Huayu 2021: Isn’t he in the technology field?

Chapter 218 Open Favoritism, Romantic Allergy

At 8:13 PM, the night was as dark as silk.

The glass turntable, carrying eight dishes, rotated slowly, and the sauce of the sweet and sour pork ribs glistened enticingly under the warm light.

When Ma Ke picked up the third piece of pork rib, the tip of his chopsticks suddenly stopped in mid-air.

"Teacher Jiang, are you really not considering opening a private restaurant? This level of skill is absolutely on par with Michelin three-star restaurants!"

"Who was this person who said they wanted to lose weight the day before yesterday?"

Zeng Keni waved a behind-the-scenes video from the film crew on her phone, in which Ma Ke was looking at his boxed lunch with a worried expression.

"Well, you need to eat well to have the energy to lose weight."

Ma Ke coughed lightly and offered a classic excuse.

A burst of laughter erupted from the table.

"These ribs are even more flavorful than my mom's!"

Zhao Zhiwei picked up the second piece of sweet and sour pork rib with his chopsticks, and the sauce dripped from the tips of his chopsticks onto the tablecloth.

"Teacher Jiang, why don't you open a restaurant? I'll bring the whole group here every day and book the whole place!"

Zeng Keni scooped up some tomato and beef brisket and poured the sauce over the rice.

"If the crew's boxed lunches were this good, I'd be happy to stay up all night filming every day. It's a pity Mr. Jiang is in the tech field, sigh~"

Qian Didi's cheeks were bulging as she held up her phone to take pictures of the steamed yellow croaker.

"Wait, don't move! Let me post this on my WeChat Moments—my daily life eating at President Jiang's house!"

"Wait, I want to take a picture too!"

Zeng Keni grabbed his phone and pointed it at the yellow croaker, while Cui Yuxin and the others cooperated by avoiding the camera.

Upon seeing this, Jiang Qing couldn't help but shake her head and chuckle.

These people were clearly exaggerating, but they certainly seemed to have the awareness to freeload a meal.

When his gaze fell on Zhang Jingyi beside him, he saw her engrossed in eating sweet and sour pork ribs, and the downward curve of the corners of his eyes deepened even more.

The steaming heat from the dining table mingled with laughter and cheerful conversation, creating a wonderful atmosphere.

Zeng Keni's gaze swept between Jiang Qing and Zhang Jingyi before she picked up a slice of sweet and sour lotus root and placed it in Zhang Jingyi's bowl.

"Jingyi, eat more. Teacher Jiang specially arranged your food into a heart shape."

"Where's the heart shape?!"

Zhang Jingyi immediately straightened her back and retorted, poking the golden lotus root box with the tip of her chopsticks.

The sauce at the bottom of the plate did indeed seep into a blurry heart shape, which Zeng Keni probably deliberately arranged with lotus root slices.

Jiang Qing was adding food to the turntable when she noticed the girl's reddened earlobes and smiled to defuse the situation.

"Teacher Zeng's plating skills are so good, he could work part-time in our company cafeteria sometime."

"Then forget it, the image of a beautiful chef doesn't suit me."

Zeng Keni clasped his hands in a fist salute and politely declined with a smile.

"Hey, hey, hey! Look!"

Ma Ke suddenly held up his phone above the plate of food.

"I just posted on Weibo that President Jiang cooked himself, and netizens are all asking if Jingyi is sitting in the head seat."

Qian Didi was biting her chopsticks while scrolling through her phone.

"Really? Then reply quickly, the two of you are sitting together."

"Let me see, let me see!"

Zhao Zhiwei stretched his neck to grab the phone, and his elbow knocked over the osmanthus wine.

Just as the amber liquid was about to spill onto Zhang Jingyi's skirt, Jiang Qing quickly grabbed two tissues and placed them under her knees.

"Thanks……"

Zhang Jingyi looked down and saw his palm brush against her knee, and her breathing became cautious.

"fine."

Jiang Qing had already turned around to pick up some food, as if she had just done it casually.

Seeing this, the girl pursed her lips and buried her head, poking at the rice in her bowl with the tip of her chopsticks.

fool!

After a hearty meal, Zhao Zhiwei pulled out a deck of cards from under the coffee table.

"Let's play cards to kill some time."

He shuffled the playing cards with a flourish, displaying the demeanor of a seasoned pro.

"Truth or Dare, or the regular version?"

Zeng Keni leaned over the dining table, poking at the last piece of candied lotus root.

"The person who loses the most will be contracted to do the dishwashing job."

Ma Ke stacked the empty bowls very high.

Seven pairs of eyes turned to Jiang Qing, who was tidying up the bone plates.

"The dishwasher is over there."

He smiled and pointed towards the kitchen, whereupon the silver-gray machine turned on its work light.

"That would be so boring!"

Zhao Zhiwei slammed the cards on the table.

"It would be better if the loser had to wash it by hand and do it live!"

Qian Didi grabbed her phone and opened Douyin (TikTok).

"That's great! If everyone could see Teacher Jiang washing dishes on live stream, my Douyin followers would definitely increase incredibly fast!"

"playing what?"

Zhang Jingyi rested her chin on her hand as she watched Jiang Qing wipe the glass turntable. The way he rolled up his sleeves to his elbows inexplicably reminded her of how he tied his apron in the kitchen earlier.

"Let's draw the turtle one, I just saw someone else play it."

Jiang Qing placed the last bone plate on the central island counter.

"A seven-player game is perfect without the King and Queen."

"no problem!"

Everyone raised their hands in agreement.

Everyone sat down around the coffee table, and Jiang Qing was in charge of dealing the cards for the first round.

Cui Yuxin was counting the cards dealt to her when she suddenly let out a strange cry.

"Wait a minute! Even the playing cards at President Jiang's house are custom-made?"

The back of the card is printed with the logo of Wuwen Technology, and the numbers on the front gleam with a metallic sheen under the light.

"Souvenirs left over from last year's annual meeting."

Jiang Qing casually explained, and then slid the last three cards in front of Zhang Jingyi.

"Do you need to check the license plate, Teacher Zhang?"

The girl pinched the Queen of Hearts and shook it.

"Would President Jiang have made any marks on the sign?"

"Making marks requires little skill."

He smiled as he inserted the Joker into the deck.

"How about we gamble on memory?"

Everyone suddenly realized that something was wrong.

The first round of the game began amidst Zhao Zhiwei's wailing.

Jiang Qing rested her fingers on the edge of the deck, her eyes narrowing slightly as she watched Zhang Jingyi throw the pair into the sink.

When Zeng Connie took the Jack of Spades from her hand, he subtly pushed the 3 of Diamonds to the right side of the deck.

"Jiang Qing, this is outrageous!"

Ma Ke watched as his opponent threw out straights one after another.

"How can you memorize cards faster than a computer?"

"Actually, I'm just better at..."

Jiang Qing took the last single card from Zhao Zhiwei's hand.

"Observe micro-expressions."

Zhang Jingyi suddenly felt her knee being lightly touched.

When she looked up, she saw Jiang Qing tapping the 8 of clubs in her left hand with her index finger. She quickly hid the 8 of hearts she had just touched into her sleeve.

"Jingyi's lucky today!"

Qian Didi watched as Zhang Jingyi threw out the third pair.

"You were just saying you didn't know how to play."

"It's the newbie protection period."

When Jiang Qing passed the Joker to the next player, his fingertip lingered on the card for half a second.

When Zhang Jingyi touched the card with the special mark, she noticed a barely noticeable fold on the edge.

As the last two cards were passed between Jiang Qing and Zhang Jingyi, Ma Ke glanced suspiciously between the two and then reached out to press down on the deck.

"You two are exchanging glances, something's up!"

"Is Teacher Ma getting desperate after losing?"

Jiang Qing gently placed the Joker card in the center of the coffee table.

"How about we bet on who will get this card in the next round?"

Zhang Jingyi suddenly slammed the last two cards on the table.

"Sorry, it's a straight flush."

"Isn't it supposed to be a turtle smoke?"

Zeng Keni stared wide-eyed at the 10 hearts in the girl's hand.

"The rules have been changed at the last minute."

Jiang Qing smiled and revealed the 10 of diamonds.

"The bookmaker has special privileges."

"Oh no! How are we supposed to fight like this!"

Zhao Zhiwei and the others wailed in pain.

At 9:16, the sixth round of the game was halfway through.

When Zhang Jingyi drew a card of the same suit for the third time, she finally touched Jiang Qing's calf with the tip of her shoe.

"Teacher Jiang."

She lowered her voice as she arranged the cards.

"If we add more water, it will be too obvious."

"Have it?"

Jiang Qing slid the Joker card to the bottom of the deck.

"Perhaps Teacher Zhang is just exceptionally lucky today."

Suddenly, Ma Ke slammed down his cards, looking utterly defeated.

"I'm not playing anymore! Jiang Qing, can you remember the order of all the cards? You've won five rounds in a row!"

"Teacher Ma, would you like to check the cards?"

Jiang Qing pushed the card in front of him.

"Or should we switch to a different deck of cards?"

"Change! Must change!"

Zhao Zhiwei pulled a deck of cards from under the coffee table. "I'll shuffle the cards this time!"

Jiang Qing watched as Zhang Jingyi quietly rubbed her wrists, then got up and walked towards the water bar.

"Would you like something to drink? There's orange juice in the fridge."

"I want it iced!"

All five hands were raised at the same time.

"Normal temperature."

As soon as Zhang Jingyi finished speaking, Jiang Qing turned around, holding two glass jars.

"Iced drinks to cool Teacher Ma down."

"Hahaha……"

The group burst into laughter.

When Zhang Jingyi met Jiang Qing's eyes, two dimples, one deep and one shallow, bloomed on her cheeks.

She really liked this unabashed favoritism.

Three minutes into the second round of the game, Zeng Keni suddenly pointed at Zhang Jingyi's deck of cards and screamed.

"Why do you have another joker? This is the third one!"

"That means our Jingyi is attractive to ghosts."

Qian Didi shrank her neck as she spoke.

"Why is it suddenly a bit cold?"

Jiang Qing turned up the temperature by two degrees at the right time, watching as Zhang Jingyi hid the last two cards behind her back.

When she held up the card in front of him like a primary school student handing in homework, he almost burst out laughing.

Choose the left hand.

He spoke in a breathy voice.

Zhang Jingyi blinked and stretched out her right hand in front of him.

"This one?"

Jiang Qing looked at the Ace of Spades and laughed.

"Teacher Zhang has gone astray."

The last three cards spun around in the two men's hands three times. Ma Ke stared at their hands as they pushed the cards back and forth and slammed his hand on the table.

"Are you two exchanging love letters here?"

"Teacher Ma, would you like to come and check the license plate?"

Jiang Qing proactively opened her palm.

"or……"

He grabbed Zhang Jingyi's wrist and flipped it over, causing two Kings of Hearts to fall onto the table with a thud.

Before anyone could react, the Joker card was lying quietly in his other hand.

"No, can we even play anymore?!"

Zhao Zhiwei clutched his head and exploded on the spot.

Forty minutes later, the sound of running water came from the sink.

Jiang Qing leaned against the kitchen counter and watched Zhang Jingyi wearing pink rubber gloves, with two vegetable leaves floating in the foam pile.

"Isn't it supposed to be the loser who gets to wash it?"

The girl said coquettishly.

He waved his phone, and the screen showed a live stream of Zhao Zhiwei squatting in the bathroom scrubbing the toilet.

"Teacher Jiang is so mean!"

The girl flicked foam at him.

"The newbie protection period is over, and you have to pay your tuition."

When water droplets splashed onto Jiang Qing, he reached out and turned off the tap.

When Zhang Jingyi turned around, she almost bumped into his arms. When she looked up, she saw that there was half a piece of foam stuck to his eyelashes.

"actually……"

Jiang Qing reached out and wiped away the white spot.

"That last one just now..."

"I know."

Zhang Jingyi pulled off her rubber gloves and tilted her head to look at him with a smile.

"You deliberately kept the Joker for yourself."

Jiang Qing looked at the girl's reddened ear tips and suddenly noticed that the spotlight on the kitchen counter reflected two small moons in her pupils.

"Want to go stargazing?"

He pointed to the terrace outside the floor-to-ceiling windows.

"They're still live-streaming from the bathroom."

Despite saying that, Zhang Jingyi followed him toward the glass door without hesitation.

When Ma Ke rushed out of the bathroom with his head covered in foam, he saw two figures sitting side by side on the swing on the terrace.

The night breeze carried their laughter in, and he suddenly felt he should wash his face again.

On the terrace, the swing gently sways, crushing the starlight scattered on the ground.

Zhang Jingyi wiggled her toes and bumped into Jiang Qing's knee.

"Didn't you say you were going to look at the stars? Why are you always looking at your phone?"

When Jiang Qing locked the phone, the reflection from the case dazzled her eyes.

"On time."

"what?"

As soon as Zhang Jingyi turned her head, she saw Jiang Qing pull a porcelain doll with a crooked mouth out of his pocket.

"what!"

She sprang up from the swing, her eyes fixed on the porcelain doll.

"It's it! I thought you'd lost it all!"

"How could that be? After all, it witnessed someone failing to use the condom 17 times..."

"Hey! Don't tell!"

Zhang Jingyi reached out to cover his mouth, but the cold glaze of the porcelain doll pressed against the back of her hand.

By the moonlight, she could see the crooked blue paint on the hem of the doll's dress.

"Why does this pattern look like it was just painted?"

I drew this when I had nothing else to do.

Jiang Qing turned the doll around, revealing a cartoon fish sticker on its back.

"But I think it would be more interesting to add some new tricks."

Zhang Jingyi snatched the doll and examined it closely in the moonlight.

"So cute! I never expected Dr. Jiang to have such a childlike side, so..."

The girl looked at him, her eyelashes fluttering.

"You gave it to me?"

Jiang Qing nodded with a smile.

The girl instantly flashed a sweet smile, tucking the doll into her waistband, creating a small bulge.

She glanced at the night sky, then suddenly stepped onto the swing chair, holding onto Jiang Qing's shoulders as she swayed to her feet.

"Look! The seventh star of the Big Dipper is shining!"

Jiang Qing looked up and followed the direction she was pointing.

"Those are aircraft navigation lights."

"Hey, you!"

She squatted down angrily, her long hair falling down and covering half of her face.

Are you allergic to romance?

"Uh... my question."

Jiang Qing readily admitted her mistake.

Ma Ke's off-key singing came from the direction of the restroom, and Zhang Jingyi laughed so hard she almost fell into Jiang Qing's arms.

As she clung to the swing armrest to steady herself, the porcelain doll slipped out of her waistband and was caught by Jiang Qing in mid-air.

"Jiang Xiaoyu No. 2 is back in position."

He put the doll back into her palm, the coolness of the night breeze still lingering on his fingertips.

Zhang Jingyi gripped the doll tightly and leaned closer.

"Seriously, if you were to design an AI program for this porcelain doll, what would you teach it?"

Jiang Qing looked at the two points of light reflected in her pupils from the balcony lights.

"First and foremost, you need to be able to remind people to be careful."

"for example?"

"When someone wants to jump barefoot on the rocks again."

"Jiang Qing!"

She held up the doll as if to smash it, but then noticed tiny time codes engraved on the base.

"Isn't this the date we first met?"

"We have to keep something as a memento."

Jiang Qing shone her phone flashlight on the engraving.

In the white halo, Zhang Jingyi touched his phone with the doll.

"Now let's take a verification photo of it!"

"can."

When Jiang Qing unlocked the screen, Zhang Jingyi caught a glimpse of herself squatting down and playing with a cat in the photo album.

She pretended not to see it, raised the doll into the air and shouted.

"eggplant!"

As the shutter clicked, Jiang Qing stared blankly at the smiling girl on the screen.

"Jiang Qing."

Zhang Jingyi suddenly turned her head to the side, and her sweet voice rang out in the night breeze.

Is your heart rate too high again?

"Ah."

This time, Jiang Qing felt that her answer shouldn't be considered an overreaction to romance.

Sure enough, he saw the girl's clear, glass-like eyes slightly curved, gently gathering the moonlight, making it impossible to look away.

Zhang Jingyi suddenly blushed and lowered her head.

Jiang Qing smiled and was about to look away when she suddenly heard a soft whisper in the wind.

"Me too."

……

The night wind suddenly became noisy.

(End of this chapter)