Kitchen Battle

"Is that person from your family?" Yun Jin withdrew her gaze, leaned slightly closer to the little girl, and asked in a low voice.

The little girl shook her head, her straw unconsciously stirring the remaining ice at the bottom of the glass: "Yes, sigh, but he's the only one who cares about me."

The little girl pouted, a hint of irritation beyond her years appearing on her innocent face. "But if I do that, Mom will never know I ran away from home and all my work was for nothing."

Yun Jin blinked, and the corners of her lips unconsciously turned up. She had just imagined a melodramatic plot of a wealthy family's bodyguards chasing after a runaway heiress.

Reality was indeed much more mundane than imagined.

"Now that he's come looking for you, you should go home." Yun Jin ruffled the little girl's hair.

She paused, then said softly, "Grow up well, okay? When you go to school, you'll be able to leave home gradually."

The little girl didn't say anything.

Not far away, the man wearing a mask waved, and the little girl slowly slid off the chair and reluctantly went over.

The man bent down and said something to her, and the little girl skipped and hopped back.

"Sister, here's the money for the lemonade." The little girl placed a hundred-yuan bill in Yun Jin's hand.

"I don't need that much," Yun Jin said, hesitant to accept.

"He said he didn't have any change," the little girl said, dropping the money and running away.

She hurriedly chased after her, but the moment she grabbed the little girl's arm, her eyes met those light purple eyes behind the mask.

It was Shen Yi'an.

"I treated her to drinks... she doesn't need to pay me." Yun Jin lowered her head and stuffed the money back into the man's hand, her CPU slightly smoking.

He really does have children and a wife.

Yun Jin was saddened by the fact that what the media said was actually true.

"Thank you." Shen Yi'an gently patted the little girl's head. "Say thank you, sister."

"Thank you, sister." The little girl took his hand.

"You're welcome, goodbye." Yun Jin didn't turn around, but her pace quickened uncontrollably.

The thought that he still has so many fans who unconditionally believe in him and travel thousands of miles to support him, while he's already happily settled into a life of family bliss, is quite unsettling.

"Sis!"

Yun Chen's voice suddenly cut through the noisy crowd as she ran over carrying a large bag of daily necessities.

"Sorry, I ran into a former high school classmate and we chatted for a while," Yun Chen said, grabbing his sister's hand. "It was Qi Yu, sis, do you remember him?"

“I ran into Shen Yi’an and his daughter,” Yun Jin interrupted Yun Chen.

Yun Chen was stunned for a moment, then burst out laughing: "Didn't I tell you that last time?"

"I just think that what the media says isn't necessarily true." Yun Jin smiled sheepishly.

“Sis,” she winked playfully, “Shen Yi’an is indeed ridiculously handsome. You haven’t been in contact with the opposite sex for so many years, it’s normal to be a little tempted.”

Yun Jin took the heavy shopping bag from Yun Chen's hand. The plastic handle cut into her sister's palm, leaving a red mark.

“Actually…” Yun Jin suddenly spoke up, “You’re right, but not entirely right.”

Yun Chen tilted her head, waiting for what would happen next, but saw her sister simply switch the shopping bag to her other hand and gently squeeze her hand with the free hand.

"The rest is no longer important." Yun Jin gazed at the streetlights in the distance. "Anyway, it doesn't matter anymore."

The evening breeze ruffled their hair, the streetlights cast long shadows, and Yun Jin's heavy shopping bag swayed gently with each step, the groceries inside rustling softly.

Yun Chen suddenly started humming a song out of tune, tapping his fingers in the air to keep the beat, occasionally brushing against Yun Jin's hand.

"I was wrong after all," Yun Jin said softly.

——

Holidays are good, weekdays are bad.

The sunlight was broken up by the wire mesh of the flight case, creating dappled shadows. Yun Jin lay sprawled out like a pancake, with strands of her tricolor fur spilling out from the gaps in the mesh.

On the lower level, the Ragdoll cat Egg Tart was patting the box door with its paws, its fluffy tail held high, looking just like a haughty little princess.

"Hey—" Egg Tart drawled, the sweet, cloying sound of the tart switching to a rough, natural voice, "Have you heard? That newly popular young idol doesn't like women at all. I saw with my own eyes that his phone's screen saver is a muscular man!"

Bruce on the first floor suddenly perked up his ears, his wet nose pressed against the cage door: "Gay? Is it a new type of teething toy? Does it taste good?"

"Tsk, I can't reason with a stupid dog like you!" Egg Tart rolled her eyes. "Sanhua, what do you think?"

"I don't know." Yun Jin rolled over and yawned lazily.

"I really don't want to talk to you guys," the Ragdoll cat said, pacing around its carrier a few times before sitting down and licking its fur. "If only Polly the poodle were here..."

Before she could finish speaking, Liu Li announced through the loudspeaker, "Today, we have an old friend here to participate, and that is—Ding Zhizi!"

A burst of powerful music began, and the curtain rose.

Ding Zhizi wore a light blue casual outfit, and her ponytail swung high with her movements.

She put one hand on her hip and raised the other to her forehead in a playful salute: "Hello everyone, I'm Ding Zhizi—I'm back!"

Yun Jin suddenly perked up, her ears perking up. She felt that Ding Zhizi had lost some weight and wondered how her family was doing.

Egg Tart's fluffy tail, which had been standing upright, drooped the moment it heard Ding Zhizi say "You didn't bring Polly," and it let out a few loud howls.

Hearing the commotion, Ding Zhizi walked over and patted its head. "I'm so sorry, I didn't bring your good friend with me."

After hearing this, Egg Tart turned its face away, but its tail honestly wagged. When Ding Zhizi reached out her hand, it first pretended to be aloof and turned its head away, then secretly glanced at her out of the corner of its eye, and finally slowly brought its head over and "reluctantly" rubbed against her hand.

Seeing this, Yun Jin deliberately made a sound and acted coquettishly to attract Ding Zhizi's attention, which made Egg Tart a little anxious.

Egg Tart's tail instantly bristled like a feather duster. It lunged forward, its two front paws tightly gripping Ding Zhizi's forearm, and then used its breath on Yun Jin.

Zhang Shuo walked over with a grin and nudged Ding Zhizi with his elbow: "Miss Ding, has that matter at home... been resolved?"

The joyful atmosphere suddenly stopped, Ding Zhizi's smile froze on her face, and the only background noise was the sound of egg tart tails hitting the table.

"What's it to you?" Shen Yi'an said coldly, glancing at him.

Zhang Shuo smiled politely at Shen Yi'an and said, "That applies to you too."

"By the way, our lovely Egg Tart will be teaming up with Ding Zhizi!" The host quickly changed the subject upon seeing this.

Over here, Egg Tart's ears twitched, and its previously bristled fur slowly calmed down, but its paws still clung tightly to Ding Zhizi's hand, as if asserting its dominance.

"Please take good care of me." Ding Zhizi chuckled and gently scratched Egg Tart's chin. The ragdoll cat, who had been dissatisfied just moments before, narrowed its eyes and let out a satisfied purr.

After some perfunctory pleasantries, the program officially began.

"Kitchen battle: pets need to transport designated ingredients from the food area to their owners according to instructions, and the owners are responsible for receiving and organizing the ingredients."

"Why would the production team set up such a simple segment?" Shen Yi'an said to the host, holding Yun Jin in one hand and waving a cat toy in the other.

“This production team is definitely up to something,” Zhang Shuo chimed in.

Yun Jin didn't want to play with the cat toy; she was just shocked at how quickly Shen Yi'an's expression changed. Just a moment ago...

Whether it was because he sensed Yun Jin's low spirits or because he wanted to avoid Zhang Shuo, Shen Yi'an squatted down, took out a cat treat from his pocket, squeezed out a little bit, and handed it to her: "Xiao Yun, are you hungry? Want to try some?"

“Xiaoyun doesn’t like the food you give it,” Zhang Shuo’s voice rang out again.

Yun Jin hadn't planned to eat it, but Zhang Shuo's suggestion made her have to. She noticed that Shen Yi'an's hands were clenched tightly, with veins bulging.

"This is unfair, I want to protest." Lu Xuan raised his hands, startling Guo Guo, the myna bird on his shoulder, which flapped its wings and flew away. "Guo Guo is so small and pitiful, what kind of food can it carry?"

Guoguo circled around and called out, "Poor thing, poor thing."

The host picked up the cue cards: "Of course we've considered this. After an emergency discussion, we've decided to appoint Professor Lu Xuan as the special referee!"

Lu Xuan immediately stopped looking miserable: "You should have said so earlier!"

Guoguo chimed in from the side, "You should have said so earlier, you should have said so earlier."

The curtain behind everyone slowly opened, revealing two platforms separated by a narrow wooden plank, with soft cushions covering the space below. On the opposite side of the platforms hung mini baskets filled with various kinds of food.

Bruce, standing next to Zhang Shuo, excitedly scratched at the edge of the stage with his front paws, drool dripping into silvery lines. Zhang Shuo disgustedly rubbed his foot against Bruce.

Yun Jin's gaze swept over the seafood, vegetables, and raw meat in the hanging basket. Some of them were not suitable for pets, so they were meant for the artists.

Thinking of this, Yun Jin secretly glanced at Shen Yi'an, and a plan came to her mind: Let me punish you, you big scumbag.

Shen Yi'an met her gaze unexpectedly and said softly, "Xiao Yun, good luck, take whatever you want."

"Yun Jin, keep it up!" Ding Zhizi waved and smiled from the side, her eyes sparkling.

However, the egg tart crouching in her arms suddenly became unhappy, pressing its ears back into an airplane shape and meowing a few times. Yun Jin didn't listen carefully, but it was probably cursing her.

At the host's command, Yun Jin gracefully leaped onto the balance beam, her steps steady, her tail held high to maintain her balance. Her goal was clear: bitter melon, which Shen Yi'an hated the most.

Yun Jin stood in front of the hanging basket, sniffing here and there with great seriousness, then used her paws to precisely pry open the lettuce leaves and snatched the thickest bitter melon in her mouth.

"Meow—it's so bitter!" The bitterness exploded on the tip of her tongue, and Yun Jin's entire cat face scrunched up, making her look ten years older in an instant.

The bitter gourd fell onto the wooden board with a "thud" and bounced. She reflexively took two steps back, almost slipping, and clung tightly to the edge of the board with her four paws.

To injure the enemy by a thousand, you will also lose eight hundred of your own.

Yun Jin's sacrifice seems a bit too great.

"Don't take this."

Shen Yi'an was still smiling like an aunt, but his expression changed when he saw Yun Jin dragging a bitter gourd.

Yun Jin: That's exactly the effect I wanted.