Soon after the butler finished, the several servants nodded in agreement.
No one knew what would become of the kitchen under the hands of the father and son, but chances were high that Madam wouldn’t be getting a delicious breakfast when she woke up.
In this household, everyone understood one thing: the needs of Master and Young master could be set aside, but Madam’s comfort must be ensured.
A servant was immediately sent out to buy breakfast.
Madam usually woke up around nine, so if they left now, the food would arrive just in time.
Meanwhile, the two people in the kitchen remained oblivious to all this.
However, Xie Yizhao, having had more years of experience than Xie Heng, quickly thought of something important and called the butler in.
“Have someone buy some of Madam’s favorite food and keep it ready,” he instructed. Just in case his cooking attempt ended in disaster.
Xie Yizhao preferred to leave nothing to chance. He didn’t want Lu Xi to go hungry because of his mistakes.
The butler reassured him, “Don’t worry, Master, I’ve already ordered someone to buy it.”
Xie Yizhao gave him a look.
The butler’s expression shifted slightly as he realized he had misspoken. Nervously licking his lips, he tried to explain, “No, Master, I didn’t mean it that way…”
Xie Heng chuckled. “Pfft! Dad, what Uncle Chen meant is that he doesn’t think we can make Madam’s breakfast.”
Xie Yizhao glanced at him indifferently. “And what exactly are you so pleased about?”
Xie Heng’s smile froze.
Right… the butler seemed to be looking down on his cooking skills too…
The butler realized he had just offended both father and son. Sweat formed on his forehead as he quickly excused himself from the kitchen.
Xie Yizhao shook his head slightly, not taking it to heart. “Has the head chef woken up yet? Have him come here.”
The butler nodded and immediately went to fetch the chef.
Xie Heng was confused. “Why call the chef over? I don’t need help, I can just follow the recipe.”
Xie Yizhao ignored him.
He wasn’t cooking to prove a point or to compete with anyone. He believed in being results-oriented. The goal was to make an edible dish, whether or not he did it completely on his own didn’t matter.
Soon, Chef Wang entered the kitchen, looking bewildered.
He was confused as to why Master had summoned him.
Xie Yizhao got straight to the point. “I’m going to make tomato and egg noodles. Watch me, and correct me if I do something wrong.”
Correcting Master? Chef Wang didn’t dare. He quickly nodded and assured, “I’ll keep an eye on things for you.”
Still, he couldn’t help but wonder. If Master needed guidance even for a simple dish like tomato and egg stir-fry, then he had serious doubts about Master’s cooking skills.
For a chef, the kitchen was his domain, an important space not to be casually invaded.
But this was his employer… He suddenly felt a little worried but dared not voice it.
He glanced at Xie Heng.
Noticing the skepticism in the chef’s eyes, Xie Heng lifted his chin defiantly. He walked to the cutting board, slapped a piece of pork with visible reluctance, and said, “I don’t need your help. I can handle it myself.”
Chef Wang grew even more anxious.
The kitchen was spacious, with three cooking stations.
Xie Heng and Xie Yizhao each took a side, not interfering with each other.
To prove his independence, Xie Heng insisted that Chef Wang stay on his Dad’s side—he didn’t need any guidance.
He didn’t care what his Dad was doing.
Last night, Xie Heng had already decided. He would make fish-fragrant shredded pork, a dish both he and Ms. Lu liked.
He had looked up the recipe. Though it had many ingredients, the steps seemed straightforward. As long as he cut the ingredients properly and followed the order, it shouldn’t be difficult.
However, Xie Heng hadn’t anticipated one thing—being stumped by a piece of pork.
He had eaten plenty of meat before but had never handled raw meat himself.
Taken from the fridge’s fresh-keeping section, the pork was cold, soft, and had a strange texture that made his skin crawl.
Luckily, he found a pair of gloves in the cupboard. Putting them on made handling the meat slightly more tolerable.
First, he washed the meat, patted it dry with kitchen paper, and placed it on the cutting board, ready to slice.
Holding the knife, he hesitated, measuring the meat horizontally and then vertically.
He couldn’t figure out where to start.
Chef Wang couldn’t hold back. “Young Master, do you need help? I can slice it for you—”
“No need!” Xie Heng insisted on doing it himself.
It was just cutting meat—how hard could it be?
Taking a deep breath, he decided to cut the meat into slices first before cutting it into strips. He had never done it before, but that seemed like the logical order.
Theoretically, that was correct.
In practice, however, his lack of experience made it difficult.
The knife was sharp, but the meat was too soft. Xie Heng wanted to cut the strips as finely and evenly as possible, as the recipe advised for even cooking. He was very focused. But several times, he almost cut his fingers.
Cold sweat formed on his forehead.
And he had only finished one-fifth of the meat.
Chef Wang finally couldn’t bear it. He took out pre-cut pork strips from the fridge and handed them over. “Young Master, use these instead. It’s already 8:30.”
The servant buying breakfast hadn’t returned yet.
If Madam woke up and found no hot meal, who would be blamed—him or them?
Xie Heng sighed. He checked the time and realized things weren’t looking good. He had no choice but to swallow his pride and accept the meat strips.
Why didn’t they tell him earlier? He had wasted so much time!
He glanced at his Dad’s station.
The ingredients were chopped, the eggs were beaten. His Dad was already preparing to cook.
Xie Heng grew anxious.
Just then, his Dad’s phone rang.
It was a call from a shareholder. Xie Yizhao had to pause, wash his hands, and step out to answer.
Xie Heng’s eyes lit up.
He hoped the call would last a while!
Seizing the opportunity, he quickly got back to work—slicing carrots, cutting the soaked wood ear mushrooms, mixing the sauce… Following the recipe step by step, he gradually got into a rhythm.
In about ten minutes, everything was ready.
Not waiting for his Dad to return, he turned on the stove and heated the oil, starting with the pork strips.
The household had top-quality non-stick cookware, and since he had drained the meat properly, there was no oil splattering. He followed the recipe and stir-fried until the pork turned white before setting it aside.
Meanwhile, Xie Yizhao returned to the kitchen.
A servant informed him that Madam seemed to be awake.
He knew her habits—she moved slowly, taking time to wash up and put on makeup. She’d take at least half an hour, which was just right.
He glanced at Xie Heng’s progress.
His expression remained neutral, but he subtly sped up his own actions.
Fortunately, his dish was simpler. With all the ingredients ready, he could move straight to cooking.
Chef Wang observed every step, even reminding him when to add oil, how to judge the oil temperature, and how to peel the tomatoes.
Thanks to the guidance, Xie Yizhao’s scrambled eggs weren’t perfect but were at least passable.
Now, he just had to stir-fry the tomatoes and mix in the eggs.
At this point, he felt a quiet sense of satisfaction. He was confident he could finish the dish.
While Xie Yizhao was stir-frying tomatoes, Xie Heng also began cooking the side dishes.
Having gained some confidence from his earlier experience stir-frying shredded pork, Xie Heng was relaxed this time, even feeling the urge to hum a tune.
After stir-frying the carrots for a bit, he added the shredded wood ear mushrooms, planning to wait until they were cooked before adding the shredded pork and sauce—then the dish would be complete.
However, at that moment, the wood ear mushrooms, reacting to the heat, suddenly started crackling in the pan.
Lacking experience, Xie Heng didn’t immediately realize something was wrong.
But Chef Wang, who had been keeping an eye on him, did. His expression changed, and just as he was about to warn him, the wood ear mushrooms acted faster than his words.
*Crackle!*
*Bang!!*
…
A series of loud pops erupted from the pan, making Xie Heng frown.
When he had added the pork and carrots earlier, there had been some sizzling, but it hadn’t been this loud…
Holding the spatula, he considered whether he should stir-fry it a bit, but before he could, the commotion in the pan intensified.
Soon, several pieces of wood ear mushrooms literally ‘popped’ out of the pan, sounding just like firecrackers.
Xie Heng was stunned. “Holy crap!!”
Was this about to explode?! He didn’t actually want to blow up the kitchen!
Even Xie Yizhao was drawn over by the noise, and the servants at the door peeked in curiously.
The wood ear mushrooms were so aggressive that some even flew into Xie Yizhao’s pan.
Xie Heng panicked, instinctively reaching for a lid to cover the pan, but Chef Wang reacted first. He quickly stepped forward, turned off the stove, and then covered the pan.
Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief.
Xie Heng’s heart was racing. He was scared out of his wits. Who knew cooking could be this dangerous?! This was more thrilling than riding a roller coaster.
As he struggled to calm down, a faint burnt smell reached his nose.
Did he burn his dish?
Chef Wang smelled it too. He frowned, sniffed the air, then glanced at Xie Yizhao’s side. His expression immediately darkened.
“Master, your dish is burning!” He rushed over and started stirring Xie Yizhao’s pan.
Xie Yizhao was speechless.
Looking into the pan, he saw the slightly charred tomatoes and twitched his lips.
He had been too focused on watching Xie Heng’s disaster and had forgotten he was cooking too.
Not only were the tomatoes burnt, but a few blackened pieces of wood ear mushrooms had also landed in his pan, as if mocking him.
Xie Heng leaned in, then burst out laughing. “Dad, you burned your dish!”
Xie Yizhao gave him a glance but said nothing.
It was too late now.
He put down the spatula, washed his hands, dried them, then turned around expressionlessly and smacked Xie Heng on the head. “Shut up, don’t be noisy. Your Mom is still sleeping.”
Xie Heng pouted but didn’t argue.
He felt like his Dad was getting way too comfortable hitting him these days.
But now… what should they do?
Was there still time to redo it?
Xie Heng frowned in thought, while Xie Yizhao remained calm, though clearly not in a good mood.
It had been years since he had failed this badly…
Just then, footsteps sounded from the hallway, growing closer.
Both father and son were very familiar with that sound. They simultaneously turned toward the door, their expressions subconsciously tense.
Soon, a soft, slightly lazy voice rang out. Lu Xi had arrived.
“Why is it so noisy? Is someone setting off fireworks?”
Xie Heng immediately lowered his head, toes practically digging into the floor.
Noticing that none of the servants answered and everyone looked awkward, Lu Xi turned her gaze toward the kitchen and asked, “It smells bad. Did something burn?”
Xie Yizhao didn’t have time to look away. Before he could react, he accidentally locked eyes with his wife.
Lu Xi stood at the doorway, surveying the mess in the kitchen with a frown, tilting her head slightly as if piecing things together.
At first, she instinctively wanted to laugh. This scene was undeniably comedic.
But then, she caught the faint embarrassment in Xie Yizhao’s expression and the silent, downcast look on Xie Heng’s normally proud face. That stubborn profile exuded an indescribable sadness.
Lu Xi’s heart softened in an instant.
She couldn’t laugh anymore.
She just felt deeply touched.
Even though both of them had failed, they had tried to cook just to make her happy. The thought made her nose tingle, and she suddenly wanted to hug them both.
The butler, however, secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
At least the kitchen hadn’t exploded. And thanks to his foresight, breakfast had already been bought, so no one in the family would go hungry.
But this morning’s meal was noticeably quieter than usual.
Xie Yizhao barely spoke, and Xie Heng seemed distracted, occasionally sneaking glances at Lu Xi.
Lu Xi finished a serving of shrimp dumplings and some rice rolls. Feeling satisfied, she set down her chopsticks, and the two men instinctively stopped eating as well.
Lu Xi glanced at Xie Yizhao, then blinked playfully at Xie Heng. “Come with me upstairs.”
Now it was her turn to comfort them.
Even Xie Heng didn’t ask why. He just shut his mouth and followed her upstairs.
As Lu Xi linked arms with Xie Yizhao, he couldn’t resist lowering his voice and frowning slightly as he confessed, “That burnt dish was mine. But I was set up.”
Lu Xi pursed her lips, nodding in agreement. “Mhm, blame it all on the kid.”
Xie Heng didn’t hear his Dad tattling on him. He was too busy angrily leaving a bad review on the recipe he had followed.
[★☆☆☆☆ Why didn’t they warn me that wood ear mushrooms explode?! I got scammed big time!]
Upstairs, Lu Xi led them to the dressing room and took out the New Year outfits she had prepared for them.
She urged them to try them on.
Xie Heng’s was a puffer jacket, while Xie Yizhao’s was a sleek black coat.
Her choices were intentional. Xie Heng was still young and liked running around outside, so warmth was the priority. Meanwhile, Xie Yizhao was always chauffeured around and rarely spent time in the cold, so his outfit needed to focus on style!
Xie Heng wasn’t too happy about the difference.
Looking at his own reflection, then at his Dad’s, he felt the contrast was too obvious.
His Dad, tall and lean, looked like a fashion model in that coat—sharp and stylish. Meanwhile, he himself… looked a whole size bulkier.
Pouting, he ruffled his short buzz cut, feeling helpless.
When would he finally grow up…
Lu Xi, however, was very pleased with her choices. She linked arms with both of them, feeling delighted. “Not bad, you both look handsome!”
She couldn’t help but think smugly—why is our family’s visual game so strong?
Suddenly, Xie Heng spoke up. “So, who’s more handsome, me or Dad?”
Lu Xi blinked. “You’re both handsome?”
Xie Heng chuckled. “Don’t be vague. Let’s say, for New Year’s Eve dinner, you could only choose between two dishes—Dad’s burnt tomato and egg stir-fry or my exploding fish-fragrant shredded pork. Which one would you eat?”
Lu Xi was stunned.
That was as bad as asking her who she’d save first if they both fell into a river.
She turned to Xie Yizhao for help.
Do something! The kid was attacking her now!
Xie Yizhao lowered his gaze, his eyes gleaming with amusement. He even squeezed her hand lightly and smirked. “Yeah, Xiao Xi, I’m curious too. Whose dish would you eat?”
Lu Xi was speechless.
Whoever said these two didn’t resemble each other must be blind. Their scheming personalities were exactly the same!