Chapter 0288: Grocery Shopping

Fan Baobao cooking?

Zhao Fusheng felt that just the thought of it was a joke, plain and simple.

After all, while every girl has dreamed of being a chef, talent isn't something everyone possesses. From childhood until high school, Fan Baobao had tried countless times to cook herself.

But unfortunately, what she made could only be described as dark cuisine.

In Zhao Fusheng's words, Fan Baobao's dark cuisine could even found its own school.

Things like scrambled eggs with eggplant, stewed potatoes with tomatoes and apples, cabbage cucumber and rapeseed soup—just hearing the names made one not want to take even a single bite.

And back then, Fan Baobao's usual taste-tester was Zhao Fusheng.

Thinking back to those days dominated by fear, even though decades had passed by his current mental age, Zhao Fusheng couldn't help shaking his head. He even occasionally admired himself—what gave him the courage to eat what Fan Baobao made? Liang Jingru?

"What are you thinking about?" Fan Baobao frowned, looking at Zhao Fusheng with suspicion.

Zhao Fusheng shook his head like a rattle-drum, blinked at Fan Baobao, and said, "You just arrived today, you must be tired. How about I treat you to a meal outside?"

"Why eat out? That's a waste of money." Fan Baobao waved her hand. "Don't be so free with your spending. I wanted to say this back in Beijing—money isn't easy to earn. Can't you be more frugal?"

Zhao Fusheng gave an awkward smile, then thought of the best excuse: "Well, there's no rice or vegetables here. I always eat at the cafeteria, so I didn't buy any."

Fan Baobao shot him a glance: "So what? Come on, let's take the bus to the city and buy from our own supermarket."

"Huh?"

Zhao Fusheng was speechless for a long time. He never expected Fan Baobao to have such an idea.

Seeing Zhao Fusheng silent, Fan Baobao said earnestly, "You need to understand—we're buying no matter where we go. But if we spend two yuan on the bus, that money goes to our own family's supermarket, doesn't it?"

Zhao Fusheng tilted his head and thought for a long time. He felt something was off but couldn't find a way to refute Fan Baobao, so he resignedly let her drag him out the door. They took bus No. 17 at the entrance and soon arrived at the department store.

"See, it's right across." Zhao Fusheng pointed at the mall opposite and said to her.

Fan Baobao nodded: "Let's go. We'll buy things first, then go to the office."

Zhao Fusheng thought that made sense, so he followed her, and the two entered the supermarket one after the other.

"Children from poor families learn to manage early." This saying isn't meant to disparage those from impoverished backgrounds. Rather, it's because the worse a family's financial situation, the more likely they are to budget carefully and arrange their expenses wisely. After all, when you're broke, even a stir-fry dish requires careful consideration.

The biggest advantage of Zhao Fusheng and Fan Baobao shopping together was that neither liked snacks, so they were very purposeful. They went straight to the vegetable stall, bought a few kinds of greens, then some meat. Finally, they picked up half a bag of rice. Fortunately, Zhao Fusheng was in good shape, or he really couldn't have carried all that.

"Not buying some fruit?" Zhao Fusheng, with both hands full of bags, asked Fan Baobao.

Fan Baobao thought for a moment: "Let's get some bananas and apples."

Zhao Fusheng nodded: "And some grapes."

Unexpectedly, Fan Baobao shook her head: "Not buying, too expensive."

Zhao Fusheng was taken aback, then a warmth welled up in his heart.

Zhao Fusheng loved bananas and apples, while Fan Baobao liked grapes, but fruit prices weren't cheap at this time, and bananas were even a bit more expensive than grapes.

Clearly, Fan Baobao really thought it was expensive, but what she had in mind was still buying some fruit he liked.

"Hey, I earn more money than you now, no need to be so frugal." Zhao Fusheng said with a soft smile to Fan Baobao.

Fan Baobao glared at him: "No matter how much you earn, you can't waste."

Zhao Fusheng had no choice but to watch helplessly as the girl ran to the fruit section, bought bananas and apples, hesitated for a long time, and finally picked up a small bunch of grapes, the cheapest kind.

Back at the counter to pay, Fan Baobao said to Zhao Fusheng with an air of righteousness: "Wallet."

"Oh." Zhao Fusheng obediently took out his wallet. Fan Baobao took it, glanced at it, then said gently to the cashier: "How much?"

Zhao Fusheng watched helplessly as she paid the bill with his wallet, then casually pocketed the change into her own pocket.

"Here's your wallet." Fan Baobao glanced at it, then frowned: "This wallet, I bought it for you, didn't I?"

"Is that so?" Zhao Fusheng was startled, then remembered that it was true; Fan Baobao had given it to him for her birthday last year.

He had gotten so used to it that he hadn't paid any attention to it.

After paying, the two of them carried a bunch of things and walked toward the mall office.

But unexpectedly, when they reached the office, there wasn't a single person—not only was Zhao Dad absent, but Zhao Mom and Li Yuan weren't there either.

"Strange, when I left home, my mom said she was coming here." Fan Baobao said with a puzzled look.

"Probably busy with something else." Zhao Fusheng shrugged: "It's getting late, let's go back."

He really didn't want his parents or Li Yuan to see him and Fan Baobao like this—it looked just like a young couple living together, and the elders would probably start overthinking again.

"Alright, let's go then."

Fan Baobao nodded, and the two of them left the mall.

Back home, Fan Baobao changed clothes and said to Zhao Fusheng: "Watch some TV for now; I'll call you when dinner's ready."

Seeing her confident look, Zhao Fusheng sighed helplessly. He didn't even need to think to know what kind of miserable ordeal awaited him.

After thinking it over, Zhao Fusheng decided to go upstairs for a while; there were still some snacks he had bought before, so he could eat a bit first to avoid not being able to stomach whatever Fan Baobao made later.

He tiptoed upstairs, but before he could reach the top, Fan Baobao's voice suddenly rang out: "Zhao Fusheng, go buy oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar—there's nothing at home."

Zhao Fusheng was stunned, then nodded helplessly: "Got it."

Resigned, he picked up his clothes, put on his shoes, and headed out the door. Passing by the kitchen, he saw Fan Baobao struggling to slice potatoes. Looking at the potato slices, almost as thick as his fingers, Zhao Fusheng's mouth twitched, feeling that the future was bleak.