Siheyuan: tomb robbing? I am serious about hunting.

Chapter 1093 Mother-in-law

, his jawline no longer as cold and hard as usual, but instead had a touch of warmth. Returning to the villa, Su Wan quickly folded her umbrella and placed it on the umbrella stand by the door. She turned to look at Lu Chengyuan. His hair and clothes were soaked, with water droplets dripping down his hair and landing on his shirt, creating a small stain. "Mr. Lu, please sit down for a moment. I'll find you a dry towel." Su Wan said, and without waiting for Lu Chengyuan to reply, she hurried to the bathroom. There were several clean towels hanging on the towel rack in the bathroom. Su Wan picked out the largest and thickest white towel, took another dry hair towel, and hurried back to the living room. Lu Chengyuan was already sitting on the sofa, leaning slightly against the back of the sofa, his eyes closed, his brows slightly furrowed, and he looked a little tired. Su Wan walked over to him and handed him the dry towel: "Mr. Lu, please wipe it." Lu Chengyuan opened his eyes, took the towel, and whispered "Thank you." He picked up a towel and casually wiped the water from his hair and face, then draped it over his shoulders to wipe the rain from his body. Su Wan felt a pity for his exhaustion. She remembered how the chef had told her, back when she was a kitchen helper at a restaurant, that drinking a bowl of ginger soup after getting caught in the rain could dispel the cold and prevent a cold. An idea struck her, and she said to Lu Chengyuan, "Mr. Lu, please wait here for a moment. I'll make you some ginger soup." Without waiting for Lu Chengyuan's response, Su Wan turned and headed into the kitchen. The kitchen was well stocked with ingredients, and she quickly found ginger, brown sugar, and red dates. She peeled the ginger and sliced ​​it thinly, then washed the red dates and removed the cores. Then, she placed the ginger slices and dates in a pot, added an appropriate amount of water, brought it to a boil over high heat, then reduced the heat to a simmer. As the ginger soup cooked, Su Wan would periodically lift the lid to check its color and consistency. She remembered how her mother used to cook ginger soup until the ginger slices were soft and the soup turned a deep brown, ensuring the richness of the flavor. She'd also added extra brown sugar, knowing Lu Chengyuan didn't like spicy food, and the brown sugar would help neutralize some of the ginger's spiciness. Lu Chengyuan sat on the sofa in the living room, his gaze fixed on the kitchen. The kitchen light was a warm yellow, and Su Wan bustled about busily, slicing ginger, washing red dates, and stirring the ginger soup in the pot, her movements expert and meticulous. He could clearly see her profile, her brows slightly furrowed, her eyes focused, as if she were completing something very important. At that moment, Lu Chengyuan felt a warmth he had never felt before. He remembered that his parents had died when he was very young, and he had grown up with his grandfather. His grandfather was a strict man, holding him to extremely high standards and never allowing him to slack off. From a young age, he had learned to hide his emotions and protect himself with a cold exterior. He knew that in this family rife with intrigue, only a strong person could protect him from being bullied. When he grew up, he took over the Star Harbor Group. Every day, he had to deal with a myriad of tasks and was surrounded by a variety of people. But he knew that those who approached him were either motivated by personal gain or fear of his power. No one had ever shown the same genuine concern for whether he was catching a cold or feeling tired as Su Wan did. Su Wan's presence was like a ray of light, illuminating his cold, closed world, bringing him a warmth and a sense of everyday life he had never experienced before. He watched her busy figure, and a sudden thought struck him—he seemed to have a crush on this girl. Soon, the rich aroma of ginger and jujubes wafted from the kitchen. Su Wan emerged bearing a bowl of steaming ginger soup. The broth was dark brown, with a few red dates floating on top, making it look particularly enticing. She placed it on the coffee table in front of Lu Chengyuan and said cautiously, "Mr. Lu, drink some to warm yourself up, or you'll have a headache tomorrow." Lu Chengyuan looked up at Su Wan. A faint smile clung to her face, her eyes filled with worry, like a little sister worried about her brother. He picked up the ginger soup; the sides of the bowl were scorching, and he couldn't help but frown. Su Wan noticed and quickly said, "Mr. Lu, drink slowly. Be careful of the heat." Lu Chengyuan nodded, brought the bowl to his lips, and took a sip. The spicy ginger flavor blended with the sweetness of red dates and the richness of brown sugar, spreading in his mouth, then sliding down his throat into his stomach, warming him to the core. The chill brought by the rain was instantly dispelled. He took a few more sips and felt his entire body warm up, his fatigue fading. He looked up at Su Wan. She was staring at him nervously, her eyes filled with anticipation, like a student waiting for praise from their teacher. Lu Chengyuan's heart softened. Grandma Gu's voice was urgent, as if something big had happened. Ah Yan's heart tightened. He knew Grandma Gu rarely called on him unless it was something very important. He quickly picked up the little squirrel, put it in his pocket, and ran towards the altar. The maple forest is not far from the altar. After running for a few minutes, Ah Yan saw Ah Cheng who lived by the stream. Ah Cheng was a chubby boy, one year older than Ah Yan, but half a head shorter than Ah Yan. He was wearing a yellow coarse cloth and holding a big wooden bucket in his hand, and was about to go to Lingquan Creek to fetch water. Ah Cheng was very strong and was a famous "little strongman" in the valley. He could easily lift stones heavier than himself, carry a wooden bucket full of water for hundreds of meters by himself, and even break off the branches of the thickest ancient tree in the valley. The villagers said that when Ah Cheng grew up, he would definitely become the most powerful hunter in the valley. "Ah Cheng, have you also received news from Grandma Gu?" Ah Yan ran over and asked. Ah Cheng nodded, puzzled, and said, "Yes, Granny Gu just called me, saying she had something important to tell me. By the way, Ah Yan, look at my arm." He raised his right arm, revealing a large orange stone mark. It resembled Ah Yan's flame mark, its edges also flickering with a faint orange glow. "Wow, you have a mark on your arm too!" Ah Yan exclaimed in surprise, quickly raising his left arm. "Look at mine, it's in the shape of a flame." Seven multicolored crystals simultaneously shone dazzlingly, brighter than ever before, blinding the eyes. Then, with a crisp "crack," cracks spread across the red crystal, quickly covering the entire stone. Immediately afterwards, cracks appeared in the orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue, and purple crystals, shattering all seven simultaneously. Countless points of light shot out from the crystals, flashing with multicolored light like fireflies, and flew in different directions across the valley. Some of the light points flew towards the maple forest in the east of the valley, and some flew towards the stream.