“Take your gift back. I’m refusing it.” Xu Jinsi rejected it decisively, without hesitation or any attempt to spare her feelings.
Liu Qingye froze.
Holding the bag awkwardly, she didn’t know whether to put it down or keep holding it.
In the end, she managed a bitter smile and said, “It’s just a friend’s way of showing concern. Is that not okay either?”
Xu Jinsi nodded. There wasn’t a trace of warmth in his eyes as he said, “That’s right. There’s a female guest I want to get to know, and it isn’t you.”
“I don’t want to cause a misunderstanding with her because of this.”
“So I think we should keep a little distance between us. What do you think, Liu Qingye?”
He had made his position perfectly clear.
Liu Qingye swayed unsteadily, her face deathly pale. She had never imagined that a man would treat her this way.
Those tricks of hers had always worked before.
Why? Why was it different this time?
She had no idea how she made it back to her room alone. Her entire mind was in a daze.
…
The guests from the sports group returned to the house in high spirits, singing and dancing along the way. Music was playing in the car, and someone had started humming along. Before long, everyone else had joined in.
The atmosphere grew livelier and livelier.
Even as they entered the house, Wang Aitian was still humming. But when she noticed that several pairs of slippers were missing from the entrance, she asked in surprise, “Huh? Did the food group get back before us?”
The moment Ji Mingtian heard that, his eyes lit up.
After changing his shoes, he hurried off to look for Liu Qingye. But no matter where he searched, he couldn’t find her.
Instead, he discovered Lu Nanxun cooking in the kitchen. Curious, he asked, “Dr. Lu, you can cook too?”
“Mm.” Lu Nanxun nodded and was just about to say something when Ji Mingtian asked again, “By the way, where’s Yezi? I walked around the living room, but I didn’t see her.”
Lu Nanxun shook his head. “I’m not sure. She probably went back to her room to rest.”
He was just about to ask Ji Mingtian whether Ji Liuyue had returned as well, but the other man had already darted away.
Fortunately, the other three members of the sports group soon made their way toward the kitchen at a leisurely pace.
Cen Yu was practically recognized as the resident chef of the dating show, and the kitchen was his territory. So he was somewhat surprised to see Dr. Lu wearing an apron and cooking.
“Dr. Lu, you’re cooking? Do you need a hand?”
Lu Nanxun nodded modestly. “Sure. Let’s do it together. I’ll be your assistant.”
“Okay.”
Cen Yu stepped forward, took an apron, and put it on. He was just about to tie it when Ji Liuyue suddenly said, “Cen Yu, isn’t your apron difficult to tie?”
The two men in the kitchen both froze.
What did she mean by that?
Was she going to help him tie it?
Before they could figure it out, Ji Liuyue turned to Wang Aitian with a teasing smile. “Tiantian, your partner needs help. Hurry up.”
Wang Aitian shot her a sidelong glance, the corners of her lips curling upward.
Blushing shyly, she walked over and tied Cen Yu’s apron for him from behind.
The tension in Lu Nanxun’s eyes gradually faded.
He glanced at Cen Yu, then at Wang Aitian.
So they had a romantic storyline of their own.
He couldn’t help looking at Ji Liuyue again. So she wasn’t interested in Cen Yu after all. She was even helping Wang Aitian along. She really was kindhearted.
No, wait. Why was he concerned with whether Ji Liuyue was kindhearted?
Just as Lu Nanxun was about to look away, Ji Liuyue took the initiative to speak to him.
“What delicious food are you making today?”
Lu Nanxun’s lips tightened as he tried to keep his smile from looking too eager.
It was an entirely ordinary greeting.
And yet, that one sentence lifted his gloomy mood from the entire day. His voice became noticeably more animated as he replied, “We made taro balls.”
“Oh, a taro-ball dessert? You made them by hand?”
“Yes.”
“That sounds delicious. I haven’t had taro balls in ages.”
Seeing the anticipation on her face, Lu Nanxun swallowed. He glanced toward the refrigerator and said, “We packed some up and brought them back with us. Would you like some? I can cook you a bowl.”
After saying that, he looked at her cautiously.
He was incredibly nervous.
He didn’t even know what he was so nervous about.
There were only two possible answers: she would either eat them or she wouldn’t. Whether Ji Liuyue ate taro balls had nothing to do with him, after all.
Ji Liuyue smiled. “Sure. Make a little extra. Tiantian wants some too.”
At that, Wang Aitian threw her arms around Ji Liuyue. “Yueyue, you’re the best! Boohoo, all my love for you hasn’t been wasted!”
Lu Nanxun began cooking the taro balls.
As he worked, his gaze kept drifting uncontrollably toward Ji Liuyue, who was sitting at the dining table in the distance, chatting and laughing with Wang Aitian.
Even he hadn’t realized that his eyes instinctively searched for her whenever she was among a crowd.
Cen Yu, who was working beside him in the kitchen, noticed everything.
So Dr. Lu, who seemed so quiet and reserved, was also interested in Ji Liuyue.
He lightly patted Lu Nanxun on the shoulder, startling him so badly that he took half a step back.
The slotted spoon in his hand nearly slipped.
“What is it?” Lu Nanxun asked, forcing himself to remain calm.
Cen Yu had seen right through him, but only smiled and said, “Nothing. I was just reminding you that the heat’s a little high. You can turn it down to medium. And when you cook the taro balls, you can heat the coconut milk first. It’ll be much faster that way.”
Lu Nanxun looked puzzled. “Heat it?”
Cen Yu nodded. “Right. Tiantian’s stomach is bothering her today, so she should have something warm.”
Lu Nanxun thought silently, I’m making it for Ji Liuyue. Wang Aitian is just getting some because I’m making it anyway… But does Liuyue want hers warm?
With that thought, he summoned his courage.
“Liuyue.”
“Mm? What is it?”
Ji Liuyue had been chatting with Tiantian. Hearing his voice behind her, she turned around and gave him a radiant smile.
Thump, thump, thump.
The smile dazzled Lu Nanxun. For a moment, his heart began racing wildly again.
His mind went blank, and he forgot what he had wanted to say.
Ji Liuyue asked again, “Are the taro balls ready?”
That finally brought him back to himself. He said, “Oh, not yet. I wanted to ask whether you’d like the coconut-milk taro balls warm or cold.”
“Warm, I think.”
After getting his answer, Lu Nanxun nodded slowly. “Okay.”
Ji Liuyue lifted the corners of her lips again and encouraged him, “Thanks for your hard work, Chef Lu. I’m looking forward to your dessert.”
“Okay.”
The corners of Lu Nanxun’s lips rose uncontrollably.
After decisively rejecting Liu Qingye, Xu Jinsi returned to his room to catch up on sleep.
He hadn’t been sleeping well at the house lately and was constantly plagued by nightmares. On top of that, he hadn’t been paired with the female guest he liked that day, which left him feeling even more dejected.
After finally getting enough sleep, he ran into Ji Mingtian on the way out.
When he heard that Ji Liuyue and the others had returned, Xu Jinsi hurried excitedly toward the kitchen. But as soon as he reached the doorway, he saw Ji Liuyue and Wang Aitian sitting side by side, each eating a bowl of coconut-milk taro balls.
He paused, then walked straight to the refrigerator.
His own container of taro balls was still untouched, while the container that had belonged to Lu Nanxun was empty.
A wave of grievance and disappointment rose in his heart.
He picked up his own container, walked quickly over to Ji Liuyue, and pulled out a chair beside her.
He didn’t beat around the bush.
He stared at Ji Liuyue, a faint sadness in his eyes, and said:
“We made taro balls today. I wanted to cook you a bowl myself, but… you’ve already started eating.”
