Chapter 9: Stirring the Entire Neighborhood

"Lin Yi, did you really make this soup?" Zhang Xiu, who had been cooking for decades, couldn't recall a time when she had ever encountered such fragrant chicken soup. This... this was no ordinary soup; it was practically a chemical weapon... Just the aroma alone was enough to tantalize the taste buds, what would happen if one actually tasted it? "Mom, I made the soup, but Lin Yi was just assisting," Xia Qianqian proudly piped up, lifting her chin. "Cut it out! Since when have you had such skills? I know you well," Zhang Xiu shot a glance at her daughter. Seeing her bluff had been called out, Xia Qianqian simply stuck out her tongue and rolled her eyes. "Hmph! Handsome men are often useless, and the tastiest looking dishes are often too spicy. Although the soup smells good, I bet it doesn't taste all that great," Xia Xiaoxiao muttered from the side, "I still prefer Zhiwen's cooking; he's a real man." Xia Xiaoxiao's comments seemed targeted at Xia Qianqian, which made them sound rather peculiar. "Damn girl, no one would take you for mute if you didn't speak," Xia Qianqian snapped back in irritation. "Only a mute wouldn't speak. I have a mouth; I'll say what I want. Besides, it's all your fault for making me heartbroken," Xia Xiaoxiao rolled her eyes in response. "Alright, can you two cut it out? Sit down and let's eat. By the way, darling, may dad have a taste of the soup?" Xia Hongjun was impatient to try it. The moment the pot of chicken soup was set down, he had been drooling; the wait was becoming intolerable. "Of course, you can..." Xia Qianqian readily agreed. At Xia Qianqian's gesture, Zhang Xiu and Wang Zhiwen also looked over; despite being stricken, Wang Zhiwen had to admit that the soup was too enticing not to try. "Knock, knock..." Just as Xia Qianqian was about to ladle soup for her father, there was a knock at the door. "I'll get it, who is it..." Zhang Xiu went to answer the door upon hearing the knock. Opening the door, they were greeted by a woman and a skeletal little girl. "It's Little Mei! How nice of you to drop by. Come in, sit down..." Zhang Xiu recognized the mother and daughter; they were their next-door neighbors. With a husband who deserted them, leaving a mother and her sick daughter; the child's situation was quite serious. "Sister Zhang, the aroma of your chicken soup drifted into our home, and it made my daughter feel hungry. Could you... spare some for her?" Little Mei spoke somewhat sheepishly. It was rare for someone to go to their neighbor's begging for food, which explained her discomfort. Zhang Xiu, a bit taken aback, then laughed, "Oh, that's no issue at all! Come in, you both haven't had dinner yet, right? Let's eat together." "But..." Little Mei hesitated, seeing all the guests inside. "Come now! It's no big deal, we're all family here." Zhang Xiu had always taken care of the mother and daughter, and now, hearing that the little girl was eager to eat something lifted her spirits. She kindly invited them inside. "Come here, little sister; sit next to me." Xia Qianqian immediately served a bowl of soup and invited the girl over. "Thank you, sister." The girl took a sip from her bowl, and her whole body trembled; her cheeks flushed with warmth. Boom! She felt every cell in her muscles ignite as if a person long dead had suddenly been revived, with life force surging and energy filling her body. "Mom, I'm so hungry..." The girl turned to her mother, stating earnestly. "Hungry? Do you mean..." As Little Mei heard her daughter claim to be hungry, she was overcome with a wave of happiness. For years, the concern of her daughter not eating had plagued her, but now, her daughter said she was hungry. Could it be that the soup had cured her daughter's illness?

"Here, have some rice…" Zhang Xiu quickly passed a bowl of rice to the girl. After taking the bowl, the little girl began eating eagerly, then picked up the chopsticks to try the dishes. "These dishes taste awful…" After one bite, the girl immediately spat it out and simply stuck to eating plain rice. Her actions struck another blow to Wang Zhiwen's pride; his cooking was of master chef level, yet after tasting Lin Yi's soup, the girl deemed his dishes inedible. Were Lin Yi's dishes really that good? "Lin Yi, you're really amazing…" Xia Qianqian gave Lin Yi a thumbs up, feeling he was becoming more and more mysterious. "How so?" Lin Yi was puzzled. "You don't know? This girl lives next door to us. When she was very young, she developed agoraphobia and later anorexia. The doctors said she might die if she didn't eat. But your chicken soup seems to have saved her life." Xia Qianqian explained. "Is it really that dramatic?" Lin Yi was genuinely startled. He had just followed a superior cooking skill technique to make a soup, and it had this tremendous effect? "Old Xia, what's that smell in your house? Something smells amazing." "Yeah! Got any goodies you're not sharing with the neighborhood?" "It smells so good, I can't stand it. I just ate, but I'm hungry again." "Good heavens! If this smell keeps torturing me, I'm going to lose my mind." Because the door wasn't closed in time, neighbors had stepped out of their homes and gathered in the hallway, moving towards the Xia's residence. "This…" Xia Hongjun knew the soup smelled good and would likely taste great, but he had no idea it would cause such a stir in the neighborhood. "Humph! I don't believe the soup is that good." Seeing the people outside and the girl enjoying her meal, Xia Xiaoxiao refused to be outdone and scooped up a spoonful of soup. After drinking it, Xia Xiaoxiao was momentarily stunned, her cheeks flushing red. "Ah…" Suddenly, Xia Xiaoxiao screamed and ran tearfully to her room. "Girl, what's wrong?" Xia Hongjun called after her but quickly turned his attention back to the chicken soup. Without further thought, he and Zhang Xiu each took a sip. "Ah…" They both shouted after swallowing. "What's going on?" "This soup… this soup…" The couple turned beet-red, shaking as if overwhelmed by disbelief. "Dad, Mom, what's wrong?" Xia Qianqian was startled by her parents' reactions. "It's… so delicious…" Xia Hongjun and Zhang Xiu exclaimed in unison. "So delicious?" Xia Qianqian was puzzled; was the soup really worth such reactions? Nonetheless, she also picked up a spoon to try a sip.