"No, that's not it." Chi Naoqi looked up from her meal, her big, bright eyes gazing at Xu Miaotong, and corrected her, "Dad learned to cook so that Sister Qin wouldn't have to work so hard on the show."

Chi Baiyi paused for a moment while chewing her food, then continued eating without changing her expression.

Xu Miaotong stared wide-eyed in astonishment, her face filled with disbelief.

The viewers in the live stream were just as shocked as she was.

[Chi Zong only learned cooking for Qin Yuanyao? ??? This... is too surreal!!]

[What's even more unbelievable is that CEO Chi didn't deny it?! Could it be that CEO Chi really learned to cook for Qin Yuanyao?!]

[I don't believe it! President Chi definitely learned cooking skills for Cheese. He didn't deny it because he just wanted Xu Miaotong to leave quickly. He didn't pay attention to or care about what Cheese said; as long as Xu Miaotong could leave, that was enough.]

[Cheese has always wanted to matchmake her father and Qin Yuanyao. She must have said that on purpose; President Chi didn't want everyone to know she was lying, which is why she didn't deny it.]

#Is Chi Baiyi learning to cook for Qin Yuanyao?# This topic has once again become a trending topic on social media thanks to the enthusiastic support of netizens.

The addition of a question mark at the end of the topic makes it stand out and seem particularly meaningful.

Netizens started debating this topic.

[Not denying it is tantamount to admitting it; this is a well-known rule in the entertainment industry. Considering what happened this morning when CEO Chi wiped the mud off Qin Yuanyao's face, I think Cheese might not be lying.]

[Since President Chi dislikes Qin Yuanyao so much, there's no way he would learn to cook for her! He's probably only learning to cook so he doesn't owe Qin Yuanyao too much on the show, lest she come after him for payment later! Yeah! That must be it!]

[Chi Baiyi wiped the mud off Qin Yuanyao's face because he was a gentleman, and he learned to cook to avoid owing her too much. If Chi Baiyi truly disliked Qin Yuanyao, he would have ignored the mud on her face. He's already so indifferent to Xu Miaotong, why would he need to act gentlemanly in front of Qin Yuanyao? Who is he trying to impress? Qin Yuanyao? If he didn't want to owe Qin Yuanyao too much, he could have simply asked the production team to give her more appearance fees. Why would he need to learn to cook himself? Things that can be solved with money, why would Chi Baiyi need to get involved? Something's fishy. Think about it yourselves.]

So, the fart I was consuming was real, right?

[Those who were hoping for some fanservice, just wait and see. The trending topic will disappear in a bit, and related topics and videos won't be displayed anymore. It's the same old routine.]

It was already evening when netizens noticed that the topic was still trending.

Now everyone has noticed something else.

Xu Miaotong returned to Li Qiaohui's house with her lotus leaf rice in her hands, feeling uneasy. She then noticed that Gao Li's mood was not quite right.

A dozen minutes earlier, Gao Li and Gao Hao were about to eat lotus leaf rice when they discovered that the rice was undercooked.

To make lotus leaf rice, Xu Miaotong used their last five yuan to buy sausages, corn, and potatoes—the three ingredients for making lotus leaf rice.

Xu Miaotong's plan was to offer free lotus leaves, allowing them to pick them fresh from the pond.

The ingredients they bought were enough to make five servings of lotus leaf rice. That would be enough for them to eat for a day.

As soon as Xu Miaotong finished making the lotus leaf rice, she didn't even say goodbye to Gao Li and Gao Hao. Instead, she hurriedly took the lotus leaf rice to try and please Chi Nao and Chi Baiyi.

She hadn't even taken a bite herself, so she didn't realize the rice was undercooked.

Gao Li took a bite, and when he realized the rice was undercooked, he spat it out.

He called out to Xu Miaotong, but no one answered him after a long time.

He then took out his phone and opened the live stream, only to find out that Xu Miaotong had taken the lotus leaf rice to Chi Baiyi's place.

Seeing Xu Miaotong's humble and ingratiating manner, Gao Li became even angrier.

Gao Li rationally knew that Xu Miaotong was trying to please Chi Baiyi for her own benefit, but he couldn't accept it emotionally.

Xu Miaotong didn't even take good care of him and Gao Hao, yet she still has the mind to please others first?

Moreover, he always felt that Xu Miaotong's advances toward Chi Baiyi were subtly mixed with other emotions and purposes.

At the same time, he also felt ashamed that Xu Miaotong had failed to please Chi Baiyi.

If Xu Miaotong hadn't repeatedly made foolish mistakes, repeatedly smearing Qin Yuanyao only to have those attempts backfire on her, would they be in such a passive position now? Would they need to fawn over Chi Baiyi's cold shoulder?

It's all Xu Miaotong's fault! She made him lose face, was ridiculed, and suffered along with him!

Therefore, Gao Li's expression was indeed not good when Xu Miaotong returned.

"Where did you go?" Gao Li asked coldly.

“I went to deliver lotus leaf rice to Cheese, but she said she wouldn’t eat it,” Xu Miaotong said.

"Luckily she didn't eat it. The lotus leaf rice wasn't cooked at all, didn't you know?"

Xu Miaotong was slightly taken aback; she really hadn't expected the lotus leaf rice to be undercooked.

Then she became somewhat annoyed because she could hear the reproach in Gao Li's tone.

What did he blame her for?

How dare he blame her?

She cooked the meals and washed the dishes. Besides complaining about being tired all day and lying around like a king, what else did he do?

When she was being ridiculed by the entire internet, he did nothing to help her! He didn't even offer her a single word of comfort!

However, Xu Miaotong quickly suppressed her anger.

She couldn't get angry, at least not in front of the live broadcast cameras, and she couldn't argue with Gao Li.

She wants to keep acting!

Even if it means sacrificing Gao Li, she wants to gain everyone's sympathy and salvage her reputation and career!

She can't afford to lose to Qin Yuanyao at this crucial moment!!

Then, a look of humility and guilt spread across her face as she apologized, "I'm sorry, I didn't know the lotus leaf rice wasn't cooked. Have you and Hao Hao not eaten yet? I'll steam the lotus leaf rice again now, you can wait a little longer."

[Holy crap... Has Xu Miaotong changed her personality? Why is she suddenly so humble?]

Although I don't like Xu Miaotong, I hate Gao Li even more. He does nothing but blame Xu Miaotong. The rice isn't cooked yet, can't he just steam it again? Why does he have to wait for Xu Miaotong to do it?

[Gao Li is so much like my husband, it makes me so angry! They're both the kind of pampered sons-in-law who expect to be waited on hand and foot at home! Even if Xu Miaotong is wrong, she's still his wife. Doesn't he care about or protect his wife?]

[Brother Li has disappointed us so much! How could he treat Tongtong like this! Tongtong has become so submissive; it's all Brother Li's fault!]

If Xu Miaotong saw the comments in the live stream at this moment, she would be very pleased, because her strategy had worked.

Meanwhile, she diligently played the role of a doormat while steaming lotus leaf rice.

Gao Li was also stunned by Xu Miaotong's humble appearance.

He knew Xu Miaotong too well; he knew that Xu Miaotong was definitely not such a lowly person!

(End of this chapter)

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