Independence

Chapter 0128

By evening, the wonderful smell of cooking wafted from the kitchen as Lionel brought out the seafood stew. “I just learned the recipe for this. Tell me what you think!”

Miranda looked at the table full of her favorite food. There were mashed

potatoes with bacon bits, a garden salad, grilled sea bass, seafood stew, and meatballs in bolognese sauce.

Mindy dished the most tender part of the grilled fish and handed the plate over to Miranda. “Your dad sucks at making grilled fish, but I just tasted this and I could tell it was made exactly the way you liked it. Here, have some more.”

Lionel didn’t look happy when he heard what Mindy said. “What do you mean by that? I don’t suck at making fish. I’m just human, and all humans err anyway!

Miranda burst out laughing.

Meanwhile, Mindy nodded and said sarcastically, “Of course, your culinary skills are out of the world! It doesn’t matter whether you’re grilling fish or making any other kinds of food because you‘ mehow find a way to make

them work. Happy now?”

“That’s more like it,” Lionel said. “Zion from next door just learned a few recipes from me yesterday! Just be grateful that I’m always doing all the cooking for you to enjoy.”

“Alright, alright. I’ll enjoy every second of it. Hurry up and start eating so you’ll stop talking!”

“You sound like you’re just brushing me aside,” Lionel grumbled. “Ask Mimi if you don’t believe me. My cooking is out of this world, right?”

Lionel then served Miranda another helping of grilled fish. “Have some more food, Mimi. Tell me, what do you think of my fish?”

Miranda couldn’t help the corners of her mouth lifting as she listened to her parents bantering. She then took a bite of the fish and marveled at how its natural sweetness just burst forth on her tongue.

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Chapter 0120

$25 SCANS

Lionel knew that Miranda didn’t like heavily–seasoned grilled fish. So, he had only used regular salt and pepper to cook the fish. Just before lifting the fish out of the pan, he had then basted it in some butter and served it immediately.

This way, it would preserve and enhance the natural sweetness of the fish without introducing too many flavors to it.

As far as Miranda could remember, Mindy had rarely ever stepped foot inside the kitchen. Lionel was the main chef of the house.

Every day after school, Miranda would wait for Lionel in the staff room. Then, when Lionel got off work, she would ride on the back of his bicycle as they went home together.

They would always pass by the farmers market on their way home. Lionel was very close with the people there.

On the contrary, Mindy never bought groceries from the farmers‘ market because she didn’t know how to pick good produce. She co thought that it was a hot and noisy place to be.

The only dishes she excelled in were grilled sea bass and omelets. These were two of Miranda’s favorite foods, and Mindy made an effort to learn their recipes.

However, even though Mindy wasn’t good at cooking, it still didn’t stop her from criticizing Lionel’s culinary skills. Ultimately, Mindy’s comments and feedback only fuelled Lionel’s desire to cook even more, inadvertently letting him hone his skills and become a true chef.

After Miranda left, the only person she had around her was Hansel. She would cook, clean, and prepare everything for him so that he would be able to come home to a warm meal every time after work.

All this while, Miranda’s father had been the one doing the cooking, and Miranda’s job was only to enjoy the food he made.

Now, she had come back full circle. Her parents were treating her.exactly the same as they had in the past, making Miranda realize that they had always treated her as their precious, beloved daughter.

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1 haven’t had this in a long time. I think that the sea bass Dad makes is the best sea bass I’ll ever have in the world. Even the same dish from a five–star

restaurant could never compare to this!

Lionel was overjoyed upon hearing her compliments. He felt proud and emotional at the same time. ‘Til make it for you again next time, whenever you feel like it.”

Miranda tried her best to suppress the tears in her eyes and answered with a big smile and a hum.

After dinner, Mindy cut up some fruits she’d bought in the afternoon and arranged them beautifully on a plate.

She didn’t see anyone in the living room, so she headed out toward the door. As expected, she saw both Lionel and Miranda sitting in the yard.

The sky darkened quite early in the day, so the light in the yard seemed to be a little dimmer than usual. Wood crackled in the fire~‘ace from time to time, painting a picture of warmth.

Miranda sat close to the fireplace to keep herself warm and toasty. The light from the fire would flicker and reflect dancing shadows upon her face.

Mindy sat next to Miranda and passed the plate of fruit to her.

*Our strawberries are ripe enough to be eaten now. They’re big, juicy, and sweet. You used to love them a lot when you were little. Try some.”

There were still tiny droplets of water on the washed strawberries. Miranda swore she could taste the sweetness of the strawberries just by looking at them.