The heavens set sail from the courtyard

After Wang Gang chased He Wenhui away, he stayed home to recover from his injuries. Suddenly feeling a bit bored, he found a few books to read.

After Liu Hongchang left home, Wang Cuilan did not touch anything in his room. The most common items in Liu Hongchang's room were recipes.

As the head chef of the second canteen, Liu Hongchang used to have a nickname, "Fatty Intestine Liu," which refers to his expertise in braised large intestines, a specialty of Shandong cuisine.

As a chef, Liu Hongchang's room was mostly filled with cookbooks, but Wang Gang lost interest after flipping through a couple of them.

"They're all common recipes, nothing much to see."

Wang Gang has traveled through too many worlds, and he himself loves to eat. His culinary skills are second to none, and he even knows many secret imperial dishes.

Liu Hongchang is just a small-time cook from the north. He didn't have any famous teachers, so his culinary skills are only average, but they're enough for this small town.

But Wang Gang really didn't think much of it.

He searched the room again, but couldn't find anything else to amuse himself, so he went back to bed and lay down.

There were very few entertainment options in this era; the Liu family didn't even have a television set, only a radio.

Wang Gang turned on the radio, lay on the bed listening to the broadcasts of this era, and gradually calmed down, feeling that the injury on his buttocks had healed considerably.

After resting for a short while, Wang Cuilan returned home after buying groceries, bringing one other person with her.

"Hongchang, look who's here."

Wang Gang opened his eyes and looked back. He saw a girl of about ten years old standing next to Wang Cuilan.

"Yang Maixiang? What brings you here?" Wang Gang recognized the girl at a glance.

"I heard you were injured, so I came to see you." Yang Maixiang laughed heartily, "I heard you hurt your butt, come and take a look."

Wang Gang instinctively gripped his pants tighter and said irritably, "What's the meaning of you, a grown woman, looking at a man's butt? Are you being a pervert?"

Yang Maixiang said with a grin, "We've been bathing together naked since we were little. I've seen every part of your body, what's there to be shy about!"

After saying that, Yang Maixiang sat down on Wang Gang's bedside without any hesitation.

Wang Cuilan, who was watching from the side, couldn't help but laugh. She said, "You guys chat first. I'll go to the kitchen to cook. Maixiang, you can stay for lunch."

“Okay, Aunt Wang,” Yang Maixiang said without any politeness.

Wang Cuilan left the room with a smile, closing the door behind her, leaving Wang Gang and Yang Maixiang alone in the room.

Yang Maixiang and Liu Hongchang grew up together, practically inseparable, their relationship even closer than Liu Hongchang's with his older brother Liu Yunchang.

Unfortunately, because they were so close, Liu Hongchang always treated Yang Maixiang like a younger sister. So much so that when Yang Maixiang confessed her feelings to him after growing up, Liu Hongchang rejected her outright and went on to marry He Wenhui.

Wang Gang knew that Yang Maixiang was also a devoted lover. In the original story, she waited for Liu Hongchang for many years until she got too old to wait any longer, and then she had no choice but to get married under the arrangement of her family.

After marriage, Yang Maixiang's excessive concern for Liu Hongchang led to misunderstandings with her husband, causing their relationship to break down and resulting in divorce.

Yang Maixiang was also carefree. Knowing that she didn't love her husband but still loved Liu Hongchang, she simply gave him his freedom.

In Wang Gang's opinion, Yang Maixiang's appearance was not much worse than He Wenhui's; she was just shorter and had a small face, which made her look younger, like a little girl next door who hadn't grown up yet.

You know, with Yang Maixiang's looks, forty years from now, she would be a standard loli, and I don't know how many old men she could charm.

Liu Hongchang looked down on Yang Maixiang, but instead had a crush on the artistic He Wenhui; he was blind to her true nature.

In terms of family background, Yang Maixiang is ten times better off than He Wenhui; in terms of feelings, Yang Maixiang's love for Liu Hongchang is a hundred times greater than He Wenhui's.

"Take your pants off quickly, let me see your wound." As soon as Wang Cuilan left, Yang Maixiang started to pull down Wang Gang's pants. "Hey! You're really being a pervert!" Wang Gang grabbed his pants tightly and said irritably, "You're supposed to be a young lady, can't you be a little more reserved?"

Yang Maixiang snorted coldly, "He Wenhui is quite reserved; she wouldn't even let you touch her when she got married."

"Huh?" Wang Gang asked in surprise, "My mom even told you about that?"

Yang Maixiang said, "I don't know what you see in He Wenhui? What's so good about a woman you can look at but not touch?"

Wang Gang covered his face and said, "I was blind before, I was bewitched by a ghost."

Yang Maixiang was overjoyed and asked, "Are you really planning to divorce He Wenhui?"

Wang Gang nodded seriously and said, "Divorce, we must divorce. Anyone who doesn't is a grandson."

Yang Maixiang said happily, "Then after you get divorced, you can be with me!"

Looking at the eager Yang Maixiang, Wang Gang wondered what kind of rice soup Liu Hongchang had given her that made her so eager to pounce on him, disregarding even the slightest bit of girlish modesty.
“Maixiang, have you thought this through? If I get divorced, it will be my second marriage, and you are still a virgin! Will your family agree to this?” Wang Gang reminded him.

"You're still a virgin, what does it matter?" Yang Maixiang said nonchalantly. "My parents listen to me. Once I've made up my mind about someone, their objections are useless!"

Wang Gang raised an eyebrow and asked, "Maixiang, why do you like me? I'm just a cook, not very educated, and have a bad temper. With your qualifications, you could find a better man than me!"

Upon hearing Wang Gang's words, Yang Maixiang's face immediately fell, and she angrily said, "I knew you still had feelings for He Wenhui!"

Wang Gang said, both amused and exasperated, "That's not what I meant. I just find it strange that you like Liu Hongchang."

Yang Maixiang looked at Wang Gang strangely and said, "Why does what you said sound weird to me?"

Wang Gang was stunned, only then realizing he had let something slip.

"I'm just afraid you don't understand me, and I'm worried that if you really get together with me, you'll regret it later," Wang Gang explained.

Yang Maixiang's crush is Liu Hongchang, not Wang Gang.

Although Wang Gang has absorbed Liu Hongchang's memories, he is not Liu Hongchang after all, and it is impossible for him to be exactly the same as the Liu Hongchang of the past.

This change may be difficult for outsiders to notice, but it cannot be hidden from those around them, especially childhood sweethearts like Yang Maixiang.

"Do you think I don't know you?" Yang Maixiang rolled her eyes at Wang Gang and said, "You! Although you have a foul mouth, you have a soft heart than anyone else. Otherwise, you wouldn't have fallen for He Wenhui's tricks and gotten yourself into that quagmire of the He family!"

Wang Gang noticed that Yang Maixiang's eyes were full of tenderness whenever she mentioned Liu Hongchang, clearly showing that her heart was completely devoted to him.

"Liu Hongchang, you're a complete idiot!" Wang Gang shook his head helplessly.

Yang Maixiang's eyes became even stranger as she asked, "Did you hurt your butt or your head? I feel like you're talking nonsense. Aren't you Liu Hongchang?"

Yang Maixiang reached out and touched Wang Gang's forehead, but found no fever.

Wang Gang suddenly grasped Yang Maixiang's small hand and said, "Maixiang, you're so kind!"

Yang Maixiang suddenly blushed, but didn't resist. Instead, she glared at Wang Gang and said reproachfully, "You're only now realizing how good I am?"

Wang Gang smiled and said, "Maixiang, Liu Hongchang wronged you before, but I will treat you even better from now on."

Yang Maixiang felt sweet inside and didn't notice the strangeness in Wang Gang's words. She only felt that her devotion had finally been answered.

"Don't worry, if you marry me, I'll definitely let you touch me!" Yang Maixiang said, blushing.

"Uh!" Wang Gang was taken aback, also shocked by Yang Maixiang's initiative, and began to understand Liu Hongchang a little! (End of this chapter)