Chapter 106: Old Bai, the God of Song, and the Keeper

To save time, Han Jiayi decided to make some pasta.

"This stuff sounds fancy, but isn't it just foreign instant noodles?" Bai Renzong thought to himself, watching Han Jiayi busy in the kitchen.

What captivated him wasn't the pasta, but the graceful way Han Jiayi moved as she danced about the kitchen.

"This silly girl, she’s usually so wooden, so why is she so nimble when she’s cooking..." Bai Renzong couldn't help but wonder.

Han Jiayi was efficient; she started the sauce while the water was boiling, and by the time the pasta hit the pot, the sauce was ready to go. When the sauce was finished, the pasta was cooked to perfection. Not a single second was wasted; in fifteen minutes, a plate of pasta was ready.

"Hmph." Han Jiayi rested her chin on her hands, watching Bai Renzong eat with relish. As a chef, seeing someone truly enjoy the food you’ve prepared always brings a deep sense of accomplishment.

Recalling how Bai Renzong had told her he wasn't full earlier, a strange flutter stirred in Han Jiayi's heart: he looked like a child telling his mother he was hungry—it was so cute.

"Want to play some games after you're done?" Han Jiayi asked with a smile. "It’s not even ten yet; there’s still time."

"Mm," Bai Renzong nodded. Everything tastes good when you're hungry, and besides, Han Jiayi’s cooking was actually quite good.

That was the awkward thing about Lanwafang—Yang Hua’s skills were impeccable, and the food tasted great, but the portions were just too small.

Of course, Bai Renzong knew that the highest realm of French cuisine was "leaving one wanting more."

But he didn't like that realm; he believed that eating should bring a sense of satisfaction and happiness.

"I’m going to take a shower then, okay?" Han Jiayi replied. "To save time so we can play more games later."

Once she sat in the bathtub and propped her slender legs on the edge, she let out a satisfied sigh, feeling the fatigue of the day melt away.

Recalling her "victory" at Lanwafang today, Han Jiayi couldn't help but feel a bit smug. "Heh, that effeminate man was so arrogant before... and he lost to me this time, didn't he?"

Thinking of this, Han Jiayi submerged her mouth in the water to suppress her triumphant laughter, resulting in a series of "gurgling" sounds.

However, she suddenly wondered: Could it be that Critic Bai let me win on purpose because he likes me?

But this thought lasted only a second. Han Jiayi shook her head. "Even if that critic likes me, he wouldn't do something like that!"

After Bai Renzong finished the pasta, cleaned up the kitchen, and showered, the two began to play games.

While they played, Han Jiayi pondered to herself: his eating habits are too irregular; I have to help him fix them. But how? I want to have dinner with him every night too...

"What are you thinking about? Get in the car," Bai Renzong said, staring at Han Jiayi. "We need to go get some ammunition today."

"Oh, right." Han Jiayi snapped back to reality, checked her phone, and then beamed with delight. "Hey! Our pet mod is finished! Do you want to try it out right now?"

"It's done? That fast?" Bai Renzong asked in surprise, then laughed happily. "Come on, let's try it!"

The two immediately downloaded the mod, added it to the game, and began their experience.

As they played, Bai Renzong started recording a video.

"What are you doing?" Han Jiayi asked curiously.

"I’m making a showcase video for this mod tomorrow to promote it to the fans," Bai Renzong explained. "Some game bugs can't be detected with just our data, so they can't be fixed."

As it happened, he had recommended this game to quite a few fans recently. If he promoted it now, everyone would download and play it, providing enough data to fix the bugs, while also demonstrating his promotional influence.

This way, he had enough material for the next half month.

The video from last night at Lanwafang was a restaurant review, not a business collaboration, so it could be released as regular content. Combined with the previous business collaboration at "Licorne" and a few more local restaurant reviews, he had enough food-related content for the month.

In the blink of an eye, it was 11:30 PM.

Bai Renzong yawned and said, "Alright, let's stop playing for tonight. I still need to process the videos from the past few days. I’m aiming to finish all the videos for the first two weeks of the month so I can just set them to release automatically."

"Mm!" Han Jiayi nodded with a smile. "Goodnight."

The next morning, at eight o'clock.

"Old Bai!" Han Jiayi shouted suddenly, startling Bai Renzong out of his sleep.

"What?!" Bai Renzong looked at Han Jiayi in astonishment. "Isn't grocery shopping tomorrow morning? Isn't it every three days?"

"I made breakfast," Han Jiayi said with a beaming smile. "Get up and let's eat together."

"Let me sleep a bit more, just leave it there and I'll eat it later..." Bai Renzong frowned, preparing to go back to sleep.

"Oh, come on, let's eat together! I’ve already made it!" Han Jiayi whined, tugging at his arm to keep him from lying down. "It’s Zha Jiang Mian (noodles with soybean paste)! It’s best when it’s fresh! If we don't eat the sauce I made, it won't be fresh anymore!"

Hearing this, Bai Renzong could only sigh helplessly and climb out of bed. If there was one thing he hated in this world, it was wasting food.

Seeing this, Han Jiayi smiled with satisfaction and pulled him to a sitting position. "You can go back to sleep after you eat, it’s the same thing."

"What is this girl plotting?" Bai Renzong glanced at Han Jiayi suspiciously, feeling that she had some ulterior motive.

But afterward, Han Jiayi acted just as usual; she finished breakfast and left for the restaurant. Nothing seemed different.

Bai Renzong went back to sleep after eating and cleaned the kitchen after he woke up.

This was an unspoken agreement they had: since mornings were rushed, Han Jiayi would leave the kitchen for him to clean after making breakfast. Bai Renzong felt this was fair—everyone did their part.

They did the same with general house cleaning, taking turns and sharing the chores.

It was now a quarter to one in the afternoon when the door clicked open.

"Critic Bai?" Han Jiayi pushed the door open and peeked inside. "I forgot my phone at home, so I came back to get it. I might as well make you some lunch, so you don't have to go out to eat every day."

Of course, she had "forgotten" her phone on purpose, aiming to come home early to get Bai Renzong to eat early and reset his biological clock.

But after changing her shoes and entering, Han Jiayi didn't see Bai Renzong come out to greet her, and she began to mutter to herself.

"Where did this critic go..." Han Jiayi frowned. Just then, she heard the sound of water in the kitchen and curiously poked her head in. "Old Bai, what are you doing?"

As she approached the kitchen doorway, she heard him singing: "Time is something that catches you off guard; sometimes it's sunny with a breeze, sometimes it rains. You can't win against the passing of time, yet you reminisce about the past. It steals away your youth but leaves behind a you..."

"My goodness!" Han Jiayi covered her mouth immediately. "Is that Critic Bai singing!? This is..."

This was too good!

Although the key was a bit lower than the original, he was singing perfectly on pitch. Plus, his voice was soft and magnetic—a bit like Wu Qingfeng’s, but more masculine—perfect for this slow-tempo love song!

"Why doesn't he sing usually? He’s clearly so good at it..." Han Jiayi muttered, but then her beautiful eyes rolled, and she started digging for her phone: I have to record this!

After fumbling for a moment, Han Jiayi suddenly realized: "Oh no, I came back to get my phone!"

She quickly turned around to look for her phone in the room, but as she turned, she bumped into the corner of the TV stand. "Crash!"

"Who's there?!" Bai Renzong immediately became alert and came out of the kitchen to check. He looked up and saw Han Jiayi changing her shoes at the entrance, as if she had just returned from outside.

"Jiayi? Why are you back at this hour?" Bai Renzong asked, surprised.

"Oh, I forgot my phone today. After the busy lunch rush, I just came back to grab it," Han Jiayi said with a slight smile, looking as if nothing had happened. "What are you doing? I called you just now and you didn't answer."

"Cleaning the kitchen, I just woke up," Bai Renzong said, pointing behind him.

"How about I make you lunch at home today? Let's not go to Yijiaxuan," Han Jiayi said, blinking her beautiful eyes.

"If you can make a restaurant-style set meal with what we have at home, that's fine," Bai Renzong nodded.

"No problem!" Han Jiayi rolled up her sleeves and smiled, though she was thinking to herself: This critic, he usually keeps such a low profile, but he sings so well! He’s much better than those idol singers! He’s practically a god of song!

Han Jiayi made up her mind right then: No, I have to find a way to trick him into singing.

Soon, Han Jiayi prepared a Japanese-style hamburger steak set and placed it in front of Bai Renzong.

"Old Bai, let's go to a KTV when we go on our blind date this week?" Han Jiayi asked, resting her chin on her hands.

"No, I can't sing," Bai Renzong replied coldly.

"Bullshit!" Han Jiayi snapped, so annoyed that she couldn't help but curse. He sings so well and says he can't!? Did he not care about anyone else's feelings!?

Bai Renzong stared at her in astonishment: This girl actually used a swear word?

Han Jiayi realized her slip-up and stammered, "Oh, I mean, are you making excuses because you don't want to go out with me? We're so close now, there's no need to be shy."

"I'm not shy, it's the truth," Bai Renzong frowned. "I can't keep the beat. When I went to KTV with high school classmates, I couldn't get a single line out, and it made everyone very awkward."

No, this won't work... Han Jiayi bit her thumb. Relying on myself is too weak; I need to get Xiaobei to help me come up with a good plan.

Thinking of this, Han Jiayi patted her own head. What am I doing! I have a real mission today!

Then, Han Jiayi cleared her throat and said, "Um... Old Bai, I want to discuss something with you."

"Hm?" Bai Renzong nodded.

"It's just that... you've basically finished all the set meals at my restaurant, but you haven't really tried the desserts." Han Jiayi explained solemnly. "So, why don't you come a bit earlier for lunch from now on? Come around twelve, and then have a dessert around two or three in the afternoon."

"Hm... that makes sense," Bai Renzong mused, rubbing his chin. "Let's settle on that then."

"Mm!" Han Jiayi nodded happily. "Then I'll make you a dessert before I head to the restaurant!"

After Bai Renzong agreed, Han Jiayi clenched her little fist in excitement: Success!

She believed that if she kept this up, she would definitely be able to fix Bai Renzong’s biological clock by September.

Bai Renzong seemed to sense that something was wrong, as if his biological clock was being secretly manipulated, so he frowned and muttered, "How... did it end up like I'm being kept like a pet?"

But Han Jiayi seemed to like the description and laughed happily. "That's a great name! Hear ye, hear ye, from today on, Jiayi shall be known as 'Old Bai's Keeper'!"