Chapter 237
Paying too much attention to someone inevitably magnified their every move, every expression.
Cheng Tingyan’s frown, as she looked at the task board, Wei Maomao interpreted it as dissatisfaction.
But there was only one task, what was there to be dissatisfied about?
Was she worried about the time limit?
Or did she think making a cake would take too long, too much time spent with her… on a “date,” making her uncomfortable?
Wei Maomao had made this kind of cake many times before, with Yan Yan present. But just in case Yan Yan didn’t remember, she explained the process, assuring her they would finish before dinner, even mentioning a few shortcuts to speed things up.
But… Yan Yan’s frown remained.
So she was uncomfortable…
It wasn’t her idea for this date!
Wei Maomao felt a bit wronged, but she had to finish the cake quickly, to end this awkward “date.” If this misunderstanding disrupted the carefully maintained balance between them, she would be devastated.
Flour, eggs, sugar, oil, milk, heavy cream… the ingredients were quickly gathered.
Wei Maomao was washing the eggs when Yan Yan also brought the bowls and utensils to the sink.
So… she was in a hurry. Wei Maomao bit her lip, her movements quickening.
After washing and drying the eggs, Wei Maomao returned to the counter, Cheng Tingyan, after washing two bowls, placed them next to Wei Maomao’s hand.
Wei Maomao glanced at the bowls, years ago, it was called tacit understanding, now… an assembly line?
Her unspoken words transformed into practiced movements.
She cracked an egg against the side of the bowl, separating the yolk and the white.
Her desire to speed things up further enhanced her already impressive skills.
Soon, the eggs were ready.
Just as Wei Maomao, after adding the sugar, reached for the whisk, a stainless steel whisk appeared in the bowl.
Before Wei Maomao could react, Cheng Tingyan took the bowl and started whisking, her movements practiced and efficient.
Her slender fingers moved gracefully.
Wei Maomao, about to mention the electric mixer under the cabinet, swallowed her words.
Their usual teamwork, now, in Wei Maomao’s eyes, wasn’t tacit understanding, but a desperate attempt to finish quickly.
A small rebellious thought arose.
So eager to finish, then do it faster than a machine…
Wei Maomao watched silently as Cheng Tingyan whisked the sugar into the egg yolks, then added oil, then milk, then flour, salt, and baking powder.
Cheng Tingyan’s movements were fluid, only pausing briefly when Wei Maomao added the ingredients. She seemed tireless.
Some were like machines, some… regretted their earlier thoughts.
Wei Maomao’s rebelliousness faded after adding the oil, and by the time the milk was added, she was already regretting it.
After the yolks, she still had to whisk the egg whites and the cream, it would be tiring.
But mentioning the electric mixer now would seem…
Wei Maomao, watching the flour being mixed in, her regret overriding her rebelliousness, gently poked Cheng Tingyan’s arm.
Then, seeing Yan Yan’s puzzled look, she realized that she had already used the electric mixer with Xia Lanruo this morning; Yan Yan would see it when she watched the replay.
“I just remembered, we have an electric mixer.” Wei Maomao said, squatting down to avoid Cheng Tingyan’s gaze, she opened the cabinets and took out the mixer.
“Amazing.” Cheng Tingyan said, surprised, without a hint of suspicion.
Wei Maomao: “…“
With the electric mixer, the process sped up significantly, soon, the egg yolks and whites were whisked, Cheng Tingyan mixed them and poured the batter into the oven.
The cake would take about forty minutes to bake.
With no tasks at hand, the silence in the baking studio became more pronounced.
Wei Maomao wanted to ask Cheng Tingyan why she was here, but she was afraid of asking something she shouldn’t, afraid of overstepping, she hesitated.
But Cheng Tingyan had nothing to hide.
The silence made them both uncomfortable, their gazes darting around, finally settling on the worktable.
“Should we prepare the cream?” Cheng Tingyan asked.
“Should we cut the fruit?” Wei Maomao asked.
They both spoke at the same time, then looked at each other, their desire to find something to do evident.
“It’s too early for the cream, we can wash the fruit.” Wei Maomao said, calculating the baking and cooling time, then added, “And chop some chocolate, we can make a chocolate cake. We can also melt some chocolate for decoration, and the fruit, we can carve it…”
It wasn’t difficult to find things to do in a baking studio.
Soon, they were washing and chopping, their movements efficient, like a well-oiled machine.
The viewers, however, saw something else entirely.
“Our host, with her skillful matchmaking, pairing them up in the baking studio, what a contrast to Maomao and Xia Lanruo this morning, so awkward. But Maomao and Yan Yan, their teamwork is seamless!”
“So harmonious! Why did Maomao even mention the electric mixer?!”
“I love the way Maomao looks at Yan Yan while she’s whisking, so focused! The mixer is ruining the moment!”
“And Yan Yan, this morning, when Little Pika was covered in mud, she said ‘Wait,’ this afternoon, when Maomao got a bit of egg yolk on her, she said ‘Go wash up.’ Zhao Can would be crying if she saw this.”
“Zhao Can’s fault, she panicked and ran away, Maomao just crushed an egg, she wasn’t even fazed.”
“Little Pika was actually quite good this afternoon, facing the unknown Yellow Dog, much better than this morning.”
“??? Are you joking? When Wang Zhiqing opened the door, that startled little Pika, frantically looking for mud…?”
“Her first instinct, looking for mud, traumatized, haha.”
“The audience’s pairing actually makes sense. Zhao Can and Wang Zhiqing are having fun with the clay, and Yan Yan and Maomao are also doing well with the cake. How are they so… efficient? They don’t even have to talk or look at each other, they just know what to do.”
“Like they’ve baked together many times before.”
“Maybe they have, secretly.”
“Suddenly, the word ‘cake’ seems… suggestive… Am I the only one?”
“Report! Inappropriate comment! Don’t get the live stream banned!”
“I almost didn’t get it… tsk, I know too much…”
“Ahem, Zhao Can and Wang Zhiqing are having fun with the clay, but what’s wrong with Wang Zhiqing? She was doing so well with the painting this morning, and now she can’t even make a square clay frame? She was teaching Yang Yuanming how to draw a perfect circle this morning.”
“So that’s how you change the subject. It’s obvious, she’s showing off, so Zhao Can has to teach her, holding her hand five times just to make a square frame, and only our silly Little Pika believes she’s truly that clumsy. If this weren’t a dating show, I would…”
Whether baking a cake or playing with clay, the little details, unnoticed by the participants, provided endless entertainment for the viewers.
And most agreed that the audience’s pairing was much better than the program team’s.
The audience’s opinion, it would shape the future, something the busy guests were unaware of.
At 4:37 PM…
The double-layered cake, filled with fruit and pudding, frosted with black and white chocolate cream, decorated with almond slices, pistachios, chocolate shavings, and handmade chocolate decorations, it was finally finished.
Wei Maomao looked at the cake, the two-colored frosting forming a Taijitu symbol, decorated with chocolate Bagua trigrams.
How did they end up with this…?
They were both too fast, the fruit was prepared in ten minutes, they had to find other things to do, chopping the chocolate took some time.
But they were still too fast, the cake was baked before they were even done with the decorations.
And they still had to wait for it to cool…
They made a pudding filling.
Because of the pudding, the cake, which should have been finished around 4 PM, was delayed.
Yan Yan…
Wei Maomao, covering the cake, glanced at Cheng Tingyan, who was washing her hands.
She wouldn’t be angry about the delay, right?
But this Taijitu cake, it wasn’t romantic at all… it should show her lack of romantic intentions, right?
Wei Maomao, lost in her thoughts, saw Cheng Tingyan, her hands clean, take out an envelope.
“I almost forgot.” Cheng Tingyan said, extending her hand.
Whether she truly forgot, or she was just too embarrassed to give it to her earlier, only Cheng Tingyan knew.
Wei Maomao, taking the envelope, her movements stiff, glanced at the corner of the room.
She had forgotten about the letters!
That gift box, so obvious now, if she went to get her letter, Yan Yan would definitely see it!
And Cheng Tingyan, following her gaze, did see it.
The awkwardness hung in the air.
“I didn’t know it was you, so I…”
“I’m saving my red strings for a phone call, so I didn’t…”
Their words, hurried and nervous.
Wei Maomao, catching the key words, asked, “A phone call?”
