Chapter 6: A Heart Eager to Improve, Ready to Leap

Jiang Yun Yao grew more animated as she spoke, dredging up old grievances without pause.

“And what about that wedding anniversary gift you gave me last time? Just a single hairpin! And it was made of plastic! Were you trying to insult me? Trying to say I’m not worthy of you, a wealthy young master?”

“What are you talking about!” Xie Yixing felt wronged. “When we were at the scenic spot, didn’t you glance at it more than once? I thought you liked it, so I bought it for you!”

Jiang Yun Yao shot back quickly, “If I had looked twice at dog poop, would you have wrapped that up as a gift for me too?”

Xie Yixing hesitated, “If you really want something—”

“Ah!” Jiang Yun Yao grabbed the nearby cushion, “Xie Yixing, I’m going to smash your head in today!”

[This… honestly, who’s right or wrong here?]

[They say even the wisest judge can’t settle family disputes; today, I finally understand why!]

[You say he’s heartless—he remembered the hairpin because you looked twice; you say he cares—yet his wedding anniversary gift was a plastic hairpin!]

[I bought a nine-yuan ninety-nine hairpin on Pinduoduo, and it’s made of metal!]

Xie Yixing couldn’t understand why she was angry again and grabbed a cushion to defend himself.

After some playful scuffling, they slowly began mopping the floor, finishing only by five in the afternoon.

“I’ve never thought housework could be so exhausting!” Jiang Yun Yao collapsed onto the sofa. “Looking at it this way, living in a villa isn’t so great!”

Xie Yixing disagreed, “We have a maid to clean; we don’t have to do housework ourselves.”

Jiang Yun Yao: “...Don’t say anymore, or I’ll go all out against you rich folks!”

They didn’t rest long. After expending so much energy in the afternoon, their stomachs were already growling.

As the livestream chat noted, there were no noodles or eggs left, so tonight’s meal would be just stir-fried dishes.

[Still, I have to ask—there’s no way they’ll starve, right?]

[Heh, someone like Jiang Liangliang with such poor character deserves to starve!]

[Don’t worry, in our times no one’s going to starve!]

[Ahhh, I’m dying here! Why don’t they just order takeout? If they can’t cook, just order delivery!]

[Looks like one of you is a delivery boss or a delivery rider!]

[Or maybe a college student…]

The chat veered wildly off-topic until they looked back at the screen, and Jiang Yun Yao had already thought of a plan.

She couldn’t cook, but she knew a traditional skill—looking up tutorials online!

The two of them huddled over the computer, studying recipes.

After scanning the instructions for a while, Xie Yixing asked, “Light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, MSG, chicken essence—what are these for? Do you even know what they look like?”

Jiang Yun Yao stared at the pile of seasoning bottles, overwhelmed. “...No idea.”

——

They say, when in trouble, turn to your mother! Could she call her mom in time now?

Just as the two of them were at a loss, the doorbell rang.

Xie Yixing strode over and opened the door to find Lin Wan Wan standing there.

Jiang Yun Yao quickly followed him out of the kitchen and invited her in. “Miss Lin, is there something you need?”

“Call me Wan Wan,” Lin Wan Wan’s almond-shaped eyes curved gently, her voice soft. “A Cheng and I wanted to invite you both to dinner, so we can get to know each other better and not feel so distant in the future.”

To put it in an apt metaphor, this was like being handed a pillow just as you were nodding off—timing couldn’t have been better!

Jiang Yun Yao turned on her heel, grabbed some ingredients from the kitchen, and said hesitantly, “Wouldn’t this be too much trouble for you?”

“No trouble at all,” Lin Wan Wan stepped forward, reaching to help carry some bags. “Actually, we wanted to get together last night, but we were busy packing until late and didn’t want to bother you.”

There was no way Jiang Yun Yao would let her carry anything, so she gave Xie Yixing a meaningful look.

Xie Yixing immediately understood, swooped in ahead of Lin Wan Wan, and grabbed all the bags. “I’m strong — I’ll carry them!”

Lin Wan Wan smiled softly and linked her arm through Jiang Yun Yao’s. “Shall we go?”

[Ahhh, Wan Wan is so kind — I knew I was right to root for her!]

[What’s going on? Suddenly inviting them for dinner?]

[Just came back from next door. Apparently Lin Wan Wan saw the livestream and learned that Jiang Yun Yao and company can’t cook, so she talked to the actor Lu Ying to invite them over!]

[Good thing Lin Wan Wan came just in time. These two can’t even recognize seasonings; I was worried they’d blow up the kitchen!]

[Haha, if they did blow up the kitchen, that’d be quite a show!]

At noon, Jiang Yun Yao glanced at the livestream and saw that Lu Mucheng had cooked five dishes, completely outclassing them.

Now, with the opportunity right at hand, her desire to improve was burning.

Although the male lead was a bit scheming, a bit unscrupulous, and overly possessive of the female lead… (let’s omit a thousand other flaws), he was otherwise quite good!

Sure enough, when Jiang Yun Yao expressed her wish to learn to cook, Lu Mucheng considered it briefly and agreed.

Xie Yixing recalled the “Good Husband Handbook” a friend showed him and declared he wanted to learn too.

Teaching one was one thing; teaching two was just teaching, and Lu Mucheng consented.

But soon he realized this would be the most regrettable decision he made all day!

While Lin Wan Wan juiced fruit in the living room, Lu Mucheng took the two to the kitchen.

By the time Lin Wan Wan came to invite them, Lu Mucheng had already washed and chopped the vegetables, now instructing them to heat the oil.

“The pan’s ready; you can pour the oil in now…”

Xie Yixing grabbed a bottle, opened it, and poured it into the pan.

Lu Mucheng glanced over and quickly stopped him, handing him another bottle. “No, that’s sesame oil. This one is peanut oil.”

“Oh!” Xie Yixing took the correct bottle and poured the oil into the pan.

Lu Mucheng turned to Jiang Yun Yao, asking her to bring the minced garlic from the cutting board. When he looked back, half the oil bottle in Xie Yixing’s hand was already empty!

He lowered his voice to control himself, “Stop! That’s too much oil!”

“Huh?!” Xie Yixing panicked, set down the bottle, opened it again, and tried to pour the oil back into the bottle.

Lu Mucheng’s eye twitched as he hurriedly stopped him. “Forget it, just leave it.”

He told Jiang Yun Yao, “Add the minced garlic now.”

Probably doubting Xie Yixing’s skills, Lu Mucheng handed the spatula to Jiang Yun Yao.

“After frying the garlic, add the chopped vegetables… stir-fry a bit…”

Jiang Yun Yao paused and asked humbly, “Teacher, how do you stir-fry?”

Lu Mucheng glanced at her, took the spatula, and demonstrated.

Jiang Yun Yao learned quickly, almost instantly picking it up.

It seemed everything was headed in the right direction.

But not long after, under Lu Mucheng’s guidance, problems arose again.

“Add light soy sauce… no, that’s dark soy sauce… that’s oyster sauce!”

“That’s not chicken essence, that’s MSG… that’s salt!”

“Enough! Now start stewing the chicken… where are the star anise and Sichuan peppercorns? Didn’t I just give them to you?”

Lu Mucheng admitted he had never felt so exhausted in his life!

After all the dishes were done, he pressed his fingers to his forehead, looking as if his soul had been drained, and left the kitchen with heavy steps.

He left behind two utterly bewildered faces—Jiang Yun Yao and Xie Yixing.

The livestream viewers, having witnessed the entire ordeal, were full of mixed emotions.

[Tired, angry, exhausted, helpless… in my lifetime, I never thought I’d see such an indescribable expression on actor Lu’s face!]

[Jiang Yun Yao and Xie Yixing truly have a talent for driving people insane!]

[Honestly, even as kitchen novices, they can’t tell light soy from dark soy…]

[Hahaha, sorry, I just can’t hold it in anymore. This is more entertaining than any drama I’ve watched!]

[Ahhh, even their cooking skills match perfectly in their awfulness—this couple gives me way too many surprises!]

[Hey, I’ve seen you a few times now—are you obsessed with this couple or something?]