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As the night fell completely, Chi Yizhen and his production team encountered the other two pairs of participants.
They hadn’t formally greeted the other two pairs in the morning.
Now, their stalls were surprisingly close to each other.
The stall of the famous actress Li Zhenhe was just opposite He Tiao’s barbecue stall. It looked quite simple, with a group of people gathered around it, and it seemed like they had set up various equipment such as tube lights and spotlights.
Chi Yizhen asked, “Where’s your barbecue chef?”
　The director off-screen had to wait for more than ten minutes on the prompter board and was blocked.
He Tiao’s stall has everything set up. Compared to Li Zhenhe, he has a small store with a freezer.
The space was quite narrow, and it filled up quickly once they put things in it. They had all the basic kitchen utensils, including various sauces and spices.
Chi Yizhen was about to suggest that he’d take a look at how the actress did her nails when He Tiao, who was standing nearby, went to fetch a pot. Chi Yizhen had no choice but to follow along.
“Aren’t there no customers yet? Can’t we take a break?” Chi Yizhen asked.
He Tiao replied, “Let’s start with this.”
He pointed to the duck they had bought.
Chi Yizhen could sense He Tiao’s intention to show off his cooking skills, but his expression didn’t reveal any arrogance. It left Chi Yizhen somewhat unsure.
He nodded and then asked, “Should I go check out what’s happening over there?”
[Chi Yizhen seems like a curious onlooker! I can see him and He Tiao from Li Zhenhe’s livestream camera. They look like such a sweet couple.]
[The e-sports god looks so helpless!]
[The roast duck guy is no match for the actress confirmed.]
[His eyes seem to say, “I’m roasting duck here, can’t you see?”]
He Tiao’s eyes weren’t particularly lively, yet his overall demeanor was calm. When he locked eyes with someone, it felt like his deep gaze could draw you in, and one more look would lead you into an endless trap.
He didn’t say anything; he just held the duck and looked at Chi Yizhen.
[I feel like there should be some captions on this scene: “Honey, do I not look good?”]
[I strongly suggest showing these three groups’ reactions while watching others’ screens.]
[+1, I’d love to see that too!!!]
Chi Yizhen asked, “So, can we go see it together later?”
He Tiao replied, “Can I go with you?”
This counter-question was getting a bit endless and carried a touch of unreasonable stubbornness. Yet, Chi Yizhen found it difficult to define this type of stubbornness.
“Of course, you can.”
He Tiao: “You’re really great.”
Chi Yizhen: He’s really getting into character, isn’t he?
He put on a smile, saying, “It’s still the best to have a husband who roasts duck.”
Chi Yizhen couldn’t help but wonder if the director of this production team had a background in making documentaries. It felt like they were watching a food documentary when they filmed this part.
Aside from the somewhat bizarre focus on roasting duck, everything else seemed fine.
At first, Chi Yizhen didn’t expect He Tiao to act like a real duck roaster, and he never thought He Tiao would be so skilled at it.
Chi Yizhen asked, “Is it really true that your family runs a roast duck shop?”
He Tiao nodded.
Chi Yizhen continued, “So, do your parents know that you’re going on this show?”
He Tiao’s hand hesitated for a moment, remembering the excitement in his younger sister Zhao Minling’s voice when she once shouted that he was going to have a sister-in-law, and the subsequent disappointment when she found out it was for the show.
He nodded and said, “They know.”
Chi Yizhen couldn’t believe that someone who looked like he grew up in a sheltered environment had this kind of family background. He felt intrigued and asked, “Did you used to help out when you were a kid?”
He Tiao replied, “I still do.”
Chi Yizhen raised an eyebrow and said, “Aren’t you busy with work? I heard online that you’re a workaholic.”
They stood by the roadside, with the camera crew capturing their conversation. Chi Yizhen gazed at He Tiao with a focused expression, while He Tiao worked efficiently, making it look like he was truly roasting duck.
“It’s quite relaxing,” He Tiao replied.
Chi Yizhen asked, “But I’m sure if you helped out in the shop, you’d attract a lot of customers, right?”
He Tiao shook his head and said, “I don’t work at the front.”
Chi Yizhen questioned, “Why not?”
[Chi Yizhen’s tone sounds so genuine and sympathetic!]
[Darn it! With such a handsome son running the roast duck shop, I’d be a regular customer every day!]
Perhaps influenced by Chi Yizhen’s tone, He Tiao smiled slightly and said, “Because my dad thinks I can’t sweet-talk customers.”
Chi Yizhen then asked, “So, what do you do to help out?”
He Tiao suddenly looked a bit embarrassed as he lowered his gaze to the duck that was ready to be marinated. He said softly, “I pluck the duck feathers.”
Chi Yizhen: …
“You look like this, and you pluck duck feathers from behind?? Is this relaxing??? Isn’t this a waste of precious resources??”
The comments in the livestream chat had become unreadable, as everyone was in fits of laughter.
Many players under the Star Trail label even flooded Du Binbai’s chat with suggestions for a new emote featuring “duck feather plucking.”
Du Binbai: …
I knew it! He Tiao’s handsome boy image can’t last long.
Why on earth would you say something like this in front of someone you like?
Do you think it’s cute???
He Tiao asked, “What about you? Have you ever helped out before?”
The night was bustling with noise and various sounds. Next door, a bubble tea shop had also opened. Liu Rumen and Li Zhenhe, who were paired together, came in to order bubble tea. They immediately took control and asked the shop owner to change the music because they didn’t find it motivating enough.
The background music was switched to some jazzy saxophone tunes. He Tiao, looking at Chi Yizhen, suddenly wanted to know more about his past.
This handsome man, whose eyes almost always carried a smile, seemed to rarely reveal his true feelings. Real or fake, it was almost difficult for He Tiao to distinguish.
He wanted to know what Chi Yizhen meant when they were entangled in passion that night when he said, “I like you.” What was the reason behind it? Was it a mistake, or did he genuinely mean it?