Chapter 59: The Hated Miss of the Dating Show (8)

Chapter 59: The Dating Show’s Least-Liked Heiress (8)

With the cooking pairs decided, Tang Qing and Xiang Xiuran happened to be responsible for preparing the next day’s meals.

“Everyone, think about what you’d like to eat tomorrow. I’ll confirm the ingredients to buy,” Xiang Xiuran said. As soon as he finished speaking, Wen Yixuan’s face brightened, and she immediately chimed in, “How about Sichuan chili chicken? I love spicy food.”

Xiang Xiuran paused for a moment but still offered a polite smile. “Sure, but this dish is a bit complicated. It depends on when I get off work tomorrow… The preparation is quite involved.” He was subtly hinting for Wen Yixuan to choose something else. Unexpectedly, Tang Qing agreed without hesitation, “Sure.”

Wen Yixuan was even more delighted! She had already tasted Tang Qing’s cooking before—it was definitely good.

Excitedly, she added two more dishes, “And also Gongbao chicken and Sichuan boiled fish!”

“Sure.” Again, Tang Qing casually accepted Wen Yixuan’s requests, seemingly unfazed by the difficulty of these dishes.

Xiang Xiuran couldn’t help but glance at Tang Qing, puzzled by the heiress’s unexpected compliance.

An Shenshen also spoke up, “Xiuran, I really like soy products. Could you make something with tofu for me?” Her tears hadn’t fully dried yet, her eyes slightly red, and her voice carried a subtle quiver.

At this moment, An Shenshen looked vulnerable, her ethereal beauty accentuated by her teary-eyed fragility.

As expected, faced with such an expression, Xiang Xiuran visibly hesitated. After all, the two had just gone on a date yesterday, and now he had agreed to Tang Qing’s request, publicly sidelining An Shenshen.

Clearing his throat, Xiang Xiuran quickly composed himself. “Sure, how about a simple tofu soup?”

With two people having requested four dishes, Shi Jia added another, “Let’s also have a pork rib soup. It’s simple to make—just needs more time to simmer.”

Just as Xiang Xiuran was about to agree, Tang Qing suddenly spoke up again, "No, I won't make that dish."

Shi Jia's expression immediately froze. "What's it got to do with you? You're not even cooking!"

"Don't take my word for it—go ask Xiang Xiuran. He said he can't make it," the Little Ancestor said defiantly, clearly lying through her teeth. "If you want soup, ask your bestie to make it for you."

Tang Qing was clearly picking on Shi Jia. Since moving into the house, the two had been at each other’s throats nonstop, and their fights had become the most-watched scenes among netizens:

"Let's be honest, Tang Qing's bias here is pretty obvious."

"Shi Jia must be fuming—everyone else gets a yes, but she gets a no? Classic love-hate duo."

"Last week Tang Qing was the one getting pushed around, but this week, looks like the Little Ancestor is finally fighting back..."

The two faced off in the living room, neither willing to budge. In the end, An Shenshen stepped in as peacemaker, pulling back the fired-up Shi Jia. "Jiajia, if you want soup, I'll make it for you tomorrow. No big deal."

"Forget it, it's just one dish. Not worth the fuss."

Out of respect for her best friend, Shi Jia turned away and muttered, "Fine, I won't argue with you this time."

"I forgive you."

The whole thing was ridiculous—Tang Qing hadn’t even apologized, yet Shi Jia was already giving herself an out. Tang Qing ignored the two dramatic best friends and turned to Xiang Xiuran.

"We’re cooking tomorrow. The supermarket’s still open. Want to go grocery shopping?"

Xiang Xiuran nodded, adding two more dishes to his phone memo. That should feed all eight of us.

At the supermarket, it was mostly Xiang Xiuran doing all the picking and choosing. Tang Qing fully played up her spoiled rich girl act without lifting a finger, and in fact grumbled more than once about how slow Xiang Xiuran was.

"This one's fine."

"Xiang Xiuran, you're so slow! If you can't decide, just take both."

"Why buy a whole chicken for spicy chicken? Just get the thigh meat. Do you *actually* know how to cook?"

Amid her complaints, Xiang Xiuran was surprised to realize that the Little Ancestor actually knew her stuff in the kitchen—like when she accurately grabbed the dried chilies during an earlier choice between two options, or how she clearly knew that thigh meat makes for tenderer chicken.

Unable to hold it in any longer, Xiang Xiuran blurted out, "You can cook?"

"Of course. Better than An Shenshen," Tang Qing replied without missing a beat. "The most she can do is flip a wok. She’d probably poison someone by accident. And she has the nerve to call herself a cook?"

She rolled her eyes as she spoke. Even with such a look on her face, her delicate features made her seem impishly cute.

"Then why didn’t you say so earlier…?"

Hearing his question, the Little Ancestor frowned. "Why the hell should I? Cooking’s my hobby. Do I need to announce it to everyone?"

"I’ll cook for whoever I want. I’m nobody’s damn maid." Especially not for some annoying people back at the house—she certainly wasn’t going to bother cooking for them.

Xiang Xiuran suddenly understood—the Little Ancestor played favorites.

For those she liked, no problem. For those she disliked? Not a chance.

This kind of black-and-white attitude was something Xiang Xiuran had rarely seen before. Suddenly he thought back to how Tang Qing had curled up on the sofa that afternoon—she really was like a cat: clear-eyed, confident, and completely unbothered by what others thought, living freely and effortlessly.

"Why are you staring at me? Is it so weird that I can cook?" Catching him looking, Tang Qing leaned in suddenly. "In TV dramas, when a guy stares at a girl, there are only two possibilities."

"What?"

"Either he likes her… or he’s a total creep." She purred, tilting her head. "So which one are you?"

"Cough—" Totally unprepared for her boldness, Dr. Xiang—who had nerves of steel even in surgery—turned beet red and almost fumbled the shopping cart handle. "Tang Qing…"

"Has anyone ever told you… maybe… you should tone it down a little?" After a pause, he finally settled on a carefully worded response.

The Little Ancestor remained unrepentant. "Why should I?"

"Is it really that hard to tell if someone likes you or not?"

"This is just who I am. Like me? Then put up with me. Don’t like me? Buzz off—see if I care." The beautiful woman said it all so naturally, her gaze as clear and bright as Xiang Xiuran remembered.

She… actually saw things more clearly than most people.

Realizing this, Xiang Xiuran found himself laughing.

Netizens also flooded the screen with comments over Tang Qing’s words:

"That’s our Tang for you—bold and fearless. Blind guess: definitely a Scorpio."

"Hahaha, shocked again by the Little Ancestor. Used to think she was just a high-maintenance princess, but now I’m falling harder and harder for her. What’s happening?!"

"Same here! Totally hooked. Honestly, Tang Qing’s got serious charisma! She won’t let anyone push her around—not even a little."

System Announcement:

"Xiang Xiuran’s Love Points increased by 5. Current Love Points: 16."

"General public’s Love Points increased by 136,000."