CHAPTER 202: CHAPTER 70 BAMBOO SHOOT FEAST (PART 2)

Du Xixi watched 2569 carefully carry out these large and small plates, swallowed the saliva already gathering in her throat, took off her pale pink apron, took a deep breath, and then slowly walked out.

At this moment, Your Majesty the Iron-eating Beast was already sniffing furiously, holding two equally restless cubs, and ran towards the dining table. Behind him, Miao Miao also put down her book. Although she didn’t seem in a hurry, her steps were not slow at all.

Du Xixi, supporting her lower back with one hand, felt that her stamina was really improving a lot now. Despite making so much food, she hardly felt any fatigue, a drastic change compared to how she was a few months ago.

The rich aroma of the dishes filled the dining and living rooms. Even though the enticing scent from the kitchen earlier had already spread over a larger area, it hadn’t diminished at all; instead, it was carried by the wind blowing in from the gate into more parts of the villa.

Your Majesty the Iron-eating Beast’s nose twitched continuously, almost unable to control the two cubs in his arms who were desperately trying to crawl toward the table. But while he looked like he could still control himself, he was actually nearly glued to the dining table.

Du Xixi, seeing their adorable appearances, couldn’t help but smile endlessly. She invited Miao Miao to sit beside her and also signaled to Your Majesty and the cubs across the table to sit down quickly.

Because the cubs’ bodies were so small that when seated, only half of their furry heads could be seen over the table, 2569 wisely brought over two "baby chairs"—yes, they were prepared in advance for Du Xixi’s two children—and lent them to the cute little cubs to sit on. It worked perfectly.

With the help of these two baby chairs, the little iron-eating beasts could easily reach the dishes laid out on the dining table.

"Bamboo shoots!" The more lively little iron-eating beast clumsily held chopsticks, causing the pair of equal-length chopsticks to drop unevenly into the plate.

Despite his clumsy grip, he was quite agile with the chopsticks.

With one chopstick longer and one shorter, it seemed impossible to reach the same bamboo shoot piece. But with a flick of his furry paw, the chopsticks tilted and easily picked up the bamboo shoot segment.

Hmm, quite steady indeed.

In the surprised gaze of Du Xixi and Miao Miao, the little iron-eating beast stuffed the bamboo shoot segment into his little mouth, chewing it completely with "crunch-crunch" sounds, and swallowed it in one go.

Your Majesty the Iron-eating Beast felt quite embarrassed and gave Du Xixi a sheepish smile, then patted his cub on the head. The little iron-eating beast uttered a soft "hm" and whimpered for a while before carefully adjusting his chopsticks grip, which made grabbing bamboo shoots more challenging.

Looking at the poor little iron-eating beast’s pitiful appearance, Du Xixi couldn’t help but cover her mouth and laugh for a while. Then, she used the communal chopsticks to pick several pieces of bamboo shoots for the little iron-eating beast and the other cub, saying with a smile, "Relax, there’s no one else here, just be yourself."

Du Xixi was always laid-back at home, not only disliking restricting others but also letting herself be free. She enjoyed the lively atmosphere at home rather than everyone being bound by rules, restraining them from doing this or that.

Upon hearing Du Xixi’s words, the two little iron-eating beasts were somewhat puzzled, thinking Du Xixi was only being polite. For a moment, they were a bit tense, worried they might have offended Du Xixi earlier.

However, as they carefully observed Du Xixi’s expression, seeing her consistently looking at them warmly with encouraging eyes, they slowly relaxed.

Initially, the two little iron-eating beasts kept sneaking glances at Du Xixi, checking her after each bite, but soon the delicious food successfully eased their concerns. They began eating heartily, their chopsticks grip returning to how it was at the start.

"That’s more like it!" Du Xixi said joyously upon seeing this, holding her bowl of bamboo shoot rice, feeling the heat rising among the grains, adding more comfort to her smile, "Let’s see the difference between cooked and raw bamboo shoots. I’m satisfying my curiosity too."

Du Xixi had naturally tasted raw bamboo shoots before, which were sweet with a bit of bitterness—not bad but not great either. Perhaps because Du Xixi had always preferred cooked food, while she didn’t resist dishes with raw ingredients, she still favored cooked meals.