Even if Jian Xiu was actually messing with him, seeing how serious she looked, Zhang Zixuan was still willing to go along with it.

Half a quarter of an hour passed, yet the egg whites remained as they were. Apart from a few bubbles forming, there was no visible change.

After hesitating for a moment, Zhang Zixuan couldn’t help but ask, “Xiuer, is this really going to work?”

“What? You don’t believe me?” Jian Xiu glanced at him while speaking, then added, “Keep going, you’re doing great. Don’t stop, keep at it, it will work.”

Since she had already said this much, what else could he do but continue?

Gathering his strength into his right hand again, he followed Jian Xiu’s instructions and stirred continuously in the same direction.

Another quarter of an hour passed, and Zhang Zixuan finally noticed something different about the egg whites.

They were no longer clear but had turned somewhat white.

“Xiuer, the egg whites seem to have changed.”

“Mhm, it’s almost there. Add a little sugar and keep going. You’re very close.”

Sure enough, before long, just as Jian Xiu had said, the egg whites formed into soft peaks.

Seeing this, Zhang Zixuan finally let out a breath and placed his trembling chopsticks down.

“Tired? Rest for a while if you are.”

“Tired? Do we need firewood? If we do, I can start the fire now.”

“Yes, you can start it now.”

The fire here wasn’t like those in the post-apocalyptic world—one spark, and it would ignite instantly.

Here, they had to build and maintain it, which took time.

As Jian Xiu combined the whipped egg whites with the flour mixture she had prepared, she poured it into a small, greased wooden basin.

After smoothing the surface, she waited for the water to boil before placing the basin into the pot for steaming.

“How long will it take to steam?” Zhang Zixuan asked curiously.

“About a quarter of an hour.”

“Is this a dish from your homeland?”

“Yes, it’s quite good. I made plenty, so you can try it later. If you like it, I…”

At this point, Jian Xiu stopped speaking.

She felt this was something she could discuss with Manager Wu.

After all, he was in the food business.

Suddenly, an idea popped into her mind.

She might have just discovered a new business opportunity.

“If it tastes good, then what?” Zhang Zixuan asked curiously.

“You’ll know after you taste it. It’s too early to say.” Jian Xiu replied mysteriously.

Right now, it was only an idea. Whether it would work or not remained uncertain.

Before the full fifteen minutes had passed, a familiar fragrance filled the air.

“That’s the smell! This is it!” Jian Xiu exclaimed excitedly.

If only she had milk. With milk, the flavor would be even better.

But even without it, she was already quite satisfied.

Just from the aroma alone, she knew she had succeeded.

Sure enough, when she took it out, the previously flat mixture had risen and expanded.

This was the characteristic of a chiffon cake—the more it rose, the more successful it was.

It also meant the cake was extra fluffy.

Taking a knife, she cut the cake into ten large pieces.

She had made a big batch this time. She set aside eight of the best pieces, dividing them into two portions.

One portion was for the academy.

The other was for Manager Wu at Yuexiang Restaurant.

The last two pieces were for their own family to enjoy.

“Want to try some?” Jian Xiu asked Zhang Zixuan.

Zhang Zixuan swallowed but still shook his head. “No, you eat. I’ll wait until the kids wake up tomorrow so we can eat together.”

But before he even finished speaking, Jian Xiu had already placed a large piece into his mouth.

“How can you give me feedback if you don’t try it? How else will I know if I succeeded?”

Hearing this, Zhang Zixuan accepted the cake and put it into his mouth.

He knew Jian Xiu was saying this on purpose—just to get him to eat more.

“Well? How does it taste?” Jian Xiu asked with a grin.

To be honest, she was very satisfied with the result.

She hadn’t used enough eggs, there was no milk, and if she had a few drops of lemon juice, she could have removed the eggy smell.

Unfortunately, she didn’t have those ingredients.

Of course, she could buy them from her supermarket, but she had to wait until Zhang Zixuan’s leg healed.

Right now, every single point of credit was extremely valuable to her.

“It tastes great. It’s so soft—really delicious!” Zhang Zixuan said, trying to stay composed.

But in truth, he was very surprised.

He never imagined something so delicious could come from simply whisking egg whites.

Suddenly, he became extremely curious about the world Jian Xiu came from.

What kind of minds did they have to come up with such amazing food?

And her martial arts—he was just as curious about that and wanted to learn.

However, looking down at his legs, he swallowed back the words he had been about to say.

“I’m telling you, this is just the steamed version. If it were baked, it would be even more fragrant.” Jian Xiu said as she took another bite.

“Baked? How do you bake it?”

Since Zhang Zixuan asked, Jian Xiu explained, “It’s done using heat…”

She then patiently described the principles of an oven.

(The author won’t go into detail here, as it’s easy to look up on Baidu.)

After hearing her explanation, Zhang Zixuan fell into deep thought.

Seeing this, Jian Xiu didn’t pay it much mind. After finishing her cake, she stored away the remaining three pieces and returned to her room for some rest.

..

When Jian Xiu woke up, unsurprisingly, Zhang Zixuan was already up.

During breakfast, the cake received overwhelming praise from the three children.

“Come back early. And when the teacher asks questions, don’t be nervous. Just relax and answer.” Zhang Zixuan instructed carefully.

“Don’t worry, Father! Last night, we already memorized the multiplication table that Mother taught us.”

“That fast?” Jian Xiu asked, wide-eyed.

She had taken several days to memorize the table herself.

Of course, that was still considered fast—most people took at least half a month to fully master it.

“Well… we can recite it, but we’re not completely fluent yet.” Zhang Feixuan and Zhang Feiyi scratched their heads awkwardly.

With Feixuan, Feiyi, and Feilan in tow, they prepared to leave for Quanyong County.

It was the first time the three of them had ever left their town, and as soon as they got on the ox cart, they were beyond excited.