Chapter 47

Chapter 47

Kitchen.

Bao Yiming set aside two steaks.

Uncle Xu watched nearby, noting the meat’s mediocre quality and asking with slight concern, "Young Master, is this beef for the sir?"

"Yeah," Bao Yiming replied, oblivious to any issue.

He couldn’t tell the difference in ingredient quality yet.

Uncle Xu hesitated, eyeing the camera.

"Did the butler notice the beef isn’t great?"

"Blame the show’s tight budget. Hope Mommy won’t get sick from this."

Uncle Xu, worried the young master might struggle with cookware selection, had already prepared everything for him in advance.

Bao Yiming opened a steak-frying tutorial on his tablet, studied it carefully, and began his cooking mission.

Considering there were only two steaks, he decided to cut a small piece first for a trial.

Uncle Xu frowned anxiously as he watched the boy handle the knife, unable to bear the sight.

He quickly handed over a pair of kitchen scissors. "Young Master, scissors, not the knife."

Bao Yiming didn’t insist—as long as the job got done. He saw red liquid oozing from the steak.

"Huh? Why is there still blood?"

"Yikes! Mommy’s meal is doomed!"

"Mommy, forget the tent! Your son’s no good at this—come quick!"

"The beauty’s never cooked steak before either. This is turning out riskier than camping!"

As soon as Bao Yiming snipped off a small piece, the mushy beef felt grossly sticky.

The thin gloves couldn’t hide the weird, slimy feel against his fingers.

He racked his brain trying to remember how Uncle Zhou butchered ducks, but he couldn’t suppress his instinctive revulsion.

The confused teen muttered in confusion, holding scissors in one hand and gripping the remaining steak in the other, "This is nothing like baking cupcakes!"

"At the supermarket, Mommy wisely suggested ready-made food, but Ming Zai refused and insisted on showing off. (Should’ve spanked him then and there, made him eat, and gone home.)"

The comments all agreed with the "spanking" proposal.

Bao Yiming helplessly put down the steak and pouted at the camera, looking miserable. "Can I get help? Big Daddy… save me!"

His amber eyes glistened, wet and pitiful.

"Oh? I love this desperate cry for help!"

"Ming Zai’s usually so wild, but when he whines and pleads, he’s downright adorable~ Someone pinch those cheeks!"

"Can Big Daddy cook? What if he can’t?"

Not long after, Bo Yi Ming saw Big Papa appear outside the kitchen door, his face looking darker than the cast-iron skillet inside.

He had already deeply realized his mistake at the supermarket and silently lowered his eyes, waiting meekly for “help.”

Bo Tingyuan handed the tablet in his hand to Uncle Xu, then rolled up his sleeves.

He reminded his son to grab the camera.

Bo Yi Ming turned to pick up the device, barely able to contain his delight, grinning with quiet relief.

“Big Papa is here to cook! I’ll stick to filming.”

After a pause, he asked, “But is this even fun to watch? Should I film something else while Big Papa cooks?”

“??? Someone stop him, stat!”

“Ming Zai’s butt deserves a date with a milk pot today (I’ve got one too—XXL!!!)”

The production team was indeed worried he might just leave, so they contacted Uncle Xu right away.

Uncle Xu held the phone up to the young master’s ear.

A crew member said soothingly, like to a kid: “Young Master Ming Zai, please don’t go yet. Could you film your Big Papa cooking the steak?”

“Oh, really?”

Bo Yi Ming glanced up at Big Papa. “Then can I film Big Papa’s face?”

Just as the audience frantically spammed “Do it!” and “We need this!!” the staff replied, “No no no! None of the four kids’ parents can show their faces—it’s all about mystery. Otherwise, we can’t let Big Papa help you cook.”

Bo Yi Ming asked curiously, “Huh? So Xingxing’s dad, Rong Rong’s dad, and Xiao Qi’s mom are the same too?”

Seeing that he seemed to understand, the staff quickly said, “Exactly. So, Ming Zai, you get it now, right? This is super important.”

“Mm! Gotcha!”

Bo Yi Ming took the rule seriously. After hanging up, he picked up the camera and aimed it at the counter, saying regretfully to the audience, “The crew guy said I can’t film Big Papa’s face.”

“Who?! Producer, come out!”

“Ugh, the other three families are the same too—so annoying.”

Bo Yi Ming turned the camera toward Big Papa, fiddled with the focus, and accidentally captured a close-up shot of his hands.

On screen, Bo Tingyuan washed his hands, then smoothly pulled on a pair of disposable gloves.

His large hands with slender fingers, the soft sheen of the ring on his ring finger, and the visible veins on the back of his hand were all clearly visible.

“Total mood shift! So hot!”

“What amazing hands—a real daddy vibe kind of man.”

“Mom’s hands are gorgeous too. Imagine those two holding hands… mmm.”

Bo Tingyuan dashed through prepping the steak, heated the pan, added butter, and seared both sides.

In the shot, only up to his elbows was visible, but the audience could still see how fluid and confident his movements were—clearly a natural in the kitchen.

“Ooooh~”

Bao Yiming sniffed the air. "Wait, Big Daddy knows how to cook? I thought you'd just call in a chef."

"Mn."

Bao Tingyuan had been watching Wen Cishu set up the tent when his son suddenly sought help.

He flipped the steak—the beef quality was average.

After placing it on the cutting board, he went back to the fridge and took out two fresh steaks.

Two-thirds of his tall frame appeared on screen, his long legs especially noticeable.

"Whoa… black shirt with a narrow waist and long legs? That angle is way too intense!"

"Mommy, come quick! Your Ming Zai’s camera work makes his big dad look like one of those flirty cooking influencers."

"Shouldn’t the cliché be flipping the steak and then taking off a shirt? [wink]"

Bao Tingyuan cleaned the newly taken-out steaks before placing them in the pan.

At that moment, Uncle Xu lowered his voice and asked, "Master Bao, should I take the tablet out?"

Bao Tingyuan told him to place it on the nearby island counter, right within his line of sight.

Bao Yiming noticed something playing on the screen.

Curious, he leaned in and realized it was a livestream showing his little daddy from the show.

"Big Daddy, have you been secretly watching Little Daddy this whole time?!"

"Not exactly secretly."

Bao Tingyuan placed the lightly seared steak on the cutting board, picked up a special knife, and sliced it into strips before arranging them on a rectangular baking pan.

"Big Dad’s been watching Mommy’s show the whole time?? You're in the same house—seriously?"

"Getting caught but still confidently correcting his son’s wording—truly the muzzle hottie, so bold."

[Big Dad is so cold and ruthless to his son, but with Mommy, it’s all that deep, gentle “Let me.” Tsk tsk, such obvious favoritism!]

"Ming Zai [facepalming in frustration]: Do you know how hard it is living in this family? Vote for me extra!"

Bao Yiming noticed that after eating some fruit and resting, his little daddy had actually started setting up the tent for him, making him overjoyed.

He couldn’t help but mutter proudly.

"See~? My little daddy definitely wanted to secretly finish it to surprise me, hehe~"

"Tonight, I’m sleeping in the tent with Little Daddy~"

"Yi Ming." Bao Tingyuan, while handling fresh mushrooms, said to his son, who was blocking the screen. "Come here."

"Oh!" Bao Yiming, not getting the hint, simply picked up the tablet and walked aside.

Only when Big Daddy’s green eyes looked at him with slight confusion did he realize his mistake, grinning awkwardly as he set the tablet aside.

"I’ll put it here, Big Daddy, no need to rush. Let’s watch Little Daddy together."

"Ming Zai’s Big Dad: Clueless kid! Give me back your little daddy."

"Wow, Ming Zai totally gets how much his two dads love each other. The kitchen suddenly got all lovey-dovey."

"You three are just too much with the sweetness! Aww, save some for the rest of us?!"

Bo Yi Ming's bedroom.

Wen Cishu still had no idea what was going on in the kitchen, though he remained vaguely worried about his son’s "filial-piety steak."

He had already followed the instructions to get the tent frame set up.

Since it was a two-person tent and rather wide, Aunt Zhong even lent a hand.

Once the four corners were fixed, the cartoon panda-headed tent was standing proud on the living room rug.

"Not bad at all," Wen Cishu said, clapping his hands together.

He bent down to grab a support pole, but Aunt Zhong beat him to it and moved it aside.

Aunt Zhong gently said, "Don’t move anymore. Go sit and rest."

"Oh." He stayed put and took a sip from his water glass.

"Aww, mommy worked so hard~ Mwah!"

"I’m seriously suspecting—if Ming Zai can handle lunch by himself, Daddy Bao would probably come help mommy with the tent."

"?? Doesn’t that mean we’d miss out on the couple’s screen time and all the cute interactions?"

"Great, another reason to whoop Ming Zai’s butt~"

On the sofa, Wen Cishu had one leg curled up comfortably as he looked over at the big tent, picturing how awesome it would be if the three of them could go on a trip together someday.

Still lost in thought, he pulled out his phone and sent a message to Bao Tingyuan.

"When are you free? Let’s go camping—we can use that tent we got today."

Just as the audience was wondering what he was up to, the livestream from the kitchen showed Daddy Bao quickly taking off his gloves, washing his hands, and then ducking off-camera with his phone.

Clearly, he’d received something important.

"Wait—Mommy’s message was for Daddy Bao? How is that fair? Seriously?"

"Is this show actually like a rich-people romance reality show or something?"

"I don’t want to watch from the sidelines—send me to the front row!"

"Ming Zai [bitter]: Now you see the kind of crazy life I have to deal with, right? You better vote for me!"