The smile at the corners of Liu Qingye’s lips froze, and she was just about to explain herself when—
Footsteps sounded from the second floor again.
Ji Liuyue came over with several paper cupcake cups in her hands, walking briskly. She wasn’t surprised to see Liu Qingye there and gave her a slight nod in greeting.
Then she walked over to Wang Aitian and said naturally, “Tiantian, your cupcakes are seriously delicious. If I hadn’t guarded them, those guys from the Ji family would’ve gobbled them all up.”
“Look how many I managed to snatch back from their clutches.”
As she spoke, she waved them around proudly.
Wang Aitian couldn’t help laughing through her tears. “Really? Are the cupcakes I made actually that popular?”
“Of course,” Ji Liuyue replied with a smile.
Compared with everything else, having everyone appreciate the desserts she had made herself was a far more effective comfort than any words could offer.
Wang Aitian’s dejected mood brightened a little.
That was right.
She had signed up for the dating show in the first place to promote her dessert shop.
As for whether she could find a male guest she truly liked, that was secondary. There was no need to lose sight of the main goal.
After all, she was Tiantian—a professional sweetheart at heart.
At that thought, a smile spread across Wang Aitian’s face. She took Ji Liuyue’s hand and said sweetly, “Yueyue, you’re the best. Now that you’re here, I feel so much better.”
Liu Qingye stood to one side in silence. “……”
So she was the clown here, then?
She had said so much, yet none of it had worked as well as a few words from Ji Liuyue?!
The male guests were like this, and now the female guests were too. Had Ji Liuyue slipped some kind of bewitching potion into their drinks?
……
Early the next morning, Ji Liuyue hadn’t even reached the dining room when the mouthwatering aroma wafting through the air caught her attention.
Curious about who was cooking in the kitchen, she turned her head and saw Xu Jinsi standing by the dining table, waving at her.
Today, he was wearing a light-gray knit sweater with the collar slightly open.
The sleeves were casually pushed up to the middle of his forearms. He wasn’t wearing a watch, and his whole appearance seemed more relaxed than usual.
His charming eyes curved slightly.
The table, meanwhile, was overflowing with all kinds of breakfast foods.
There was congee, youtiao, steamed dumplings, and xiaolongbao from the Chinese side, along with sandwiches, burgers, pancakes, and yogurt bowls from the Western side.
“Did you rob a breakfast shop?” she asked.
She walked over, her bare-faced skin glowing in the morning light, a faint flush coloring her cheeks.
Xu Jinsi leaned against the table, raising his chin slightly as his peripheral vision swiftly swept over her face.
The corners of his lips curved upward.
“It’s all right, I suppose. Nothing special.”
“It probably still can’t compare to the breakfast you had on your last date,” he added, his tone thick with sourness.
Her last date.
Ji Liuyue thought for a moment. That had been her horseback-riding date with Lu Nanxun, when he had gotten up early to make her fried eggs for breakfast in the kitchen.
So Xu Jinsi knew about it.
And he had been silently comparing himself to Lu Nanxun all along.
No wonder he had gone to all this trouble to prepare such an extravagant breakfast that morning.
Tsk. A man’s terrifying competitive streak.
When Xu Jinsi saw her fall silent, he tilted his head toward the dining table.
“Eat. It won’t taste good once it gets cold.”
Ji Liuyue pulled out a chair and sat down. She lowered her head and scooped up a spoonful of congee.
Xu Jinsi looked at her expectantly.
Ji Liuyue silently swallowed it, then praised him. “The delivery guy worked hard. The congee is still hot.”
Xu Jinsi’s lips twitched, and a soft snort escaped his throat.
He seemed thoroughly unimpressed.
Ji Liuyue set down her spoon and raised her head, staring straight at Xu Jinsi.
“Xu Jinsi.”
“Hmm?” He looked away somewhat awkwardly.
He thought: It’s just porridge. Why is she staring at him like that?
He’d known it all along! She’d always had a thing for him—she was just too stubborn to admit it.
He knew it!
Ji Liuyue said, “This is the best breakfast I’ve had at the cabin.”
Xu Jinsi’s tone was as hard as ever.
“Obviously!”
But the corners of his lips still curved upward despite himself.
His alarm hadn’t gone off for nothing. He’d gotten up early and placed orders with one restaurant after another on his phone.
…
The two of them left the cabin, ducked into the car arranged by the production crew, and prepared to head to their date location.
The car wasn’t particularly spacious, and wind streamed in through the half-open window.
Once Ji Liuyue had settled into her seat, she lowered her head and reached for the seat belt.
She poked at the buckle several times. The metal tongue slid across it with repeated hollow clicks, but she just couldn’t get it fastened.
Xu Jinsi glanced sideways at her for three seconds before he finally couldn’t hold back.
“I’ve discovered that you really are kind of clumsy.”
The movement of Ji Liuyue’s hands paused. She raised her head to look at him, her almond-shaped eyes narrowing slightly as she gave him a murderous glare.
The longer you spent around this man, the more you realized that beneath the aloof exterior he’d shown when they first met, he was actually pretty annoying.
“Then you do it.”
She gave up entirely, handing him the black strap.
Xu Jinsi froze for a moment.
He thought: Isn’t this a little too intimate?
And why should he do whatever Ji Liuyue told him to? Wouldn’t that make him look completely spineless?
He opened his mouth, just about to refuse.
“I—”
Ji Liuyue said, “Forget it. I was only joking.”
She was about to take the belt back when a well-defined hand closed around it.
Xu Jinsi leaned toward her. One hand reached around her side to pull the seat-belt tongue toward the buckle, while the other lightly pressed against the outer edge of the seat beside her shoulder.
He lowered his head, his jaw nearly brushing the loose strands of hair by her ear.
The car fell silent for two seconds. They could clearly hear each other breathing.
Xu Jinsi caught the faintest scent—a mixture of floral fragrance and fresh body wash.
It drifted out from the gap between her collar and her hair.
He inhaled instinctively.
A subtle expression crossed his face, but he quickly put on that same icy, aloof look.
The metal tongue slid into the buckle with a crisp click.
“There. Done!”
Xu Jinsi leaned back to a safe distance, his expression perfectly normal.
Then, almost unconsciously, he rubbed at his nose.
That fragrance seemed to linger at the tip of his nose.
Just how much perfume had Ji Liuyue sprayed on before leaving? How could she smell so good?
He knew it!
Ji Liuyue had been eyeing him all along, which was why she had dressed up so carefully for this date.
Hmph.
╭(╯^╰)╮
He’d seen right through her little scheme ages ago.
Ji Liuyue shifted in her seat, adjusting herself so that her back rested more comfortably against the cushion. Then she turned her head and asked him,
“Where are we going to have fun today?”
Xu Jinsi didn’t answer.
Ji Liuyue continued to tease him. “Is it more fun than horseback riding?”
The corner of Xu Jinsi’s mouth twitched.
“Obviously.”
Ji Liuyue said, “If everything I say is obvious, could you give me some useful information instead?”
Xu Jinsi thought about it.
Then he lifted his chin with practiced restraint.
In a deliberately casual tone, he said, “Anyway, it’ll be more fun than horseback riding.”
A thought seemed to strike Ji Liuyue.
Her almond-shaped eyes lit up, and she once again wore the expression of an impish little cat.
She beckoned him over.
She wanted him to lean closer so she could whisper something in his ear.
Xu Jinsi cast her a cool, lazy sidelong glance.
He made no move.
People were remarkably patient when they were up to no good.
Since he wasn’t coming over, Ji Liuyue tugged at her seat belt until it loosened a little, then leaned halfway across.
Lowering her voice, she whispered into his ear, “You’re more fun than Lu Nanxun, too.”
“……”
The tips of Xu Jinsi’s ears flushed red before he could stop them.
