120. A man who can cook is the most handsome!

Chen Ruowen had assumed that Bai Jinyan’s work for the morning ended when classes were dismissed. She hadn’t expected that as soon as they left the classroom, he would dive straight into the kitchen to wash and chop vegetables in preparation for lunch.

A large pot sat on the stove, steam rolling within; it looked as though it had been simmering since the morning.

"I’m not eating those thin, long, green things. And I’m not eating these weeds, either."

Watching Bai Jinyan’s nimble hands as he prepped the vegetables, Chen Ruowen pouted, already expressing her disdain for these foods she didn’t recognize.

Bai Jinyan’s movements paused.

Thin, long, green things? What could those be? He glanced at the green beans he had just washed and trimmed of their tough stems. Surely she couldn’t mean those? And what about the weeds? Rainbow Village might be poor, but it wasn't so destitute that they resorted to cooking weeds.

"Are you... by any chance talking about the green beans and the chives?"

"...I don’t know. Either way, I’m not eating them. They’re so dirty, and they look so ugly."

You’re judging a meal by its aesthetic appeal? Bai Jinyan was speechless. Didn’t all vegetables come out of the ground covered in dirt?

"These are for the children in class. I’ll make yours separately during the lunch break."

Chen Ruowen nodded, satisfied, and then asked, "You’re responsible for their lunch, too?"

Bai Jinyan washed the final speck of mud off the chives and nodded. "Most of the children come from neighboring villages. If we don’t provide lunch, they’d have to trek over the mountain for two hours just to get home."

"Can’t they just eat at the homes of their classmates in Rainbow Village?" Chen Ruowen asked curiously.

"...The people in the village are very poor, and their food supplies are limited."

"How stingy," Chen Ruowen muttered with a curl of her lip.

"...Besides, the adults are all out working in the mountains during the day, so there’s no one home."

"So, what do you need to do now?"

Bai Jinyan scooped the chives out of the basin and placed them on the cutting board. "Chop the vegetables, and then prepare to stir-fry... Wait, what are you doing!"

As soon as Chen Ruowen heard the word "chop," she picked up the kitchen knife from the edge of the board, held it up to her eyes with both hands, and examined it with curiosity. Bai Jinyan was terrified.

"I’m helping you chop," she said with an innocent face, unable to understand why he was making such a fuss. "How long is it going to take you to cook by yourself?"

Bai Jinyan carefully took the knife from her hands, placed it somewhere she couldn't reach, and shifted his body to block her from the heavy-duty weapon.

"You’ve never learned how to cook, so let’s just leave it. I can handle it myself."

"...Are you looking down on me?"

"...I’m just afraid you’ll get hurt." Bai Jinyan coaxed the "little princess" to the side. After a moment’s thought, he took two eggs from under the stove, placed them in a bowl, and handed it to her. "How about you beat these two eggs? I’ll teach you the rest on the weekend."

Chen Ruowen carried the bowl away, quite satisfied. Of course, she didn’t actually want to learn to cook, nor did she want to help; she simply wanted to do the same thing as Bai Jinyan and stay by his side. Even beating eggs was a branch of cooking, and perhaps a very important one at that.

Holding the bowl and looking at the two round eggs inside, the smile on her face suddenly froze. She turned to look at Bai Jinyan.

"What do I use to beat the eggs? How many times should I hit them?"

Bai Jinyan handed her a pair of chopsticks. "We don’t have an eggbeater here, so just use the chopsticks for now."

Chen Ruowen held the chopsticks up, examined them strangely for a while, and then glanced at Bai Jinyan, who had already started chopping. After hesitating, she gripped the two chopsticks in her hand and then... tapped the eggshell.

"Is this how you beat them?" she asked with a strange expression. "The egg didn't do anything wrong, so why do I have to beat it? Will it taste better if I beat it?"

Bai Jinyan: "..."

He had forgotten that this young lady had never even stepped foot in a kitchen.

He silently put down his knife, tapped the two eggs against each other to crack them, and skillfully pried them open. The yolks and whites slid into the bowl without a single drop wasted. He added a pinch of salt and two drops of vinegar, then adjusted her grip on the chopsticks.

"Hold the chopsticks and stir in one direction. Once the yolks and whites are evenly mixed, the eggs are ready."

"Oh."

Chen Ruowen held the chopsticks and stirred clockwise, slowly, like grinding ink. Bai Jinyan watched her for a moment, but ultimately said nothing. He picked up his knife and accelerated, chopping the green beans and chives into uniform pieces.

The water on the stove began to boil. Bai Jinyan quickly poured the beans into the pot, covered it, and started a separate small pan, heating up some oil.

Chen Ruowen rubbed her wrist. "Beating eggs is so tiring..." She tossed the chopsticks aside.

Bai Jinyan’s hand, reaching for the chives, faltered. He took the bowl and chopsticks from her, finished mixing the half-beaten eggs in about five seconds, and poured them into the hot oil.

"Sizzle." The layer of egg touching the bottom of the pan solidified instantly, releasing a fragrant aroma.

Chen Ruowen rubbed her flat stomach, tugged on the hem of Bai Jinyan’s shirt, and looked up at him expectantly.

"I’m hungry..."

The spatula slipped in Bai Jinyan’s hand.

Was she... acting spoiled toward him?

Chen Ruowen... acting spoiled...

Those two concepts were so hard to reconcile... Usually, the words that followed "Chen Ruowen" were more like... "throwing a temper tantrum."

Bai Jinyan stared at her, dazed. Now that he thought about it, she was the same way last night... but that was because she’d been bitten by bugs. Today, however...

"What are you thinking about?" Chen Ruowen asked, puzzled, waving a hand in front of his face. "Are you dazzled by my beauty?"

"Cough, cough..." Bai Jinyan snapped back to reality, embarrassed, a flush rising on his cheeks. "I was thinking... oh no!" He hurriedly grabbed the spatula to stir the pan, quickly poured in the half-bowl of water he’d prepared, and tossed in the chopped chives.

"Almost burned it..."

The fire was roaring, and it was easy to burn things if one wasn't careful. Fortunately, his moment of distraction had been brief enough to save the meal.

Seeing that Bai Jinyan’s attention was back on the food, Chen Ruowen sat down unhappily, took a photo of his busy back, and posted it to her social media.

"The man who cooks is the most handsome (〃'▽'〃)"

There was no internet in Rainbow Village—she had learned that yesterday—so she was just satisfying a craving.

But... two seconds later...

It actually posted successfully.

Chen Ruowen’s face darkened. Not only did it post, but within ten seconds, she had already received over twenty replies.

Song Yunhui: Sister Wen, where did you go? Why is the room so shabby?

Geng Jiaojiao: Sister Wen, did you elope with Brother Yan? Why can't I get through to your phone? Sister Wen, answer me, I miss you so much!

Ma Yunan: Isn't that Brother Yan?

Man Hao: Sister Wen, are you acting like a lovesick fan?

Gao Le Gao: Wow, is that the boyfriend from "Not at Noon"?

...

Gao Tang: Hmph, who doesn't know how to do something as simple as cooking?

After firing off that reply, Gao Tang angrily dialed the number of his personal assistant, Hu Xi.

"Tomorrow, call all the chefs from the Universal Group's restaurants to my house. I want to learn how to cook!"