After the Divorce, I Ended Up with My Ex-Husband’s "White Moonlight" [Transmigration] - Chapter 22

Qin Shi spoke casually, but Ning Qi responded with great earnestness. “What kind of teacher acts like that? I certainly don’t need to be buttered up.”

“Alright,” Qin Shi said without turning around. “How about the two of us? Let’s drop the formalities. Shall we cook together?”

“Sure!” Ning Qi’s eyes danced with mirth. Since Qin Shi was willing to take the lead, she wasn’t about to make a fool of herself. “I’ll be your sous-chef.”

Though it was their first time cooking together, they fell into a surprisingly good rhythm. Ning Qi was quite adept at prepping and washing the vegetables. Qin Shi asked with a smile, “How many people have you been a sous-chef for?”

Ning Qi understood the implication—it was unusual for someone to be so skilled at prep work yet so hopeless at actual cooking. “These things are easy to learn! I just watched a few videos on my phone and got the hang of it.”

Before she had actually tried it, Ning Qi couldn’t even name half of these vegetables, let alone know how to process them. You only learn through experience, and Ning Qi had been teaching herself bit by bit in this solitary apartment.

She learned all this from her phone? Doubts flickered in Qin Shi’s mind once more, but she didn’t press further. In some ways, Ning Qi was like a blank sheet of paper, yet she seemed intimately familiar with the affairs between Qin Shi and Lu Mingze—likely including that woman, Yun Shu, whom she had met last time.

“Qin Shi,” Ning Qi said, finishing her tasks. She watched as Qin Shi skillfully tossed the food in the pan. It was a mundane action, yet every movement possessed an innate grace. Today, Qin Shi wore casual clothes; unlike the dazzling impression she usually gave, today she was wrapped in the warm, earthly atmosphere of a home kitchen.

“Oh, right! I almost forgot.” As if struck by a sudden thought, Ning Qi hurried off and returned a moment later with something in her hands. “Qin Shi, tie this on.”

“What is it?” Qin Shi turned around to see Ning Qi holding an apron. It was bright pink and featured a large Mickey Mouse pattern.

“You don’t seriously expect me to wear that, do you?” Qin Shi’s disdain was palpable.

“What’s wrong with it?” Ning Qi shook the apron, seeing nothing amiss. “I wear this every day. Is something wrong?”

“Do you just… not want to wear this specific one?” Ning Qi asked, noticing her hesitation.

“I do not,” Qin Shi replied flatly.

The next second, she heard Ning Qi’s cheerful voice: “Don’t worry! I have used this one, it’s true—but I have a brand new one in the exact same style!”

Qin Shi turned her head only to see an identical twin of the first apron. She asked helplessly, “Why would a person living alone buy two?”

“As a backup!” Ning Qi chirped. “So? No excuses now, right?”

“Now what?” Ning Qi asked as Qin Shi remained motionless.

“Are you… very fond of animal patterns?” Qin Shi was genuinely afraid Ning Qi would pull out more animal-themed items. Even the bowl she had seen earlier had a little puppy on it.

“They’re alright, I guess.” Ning Qi glanced at Mickey Mouse, who was laughing back at her. “I just thought it looked cute when I bought it, so I picked it up.”

“It’s fine!” After all that back-and-forth, Ning Qi finally realized why Qin Shi was so reluctant. “Relax, Miss Qin! There are only the two of us here. There’s no need to feel embarrassed. Besides, I’m wearing one too, so I won’t laugh at you.”

She hadn’t expected Qin Shi to be so resistant to cartoon patterns. Was it because they were too “childish”? Who knew she had such a heavy ‘idol burden’ about her image? Without waiting for Qin Shi to react, Ning Qi stepped forward and tied the apron around her.

“There.” Ning Qi clapped her hands. “Now you don’t have to worry about getting your clothes dirty!”

It took a long moment before Qin Shi forced out two stiff words: “…Thank you.”

“You’re very welcome!” Ning Qi saw the reluctance written all over her face and laughed. “Cheer up! Look at how happy Mickey is!”

Mickey Mouse was indeed beaming, but Qin Shi’s body was as stiff as a board.

“I’ll go clear the table. By the way, Qin Shi, would you like something to drink?”

Without waiting for an answer, Ning Qi muttered to herself, “Actually, I don’t think I have many drinks. I forgot to buy some at the supermarket. I only have juice…”

Ning Qi continued her rambling monologue for a while without a single response from the kitchen. Suddenly, she said, “Qin Shi, tell me what you want, and I’ll run down and buy it now.”

At those words, Qin Shi heard movement by the door and hurriedly called out, “No need!”

“It’s no trouble. I’ll be back in a flash.” To Ning Qi, it really wasn’t a bother; the supermarket was incredibly close and convenient.

“Ning Qi,” Qin Shi raised her voice, “it really isn’t necessary. I’ll drink whatever you’re drinking.”

“Huh?” This finally stopped Ning Qi from changing her shoes. “Alright then, I’ll get things ready.”

Twenty minutes later, Qin Shi placed the final dish on the dining table.

“Wow!” Ning Qi’s eyes sparkled as she looked at the spread. She was full of praise. “Qin Shi, you’re amazing! You finished all this in such a short time, and the presentation is beautiful!”

“Try a bite first.” Qin Shi wiped her hands and picked up her chopsticks.

“Delicious!” Ning Qi tasted one dish, then another. Finally, she put down her chopsticks, her eyes curving into crescent moons as she beamed. “Qin Shi, you’re a true polymath! You really are ‘a lady in the parlor and a chef in the kitchen.’”

She was truly the type of person who earned praise wherever she went. “If your fans knew you could cook—and cook this well—they’d be even more desperate to take you home!”

Hearing the praise, Qin Shi felt a strange sense of relief. She began to eat. “As long as you like it.”

As she lifted her bowl, Qin Shi saw the familiar puppy pattern again. Perhaps she stared at it for a bit too long, because Ning Qi asked with a smile, “Isn’t it cute?”

Seeing that Qin Shi couldn’t quite grasp the “cuteness” of the dog, Ning Qi said to herself, “If your cousin comes over, she’ll definitely love it.”

A six-year-old girl would surely love these adorable patterns. When Ning Qi had browsed the supermarket, she felt most of the options were dull and boring, so she had specifically looked for these cute designs. They made her happy just looking at them.

Qin Shi didn’t know if her cousin would like them; she only knew that she personally never used or looked at such “moe” patterns.

However, seeing that Ning Qi liked them, Qin Shi stared at her for a moment. Ning Qi noticed the gaze, then heard Qin Shi say, “Yes… these patterns do suit you quite well.”

“Are you trying to say I’m childish?”

“No,” Qin Shi said quickly. Ning Qi’s tone had turned serious, and the smile had vanished from her face. Qin Shi suddenly felt quite unsettled by the change.

“I’m just teasing!” She’s so easy to scare! Ning Qi held it in for half a minute before bursting into laughter. “What’s wrong with being childish? I’d love to be a childish kid! Think of how happy you’d be if someone was there to spoil you.”