Chapter 138: Chapter 138

“…….”

“…….”

“Ew!”

“……Hmm.”

“It’s…… it’s okay. So-mi really thinks it’s de…… delicious!”

Namgung So-hye gnawed at her fingers with a pale face. The eyes of the people looking at the dish in front of them were awkward in their own ways.

She had been somewhat confident, though…….

Looking tearful, she glanced at Namgung Cheon.

However, as if Namgung Cheon could do nothing for her this time, he looked away and turned his head.

‘I knew she had no talent for handiwork, but…….’

Namgung Cheon let out a short sigh.

He knew she had no talent for cooking.

In the first place, Namgung So-hye was not in a position where she had to cook, so there was also the major factor that it was not even worth learning. A martial artist should naturally hold a sword; what would they use cooking for?

Even more so, Namgung So-hye was a promising talent in the Namgung Clan.

If there were someone who taught such a child something like cooking, it would never end lightly.

‘Even so…… how could it be like this…….’

But wasn’t there such a thing?

A woman’s basic education, or what she had seen and learned. Since she had spent time guarding this manor alone, thinking that she would make something at least somewhat edible for a human was a miscalculation.

It looked like she had made stir-fried vegetables, but it was a lump of charcoal.

Burning it like this was also a skill.

It looked like she had grilled meat and brought it over, but it was impossible to tell if it was meat or what. Stripping off the outer layer revealed flesh inside, so it was definitely meat, but no matter how much they used chopsticks, it would not tear.

He had never seen meat this tough in his life.

The other things were the same.

‘If I had known this would happen, I would have had her taught…….’

For the first time, Namgung Cheon blamed his own method of education.

In a situation where they had to look even slightly better to Dan Woo-hyun, they had served such a mess of a meal, so how embarrassing was this?

“This is…… even a dog would do better than this.”

“Ahem!”

Dan Woo-hyun picked up a piece of the charcoal-like stir-fried vegetables with his chopsticks. He merely applied a little pressure, but with a rustling sound, it turned to powder and scattered.

Namgung So-hye’s face flushed bright red.

“What…… what did you say! Then do it yourself! Since what I made is worse than what a dog could do!”

“Just what on earth have you been eating to survive all this time?”

“I…… just this and that…….”

Fidgeting, Namgung So-hye shifted her gaze.

She did eat something to survive.

Even though it was a completely failed dish like this, it didn’t hinder her survival. Although she had groaned in pain for a few days because it was a bit bad for her body, she had lived through it until now, so it was not at the level of poison.

She had to be satisfied with just that.

“It’s okay! Sister! So-mi will make it again.”

“Huh?”

Dan So-mi patted Namgung So-hye to reassure her, and then began to clear the dishes on the table. Wondering what she was going to do, Namgung So-hye quietly followed her, only to see her start cooking with extreme skill.

Not only the control of the fire, but also the way she tossed the vegetables in the iron pot showed a brilliance and experienced skill, as if she were watching Jang Sam-tae.

With a shocked expression, Namgung So-hye bit her lip.

All the food that had taken her four hours to make was beautifully and perfectly filled on the table by Dan So-mi in less than an hour.

“Oh! So-mi cooks too?”

“Hehe, I help Uncle Jang beside him every day! Uncle Jang said that a woman has to cook deliciously to be loved by her husband!”

Running over, she filled the remaining empty space with a plate and spoke. The spotless smile and the pure voice of that young child came as a great burden to someone.

Sa Do-hak glanced at Namgung So-hye and smirked.

Namgung Cheon did not know what to do, and Gwon Mu-jin quietly kept his mouth shut.

Standing still, Namgung So-hye’s face flushed so red it looked as if it would burst at any moment.

Listening to all of that, Dan Woo-hyun smirked.

“I guess someone can’t do it because they don’t have a husband to be loved by.”

“You…… you…… you jerk, really!”

Namgung So-hye’s voice rang out loudly.

“What…… what is so great about cooking anyway!”

Thud!

Returning to her room, Namgung So-hye kicked the chair with a tearful face.

She knew very well that food was important since people had to eat to live, but to evaluate a person based on whether they could make it or not!

Moreover, not all women were good at cooking!

Did Dan Woo-hyun think that a woman should naturally cook?

“But failing to even grill properly is a bit much…….”

Namgung So-hye let out a long sigh.

Right, she had failed at many things, but the most painful of all was that she had failed at even grilling. It was so tough, and the outside was already a lump of charcoal, so it was not food a human could eat.

“I admit it. I admit it.”

She grumbled with a pouty expression.

“Sister, are you okay?”

Just then, she saw So-mi quietly opening the door and entering. In the dish held in one of her hands, three delicious-looking dumplings were visible.

“I brought them because it seemed like you didn’t eat much earlier. Hehe.”

Dan So-mi, who had run inside, placed the dish on the table.

The smell was different from the dumplings sold on the streets of Yueyang.

It had a richer and deeper aroma.

Her appetite, which had died due to her anger, was stimulated.

Gulping down her saliva, Namgung So-hye asked.

“Did you…… buy this?”

“No! Daddy made it for me.”

“Eh?”

“……?”

“Who…… who made it?”

Namgung So-hye looked at Dan So-mi with a gaze of utter disbelief. There was only one person in this world called daddy by Dan So-mi.

She knew that, but for some reason, she wanted to deny it.

“Daddy!”

“D-young master Dan?”

“Yes! My daddy is good at cooking. Hehe.”

Dan So-mi poked the dumpling with her finger.

The plumpness of the dumpling skin was alive.

She had eaten many dumplings until now, but she had never seen a place that made them as delicious as the ones Dan Woo-hyun made. Of course, they were several times more delicious than Jang Sam-tae’s dumplings.

“N-no way…… that man cooking…….”

On the other hand, Namgung So-hye could not shake off the shock.

He was a man who picked at her for not being able to cook while saying this and that, but she had thought Dan Woo-hyun was also someone who lived behind a wall when it came to cooking.

That man cooking?

Could she believe it?

With a dazed expression, Namgung So-hye reached out and grabbed a dumpling. The touch she felt the moment she held it made her realize that this was no ordinary dumpling.

‘N-no! It’s just the appearance! There is no way it tastes good!’

She must not admit it.

It was none other than that Dan Woo-hyun.

There was no way that man, who was only exceptional at beating people up or playing with them, could make something like food.

The moment she took a bite like that, Namgung So-hye slumped down.

“……It’s…… too delicious.”

“Right? Hehe, Daddy also just copied what Uncle Jang did after watching him, but it’s more delicious than Uncle’s.”

Nibbling on the dumpling in her mouth, Dan So-mi smiled.

She did not seem to have any malice, but each and every one of those words gouged Namgung So-hye’s chest. Slumped down, she trembled with her fists clenched.

‘I can’t lose!’

Right, she might not care about others, but she could not lose to Dan Woo-hyun.

She had to learn how to cook, no matter what.

Now that Jang Sam-tae had disappeared!

If there was someone who could cook…….

Namgung So-hye’s eyes did not drift from Dan So-mi’s side.

The manor was quiet just by the absence of Jang Sam-tae and Ma Janggang. Since there were originally no people who chattered noisily, only a peaceful time was flowing.

“Ah! You shouldn’t do it like that!”

“Eh?”

However, a sharp voice was heard from another place.

The kitchen.

Dan So-mi and Namgung So-hye, who were there, were busy hurriedly putting out the fire rising from the pot. They had been teaching her how to cook for three days already, but she didn’t seem to improve at all.

Still, it was much better than at first.

The one teaching was none other than Dan So-mi.

Since she was learning from a child who was much younger, Namgung So-hye was cooking with all her might, perhaps thinking that she should learn as quickly as possible.

Dan Woo-hyun watched that scene with satisfaction.

Although it seemed like dozens of tableware had already been thrown away because of her cooking, if Namgung So-hye could master cooking with this, it seemed like it would be a very comfortable life in the manor.

Of course, it was quite a novel thing that a fully grown adult was learning from a child who was not even ten years old, but considering Dan So-mi’s skills, there was nothing particularly strange about it.

‘She is good at cooking, at least…….’

Resting his chin on his hand, Dan Woo-hyun looked at Dan So-mi in the distance.

At eight years old this year, she looked about two years younger because she was smaller than other children her age, but there was no child who could match her in being bright and smart.

It might be because she was his own child that she looked pretty, but basically, everyone would nod and agree with Dan So-mi’s intelligence.

That child had learned cooking to get married…….

Grit!

Learning to cook was good.

He did not doubt that her skills would be better than most chefs. However, thinking that all of that was for her future husband made his teeth grind involuntarily.

“Hahaha, why are you so angry?”

“I don’t know what you are talking about.”

“You look like someone who is angry because So-mi learned to cook for her future husband.”

Dan Woo-hyun turned his head and looked.

Sa Do-hak and Namgung Cheon had approached at some point and sat next to him. Letting out a snort so that they couldn’t hear, Dan Woo-hyun looked at the kitchen again.

“It was you, wasn’t it? The one who egged that child on to learn cooking.”

“Egged her on? I merely made a dumpling and fed it to her.”

“That is the same thing.”

Sa Do-hak smacked his lips.

Having eaten the dumplings that Dan So-mi brought that day, he knew how good they tasted. It was understandable that Namgung So-hye, who had been insulted for not being able to cook, would be shocked by the cooking of none other than Dan Woo-hyun.

So she was learning cooking from that young child.

This whole situation was Dan Woo-hyun’s conspiracy.

Namgung Cheon and Sa Do-hak thought so.

“Whatever it is, it’s fine…… where did that fellow Jang Sam-tae and Ma Janggang go?”

“I sent them out because there was work.”

“Hmm.”

Sa Do-hak half-closed his eyes.

The most necessary person in this manor was none other than Jang Sam-tae. Other people didn’t care what they ate, but it was because of Dan Woo-hyun, who wanted to feed Dan So-mi delicious food.

Also, since he took care of all the chores in the manor, it would become a mess here and there even if he left his post for just a few days. Knowing that, he had sent Jang Sam-tae out.

He felt like there was something.

“You didn’t really send them because something happened, did you?”

At Sa Do-hak’s question, Namgung Cheon also watched Dan Woo-hyun.

Because there had never been a single time like this until now.

Meeting the gazes of the two, Dan Woo-hyun smirked and looked at the kitchen.

“Nothing has happened yet. Although it might happen soon……”

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