Translator:- Max
Editor:- Dobhsh
Ji Qingzhou didn’t have a strong desire to win or lose. Compared with winning or losing, he wanted to take a good rest for a while instead. After all, he was a little tired after cooking eight dishes.
The host only reminded everyone that there was such a thing as voting after everyone had eaten. “Let’s start with Jingxing first.”
Lian Jingxing walked up behind him. The staff had already prepared pens and paper. Lian Jingxing wrote Liu Zixin’s name, folded it, and put it in the ballot box. With his demonstration, other people went over one by one and wrote the chef’s name and put it in the voting box.
The host was the last one to vote. After he finished writing and put it in the voting box, he shook it and began to count the votes.
Ji Qingzhou and Liu Zixin couldn’t help but be a little nervous at this time. They listened to the host open the note and read their names as their hearts were slowly pulled up.
“Liu Zixin, Ji Qingzhou.” The host finished reading the names on the last two notes.
The staff responsible for making records handed him the whiteboard. He looked at it, couldn’t help laughing, and turned the whiteboard to the camera. “Ji Qingzhou got 12 votes, and Liu Zixin got 11 votes. It seems that Ji Qingzhou is the one who won this time.”
Ji Qingzhou and Chu Cheng laughed instantly and looked at each other. Yu Anyi also shouted “Yeah”, and the rest of their team also felt relieved. But the people on Liu Zixin’s side were lost. Liu Zitong felt a little uncomfortable. She unconsciously looked at her brother. Liu Zixin comforted her. “Victory or defeat is a common matter in military affairs.”
“But,” The host suddenly said, “The extra vote for Qingzhou was cast by me. What does this mean? It means that the team members of both teams actually voted for their own chef. Because in this competition, the team members and chefs had already formed a unified team. You picked the vegetables for the dishes yourselves, and you helped the chefs cook. It’s not easy to prepare eight dishes, and you witnessed their hard work. You believe that your chef is the best, so you voted for him. For the chefs who have been busy since early morning, this is the best affirmation. This is the charm of teamwork.”
“Being here in this variety show, we are also a team. This variety show is like cooking. You are the best chefs. We are the ones who help you cook. I hope that in the end, we can cook dishes that please everyone together like today.”
The sudden sentimental moment from the host unexpectedly moved some of the guests present. Reflecting on their experiences from the recording until now, they couldn’t help but feel emotional and nostalgic about the past couple of days.
Liu Zitong was the fastest to withdraw from the sentimental atmosphere, asking him loudly, “Then why did you vote for Ji Qingzhou instead of my brother?”
“It’s very simple.” The host laughed, “Because I didn’t participate in any of your teamwork, I just ate based on my own feelings, and my taste leaned more towards him.”
Hearing this, Liu Zitong turned to comfort her brother and said, “It’s okay, brother. Maybe you can win if we change the host; anyway, it’s only one vote.”
The host feigned surprise. “What did you say?”
“I’m applying for a change of host. My brother is good at spicy food, so please find someone who can eat spicy food!” Liu Zitong raised her hand.
“Ji Qingzhou is also good at spicy dishes, so he might win again.” Yu Anyi said, not wanting to be outdone.
Everyone couldn’t help laughing when they heard those words, and the lively competition that had been going on all morning finally came to an end.
In the afternoon, everyone helped the villagers dry fruits, beat them into jam, and play a game. After that, the recording was over, and they all went to their homes to rest.
Chu Cheng thought that there would be a bonfire party or something else tonight, but after waiting for a long time, he didn’t get any notification. “So there won’t be a recording tonight?”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
“It looks like it.” Ji Qingzhou said, “It’s already late, and if they wanted to continue recording, they would have done it earlier. Besides, I don’t recall the host mentioning anything about meeting in the evening when we were told to go back home.”
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“No wonder you didn’t ask me to cook at night, saying that two packets of instant noodles would be enough for us.”
“I was worried for you.” Chu Cheng said, “You must be so tired. You cooked eight dishes this morning.”
Thinking of the scene in the morning, he felt exhausted. “I’m not even willing to let you cook eight dishes at home.”
At this point, they had already turned off the cameras and removed their microphones, and the camera crew had also left. So they could speak freely without any restraints.
Ji Qingzhou was surprised to learn that he had been keeping himself hungry because of this. Upon hearing this, he got up from the bed and prepared to cook for him. “Wait here. I’ll stir-fry the leftover rice from yesterday for you.”
“Don’t, don’t, don’t.” Chu Cheng hastily pulled him back. “Don’t worry, it’s already late, and I’m not very hungry.”
“It’s okay.”
“I really don’t want to eat.” Chu Cheng stopped him. “Go to sleep. I heard that once you fall asleep, you won’t feel hungry.”
“You really don’t want to eat?” Ji Qingzhou looked at him.
Chu Cheng nodded. “It’s too late. Don’t worry about it; go to sleep.”
Upon seeing his insistence, Ji Qingzhou could only accompany him to wash up and prepare for bed. However, just as they lay down, they heard a rumbling ‘gu——’ sound coming from Chu Cheng’s stomach.
Ji Qingzhou looked up at Chu Cheng.
Chu Cheng remained calm. “What do you see me doing?”
“Did you hear anything?”
“I didn’t. Was there any sound?” Chu Cheng refused to admit it.
“Okay.” Ji Qingzhou didn’t want to expose him.
But after a while, there was another “gu—.”
Ji Qingzhou: ……
Chu Cheng was a little embarrassed. He reached out and rubbed his belly silently. It’s a pity that it didn’t help. Soon, the hungry stomach let out a third whine, “Gu—.”
Ji Qingzhou: ……
Ji Qingzhou got up and prepared to cook.
“Baby, you listen to me…”
“I know,” Ji Qingzhou interrupted him, “I may be having auditory hallucinations, but I’m hungry and I want to eat something.”
Chu Cheng lifted the quilt and got out of bed when he heard him talking, so he gave up struggling and followed him.
Ji Qingzhou took out last night’s leftover fried rice and other side dishes from the refrigerator. Chu Cheng washed the dishes for him and watched him quickly cut the side dishes into cubes, put them in a bowl, and take them out. There was a light in the kitchen, which Ji Qingzhou turned on. It was again Chu Cheng who made the fire while Ji Qingzhou cooked. After a while, a pot of fragrant fried rice came out.
Ji Qingzhou scooped a bowl for Chu Cheng and symbolically scooped a bowl for himself as well. He carried them back to the room and started eating.
Chu Cheng was indeed very hungry, and he ate noticeably faster than Ji Qingzhou. Ji Qingzhou poured him a glass of water and, recalling the famous internet meme, asked him, “Is it delicious?”
“Delicious.” Chu Cheng replied without thinking.
Ji Qingzhou wanted to laugh but was afraid of being discovered, so he just laughed silently. “As long as you like it.”
He was actually not very hungry, so after a few mouthfuls, he didn’t want to eat anymore. Therefore, he pushed his rice bowl towards Chu Cheng. “Here, I’m full.”
“What kind of stomach is this, kitten’s stomach? You got full after just a little bit?”
Ji Qingzhou shrugged. “I don’t eat as much as you do.”
That’s true; he’s really easy to feed, thought Chu Cheng. He finished the remaining fried rice that belonged to Ji Qingzhou and finally felt satisfied.
Ji Qingzhou wanted to wash the dishes, but Chu Cheng held him down. “Sit down; I’ll do the washing.”
Chu Cheng scooped water from the water jar, went to the kitchen, and washed all the pots and bowls.
While Chu Cheng was washing the pots and bowls, Ji Qingzhou looked up at the night sky here and noticed that it had many more stars compared to the sky in their hometown, City X. It was a completely different sight.
“So many stars.” Ji Qingzhou sighed.
Chu Cheng looked up. “There are quite a lot.”
“Through delicate clouds, a celestial masterpiece is crafted, As shooting stars carry tales of longing and sorrow, The Milky Way stretches afar, quietly traversing. When the golden wind meets the jade dew, It surpasses countless encounters in the mortal realm.”
Chu Cheng heard the words and replied smoothly, “Tender feelings like water, a beautiful moment like a dream, reluctant to turn back on the magpie bridge. If love could last forever, how could we be apart day and night.”
Ji Qingzhou looked back at him and smiled silently.
Chu Cheng gazed at him tenderly and suddenly thought, “What time is it?”
“I’ll take a look.” He ran into the room to look at the small alarm clock that the program team had temporarily given to each group, then ran to Chu Cheng and told him, “It’s 11 o’clock.”
“Oh.” Chu Cheng nodded.
He quickly finished washing the pots and bowls and said to Ji Qingzhou, “Let’s play a game.”
“What game?
“Choose a specific topic, like stars, and take turns reciting related poetic verses. The one who fails to come up with a verse loses.”
“Okay, let’s start with the stars.”
Ji Qingzhou spoke and immediately recited an ancient poem, followed closely by Chu Cheng, who seamlessly added another line, discreetly stealing a glance at Ji Qingzhou at the same time.
As the time approached 10 minutes before 12, Chu Cheng and Ji Qingzhou started playing a game of Idiom Solitaire. Chu Cheng intentionally guided Ji Qingzhou, who sometimes followed his lead and other times unexpectedly came up with an idiom that Chu Cheng hadn’t anticipated.
Chu Cheng kept an eye on the time, feeling a mixture of anxiety and excitement, wondering if he could mention the specific character he had been guiding Ji Qingzhou towards at exactly midnight. Fortunately, in the final moments, heavens were on his side.
“It’s cliché,” Chu Cheng said.
“Full of wit and humour,” Ji Qingzhou blurted out.
Chu Cheng gazed at him tenderly and said gently, “Happy birthday.”
Ji Qingzhou laughed. “Happy birthday isn’t an idiom; you can change it.”
Chu Cheng realised that Ji Qingzhou was fully focused on the game of Idiom Solitaire. “I meant to say ‘happy birthday’ to you. It’s midnight; your birthday has arrived. Happy birthday!”
Ji Qingzhou was momentarily stunned, then he realised and felt a bit regretful. He lightly tapped his own head in frustration, saying, “I forgot.”
“Now you know.”
Ji Qingzhou smiled embarrassedly but was also very happy. Chu Cheng still remembered, and he even waited until midnight to say this to him, so he couldn’t help but laugh out loud.
Seeing him laugh, Chu Cheng felt that the night was worth it.
He walked to his suitcase, opened it, and took out an exquisite box. “Birthday present.”
“You bought me a birthday present?!” Ji Qingzhou was surprised.
“Open it and have a look.”
Ji Qingzhou took it, opened the box, and saw a bracelet inside. On the platinum chain, a star studded with diamonds fell, shining with tiny rays of light under the dim light. Chu Cheng helped him take out the bracelet and put it on his hand. Only then did Ji Qingzhou discover that the lock of this chain was a delicately carved rose with flower branches.
Chu Cheng helped him put it on, kissed the back of his hand, and said softly, “May you be covered with starlight, and may your stardom be magnanimous.”
Ji Qingzhou was always moved by these small gestures of affection. So as he watched Chu Cheng kiss the back of his hand, his eyes were filled with nothing but tenderness.
Thank you for the chapter! So sweet 🥰
They’re so sweet rn.
Aww~ 💘 how sweet
this dog is satisfied with the taste of this extremely sweet dog food! Woof!