Amateur talent show? Top mentors are my students.

After Sun Zhuohang put the card down, the "True Confessions of Fated People" session came to an end.

Wu Jiayuan clapped her hands, gathered the cards on the coffee table into a stack, and stuffed them back into the box: "Alright, alright, we've finished asking the questions for both rounds. The production team put a lot of thought into designing these cards."

"You really put your heart into it; you made my back sweat." Jiang Yining stood up from the sofa, stretched, and cracked her knuckles twice. "I have morning self-study tomorrow, so I'm going upstairs to take a shower first."

"I also need to sort out tomorrow's materials." Lin Zhen pushed the card box back to the middle of the coffee table, and as he stood up, he casually put a few empty water glasses on the coffee table into the kitchen.

Zhuang Wenmin picked up her coat from the sofa armrest and draped it over her arm, glancing at He Xu sideways: "Did you take your medicine?"

"Let's go soak in a bath later."

Don't forget.

"Understood, Aunt Zhuang 2." He Xu leaned back on the sofa without moving.

Zhuang Wenmin glanced at him, too lazy to argue with him, and turned to go upstairs.

Sun Zhuohang stood up and nodded to He Xu before leaving: "Brother He Xu, are you still running tomorrow morning? I'd like to try it with you."

"Six-thirty, if you can get up, then come."

"I can get up, I'll set three alarms!" Sun Zhuohang said, then felt embarrassed and scratched the back of his head before going upstairs.

The people in the living room gradually left.

He Xu sat on the sofa for a while longer, scrolling through his phone.

He only got up from the sofa and went into the kitchen when he heard the sounds of water and footsteps coming from upstairs.

He dimmed the kitchen ceiling light by one level, leaving only the row of warm yellow spotlights above the countertop.

The entire kitchen suddenly darkened, leaving only a small patch of warm light on the countertop, like a stage spotlight, enclosing the counter area as a small space separated from the outside.

He opened the cabinet, took out the box of Chinese herbal medicine granules, tore off a packet, and poured it into a cup.

The kettle was empty, so he filled it with water, pressed the heating button, and leaned against the counter to wait for the water to boil.

The sound of slippers stepping on the floor came from the stairwell, soft and gentle, unhurried.

Wu Jiayuan came downstairs with her hair down, draped over her shoulders, giving her a more homely and gentle look than when it was tied up during the day.

Wearing a light pink long-sleeved pajama top and cotton pajama pants, she was wrapped in soft, loose fabric, holding a dark blue hot water bottle covered with a plush cover.

She walked to the kitchen doorway and saw He Xu leaning against the counter, and paused for a moment.

The kitchen was dimly lit, with only a small, warm yellow glow emanating from his side.

He was looking down at his phone, half of his face outlined by the light, the other half hidden in the shadows, his jawline particularly defined by the warm light.

Wearing the same black long-sleeved shirt she wore during the day, with the sleeves pushed up to her forearms, she leaned lazily against the counter, looking completely different from her aloof demeanor in the living room earlier that day.

"Why didn't you go back to your room?" she asked, her voice softer than usual, perhaps due to the effect of her pajamas and the late hour.

"To soak in medicine." He Xu looked up and pointed with his chin towards the kettle. "Why are you holding a hot water bottle? Are you feeling unwell?"

"It's nothing, it's just..." Wu Jiayuan walked to the other side of the kitchen counter and placed the hot water bottle on the counter. "My stomach is a little uncomfortable, so I filled a hot water bottle to warm it up."

He Xu's gaze lingered on her face for a moment, then he looked down at her hand on the hot water bottle, asked nothing more, and simply said "Oh".

The water boiled, making a gurgling sound.

He first poured hot water into the medicine cup. The brown powder dissolved in the water, and a strong aroma of Chinese medicine wafted out from the rim of the cup.

Wu Jiayuan glanced at the dark brown herbal soup, wrinkled her nose, and said, "This smell is stronger than any other Chinese medicine I've ever smelled."

"Because this is a concentrated powder, its effects are even stronger than the boiled kind." He Xu stirred it with a spoon and waited for it to cool down.

"How many doses should I drink each day?"

"One set each in the morning and evening."

"Is it bitter?"

"Can't you smell it?"

Wu Jiayuan chuckled: "It smells bitter, but how does it taste?"

"It's tough too," He Xu said succinctly.

He picked up the cup to test the temperature, then frowned and took a small sip. After swallowing, his brows furrowed even more.

He put down the cup, paused for two seconds, and his expression looked like he was being tortured.

The warm light shone from the side, illuminating his furrowed brows and tightly pursed lips clearly.

Looking at his expression, Wu Jiayuan couldn't help but laugh out loud: "Why are you taking medicine like you're being tortured? Just gulp it down, it's better to get it over with quickly than to suffer for a long time."

"No." He Xu put down the cup, paused for two seconds, and then continued, "If you gulp it down in one go, your stomach will feel uncomfortable. You have to take small sips and let it adjust."

Wu Jiayuan thought for a moment and nodded: "That's true. Your gastric mucosa is already thin. If you gulp it down, the stomach wall will be suddenly stimulated, which can easily cause spasms."

"You doctors really do get it right away." He Xu picked up his cup and took another small sip. This time it wasn't as painful as before, but his brows were still slightly furrowed.

"How long will it take you to finish this glass?"

"Ten minutes, please." He Xu shook the cup, which still contained more than half of the medicinal soup. "Too hot won't do, and too cold won't do either. It has to be this temperature, grinding it one spoonful at a time."

Wu Jiayuan leaned against the other side of the kitchen counter, holding her hot water bottle and watching him for a while.

The kitchen was quiet, with only the hum of the kettle and the occasional soft sound of He Xu stirring the spoon.

As she watched him drink his medicine with his head down in the warm light, she suddenly realized that this person was completely different from the quiet and aloof Teacher He she had seen in the living room during the day.

During the day, he sits on the sofa, speaking to everyone with a distance, as if he's ready to get up and leave at any moment.

Now, in this kitchen where there are only two people, he leans against the counter, his eyes downcast, taking small sips of bitter medicine, looking completely relaxed, like a different person.

She suddenly spoke up: "Little brother, do you dawdle like this every morning and evening?"

He Xu paused in his action of drinking the medicine, then turned his head to look at her: "Why are you calling me 'brother' again?"

"You didn't have any complaints last time you shouted, did you? What, can't I shout?" Wu Jiayuan said confidently.

"...Fine." He Xu was too lazy to argue with her about the form of address, and took another sip of medicine.

"So you grind like this every morning and evening?" Wu Jiayuan finished her previous question.

"I'm used to it."

"You're quite patient."

"If you don't have patience, you'll just end up with a stomachache," He Xu said calmly.

Wu Jiayuan did not respond.

She watched his profile as he drank his medicine with his eyes downcast, and mentally relabeled He Xu: sharp-tongued and seemingly not very good-tempered, but someone who sipped his bitter medicine slowly for ten minutes or so was actually kind of cute.

"Okay, then you can drink slowly, I'll fill up my water first." Wu Jiayuan unscrewed the stopper of the hot water bottle and picked up the kettle on the table.

The kettle was freshly boiled; it had a stainless steel body and was filled to more than half full, making it quite heavy when lifted.

She was holding the kettle in one hand and the hot water bottle opening with the other, her posture was already a bit awkward.

The teapot was heavy, and my wrist started to tremble slightly as soon as I positioned the spout at the mouth of the bag.

The hot water bottle rested on the table, supported by her fingers. It wobbled slightly, causing the spout to tilt to one side.

He Xu glanced at it from the side, put down the medicine cup, and said, "I'll do it."

"No need, no need, I can do it myself—"

"Your hands are shaking like a leaf." He Xu placed the medicine cup on the table, reached out and took the water bottle from her hand. "Just hold the bag, I'll fill it up, don't burn yourself."

The kettle was steady once it was in his hands.

He held the kettle in one hand and gently supported the bottom with the other. The spout was aligned with the opening of the hot water bottle, and water was poured in slowly, causing the hot water bottle to inflate gradually.

Wu Jiayuan held the bag opening with both hands, but her eyes couldn't help but glance upwards.

The kitchen light comes from above at an angle.

He lowered his head slightly, his eyelashes drooping, and the lines of his nose and brow bone were made particularly clear in the warm light.

The hand supporting the bottom of the teapot had long, slender fingers with distinct knuckles, steadily supporting the heavy teapot without any wobbling.

As he poured hot water into the bag, he tilted his head slightly to estimate the water level. The curve of his profile, from his cheekbone to his jawline, was clean and sharp, exuding an unprecedented gentleness.

Wu Jiayuan's heart skipped a beat without warning.

She quickly turned her gaze back to the hot water bottle, staring at the steam coming out of the opening, pretending that she hadn't seen anything at all.

"That's about it." He Xu stopped the kettle, put the stopper on the hot water bottle and tightened it. He shook it to make sure there were no leaks, then handed it to her. "Here, be careful, it's hot."

When Wu Jiayuan took it, her fingers touched his fingertips.

It was warm, because I had just been supporting the bottom of the kettle and it had been heated by the hot water. My fingertips were dry and warm, and I gently wiped them on her fingertips before withdrawing them.

She hugged the hot water bottle to her chest; the temperature was just right, not too hot to touch, and it felt so comfortable against her stomach that she wanted to sigh.

But her heart was still pounding, her face was hot, and the tips of her ears were hot too.

I don't know if it's because the kitchen is too hot or something else.

"Thank you, little brother," she said, her voice a little softer than before.

Hearing the word "brother," He Xu's lips twitched, but he didn't argue further: "Why are you being so polite? Your hands were shaking so much that you spilled half of it, and I ended up having to clean up the floor."

He put the kettle back on the table and picked up the medicine cup again.

This person might say, "I find your shaky hands troublesome," but they handle every little thing perfectly.

Wu Jiayuan glanced down at the hot water bottle in her arms, then looked up at He Xu, her lips twitching as she tried to suppress her urge to smile.

"He Xu, my younger brother."

"Um?"

"You... you're really sharp-tongued, and your hands are never idle." Wu Jiayuan carefully considered her words.

He Xu turned his head and glanced at her: "You sound like you're insulting me."

"I'm praising you."

"What did you praise me for?"

"I'm so proud of you..." Wu Jiayuan took a half step forward while holding the hot water bottle and looked up at him.

The warm light from the kitchen shone from behind him, outlining his silhouette with a golden edge.

She looked into his eyes, a smile spreading across them. "You keep saying 'Don't mention it,' but you're actually more thoughtful than anyone else. That contrast is quite interesting."

He Xu met her gaze briefly, then lowered his eyes and continued drinking his medicine: "Don't give me that, I just thought you were a nuisance."

"Fine, fine, if you find it troublesome." Wu Jiayuan didn't call him out on it. Holding the hot water bottle, she took two steps back towards the stairwell. "Then I'll go up. Little brother, you can slowly drink your bitter medicine."

"A hot water bottle for a while is enough, don't leave it on for too long." He Xu didn't even look up. "A burn would be a real problem."

"Okay, okay, Dr. He." Wu Jiayuan waved behind her and went upstairs with the hot water bottle in her arms.

When she reached the corner of the second-floor corridor, her steps slowed down a beat. She looked down at the hot water bottle in her arms and remembered the fingertip that had been warmed by the hot water earlier.

She hid her face further inside her collar and muttered softly, "Why is this person like this..."

Then he pushed open the door to his room, put a hot water bottle on his stomach, burrowed into the blanket, and it took him a long time to fall asleep.