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"I... I'm fine..." Mu Tianyuan squeezed out three words, almost using all his strength. Then, Mu Tianyuan looked at Eri Kisaki blankly and said, "Aunt Eri, what did you just say?"
"What's wrong with Kaede?" Eri Kisaki pointed at Catwoman, who was meowing and jumping around, and repeated her question. Mu Tianyuan turned his head to look, then looked at Eri Kisaki and said, "It's nothing, she's perfectly fine..."
Looking at Catwoman's nimble movements, Mu Tianyuan could confirm that she was absolutely fine! If she were ill, could she be bouncing around so vigorously?!
"Then what is it?" Although Mu Tianyuan himself knew the source of his judgment, Eri Kisaki didn't. At this moment, Eri Kisaki still looked at Mu Tianyuan with disbelief, and Mu Tianyuan nodded blankly and said, "Don't worry, she's really fine..."
Aunt Eri, don't disbelieve me. My judgment truly isn't wrong. For example, me and Little Fox, we can't even bounce up now, okay?!
Eri Kisaki saw that Mu Tianyuan was so calm and didn't think much of it. She then smiled and looked at Mu Tianyuan, saying, "Little Mu, keep eating. Come and try the sushi Auntie made."
"Thank you..." Mu Tianyuan looked at the sushi Eri Kisaki placed in front of him and managed a strained smile in reply. Then, Mu Tianyuan picked up the sushi and began to agonize.Ā Should I eat this? Will I die if I eat this?Ā Although he hadn't collapsed after taking a bite just now, it was probably because he ate so little that it wasn't enough! If he ate a little more, would he be able to collect offerings on Qingming and Zhongyuan Festivals every year?
Just as Mu Tianyuan was agonizing over the sushi, he saw Eri Kisaki elegantly pick up a piece of sushi and eat it. After eating, Eri Kisaki even nodded with a satisfied expression. Seeing Eri Kisaki's reaction, Mu Tianyuan instantly thought he was hallucinating because of the dish he just ate. But Eri Kisaki's next sentence made Mu Tianyuan realize that he hadn't had any problems just now. He heard Eri Kisaki say with a hint of pride, "Delicious!"
Looking at Eri Kisaki's expression, as if she was about to cry from being moved by her own cooking, Mu Tianyuan held back a mouthful of old blood for a long time. Honestly, Mu Tianyuan really wanted to ask Eri Kisaki if her taste buds were truly fine?! Otherwise, how could she find her own cooking delicious? But thinking about it, it seemed Eri Kisaki's taste buds were normal when they went out to eat together before? So what was the situation now?!
At this moment, Little Fox finally recovered. The little fox, lying on the floor, struggled to lift its head and looked at Mu Tianyuan with a tearful voice, saying, "Do you still think coming here to freeload dinner today was a wise decision?"
"Frankly speaking, I think this is the stupidest decision I've ever made in my life, and there's no close second..." Mu Tianyuan also replied in a near-tearful voice.Ā Damn it, if I had known this, I would have gone to Uncle Mouri's place to freeload instead! Even if Ran was out of sorts today, she would definitely cook better than her own mother! Even if they didn't freeload at Uncle Mouri's, even eating instant noodles at home would be better than this! At least instant noodles, even if unhealthy, wouldn't be fatal in the short term...
And Eri Kisaki, seeing Mu Tianyuan not touching his chopsticks, enthusiastically said, "Little Mu, eat quickly! Why are you being so polite?"
"Okay, I'll eat..." Mu Tianyuan nodded heroically at Eri Kisaki, then, using a private channel, said to Little Fox, "If I die, I'll leave my Grandma, my parents, and Kaede to your care. Also, remember to find a way to transport my remains back to my hometown. Even if I die in a foreign land, I must return to my roots. Also, don't avenge me, because Aunt Eri didn't do it on purpose, and... this was also something I brought upon myself..."
Listening to Mu Tianyuan giving him his last wishes, Little Fox's original resentment towards Mu Tianyuan for making them suffer instantly vanished. Little Fox immediately tried to crawl onto Mu Tianyuan's lap and said, "Wooden, why don't we run..."
"Sigh..." Mu Tianyuan heard Little Fox's suggestion and looked at Eri Kisaki's expectant eyes, which ultimately turned into a long sigh. It was said that a bad life is better than a good death. Mu Tianyuan also wanted to run, but Little Fox and Catwoman were fine; they could eat a bite and if they didn't eat, Eri Kisaki couldn't say anything. But he couldn't do that. How could he refuse Eri Kisaki who had worked so hard for so long?
"Our company commander once told me that we can be beaten to death, but we cannot be scared to death. Sometimes, taking a risk is also a form of courage! If a man dies, he dies facing the sky; if he doesn't die, he lives for ten thousand years. I refuse to believe it. Aunt Eri ate it and didn't die, so how could I be so unlucky?!" After throwing a line to Little Fox, Mu Tianyuan picked up a piece of sushi and tossed it into his mouth. Then, under Eri Kisaki's happy smile, and Little Fox's and Catwoman's (who had been running around like crazy for half a day) mournful and respectful gazes, Mu Tianyuan began to eat like lightning...
The next day, after the class bell rang, Mu Tianyuan, half-dead, along with a similarly half-dead Little Fox, shuffled into the classroom. After apologizing to the teacher, Mu Tianyuan shuffled to his seat and slumped there like someone on the verge of death.
After class, Ran and Sonoko both crowded around. Ran looked at Mu Tianyuan, who was half-dead with dark circles under his eyes, and asked with concern, "Little Mu, what's wrong with you?"
"Don't even mention it. I had diarrhea all night until three o'clock. The fact that I can even drag myself to class now shows how diligent and studious I am. Based on my current performance, the school owes me a small red flower," Mu Tianyuan replied weakly,趓 (lying) on the desk. Ran and Sonoko exchanged glances upon hearing Mu Tianyuan's words. Then Sonoko looked at Mu Tianyuan and asked, "You have food poisoning?"
"I think so..." Mu Tianyuan nodded weakly, then rolled his eyes and looked at Sonoko, saying, "Sonoko, what do you mean by being so excited about my food poisoning? Although I don't want to be your brother-in-law and make your sister sad, you don't have to hate me this much, do you? After all our years of friendship, is it really necessary?"
"Uh, heh heh, I just didn't expect it..." Sonoko heard Mu Tianyuan's words and immediately waved her hand awkwardly. Then Sonoko looked at Mu Tianyuan and said, "Also, when did I make my sister sad? Can you stop spouting nonsense all day?"
"Yes, yes, yes, I agree to be your brother-in-law. Remember to tell your sister when you get home that I agreed, and her wish can come true," Mu Tianyuan continued to take advantage of the situation with his half-dead demeanor. Seeing Mu Tianyuan's almost dying but still restless manner, Ran smiled helplessly. Then, while comforting Sonoko, who wanted to have a serious talk with Mu Tianyuan, she looked at Mu Tianyuan and said, "Little Mu, you should say less."
Then Ran said with some concern, "Little Mu, are you okay? Should we take you to the hospital?"
"No need..." Mu Tianyuan waved his hand, then slumped on the desk and said, "I think I just need a good rest, and I should be fine..."
"Didn't you say yesterday that you had a dinner appointment? What did you eat to become like this?" Ran saw that Mu Tianyuan said so, and also gave up the idea of taking Mu Tianyuan to the hospital. However, Ran looked at Mu Tianyuan with some confusion. This guy was clearly full of life yesterday evening, yet why did he look like he was almost ready for burial after one night?
Hearing Ran's words, Mu Tianyuan suddenly looked up at Ran and said sympathetically, "Ran, I suddenly feel that you've had it really tough. It's truly amazing that you've survived until now..."
"What?" Ran was stunned when she heard Mu Tianyuan's words. Sonoko also looked at Mu Tianyuan with a puzzled expression and said, "Are you okay? Why are you suddenly talking about Ran?"
Mu Tianyuan was silent for a moment, then looked at Ran and said, "Ran, let me ask you, have you ever eaten Aunt Eri's cooking?"
"Uh..." Hearing this question, Ran instantly shivered, then her mouth twitched as she forced a dry laugh, "Little Mu, you didn't..."
"That's right!" Before Ran could finish, Mu Tianyuan nodded forcefully. Then, Mu Tianyuan looked at Ran with an almost despairing expression and said, "I became like this entirely because of Aunt Eri's dinner! Goddess above, I never knew Aunt Eri's cooking could be that terrible! It looked good, but it tasted... it was simply indescribable! And Aunt Eri actually loves to watch others eat her cooking! She keeps pushing people to eat! Let me tell you, if I didn't know a little first aid and performed emergency self-rescue, I really would have died there!"
Ran forced a dry laugh and said, "...Heh heh, Little Mu, you've had it tough..."
As for her own mother's cooking, Ran said she had nothing to say. She couldn't even force herself to praise it, because Ran had also suffered greatly from it! Although she hadn't eaten it for many years, every time she thought of her mom's cooking, Ran would wake up screaming from her dreams!
At this moment, Ran finally understood why Mu Tianyuan said he had it tough. Because thinking about her childhood experiences, Ran felt it was truly difficult that she survived! Looking at Mu Tianyuan's miserable state, Ran genuinely wondered:Ā Should I say Mu Tianyuan has low immunity, or has my mom's cooking skill improved so crazily that it's now truly lethal?Ā It certainly wasn't like this before!
Hearing Ran's words, Mu Tianyuan slumped on the desk, his face full of sadness. "Sigh... I swear, I'll never eat Aunt Eri's cooking again. It's simply deadly!"