Chapter 154: Be a Lady

The air was filled with a refreshing, sweet fragrance. Su Chen could not tell if it came from the room diffuser or from Han Jiangxue, who was sitting right beside him.

Regardless, the scent went straight to his head, stirring up a powerful urge to fall in love.

"How could I even think such a thing?"
"No! Absolutely not!"

Just as Su Chen was lost in his own little world, the game’s opening animation ended, followed immediately by the familiar tutorial sequence.

The graphics were exquisite. As the energetic background music kicked in, a plush teddy bear in a wheelchair, wrapped head-to-toe in bandages, and a little girl with twin pigtails appeared on the screen from the left and right, respectively.

These two contrasting cartoon characters were the ones Su Chen and Han Jiangxue would be controlling.

Once in the game, Han Jiangxue controlled the little girl, preparing ingredients at the stove on the left, while Su Chen was left to manage the clumsy, bandaged bear, rushing back and forth between the ingredient crates on the right. Compared to Han Jiangxue’s character, Su Chen’s role was far more exhausting.

His primary task was to serve the dishes to the customers. As the game progressed, the difficulty would skyrocket; while he could slack off in the beginning, he would eventually need to be fully focused. A single mistake could end the game entirely, forcing them to start over from scratch.

Thump-thump!

The controller vibrated. The game’s first task appeared. It was simple enough that even a neighbor’s dog could pass it, so Su Chen didn't take it too seriously.

Han Jiangxue, on the other hand, was full of energy, her eyes glued to the screen, letting out silver-bell-like laughter that made Su Chen’s ears ache.

*Such a beautiful woman,* Su Chen thought to himself, *too bad she has a mouth.*

Han Jiangxue darted a glance at him and shouted, "Hurry up and bring me that dish!"

Su Chen nodded with a smile and tapped the controller quickly. Colorful virtual dishes flew toward Han Jiangxue’s side. In less than half a minute, her side of the screen was so cluttered with ingredients that her character was barely visible.

Han Jiangxue hurriedly stopped him. "That's enough! Su Chen, can you pay attention to what you're doing? Goodness, why are you so clumsy? We agreed this was supposed to be relaxing!"

"You were the one asking for them," Su Chen replied, feeling like he might cry.

Han Jiangxue ignored his complaints and focused on processing the food. Although it was just a game, she was incredibly dedicated. She cleaned the ingredients and tossed the waste into the trash can with such fluid, practiced movements that Su Chen couldn't help but give her a thumbs-up.

Once she found her rhythm, Han Jiangxue leaned closer and said patiently, "Don't panic, Xiao Su. I'll carry you to victory. This game is easy."

Su Chen looked at her, unable to decide whether to laugh or cry. "No problem. I’ll follow your orders, Chef Han. This restaurant is guaranteed to be a hit—the customers will leave in tears of joy."

Han Jiangxue lifted her chin, putting on an air of feigned arrogance. "That goes without saying. I, Chef Han, was born to be a cook."

Su Chen smiled slightly and stopped talking, both of them fully immersed in the game. He began to organize the food methodically, taking a head of broccoli from the cupboard. He walked over to Han Jiangxue, placed it on the cutting board, and said respectfully, "Go ahead, Chef Han!"

"I like the sound of that."

Soon, Han Jiangxue picked up the kitchen knife and began chopping the broccoli with precision. The *thump-thump-thump* sound effects echoed through the living room; anyone passing by might have thought someone was in the kitchen cooking in the middle of the night.

Once the broccoli was chopped into pieces and plated, she set the knife down and handed the plate to Su Chen. "Go serve the customers, my dear little waiter."

"As you command, my beautiful boss."

The compliment left Han Jiangxue beaming; she felt the urge to cup his face and plant a kiss on him, but reason overcame her impulses, sparing them a chaotic battle of the sexes.

As Su Chen fed the food to the NPCs, their gold count increased by three hundred, and the overall mission progress rose by 10%. Both of them shared a look of satisfaction.

But just then, the game emitted a jarring, vibrating noise. Su Chen looked closely, and the smile vanished from his face.

Five new "orders" popped up on the screen, and the recipes were significantly more complex than before. With the tutorial over, the game had officially begun.

"Boss, this one is tough. Braised shrimp, scrambled eggs with peppers, Kung Pao chicken, and two orders of eggplant with pork strips. You need to pay close attention," Su Chen warned anxiously.

"Don't worry, I've got this." Han Jiangxue patted her chest with confidence.

They worked together frantically. Virtual smoke rose from the kitchen. Su Chen never imagined that cooking in a game could be harder than in real life.

Seeing the timer ticking down, Han Jiangxue asked urgently, "Su Chen, what are you doing? Hurry up and pass the ingredients! If you keep washing them, we'll run out of time!"

"I can't," Su Chen refused firmly. "Boss, you said we had to treat every customer with care."

"Care, my foot! They're virtual characters, they won't die from it!" Han Jiangxue snapped, her attitude shifting instantly as she roared at him.

A woman’s heart is like a needle at the bottom of the ocean. Su Chen was stunned; he hadn't expected her to flip her mood so quickly.

Orders piled up, and broccoli flew everywhere. Han Jiangxue felt like she needed an extra pair of hands; her virtual knife was practically sparking, yet she still couldn't keep up. Worst of all, Su Chen was still there, casually washing vegetables.

*Good grief,* she thought, *is he trying to slack off on the job?*

"New order: Cold vermicelli."
"And tomato scrambled eggs."
"Hurry up! What are you doing? Can you move any faster?"

Before one order was finished, another arrived. Su Chen was so exhausted he was seeing stars. He wanted to smash the screen—which idiot recommended this miserable game?

Leisure and entertainment? This had nothing to do with being relaxed!

The orders kept coming like an unavoidable alarm clock, ringing in Han Jiangxue’s ears. She felt her head was about to explode, her blood pressure surging.

However, just as she was about to snap, the plot took a turn, like a deus ex machina saving her from the crisis.

The mysterious pasta monster apparently decided that simple salads weren't enough to satisfy its palate, so it decided to destroy the city, triggering a new storm. The Onion King sensed the severity of the situation and opened a portal, sucking Su Chen and Han Jiangxue into another dimension to train so they could return to the real world and fight the monster.

Han Jiangxue was slightly surprised, then exclaimed, "What does this mean? Has the game only just begun?"

Su Chen was equally confused. "I think what we just played was only the tutorial."

"It seems this game isn't as simple and mindless as the reviews said. It's going to take some real effort."

"You really can't trust game reviews these days!"

Han Jiangxue took a deep breath, trying to steady her emotions and hide her shock. *Stay calm, Han Jiangxue. It’s just a game, no need to get worked up. Keep your ladylike composure. You can do this!*