Chapter 11: Night Snack

After parting ways with Luo Jing'en at the cafe entrance, Li Shenxing didn't stay at the cafe any longer but drove straight home.

As he passed by a large supermarket near the residential area, Li Shenxing turned into the supermarket's parking lot.

He pulled a shopping cart as he entered the supermarket and started browsing.

Li Shenxing usually goes to the market or supermarket every one or two days. As a chef, the freshness of ingredients is very important. Therefore, he doesn't buy a lot of vegetables at once to last for several days.

Today, Hyo-ri wasn't home for dinner, but they could have a night snack and a drink together. He thought that the rice wine and fruit wine he had brewed himself should be ready to drink. It would be perfect to buy some ingredients to make some dishes to go with the drinks.

Hyo-ri would definitely like it, that little drunkard.

It was around 8:30 PM when Hyo-ri finally finished her schedule and returned home.

"Xiaoxie, bye! See you tomorrow," Hyo-ri said to her agent, Li Genshe, as she got out of the car and turned back to say goodbye.

"Nuna, please go inside quickly," Li Genshe waited for Hyo-ri to enter the house before driving away.

Walking through the front yard, she opened the door and changed her shoes in the entrance.

Hearing the door open, Li Shenxing came out from the living room.

Taking her bag, he asked, "What did you have for dinner? I'll make some night snacks later, and you can try the fruit wine I brewed."

"Can the fruit wine you brewed be drunk?" Hyo-ri, upon hearing about the wine, ignored Li Shenxing's question.

"I took out one of the bottles and filtered it. I tried it, and it tasted good, better than the ones bought from outside. I'll make some dishes to go with the drinks, and we can have some later," he said, leading Hyo-ri to see the fruit wine.

Li Shenxing mainly brewed red wine, orange wine, plum wine, and raspberry wine. The raw materials for the wine were all grown on his uncle's farm in Jeju Island, so he didn't spend much money except for the jars.

Because his father-in-law liked to drink, but for his health, Li Shenxing also brewed some slightly stronger rice wine, which he could give to his father-in-law and mother-in-law.

Rice wine contains over ten types of amino acids, eight of which are essential and cannot be synthesized by the human body. Each liter of rice wine contains several times more lysine than red wine and beer, which is relatively rare in other nutritional wines, hence it is called "liquid cake."

The nutrients in rice wine are more easily absorbed by the human body, making it an excellent choice for the elderly, pregnant women, and those with weak constitutions to replenish qi and blood. Rice wine has various benefits, including stimulating appetite, aiding digestion, warming the body, invigorating the spirit, quenching thirst, cooling the body, promoting blood circulation, and moisturizing the skin.

Rice wine has a nutritional profile similar to huangjiu (Chinese yellow wine) but with a lower alcohol content. However, it provides much more energy than beer and red wine.

For those who are cold-sensitive, have blood stasis, insufficient milk production, rheumatoid arthritis, back pain, and numbness in the limbs, drinking it warm is beneficial. For those with neurasthenia, mental confusion, depression, and forgetfulness, drinking it with eggs is more effective. Rice wine helps promote blood circulation, metabolism, and has the effects of replenishing blood, nourishing the face, invigorating the body, and extending life.

Li Shenxing not only brews rice wine but also makes delicious sweet rice wine.

Since he became familiar with Hyo-ri, Li Shenxing started making sweet rice wine. Sweet rice wine has the effects of replenishing qi, blood, warming the body, and beautifying the skin, providing a gentle and nourishing effect on the body without side effects. However, eating it every day can be a bit heaty.

Hyo-ri's good complexion is partly due to the sweet rice wine.

However, tonight, they would drink, so they wouldn't eat the sweet rice wine. Drinking must be accompanied by some dishes; otherwise, it wouldn't be as enjoyable.

Fried peanuts are an essential dish for drinking, so he had to prepare them. But peanuts alone wouldn't do; Li Shenxing also prepared cold chicken strips and salted oyster mushrooms. Eating too much greasy or meaty food at night isn't good for the body.

Hyo-ri brought the dishes to the coffee table in the living room, while Li Shenxing brought out a large glass jar with a valve near the bottom, making it easy to pour the wine.

Hyo-ri had already placed two glasses on the table, and Li Shenxing opened the valve, filling each glass about one-third full.

"Try this red wine and see if it suits your taste," Li Shenxing handed a glass to Hyo-ri.

Hyo-ri took a sip, "Hmm, it doesn't have the usual astringent taste of red wine. It's very smooth and easy to drink, almost like a grape drink."

"This isn't real red wine; it's just a regular fruit wine. The taste is the most important thing. After a while, when the rice wine is ready, I can take it to my in-laws. Drinking a small cup with meals every day is good for health."

"Oppa, what about me?" Hyo-ri looked at Li Shenxing with bright eyes, signaling that she wanted to drink too.

"You?" Li Shenxing glanced at her, "Just stick to your sweet rice wine. It's already pretty good that you can drink the fruit wine."

Hyo-ri huffed a few times, feeling depressed as she finished the fruit wine in one gulp.

Seeing her, Li Shenxing secretly smiled, not minding.

The two of them enjoyed their night snack while watching a variety show on TV.

"Is Yoon Suk-ho always this talkative in variety shows?" The TV was showing "Infinite Challenge" hosted by Yoon Suk-ho, and today's episode was "Earth Attack Team," where he talked a lot without getting to the point.

"Originally, Yoon Suk-ho didn't wear tight pants during this time. I wonder what caused him to like wearing tight pants now ^_^"

"Oppa doesn't often watch variety shows, so I don't know. But Yoon Suk-ho is famous for being talkative on the show, never stopping talking. Hehe~! It's different from what you usually see."

"Yoon Suk-ho is a bit talkative in real life, but on the show, it's exaggerated, about three times as much!" Li Shenxing said, surprised.

"Oppa, that's because you don't watch Yoon Suk-ho's variety shows often. His fans think this is his normal behavior, and anything else would be abnormal," Hyo-ri explained to Li Shenxing.

"I prefer watching American TV series or skits. I don't quite understand Korean variety shows; I don't feel the humor when they laugh," Li Shenxing shrugged.

Although he didn't understand it well, Li Shenxing still accompanied Hyo-ri in watching it.

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Life went on as usual, with Li Shenxing writing and revising scripts at home every day, or sitting in the cafe to clear his mind, or visiting a few chain restaurants to check if the chefs had any new dishes, besides teaching Luo Jing'en cooking skills at the cafe every Saturday.

Li Shenxing's life was monotonous but fulfilling, as this was the life he wanted. Of course, it would be even better if Hyo-ri's workload could be reduced.

Time quietly slipped into December.

Today, Hyo-ri finished her schedule early and returned home before 5 PM.

Opening the door and entering the living room, Hyo-ri didn't see Li Shenxing.

Putting her bag on the sofa, she walked to the study but didn't see him there.

Closing the door, she went to the adjacent studio, opened it, and saw Li Shenxing focused on his model.

"I'm back~!!!" Hyo-ri quietly walked behind him and suddenly shouted loudly.

Li Shenxing was completely absorbed in his work and was startled by Hyo-ri's sudden shout, almost ruining his model.

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