Chapter 117: They Have Come, They Are Here

“Old Bai, you’re here?” Han Jiayi greeted Bai Renjun with a smile when he entered Yijiaxuan.

But the moment she saw Lu Yao behind him, her expression darkened. Folding her arms, she looked at Lu Yao as a principal wife might look at a concubine and demanded, “Who is this woman?”

“She’s Yang Hua’s fiancée…” Bai Renjun explained in a low voice. “She came to ask me how to win Yang Hua over.”

“Oh, is that all?” Han Jiayi’s expression instantly returned to the bright smile she had worn when Bai Renjun first entered, as though she had just performed a dramatic opera face change. “Please, come in. Would you like something to eat?”

“I wouldn’t eat food made by such a low-class restaurant,” Lu Yao sniffed, turning her face away.

“Both husband and wife are equally infuriating…” Han Jiayi muttered through clenched teeth.

“It’s all right. I like eating here,” Bai Renjun said with a smile.

Only then did Han Jiayi’s expression soften slightly. “Mm…”

“How did the Moroccan roasted vegetable set sell last night?” Bai Renjun asked quietly.

“Everyone loved it!” Han Jiayi replied with a brilliant smile. “I added a serving of garlic toast to make it a more complete set. After the first few orders went out, everyone became very interested. Just now, twelve more orders came in at once.”

“Wonderful.” Bai Renjun patted her on the head. “Keep it up. Do your best.”

“Mm! Hee hee…” Han Jiayi nodded happily.

Lu Yao suddenly interrupted. “Have you two already slept together?”

“W-Why would you ask that?!” Han Jiayi stared at Lu Yao in disbelief, her face flushing red.

“Because it feels like you’re closer than you were before.” Lu Yao looked at her as though the answer were obvious.

“N-No, that’s not it! It’s just…” Han Jiayi floundered, trying to explain, but Lu Yao had already lost interest. Turning to Bai Renjun, she said, “Oh, never mind. Just hurry up and teach me how to flatter Xiaohua so he’ll be happy.”

Before Han Jiayi could get angry, Bai Renjun cut in. “Bring me one braised beef set and one German sausage platter.”

“That’s a lot. Can you finish both by yourself?” Han Jiayi asked with some concern.

“Then eat with me,” Bai Renjun replied. “You can have your meal, and I’ll get to sample more dishes so I can help you improve the restaurant’s sets as quickly as possible.”

His real goal, naturally, was to earn the second star as soon as possible so that the two of them could start dating.

They both understood this without saying it, so Han Jiayi hurriedly lowered her head to hide her smile, nodded, and darted into the kitchen to get everything ready.

“Thank goodness this girl is so innocent…” Bai Renjun sighed and shook his head. This was what cuteness truly was—pure, unmanufactured cuteness.

He then turned to Lu Yao and asked calmly, “Have you ever praised his cooking by telling him it was delicious?”

“Of course I have! I’m not stupid. I say it every time! The first time I tasted his cooking, I was completely amazed. I called him over and praised him thoroughly.” Lu Yao frowned. “But do you know what he said? He said…”

At that point, Lu Yao imitated Yang Hua’s cold, disdainful expression and said, “It’s not as though you can say anything besides ‘delicious’ anyway.”

It was not an exact imitation, but it was remarkably lifelike, Bai Renjun thought.

“After that, I remembered him.” Lu Yao smiled blissfully. “I had my father open Lanwafang, then poached him from his former restaurant to be the head chef.”

“How did things take such a bizarre turn?!” Bai Renjun asked, baffled.

“Women naturally remember people who are different from everyone else.” Lu Yao looked at him, not understanding his confusion. “If everyone around you were sycophants and a real human being suddenly appeared, would you remember those sycophants? No. You’d only remember the human being.”

“Ah…” Bai Renjun came back to himself and covered his mouth, thinking, So that’s how it was with him and Han Jiayi too?!

“So why does he get so happy when you praise him?” Lu Yao pressed. “When you get right down to it, don’t we both just say that his food is delicious? Is it because you say it more artistically? Because your choice of words is more elaborate? Is he happy because of all those embellishments?”

“No. He’s happy because I understand his cooking,” Bai Renjun replied evenly. “If you want to make him happy, go learn some basic theory about French cuisine.”

“Oh, come on. Isn’t there some shortcut?” Lu Yao complained miserably. Then she raised both hands and held up her slender fingers. “Tell me the shortcut and I’ll give you ten free-meal coupons. You can hand them out to your fans as perks, or use them yourself.”

“A shortcut…” Bai Renjun frowned and thought for a moment before replying, “Well, French cuisine has two basic elements. First, unity. Second, layering. Unity means that an entire set of dishes must form a cohesive whole, while layering…”

“Shortcut!” Lu Yao covered her ears and shook her head, wearing an expression that clearly said, I’m not listening, I’m not listening.

“Taste his dishes, then describe the flavors and textures you detect. After that, tell him that the set has a strong sense of unity and distinct layers,” Bai Renjun said simply.

“Say it again!” Lu Yao excitedly pulled out her phone and began recording his words.

After writing everything down, Lu Yao happily patted Bai Renjun on the shoulder. “Thanks! I’ll have someone contact your assistant later to discuss a business partnership. If flattering him like this really makes him happy, I definitely won’t shortchange you, Little Bai!”

“You’re already this old, so stop calling me Little Bai…” Bai Renjun gave her a sidelong glance of displeasure. “How old are you?”

“Twenty-three.” Lu Yao grinned. “But my husband calls you Little Bai, so of course I have to call you Little Bai too. Besides, it sounds so affectionate!” With that, she stood up and waved at him. “See you for now. Once everything’s settled, I’ll give you a generous reward!”

Watching Lu Yao’s petite figure disappear, Bai Renjun rested his chin on his hand and sighed worriedly. “What am I supposed to make of that couple…? They’re impossible to describe. I can’t even tell whether they’re my lucky stars or my harbingers of disaster.”

Before long, Han Jiayi brought out all the prepared dishes.

“Where did that woman go?” Han Jiayi asked curiously.

“She left.” Bai Renjun answered lazily. “All right, let’s eat. Sit down and keep me company.”

“Mm…” Han Jiayi smiled, lips pressed together. If an ordinary person had ordered her around like that, she would have blown up long ago.

But when Bai Renjun said it, she not only felt no resentment—she even rather liked being ordered around by him.

After sitting down beside him, Han Jiayi said with a bright smile, “The German sausages are all handmade here in the restaurant. We use an authentic German method, and they’re delicious. Since they’re handmade, the meat inside may not be ground quite as finely.”

“That makes them feel meatier when you eat them.” Bai Renjun cut off some sausage and placed it on the plate in front of Han Jiayi.

“What are you planning to do this afternoon?” Han Jiayi asked while eating.

“I need to write my food review of Late Rice and send it to Purple Grape. They’ve been hounding me for it.” Bai Renjun sighed.

“You can write it here.” Han Jiayi smiled sweetly. “There’s a computer in my office. If you get hungry halfway through, I’ll make you another dessert.”

“That works.” Bai Renjun nodded. “Then I can accompany you home tonight.”

“Wonderful!” Han Jiayi smiled delightedly. “You haven’t seen Yijiaxuan at night yet, have you? It’s actually very lively. Lots of office workers and couples come here to eat and chat after work.”

To the two of them, it was merely an ordinary exchange. But in the eyes of everyone around them, hearts seemed to be constantly popping above their heads, making the onlookers unbearably envious.

After lunch, Bai Renjun went to Han Jiayi’s office. It was really only a small room of about ten square meters, containing nothing more than a desk and a sofa. Yet knowing that it was Han Jiayi’s office gave the place an inexplicable sense of warmth and comfort.

“You write. I’ll go back to the kitchen and get busy.” Han Jiayi pointed behind her. “If you get hungry later, come tell me.”

Bai Renjun nodded and sat down at Han Jiayi’s computer. Then he flexed his fingers.

“Let’s begin.”

He wrote for an hour, took a break to eat dessert, then continued, chatting with Wang Bei and He Guang along the way. Before long, night had fallen.

Bai Renjun went out to the dining area to take a look. Yijiaxuan at night was completely different from Yijiaxuan at noon.

Business at lunchtime was not particularly good. The restaurant was rarely full. Evenings, however, were another matter.

After work, many office workers and well-off young professionals wanted a quiet, refined dinner with which to reward themselves, and Yijiaxuan was the perfect choice: delicious, yet not prohibitively expensive.

It was only a little after five, but the restaurant was already nearly full.

“Everyone, keep your spirits up. More customers will be arriving soon!” Han Jiayi encouraged the staff from the dining area.

Just then, one of the servers from the front desk hurried through the door, looking flustered.

“Boss! They’re here, they’re here!”

Han Jiayi immediately frowned and scolded him. “Why are you panicking? How are you supposed to serve customers like this? Calm down and speak slowly. Who’s here?”

The server stammered, then pointed behind him, his face taut with nervousness.

“The M-Michelin people. They’re here!”

Han Jiayi’s heart gave a sudden lurch. She looked around in alarm.

“Where’s Old Bai? Old Bai!”

She hurriedly searched the back of the restaurant and happened to see Bai Renjun coming in from the dining area.

“Old Bai!” Han Jiayi rushed toward him and came to an abrupt stop, nearly crashing into his arms.

“What happened?” Bai Renjun placed his hands on her shoulders and helped her stop.

Han Jiayi looked up at him, excited and nervous in equal measure, her words tumbling over one another.

“They’re here! They’re here!”

“What are you panicking about? You’re the chef of a one-star Michelin restaurant now. Is this how you’re going to receive guests?” Bai Renjun frowned. “Who’s here? Calm down and tell me slowly.”

“Michelin!” Han Jiayi said excitedly. “The Michelin inspectors are here!”

“What?!” Bai Renjun was stunned for a moment, but excitement quickly surged through him.

Was the day he and Han Jiayi could finally begin dating finally approaching?!

“Are you certain they’re from Michelin?” Bai Renjun gripped her slender shoulders and pressed her for an answer.

“I-I don’t know! That’s what the people downstairs said!” Han Jiayi replied nervously. “Let’s go take a look!”

“Mm!” Bai Renjun nodded, then followed Han Jiayi toward the dining area.

(Thank you all for the monthly votes. The list of acknowledgments is too long, so it will appear in the author’s notes.)

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