[T/N] I apologize for grammar mistakes and incoherencies
Red Peafowl Special Chapter 1
On the island where Hong Kongque raises birds. In addition to many birds, marine animals are also abundant and special. From fish to shrimp, shellfish, and even sea slugs are available to catch.
After resigning from the police force, Lu Yipeng decided to live with birds and has no intention of working with his hands or feet as food for the birds. Therefore, recently, he volunteered to go fishing with Luo Songzhi. It was only when they were here that Luo Songzhi revealed that he used to be a fisherman’s son before, but he changed his path to become a gangster and was once rescued by Hong Kongque in a big showdown. Since then, he has followed Hong Kongque.
Luo Songzhi is a big guy. While he was actually similar in height to Lu Yipeng, his bulky physique made Lu Yipeng appear small when standing together. This year, he just turned twenty-eight, but his scarred face and years of fighting made him look much older than his actual age. Despite his tough appearance, Luo Songzhi was actually a gentle and kind-hearted person.
Today, Luo Songzhi went out to fish while Lu Yipeng, who was not treated well by Hong Kungque last night, mustered enough strength to get up from his bed and followed him to go fishing. He let the crazy peacock lie in bed and rest.
The young man changed his clothes and walked to the other side of the beach, where the boat was docked. There, Luo Songzhi was waiting. Their usual cordial attitude was evident as ever. He wore a linen shirt that was rolled up for convenience, revealing the words “Red Peafowl” scarred on his arm.
Luo Songzhi explained that he got this scar done with a knife but later Hong Kungque discovered that if you are someone with good skin, cutting the scar might not necessarily turn out okay, so he resorted to using a hot iron to brand it instead. Lu Yipeng listened but didn’t know what to say and just nodded.
As the two were about to set sail, a voice suddenly exclaimed, “Wait, let me come with you.”
Lu Yipeng looked up and saw Hong Kungque dressed in a brown linen suit and baggy trousers. He was reminiscent of an old uncle taking care of his grandchildren, but his face didn’t quite match this image!
“Hey, you’re getting old. You don’t have to struggle to go fishing yourself. Go back to bed, and Luo will take care of it.” The young man spoke, thinking that if Hong Kongque appeared like this, something was definitely wrong. Hong Kongque looked at him and smiled, “Come on, let me come with you.”
“Please come, Sir Peafowl.” Luo Songzhi quickly spoke, turning the boat back to the shore. He had intended to say it earlier, but Lu Yipeng cut in first.
Hong Kongque walked to the shore, not boarding the boat with them as planned, but instead, he gracefully leaped onto the bow of the ship, standing beautifully like a gymnast. Lu Yipeng stared before speaking out, “Why do you do things so differently from normal people?”
Hong Kongque turned and grabbed his hand, “Hmm.. Pengpeng, you can’t resist being jealous, can he.”
“You’re crazy. I’m not competing against you.” Lu Yipeng replied, trying to pull his hand away, but as usual, Hong Kongque pulled his hand back and pouted, “I don’t want to, behaving like this will scare the fish away and make them run away completely. Look at Little Zhi, he is still not saying anything at all.”
Lu Yipeng turned to look at Luo Songzhi, who was smiling broadly, “You are excellent in everything, sir.”
He forgot about this guy worshiping Hong Kongque as if he were his real father.
Unable to find support, Lu Yipeng stared at the sea foam breaking into white bubbles instead. Hong Kongque approached, then he took a shell and put it on the young man’s shoulder, Lu Yipeng immediately moved away.
“What are you doing? Stop being so touchy.” The young man said, but instead of the other person realizing and feeling hurt by the words, he made a retort, “What are you embarrassed about? Everyone knows.”
“I’m not as shameless as you.” Lu Yipeng said, then moved away again, hearing Luo Songzhi’s voice as he was commanding the boat, “Master Lu, you don't need to be embarrassed, love is like this for everyone, my parents even hug on the boat.”
Lu Yipeng bit his lip as if holding back, and then Hong Kongque grabbed his arm and pulled him closer, making a dramatic gesture.
“Come on... hug me, this wind is making me cold.”
The young man glanced at the person who had sarcastically spoken before replying, “If you’re cold, go hide in the cabin.” Pointing to the control room where Luo Songzhi was standing, Hong Kongque snorted and then turned his face slightly, “Pengpeng, you are really dark-hearted, just because of this, you won’t let me be a good husband.”
Lu Yipeng looked at Hong Kongque as if he wanted to eat him before he suddenly hugged the other person. Hong Kongque leaned in closer and pointed for Lu Yipeng to look at the sun rising over the water, “Pengpeng, the sun is rising.”
“Um...” Lu Yipeng made a noise in his throat. Besides the sun, the seabirds were starting to fly out for their meal.
“Pengpeng, today we will compete in fishing. The loser has to cook.”
“?!” Before Lu Yipeng could even say anything, Hong Kongque walked out and went to the back of the cabin to grab two harpoons.
“Here’s yours.” He said, handing the steel harpoon to Lu Yipeng who couldn't help but asking, “ Hey, I have a net, why would I need a harpoon!?”
“The net only has one mouth, how are we going to compete? Also, there are plenty of dried fish now. We don’t need to catch too many. Use the harpoon.” Hong Kongque said, turning to Luo Songzhi, “Little Zhi, drive the ship well. Soon, Pengpeng will complain that you’re on my side too.”
“Yes, sir.” replied Luo Songzhi, while Lu Yipeng thought in his mind that he hadn’t said anything yet. Hong Kongque was quick to tease him.
As the sun caught the edge of the sky, reflecting on the vast expanse of water, Lu Yipeng saw a large school of fish leaping alongside the boat. Hong Kongque pointed down and spoke with an excited voice, “Half an hour, Pengpeng. Beat me if you can.”
Before Lu Yipeng could say anything, Hong Kongque walked to the stern of the boat. Then he plunged the harpoon down. When he pulled it up, a fish was squirming on it.
“One.” He started counting, while Lu Yipeng didn’t know what to do and had to turn his head to look for fish.
A twenty-seven years old, he had lived in the city all his life. Not just for fishing with a harpoon, but the first time he had touched sea fish was on this island.
Lu Yipeng gripped the harpoon tightly, reassuring himself that it was a basic tool that had been used since ancient times. Even though he hadn’t used it much before, it didn’t mean he couldn’t use it at all.
The boat’s body crashed into the sea and broke into foam. The fish were jumping around. There were many, but mostly they were swallowed by the wave foam before Lu Yipeng could find an opportunity to thrust the harpoon down. Meanwhile, Hong Kongque had already caught three.
As he aimed to stab a white fish that had just jumped past twice, he heard Hong Kongque shout.
“Pengpeng, a dolphin!”
Lu Yipeng turned to see a school of dolphins jumping about ten meters away from the boat. Then he saw Hong Kongque climbing onto the boat’s railing, reaching out with the full harpoon. The young man quickly leaned in to hug the waist of the other side, “Kongque, what are you doing!!”
“Why are you asking, I want to eat a dolphin!” said Hong Kongque, and he prepared to take a big step forward, causing Lu Yipeng to have to pull him from the side of the boat.
“Kongque, please, who eats dolphins?”
“I do.” Hong Kongque replied, looking serious. Lu Yipeng's eyes widened, “Have you ever tried it?”
“Not yet, I plan to try it today.” Hong Kongque replied with the most serious face, making Lu Yipeng hesitate, “Kongque, dolphins are animals that feed their young with milk.”
“I know.” Hong Kongque replied, then continued, “I haven’t tried it yet. I wonder what the meat tastes like.” As he said that, he prepared to climb up the boat again, and Lu Yipeng almost grabbed him too late. The young man pulled Hong Kongque back and tried to think of something to stop that person with a black heart from doing something cruel to those sea creatures.
“Kongque, dolphins are cute animals.” Lu Yipeng said, turning to the other person, “Hmm, I’ve seen them on TV, but being cute doesn’t mean you can’t eat them. Even dogs and cats are eaten somewhere.”
Lu Yipeng really wanted to go crazy with Hong Kongque. What was this guy thinking of wanting to eat dolphins? He quickly tried to find some words to comfort the other person.
“Kongque, dolphins are as smart as your cockatoo.”
“Can they talk?” Lu Yipeng asked, looking puzzled, “They can’t talk, but they can help people who are drowning.”
“Um… I’ll throw you in the sea. If they help you, Pengpeng, I won’t eat dolphin meat.” Saying that, he really tried to grab Lu Yipeng and throw him out, and the young man cried out, “Kongque, please stop doing something dangerous! Just eat normal fish. I’m begging you, don’t eat it.”
Hong Kongque looked at Lu Yipeng for a moment, then smiled, “Pengpeng, you are truly kind-hearted. I won’t eat dolphins for real, I was just joking. Little Zhi loves dolphins. I won’t do anything.”
Lu Yipeng glanced at the other person, “Then why did you pretend to want to eat it?”
“Well, I wanted to see if you are a good hearted person, and if you would stop me from eating them.”
Now Lu Yipeng thought it might be better to catch the person in front of him to teach him a lesson, rather than catching fish, “I’m not as cruel as you think.”
Hong Kongque looked at him and chuckled. Then he looked down at his watch, “Oh, it’s been half an hour already. Pengpeng, how many fish did you catch?”
Lu Yipeng blinked a few times before shaking his head. Hong Kongque grabbed his face and smiled mysteriously, “Looks like you lost. Today, you have to cook for me.”
…
The kitchen at Hong Kongque’s mansion was spacious enough. Normally, Li Kong and two other staff members would be in charge of cooking. But today, Hong Kongque changed the whole program and ordered Lu Yipeng to stand in front of the stove and start cooking as soon as he got off the boat.
Lu Yipeng, reluctantly tied up his apron, stood stiffly in front of the kitchen counter with three sizable fish that Hong Kongque had caught. The person who caught the fish seemed to enjoy watching him cook. Even going as far as bringing a chair to sit in the kitchen and giving orders, “Pengpeng, I want grilled fish, steamed fish, and fish soup.”
The person who was ordered turned to look at the one giving orders, “I will boil the fish for you!”
“Then get the steamed fish with sour soup ready.” Hong Kongque said cheerfully. Lu Yipeng lifted the pot to boil water and looked at the three fish. Then he seemed to make a move to pick them all up and put them in the pot. Hong Kongque raised his voice, “Pengpeng, what are you doing?”
“Just cooking the fish.” The other person replied. Hong Kongque made a face as if he were facing a whale, “And you, not taking the insides out, not gutting it first?”
“...”
“Pengpeng...?”
Lu Yipeng was twenty-seven years old. Apart from boiling instant noodles and heating up soup he bought to keep for emergencies when feeling unwell, the young police officer had never cooked anything else. He used to eat with his father. After his father passed away, he ate at the school canteen. After graduating, he bought some food. Therefore, Lu Yipeng’s cooking skills were equivalent to zero. Opening the stove to boil water was already considered a great deed.
However, Lu Yipeng refused to lose face in front of Hong Kongque, so he grabbed a knife and skillfully fileted the fish. He heard Hong Kongque exclaim, “Pengpeng, what are you doing?!”
“I’m just removing the internal organs of the fish.” The young man replied, and as he fileted the fish into two pieces, Hong Kongque looked defeated. He then stood up from his chair.
“Pengpeng, how can you be like this? You’re almost thirty years old and you can’t even remove the internal organs of a fish?”
“I’m not a cook.” Lu Yipeng retorted immediately, making Hong Kongque look as if he had to deal with a child just learning to speak. He walked over and picked up another piece of cloth to tie it around, “Terrible, really. What kind of husband can’t even do this much?”
Lu Yipeng gritted his teeth as if he wanted to crush Hong Kongque with his bare hands before composing himself, “What are you trying to do?”
Hong Kongque, puffed up, picked up a knife and a board. He then replied, “Let’s see.”
Then, Lu Yipeng watched as Hong Kongque skillfully cleaned the fish, fileting it into long strips. He then picked up the knife again, pulled out all the internal organs of the fish, and Lu Yipeng, seeing this, was speechless.
“Kongque, I now know that you are truly the best, so it’s okay if you do things like a normal person.” Lu Yipeng reluctantly said as he picked up a pot and bowl to prepare, watching Hong Kongque continue to cook with a delicate and skillful touch.
As long as one didn’t count the strange military tactics Hong Kongque exhibited, he seemed to be managing the cooking well. After a while, Lu Yipeng smelled a fragrant aroma from the pot. He helped Hong Kongque add more seasonings as another person went to prepare the dipping sauce.
“Pengpeng, try tasting it and see if it’s good or not.” Hong Kongque said, turning to look at the pot and using a spoon to taste the broth. He then used another spoon to give to Lu Yipeng, blowing on the spoon gently before letting him taste the soup.
“Mmm, it’s delicious.”
Hong Kongque looked at him and smiled before turning his attention back to the fish with three flavors. Lu Yipeng looked at the white neck in front of him and felt the urge to have more, so he moved closer.
“Kongque...”
“Hmm?” Hong Kongque turned back, only to be kissed suddenly. Luckily, he didn’t spill the soup he was holding as he pushed Lu Yipeng away and focused on the rice he was cooking. Lu Yipeng didn’t know what to do, so he grabbed a bowl and a plate to serve.
After a while, with the sound of sizzling, the aroma of the fish and the steamed fish filled the air, making Hong Kongque’s mouth water. After finishing cooking, he took off his apron and then turned to give instructions, “Serve it to me at the table in a beautiful bowl.”
Then he grabbed the young man’s neck to kiss him before leaving.
...
Today, Lu Yipeng was forced to catch fish with a net and forced to cook, which he struggled with from the start. He also had to serve as a waiter, carrying all the food on a tray and walking out. Hong Kongque was waiting at the dining table. When he saw his face, he waved his hand to call him.
“Young one, this table.”
Lu Yipeng thought about throwing the tray at Hong Kongque, but the food was delicious, especially the fish with three flavors, and there was still the steamed fish he hadn’t tried yet, so he let Hong Kongque order him ahead.
The young man walked to the table and picked up the bowl of rice, while Hong Kongque waited as if he was in a fancy restaurant. He was not wrong but was still wearing loose pants. After Lu Yipeng placed the rice down, he picked up a bowl to serve the rice.
The hot, fragrant rice was still steaming in the bowl, with a hint of heat rising, and the rice was still warm. Lu Yipeng pulled a chair and sat next to Hong Kongque. Then the other person grabbed a chopstick and picked a piece of fish, putting it in his bowl.
“Pengpeng, you are still a child and need to be well nourished, so that you can be strong enough to maybe defeat me.”
Lu Yipeng turned to look at the person speaking, then replied, “Tell me the truth. Do you want to truly be defeated, or what?”
“Of course. If you are smart.” Hong Kongque replied with a mischievous smile. Lu Yipeng didn’t say anything else, just watched as Hong Kongque skillfully piled food into his bowl - there were grilled fish, fish curry, and fried fish filet. When Kongque finished piling, he turned to him with a smile.
“This time, do you like anything other than snow fish?”
Lu Yipeng didn’t immediately reply. He continued to pile all the rice into Hong Kongque’s bowl before leaning in closer and whispering softly in his ear, “I like...that the most.” Then he kissed Hong Kongque’s cheek loudly.
Hong Kongque chuckled and then spoke, “Pengpeng, you like to eat me? Well, let’s finish eating. I will allow you to eat me as well.”
Lu Yipeng licked his lips, trying to look lecherous before replying, “I’ll eat you until you can't get up.”
Hong Kongque tapped his nose lightly with a finger, “Stop saying that or you will be screaming and begging me to stop again.”
The blushing young man straightened up immediately before turning his attention back to his own bowl, hearing Hong Kongque chuckle approvingly.
“Pengpeng, I love being with you the most.”
Lu Yipeng didn’t say anything else, just sat there eating with a flushed face.
Damn it, I keep losing every time!!!
...
-THE END-