Chapter 33 — The Culinary Arts Function
As the twilight faded into darkness, Qin Jiran and Su Yanyi felt more and more complicated about their situation. Although they were both still awake, neither seemed to have any intentions of opening their mouth. Their eyes were closed as they sunk into their thoughts about the person lying next to them, among other things.
They assumed that it would be hard to fall asleep because it was their first time sharing a bed with each other, but as they lost themselves to their thoughts, their minds eventually dragged them into the oblivion of sleep.
However, in the middle of the night, Qin Jiran woke up to the weight of someone lying on his chest. He didn't know when, but Su Yanyi had moved in her sleep.
How was he supposed to fall back asleep when the woman he loved was draped over him?
Nervous, his Adam's apple bobbed, and he tried to remain completely motionless as he surrendered his body for her to use as a pillow.
Unfortunately, staying still didn't spare him from the indescribable sensation of her wonderful softness. He didn't know how he was supposed to endure it, but even if he couldn't endure it, he had to endure it!
The painful night dragged on as he chanted to himself, endure it, endure it, endure it.
…..
At daybreak, Su Yanyi was the first to wake up. It was probably because she'd slept soundly all night. Her eyes were still closed when she sensed that there was an unnatural heat source surrounding her body. It was warm and strange to the touch.
She rubbed and pinched at it as her mind gradually cleared, and then she tried to sit up by using the "bed" as her leverage. Right as she discovered that it wasn't the bed, the pressure she placed on the man's chest startled him awake, and he opened his eyes just in time to see her hovering above him.
Vexation could be seen on her face. When their eyes abruptly met, she was stunned into a momentary daze. The two stared at each other, both seemingly clueless on how they should react.
"Good morning, it's time to wake up." The first one to regain her composure was Su Yanyi. Even though her expression had reverted back to its usual cold indifference, anyone would be able to spot the lingering trace of annoyance in it if they looked closely enough.
Despite her best efforts to feign calmness as she moved her hand off his chest and hurriedly escaped into the bathroom, it wasn't hard to tell that she was flustered.
"Good morning," Qin Jiran answered in a low voice, well after she got off the bed. Through the sight of her fleeing back, he could sense her embarrassment, which he couldn't help but find cute. The corners of his lips curved to form a handsome arch.
Fortunately, the System had stopped sending out notifications after the first task was completed; otherwise, Su Yanyi's hackles definitely would've raised in embarrassment.
After changing out of her pajamas, she left the bathroom. Qin Jiran went in after her.
She started to tidy up her things. When she caught sight of the delicate pistol she had gotten from her brother, it reminded her that she'd never tried out the Space Dimension function.
With a thought, she succeeded in making the pistol disappear, and then a System panel popped up showing the pistol inside. Her interest piqued, she thought again and the pistol reappeared in her hand.
Qin Jiran came out of the bathroom just in time to see her holding the pistol. He raised an eyebrow and chose to not say anything about it. After all, he'd always known that the Su family wasn't as simple as it seemed.
Although Su Yanyi never told him anything about the inner workings, the other Su family members were more open. Once a while, he would catch something from the conversations he had with them. However, he knew very little of the details.
As for the pistol, he didn't think it was very strange for Su Yanyi to have one, but he was curious about what she planned to do with it.
The gears in his heads turned, and he thought of the Wang family. A sharp glint appeared in his eyes.
He felt that it was about time he did something. He couldn't have Su Yanyi protect him all the time.
…..
Several days passed. As before, Qin Jiran busied himself with preparations for his new film. Meanwhile, Su Yanyi was getting ready for her System Upgrade.
She walked around the kitchen looking for coffee beans, but once she found them, she felt troubled. She didn't know how to brew coffee.
Her first thought was to go find one of the servants, Wang-jie1Wang-jie is one of the three servants working at SYY and QJR's residence, introduced in chapter 15. She has nothing to do with the Wang family (unless she does but it hasn't been revealed it? I swear this isn't a spoiler, I don't read ahead that much) since "Wang" is a very common Chinese surname., and ask for help. However, 001 chimed in before she could.
【 Master, the Culinary Arts function can give you a basic tutorial on how to make coffee. It's very easy to understand, and the coffee will taste delicious. Do you want to try it? The System's Culinary Arts and Medical Prowess functions are both very useful. They're really, really, really awesome! 】001 tilted its little head to one side, seemingly waiting, hopefully, for Su Yanyi to agree.
That was when she remembered that the System had a cooking function. She'd never thought about cooking before, so it had slipped her mind. She wanted to try it out, so she activated it.
Booting System Culinary Arts Function…
A virtual screen appeared before her, presenting a long list of foods and drinks from a variety of foreign cuisines to individual snacks and desserts. Just looking at all of it made Su Yanyi feel dizzy.
【 Master, this is the catalog. Since you want to make coffee, just select the coffee option. It's very convenient! 】001 gushed.
Su Yanyi selected the coffee option only to see a whole new catalog showing Blue Mountain, latte, cappuccino, Vienna, and so on.
However, this time she wasn't overwhelmed and went directly to the Blue Mountain option.
Blue Mountain boosted a light fragrance and an exquisite flavor. It was Su Yanyi's favorite, and she'd seen Qin Jiran drink it on several occasions, so he probably liked it too.
The System was exemplary. It provided a detailed rundown of the coffee-making process, as well as an alarm function. Everything from the quality and quantity of the coffee beans to the temperature of the water and how long the beans had to be kept in the water was covered.
Whenever she did something wrong, the System would alert her.
However, even with all the help, it took her several tries before she finally managed to produce a good enough pot of coffee. Nonetheless, it must be mentioned that the coffee cooked under the System's guidance tasted exceptional.
All of a sudden, Su Yanyi thought of something. She asked the System cautiously, "001, would the System issue more cooking missions in the future?"
She'd always had a feeling that the Culinary Arts function was given to her for a reason. The first Upgrade Mission required her to make a cup of coffee. Did that mean the next Upgrade Mission would require her to cook a whole meal?
【 Master, I cannot reveal the System Missions in advance. 】
"Then what are you good for? Playing cute?"
【 Master, are you bullying me? I'm very useful! 】001 huffed with an expression of being wronged.
"What are you useful for?" Su Yanyi asked skeptically. She believed that the System itself was much more useful than this 001, who could do nothing but play cute.
【 I can help Master pursue Mr. Master! 】
"…"
VIN: I'm brain dead, nothing to say.
RELEASE SCHEDULE: 5x a week until chapter 65. Will have a tentative schedule up soon.