By 6 AM, the sun was already blazing, filling the air with a scorching dryness. Ryohei Tanaka, holding Bette's leash, was panting and steaming as he jogged back to the house.

Three of them had left for the workout, but only he and the dog returned for now. Although the Second's physical fitness was poor, her recovery ability was excellent. Plus, with her mother's instructions in mind, she didn't stop at the small park. Minos dragged her along to continue their exercise. The Second had wanted to stop, but Minos insisted on being responsible for her training. In the end, all she could do was sigh, "You're just too responsible," and reluctantly keep running. Ryohei had no idea where they had run off to, nor did he particularly care.

He tied Bette up by her doghouse and went straight to the second-floor bathroom for a cold shower. Afterward, he headed to the kitchen to continue preparing breakfast. They had been having congee for the past few days, so Ryohei decided to switch to something more substantial. Before leaving that morning, he had set some pork to stew for là zhī ròu and prepared the dough, planning to make ròu jiā mó.

Roujiamo is a traditional and iconic Chinese street food, often called the "Chinese hamburger." It consists of a báijí mó bun stuffed with stewed pork. The bun is crispy, the meat is savory, and the combination is crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, with a rich and multi-layered flavor. It's incredibly delicious.

Ryohei had loved Roujiamo back in high school. There was a shop specializing in it right outside the school gates, and he was a regular customer. He rarely had it after graduating, as it was a specialty from Shaanxi province and not commonly found where he lived. He had made it himself a few times before, so he was quite proficient.

...

Lucoa, who had been playing on her phone on the living room sofa, got up and came to the counter the moment Ryohei entered the kitchen. She propped herself up on her elbows, leaning over the counter with her round, full hips raised, and watched him cook. She loved watching Ryohei cook; she found it aesthetically pleasing and enjoyed seeing the dishes begin to glow in his hands. Watching him and smelling the aromas made the food taste even better when she finally got to eat it.

Yurine came downstairs to see this scene. She had no particular reaction, having grown accustomed to it. Sometimes, Minos did the same thing. Inhaling the rich, enticing aroma of meat, enhanced by spices, and the scent of wheat, Yurine couldn't help but exclaim, "It smells so good." She walked briskly to the counter, peeked into the kitchen, and asked curiously, "Tanaka-kun, what are we having today?"

"Roujiamo."

Ryohei placed a half-cooked Baiji mo, already browned with a "tiger-skin" pattern, into the oven. He turned and smiled at Yurine, then set the temperature and timer—200 degrees Celsius for 10 minutes. He liked to bake the buns for a bit to make the crust crispier and improve the texture.

"Oh," Yurine replied. She knew what Roujiamo was; she had eaten it a couple of times. Staring at the buns in the oven, a thought struck her. "By the way," she said, interested, "it's 'bun stuffed with meat,' so why is it called 'meat-stuffed bun' (ròu jiā mó)?"

Ryohei happened to know the answer. He had been curious about that himself and had looked it up online. He organized his thoughts and explained with a smile, "I remember there are three explanations. The first is an inversion from classical Chinese. 'Rou jia mo' is a shortened version of the classical phrase 'ròu jiā yú mó,' which means 'meat stuffed in a bun.' It's a grammatical inversion. The second has to do with a local dialect. The pronunciation of 'mó jiā ròu' (bun stuffed with meat) sounds very similar to 'méi jiā ròu,' which means 'no meat inside.' To avoid this ambiguity, the vendors intentionally swapped the word order..."

"Pfft—! 'No meat inside'~!" Yurine burst out laughing, covering her mouth with her hand, thoroughly amused. Her sense of humor was odd; she often laughed at the strangest things, a fact Ryohei was used to.

He wrapped a cloth around his hand, lifted the lid of the clay pot, and used chopsticks to remove the spice packet he'd made. Then he turned up the heat to reduce the sauce. While stirring to prevent it from sticking and burning, he continued to pan-fry more Baiji mo on the griddle next to him. He looked up at Yurine and continued, "As for the third explanation, it's a naming convention. 'Jiā mó' itself has become a noun for a type of food, and the prefix 'ròu' simply indicates the type of filling, just like in 'meat bun' (ròubāozi)."

"Ohh, souka!" Yurine stopped laughing and looked at Ryohei with an expression of sudden understanding. She rested her hands on the counter, leaned forward slightly, and propped her chin on her hands to watch him cook. Yurine also loved watching him; sometimes she even wanted to help him, finding the act very heartwarming.

A few minutes later, Ryohei turned off the heat. When the oven dinged, he put on a pair of heat-resistant gloves and took out the baking tray of perfectly toasted buns.

"Whoa—! That smells incredible! I can't stand it!" The sound of the front door opening and closing was followed by approaching footsteps.

Minos, breathing slightly heavily with a healthy flush on her face, exuded an aura of youthful energy. She entered the living room, dragging behind her an exhausted and listless-looking Second who was panting for air. The moment she was inside, Minos wagged her tail and called out cheerfully to Ryohei in the open kitchen, "Tanaka-kun, is the Roujiamo ready?"

"Yep, just finished. Want to try one first?" The baked buns didn't even need to be cut; a gentle squeeze was enough to open them up. Ryohei generously filled one with chopped pork, drizzled a spoonful of the flavorful sauce over it, and turned to Minos.

"Umm... I should probably take a shower first!" Minos looked at the finished Roujiamo, then down at her sweaty hands. Swallowing hard, she reluctantly declined. "Second, let's go!" She grabbed the Second and pulled her away.

The Second only had time to let out a small "eh?" before being dragged out of the living room in a whirlwind.

Ryohei chuckled at the scene. He placed the Roujiamo on a plate, made another one, and set them both on the counter for Yurine and Lucoa. They didn't stand on ceremony. Each took one, said, "Itadakimasu," and dug in.

"Crunch—!" A faint crunching sound was heard as Lucoa bit down. She opened her eyes fully, revealing her unusually beautiful, multicolored irises. "Super delicious!"

The freshly baked Baiji mo was crispy on the outside yet soft and fluffy inside, with a slight chewiness. With one bite, the rich aroma of the stewed pork, mingled with the enticing fragrance of wheat, flooded her mouth. The piping hot meat was fatty but not greasy, lean but not dry, and the savory, salty flavor melted on her tongue with the rendered fat. The juices soaked into the soft inner part of the bun, creating a perfect fusion of crispy and soft, fragrant and moist. The more she chewed, the more flavorful it became. Lucoa couldn't help but take another huge bite. She couldn't stop.

~~~

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