Chapter 3 A Simple Noodle Dish

She was only supposed to take a nap, but by the time she woke up, it was already past eight in the evening.

No one had even bothered to try to wake her up for dinner.

Maria wandered around the house and found Lily in the living room.

"Lily, is there anything I can eat? I overslept, and now I'm hungry."

"Oh, you're finally up. I thought you'd never wake up!"

Lily snorted, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"The family went out for a concert, so they won't be home until later tonight. Besides cooking, I also have other household chores. You missed dinner and it wasn't my fault. I'm not going to cook for you now. You're from the countryside. You should be able to cook at least noodles, right? There are ingredients in the fridge."

As someone who had also come from a poor family, Lily figured that a bumpkin like Maria should at least know how to cook something basic.

After all, they had no one else to rely on but themselves in the countryside.

Maria stared at Lily, who claimed that she was busy with chores.

The servant was just sitting on the sofa, watching a drama on TV with a huge bowl of popcorn.

Seeing this, Maria couldn't help but roll her eyes. Only a fool would believe Lily's lies.

"Fine. I'll make something for myself."

Left with no choice, Maria went straight to the kitchen.

Lily watched her walk away and smiled complacently.

"Did this bitch really think that I'd drop everything just to cook for her? I don't think so!" Lily scoffed coldly, muttering to herself under her breath.

In her eyes, only the actual members of the Jenkins family were qualified to treat her as a servant. After all, she and Maria both came from poor families. Who was she to boss her around?

After a while, Lily started to hear the sounds of a bustling kitchen.

The sound of vegetables being chopped quickly and skillfully echoed from the kitchen. Lily couldn't help but furrow her brows, wondering if Maria was actually a better cook than her.

"Bah! Impossible!" she muttered, shaking her head. Lily took pride in her cooking. After all, it was the main reason why she still worked in this household.

However, a few minutes later, a mouth-watering aroma wafted over to her nose.

The moment Lily got a whiff of it, she couldn't stop herself from swallowing hard.

What on earth was Maria cooking?

And how the hell could a simple noodle dish smell this enticing?

Lily narrowed her eyes, thinking that Maria might have a unique recipe up her sleeve. Otherwise, how else could a dish so simple smell so good? "If I can learn her recipe, the Jenkins family will be more satisfied with my cooking. Maybe they'll even give me a raise!"

Lily's eyes lit up at the thought. She couldn't wait to make her vision a reality.

She quickly turned off the TV and headed to the dining room to wait for Maria to come out. When she heard footsteps coming from the kitchen, she put on her brightest smile.

"What did you cook? Can I see—"

It was the first time Lily had ever treated Maria with any semblance of respect, but her bright smile instantly disappeared when she saw Maria empty-handed.

"Noodles," Maria answered flatly, her eyes as dull as a lifeless doll.

"I know, I know. But where is it? Where's the food?" Lily asked, her tone taking on a hint of impatience.

"I ate it. I told you I was hungry." Lily's smile froze upon hearing this. Maria, on the other hand, walked past her and headed to the front door. "I'm going out for a walk," she announced.

Lily was too dazed to answer. By the time she regained her senses, Maria had already shut the door behind her.

She badly wanted to know Maria's secret noodle recipe, but she was too proud to ask her directly. So she went to the kitchen to see if Maria had left any clues.

Unfortunately, Maria had already washed the dishes she used. The kitchen was as spotless as before. Everything was in order, save for the lingering, appetizing smell of the noodle dish.

Lily pursed her lips unhappily.

Even later that night, the aroma still wafted around the villa.

The front door was opened again, and Vivian Jenkins stepped inside. She and her parents had just returned from the concert.

"Wow! What is that amazing smell?"

Vivian's eyes widened in delight as she looked at Lily excitedly.

"Lily, what on earth did you cook? Go and cook some more for me!" Vivian ordered at once.

Hearing this, Lily bit her lip.

Of course, she could cook Vivian a simple noodle dish, but it wouldn't be nearly as appetizing as whatever Maria had cooked!