Back in 2301, after Chen Cheng took a shower, he went into the kitchen to make breakfast.

In the guest room, as soon as the phone alarm rang, 'Ring-a-ling~ Ring-a-ling...', Zhu Zhe sprang up with a start.

"Hiss... Ah~ It hurts..."

In an instant, the dryness in her throat and the throbbing pain in her head spread throughout her body. Zhu Zhe groaned, clutching her head.

Zhu Zhe kept pressing her temples with both hands to alleviate the pain from her hangover.

Her alcohol tolerance was average; five bottles was already her limit. Being in a bad mood made her get drunk even faster.

After a long while, the pain finally eased a little.

She picked up the water glass on the bedside table and took a sip, only then realizing that this didn't seem to be her own room.

She hurriedly looked down and, seeing that her clothes hadn't been changed, immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

"This is Chen Cheng's place?"

Zhu Zhe muttered to herself, put down the water glass, and got out of bed.

Standing at the doorway, she took a deep breath before tiptoeing out of the room.

Chen Cheng heard footsteps, turned his head to look, and met Zhu Zhe's embarrassed gaze.

"Good morning, Sister Zhu." Chen Cheng smiled brightly.

"Go... Good morning," Zhu Zhe said, her face looking somewhat awkward.

"Why don't you take a shower? Breakfast will be ready in a while," Chen Cheng said, pointing to the guest room. "There's a bathrobe in the guest bathroom."

Zhu Zhe reached up and touched her face; it really felt greasy after not washing for a day.

"Alright then," Zhu Zhe nodded and turned to go take a shower.

Scum watched Zhu Zhe's flustered appearance, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly.

"She's actually quite cute."

Scum shrugged and turned back to continue frying the egg pancake.

After making breakfast, Chen Cheng didn't deliberately wait for Zhu Zhe; he ate while watching the morning news from Japan.

Not long after, Zhu Zhe came out.

She was wearing a black embroidered ice silk bathrobe, standing in front of Chen Cheng with a flustered expression.

Scum felt the gaze upon him and only then noticed Zhu Zhe in front of him.

He pointed to the chair opposite him. "Sister Zhu, sit."

"Oh~" Zhu Zhe replied, looking somewhat flustered.

She had been stunned when she opened the bathroom cabinet. There were two bathrobes in it in total: one white silk and one black silk.

Each one was shorter than the other, and the white one even had transparent lace trimmings. Zhu Zhe had never worn anything like these before.

For a moment, Zhu Zhe couldn't decide. Her body really felt smelly, so in the end, she had to choose the slightly more normal-looking black bathrobe.

"I boiled some millet porridge. See if it's to your taste, Sister Zhu."

Zhu Zhe glanced at the food on the dining table and looked at Chen Cheng with quite some surprise.

Millet porridge, egg pancake, boiled eggs, and some side dishes made with celery, broccoli, carrots, and peanuts.

These things looked simple, but in reality, they were things only a veteran in the kitchen could truly pull off. A novice wouldn't be able to handle being busy with so many dishes at once.

Zhu Zhe picked up the bowl, blew on the rim, and tried taking a sip.

When the porridge entered her mouth, her eyes immediately lit up. It was neither cold nor hot; it was just right.

For a hangover, the warm millet porridge was practically a dish fit for the gods. Zhu Zhe started slurping it down in big mouthfuls.

"Ah~"

After a while, Chen Cheng looked at the flushed Zhu Zhe and, waiting for her to swallow, smiled and said, "Back to life?"

Zhu Zhe nodded vigorously like a pestle pounding garlic. "Mm!"

"My stomach was churning just a moment ago, but after one sip, I immediately felt like I came back to life."

As she said this, she gave a thumbs-up.

Chen Cheng's mouth twitched. To be in this state and still hold back from vomiting last night—this person was truly ruthless to herself.

Zhu Zhe picked up a chopstick of side dishes and put them in her mouth; her eyes immediately widened.

With her mouth full, she began to mumble praise for Chen Cheng. "Chen Cheng, you really cook quite well."

At this moment, Chen Cheng couldn't even suppress his smile. "Is it good? If it's good, eat more."

Zhu Zhe nodded with bright eyes, and while eating, asked, "Did you teach yourself abroad?"

"Yes, the food abroad is too monotonous. I had no choice but to fend for myself," Chen Cheng smiled. "Sister Zhu's guess is quite accurate."

"There are many videos of international students cooking on social media; I often come across them."

Chen Cheng joked with a smile, "It seems Sister Zhu is also a veteran surfer of the web."

Zhu Zhe smiled sheepishly. "Hehe, I still slack off a bit during work breaks."

Chen Cheng raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything.

The joy of a worker—slacking off!

Next, neither of them spoke.

Chen Cheng quietly scrolled through news from Japan while eating.

Zhu Zhe ate for a while, felt full, and her movements slowed down.

She sized up Chen Cheng while eating.

High bridge of the nose, sword-like eyebrows and star-like eyes, and a very good-looking jawline.

Jet-black hair, bulging pectoral muscles under a white t-shirt, and a broad, "double-door" back.

This guy is also very tall, nearly 1.9 meters.

If he were to wear a pair of gold-rimmed glasses...

*Gulp~*

Zhu Zhe swallowed her saliva unconsciously.

A man like this, sitting there without moving, is already very alluring.

And he's a top student from Stanford.

Not to mention his charming aura when driving a ferrari with one hand.

This man should be described as a temptress.

Ah, pfft, Tang Monk is more like it.

Zhu Zhe subconsciously lifted her leg and crossed it, gently tugged at the hem of her bathrobe, and looked with burning eyes at Chen Cheng, who was carefully scrolling through information.

The system is a guarantee, but it is definitely not a rice bowl; this is a principle Chen Cheng understood when he was eight.

Parents are your backing, but they are definitely not something to rely on.

Chen Cheng felt Zhu Zhe's gaze, looked up at her, and smiled, "Sister Zhu, is there a flower on my face?"

Having her thoughts exposed, a flush immediately rushed to Zhu Zhe's pretty face.

"Cough cough~"

"Oh, oh, no, I was just a bit distracted."

"By the way, about that, regarding yesterday's matter, please keep it a secret."

"Okay."

Chen Cheng said, making a motion of zipping his mouth shut with his hand.

Zhu Zhe smiled; this guy was really too unserious.

"Are you going to the hotel today?"

"No, I took a day off." Zhu Zhe shook her head, looking a bit downcast.

"Hmm?"

Chen Cheng glanced at Zhu Zhe keenly.

Taking a day off? That didn't seem like her style.

Uh... could it be because of that house used for "acting"?

In the original plot, the sister and brother came to Ode to Joy and were picky about everything from Zhu Zhe's room to her clothes. Even when going to the hotel with Ye Zhenzhen's BMW to back her up, they were still bossy towards Zhu Zhe.

Chen Cheng helped change to a more realistic environment, and there was no luxury car leading the way. This younger sister and brother must have lost face, and they probably gave their older Sister Zhu Zhe even less of a good look.

The urban village in a big city really doesn't have as good an environment as an ordinary apartment building in a small place.

This Zhu Mingjie even brought his girlfriend and future mother-in-law to Shanghai. Seeing that his older sister's living environment wasn't even as good as a village committee office, it would be strange if he could keep a straight face.

This sister and brother must have said things that embarrassed Zhu Zhe even more, which she was too embarrassed to mention while drinking last night.

Chen Cheng looked at Zhu Zhe and said, "Why don't you go out to clear your mind?"

Zhu Zhe pondered for a moment, shook her head, and smiled, "No, I'd better just get a good sleep. My head is still spinning, hahaha."

After saying this, she looked at Chen Cheng in surprise. "By the way, you drank more than I did, so how come it feels like you have no reaction at all? I don't even remember how I got back."

"Haha~" Chen Cheng's mouth twitched. "Is it possible that your alcohol tolerance is just not good?"

"Uh..."

Zhu Zhe's face looked awkward.

o(╯□╰)o

She glared at Chen Cheng indignantly, got up, and picked up the bowls and chopsticks.

"Ah, don't, Sister Zhu, leave them there; I'll do it in a while," Chen Cheng hurriedly got up to stop Zhu Zhe from clearing the bowls.

There's no reason to let a guest clear the bowls.

"You cooked, I'll wash the bowls; isn't that a clear division of labor?" Zhu Zhe said with a smile. "Besides, I already troubled you enough yesterday."

As she said this, she pressed Chen Cheng back into his chair.

"Don't worry, I haven't sobered up yet, but I'm not incoherent. I can still handle a little bit of manual labor."

Uh, Chen Cheng's mouth twitched, and he had to let her be. "Alright then."

Zhu Zhe smiled and cleared the bowls.