"What? You want to apprentice under me?" Jake looked at Alan in surprise. Jake never expected Alan to stop him just to ask to become his apprentice.
"That's right," Alan said earnestly. "Your cooking skills are better than mine. I have to admit that I lost to you yesterday, and I want to become your apprentice to learn cooking." Alan seemed sincere, and it was clear he wasn't joking.
"Do you know what I do?" Jake pointed to himself and asked, to which Alan shook his head honestly.
"I'm a barbecue chef!" Jake said. "You're already the head chef at Kailomen, one of the best restaurants in J City. What would you learn from me? Barbecue? Even if you become skilled at it, it won't help much with your current job."
Jake was telling the truth. Alan was already the head chef at Kailomen, and Kailomen was one of the top restaurants in J City. Even if Alan's culinary skills improved, his position wouldn't change much.
"You're a barbecue chef?" Alan looked at Jake in astonishment. He clearly hadn't expected that Jake was in that profession.
"That's right."
"Well, then I want to become your apprentice too," Alan insisted. "I want to improve my cooking skills, but it doesn't have much to do with my job."
Alan had a strong pursuit of culinary skills. He wanted to improve himself in cooking simply because he loved it, not for career advancement. So, his desire to become Jake's apprentice remained firm.
"I don't take on apprentices, and I don't have the time," Jake said and then left.
It wasn't that Jake intentionally didn't want to teach Alan; he genuinely didn't have much time. His attention was focused on another dimension, as he was about to receive startup capital and prepare to start his own business. He simply didn't have the time to teach an apprentice.
"Where is your food stall? I want to go take a look!" the chef shouted to Jake.
"The street in front of Princeton University," Jake replied without looking back. Alan didn't stop Jake from leaving, but his determination was evident.
"Get in the car," Wendy, who happened to be outside the restaurant, called out. Seeing Jake coming out, she didn't ask what he and Alan had talked about and simply asked him to get in the car.
Inside the car, Jake wasn't surprised to see the driver sneakily glancing at Wendy through the rearview mirror. Although it wasn't the same driver as before, the behavior was the same.
"About what happened tonight, I'm sorry," Wendy's cold voice rang out while Jake marveled at her charm. However, there was a hint of apology in her voice.
"I brought you along as a shield," Wendy continued. "I wanted to make Carlton back off, but I didn't expect that kind of reaction from him."
"That just shows that you don't understand him, or men in general," Jake said.
Clearly, Carlton was interested in pursuing Wendy, and she had brought Jake along as a shield to make Carlton believe she had a boyfriend and would willingly give up. However, she hadn't anticipated the situation that had arisen before.
In Jake's eyes, the situation that just occurred seemed normal. If Wendy had used someone with a similar or even higher social status than Carlton as a shield, it might have had some effect. However, using Jake was different. With Carlton's status and arrogance, he would certainly look down on Jake and not take him seriously. When he saw Wendy using someone with such a different social standing as her shield, he would already doubt Jake's identity and might not believe that Jake was Wendy's boyfriend. That's why Jake said Wendy didn't understand Carlton or men in general.
"It's my oversight," Wendy didn't refute Jake's words, and the fact proved that Jake was right.
"It's okay, it doesn't really matter," Jake smiled and said, "This incident doesn't affect me much anyway. I haven't had much contact with Carlton, and whether we'll meet again in the future is uncertain. The only downside is that I didn't have a proper meal tonight, so I'll have to make something to eat when I get back."
Jake's words had a comforting tone for Wendy, but more importantly, he truly didn't believe he would have any further interaction with Carlton. Even if Carlton had status and power, it wouldn't concern Jake much.
If Jake knew that shortly after he and Wendy had just left the private room, Carlton made a phone call to investigate him, he wouldn't have thought that way.
"I'll treat you to a meal," Wendy said.
Although Jake didn't blame her, Wendy felt somewhat guilty, especially since they had planned to have a meal together, but it didn't happen.
"No need, I'll just make something when I get back, it'll be enough," Jake said. The car soon arrived at the entrance of Princeton University, and both of them got out.
"Alright, you go back to school, and I'll head home," Jake said to Wendy.
Wendy didn't go back to school; instead, she asked, "Where do you live?"
"Just nearby, a few minutes' walk from the school," Jake pointed to a residential area not far from the university.
"I want to see it," Wendy said.
"Huh?" Wendy's words caught Jake off guard. He didn't expect Wendy to make such a request. What did it mean for a beautiful woman to actively ask to go to a man's place, even if Jake and Wendy weren't that familiar? It made Jake's mind wander a bit.
"Is it inconvenient?" Wendy raised an eyebrow and asked.
"It's not inconvenient. It's just that it's late, and you going to my place..." Jake hesitated.
"Let's go," Wendy gestured for Jake to lead the way.
Wendy, who had impressive skills, wasn't afraid of any disadvantages she might face in front of Jake. So, the concerns in Jake's mind weren't shared by Wendy herself, and she didn't care how others perceived her.
Seeing Wendy insisting on going, Jake didn't say anything further. If the girl herself wasn't concerned, why should he be? The two walked side by side on the road, attracting the attention of many students. After all, it was the entrance of Princeton University, and Wendy, with her reputation there, naturally drew attention, which was normal.
Wendy didn't mind at all and remained composed, while Jake, apart from a slight initial awkwardness, behaved normally. He even felt a bit secretly delighted in his heart. Although he knew there was nothing between him and Wendy, it wasn't what the surrounding students thought.