Just who was this Miss Lu? How could she be a benefactor for Oriental Bliss?
How come Lei Peng never heard of her before? Was she a mistress of some businessman and though she could compete with him?
However, before Lei Peng could think hard about this Miss Lu’s identity, the timer for the competition had started.
The two teams had started to move in their kitchen counter at once. Compared to what the academy provided for their students, the kitchen counter set up by Shen Yi’s men was considerably larger and better than what Lu Xinyi used to work on.
Huang Shenghao had started to reheat the soup base he and Tian Lingyu made the night before while Lu Xinyi started to knead and work on the dough for the steamed buns she’d make later. Tian Lingyu busied himself with mise-en-place, making sure that each ingredient was measured and cut; pans were prepared; and mixing bowls, tools, and equipment set out.
Their movements were in sync that none of them was able to make a mistake. Clearly, the three of them weren’t as clueless as what Lei Peng assumed them to be that even the three professional chefs from la Reverie were caught off-guard with their efficacy under such tight conditions.
As Huang Shenghao took over the preparation for appetizers and soups, Tian Lingyu was the one in charge of the main course while Lu Xinyi was the one responsible for steamed buns and pastries.
The way Tian Lingyu and Huang Shenghao cut the vegetables left the audience speechless.
“Are you sure those three are amateurs? Why does it feel like I’ve seen them somewhere?” A middle-aged man next to Shen Xue asked his companion.
“Eh? I think they aren’t amateurs at all, especially their head chef. Just look at his knife skills. Something like that couldn’t be achieved easily if you’re an amateur. The way I see it, he must have been doing this for a long time,” his friend responded.
“Hmm… I really feel like I’ve seen them before…” the first man insisted.
Maybe because her hair was shorter and the cut Jiao Jiao did to her hair was different from what she had before, Lu Xinyi’s face looked younger.
Different scents and aroma drifted around them, making them salivate and swallowed unconsciously.
This… wasn’t this kind of torture? To be able to smell such delicious aroma but couldn’t eat the dish to their heart’s content, the spectators wondered if the two teams were torturing them. They suddenly felt that they were in a waiting game, each of them desperate to see and taste the dishes both teams created today.
An hour had passed before the man earlier gasped. It finally dawned on him where he saw Tian Lingyu and Huang Shenghao before.
“I now remember who they are!” he exclaimed. “Aren’t they the two princes of Silver Leaf Academy?!” He pointed at Tian Lingyu and Huang Shenghao’s direction.
Those people around him turned their attention to the two chefs of Oriental Bliss. Taking their phones, they did a quick search for the recent ranking of the Cream of the Crop that could be found at the official website of Silver Leaf Academy.
“Wait! What the heck?! They are really Tian Lingyu and Huang Shenghao of Silver Leaf?!”
“Look! Look!” One of them passed his phone to his companion. “How did Oriental Bliss manage to convince the two to work for them?” ρꪖꪕᦔꪖꪕꪫꪣꫀꪶ
“So who’s the woman working with them then?” The woman next to him asked. Looking at Lu Xinyi’s face, she couldn’t pinpoint where she’d seen her before. Was it in a magazine?
Scrolling down at the bottom of the rank, they saw the same woman standing next to Tian Lingyu.
“She’s Lu Xinyi!” The woman squealed and clapped her hands. “Miss Lu! I’m a fan! Please do your best!”
“Lu Xinyi? Isn’t that President Shen’s wife?” Their eyes were wide as they shifted their gaze from the screen of their phones to the woman who was kneading the dough at Oriental Bliss’ station.
“President Shen’s wife? Doesn’t Lu Xinyi also hold a seat on Cream of the Crop? Why did la Reverie enter a competition with Oriental Bliss, knowing she’s there?”
“Didn’t you know Lei Peng started buying the properties along Emerald Lane to develop it as a commercial center?”
The murmurs started to spread around the audience, and it reached Lei Peng.
“What? Students of Silver Leaf Academy?” He frowned when one of his men whispered the news to his ear.
Of course, Lei Peng had heard about the great talented chefs that the academy produced for years. For Tian Lingyu and Huang Shenghao to represent Oriental Bliss—even if they were the best, Lei Peng believed that they’re lacking experience compared to the chefs he hired for la Reverie. So what if they were on the top ranks of Silver Leaf? The culinary world outside the academy was different.
“Miss Lu… Boss, it seems you’ve just made a deal with the devil.” His right-hand man was sweating profusely. If it was because of the hot weather or in fear, Lei Peng didn’t know.
“What?” Lei Peng couldn’t understand what made his man tremble in fear upon mentioning Miss Lu.
“Boss…” the man stuttered, “Miss Lu… she’s President Shen’s woman.”
How stupid they were to dare to threaten Lu Xinyi that night.
“Shen Yi’s woman!” The color on Lei Peng’s face drained as he realized that he indeed sold his own fate with the devil. He didn’t think that Miss Lu would be a threat to him.
Even if la Reverie managed to win today, they wouldn’t be safe from Shen Yi’s wrath. As if sensing his gaze upon her, Lu Xinyi lifted her head and smiled amusedly at his expression.
Was this the reason why Miss Lu was confident? That even if she lost today, Shen Yi wouldn’t easily let him go.
Had he known that this Miss Lu was the Lu Xinyi of the Shen family, Lei Peng would never dare to enter a deal with her. Now, it was too late to back out and save himself.
