CH 13

“I don’t think so.”

“But Dr Xie thinks that it would do you some good. You need to have contact outside your circle, and not only keep guard within your own walls.”

“I’m communicating very well with you now.”

Mayer laughed, not continuing to say anything more.

When Lin Ke Song reached Wall Street, she was a little disappointed.

This place where the most financial elite gather, was nothing like her imagination of high ended western style and quality. Many investment banks, trust companies, insurance companies actually set up the headquarters here, Lin Ke Song also had some doubts as to how they would be able to squeeze together. But the deeper she went in, she saw those suit wearing financial practitioners, when she walked past them, the strong aroma of money would spread through the air.

Song Yi Ran bought two cups of coffee, and passed one to Lin Ke Song.

She drank a mouth, it was sweet. She knows that Song Yi Ran only drinks black coffee, when buying for her, there would definitely be a special order of more milk and sugar. But the sweet taste left a long dwelling bitter aftertaste.

“Hey, when you’ve saved enough money, do you want to study at the New York University School of business with me?” Song Yi Ran said leaning towards Lin Ke Song.

She only needed to turn her head, and be able to see his shining eyes and maddening face.

“Ah? When you play with stock, then what will I do?”

“En……you leech off me ba. (T/N: lit: hug my big thigh)”

“You really want me to leech off you?”

“Yeah.”

“Don’t regret ah.”

“Wont regret.”

Just as Song Yi Ran finished saying, Lin Ke Song put the coffee down on a bench at the side, then lowered her body and suddenly hugged Song Yi Ran’s thigh.

Even with all her might, but Song Yi Ran was just too tall, his legs too long, couldn’t even move him.

Lin Ke Song heard this chap’s arrogant laughter float pass the roof of her head.

“Want to change to me hugging your thigh?” he raised his brows in challenge, Lin Ke Song’s feelings that she had finally hidden felt like they were going to fly out.

“Don’t want!” Lin Ke Song turned around and walked off.

Want to get closer, but want to stay at a distance, this kind of dilemma, is something Song Yi Ran will never know.

They did not spend too long and finished walking the whole of Wall Street.

In front of the charging bull, were many tourists taking pictures of themselves touching the copper bull’s backside.

Lin Ke Song lowered herself and took the time chance when Song Yi Ran was not paying attention to touch the eggs of the bull.

But when she straightened up, Song Yi Ran was beside her, bending down with interest to see what she was doing.

This chap was too close, Lin Ke Song almost brushed against his face. In that moment her heart clenched, and she almost fell to the ground, good thing Song Yi Ran stretched out his arm and fished Lin Ke Song back up.

“It’s probably because it’s your first time touching the bull’s…… eggs so you got to excited and sat on the ground right?” Song Yi Ran blinked.

“I was frightened by you, okay!” Lin Ke Song ears were all red.

“Didn’t you say you didn’t play with stocks, so you weren’t going to touch it?”

“Then what if one day I play with stocks?”

“Then touch of you want to! Other people are touching and you touch it too, what’s the big deal? Your ears are all red yo!”

Song Yi Ran reached his hand out, holding Lin Ke Song’s ears, making Lin Ke Song so angry she went around finding a place to hide.

If Lin Ke Song didn’t remember wrongly, Song Yi Ran will use this encounter to make fun of Lin Ke Song for a very very long time.

With Song Yi Ran, although Lin Ke Song will be mad to death half the time, but there will never be a shortage of good food and drinks.

On the way to the empire state building after the two of them left, they saw some event that was being held on the streets. There were many on lookers, crowded till there were only bobbing heads and spirits were high.

Lin Ke Song jumped, and couldn’t see anything.

While Song Yi Ran only needed to slightly lift his head and borrow the length of his body and be able to see clearly.

“Looks like a cooking competition. Sounds like the judge is some gourmet food magazine editor. They’ll choose an outstanding person from the competitors to participate in some big cooking competition. This should be considered an audition stage ba.”

Song Yi Ran kindly explained to Lin Ke Song at the side.

People were constantly entering, then people were constantly exiting. Even though Lin Ke Song can’t speak English as authentically as Song Yi Ran, but she has always had a good sense of understanding through hearing.

“Hey, brother! How are you feeling?”

“The judges criticised my dish to nothing, I’m going to form a trauma towards the kitchen.”

“Who are the judges/”

“Gourmet’s Editor Winston! Some food association’s chairman David and a gourmet connoisseur Luke! ”

“Aiya! With these kind of judges, won’t only those top chefs be able to marginally satisfy their palate?”

“But this competition is only opened to amateur food enthusiast. Professional chef are not qualified!”

“So weird?”

Even though Lin Ke Song likes to eat, but she has absolutely no interest in cooking. She pulled on Song Yi Ran’s sleeve and said: “Hey, let’s go! There’s nothing fun here!”

But Song Yi Ran crossed his arms and slightly squinted his eye, obviously planning something bad.

“Ke Song, you say……these gourmet magazine editor, chairman of a food association and gourmet Connoisseur, the things they normally eat are master chef’s masterpieces right? Especially those dishes that have gotten Michelin stars.”

“Ah……ye ah.” Lin Ke Song thought those Michelin starred foods sounded like they were very high class, not at all belonging to her life.

She only needs to eat her uncle’s specially cooked food and she would feel pretty happy already.

“The scale of this audition is not small.”

“What has that got to do with us?”

“Don’t you think making these picky eaters show an ugly expression would be a very interesting thing ah! Go, Ke Song! Show them something!”

Song Yi Ran held onto Lin Ke Song’s shoulder and brought her into the crowds.

“I won’t do those kind of things ah! Don’t let me go! Hey! Hey! Song Yi Ran don’t be too much!”

But Song Yi Ran had already brought her to the registration area, and even fluently recited Lin Ke Song’s particulars, to the point of stuffing the pen in Lin Ke Song’s hand, wanting her to sign her name on the form.

When Song Yi Ran asked about the registering fees, they actually said that there was none. It’s only that the other participants had received news about the competition beforehand and had brought their prepared cooking utensils and ingredients, but they had nothing.

Lin Ke Song wanted to leave, but Song Yi Ran actually just directly bought all the things of one of the participants that was just leaving.

There was a frying pan and a ladle and there was also tomatoes and eggs and all sorts of bottles of things and trinkets.

“Wonderful! Ke Song, don’t you only know how to fry tomatoes and eggs? Just cook that for them to eat! Remember it has to be so yucky they want to die!”

Lin Ke Song has not seen that chap be this happy for a very long time.

A face of mischief, hooking on to other people’s hearts and making it ticklish.

Just like that, Lin Ke Song was swirled in. and Song Yi Ran explained that his friend had come from America so the English was not good, and he wanted to stay at the side to translate, the surrounding people in charge were actually compassionate enough to let the both of them enter, only repeatedly asking that Song Yi Ran not help Lin Ke Song at all while she was in the process of prepping and cooking, otherwise, Lin Ke Song will lose the right to participate in the competition.

Once Lin Ke Song entered the arena, she realised that there were actually uncountable numbers of people who were cooking their signature dish. Their expressions were one of deep concentration, it was obvious that they came prepared.

She took a glance at Song Yi Ran and said: “are you trying to make me a jumping clown?”

“The jumping clown is not you, but the three who are sitting over there.”

Song Yi Ran wriggled his eyebrows, Lin Ke Song looked over, and saw that on the judging platform were three men, they were all wearing formal western suits, their faces were stern. The judging table was covered with a clean white tablecloth, every participant who had cooked their dish had a very respectful look while presenting their dishes.

The three judges would share their opinions with each other, and tell the participants their comments. It’s just that there is not a single participant who left with a smile. Looks like their standards are really harsh.

The way they tasted the food reminded Lin Ke Song of that block of ice, Jiang Qian Fan, all the dishes that were served were only tasted a mouthful, and some that seemed really horrible were even spitted out. This made those who were cooking really worried.

“Hey, the others look like they are here to compete seriously, we are indeed here to play, isn’t it bad?”

“What’s bad about it?” Song Yi Ran had a face like he was not afraid if the whole world came into chaos, “Remember to add more salt!”

“Even if I fry it out, who knows, they may not even take a bite due to the look of it!”

“I’ll help you properly present it!”

Lin Ke Song glared at the other party, she is probably going to be so embarrassed!

As according to normal procedures, she made tomato scrambled eggs, it’s only that it does not look like the real thing. And Song Yi Ran at the side adhered to the competition rules, did not open his mouth to say anything or help Lin Ke Song.

The thing on the plate was a pile of rotten mess, she herself wouldn’t eat this thing, and she didn’t believe that the three judges will be so moronic as to put the thing into their mouths.

Wait, if it’s going to be like this, then there’s nothing to lose ah!

Anyway she wasn’t even here to really compete.

As she thought like that, Lin Ke Song started to relax. She opened the various spices she brought in, and haphazardly added things in, then after stirring added some water and continued simmering.

Simmered till they were sodden in the soup, Lin Ke Song then scooped them up and plated them.

She took a look at the other’s foods display. Even though they were not professional chefs, they were all very serious in displaying their foods on the plate.

Some were hilariously displayed, some were just a little off from the high classed western restaurants.

For the sake of not coming for naught, Lin Ke Song decided to properly display her “messy soup”.

She first used the bowl to scoop the soup up, cleaned the sides of the bowl, then flipped around her things, and found a few pieces of celery leaves, and gently put it on the red soup’s surface. Then took out a bottle of thick black liquid that she didn’t even know what it was, and gently dripped it on the celery leaves.

Lin Ke Song was very satisfied with her plating, and nodded mischievously at Song Yi Ran.

Lin Ke Song suppressed her nervousness, and sent the “soup” to the front of the judges. She wasn’t afraid of the judges throwing back to her the crappy tomato and smelly eggs, she’s only worried that they wouldn’t even bother tasting what she had just made, if it were like that, then she would have really busied for nothing.