Chapter 60: Yi Ning’s Habits
Are you even still human?
“Hm? What’s wrong? Why aren’t you eating? Didn’t you say you’d clean your plate no matter what I made?”
Yi Ning rested both arms on the table, one hand propping up her head, a smile naturally curling at her lips.
Looking at Lu Zheng’s wary face as he stared down at the plate, her usual vicious side was on full display.
Was she some kind of demon?
Lu Zheng sat frozen, holding his chopsticks stiffly.
“Wasting food is a bad habit, you know~”
Yi Ning’s smile widened even further as she looked at Lu Zheng’s ashen face.
“Ugh…”
Faced with her pressure, Lu Zheng backed down step by step.
He lowered his head to look at the plate of dark cuisine in front of him.
There was no choice—he had to resume his assault on the stir-fried shredded potatoes and ginger.
But after the earlier trauma, Lu Zheng approached with extreme caution, only picking up one strand at a time, inspecting each thoroughly before placing it into his mouth.
“Pfft—”
Watching Lu Zheng’s sorry state, Yi Ning couldn’t hold back her laughter.
“Alright, alright.”
She waved a hand at Lu Zheng, signaling him to ease up, then walked back to the stove and lifted the lid of another pot nearby, taking out the real dish she had made for his lunch.
Unlike the previous dish that looked like a Michelin-starred joke, this one was generously plated.
The broth could barely seep between the packed ingredients and struggled to stay inside the dish without spilling out.
“I’m not actually a demon. This is your real lunch.”
Yi Ning held the plate with four fingers under the bottom and her thumb at the rim, placing it steadily in front of Lu Zheng.
It was a simple dish of stir-fried shredded potatoes with meat.
Shredded potatoes again…
Wait, don’t tell me this time it’s ginger stir-fried with meat?
Thanks to the earlier debacle, Lu Zheng’s trust in Yi Ning had been completely eroded.
He carefully inspected the dish, picked up a shred, and held it up for close examination.
It looked like a potato.
He put it in his mouth and took a bite—it tasted like potato.
Lu Zheng let out a breath of relief and finally started eating heartily.
Yi Ning sat across from him, propped up on the table, tilting her head with a big smile as she watched him scarf down the food.
As a cook, nothing was more satisfying than seeing someone devour your food.
But as an evil scientist, she enjoyed seeing a different kind of spectacle too—
Like people falling into disarray.
Once Lu Zheng had eaten through more than half the food, Yi Ning suddenly spoke up.
“Do you trust me enough to believe there’s nothing wrong with this dish?”
“?”
Lu Zheng held his rice bowl in his left hand and chopsticks in his right, staring blankly at her.
Was there something wrong with this dish?
He hadn’t tasted anything off.
“Hehehe~”
Yi Ning sat up straight and clasped her hands under her chin.
“Actually, what I served you was a plate of ginger stir-fried with meat.”
She narrowed her eyes and gave a foxy smile.
Lu Zheng: “?”
He picked up another piece of the yellow strands with his chopsticks and put it in his mouth.
He chewed thoughtfully, analyzing the taste carefully.
Potato flavor.
Potato aroma.
Potato texture.
No matter how he examined it—it was undeniably a potato.
Lu Zheng looked at Yi Ning, unable to decipher what kind of trick she was playing.
As if reading his mind, Yi Ning smiled wider.
“Curious, aren’t you? Why does it taste like potato in your mouth, even though I said it was ginger?”
She stood up and pointed at Lu Zheng with a chopstick.
“Hmph!”
And before anyone could respond, she answered her own question.
“It’s my latest evil invention—yes, my latest evil invention!”
But unlike before, this time she didn’t immediately whip it out, instead leisurely explaining its effects first.
“Rejoice! It’s the ultimate tool that changes both taste and texture—transcending ingredients and seasoning—capable of making you taste chocolate-flavored poop and poop-flavored chocolate alike!”
She stepped onto her chair, planted one foot on the table, and raised both arms high in celebration of her invention.
“I call it—Super Invincible Seasoner!”
“……”
Watching Yi Ning flail and rave like that, Lu Zheng was speechless.
He decided not to believe a single word she said.
They’d sparred over her inventions for long enough—he knew her personality inside and out.
Sure, she acted wild most of the time, but she was actually a rather rigid person underneath.
Her evil plans always started right on time, every procedure was meticulously executed, and her inventions were always numbered and never revealed before the plan officially began!
Unless there was a literal earthquake about to happen, there was no way she’d break her own habits and reveal her evil device this early.
He picked up another bite and calmly waited for her to finish her act.
“I mean, knowing it was ginger, you still ate it so happily?”
Seeing Lu Zheng totally unmoved, Yi Ning pouted a bit.
Sure, it wasn’t actually ginger, but could he at least react the way she wanted?
She lowered her raised arms, jumped down from the table, wiped the spot she’d dirtied, puffed her cheeks, and plopped back into her seat grumpily.
“I don’t like ginger mainly because I’m not used to the taste. If the taste changes, then I don’t really care anymore.”
Lu Zheng, almost provocatively, kept munching on what she claimed were “ginger strips.”
“Besides, if it looks like a potato, tastes like a potato, and feels like a potato—then it's a potato!”
He finished the last bite of rice and placed his bowl and chopsticks down.
“Annoying.”
Yi Ning pulled a sour face at Lu Zheng’s unshakable reaction.
“Next time, I’ll make chocolate-flavored poop and see if you’ll still eat it!”
She slumped against the chair back, muttering to herself. Then she pulled a little notebook from her pocket and began scribbling something furiously.
“What are you doing?”
Lu Zheng stood up with his bowl and chopsticks, heading toward the sink to clean them.
“Jotting down my precious evil ideas—evil inspiration isn’t something you can summon on a whim. Try to understand the daily grind of a working wage-slave.”
Yi Ning gave him a sideways glance and playfully pointed her pen cap at him.
“Just leave the dishes there. I’ll wash them later.”