Siheyuan, integrating everything, cultivating the city

"This taste is still so good." He murmured to himself, feeling warm in his heart. This plate of onions is not only a recognition of his cooking skills, but also a dialogue between him and his own life. In the process of growing onions, he experienced failure, anxiety, expectation, surprise, and finally tasted the fruits of his labor. This made him feel that life is no longer a monotonous gray, but full of many small things to look forward to.

After finishing the meal, Li Xiangqian looked at the empty plate and felt a little melancholy. Although he made the dish himself, it seemed to be missing something. He thought about it and suddenly realized that this meal might be more delicious if he could eat it with others. He was used to eating alone and thought it was nothing, but this time he made the dish himself and felt a little lonely.

He stood up, put away the dishes, and prepared to go to the yard to get some fresh air. When he opened the door, it was already getting dark, and the yard was quiet, with only a few dim lights on. Li Xiangqian walked to the onion seedlings, squatted down, and gently stroked the plants he had worked so hard to cultivate, and suddenly felt a little melancholy.

"The onions have been planted, the pork belly has been fried, and it tastes good, but why do I always feel like something is missing?" He muttered to himself, his eyes a little confused.

At this moment, Aunt Zhang from next door opened the door and walked in, carrying a basket of fresh vegetables. She saw Li Xiangqian and said with a smile: "Xiao Li, I just smelled the fragrance of your cooking. Did you make something delicious? Are you eating alone?"

Li Xiangqian was stunned for a moment, then nodded: "Yes, I made fried pork belly with onions."

Aunt Zhang's eyes lit up: "Oh, you grew your own onions, right? You are really getting more and more capable. How are they? Do they taste good?"

Li Xiangqian smiled and said, "It's OK. I grow it myself, so the taste seems to be very different."

Aunt Zhang nodded and said, "It's definitely different. I feel more at ease when I eat vegetables that I grow myself. I say, next time you cook, call me and I'll try it for you. This is the first pork belly fried with onions that I grow and cook myself in our yard."

Li Xiangqian has been focusing on growing onions and cooking for a while. Although his life is still monotonous, he feels more at ease with these small goals. However, there is one person who has puzzled him recently, and that is Qin Huairu.

Qin Huairu was a person in the courtyard. When she was young, she was famous. She was pretty, capable, and sweet-talking. Neighbors praised her a lot, but they also talked about her a lot. Li Xiangqian usually didn't talk much and didn't know her well. He just nodded and said hello occasionally. But since he started to work on the onion business, Qin Huairu seemed to have suddenly become interested in him.

Li Xiangqian didn't think much of it at first. The first time Qin Huairu appeared in front of him was when he was loosening the soil for onions in the yard. She passed by and saw him busy, so she took the initiative to walk up to him and said with a smile: "Hey, Xiangqian, what are you planting? It looks very particular." Her voice was very soft, with a vague concern, as if they were very familiar with each other.

Li Xiangqian stopped what he was doing, looked up at her, and replied calmly, "It's just planting some onions. It's no big deal."

Qin Huairu refused to leave. She bent down and took a closer look at the onion seedlings that had grown taller. She continued, "Oh, you really know how to choose. These onions are easy to grow. Are you planning to grow some vegetables yourself, or are you planning to cook more often in the future?"

Li Xiangqian had no intention of talking more, so he just responded casually: "I'm trying to make something to eat myself, it's quite fun."

She nodded, stood for a while, and then said, "The food you cook recently seems to be very fragrant. I can smell it from far away. If you make something delicious next time, don't forget to ask me to try it." Her tone was a bit joking, but also a bit serious.

Li Xiangqian just smiled and said nothing more. He thought it was just a casual remark from Qin Huairu, but since then, Qin Huairu seemed to appear in his field of vision more and more frequently.

Once, Li Xiangqian came back from the market and just as he entered the yard, he saw Qin Huairu standing at the door of his house, as if waiting for him. She smiled and walked up to him, asking casually, "Did you go shopping?"

"Well, let's buy some meat." Li Xiangqian said, and was about to go home, but he heard her say behind him: "What are you going to cook today? The fragrance in your yard has been making me crave it lately."

Li Xiangqian stopped and felt a little confused. Qin Huairu had never spoken to him so actively before, let alone appeared as frequently as now. He couldn't help but wonder: "What is she doing? She is always so close to me, what's the matter?"

Although he was full of doubts, Li Xiangqian never liked to talk too much, so he just nodded, forced a smile, and said, "I plan to make braised pork with some onions."

Qin Huairu smiled even more, blinked and said, "Braised pork with onions? This combination sounds good. Do you want me to help you make it? I'm good at cooking."

Li Xiangqian frowned slightly. He was a little uncomfortable with this overly proactive enthusiasm. To be honest, he was used to cooking by himself and didn't think it was necessary to ask others for help. He shook his head and replied calmly: "No need, just do it yourself."

Qin Huairu didn't seem embarrassed when he refused. Instead, she smiled and said, "Then I must come and try it next time. Don't hide it."

Li Xiangqian just nodded and carried the vegetables into the house. When he got home, he stood in the kitchen, thinking about the conversation just now, and felt more and more that something was wrong. Why did Qin Huairu suddenly care so much about him? He couldn't help but laugh at himself: "I'm just an ordinary person, growing some vegetables and cooking some meals. What's so worthy of her concern?"

In the following days, Qin Huairu still appeared in front of him from time to time, sometimes he bumped into her by chance when he went to work in the morning, and sometimes he passed by her door on his way home at night. Every time, Qin Huairu would take the initiative to find a topic, sometimes praising his onions for growing well, sometimes asking him what he had cooked today, and there seemed to be a bit of ambiguity in her words, which made Li Xiangqian feel a little at a loss.

That night, Li Xiangqian returned home again. As soon as he opened the gate, Qin Huairu came out of the house. She still smiled gently, holding a plate of cut fruit in her hand, and said enthusiastically: "Come, Xiangqian, let me give you some of the fruit I cut. It's hot this day, so it's better to eat something cool."

Li Xiangqian was stunned for a moment, then quickly waved his hand: "No, no, I just finished my meal."

"Oh, it's okay. It's fruit. There's no harm in eating some." Qin Huairu handed the plate to him without saying anything, with some anticipation in her eyes.