Softs clacks of a keyboard could be heard as a lone figure sitting in front of a screen typed at a steady and slow speed. Tiredness and lethargy weighed on Qiao Lu’s shoulders and pressed on his hands. His wrists hurt from typing for too long while his neck and back both felt sore.

Finally, Qiao Lu released a breathe of relief as he quickly scanned through the finished chapter. Qiao Lu’s body felt tired and weak as he quickly scanned through the thousands of words, while his mind felt restless. 

After he finished surveying the newly written chapter, Qiao Lu habitually clicked open a broadcasting website. On the live stream he saw a familiar figure, who was calmly chatting with the lively viewers.

“Hm? Ah, welcome back Persimmon. Staying up quite late like usual?” The figure with a pseudonym of Ying Hau seemed to have just glanced at the chat box when Qiao Lu had entered the livestream, and seeing the bright orange nametag and the chubby little tiger emoticon that chased after it, began to talk to the other through the screen familiarly.

Qiao Lu often visited this live stream late into the night as a way to de-stress his mind and would even sometimes fall asleep while watching it. This streamer called Ying Hau had a very relaxing and calm aura, which in turn caused others to feel relaxed and warm. On stream, he would often cook and teach or chat with the viewers along the way, sometimes he would just chat with the viewers or would just read and tell stories.

It was always very relaxing so Qiao Lu made it a habit to listen to the stream after he finished writing late into the night. He would also listen to the other’s stories and would get inspiration along the way so he always made it a point to donate or chat to the streamer.

So now he was currently the viewer with the highest amount of donations, ah.

However Qiao Lu didn’t feel too distressed for his wallet. Instead, he felt more distressed for his stomach. Ah, why did the food have to look so good? It’s too late in the night to go buy food, yet he was hungry…

Qiao Lu felt distressed for only a moment before casually typing into the chat:  [I just came to by to pop in for awhile, I’ll go to bed after a bit.]

Ying Hau waited patiently for a reply, and after pausing for a moment to read his message, he said gently, “Well, then I thank you for visiting. We’re about to start a game of Battle Creatures, whoever wins gets to make a request on what I’ll cook for the next stream. Would you like to join?”

Qiao Lu paused, thinking it wouldn’t hurt to try so he typed: [Okay.]

Ying Hau nodded, and after he nodded, a miniature holographic landscape appeared before everyone in the stream. On this holographic landscape were twelve different cartoon animals, each having varying titles; in one inconspicuous corner stood a mighty, chubby, munchkin looking tiger with a title that said, ‘Persimmon’. 

Qiao Lu, “…” It was kind of… cute.

After a short pause, the twelve beasts began to fight. Yet to the eyes of the viewers, it looked very cute and endearing, but also a bit comical. The chubby tiger attacked a large bear, but instead of using it’s claws or teeth, it instead spit persimmons from it’s round and soft cheeks.

Qiao Lu visibly paused, asking himself in wonder why this majestic tiger reminded him so much of a hamster.

Yet this majestic tiger hamster did the unexpected, an with it’s short and stubby legs and round cheeks, won the whole game for Qiao Lu.

Ying Hau too seemed to find the tiger amusing as he playfully tried to poke at it’s cheeks, which in response, the tiger arrogantly bit down on the troublemaking finger. Ying Hau chuckled soothingly before turning towards the screen and asked, “Well Persimmon, what shall I cook for next stream?”

Qiao Lu hadn’t expected such a large pie to fall from the sky and had to take a moment to think about it before typing thoughtfully: [A pie made with persimmons?]

To which Ying Hau only laughed and said: “Okay.”

Qiao Lu couldn’t help but to laugh along as well. However, after he habitually glanced at the clock to his right, he felt a bit surprised. Thinking for a moment, he carefully typed out, [It’s a bit later then usual, are you planning on streaming all night?]

Ying Hau glanced at the chat box with a soft smile, his fingers tapping at the armrest of his comfy chair. “No. I was a bit late in starting my stream today so I’ll be streaming a bit later than usual as compensation.”

Qiao Lu nodded his head like a little chick, and glanced at the chat. Inside it, he saw a bunch of familiar names, who all were complaining as they collectively said: [He doesn’t love this concubine anymore! He left us to go enthrall himself with the stories of another!] 

Ying Hau was amused by the chat and generously said, “Ah, concubines, please stop your tears. I was merely spending time with my favorite Empress Persimmon’s books, not cheating ah.”

Qiao Lu raised his eyebrow at this, then remembered that he had seemed to have released two chapters today as compensation for not posting a chapter yesterday. One chapter was posted earlier today while the other was posted at the usual time. 

Hn, it seemed he had forgotten that Ying Hau was a fan of his books.

Glancing at the chat, Qiao Lu could only see the chat fill with the calm message of, [Ah, so it was Empress Persimmon.]

Finally, someone typed: [Since it’s our Empress Persimmon, we’ll allow you to spoil them, ah.]

Empress Persimmon, “…”

Ying Hau chuckled good-naturedly with a nod. A gentle smile blooming across his face. “Thank you.” He soothed.

Qiao Lu couldn’t help the smile that was blossoming on his face, and could only type: [Thank you dear subjects, ah.]

Then, Qiao Lu was blasted with one sentence by the chat: [Ah, Empress Persimmon is cute today too.]

Teased into laughter by the chat, Qiao Lu typed a simple: [Good night.]

Then came a low, gentle and soothing, “Good night.”

Off to bed the little Empress goes, ah.

Ying Hau glanced at his virtual clock, a light smile playing at his lips. “Alright everyone, you should all head to bed too. Good night and sweet dreams. Remember to eat before watching the stream tomorrow.” Finishing what he needed to say, Ying Hau waved the viewers good night and ended the stream. 

Ying Hau, or Ying Chen stretched in his chair. Softly, his pale and slender fingers tapped at a silver metal bracelet on his wrist, and a virtual screen appeared before his eyes. Ying Chen swiped at the screen for awhile before soothing and gentle piano music began to play around the house. The relaxing and smooth music bringing a comfortable warmth to the already cozy house.

Thinking for a moment, Ying Chen stood up from his comfy chair and headed downstairs towards the kitchen. He felt a bit hungry from streaming all day so he planned on making something simple and warm to eat.

With a soft rustle, Ying Chen put on a simple apron. His figure bathed in the hazy warmth of the orange light, and with a soft click of a stove, he began to prepare a nice and comforting meal to warm both his body and soul.

The sight of the busying figure bathed in honeyed light along with the soft sounds of a simmering soup were all a delight to the senses; the comforting aroma of an exquisite soup and the light yet sweet scent of congee travelled from the kitchen till it reached the living room, in which the soft crackles of a fire could be heard along with the lazy figure of a cat sleeping cozily on the couch.

Quietly the cat slept, till it’s pink little nose began to twitch at the enticing aroma. Blearily, the cat opened her lovely blue eyes. The cat named Fengfeng, squinted lazily as she soaked in the warm glow of the fireplace, before slowly getting up to stretch. Then, with gleaming eyes, Fengfeng made her way towards the kitchen entrance. Once she had arrived at the entrance to the kitchen, she gracefully squatted by the entrance to wait to be fed, ah.

Ying Chen saw all of this and could only gaze indulgently at the fluffy cat. Fengfeng was a fluffy and beautiful munchkin ragdoll mix, which made her both elegant and a bit cute and endearing. Looking at Fengfeng, Ying Chen was reminded of a certain chubby persimmon stuffed tiger. Laughing to himself softly, Ying Chen continued to cook.

Ying Chen, “…”

Ying Chen looked down at the steamed buns before him. Each neatly folded into the shape of a little chubby tiger face.

Ying Chen looked down at his own hands, then looked at the buns. “…” Did he do this?

Sighing to himself, Ying Chen could only accept it as he took a bite out of the freshly made steamed buns.

Ying Chen, “…” It tastes good but why does he feel like it should be a different filling? Persimmon stuffed tiger steamed buns…

“Meow.” Fengfeng mewled, her voice silky and sweet as she begged for food.

“Okay, give me a moment Fengfeng. I’ll get you something to eat in a moment.” Ying Chen coaxed as he stuffed the steam bun into his mouth gently and turned to search for a can of wet cat food. 

Satisfied, Fengfeng squinted her eyes lazily as she waited for food. Once she saw Ying Chen’s figure appear out from the kitchen, she trotted over to rub herself against his leg and wrap her tail around him as she began to noisily meow for food once again.

Ying Chen patiently stroked the troublesome cat and set her food down. “Eat slowly Fengfeng.” He reminded as he watched her begin to eat her food. Watching for a moment, Ying Chen stood up after awhile to head back to the kitchen. When he came back out, he carried a tray filled with food. A bowl of exquisite soup, a bowl of enticing congee, and a plate of delicately made tiger steamed buns. 

Ying Chen set down the tray of food and pulled out a chair from under the dining room table to sit down in. After that, he began to feast himself on this scrumptious meal. The soup tasted hearty and filled with flavor, while the congee tasted sweet and refreshing. The steamed buns were filled with delicious barbecue pork while the fluffy and exquisite outer shell only added to the exquisite taste. The barbecue pork just melted in the mouth, and the cloud like texture of the bread was light and chewy.

Ying Chen felt both happy and satisfied with his cooking. While he was eating though, he once again tapped on the metal bracelet around his wrist. Then he opened up a simple page and began to make a list of ingredients he would need for tomorrows stream. After that, he began to savor his food as he slowly and lazily ate his meal.

Fengfeng mewled softly at Ying Chen after having eaten all of the wet cat food, then trotted over to rub herself against him. Absentmindedly, Ying Chen reached down to stroke the fluffy cat. His slightly callused, warm and dry hands made the cat purr in satisfaction. 

Ying Chen took a moment to gaze down at Fengfeng, and could feel his heart absolutely melt at the sight of her ball like figure. “Happy now?” He teased while stroking the cat’s fine fur.

“Mew.” Fengfeng lazily responded.

“Haha.” Ying Chen gently chuckled as he smoothened Fengfeng’s fur. Now, with her silky fur smoothed, Fengfeng looked like a ball of mochi. Thinking this, Ying Chen once again released a breathy laugh.

Fengfeng peered up at her owner in puzzlement, only to quickly lose interest and strut back to the comfy couch she had been sleeping on earlier. Then, she leaped gracefully onto the couch and began to knead at the cushions of the sofa.

Ying Chen watched as she strutted away, then stood up and headed back towards the kitchen. Relighting the stove, he began to warm up some milk for himself and began to take stock of all the ingredients he had. 

“Hm, flour and eggs… check. Persimmons… no. Guess I’ll have to buy some tomorrow. Butter, check. Sugar, check. Salt, check…” Ying Chen trailed off as he saw a certain ball of mochi enter the kitchen.

“Ah, Fengfeng, what are you doing in here? Be good, go back and sleep.” Ying Chen coaxed and cajoled the cat before it reluctantly left, but not before getting a few treats.

Ying Chen lightly sighed and said, “Hah, silly cat.” Then, like he was used to it, began to once again look over the ingredients.

Softly, Ying Chen turned off the stove and poured the warm milk into a cup, and then sprinkled a bit of cinnamon and sugar into the cup of milk. Gently, he took a sip of the warm milk and squinted his eyes in satisfaction just like how a cat would.

Ying Chen slowly and leisurely finished off the cup of warm milk, then turned to walk towards the living room where a certain resident troublemaker was sleeping.

Sitting down on the couch, Ying Chen felt happy and comfortable as he snuggled into the embrace of a fluffy and soft blanket. Afterwards, he picked up a small hard-covered book from the small little table that rested to the right of the coach.

The sound of pages being turned and the soft crackles of a fire along with the gentle and endearing sound of a cat’s purr sounded in harmony in this living room. The tranquil and warm atmosphere soothed the tired Ying Chen, and put him softly to sleep. 

The cozy and sleepy Fengfeng rested herself right against the side of his legs, soaking up the warm comfort of the other. Quietly, she squinted her eyes at Ying Chen.

“Mew.” Goodnight.