"Calm down, calm down, impulsiveness is the devil." Xiao Feng grabbed Zhao Guo'an's wrists repeatedly trying to soothe him.

Yet Zhao Guo'an was still unwilling to let go, as if he might grab the kitchen knife from the counter any moment and slice Xiao Feng in half.

In fact, Zhao Guo'an was truly angry, but he ought to thank Xiao Feng's prior "brother" remark, otherwise with just this hold, Xiao Feng might have been floored ten times over by now.

It's not that Xiao Feng's temper had improved, but the medicinal herbs had yet to arrive, so it wouldn't be wise to act too tough.

After much entanglement, Zhao Guo'an said in lingering anger, "I will cook from now on, and I'll show you what 'making use of everything' truly means. The way you've been doing it is completely wasting treasures."

"Sounds good to me." Xiao Feng readily agreed. Having a self-sufficient chef who doesn't need a salary, only a fool would refuse.

Moreover, after multiple tests, Xiao Feng had confirmed Zhao Guo'an wasn't strong in combat, not much of a fighter really.

Of course, as a doctor, his combat ability isn't measured by fists; he could kill someone invisibly with a pinch of slow poison, so caution was still advised.

After moving the herbs and some unnamed objects over, Zhao Guo'an picked up a piece of reishi, placed it into a mortar-like device, and began turning the handle above.

"Squeak, squeak..." A somewhat piercing sound arose but from below the device, some powder fell into the prepared pouch.

Zhao Guo'an said, "This is the proper way to use it. Don't just stand there, sort these herbs. Grind the dry ones into powder and mash the wet ones into paste. Be careful not to mix them up, each herb needs its own container."

Xiao Feng nodded, and according to Zhao Guo'an's instructions, he quickly finished the task, surprisingly efficient.

At noon, the eagerly awaited meal time finally arrived. The little girl took the lead and sat at the table, her eyes shining as she looked at the delicious dishes, saying, "I'm gonna dig in."

She said as much while devouring the food and filling her mouth.

Xiao Feng didn't stop her. He had tasted these dishes in advance; there was no safety issue, so they could be eaten liberally.

"Xiao Feng, your cooking is amazing! Today's dishes are way better than yesterday's!" The little girl gave a thumbs-up.

"..." Xiao Feng showed an awkward yet polite smile.

The real chef Zhao Guo'an, hearing the little girl's praise, immediately smiled broadly, "Eat as much as you like, there's more if it's not enough."

"What's it got to do with you?" The little girl wasn't pleased: "Besides, why are you hanging around our place, here in the morning, and at noon as well? We're not a free cafeteria."

Du Qingyue felt something was off; Xiao Feng spent most of the morning sitting in the yard having tea and sunbathing, and only entered the house ten minutes before mealtime. How could he cook that quickly?

"Did you cook the meal?" Du Qingyue looked at Zhao Guo'an.

Zhao Guo'an nodded, "To prevent waste, I'm temporarily in charge of your meals."

The little girl immediately retracted her words, "I take back what I said before, this meal is meh, far worse than what Xiao Feng makes."

She said while putting another big chunk of braised pork into her mouth.

At that moment, Lone Wolf picked up the soup bowl on the table and poured soup into the bowl in front of him.

But before he could drink, Zhao Guo'an decisively stopped him, "You can't drink this soup!"

"Why?" Lone Wolf raised his eyebrows slightly.

Xiao Feng was a bit baffled too; he tasted the soup himself and found no issues. Was there something he hadn't noticed?

While puzzled, Zhao Guo'an explained, "Medicinal diets have rules. This soup is only suitable for women. Men drinking it could be affected in certain ways."

"Is there really such a saying?" Lone Wolf was clueless. It was the first time he had heard such an argument. But Zhao Guo'an seemed adamant, especially about "certain effects", and so he dared not drink the soup.

"If I can't drink this pot, did you simmer a separate pot for me?" Lone Wolf asked.

"Nope." Zhao Guo'an shook his head, "You don't need soup, just have water if thirsty."

He looked at Du Qingyue, the little girl, and Jiang Yixin, "You three, finish this pot of soup, leave no drop."

This demand made everyone even more puzzled, but Xiao Feng stayed silent, and no one voiced any disagreement.

After lunch, Xiao Feng looked at Zhao Guo'an, "Explain."

"There is millennium-old ginseng in that soup." Zhao Guo'an lit a cigarette, puffing smoke.

"And?"

"So, he shouldn't have that soup."

The continued use of millennium-old ginseng in meals was naturally Xiao Feng's idea.

According to him, they were in a growth phase where the medicinal power could play out perfectly, and with intense consumption and supplementation, this advantage would significantly enhance the body.

Zhao Guo'an agreed with this, so ultimately millennium-old ginseng was added to the soup, while the dishes were augmented with those costly herbs.

"I don't believe you can't see it, the limitations on that individual. Frankly, he's lost the space for growth; his body levels are mostly fixed. Keeping steady is already a blessing!" Zhao Guo'an said while blowing a smoke ring.

Xiao Feng pondered, he didn't disagree.

For Du Qingyue and others, this training was an opportunity to metamorphose, but for Lone Wolf, it was more about consolidating strength, enhancing existing skills but with limited improvement.

Lone Wolf was very diligent, everyone saw that. He was indeed going all out, but some things can't be solved by effort alone.

"If he were a bit younger, there might be a chance, but time doesn't reverse; once missed, it's missed, there's no reasoning with it." Zhao Guo'an said calmly.

"Next time, make more soup, and give him a share." Xiao Feng said.

"That's a waste."

"I'm willing!"

"Suit yourself." Zhao Guo'an chuckled, "But now I'm sure, you're not running a martial arts school; you're like training assassins."

Xiao Feng didn't engage further on that line but said, "It's hard for me not to suspect you, suddenly showing up to help, concerning your true identity."

"I told you, I'm living off my ancestors' reputation, leisurely tending to the health of some high-ranking officials and wealthy moguls." Zhao Guo'an said with a calm face, "A life like that is dull; it needs something fresh for stimulation, otherwise it's a waste of existence."

"Not afraid of losing your life?" Xiao Feng smirked.

"I calculated, this is both a crisis and a turning point." Zhao Guo'an said, "If successful, carefree afterwards; if failed, dead and gone. I'm betting on you."

"Really?" Xiao Feng sneered, "Let's start studying this."

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