Chapter 208 - 207: Cooking for Husband

The morning light filtered through the high, arched windows of the provincial palace’s grand kitchens, casting long, golden columns across the pristine white marble floors. The air was already thick with the scent of burning charcoal and the faint, sweet aroma of boiling lotus roots.

Bai Qingyue sat in her wheelchair at the center of the bustling room. Around her, a dozen high-ranking palace servants and chefs moved with frantic, nervous precision, terrified of displeasing the wife of the man who had just turned the Central Continent upside down.

"Lady Bai, please, allow me to handle the garlic," a head chef practically begged, bowing so low his tall hat nearly brushed the floor. "Your hands are far too delicate for such mundane labor."

"I appreciate your concern, Head Chef Wang," Bai Qingyue replied, her voice holding that serene, untouchable grace that brokered absolutely no argument. "But you may leave the garlic. In fact, you may leave the ingredients exactly where they are. I will only require you to manage the fires and ensure the hearths remain at a steady temperature. Nothing more."

The chef looked horrified. "But My Lady, Senior Lin is an expert! To feed him a meal prepared without our supreme culinary arts—"

"Head Chef Wang," Bai Qingyue interrupted gently, her eyes locking onto the man. "I did not come here to commission a banquet. I came here to cook for my husband. Now, please step back. And Xiao Li, have you sent word to my cousin yet?"

A young servant girl scrambled forward, nodding vigorously. "Yes, My Lady! I sent the messenger bird to the eastern training pavilion just as you asked. Young Master Bai should be arriving at any moment!"

"Excellent," Bai Qingyue smiled warmly. "You are all dismissed to the outer preparatory rooms. I require privacy for this kitchen."

The servants exchanged nervous glances, but they dared not disobey. They bowed in unison and quickly filed out of the grand kitchen, leaving Bai Qingyue alone with the sprawling counters of fresh ingredients.

A few moments later, the heavy wooden doors swung open, and Bai Chen burst into the room. He was sweating slightly, a wooden training sword still strapped to his waist, his chest heaving as if he had sprinted the entire way.

"Cousin!" Bai Chen called out, his eyes darting around the empty kitchen. "Xiao Li’s bird found me mid-swing. What’s wrong? I hope no one from the Upper Division provinces dared to cross your path."

Bai Qingyue let out a soft, musical laugh, the tension in the room instantly dissipating. "No, Chen’er. Lower your voice and put your wooden sword away. I merely needed your help with something important."

Bai Chen blinked, relaxing his stance. He walked over to the marble counters, looking at the piles of vegetables, spices, and slabs of high-grade beast meat. "Help? With what? Are we inspecting the palace’s supply lines?"

"We are cooking," Bai Qingyue stated simply, wheeling herself closer to a large wooden cutting board.

"Cooking?" Bai Chen’s jaw dropped. He looked at her, then at the ingredients, and then back at her. "Cousin, you are a Saintess. Well, a former Saintess, but still! And Brother-in-law is an expert who just robbed the entire Upper Division blind! Why in the Nine Provinces are we cooking?"

"Because words are often insufficient, Chen’er," Bai Qingyue said, her tone softening, carrying a profound depth of emotion. She picked up a silver knife, turning it over in her pale hands. "Yesterday, he stood before the Court. He faced down a Peak Soul Transformation adjudicator, he dismantled the Chu Province, and he kept the Ascension Clause. He did it to protect us, and he did it to secure the cure for my cultivation. He fought a war for us."

Bai Chen’s expression immediately sobered. The erratic energy drained from his posture, replaced by a deep, fierce loyalty. "I know, Cousin. I know what he did for us. I owe him my life ten times over."

"As do I," she murmured. "Which is exactly why I do not want a hundred palace servants preparing his meal today. I want it to be just the two of us. The Lin family. I want us to prepare a meal for our husband and brother-in-law with our own hands. It is a simple act, but it is one of the only ways I can truly show him that we are a family, and that we are endlessly grateful."

Bai Chen’s chest swelled with pride. He slapped his hand against the marble counter, a wide, enthusiastic grin breaking across his face.

"Say no more, Cousin!" Bai Chen declared loudly. "I am entirely at your command! We will cook the greatest, most spectacular dish the Nine Provinces have ever seen! We will infuse it with so much gratitude that his Dao Heart will sing! What are we making? Dragon-bone soup? A thousand-year ginseng roast? Tell me what Brother-in-law’s absolute favorite dish is, and I will start chopping!"

Bai Qingyue opened her mouth to answer.

And then, she froze.

The silver knife in her hand clattered softly against the wooden cutting board. Her eyes widened slightly as she stared blankly at the pile of fresh scallions in front of her.

"Cousin?" Bai Chen asked, tilting his head. "What is it?"

"I..." Bai Qingyue swallowed hard, a sudden, horrifying wave of inadequacy washing over her. "I don’t know."

"You don’t know what?"

"I don’t know his favorite dish," she whispered, her voice laced with genuine distress. She looked up at Bai Chen, her perfectly composed demeanor fracturing. "Chen’er, I have been married to this man for over three months. He has given me his absolute devotion, he has shared his Qi with me every single night to keep me warm, and I do not even know what food he enjoys!"

Bai Chen’s eyes widened in surprise. "Wait, really? You don’t know? But you guys talk all night!"

"We do!" she said, her hands fluttering nervously over the counter. "But we never talk about food! How could I be so blind? What kind of wife does not know her own husband’s preferred meal?"

"Whoa, hey, calm down," Bai Chen said quickly, waving his hands to dispel her rising panic. "Cousin, you are being completely unfair to yourself right now. You can’t blame yourself for this!"

"How can I not?" she argued, looking genuinely heartbroken. "It is the most basic piece of knowledge."

"No, it isn’t!" Bai Chen insisted, leaning over the counter. "Think about it, Cousin! We are cultivators! And Brother-in-law is a Spirit Severing expert! He doesn’t even need mortal food! He hasn’t needed mortal sustenance to survive since! Cultivators like him just absorb the might of Heaven and Earth. They can live for a thousand years without ever touching a bowl of rice. Why would the topic of mortal food ever naturally come up in your conversations?"

Bai Qingyue bit her lower lip, considering his words. "I suppose that is true."

"Exactly!" Bai Chen grinned triumphantly. "It is no one’s fault. If the man barely eats, how are you supposed to know his favorite dish? It’s not like he walks around announcing his culinary preferences to the palace guards."

"But I still need to know," she insisted, her determination returning. "I cannot just cook a random assortment of vegetables. It has to be something he truly desires."

"Then don’t worry about it!" Bai Chen said, turning toward the kitchen doors. "I will just go and ask him right now!"

"No! Wait!" Bai Qingyue reached out, her voice urgent.

Bai Chen stopped, looking back over his shoulder. "What? Why not?"

"You cannot just ask him," she pleaded, her cheeks flushing a faint, embarrassed pink. "If you ask him, he will know that I sent you. He will know that his own wife is completely ignorant of his tastes. It will look terrible, Chen’er. It will make me feel like I am failing my duties to him."

Bai Chen frowned, walking back to her side. He crossed his arms, adopting a surprisingly mature, grounded posture.

"Cousin, I am going to have to reject that line of thought entirely," Bai Chen said firmly. "Brother-in-law is the most terrifying, intelligent, and understanding man I have ever met. Do you honestly think he is going to judge you because you don’t know his favorite food?"

"It isn’t about him judging me," she murmured, looking down at her hands. "It is about me wanting to be perfect for him."

"You are already perfect for him," Bai Chen said softly. "I see the way he looks at you. He looks at you like you are the only thing in the Nine Provinces that actually matters. He isn’t going to care if you have to ask a question. But if it makes you feel better, I will be the one asking. I’ll make it sound like it was entirely my idea."

Before she could protest further, Bai Chen spun on his heel and marched toward the heavy wooden doors.

"Start boiling the water, Cousin!" Bai Chen called out over his shoulder. "I will be back in ten minutes with the menu!"

The doors swung shut, leaving Bai Qingyue alone in the kitchen. She let out a long, slow exhale, a small, grateful smile touching her lips as she reached out to ignite the hearth.