Chapter 60 These Green Beans Are Amazing

Once the ingredients were prepped, our Master Chef Meng finally began her operation.

Seeing her pour a generous amount of oil into the wok gave Xu Xiu a lingering sense of foreboding.

When Meng Ziyi tossed the green beans in first, Xu Xiu's right eyelid began to twitch wildly.

"Sister Meng, just hypothetically speaking, is there any possibility that one should stir-fry the meat first and then add the green beans?"

"Huh? But that's just how I always do it, putting the beans in first. It tastes pretty good, you know."

"…… Never mind. Please, do go on with your performance."

Having failed to persuade her, Xu Xiu glanced at the bubbling, charred green beans in the wok and sighed.

When Sister Meng cooks, taste, aroma, and visual appeal are the first things to go out the window!

Originally thinking he could take it easy and slack off a bit, it now looked like he would have to whip up another dish from scratch.

"Who can help me fetch some cilantro from the vegetable patch? I'll treat everyone to some braised pork intestines."

Hearing this, Li Xueqin immediately raised her hand and signaled, "Me, me, me! I can do that. I'll go get it for you."

Not only Li Xueqin, but everyone else also looked at Xu Xiu with eager anticipation.

That was a reputation built on trust!

Whenever Xu Xiu cooked, everyone automatically assumed it would be delicious. But when Meng Ziyi cooked, aside from scrambled eggs, a huge question mark hung over whether anything else was edible.

It was just like Ke Zhen'e declaring Duan Zhengchun a villain; no proof was needed, and everyone believed it. That was reputation.

Similarly, if Duan Zhengchun claimed Ke Zhen'e was his son, even Ke Zhen'e himself would hesitate. That, too, was reputation!

"Need any help? I can help you wash the intestines."

Before the person even arrived, her voice preceded her, followed by a waft of pleasant fragrance that drifted into Xu Xiu's nose.

"How would you do that with a manicure? Besides, cleaning pork intestines is rather pungent and harsh on the eyes. As a young lady, you really shouldn't bother."

"It's fine, I can just trim my nails! I've had this set for a long time anyway, and I'm already getting tired of it. Besides, I'm not that kind of delicate, fragile girl, you know~"

Before Xu Xiu could reply, Wang Churan ran off to the side, picked up a pair of nail clippers, and began trimming her nails. Afterward, she grabbed a black apron and slipped it on.

After tying her hair back with a hair tie, Wang Churan put on a pair of yellow dishwashing gloves.

Xu Xiu was sandwiched right between Meng Ziyi and Wang Churan, looking like a hotdog sausage in a bun. On one side was Meng Ziyi stir-frying dishes, and on the other was Wang Churan washing pork intestines.

I must say, Wang Churan in this outfit looked very much like a virtuous and devoted housewife.

Moreover, she was indeed washing them very conscientiously, and her technique looked quite professional—it was clear she didn't shy away from household chores at home.

Taking advantage of the moment while the two were busy, Xu Xiu hurried over to the room and grabbed a face mask.

Meng Ziyi rolled her eyes at Xu Xiu and promptly snatched an N95 mask right out of his hand.

The reason for her eye-rolling was obvious without even guessing: Meng Ziyi had already finished cooking, yet Xu Xiu had to go and make a superfluous fuss over braised pork intestines.

It had filled the house with a foul odor. If the ventilation system hadn't been top-notch, the place would have been utterly uninhabitable.

However, a problem arose now: Meng Ziyi could put on her own mask, but Wang Churan was wearing gloves, making it inconvenient for her to do so herself. This put Xu Xiu in a bit of a dilemma.

He initially wanted to help Meng Ziyi stir-fry and have her put the mask on Wang Churan instead, but Meng Ziyi was stubbornly insistent on finishing her cooking independently.

"I'll put a mask on you, don't get any weird ideas." Xu Xiu held the mask out and walked up in front of Wang Churan's face.

Hearing this, Wang Churan obediently leaned her head forward, fixing her large, doll-like eyes on Xu Xiu without blinking.

Xu Xiu brought the mask up to her face and clapped it on, accidentally covering her eyes entirely before pulling it down a bit so her eyes were exposed.

This prompted Wang Churan to shoot him a rather quirky look, but Xu Xiu remained completely unfazed, calmly looping the straps of the mask over her delicate ears.

Once settled, Wang Churan spoke up, "Thanks~"

As she spoke, she gave Xu Xiu a very subtle wink.

Huh?

Well, well, I never took you for that kind of person!

Right at that moment, the livestream audience was practically descending into chaos.

"No way! Xu Xiu, have you lost your mind? How dare you let our Churan wash pork intestines for you?"

"Xu Xiu, you absolute beast! Such a delicate, pampered girl, and you actually make her do this kind of dirty work?"

"I'm dying of laughter. This was clearly your precious Churan volunteering of her own accord, okay? Xu Xiu already tried to talk her out of it!"

"I don't care, I cannot tolerate this! I actually quite liked Xu Xiu before, but not anymore. Draw your sword!"

Forty minutes later.

Xu Xiu's braised pork intestines were finally done, and everyone eagerly awaited the dish.

Once everyone was seated, Wang Sulong immediately picked up a piece of the intestines with his chopsticks and popped it into his mouth.

As he chewed, he showered praise on Xu Xiu's culinary skills. In stark contrast, Meng Ziyi's plate of charred, overcooked green beans and pork was completely ignored.

Just as Xu Xiu was eating with great relish, he felt someone step on his foot.

He looked up and locked eyes with a mournful-looking Meng Ziyi.

Meng Ziyi shot him a look, and Xu Xiu understood instantly—though he really wished he hadn't figured it out so fast!

Murder!

Meng Ziyi was actually using him as a lab rat. One bite of this, and he'd be ready to notify the patient's next of kin!

Oh mouse, oh mouse ~ I've reached the end of my wits!

Driven by sheer helplessness, Xu Xiu picked up a chopstick full of green beans and placed them in his bowl. Song Dan, who had been observing the movements at this end the whole time, noticed.

Knowing that Meng Ziyi might feel heartbroken because no one was eating her food, she also picked up a single green bean and put it in her bowl.

Following suit, Wang Churan and Song Yanfei each picked up a single green bean as well.

They had picked them up, but nobody dared to take the first bite; everyone was just watching and waiting.

Seeing that no one was making a move, Song Dan decided to set an example for everyone. But the moment the bean entered her mouth, she felt that something was terribly wrong, and all her facial expressions slipped entirely out of control.

"Sister Meng, these green beans of yours are... a bit tough."

For Song Dan to resort to calling her "Sister Meng" meant the situation was truly dire.

Yet she was still putting it very mildly; in reality, they weren't cooked through, and the outer skin was completely burnt.

These words instantly caused Meng Ziyi to pout, looking profoundly sad and unhappy.

She had clearly cooked them the exact same way last time, and even her assistant had praised them as delicious!

Xu Xiu, watching the drama unfold from the side, turned bright red as he struggled mightily to hold back his laughter.

Right at that moment, however, he felt his foot get stepped on again.

Damn it!

Once was bad enough, why did you develop an addiction to stepping on people's feet?

If I don't show you a little taste of my power, you really won't know who you're messing with!

Just as Xu Xiu was about to throw a fit, his phone buzzed. Picking it up, he saw a transfer red envelope sent by Meng Ziyi.

Hey ~ Look, why didn't you just say so earlier!

Forget stepping on my foot once, keep sending those red envelopes and you can stomp me to death.

You really do have a good eye for people ~

Having collected the red envelope, Xu Xiu took a cautious little bite, only to sense disaster the moment it touched his tongue.

Nevertheless, he forced a bright, strained smile and said:

"How are these green beans tough? They aren't tough at all, these green beans are just fan—Σ_(꒪ཀ꒪」∠) Blech!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Xu Xiu spat the food right out.

[Ding! Detected abstract behavior by the host resulting in exposure, Exposure Value +91 × 3... Exposure Value +91 × 3... Exposure Value +91 × 3...]