for a bit? You can watch some TV if you get bored.”

“That’s fine, go on,” Lin Xiao reassured her.

“Well then, Big Brother Lin, please wait a little while. I’ll be done soon.”

With a hint of excitement in her voice, Yuan Yu headed for the kitchen.

Ever since her mother had fallen ill and was bedridden, Yuan Yu had been preparing meals and feeding her mother before eating alone. It was always a solitary affair at the dinner table.

Now that she finally had company for dinner, it was no wonder Yuan Yu was thrilled.

Watching Yuan Yu disappear into the kitchen, Lin Xiao didn’t switch on the TV. Instead, he sat on the sofa, closing his eyes.

About twenty minutes later, the tantalizing aroma of food wafted into Lin Xiao’s nostrils, prompting him to open his eyes. He saw Yuan Yu meticulously set the food on the table.

At that moment, the dining table was filled with several home-cooked dishes: mapo tofu, hot and sour potato strips, spicy diced chicken, baby bok choy, and seaweed egg soup.

Four dishes and a soup. They were all common, but under Yuan Yu’s adept hands, they looked and smelled anything but ordinary.

“Big Brother Lin, here. Give it a try and tell me what you think,” Yuan Yu said, scooping a bowl of rice from the rice cooker and handing it to Lin Xiao.

“It smells so good. I bet it’s delicious,” Lin Xiao said with a chuckle.

He accepted the bowl from Yuan Yu and took a bite of rice and a piece of the dish, savoring the explosion of flavors in his mouth.

Looking at Yuan Yu serving food across the table and the feast laid out before him, he was suddenly filled with a sense of sentiment. This was what home felt like.

“How does it taste?” Yuan Yu asked, her bright, expectant eyes fixated on Lin Xiao.

“It’s excellent, truly excellent. You cook like a five-star chef,” Lin Xiao said, raising his thumb in approval, a look of delight on his face.

“Big Brother Lin, don’t flatter me so much. You’re exaggerating.”

“I’m not exaggerating at all.”

Yuan Yu’s face broke into a radiant smile, and she began to eat with delicate bites.