The next day, Gu Xin Ye appeared at the noodle stall on time. When she approached the stall, the delicious smell of beef soup entered her nostrils. Gu Xin Ye walked over and was surprised to see that Qin Zhan had arrived.
The man lifted his head for a few seconds before he continued to work on the beef broth in the big stockpot. It was weekdays and they were not expecting too many visitors. As such, the broth that Qin Zhan was preparing was not as much as he had prepared on the weekend.
Without saying anything, Gu Xin Ye put her small bag behind the counter. Then, she peeked at Qin Zhan and noticed his dark expression.
One glance at him told her that Qin Zhan was in a bad mood. At the thought that he might be having a headache because of drinking too much last night. Her lips curled into a sneer.
Qin Zhan definitely deserved it. Who told him to drink too much? In the end, he even let her support his heavy body to the car park before she had to drive him back.
Bam!
Gu Xin Ye looked up immediately and snapped out of her thought.
At this time, Qin Zhan was cutting some meat off the bones to be used in the noodle soup.
Seeing that Qin Zhan was holding the cleaver in his hand, Gu Xin Ye started to flinch and worried that the man might go around and swing that blade to chase her away.
She grabbed a cloth and started to arrange the table and chairs just like how Lu Qi had taught her a few days ago.
A long sigh escaped her. Gu Xin Ye wondered if it would be worth it for her to stay in this small town, working in the small noodle stall and receiving small wages just to get a chance to get close with this man. Moreover, this man can be a difficult person to work with.
However, when she thought about what Shen Yi Nian had told her last night, Gu Xin Ye began to strengthen her resolve.
At least, after staying for a few days in this town, Gu Xin Ye was able to learn a little something about Qin Zhan. And that is… he was related to the Zhou Family.
Initially, Gu Xin Ye did not care much about the Zhou family. After all, the Gu's business and the Zhou's had never intersected. However, the Zhou were pretty famous in Capital City and Gu Xin Ye could not help but heard a little thing about them.
The Zhou family had a long history in Capital City. Some of them were in politics, and some in business. However, they were most famous for their department store called Etoile. It was said that Young Master Zhou Yun Feng was the most capable in his generation and he would soon inherit the family business.
It was indeed very strange for Qin Zhan to be related to someone like Zhou Yun Feng.
Perhaps there was a secret between Qin Zhan and Zhou Yun Feng. If she continued to stay by Qin Zhan's side and learn about his secret then perhaps, she can use this secret to make Qin Zhan work for him.
"Miss Gu."
Gu Xin Ye put down the plastic chair in her hand and turned around. "Yes." She eyed the cleaver in Qin Zhan's hand and decided not to stand too close.
"Do you know how to cook?"
She pursed her lips into a thin line, wondering why was Qin Zhan asking her such a question. "A little bit," Gu Xin Ye admitted.
As the person who was in charge of GDB's restaurants and cafes, it was impossible for her not to know a little bit about cooking.
"Come over." Qin Zhan waved his hand at her. The corner of his lips tilted up as he sensed that Gu Xin Ye was looking at the cleaver in his hand. "Don't worry. I won't do anything to harm you."
Her expression stiffened.
Boss Qin! That was not something you should say when you were holding a cleaver in your hand!
Though she had a lot to say, Gu Xin Ye chose to keep quiet and walked closer.
Qin Zhan moved behind the counter and started to show her the condiments they used in the noodles. Then, he showed her how to boil the noodles and sliced the beef. Once everything was done, Qin Zhan slid a bowl of beef noodles in front of her and raised a brow.
"Did you see everything clearly?" Qin Zhan asked.
Gu Xin Ye nodded.
"Then, if I asked you to prepare a bowl of noodles, will you be able to do it?"
"Ah?" Gu Xin Ye stared at him with a dazed expression. Before she could say anything, the man had pulled her over to stand behind the counter.
"There's no one else at this time. It will be a while before the others were going to show up," Qin Zhan said. He pointed at the empty bowl and said, "Go on. I'm watching."
Gu Xin Ye hesitated. She picked up an empty bowl and turned to Qin Zhan again. "Boss Qin, are you still drunk?"
The corner of his lips twitched upon hearing her question.
"If not, then why would you ask me to prepare a bowl of noodles?"
"That's right. I'm still a little unwell," Qin Zhan said. He crossed his arms on his chest and leaned on the wall behind him. "My head is still a little painful. Therefore, I might need your help to prepare the noodles when the customers came."
Her expression changed. It turned out that Qin Zhan had an ulterior motive when he asked her to watch him prepare a bowl.
Seeing his pitiful appearance, Gu Xin Ye decided not to argue with him and started to do just as he had shown her earlier. First, blanch the noodles.
"You took too long. Look. The noodles are soggy."
Gu Xin Ye turned to the man with an unhappy expression.
Qin Zhan took a deep breath. He tossed the noodles into the bin and placed the empty bowl back on the counter. "Do it again."
Gu Xin Ye clenched her teeth. "How long should I blanch the noodles?"
"Less than one minute. You have to pay attention to the noodles. If it was too soggy, then, it would not taste good."
Gu Xin Ye took another serving of noodles. She started to blanch the noodle and watched them intently. Sensing that Qin Zhan was a little agitated, she pulled out the noodle strainer from the hot water and tossed the water.
Seeing that Qin Zhan did not say anything, Gu Xin Ye started to work on the other things. Slicing some meat, pouring the soup, and sprinkling some garnishes. Once she was done, Gu Xin Ye placed the bowl of noodles in front of Qin Zhan.
"How was it?"
Qin Zhan looked into the bowl and nodded. "Your knife skills aren't that bad."
The corner of her lips tilted up into a smile. Of course, she would not be able to tell him that she was imagining that it was him who was on top of the chopping board earlier.
Qin Zhan picked up a pair of chopsticks and sampled the noodles.
Looking at his expression, Gu Xin Ye could guess that she had barely passed with the noodles.
The man put the chopstick back on the side and stared at Gu Xin Ye for a few seconds longer. After a brief hesitation, Qin Zhan spoke again. "I heard from Jun Xuan that you drive me over to the B&B."
"Hmm..." Gu Xin Ye thought about last night and was a little upset.
"Thank you."
Her gaze flickered as Gu Xin Ye was not expecting Qin Zhan to thank her.