Shen Qiang looked very serious, and as Qingxuan saw the look in his eyes, she smiled, yet the tears in her beautiful eyes couldn't be stopped no matter what.

"Master, you are a disciple of Medical Saint, how can you recklessly kill people for Qingxuan?"

Shen Qiang drew her into his arms, raised an eyebrow, and said, "The disciple of Medical Saint is also human, if I must kill someone to save you, I will not hesitate. Because in my heart, your place, Qingxuan, is irreplaceable by anyone."

These words moved Qingxuan to tears.

"Master's intentions, Qingxuan will remember deep in my heart, but as a disciple of Medical Saint, you should not stain your hands with blood because of the lowly Qingxuan."

Shen Qiang frowned and said coldly, "Qingxuan, I have justice in my heart, but also selfish desires. I know what to do, and what you need to do now is just quietly cultivate, wait until the right time, and I promise, you will definitely experience a Bathing in Fire Rebirth."

"Mm!" Qingxuan nodded forcefully.

After finishing this conversation, Shen Qiang, who had just relaxed, hugged Qingxuan tight when suddenly, a strange ringtone from a phone call eerily reached his ears.

Shen Qiang's thoughts immediately returned to reality.

In the sunlight filtering through the curtains, he picked up the phone on the bedside and was surprised to find that the call was from Lv Shuyao, who was far away in England.

Lately, although the two of them had been in contact frequently, the time differences meant they mostly left messages online, so seeing her number, Shen Qiang instinctively realized something must have happened.

Indeed, as soon as he answered the call, Lv Shuyao spoke urgently, "Shen Qiang, do you have time today?"

Shen Qiang was startled, "You're back?"

"No, it's like this, my dad is the head chef at a star-rated hotel. Recently, the boss changed, and the new boss wants my dad to lead the team to a cooking contest. He said if they can't place within the top three in Provincial City, he'll have to resign."

"Previously, my dad already lost two rounds in a row, and today is the deciding match. If they don't come first today, there's still a chance for him to squeeze into the top three, but if he doesn't win first place, he'll have to resign."

"After a lot of thought, in this situation, the only person who can help him is you. Please, help him out for me. He's a very stubborn and prideful man who always believed he's the best chef in Provincial City. If his team doesn't even make it to the final top three, I can't imagine how much of a blow he'll receive."

"So, help him out, please."

Lv Shuyao's words left Shen Qiang somewhat between laughter and tears.

"Is that appropriate? When you left last time, he didn't seem to like me very much."

Upon hearing Shen Qiang's words, Lv Shuyao became anxious, "Shen Qiang, you jerk, when we're friends, does my dad have to coddle you, fuss over you with greetings and busy himself around you? Just tell me if you're going to help or not!"

Shen Qiang felt embarrassed and sighed helplessly, "I'll help; your dad's matter is my matter, okay?"

"That's more like it," Lv Shuyao's tone turned coy, "Make sure you perform well, and remember to get first place! If you don't win, see how I'll deal with you when I get back."

Shen Qiang laughed, "If it's a wrestling match in bed, you won't be able to beat me anyway."

"Tsk, no decent words from a dog's mouth. I'm hanging up now. I'm going to call my dad; he's too prideful to ever ask for your help. I'll tell him that you just want to experience the atmosphere of the competition. When you get there, don't let anything slip."

Shen Qiang felt resigned and raised an eyebrow, "Alright, I'll do as you say, pretending to be an apprentice then."

Noticing that Shen Qiang seemed somewhat unhappy, Lv Shuyao coquettishly pleaded over the phone, "Please, just go. Your medicinal cuisine is so amazing, you can definitely win first place. Even if it's for my sake, can you endure it? After I come back, I'll make it up to you."

Shen Qiang laughed, "How will you make it up?"

Lv Shuyao sighed softly over the phone, blushing as she said, "However you want to be compensated, I'll compensate you, alright?"

Hearing this, Shen Qiang's eyes curved in laughter.

How things go is all up to me?

Oh? Haha, that's kind of interesting.

Get up.

Pick everything up quickly and tidily.

Descending from upstairs, he saw the mannequin-clothes-making expert, who was delightedly looking at herself in the mirror, not only was her skin much fairer than before, but the freckles on her face had also greatly reduced.

Spying this scene, Shen Qiang smiled and stopped in his tracks, saying, "By the way, I think your craftsmanship is really deft. If you have time, perhaps you could make a few suits for me as well. Moreover, you should know that this 'Jade Blemish Removal Water' is quite rare and precious, so if you don't mind, please stay here."

"You should open your online shop if you see fit. I'll give you the studio for free, I'll cover your daily living expenses, and let's change your salary to ten thousand a month. How about that?"

The mannequin-clothes-making expert frowned and said, "Scope of work?"

Thinking for a moment, Shen Qiang replied, "Well, making clothes for me, my woman, my relatives… hm, that's about it. Of course, when you're free, if you're willing, you might help me iron shirts and such. It's up to you."

"I refuse." The mannequin-clothes-making expert said without a second thought, "I can make clothes for you, but I refuse to become your servant."

Without hesitation, Shen Qiang nodded and said, "Ok, no problem. Then when you have time, start by making me some underwear first. Remember, I like them elegant and stylish."

Having said that, Shen Qiang turned and left the room, not caring about the mannequin-clothes-making expert's facial expression.

Because even if her acting was top-notch, Shen Qiang had already seen through her long ago, Xiu Ju of the Dragon Clan's Dark Department, the executor of the newcomer protection plan. Let's not even mention the tasks at hand; she wouldn't want to leave just for the 'Jade Cream' diluted with water alone, capable of removing blemishes.

So... it was time to retaliate for her mockery.

Following the address Lv Shuyao provided, Shen Qiang arrived at the Inner City Riverfront, just one and a half kilometers away from Jinyu Huacheng.

Looking up, he saw the Banquet Guest Building situated by the riverside.

This was an establishment with centuries of history, quite famous in Provincial City. The prices were reasonable, and the cooking was decent. He had been there once during a classmate's birthday while in school, and at that time, it felt extremely luxurious.

Now thinking about it, it was indeed quite ordinary.

When he reached the Banquet Guest Building, he saw a huge banner going across the front, reading "The 5th Huaxia Culinary Competition Provincial City Division."

It seemed kind of interesting, but there were only a few journalists, a small presence.

Just then, he caught sight of Lv Shuyao's father, who was leading a group of people off a minibus.

Shen Qiang greeted him and said, "Hello, Uncle Lv. I'm Shen Qiang. We've met at the airport before. Today, I thought I'd join you to experience the atmosphere of the competition..."

Lv Shuyao's dad laughed, clapped Shen Qiang on the shoulder, and interrupted, "Thanks for coming to help. I know you're brilliant with medicinal cuisines. Saying that, it must be Shuyao's idea. In her eyes, I'm just an old man who is stubborn about face."

Shen Qiang felt embarrassed.

These two, the old are indeed more cunning!

As he was pondering how to respond, a group of people came over.

The leader was a man around his forties with an oily face.

He looked at Shen Qiang with a disdainful gaze and said arrogantly with a smile, "Hey, Old Lv, no offense, but even if you need outside help, you should at least find someone decent. What use could you possibly have for this young man who hasn't even fully grown his fur yet?"

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.