Chapter 12

He deliberately chose evenly marbled beef ribs, not too fat or too lean, with tender meat suitable for children to eat, although the price would be higher, he didn't mind.

After coating the flour, he heated oil in the pan and fried the beef until both sides were golden brown to seal in the juices. Then he stir-fried celery, onions, and carrots together before adding the meat and vegetables to the pressure cooker, adding seasoning, and starting to cook.

At the same time, he began to process the Chinese herbs.

The Chinese herbs he selected were all aged and cost quite a bit of money. However, his method of processing them was somewhat rough and simple. He didn't pay attention to proportions or the hierarchy of "emperor, minister, assistant, and servant," nor did he adhere to the principles of "mutual support, mutual assistance, mutual restraint, and mutual enhancement." Instead, he directly used the essence of the herbs extracted using ancient methods he learned from a relic in his previous life.

Drawing two small arrays in the palms of his hands, he held the herbs and activated the arrays with his true elemental energy, quickly extracting drops of essence.

However, the herbs from the shop were ultimately not very potent, with short aging and shallow spiritual energy. Despite his efforts, he only managed to extract a small cup of essence the size of a fingernail from the pile of herbs.

Shaking his head in dissatisfaction, Zu Mo decided it was not satisfactory. He thought he might as well personally collect herbs from the mountains next time.

When the first wave of timing in the pressure cooker was up, he opened the pot and added the herbal essence before sealing it again for the second wave.

Fifteen minutes later, when the second wave of timing was up, he opened the pot...

"Wow, it smells amazing!" came Song Xiamin's exclamation from the living room.

When the pressure cooker was opened, smoke rose, and the entire room was instantly filled with the fragrance of the dish.

"Wow, it smells amazing!" came Song Xiamin's exclamation from the living room.

She carried the little one and ran to the kitchen door, peeking in curiously. "Look, look, Yunyun, see what delicious food Dad is cooking?"

Zu Mo hurriedly shooed them away. "Don't be impatient, it'll be ready soon. Stay outside!"

Zu Mo finished cooking the beef, garnished it with a few mint leaves, plated it, and brought it out. Since the room was small and there was no dining room, the living room served as the dining area, and the coffee table as the dining table.

Seeing the beautifully cooked beef, Song Xiamin couldn't help but salivate.

Zu Mo also served three bowls of rice; the little one had a special bowl with a cartoon zebra at the bottom.

The little one had been hungry for a while, so Zu Mo quickly cut up the beef and vegetables and mixed them with rice, feeding the little one spoonful by spoonful. The little one ate eagerly, looking adorable.

Zu Mo turned to see Song Xiamin sitting beside them without touching the food, looking somewhat pitiful. He suddenly realized there was a guest here, and he had neglected her while taking care of his daughter. He quickly said, "Song teacher, please eat. Don't be shy. My cooking skills are limited, and I only know how to stew meat and vegetables together. Please excuse the poor hospitality."

Song Xiamin said, "No, you're already very talented... Let me taste it first."

She indeed felt hungry.

She picked up a piece of beef, smelled it, and exclaimed, "Wow, it smells amazing!"

Without hesitation, she took a bite.

Mmm...

Song Xiamin was stunned for a moment, then murmured, "Delicious... How can it be so delicious..."

Her face flushed, as if a peach blossom bloomed on her cheeks. She gestured aimlessly with her left hand, trying to describe her feelings, but found her mind occupied by the delicious taste, unable to find suitable words.

Ignoring her image, she dug in.

It seemed like she had never eaten such delicious beef before. The beef was tender, fragrant, and juicy, with a hint of medicinal aroma that cut through the oiliness. It left a sweet aftertaste on the lips.

Unconsciously, she had already eaten two bowls of rice, completely forgetting about her diet plan as she enjoyed the meal.

The little one also happily ate a lot, clearly a little foodie.

Zu Mo thought to himself that after this meal, their bodies' resistance, immunity, and self-healing abilities would improve. They wouldn't be troubled by colds, fevers, and other illnesses because he had added herbal essence and spiritual energy.

Thinking back to the events of the previous night, Zu Mo couldn't help but sigh.

He looked at Song Xiamin, thinking that what the Star River Overlord cooked might not be something ordinary people could eat, but seeing how she cared for Yunyun, he decided to give her some as well.

Song Xiamin, seeing Zu Mo looking at her, thought he was teasing her for being able to eat a lot. Her cheeks blushed with embarrassment, so she quickly put down her chopsticks and asked Zu Mo how he made the beef.

Zu Mo explained the ingredients and steps to her, of course omitting the part about extracting herbal essence.

Song Xiamin sighed inwardly, thinking that Zu Mo could both take care of a child and cook, and was also just and righteous. Nowadays, there weren't many good men like him...

She turned to the little one and asked, "Yunyun, are you full?"

The little one sat in her child seat, patting her little belly with her hands and grinning at her, indicating that she was full. It was an adorable sight.

Song Xiamin couldn't help but smile at her, playing with her for a while before turning to Zu Mo and asking, "Mr. Zu, it must be hard for you to take care of a child alone. Have you ever thought about sending Yunyun to a daycare center? You know, those institutions specially designed to care for and educate children under three years old."

"As far as I know, there are very reputable daycare centers in Beijing City now, where the staff are professionally trained and very responsible. The Beijing City First Kindergarten I work at has two cooperative daycare centers underneath it. If Yunyun goes to the daycare center first, it will be easier for her to enter our kindergarten later. The threshold will be relatively lower. Besides, starting group activities early has its benefits, and it would also relieve you of some burden, Mr. Zu."

"Oh, Mr. Zu, please don't misunderstand. I'm not trying to promote our cooperative institution. I'm just offering a suggestion."

Of course, Zu Mo understood Song Xiamin's good intentions. Indeed, some parents were too busy with work to take care of their children and had to send infants and toddlers as young as one or two years old to daycare centers. There was indeed such a need in society. Secondly, Song Xiamin provided some valuable information—that entering a daycare center under the Beijing City First Kindergarten would make it easier to enter the kindergarten itself. This unwritten rule was not widely known, making the information invaluable. Nowadays, entering a kindergarten was not easy, especially prestigious ones like the Beijing City First Kindergarten, which everyone scrambled to get into. Some families were willing to spend money and use various means just to get their children into these kindergartens, all to ensure their children wouldn't fall behind on the so-called "starting line."

However, none of these were problems for Zu Mo.

He had quit his job and had plenty of time to take care of his daughter. Moreover, he was willing and felt obliged to take care of his daughter personally because there were too many regrets and debts to make up for from his previous life. Secondly, with the advent of the High Martial Era and even the Star River Era, the current social rules and standards for evaluating life would be overturned. By then, whether or not one entered a kindergarten, a primary school, a prestigious middle school or university, or what kind of job one had would no longer be important.

Zu Mo had already decided to raise his daughter himself.

So, he thanked Song Xiamin for her concern and advice, then said he wanted more time to spend with his daughter and wasn't considering sending her to daycare.

Song Xiamin misunderstood Zu Mo's concerns about the financial burden. After all, judging from his residence, he didn't seem to be very well-off, and he didn't seem to have a job either...

However, there were some things she didn't want to say too much about, so she stopped there.

Song Xiamin gently touched the little one's head and said, "Yunyun, Auntie is leaving now. Be a good girl and listen to Daddy. Auntie will come to see you another day."

With that, she got up to leave.

The little one stretched out her tender little hand, waving goodbye to her.

Zu Mo picked up his daughter to accompany Song Xiamin out, but she insisted he didn't need to. "It's okay, take care of Yunyun. I'll leave now. Thank you for your hospitality. Feel free to contact me if you need anything."

She was referring to matters concerning the child going to daycare or kindergarten.

Zu Mo nodded. "Sorry, I won't see you off then."

Song Xiamin replied, "No need to see me off."

With that, she went downstairs herself.

Just as Zu Mo was about to go back upstairs holding his daughter, he suddenly heard a series of banging noises coming from the floor below.

The little one was startled and cried out, "Oh oh!"

Zu Mo reassured her, "Let's go check it out."

He carried the little one downstairs and saw Song Xiamin lying in the hallway in a comical and embarrassed manner, with her skirt slightly raised.

Zu Mo hurried over to help her up. "Song Teacher, what happened to you?"

Song Xiamin grimaced, seemingly in pain. "Don't move... It hurts..."

Zu Mo asked, "Where does it hurt?"

Song Xiamin replied, "My foot... My foot..."

Song Xiamin felt a piercing pain in her right ankle, making her unable to move.

Zu Mo lifted the little one onto his neck, carrying her like a princess, and started upstairs.

Song Xiamin couldn't help but scream in fright and quickly hooked her arms around Zu Mo's neck, afraid of falling.

But Zu Mo walked fast and steadily, even more stable than if she had walked herself.

Back in the rented apartment, Zu Mo placed the girl on the sofa, not even out of breath or sweating.

At this moment, Song Xiamin's eyes were already showing signs of infatuation, thinking that he looked thin but actually quite strong...

"You, why are you so careless?" Zu Mo said somewhat reproachfully.