Here is Chapter 44 of The General's
Chapter 44: The Great Pastry Experiment
The peaceful morning quiet of the courtyard was shattered by an explosive bang.
"Fire!" Su Yanyue jolted upright from her writing table, knocking over an inkstone. "What now?!"
She ran into the backyard where a thick cloud of flour dust hovered in the air, mingling with smoke and… burnt sugar?
The culprits stood proudly amid chaos—Su Lin, Su Rui, and Su Zhi—covered in sticky batter from head to toe.
"We call it… Boom-Boom Blossom Buns!" Su Zhi beamed, holding out a charred, flower-shaped lump of dough that still sizzled faintly.
Yanyue's jaw dropped.
Yu Shiming, already standing beside her with a wet towel in hand, surveyed the scene and muttered dryly, "They tried to bake using firecrackers again, didn't they?"
"Only a small one!" Su Lin defended. "We thought if it puffed the pastry from the inside, it would be faster."
"And louder!" added Su Rui proudly.
Yanyue closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Whose idea was it to set the tray on top of the stove?"
"…Mine," Su Zhi whispered.
Yanyue's hands twitched. "And the cinnamon in the flour bin?"
"That may have been… creative improvisation," Su Rui muttered, wiping a flour streak off his nose.
Yu Shiming handed Yanyue the towel as she stepped into the mess, assessing the splattered walls, overturned bowls, and what might have once been a basket of rose petals now dyed blue.
"We're going to need a new kitchen," she said flatly.
"But Auntie!" Su Lin protested, bouncing on his toes, "People love sweets with tea! If we make a snack that explodes with flavor—"
"No explosions!" Yanyue said firmly, dabbing flour off Su Zhi's cheeks. "We are running a tea business, not a fireworks stall."
The boys hung their heads in unison.
"Fine…"
"But the flavor was kind of nice," Yu Shiming said suddenly, surprising them all.
Yanyue raised a brow. "What?"
He bent down and picked up a slightly less-singed bun from the edge of the table, broke it in half, and sniffed it. "Fragrant. Floral. Overcooked—but not a bad idea."
The triplets' eyes lit up.
"Really?!" they chorused.
Yu Shiming nodded slowly. "If you use rose petals, honey, and orange peel next time—and perhaps don't cook it with explosives—you might be on to something."
Yanyue groaned and waved her hand. "Fine. You get one more trial. But this time, I supervise!"
"Operation Blossom 2.0!" Su Rui shouted, pumping his fist.
"Project Fluffy Phoenix!" added Su Zhi.
"Pastry Phoenix Rebirth Plan!" Su Lin chimed.
Yanyue looked skyward. "What did I do in my past life to deserve three of them?"
Yu Shiming chuckled under his breath. "Clearly, you were a war general."
As the boys rushed to fetch mixing bowls—arguing over whether crushed nuts counted as "fancy ingredients"—Yanyue tied on her apron with a resigned smile.
Despite the flour storms and smoke bombs, their chaotic energy filled her little shop with laughter and warmth.
And deep down, she knew—these wild, mischievous boys were her family now.
No matter how many explosions it took to make the perfect bun.