steak

Xu Feifei turned around and saw Lin Yuan walking out of the hall. She quickly waved and happily went towards Lin Yuan, saying, "Hey! Lin Yuan, what a coincidence!"

"I'm here to help Grandma Xu."

Wow! Are you the chef today?

"Lin Yuan is here too! I'm so lucky!" Zhang Jiayi caught up and greeted Lin Yuan with a smile.

Lin Yuan nodded to Zhang Jiayi and smiled as she said to Xu Feifei, "No, I'm just helping out today."

"Hey! Lin Yuan, Xu Feifei, what are you two doing here!"

Xu Feifei turned around and saw the male lead. Nangong Ye walked over familiarly and said, "Hey! Zhang Jiayi, what are you doing here?"

He patted Zhang Jiayi on the shoulder and "kindly" reminded him, "School's over, what are you doing here? Go home quickly, don't walk alone at night! Boys have to be careful walking at night these days!"

Zhang Jiayi dodged Nangong Ye's hand. "Thank you for your concern! It's still bright outside! The world is quite safe."

Nangong Ye glanced around and said, "Won't it get dark after you finish eating? It's better to eat at home; Mom's cooking is the best."

"Thanks for reminding me. You should hurry home and eat your mom's cooking. We're going to eat now," Zhang Jiayi said without any politeness.

Nangong Ye, thick-skinned as ever, pretended not to hear Zhang Jiayi's attempt to send them away. Instead, he put his hand on Zhang Jiayi's shoulder and said, "Although Mom's cooking is delicious, it tastes even better when everyone eats together. Let's eat together then. I'll pay!"

After saying that, she pushed Zhang Jiayi into the house. She didn't forget to say to Xu Feifei and the others, "You guys should come in quickly! Otherwise the food will get cold and won't taste good!"

"You're really not being polite! No need, it's on me."

Xu Feifei was a little dumbfounded after watching the male lead's smooth and effortless actions. It seems that she still has a lot to learn from the male lead when it comes to shamelessness!

"Let's go!" Xu Feifei took Lin Yuan's hand and walked into the house.

When Xu Feifei arrived at the restaurant, she saw the male lead holding Zhang Jiayi down in her seat. He was muttering, "If you're here, you should sit down properly. Why do you keep trying to leave?"

Zhang Jiayi struggled to break free from Nangong Ye's grip, glared angrily at the male lead, and then saw Xu Feifei and Lin Yuan step forward, saying, "Feifei, Lin Yuan! Come and sit here!"

Not to be outdone, Nangong Ye pulled out a chair in a gentlemanly manner and said, "Please take a seat!"

Lin Yuan ignored the two of them and said to Xu Feifei, "You go ahead! I'll go help out in the kitchen!"

Xu Feifei watched the subtle power struggle between the male lead and Zhang Jiayi, finding the atmosphere quite strange. To avoid getting involved, she quickly followed Lin Yuan, saying, "Lin Yuan, I'll go help too!"

They disappeared into the restaurant in the blink of an eye.

Nangong Ye and Zhang Jiayi were left staring at each other in the restaurant. Nangong Ye sat casually in his chair and provocatively asked, "Zhang Jiayi, you wouldn't happen to have a crush on Xu Feifei, would you?"

"What's it to you?" he said, then turned and walked toward Xu's kitchen.

After seeing Zhang Jiayi leave, Nangong Ye casually followed.

A little while later, the kitchen was packed with people. The kitchen was originally quite large, forty square meters. It was well-equipped, clean, and spacious. It just felt a bit crowded with so many people.

Nangong Ye leaned against the doorway and saw Lin Yuan and Xu Feifei helping out. He exclaimed in surprise, "I didn't expect you two could cook!"

When Granny Xu saw the people in the kitchen, she couldn't help but say, "You are guests, how can we let you help out! Please go outside and sit down, it will be ready soon."

"I wouldn't call it helping; I'm already doing you a favor by not causing you any trouble!" Zhang Jiayi said with a smile.

“Yeah, then you should just leave!” Nangong Ye said sarcastically.

"Grandma didn't say anything, so it's not your place to speak! As for you, go sit in the living room, young master!" Zhang Jiayi pursed his lips and said to Nangong Ye speechlessly.

Upon hearing this, Nangong Ye became displeased and strode over to snatch the onion from Zhang Jiayi's hand, saying, "It's just chopping onions! What's so difficult about that!"

Nangong Ye acted immediately, his hand moving swiftly and decisively. However, having never done any manual labor since childhood, his hands were completely untouched by the world. After a flurry of activity, the pungent spiciness of the onions stung his eyes and nose, filling his eyes with tears.

"Oh! The young master cried just from cutting an onion?" Zhang Jiayi teased.

Upon hearing Zhang Jiayi's words, Xu Feifei looked up at the male lead. His eyes were hazy and slightly red. If it weren't for his ferocious expression, he might have been a handsome and lovable man.

"Don't give me that! Chopping onions is nothing." Nangong Ye's voice was slightly nasal; he didn't know why he felt like crying.

Grandma Xu chuckled and said, "Onions are irritating; they can irritate our eyes when we cut them. Alright, alright, you can all go now! I'll take care of the rest!"

After Grandma Xu finished speaking, she once again shooed them away. She pushed Xu Feifei and Lin Yuan out of the kitchen and told them to wait in the living room.

After listening, Nangong Ye suddenly realized and said, "So that's how it is! Zhang Jiayi, you should learn from this. You even said I was crying, how terrible it is to be ignorant!"

Zhang Jiayi gave Nangong Ye a smile and said, "I'm not important, you should learn more!" After saying that, she followed him out of the kitchen.

After handing the haphazardly chopped onion to the old woman, Nangong Ye washed his hands and hurriedly followed.

The living room furnishings were the same as when Xu Feifei last visited, but two more landscape paintings had been added. Xu Feifei noticed the two landscape paintings as soon as she entered the living room, because they were completely out of place with the overall style of the room.

The room is decorated in a medieval European style, making these two paintings stand out conspicuously.

Xu Feifei stared at the two landscape paintings, but couldn't make anything out of them. One painting depicted ripples spreading across a calm lake, while the other was surrounded by flowers with a wooden house in the center, resembling a paradise.

Just as she was about to lean closer to take a look, she was suddenly interrupted by a burst of chaotic music. Turning around, she saw the male protagonist looking down at the piano, his fingers randomly pressing the keys.

Nangong Ye asked, "Lin Yuan, can you play the piano?"

"Won't."

"Then I'll teach you, I happen to know how!" After sitting down, Nangong Ye patted the empty seat, indicating that he would teach her to play the piano.

"Let's forget about it, I've never heard of it before," Zhang Jiayi said, splashing water from the side.

"Do you think I'd tell you everything? I did say I got a Level 10 certificate and was taught by a famous international master. It's just a pity I neglected it later!"

"By the way, when I was little, Xu Feifei and I participated in a piano duet competition and won first place in the whole country! You must remember!" Nangong Ye looked at Xu Feifei with pride.

Xu Feifei gave an awkward smile under their gazes. This was the original owner's gathering; she knew absolutely nothing about the piano!

Fortunately, Nangong Ye ignored them and instead played a piece on his own, with accurate pitch, smooth playing, and beautiful sound.

Xu Feifei thought the male lead looked really handsome as he played the piano so seriously. His fingers were long and slender, and when his hands danced on the piano, it was a real treat for hand fetishists.

There's a saying that's really true: serious guys are the most handsome.

Lin Yuan frowned as she looked at Xu Feifei, lost in thought.

"Come quick, come quick! Dinner's ready!" Grandma Xu called out as she pushed a small food cart in.

Grandma Xu placed the dishes on the table. Nangong Ye saw Zhang Jiayi sitting opposite Lin Yuan, so he patted Zhang Jiayi on the shoulder and said, "Hey, let's switch seats."

"Why?"

"No reason why, move aside."

Zhang Jiayi shrugged, indicating that he didn't care, and sat down in the empty seat next to him.

Xu Feifei paid little attention to the male lead, focusing more on the dishes in front of her. She had been helping in the kitchen, but hadn't seen any of the main courses, only small decorations.

Xu Feifei opened the package with great anticipation, only to find a steak inside. "This isn't filet mignon, is it?"

"Mm," Lin Yuan nodded.

Xu Feifei looked at Lin Yuan with surprise and said, "That's great! You actually remembered what I said before!"

Nangong Ye and Zhang Jiayi looked at them with puzzled expressions. Nangong Ye spoke first and asked, "What are you talking about? I don't understand."

Xu Feifei couldn't wait to pick up a knife and fork and slowly cut it open. As she cut, light red blood slowly flowed out, and the meat inside was quite pink and tender.

After standing there frozen for a few minutes, holding a knife and fork, she asked, "Lin Yuan, how well-done is this?"

Nangong Ye said, "You can tell at a glance that it's rare. Filet mignon is beef tenderloin, the most tender cut of beef, and it's lean. It's usually cooked to rare to medium-rare for seven minutes. Cooking it for too long will affect its texture."

“Xu Feifei, didn’t you used to love steak the most? You’ve forgotten this basic thing? And you still haven’t answered my question from before,” Nangong Ye continued.

Xu Feifei's face was a little pale. She stared at the steak in front of her, unsure of where to start. "Uh, I've changed my tastes now. I like Chinese food. What did you say before?"

"Tell me, what did you mean by what you just said to Lin Yuan?"

Xu Feifei racked her brains for words, "Oh, that's..."

Lin Yuan interrupted, "It's common knowledge that the dishes at Grandma Xu's house are served randomly, so it doesn't matter. The food won't taste good when it's cold."

Xu Feifei chimed in, "Is that so? That's quite a coincidence."

Zhang Jiayi asked, "Does that mean I like you?"

"Uh-huh!"

After Xu Feifei cut a small piece off the steak with a knife, she looked at the pinkish-red beef and her appetite instantly vanished by half.

But I kept telling myself that it was safe to eat and there wouldn't be any problems. In Mary Sue novels, the protagonists always eat the finest food.

Xu Feifei closed her eyes and ate a small piece. After chewing it, she found the beef to be tender, springy, and juicy, with a very good texture.

But after eating half of it, she didn't want to continue. The steak was delicious, but it wasn't quite to her taste. After a while, she put down her knife and fork and gently wiped her mouth with a napkin.

"What's wrong? Is it not to your liking?" Lin Yuan asked.

“Yeah, don’t you like it?” Zhang Jiayi asked from the side.

Xu Feifei quickly waved her hand and said, "No, I'm full. I can't eat anymore."

Lin Yuan glanced at the remaining steak on her plate, her eyes dimming slightly. She put down her knife and fork and didn't continue eating.