6 p.m.

The Mihana City Hall was bathed in the golden light of the setting sun.

Yuzuru stood by the fountain, watching Natsumi Kosaka walk quickly out of the revolving door.

Today she wore a simple beige knit sweater and a light brown long skirt. Her long, slightly wavy brown hair was loosely tied back, with a few strands playfully hanging down beside her ears, swaying gently with her steps, adding a touch of sweetness and liveliness to her.

After leaving Attorney Fei's place, Yuzuru told Ran to go back to the villa to "teach" Sonoko a lesson, while he turned around and came here on the way.

"I'm sorry to have kept you waiting, Nan-jun."

Natsumi Kosaka ran up to him, slightly out of breath, her cheeks flushed with a faint blush from her haste, like two ripe peaches. "The last batch of meringue lemon pies needed to be refrigerated to set, so I waited a little longer."

Yu Sheng Nan took the delicate pastry box from her hand, his fingertips inadvertently brushing against the back of her hand, feeling its cool touch. He smiled and said, "I should be the one apologizing for asking you to make so many pastries at the last minute."

The dessert box was heavier than I expected.

Inside, various semi-finished pastry molds are neatly arranged.

He plans to take it back for baking. One feature of the Gourmet Cell Baking Oven is that it can give special effects to the pastries based on the level of the pastries made by the user.

The higher the skill level, the better the randomly generated attributes.

Therefore, the moment Hanyu Nan was upgraded to this item, he had already thought of the best user for it.

As a renowned pastry chef in Paris, Princess Chame is undoubtedly the best choice.

"I'm happy to be able to help."

Natsumi Kosaka shook her head, the stray hairs by her ears swaying gently with the movement, shimmering with a golden halo in the setting sun.

She hesitated for a moment, then added, "Especially... the snacks I made for you."

These words were spoken very softly, as softly as a breeze brushing against flower petals, almost like talking to oneself.

Yuzuru pretended not to hear, leaning closer and asking, "Hmm?"

"It's nothing!" Natsumi Kosaka, like a startled fawn, instinctively took a half-step back, but then stopped abruptly, as if afraid he would misunderstand that she disliked his approach.

She lowered her head and whispered, "Um... I made some adjustments to the recipe. I used special herbs brought from Russia, so it might have a slightly different flavor..."

Her eyes sparkled as she spoke, as if they held the entire starry sky, or like a little girl sharing a secret with her lover.

Yuzuru couldn't help but recall the first time he saw her on the Suzuki family's cruise ship—that elegant and sweet woman who spoke eloquently about her family's story in the crowd, completely different from the little princess in front of him who was at a loss in front of her beloved.

This contrast stirred up a unique emotion in his heart.

"I'm really looking forward to it." Yuzuru shook the box of pastries in his hand, the cardboard box making a slight rustling sound. "Natsumi's cooking never disappoints."

As he spoke, he handed over a box of pastries.

Just like the one for Eri, it contained ordinary sweets—he had checked them carefully to make sure there were no "special products" that Sonoko had mixed in.

After all, if another clothing-tearing incident were to occur now, he wouldn't be able to see it, which would be such a waste.

When Natsumi Kosaka took the box, their fingers touched briefly again. This time, her fingertips seemed less cold and instead carried a slight warmth, like the first melting snow in spring.

She stood on the steps of the city hall, watching Yuzuru's retreating figure until his tall, slender form completely disappeared around the street corner.

Then, she looked down at the box of pastries in her hand, a gentle smile appearing on her lips. This was specially prepared for her by Nan Jun, just like the pastries she had carefully made for him.

This realization made her feel a little excited, her heart pounding like a little rabbit's.

“Miss,” the old butler appeared behind her unnoticed, his old face filled with doubt, “Did you notice that just now?”

"Huh! What?" Natsumi Kosaka turned around and tilted her head.

"...It's nothing." The old butler looked at his young mistress's happy and content expression and swallowed back the words he was about to say.

He wanted to ask where the box of sweets that needed to be held in both hands came from when Yuzuru Nan arrived empty-handed, but seeing how the young lady was so immersed in joy, he decided not to break the beautiful moment.

Perhaps I really am getting old and my eyesight is failing?

"Let's go back."

"Yes, miss."

Ignoring the butler's suspicions, Natsumi Kosaka, with a smile on her face, carried the box of sweets towards the city hall. All she wanted to do was get back to the shop as soon as possible and enjoy the sweets that Nan-kun had made for her.

Watching his young mistress skip and hop away, the old butler couldn't help but shake his head, his wrinkles smoothing out: "Youth is truly wonderful..."

.........

...........

Meanwhile, after finishing his meeting with Natsumi Kosaka, Yuzuru leisurely returned to the villa.

He walked briskly into the courtyard, still reliving Natsumi Kosaka's behavior, and couldn't help but chuckle softly.

He was already standing downstairs at the Mihana City Hall when this lovely princess was still racking her brains trying to cover up the fact that she had opened her shop next to the Sonoko Dumpling Shop, eagerly anticipating a big surprise for him when the shop opened.

It was somewhat self-deception, but Yuzuru was willing to perform with her.

A sweet romance requires one person to be willing to play dumb with the other and jointly protect those little romantic moments and surprises.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!