After four years of living alone after marrying far away, he went back to his parents' home and

Chen Mo's deep, frank voice suddenly tightened, and even the atmosphere in the bedroom gradually became more alluring.

"I can't sleep, I want to wait for you to sleep together..."

In Lan Yujuan's simple understanding, this sleep is naturally not the same as that sleep.

Moreover, during pregnancy, there is absolutely no need to worry about the possibility of an unplanned pregnancy.

She sensed Chen Mo's lingering gaze and the change in his voice.

The light, fleeting kiss on her forehead was interpreted by her as an indication that her wishes were being asked.

The two were perfectly legitimate, and the time and place were perfect; what could she possibly be unwilling to do?

Lan Yujuan reached out and loosely wrapped her arms around his neck, slowly pulling him close.

Then she whispered in his ear, her voice rising seductively at the end:

"Honey, carry me to bed~"

*

The three days flew by in a flurry of activity!

Half-Mountain Retreat Cafe closed for the day when all the staff went to participate in the competition.

The competition was held on the first floor of the busiest shopping mall in Xiangnan City.

The three of them arrived at the scene an hour early, fully equipped.

The opening ceremony was at 9:00 AM, and the competition officially started at 9:30 AM.

The preliminary rounds were held in the morning, the finals in the afternoon, and the awards ceremony was held on-site in the evening.

Because she was participating in this competition, Lan Qingqing didn't sleep well the night before and arrived with dark circles under her eyes.

Lan Qingqing, who used to always wear makeup when going out, has started to wear lighter and lighter makeup since she started using coffee.

Because the fragrance of cosmetics can adhere to coffee utensils, it can affect the coffee tasting experience.

Today, she even went out with her hair in a bun and no makeup, which made her dark circles look even worse.

"Did you stay up all night last night?"

After Qi Lei saw it clearly, he was immediately startled. "Look at those dark circles under your eyes, you look like a ghost!"

Lan Qingqing glared at him, yawning as she said defiantly:

"You have the nerve to say that to me? Look at your messy hair, you're the one who looks like a ghost!"

"I had too much caffeine last night and couldn't sleep, you know?"

Qi Lei chuckled, clearly not believing it.

"With your constitution, where you fall asleep the moment your head hits the pillow, caffeine is practically like carbohydrates. When have you ever had insomnia from drinking coffee?"

"Could it be... pre-match nervousness?"

Hearing that he had hit the nail on the head, Lan Qingqing stopped arguing, moved her small stool to the preparation area, and sat down without saying a word for a long time.

The usually chattering people suddenly became so quiet, and Lan Yujuan and Qi Lei were both quite unaccustomed to it.

The two exchanged a glance, and finally sent Qi Lei forward first to provide pre-match psychological counseling.

"Lan Qingqing, don't be afraid. It's called a competition, but it's really nothing."

"Once you're on stage, just follow the competition rules and focus on making your coffee."

"You don't need to compare yourself with others. Just treat it as a stage test on your journey of learning about coffee."

Lan Qingqing rested her head on her knees, propped her chin on her hands, glanced back at Qi Lei, and said softly:

"From childhood to adulthood, the thing I'm worst at and most afraid of is taking exams."

"Whether it's a big exam or a small exam, I've never done well."

"Master, you and Sister Yujuan are both so capable. What if I drag you down and our coffee shop doesn't win the award?"

Lan Qingqing grew increasingly nervous, staring at the competition stage set up diagonally opposite her, and subconsciously began biting her nails.

Qi Lei rolled up his sleeves, patted Lan Qingqing's shoulder, and comforted her:

"Just do your best and let the result take its natural course; don't push yourself too hard."

After all, he has participated in countless competitions, both big and small.

No matter how good your skills are or how perfect your performance is on the field, whether you win an award and what your ranking is is not solely determined by your results.

As long as it's a competition, or any activity involving interpersonal relationships, it's impossible to be 100% fair and just.

However, Lan Qingqing clearly didn't like hearing that.

"What do you mean by 'let nature take its course'?"

"I came to participate in the competition today with the goal of winning an award."

"What's the point if we don't win an award in the end? If our coffee shop is closed for a day, the business lost will be substantial."

Qi Lei, who was originally carefree, suddenly felt a heavy weight on his heart after hearing Lan Qingqing's words.

"Hey, you're right!"

He is the store manager, and business has been booming at the store recently.

No one knows better than him how much money the coffee shop will lose if it closes for a day!

Now, the master and apprentice were sitting together in the waiting area, starting to worry.

The apprentice was worried that he would be a burden to the shop.

The master was also very worried because he knew very well that with his disciple's current level, he would definitely be a burden.

Lan Yujuan held her phone and quietly sat in a quiet spot, taking advantage of the time before the competition started to write her novel.

She listened intermittently to the conversation between the master and his apprentice in front of her.

Later, no one knows what the master and apprentice talked about, but it turned into the two of them sitting together sighing.

She immediately put away her phone, moved her small stool over, patted Lan Qingqing on the back, and encouraged her:

"The match hasn't even started, why are you two sighing?"

"come on!"

Lan Qingqing straightened her back immediately. "Yeah, keep it up!"

No matter how you listen to it, the voice sounds weak.

Seeing this, Lan Yujuan immediately took her hand and began to analyze the situation on the spot:

"Look, the opening ceremony is about to begin, and there are fewer than twenty contestants present in total."

"And if you observe closely, some of them are even more nervous than we are."

After listening, the master and apprentice looked in the direction Lan Yujuan was looking, and sure enough, it was just as she had said.

The organizers set up two rows of tables behind the competition stage, providing coffee beans and equipment to facilitate the contestants' preparation and practice before the competition.

There weren't many contestants to begin with, and now a significant portion of them are backstage, cramming and practicing intensively.

Lan Qingqing was absolutely stunned when she found out!

Among those last-minute cramming contestants, quite a few hadn't even mastered the simple act of pouring water properly; the water flow was intermittent, sometimes thick and sometimes thin.

The more I practiced, the more I kept practicing. After practicing several times, not only did my hands start to shake, but my forehead also started to sweat.

After watching for a while, Lan Qingqing suddenly felt a surge of confidence, her eyes shining faintly as she said:

"Sis, when I make coffee, am I better than those other people? And do I pour the water more beautifully?"

Lan Yujuan immediately nodded in affirmation:

"Of course!"

"You have a talent for coffee, you have a famous teacher to guide you, and you practice diligently on your own."

"Yesterday afternoon, I heard a customer in the shop praising how well your coffee is getting."

What Lan Yujuan didn't say was: the lower the starting point, the greater the room for growth.

Lan Qingqing's journey in learning coffee is entirely from scratch. As long as she studies diligently and practices hard, she will reach new heights every day.

As time passed, the competition soon began.

Each team sends one person to draw lots to determine the order in which they will perform.

Qi Lei is a familiar face in the coffee world. He cleared his throat and subconsciously took a half step back.

Lan Yujuan gently nudged Lan Qingqing and encouraged her, "You're lucky, you go up and draw a lot."

Lan Qingqing was nervous before the competition and subconsciously wanted to back away, shaking her head repeatedly:

"I...I'm not going. I'm afraid I'll be the first one to go."

Lan Yujuan said with a smile, "Whoever goes up to draw a lot will be rewarded with a 100 yuan red envelope."

Before Lan Qingqing could even process what was happening, her legs were already treading towards the stage. "When it comes to drawing lots, who else but me!"

The results of the lottery were announced on the spot.

Lan Qingqing indeed drew a lucky number, [6].

However, as of now, there are only 6 groups participating in the competition, and the sixth group will be the last to perform.

Everyone felt relieved, and smiles appeared on their faces.

"No rush, no rush. Let's see how strong the other groups are first."

What made the three of them even happier was that, judging from the previous two or three groups, none of the participants in today's competition were particularly professional; almost everyone was just there for the fun of it.

"This time it's a sure thing!" Lan Qingqing chuckled and clapped, as if the championship was already in her grasp.

However, to everyone's surprise, after the third group finished performing, the host came on stage to announce:

"Respected judges, dear contestants, due to insufficient contestants arriving today, we have temporarily opened a registration channel in the live broadcast room, adding 14 more groups of contestants who are on their way."

"Which coffee shop will emerge victorious in today's coffee competition? Let's wait and see!"