My Mother-in-Law and I Became the Internet's Hottest Power Couple-Chapter 45
Lu Yicheng found it utterly absurd that Yu Wanqiu would even ask such a question. What else could he possibly be calling for at this late hour?
If he couldn’t call during the day, was he not allowed to call at night either?
What kind of person did she take him for?
“I messaged Jiang Lan, but she hasn’t replied. Is she with you?” Lu Yicheng sounded anxious. The only time he could talk to Jiang Lan was during their nightly calls, but whenever she went out with Yu Wanqiu, those calls became impossible.
All they could do was text.
And those brief exchanges were pretty much the only thing that brightened his day.
But today, Jiang Lan hadn’t even replied to his messages. It was already past eleven.
Yu Wanqiu glanced at Jiang Lan. “Yeah, she’s here. Your brother asked her a few questions about music. She probably didn’t have time to check your messages.”
Lu Yicheng: “…………”
“Lu Xingran? The contact you recommended? Seriously, why did you let Lu Xingran add her? If he knows, then his sister and everyone else will find out too!” Lu Yicheng stood up abruptly as he spoke. This was his girlfriend. Yu Wanqiu alone knowing was bad enough.
They already had so little time together. It was summer break—summer break—and not only could they not go on dates, but now even their scarce texting time was being stolen.
Whose girlfriend was Jiang Lan, anyway? Forgetting about him was one thing, but couldn’t she spare him even a little time?
Yu Wanqiu chuckled. “From the way you’re talking, it sounds like you want to hide Jiang Lan away. Are you out of your mind? We’re all family. What’s wrong with getting to know each other?”
Lu Yicheng: “Yeah, yeah, sure. No big deal. But Jiang Lan still hasn’t replied to me, and it’s all your fault.”
Yu Wanqiu: “Oh, relax. Do you really think Jiang Lan would’ve answered Lu Xingran’s questions if it weren’t for someone’s influence?”
Lu Yicheng’s mood improved slightly.
“Of course, it was my influence.” Yu Wanqiu laughed softly, and sure enough, silence followed on the other end of the line.
She decided to stop teasing him. “Don’t worry. Xingran seems very polite. He wouldn’t bully Jiang Lan. Besides, he’s into music, so they have a lot in common.”
Lu Yicheng: “…Are you implying that I don’t have anything in common with Jiang Lan?”
He’d gotten off work early today, only to find out the two of them had gone to Dian Province first thing in the morning—livestreaming, taking walks, and now there was Lu Xingran in the mix.
Lu Yicheng was furious.
Yu Wanqiu: “If that’s how you want to interpret it, fine. They’ll probably be talking for a while, and I don’t feel like chatting with you. I’m hanging up.”
Jiang Lan and Lu Xingran had been talking for over half an hour. She hadn’t brought her violin on this trip, but Lu Xingran’s idea of substituting another instrument was interesting. She could try it out at work next week.
Lu Xingran was quite entertaining. [It’s getting late. If we keep talking, Lu Yicheng might come after me with a knife—and I’m all the way in City B!
How about lunch next Monday? Don’t let Auntie bring you a lunchbox.]
Jiang Lan loved lunchboxes, but eating with Lu Xingran didn’t seem appropriate.
Spending time with Yu Wanqiu was for the show, but having meals with Lu Xingran… No, Jiang Lan didn’t want to meet any more of Lu Yicheng’s relatives.
It was like everyone had already decided she and Lu Yicheng were destined to get married.
[Teacher Yu’s lunchboxes are amazing. I’ll stick with those.]
[Lu Xingran: Can I bum one off you?
Lu Xingran: I’ve never had Auntie’s cooking before.
Lu Xingran: Come to think of it, neither has Lu Yicheng or Uncle.]
[You’ll have to ask Teacher Yu about that. Don’t ask me.]
[Lu Xingran: Fine.
Lu Xingran: Seriously, though, I should go. Lu Yicheng is blowing up my phone. [Piglet waving a handkerchief.jpg]]
Jiang Lan exited the chat and saw it was already past eleven. Lu Yicheng had sent a bunch of messages. She quickly replied: [Your brother had some questions. It’s all settled now.]
Yu Wanqiu yawned. “Done already? The only ones in the family working in entertainment are me and Xingran. He’s really talented in music. Anyway, it’s late. Time for bed.”
Jiang Lan bid Yu Wanqiu goodnight, then buried herself under the covers to text Lu Yicheng, who replied instantly.
[Pig Raised by a Fairy: Do you even know what time it is? We already couldn’t call tonight, and now you’re about to sleep.]
[Pig Raised by a Fairy: What was so urgent that it couldn’t wait till tomorrow?]
Jiang Lan was exasperated. What was she supposed to do if Lu Xingran insisted on asking her? It wasn’t like she’d added him on purpose.
[Was I supposed to ignore your brother?]
[Pig Raised by a Fairy: Why not?]
Jiang Lan’s temper flared. [Get this straight—he’s your brother, not mine. I didn’t even want to talk about it. It’s like working off the clock with no pay.]
[Pig Raised by a Fairy: You didn’t want to talk to him, huh? Right, so much so that you didn’t even see my messages.]
It was true Jiang Lan hadn’t checked if Lu Yicheng had texted, but was that the point? [He kept asking me questions—what was I supposed to do?]
[Pig Raised by a Fairy: You were having so much fun chatting with him that you forgot about me.]
Jiang Lan gritted her teeth. [I texted you the second we finished!]
[Pig Raised by a Fairy: I’ll always come second.]
Jiang Lan took a deep breath and pulled out her trump card. [Keep this up, and I’ll really get mad.]
Lu Yicheng had mostly cooled down by now. He knew when to back off, but he still grumbled. [It’s always like this. Even Xu Xiang used to come before me. Everyone comes before me.]
[Pig Raised by a Fairy: It’s not fair. You’ve met my mom, my relatives—I haven’t even met your family.]
Lu Yicheng wanted to meet Jiang Lan’s parents too.
Jiang Lan: [Weren’t we high school classmates? Didn’t you see my mom at school?]
Actually, he had. When Lu Yicheng was a sophomore, Jiang Lan’s mother had taught English. Back then, Teacher Xie was the homeroom teacher for Class 1, Grade 12. He’d often see her during morning exercises.
Teacher Xie’s class always had the cleanest classroom and the most disciplined students during exercises.
And if he remembered correctly, there’d been a notorious troublemaker in her class who’d somehow ended up getting into a top-tier university.
Not that Lu Yicheng was intimidated.
Mother and daughter had some similarities. Teacher Xie was an excellent educator, gentle and kind, but back then, Lu Yicheng’s feelings for Jiang Lan hadn’t been entirely pure. Eventually, he’d started avoiding Teacher Xie whenever he saw her.
If his crush on Jiang Lan had been discovered, he might’ve been fine, but Jiang Lan…
[Pig Raised by a Fairy: I saw her a few times.]
Jiang Lan was curious. She’d probably visit home after filming wrapped, but she didn’t remember much.
[Hey, Lu Yicheng, tell me about my mom. What’s she like?]
[Pig Raised by a Fairy: Teacher Xie is an outstanding educator, a role model respected by her students. Her influence spans generations—a truly remarkable teacher. And of course, she’s a wonderful mother. Raising someone as exceptional as you speaks volumes. You’re both amazing.]
Every word was dripping with praise. Was Lu Yicheng out of his mind?
What an idiot.
Jiang Lan stifled a laugh. [Anything else?]
Lu Yicheng racked his brain and typed another paragraph. [Well, Teacher Xie is beautiful and kind. Every student she’s taught has only good things to say. I just wasn’t lucky enough to be one of them. Otherwise, my English score on the college entrance exam would’ve been even higher.]
Jiang Lan asked him what he’d scored.
Lu Yicheng scored full marks in math and science, lost 13 points in Chinese, and achieved a total college entrance exam score of 732, with 145 in English. Those remaining five points were all thanks to Teacher Xie...
Jiang Lan was overjoyed hearing this. Though the praise wasn’t directed at her, hearing her mother complimented still made her happy.
Lu Yicheng typed each word carefully, double-checking multiple times for typos.
Jiang Lan rolled over in bed. [So my mom sounds pretty great, huh? She’d probably treat me even better than Yu Wanqiu does. And Yu Wanqiu is already so good to me. Hmm, should I return the favor and praise her too? Let’s engage in some mutual flattery.]
[Fairy Raising a Pig: What do you mean "mutual flattery"? Everything I said came from the heart.]
Jiang Lan and Lu Yicheng chatted until past one in the morning. She hadn’t even noticed the time, losing herself in the conversation.
But it was Saturday—no obligations, so sleeping in wasn’t a problem.
Jiang Lan woke up a little after nine. Yu Wanqiu, who had gone to bed early the night before, was already up. She had gone for a morning run around the small town, enjoying the crisp air. Exercising made her feel refreshed, and it also eased her guilt about eating instant noodles afterward.
Who knew boiled instant noodles could taste so good? Now Yu Wanqiu wouldn’t have to worry about Jiang Lan going hungry.
"Little Xu bought a few packs of instant noodles. Let’s have this for breakfast. Granny here also has free-range eggs—the yolks are so golden," Yu Wanqiu said.
Jiang Lan crawled out of bed. "See? I told you they were delicious, delicious, delicious! But you wouldn’t believe me yesterday."
Yu Wanqiu was used to Jiang Lan teasing her. "It’s not too late to believe now. Seriously, though, how do you make instant noodles taste so good when your other dishes are… well, a disaster?"
Jiang Lan shrugged. "Boiling noodles takes five minutes. Stewing meat takes an hour. Of course they’re different. Yu Wanqiu, if you want to eat, just wait quietly. And you’re doing the dishes afterward."
"I’ll wash them, I’ll wash them," Yu Wanqiu agreed, already hungry. Thank goodness she’d eaten a little the night before.
The morning’s instant noodles were even more extravagant than the previous night’s. The broth was made from stir-fried tomatoes, and Granny had bought fresh shrimp and scallops from the market. Jiang Lan added large prawns and dried scallops to the mix.
The secret to perfect instant noodles? Throw in a bit of everything.
This time, instead of poached eggs, they had fried eggs—golden and crispy on the outside, soaked in the rich broth, looking utterly irresistible.
Each of them had a big bowl, and Yu Wanqiu finished every last noodle.
Around ten, Granny asked if they wanted to go mushroom picking.
She had already gathered some earlier that morning, but since Jiang Lan and Yu Wanqiu were guests on vacation, she offered to take them into the mountains for a stroll. They’d be back by noon, just in time for lunch.
The forests of Yunnan Province were lush and dense, filled with birdsong. Walking through the woods, the air was cool and refreshing.
Granny showed them which mushrooms were edible. "These are all safe to eat. The more colorful ones are usually the most poisonous."
Between firefly-watching and mushroom-picking, Jiang Lan almost felt like she was living in a fairy tale.
Chen and Little Xu also grabbed baskets—another work trip that felt like a vacation.
Working with Yu Wanqiu meant traveling to countless places in a year, though most of the time, it was nonstop busyness. This variety show, however, was practically all fun and games.
Yu Wanqiu rarely called for them unless necessary, and Little Xu, assigned to Jiang Lan, had even fewer tasks.
They’d watched fireworks displays, played at water parks, and wandered through firefly-filled forests.
Now, they were picking mushrooms in an ancient woodland that had existed for thousands of years. Compared to the two assistants, the cameramen had it much harder.
Hiking while protecting expensive equipment from scratches was no easy feat. The cameras were heavy, and though there were smaller models, the larger ones had better lenses for clearer shots.
Zhang Tian had already promised them bonuses—every drop of sweat they shed would turn into money flowing into their pockets.
On Saturday, the sponsors transferred the funds to the production team, and Zhang Tian promptly sent Yu Wanqiu and Jiang Lan their shares.
He was thrilled. Last night’s episode had once again surpassed the ratings of competing romance, talent, and parenting shows.
...
What’s more, the first episode had surpassed 100 million views.
Even accounting for repeat viewers, the average unique viewership was around 60 to 70 million—nearly double the initial numbers. This was truly a national sensation.
The viewership for the next four episodes was also climbing. Recently, a TV station from Country H had reached out to purchase broadcasting rights. If the deal went through, it would mean another hefty payday.
Zhang Tian felt like he’d become obsessed with money—as if he’d never seen so much in his life. But then again, wasn’t it normal to like money?
Jiang Lan certainly did. With a mother-in-law like Yu Wanqiu and a decent paycheck of her own, she still insisted on cooking instant noodles instead of dining out.
Some of the crew members defended her: "Director Zhang, cooked this way, it really is delicious!"
Almost every dish Jiang Lan and Yu Wanqiu made became the crew’s menu for the next day. Takeout usually meant skewers, fried chicken, or braised pork, but last night, even the crew skipped delivery and bought instant noodles from the supermarket.
Then they all gathered around a pot, eating with gusto.
Zhang Tian sighed. "Fine, fine, it’s delicious. But don’t overdo it. And for heaven’s sake, don’t post about it online. People will think the hottest show on TV can’t even afford proper meals."
Inside the villa, Zhang Tian could boast about having the most popular show. Outside, he didn’t dare—he’d get laughed at.
The "Lanzhou Lamian" fan community had 2.3 million followers, diligently checking in every day.
The latest check-in tag was: #DidYouShipLanzhouLamianToday#
[Shipped it. Shipped two big bowls.]
It was kind of fun.
The fan page was filled with screenshots from the show and livestreams—every frame could be a wallpaper.
Fans even cataloged their daily outfits and meals. Yu Wanqiu’s clothes were high-end, ranging from thousands to tens of thousands, while Jiang Lan’s wardrobe was much more affordable. Their food choices were also down-to-earth, things anyone could enjoy.
Wearing the same clothes, eating the same food—this was how fans felt closest to them.
Like that night in the firefly forest, if Jiang Lan was a flicker of light, she was the brightest one.
In those moments, Yu Wanqiu’s eyes held nothing else—just that glow, radiant enough to leave a lasting impression.
Perhaps that was the essence of "Lanzhou Lamian."
Jiang Lan gathered a basketful of mushrooms, taking even the questionable ones back to ask Granny.
She’d heard Yunnan’s wild mushrooms were incredibly flavorful, and now she’d finally get to try them.
The mushrooms were plump and adorable. Each discovery brought a sense of satisfaction—no wonder people loved hoarding things.
Jiang Lan wanted to haul the entire forest’s worth back with her.
Granny didn’t take them too deep into the woods. The area had edible berries and plenty of small wildlife.
New novel 𝓬hapters are published on freёwebnoѵel.com.
Jiang Lan spotted squirrels. "Yu Wanqiu! Look, squirrels! Two of them!"
Yu Wanqiu followed her gaze. Sure enough, high up in the trees, two little brown squirrels sat on their haunches, nibbling on something.
They were adorable, unafraid of humans, simply staring back curiously.
Granny said, "There are lots of animals here. Birds too."
The town’s lack of economic development had, ironically, preserved its natural beauty. The forests remained untouched, some even designated as national reserves.
The birds here had vibrant feathers...
And the mountain streams ran crystal clear.
The little flowers and grass were all adorable.
A little past eleven, Granny led the way back. Going uphill was easy, but coming down was hard—yet Yu Wanqiu wasn’t even out of breath, her face unflushed.
This proved that fitness and exercise really do pay off.
Yu Wanqiu’s physical condition was genuinely impressive. She could handle sleepless nights filming back-to-back scenes, and action sequences were no trouble for her.
Jiang Lan refused to admit defeat, not uttering a single word of complaint as she followed Granny back to the homestay.
Granny took all the mushrooms to prepare lunch, and Jiang Lan felt she could easily devour three bowls of rice.
Granny made chicken stew with termite mushrooms, fried rice with mushroom dices, mushroom dumplings, deep-fried termite mushrooms, and stir-fried mushroom shreds with peppers.
It was Jiang Lan’s first time trying these mushrooms, and the only word that came to mind was umami—especially the termite mushroom stew with old hen. The broth was topped with a layer of golden oil, the chicken so tender it fell apart, the skin sticky and gelatinous, the meat meltingly soft.
Jiang Lan snapped several photos and sent them to Lu Yicheng.
The fried rice was delicious too, mixed with pickled vegetables and packed with mushroom dices. It wasn’t cooked with vegetable oil but with lard.
If you served yourself, you could even add an extra spoonful of lard to make it even richer.
As for the dumplings, they were stuffed with fish and shrimp, paired with springy mushroom dices—Jiang Lan could’ve eaten a whole bowl.
In the end, the deep-fried termite mushrooms were just a light snack.
After the meal, Jiang Lan grew drowsy. "Teacher Yu, don’t move… why do you have a mermaid’s tail?"
Her vision swam with spots of light. Yu Wanqiu touched Jiang Lan’s forehead and sensed something was wrong.
Was this poisoning? But she had eaten plenty too and felt completely fine.
Just to be safe, Yu Wanqiu took Jiang Lan to the hospital.
