Chapter 49.2: What Do You Think? (2)

It was only due to the extra pay that Ji Fanyin was willing to work on Christmas Day.

Ah, I’m also heading there to dispose of a painting too. 

Ji Fanyin grabbed a huge bag from her wardrobe, which happened to be large enough to stuff the painting in. She was saved from the hassle of wrapping the painting since she didn’t unwrap it in the first place. 

It’s not as if I can appreciate that painting anyway. 

She made sure to pack her pepper spray and security alarm in her bag, and she had the closest police station on her quick dial too. Other than that, she also prepared a miniature Christmas tree for Song Shiyu as a present. 

With all preparations complete, she left her house and hailed a cab to head to Song Shiyu’s house. 

When Song Shiyu opened the door to let her in, Ji Fanyin thrust the Christmas tree toward him and exclaimed, “Happy Christmas!”

“… You too.” Song Shiyu was stunned for a moment before he gave a response. With a gentlemanly smile, he took the miniature Christmas tree from her hands and invited her in. “Come in and take a seat. The slippers are by the door.”

“Are we having dinner at your place today?” Ji Fanyin put on a pair of slippers and entered his house. She placed her bag on the shoe rack and took off her coat before following Song Shiyu in. “Do you need my help?”

She could already see the ingredients on display in his huge kitchen. 

It’s just that… How should I put this?

It’s clear at a glance that the master of the house doesn’t know how to cook.

“Let’s do it together. I bought quite a bit. It’ll be tough for you to prepare everything on your own.” Song Shiyu walked over to the sink. “Which ones should I help you with?”

Ji Fanyin walked over to take a look, only to reveal a helpless smile right after. “You bought so many mussels! Don’t you find eating shellfish a hassle?”

She started rolling up her sleeves. “I guess there’s no need for everything to be pretty since we’re eating at home anyway. I’ll first broil the soup with the mussels, then remove the shells before serving. That should make things easier for you. What do you think?”

On the other end of the kitchen, Song Shiyu replied without turning his head around, “Sounds good.”

The adept chef Ji Fanyin swiftly cleaned the mussels before boiling them in water. Then, she tore out their rich flesh one by one. 

Song Shiyu wasn’t the only one who found deshelling the mussels a chore. Even an avid amateur chef like Ji Fanyin thought that it was troublesome to remove the flesh without directly using her hands. 

After extracting all of the mussel meat and placing them into a bowl, she began preparing the sauce for them. At the same time, she started chatting with Song Shiyu, “Don’t you think that your house looks a little plain? It’s Christmas! You should have at least put some ornaments up for festivity’s sake.” 

“Don’t I have you here?” replied Song Shiyu casually.

A second later, he suddenly registered what he had just said and hurriedly supplemented it with, “Didn’t you already bring me a Christmas tree?”

Ji Fanyin burst into laughter. “You expect that small tree to bring the Christmas atmosphere to your house?” 

Song Shiyu smiled wordlessly at her remark.

His abnormal silence lasted until the end of dinner.

Ji Fanyin had really put her heart into preparing the meal. She could tell that Song Shiyu didn’t cook frequently, but she didn’t expect the latter to be so clumsy as to be unable to even dice meat. He even had to take a taste test in order to tell the difference between sugar and salt.

They would probably still be starving right now if she had pinned her hopes on him.

In order not to waste any ingredients, Ji Fanyin had no choice but to take charge.

Having to maintain a warm atmosphere while taking charge in the kitchen was quite tiring even for Ji Fanyin.