Before the driver could even speak, Miaoke exploded. “Mister, there are three lives in this car, take it easy!” She was sitting in the front passenger seat. If they got into an accident, she’d be the first to take the hit.
The driver quickly apologized. He didn’t know who these three were, but with his years of experience, he could tell from their aura alone that they were definitely VIPs.
“I’m so sorry. A dog dashed out out of nowhere just now and I didn’t have time to warn you. I’ll definitely be more careful next time.”
The dog that ran past wasn’t big, and because Miaoke was constantly checking the rearview mirror, only the driver had caught a glimpse of it.
Learning that he had slammed the brakes to avoid hitting a dog, Miaoke let it go. She simply reminded him to stay sharp…driving slow was fine, but safety came first.
As the taxi started up again, Kong Yinmeng gently nudged Zheng Yi. He had been holding her ever since the sudden stop and hadn’t let go. She wondered if Miaoke had seen them; if she had, it would only spark more wild assumptions.
Zheng Yi didn’t make things difficult for her. They were close to the shooting location now, and if paparazzi or obsessive fans were camping out, she would be pushed right into the eye of a storm. That was the last thing he wanted.
“Seriously, making a whole group of us wait for them? Brother Yi is totally being dragged down by that woman. He’s usually so professional, there’s no way he’d be late on his own!”
Niu Niuniu was muttering under her breath again. Because the main cast wasn’t all there, the camera crew hadn’t started filming. Her words grew nastier by the second, her resentment toward Kong Yinmeng completely laid bare.
The director was huddled in a corner whispering with Liang Sihan and Xiao Hong. It was only when Zheng Yi and his group finally showed up that they broke apart.
Before the official recording could begin, the three of them had to change clothes and get their makeup done. It took nearly another hour, and by the time they stepped out, the cameras were rolling.
“Thanks to yesterday’s hard work, Zheng Yi’s team is miles ahead with 100 yuan of disposable cash! Liang Sihan’s team is at negative 50 yuan, and Xiao Hong’s team is at negative 200 yuan. Today, the production crew will give each team a starting budget of 300 yuan. Those in debt must clear it first. Your mission today is to buy the right ingredients before dark and cook a dish for dinner. The director’s team will appoint five judges, and the team with the most votes wins!”
Hearing that today’s task wasn’t about grinding for money, everyone let out a sigh of relief. However, when Xiao Hong ended up with only 100 yuan after settling her debt, her face fell again.
At home, she always hired a maid to buy groceries and cook, so she had no real concept of market prices. But she usually gave her maid 500 yuan at a time. Today, she only had 100…what on earth could she buy with that?
“Do you know how to cook?” Kong Yinmeng asked Zheng Yi first. He responded with a shake of his head. “Fair enough. You’re busy all day practicing choreography and vocals, where would you find the time to learn? I know how, but honestly, I’m no chef either.”
It wasn’t that she couldn’t cook; she could scrape together something edible. Living alone meant cooking was usually too much hassle, so she mostly relied on takeout.
Zheng Yi handed over all 300 yuan from the crew to her. Combined with yesterday’s 100, they were the wealthiest team today. “I can learn. I’m a fast learner.”
He could master a complex dance routine in less than a day, so his learning ability was undeniably top-tier. The problem was, some things required a specific kind of intuition, and some people were just naturally cursed in the kitchen.
“Before you head out, we have a quick warm-up game: The Compatibility Challenge! I will call out a word, and the two members of each team must do a matching action. The first team to get five actions right gets priority choice of transportation.”
With that, the host, Xiao Wu, pointed to the three modes of transport waiting nearby: a car, an electric scooter, and a bicycle.
This kind of compatibility game was a staple on variety shows, so all six of them understood the rules. The real issue was that synergy wasn’t something built overnight.
“Elephant!”
Kong Yinmeng mimicked a long trunk with her arm, while Zheng Yi used both hands to draw a massive circle in the air to signify a big elephant. Hilariously, the one who matched Kong Yinmeng’s trunk gesture was actually Niu Niuniu from the rival team.
“None of the three teams got it right! Next up… Hen!”
This time, Liang Sihan and Miaoke nailed it. With one team scoring, the pressure mounted on the other two. Fortunately, Kong Yinmeng and Zheng Yi caught a wave of good luck and managed to hit five correct matches just ahead of Liang Sihan.
“We’ll take our leave first, keep fighting~” Kong Yinmeng teased, finally loosening up. Aside from Niu Niuniu, the other three opponents were actually pretty easygoing.
Miaoke playfully grabbed her to stop her from leaving, but Kong Yinmeng “ruthlessly” shoved her back toward Liang Sihan, grabbed Zheng Yi, and claimed the four-wheeled car.
“Do you know how to drive?” Kong Yinmeng asked, trying to give him a chance to show off. Most guys couldn’t resist cars and would learn to drive early on.
Unfortunately, Zheng Yi shook his head. “I got my license three years ago, but I’ve been too busy to ever actually drive.” In reality, he had a personal driver everywhere he went, so there was simply no need.
Left with no choice, Kong Yinmeng reluctantly took the wheel. Their destination was still the East Sea Hotel, aiming to give Chef Liu some screen time.
Despite the fan commotion that had lasted late into the previous night, the hotel manager didn’t blame the production crew at all. Seeing Kong Yinmeng today, he was still all smiles.
“Sorry for the trouble last night, sir. Today we’re here to learn a dish from Chef Liu. Please go ahead with your business, don’t let us disrupt your work.”
The manager was being a bit too polite, hovering around the kitchen, which made them rather uncomfortable.
For the sake of variety show entertainment, Kong Yinmeng didn’t plan on cooking a dish she already knew. Instead, she wanted to learn something fresh from Chef Liu.
“Zheng Yi, what kind of food do you like?” she asked, rolling up her sleeves as she scanned the ingredients. The hotel kitchen was fully stocked, making it the perfect playground to practice.
Zheng Yi walked over and said casually, “You were the one helping me all day yesterday. Today, let me cook a dish for you. What do you want to eat? I’ll learn it from Chef Liu.”
Since he had offered, Kong Yinmeng had no reason to refuse. She couldn’t let him look completely useless on camera.
“Let’s do Sweet and Sour Pork Ribs then. It shouldn’t be too hard.”
Ten minutes later… she desperately wanted to take those words back, or at least switch to a simple stir-fry. Watching Zheng Yi clumsily slice the pork with his clean, slender hands, she could already envision the toxic anti-fan comments accusing her of torturing their idol.
“How about I do the cutting, and you just handle the deep-frying later?” She tried to take the knife from him, but he deftly dodged her hand.
“I’ve got this. Just get the seasoning and sauce ingredients ready for me.” He was locked in a personal feud with this slab of pork today, determined to conquer it.
The head chef wanted to step in and guide him, but the crew stopped him. The two individuals in the frame might not have realized it, but everyone else felt the scene was incredibly harmonious. If the chef intervened, it would instantly break the visual chemistry.
At first, Kong Yinmeng maintained her patience, giving Zheng Yi plenty of face. After all, his pride had taken a massive hit the day before, so he needed his moment to shine today.
But! However! She had already prepared all the ingredients and was actually starting to feel drowsy, yet he was still battling the pork.
“Zheng Yi, let me take over. At this rate, it’s not a question of whether you can learn the dish or not; I’m genuinely terrified you won’t finish cutting that meat before nightfall.”
This time, Zheng Yi didn’t object. He felt a bit embarrassed himself. Before today, he had no idea that slicing meat could be so agonizingly difficult. He had been working up a sweat for ages and had only managed to slice half of it.
With her basic culinary experience, Kong Yinmeng was vastly quicker and cut the meat into uniform pieces…unlike his pile of bizarre, abstract shapes.
“Little Kong, not many young girls know how to cook these days. Whoever marries you in the future is going to be incredibly lucky,” Chef Liu chimed in with praise. As he spoke, he shot a meaningful glance at Zheng Yi. It was glaringly obvious who that comment was meant for.
If the cameras hadn’t been rolling, she would have rolled her eyes right at Chef Liu. But in front of the lens, she could only pretend she hadn’t heard a thing, dragging Zheng Yi over to the counter.
“Chef Liu, he is a complete novice. This is the ultimate test of your teaching skills. If you can successfully teach him, you’ll definitely go down in history.”
Chef Liu: “???” Why did that sound slightly threatening?
Threatening or not, he kicked off his crash course. After giving a general overview of the process, he told Zheng Yi to marinate the meat first while he finished up his own tasks.
During the marinating wait, the duo didn’t sit idle. They cleaned up the kitchen counters, happily stealing the jobs of the kitchen apprentices.
Twenty minutes later, Zheng Yi finally stepped onto the battlefield. And the way he held that spatula? It really did look like he was marching into war, looking entirely like he was facing a formidable enemy.
Just as he was about to drop the pork into the wok, Kong Yinmeng suddenly reached out and handed him a pair of thick gloves. “Put these on. When you deep-fry things, the oil splatters everywhere. Wear them so you don’t burn your hands.”
He was different from ordinary people. If his hands got scarred because of a variety show, the program would probably be dragged to filth by fans and forced off the air. This was her variety show debut, after all…she needed the exposure to go smoothly.
She gave herself a perfectly logical excuse, completely ignoring the genuine flutter of worry in her heart.
Zheng Yi took the gloves and slipped them on. The oil in the wok was already bubbling violently. He cautiously lowered the egg-battered pork into the oil. As the loud sizzling exploded from the pan, his expression turned even more deadpan and intense.
Chef Liu peered over for a look and shook his head instantly. “This batch is ruined. You might want to take over; I don’t think he’s cut out for the kitchen.”
With the intuition of a seasoned chef, he knew this batch was a lost cause. And he was right. When Zheng Yi scooped the pork out, the batter was already charred black.
“Don’t just look at the black exterior, the inside is actually still raw. You didn’t control the heat properly…the flame was way too high.”
Refusing to give up, Zheng Yi sliced a piece open with a knife. Sure enough, the center of the meat was still distinctly pink and undercooked.
“Mengmeng, you should take over. I really might not be suited for cooking.” His tone sank with disappointment. Kong Yinmeng’s heart twinged, instantly reminding her of the vulnerable things he had said the previous night.
She immediately launched into a shameless, mindless praise of the mutilated fried pork. “You’re cooking for the very first time, the fact that you didn’t burn the kitchen down is already a massive win! When I cooked for the first time, I almost set the entire kitchen on fire. The production crew pays for these ingredients anyway, so just relax and keep practicing. I know you’ll get it before nightfall!”
God forgive me, she thought, I lied just to comfort him. In reality, her very first cooking attempt had been a roaring success.
Alas, talent really is a brutal thing!