'First of all, we should start by washing the rice…'
Ren Ye held a cup of rice and poured it into a pot, turned on the water, and started rinsing them gently thrice; to remove the starch off the rice. He casually glanced back and forth between the pot and his phone, which was playing a tutorial video.
Ren Ye had a serious expression on his face as though he was concerned, he was going to make a mistake if he didn't focus enough.
'Next, we'll start boiling a pot of water to save time for later…'
He placed the washed rice to the side as he began to fill another pot with the melted chicken stock and placed them on the stove. He peeled a ginger and thinly sliced it into strips; he proceeded to continue chopping a few strands of cilantro and green onion into small pieces.
His hand moved swiftly as he pressed and cut them with ease; he was quite skilled in chopping things.
'Pour the rice into the boiling pot…'
He took the pot of rice and poured it into the boiling chicken stock, changing the heat from high to medium and allowing it to simmer for a couple of minutes. He made sure to scrub the bottom of the pot with his chopsticks; to not burn the rice and allow it to float.
As the broth thickened along with the softening of the rice, Ren Ye began seasoning it with salt, pepper, and msg; adding extra flavor to the congee.
'Stir for 20-30 minutes…'
He frowned and began to stir the pot for about 20 minutes and after which, the video instructed him to pour in the sliced ginger, cilantro, and green onion.
He made sure to wait for a couple of minutes before taking a tiny spoon and scooping a spoon of the congee and giving it a taste. He smacked his mouth slightly and took in the flavor; his eyes widened slightly with a bit of surprise.
"It turned out better than I thought although it needs a bit of fish sauce…"
He added a spoon of fish sauce into the congee and tried it once again; he curled his lips in satisfaction.
'This is better…'
He turned off the heat and washed his hands, he went upstairs into his room. As he opened his door, he discovered the little girl had sat up with hazy eyes and rubbed her face.
"Papa…"
Ren Ye approached her and sat down on the bed, 'What is wrong?'
"Jia'er had a dream last night…Jia'er saw Papa on the ground surrounded by strangers…"
The little girl pouted her mouth and said with gloom clouding her face, much to the astonishment of Ren Ye as his eyes widened with unconcealed shock.
'They all had bad intentions towards Papa…'
After hearing what the little girl had said, Ren Ye's body trembled tremendously and he was speechless as to what dream the girl even had.
'What the…'
'Did she have a dream of what happened in my past life?' Ren Ye spoke inwardly with a complex voice.
'Seems like so,' Old Yi confirmed in acknowledgment, his voice was deep.
Ren Ye couldn't utter a word as he straightened his lips into a straight line, his eyes grew profound. Instead of confirming that it was a true occurrence and making her depressed further, he chose to keep silent and placed his hand on the little girl's head.
"Dreams are nothing more but imaginary visions…"
He comforted her with an indifferent tone and patted her head gently, "If you have anything to say to me, you can say them now but always remember not everything you see in a dream is real. I am here in my flesh and blood, sitting in front of you."
"I won't go anywhere anytime soon,' He gave her a bob on the head as she rubbed the spot with a dissatisfying pout.
"Papa must promise to Jia'er that Papa wouldn't leave Jia'er…" She lifted her eyes and glanced at him with teary eyes, likely to burst out anytime soon if her Papa didn't grant her wish.
Ren Ye shot her a strange glance, thinking inside his head.
'Children are emotionally fragile even more so my daughter, instigating the fear of their parents leaving them one day. I'm afraid if I say no, I may get struck by lightning which doesn't sound so nice…'
'Since I don't plan to leave any time soon, a promise to this daughter of mine wouldn't bring me any setbacks and she may become my home in this unfamiliar world…'
"Don't worry, I don't plan to leave you alone," He shot her a complex glance, and he flicked her forehead playfully, "As long as Jia'er behaves well, I don't plan on abandoning..."
Her eyes gleamed with endless joy, and a drop of tear slid from her eyes as Ren Ye immediately wiped it off her face with his knuckles, "Papa is the best man in the world!"
Old Yi chuckled with contentment, 'You are getting accustomed to this role of being a father."
"I have prepared breakfast, we should go eat it first before it gets cold," Ren Ye coughed awkwardly after hearing the compliment she gave him, he coughed and spoke with a bland voice.
"Papa! Hug!"
The little girl jolted upward and wrapped her arms around his neck, exclaiming in contagious happiness as her legs bounced up and down on the soft bed. Ren Ye felt quite breathless as he was being hugged by her, feeling quite embarrassed inside his heart.
'What an adorable kid,' Old Yi commented with an amused tone, 'Always making her Papa embarrassed for no reason.'
Ren Ye recovered his composure and bought her downstairs, he started putting chicken congee into two large bowls and one small bowl. Ren Jia was shorter than the table as she tried lifting her head to see what was on the table.
Instead of dallying around, she climbed onto the chair and stood on it; allowing her to observe what was on the table. After seeing and smelling the chicken congee, she was slightly taken aback and glanced toward her Papa.
"Papa can cook?" Her eyes beamed with light and happiness, Ren Ye didn't speak and nodded his head faintly; acknowledging he made this mainly due to the help of the internet. Ren Ye gave her a spoon as she continued to glance at him with confusion and endearing glossy eyes.
"Papa should feed Jia'er," She shot him a rather smug smile, she lifted the spoon and swayed it toward him in an attention-attracting manner.
"..."
'Whose traits did she even inherit from?' Ren Ye's features twitched slightly as he exhaled. Ren Ye took the spoon and proceeded to feed her gradually; eventually, the bowl had gone out of congee.
As she had finished, Fa Qing came downstairs and took in the smell of the congee. She was astonished that this son of hers took the time to learn and cook for his daughter.
"Grandma, come have congee with Jia'er!" The little girl lifted both of her and waved them to catch her attention. Ren Ye nodded his head and had prepared a bowl of congee for her beforehand.
Ren Ye had something on his mind as he looked forward to talking about it with his mom; he was planning to talk with her about moving to the capital. There were many more opportunities for him than in this small city, he wasn't sure how he would find another job again considering what had happened to him and the oppression of the moneylenders that didn't allow him to live his life truly.
'I have come into this world for a day now and the situation I am currently is holding me back very much so from doing what I want. I plan on giving Jia'er a proper education and the current income I have at this moment wouldn't be enough, it isn't enough to buy the resources to nurture my cultivating...'
The system would pass him 10000 RMB which he presumed to be the fee to help him get accustomed to the city; it was enough for leasing a small apartment for a month but it wasn't enough for other expenses such as food. In his bank account, he had less than 300 RMB...
This is why he decided to move to the Beikang although the system didn't give him much of a choice either...
"Mom, I have something to talk to you about," He spoke solemnly to her as his eyes reflected her frail figure, he pressed his lips tightly and took all of her changes into consideration. Fa Qing frowned slightly and gestured to Ren Ye to continue talking.
"I plan to move to Beikang with Jia'er..."
"If you wish to go, I cannot stop you."
"What about you, Mom? Do you plan on staying for the rest of your life?" Ren Ye asked her with a slightly loud tone, he wasn't sure if convincing his mom would work at all.
Fa Qing shot her a gentle smile, "A landlord never leaves her home alone without a keeper."
"Is it because of Dad?" Ren Ye lowered his voice.
"No…" Fa Qing sipped her water and continued eating the congee; the congee gradually lost its taste inside her mouth.
"Dad is gone now and what is holding you back from ever finding a way out of this place?" He asked her all of a sudden, raising his voice slightly.
"Papa! Papa shouldn't speak loudly to Grandma!" Jia'er pulled the corner of his shirt with a worried face; the little girl didn't like the way her Papa talks with Grandma because she couldn't help but imagine herself in Grandma's shoes.
'Being told off by Papa is scary, Jia'er doesn't like it one bit!' Ren Jia thought inside her head with unhappiness, pouting her lips.
Fa Qing sighed with gloom, "Ren Ye, you don't really understand how life works, do you? Leaving a place where I lived and made memories for most of my life doesn't mean the attachment will be easily erased once I go away…"
She diverted her eyes to his, maintaining his gaze with unconcealed determination, "That is why you shouldn't think of asking me such question ever again."
Ren Ye remained silent and didn't speak, his eyes on Jia'er's hands which were gripping his sleeves tightly; it wasn't a good thing for anyone to lose their anger in front of children; especially a father to his delicate daughter and he chose to remain quiet as a result of that.
'There's really no way of convincing this old lady,' Old Yi sighed and commented, 'You may have to proceed by letting her stay here…'
'Or you could either choose to stay here with her and completely abandon your mission,' Old Yi continued with a rather disappointed tone.
'No! I cannot abandon my mission as it is the only way I could save myself in the future,' He immediately dismissed Old Yi resolutely.
A man is given a chance to become a powerful being, what kind of fool would refuse such an offer? As the Night Killer, such an enticing opportunity wouldn't be allowed to go to waste.
Now that he thought of it, when has the Night Killer ever cared about the feelings of others? If he wants to become powerful, who would dare get in his way?
In the end, he chose to completely disregard the original owner's feelings and placed his needs above him.
"If that is the case then I already have chosen my own path," Ren Ye said with an indifferent tone.
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