After Marrying the Cold Omega in Secret - Chapter 15

Even though her words had come out a bit sharp, at least the noise in her ears had stopped.

Wen Zhixue seemed to understand and quietly closed her mouth, silently following them into the kitchen.

Chi Ye glanced sideways at Chu Jin.

Her expression gave nothing away.

But Chu Jin was certain that Chi Ye must be grateful, even if she did not know how to show it. After all, this was proud and awkward President Chi. So she gave her a faint smile, as if to say, “No need to thank me.”

Once they arrived in the kitchen, they sorted all the groceries. The ingredients they did not need right away were placed in the fridge, while the ones for lunch were kept out.

Fortunately, the kitchen was spacious, with a large prep area that could easily accommodate four people.

At that moment, the main camera had already followed Bai Xuqing and Yan Sisi into the kitchen.

Everyone else remained seated on the sofa, casually chatting while keeping an eye on the kitchen.

Yan Sisi had already planned how to make her presence known once inside. As soon as she walked in, she confidently reached for an apron from the hooks, tied it around herself, and then grabbed another to put on Bai Xuqing.

Bai Xuqing looked surprised but did not resist.

The first battle in the kitchen had officially begun.

Everyone noticed the moment, including Chu Jin. She could already imagine how the editors would give the two of them a slow-motion close-up with sweet background music.

She had not expected Yan Sisi to be so bold, interacting so intimately with Bai Xuqing right in front of Chi Ye.

Chi Ye gave Chu Jin a look.

Chu Jin immediately understood the meaning. It was time to fulfill her duties.

She decided to imitate their actions first. She walked over to the remaining aprons and slipped one on. Just as she reached behind to tie the straps, Chi Ye suddenly appeared behind her.

“I’ll help you.”

Chu Jin turned her head in surprise. Her instinct was to refuse, but Chi Ye had already picked up the apron strings.

The words at the tip of her tongue stayed unspoken.

Chi Ye tied the apron gently. Chu Jin could feel the strap brushing lightly across her waist, but even after several attempts, Chi Ye still had not tied it properly. She kept pulling and adjusting.

Chu Jin turned her head slightly, staying out of the camera’s line of sight, and whispered, “President Chi, if you don’t know how to tie a bow, just make sure it stays on.”

Chi Ye gave a soft hum in response.

Then she gave up trying and tied a simple knot without much care.

“All done.”

Without looking back to admire her work, Chi Ye turned her eyes away.

Chu Jin reached behind her quietly and touched the knot.

As expected, it was a tight, unmovable knot.

Well, the fact that President Chi managed to tie it at all was good enough. What more could she ask for?

Chu Jin picked up the last apron and walked up to Chi Ye. The two of them stood face to face.

“Let me help you.”

Chu Jin was slightly taller than Chi Ye, so she easily lifted the neck loop over her head.

It was a pink apron with a chubby little bear printed on the front.

Looking down at the usually cool and distant Chi Ye now dressed in such a cute apron, Chu Jin felt that she suddenly looked less untouchable. Even her usual cold expression carried an unexpected touch of awkward charm.

“What?” Chi Ye noticed the amusement in Chu Jin’s eyes and gave her a confused look.

“Nothing,” Chu Jin said, walking behind her. “It’s cute.”

Chi Ye turned her head with a slightly annoyed expression.

Chu Jin quickly clarified, “The bear is cute.”

They divided up the tasks after that. Bai Xuqing was decent at cooking, so she took charge of the stir-frying. Yan Sisi acted as her assistant. Chu Jin handled peeling and washing vegetables, while Chi Ye was assigned to chopping.

Wen Zhixue tried to help but was politely declined by Yan Sisi.

“You just wait to enjoy the candied sweet potatoes,” Yan Sisi said with a glance at Bai Xuqing. Her tone was clearly tinged with jealousy. “Xuqing even looked up a tutorial today.”

But Bai Xuqing did not pick up on the envy in her voice. Instead, she gave a shy smile.

“I have never made it before and was afraid I’d mess it up, so I searched for a recipe.”

“It’s alright. I believe in you,” Wen Zhixue said with a bright smile and a gesture of encouragement.

Still pretending to be casual, she wandered over to the prep area and stopped across from Chi Ye and Chu Jin.

After spending some time with the group, Chu Jin had already figured out that Wen Zhixue probably liked her yesterday. But today, that attention had clearly shifted to Chi Ye. She couldn’t help but wonder who it would be tomorrow.

Wen Zhixue stood there for a while and finally found something to say.

“Do you two like cooking in your daily lives?”

Chi Ye continued chopping the scallions that Chu Jin had peeled, without even looking up. She did not seem interested in answering.

She could not just let the atmosphere become awkward, especially with the cameras still rolling. So Chu Jin took the initiative to respond.

“I don’t cook often, mostly because the food I make doesn’t taste very good,” she said while peeling a potato. She glanced up briefly as she spoke.

“I can’t cook at all,” Wen Zhixue immediately jumped in, her voice growing louder with excitement. “I don’t even know how to make noodles. Aren’t you supposed to boil the water first before adding them? One time, I put them in while the water was still cold. In the end, I made a pot of noodle soup. My mom laughed at me for years.”

Even though her words were directed at Chu Jin, her eyes kept drifting toward Chi Ye. Unfortunately, Chi Ye did not react and clearly was not interested in the story.

“That’s why I think people who can cook are really impressive,” Wen Zhixue added in an even softer, sweeter tone.

Chu Jin had been ready to respond politely, but before she could say anything, Wen Zhixue shifted her attention toward Chi Ye and leaned in slightly.

She rested one hand on the countertop and tilted her head as she moved a little closer. Although the sink separated them, she leaned over just enough to narrow the distance.

She looked at the chopped scallions on the cutting board, blinked, then raised her eyes and said softly, “Your cutting looks really neat.”

Chu Jin was the first to be caught off guard by the compliment.

She glanced at the cutting board.

The scallion pieces were all different sizes and unevenly sliced. They were scattered in a messy pile on the board.

It was hard not to wonder if Wen Zhixue was being sarcastic. But judging by her serious expression, it looked like she truly meant it.

Chu Jin could only assume she was shamelessly praising her in hopes of getting closer. That must have been her plan.

Unfortunately, it seemed that Chi Ye had not received that script.

Her expression clearly showed she was not impressed.

Chu Jin tried her best not to laugh and continued peeling the potato in her hands.

The audience watching the livestream had seen everything.

One comment read, “Is she for real? I can’t stop laughing.”

Another said, “Chi Ye must be thinking, ‘What did I just hear?’”

Someone added, “This is the wrong way to flirt. Please take notes, everyone.”

Others chimed in with, “This has to be scripted,” and “Let Chu Jin laugh already. She looks like she is holding it in so hard.”

After peeling the potato, Chu Jin rinsed it and handed it to Chi Ye. One of the dishes on their menu today was shredded potatoes. But since the kitchen did not have a special slicing tool, Chi Ye held the knife and hesitated for a moment, unsure where to begin.

“Do you know how to cut it?” Chu Jin asked kindly. “If not, I can do it.”

She was not an expert, but she was pretty sure she could manage better than Chi Ye.

At least she knew how to slice scallions properly.

But maybe because of Wen Zhixue’s earlier praise, Chi Ye seemed slightly irritated and refused right away.

“No need.”

She carefully aligned the potato, adjusted her grip on the knife, and confidently pressed down with force.

A single thick slice of potato fell onto the cutting board with a dull sound.

It was at least a centimeter thick.

Chu Jin looked at the slice for a moment, then gave a soft, reassuring smile.

“It’s alright. We can make stir-fried potato slices instead.”

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