"Ji Yun, let's go, let's go, come to my house to eat stinky tofu."
"..."
"Class Monitor Ji~"
Xu Lin went up to try and hold Ji Yun's hand, but she immediately shook him off.
"Class Monitor Ji, I didn't provoke you."
"Why didn't you sit with me in the first place?" Ji Yun asked, not looking at him and speaking over her shoulder.
"I just didn't want to sit in the front."
"Really?"
"Really. Even if I sat with you, I wouldn't be able to do anything. Instead, I'd have to constantly suppress my feelings. You don't know how beautiful you are."
"Ugh~ Who needs your compliments."
"Hehe, doesn't the class monitor think she's beautiful?"
"Not beautiful, very ugly. I can't compare to Su Laoshi in grace, not as sharp and cool as Qin Jie, not as fair as Bai Xuejie, not as pretty as Chu Jie, and not as cute as Fengyi Jie."
[T/N: Laoshi= Teacher. Jie= Sister.]
"Stop, stop. By comparing only others' strengths, no one can possess all these beautiful qualities at once."
"There is." Ji Yun suddenly raised a finger.
Xu Lin was a bit confused. Even a fairy couldn't be this perfect, could she?
"That's the white-clothed girl I saw in my past life."
"Who is she? Oh right, I dreamed again last night and saw some things. I had returned home after many battles, but the village was deserted."
"To this place?"
"Yes, and then?"
"I won't tell you. It's better if you see for yourself."
"Hey, Ji Yun, don't you think this past life stuff is a bit mystical?"
"It's definitely quite fantastical, but if it happened, I just accept it."
"But..."
Xu Lin thought about Chu Fengyi and considered whether to tell Ji Yun about his past life with Chu Fengyi. But in the end, he decided to keep it to himself. Even if he were to tell her, he would need to consider Shifu's opinion. It wouldn't be right to disclose it on his own.
"By the way, weren't you thinking about making snow princess cakes recently?"
"Isn't it because Liu Qinnuan who wants to eat them?"
"You're really pampering her."
"She's a guest after all."
"I don't believe you."
"Hey, even if I bring all these girls home and they don't make a fuss, I still can't take care of them all by myself."
"That's how it was in ancient times too. You wouldn't need to take care of them, but you can't marry that many wives anyway. Marry two, and you'd be in jail."
"Yeah."
"By the way, Xu Lin, you're not thinking of not marrying anyone, are you?"
"Class Monitor Ji, what are you saying? Even if I married everyone and got caught, I still couldn't not marry."
"Flirtatious guy, even if you marry, you'd still be a troublemaker."
"But don't you like me this way, Ji Yun?"
"Who said I like you… You weren't this flirtatious in your past life."
"Oh, learning from the past life. If you don't tell me, I'll just keep dreaming. But judging by your look, did I end up finding you guys in the end?"
"I'm not sure either."
Ji Yun gave a cryptic response and continued walking forward. Xu Lin followed, holding her hand. This time, she didn't shake him off.
When they got home, Xu Lin smelled a strong odor and frowned.
What was going on?
"What are you all up to?"
"We just bought stinky tofu."
Chu Qingchan came out holding a plate, while Liu Qinnuan and Chu Fengyi were eating pieces with toothpicks.
"..." Since you have bought it, why should I take pictures... Forget it, I'll just eat it and that's it.
"But we bought other ingredients, so you need to make something delicious for us."
"What do you want to eat?"
"Fried sauce noodles."
"Fried sauce noodles are fine."
"We also bought the ingredients for snow princess cakes. I checked online, and here they are."
Liu Qinnuan handed over a bag, and Xu Lin glanced inside, confirming that the ingredients were correct.
"Alright, I'll make them for you. There are snacks in the fridge; help yourselves if you get hungry."
"Okay."
Xu Lin watched as the girls settled down together and thought that with more people in the future, meals would become a bit of a hassle.
He decided to make plenty of snow princess cakes this time, at least two per person. With four of them and himself, that's ten. He promised Qin Yunhe some as well, so he needed to reserve a few for her. Then there's Bai Xiaoxiao, Su Laoshi, Dr. Zhu, and Jiang Meizi—each one should get at least two.
[T/N: Mei= Sister. Zi is for endearment.]
That means a minimum of 21 cakes.
The ingredient... should be enough; if necessary, he could slightly reduce the size of each cake.
"Dear ladies, can someone help me get the camera and tripod?"
"I'll go," Ji Yun quickly put down her toothpick and headed to his bedroom.
"By the way, aren't you making some to give to Sister Bai Xiaoxiao and the others?"
"It depends on whether there's enough material and how many you can eat."
"I can eat a maximum of two."
Chu Qingchan said, two at most. Any more would feel a bit too rich.
"Same for me."
"Alright." It matched his estimate, so he would proceed with making two per person.
"But you don't have any packaging boxes. How will you take them to her?"
"The little supermarket in the neighborhood has packaging boxes. I bought gift-wrapped strawberries and apples from there before, so they should have some."
"Then let's go buy some." Chu Qingchan glanced at her sister and Liu Qinnuan.
...
"Thanks for your help."
Ji Yun came out with the camera, and the three of them had already left.
"What are they up to?"
"They went to buy packaging boxes. Could you help me set this up over here while I adjust things?"
"Sure."
Xu Lin set up the camera, and Ji Yun put on an apron, looking like a charming chef.
"Can I talk?"
"Of course."
"You can edit it, so you can talk about anything that doesn't involve personal information."
"Got it."
Xu Lin began filming. He first placed all the ingredients on the table and would later label them in post-production.
"They didn't buy Oreos?"
"Maybe they don't like Oreos. They bought strawberries and mangoes instead."
"Yeah, fruits can cut down on the sweetness of the cream. It's more pleasant compared to the direct sweetness of Oreos."
As Xu Lin spoke, he measured and poured glutinous rice flour, cornstarch, and sugar into a small bowl, then added milk and began to stir. After mixing evenly, he strained the mixture through a sieve, covered it with plastic wrap, and placed it in the steamer next to him.
"How long do we need to steam it?" Ji Yun asked. Xu Lin glanced to the side and noticed Ji Yun had started a fire.
"What are you doing?"
"Making fried sauce noodles."
"I was planning to film a video."
"Sorry… you can go ahead and do it later." Ji Yun withdrew her hand apologetically.
"I'm not blaming you. By the way! I can film you making it instead."
"No, no, my skills are nowhere near yours."
Ji Yun's face turned red. Although she could cook and was more skilled than most girls, she felt far inferior to Xu Lin. She worried that she'd be mocked in the end and wondered if it might affect his follower count.
"Don't worry. Let me tell you something: videos of beautiful girls always go viral!"
"How is that possible…"
"Really, trust me." Xu Lin looked at her confidently, making Ji Yun feel a bit shy.
"Give it a try. If it doesn't get at least 10,000 new followers, I'll admit defeat!"