Forced into a romantic relationship

Chapter 283 Chicken talking to duck
Returning inside through the back door, Zhong Yin took off her oil-stained work clothes. The autumn wind brought a chill, and she coughed. As if still worried, she picked up a tissue to wipe her already washed hands before putting on the beige coat hanging behind the door.

The zipper slid upwards, encountering significant resistance at her chest. She frowned slightly, pulled the zipper up forcefully, and felt a tightness in her chest.

"Clap."

Seemingly unable to withstand such immense pressure, the zipper suddenly snapped and fell off, landing on the toolbox in the corner.

"The quality is really bad..."

Zhong Yin frowned, picked up the zipper and put it on the table, intending to put it back on when he had time.

"Sister Yin, what's that sound on your end?" Just then, a puzzled voice came from the other end of the phone.

"It's nothing, I just dropped something."

Do you have a cold?

"No... cough cough."

Zhong Yin denied it aloud, but her body seemed unwilling to deny it, coughing uncontrollably twice as soon as she finished speaking.

"You really caught a cold..."

Han Zhou thought to himself, "Sure enough, I just felt that the other person's voice was a bit strange. Just as I was about to continue speaking, I heard the other person say urgently, 'Keep your voice down, don't let Xiaoling hear you.'"

Han Zhou was taken aback, glanced at Zhong Ling beside him, and asked in confusion, "Are you afraid she'll find out about something like this?"

"It's just a minor cold, there's no need to tell her and make her worry," Zhong Yin said coldly. "I'll go back to my bedroom now to take my medicine, and I'll be fine tonight."

"You're really strong-willed..." Han Zhou said, both amused and exasperated.

No... using "strong-willed" to describe it might not be quite appropriate.

He suddenly remembered the first time he went to the Zhong sisters' house, when the woman was reluctant to pay compensation and proposed to compensate with "an eye for an eye," but she didn't want her younger sister, Zhong Ling, to see this.

This woman values ​​her self-esteem highly, but it's not something she can't let go of.

She only showed her strong-willed side to her younger sister, keeping her vulnerable side to herself.

The sound of a door opening and closing came from the other end of the phone, followed by various other sounds. It seemed that Zhong Yin had really gone back to her room to take her medicine. Han Zhou's hearing was very good now, and he could vaguely hear the clear sound of wind chimes.

"Sister Yin, do you have wind chimes in your room?"

"Hmm." Zhong Yin seemed to be drinking water. "Xiao Ling's room also has one; it's a set."

"You two have a really good relationship," Han Zhou said with a smile, expressing his sincere admiration.

"You don't need to tell me that."

Zhong Yin put down her cup and looked at the family photo on the bedside table.

The photo shows a family of four in a sunny meadow. On either side of the photo stand a smiling couple, and in the center stands a little girl with a bright smile, her hands being held by her parents. Behind her stands another girl, much taller than the little girl, with her hands on the little girl's head, also smiling, though not as brightly as the little girl, but equally radiating happiness.

After gazing at the family photo for a long time, Zhong Yin looked away and said, "Alright, let's get back to the question we just discussed."

Han Zhou's expression turned serious, and he asked again, "How I see you... is that the question?"

"Correct."

Zhong Yin gave an affirmative answer. What she was actually asking was how she viewed her skills, but she didn't think much of it, assuming that the other person had omitted the subject.

"Sister Yin, forgive my bluntness... why would you suddenly ask this?" Han Zhou asked, puzzled.

Zhong Yin was silent for a moment: "I want to make some changes... Anyway, be serious and tell me your true thoughts. Your opinion is very important to me."

"Alright." Puzzled as he was, since Zhong Yin had already gone this far, Han Zhou naturally wanted to cooperate. "So, what specific aspects should we evaluate?"

"Color, aroma, and taste".

Zhong Yin spoke calmly. In her view, judging a person's skill is about evaluating whether their food tastes good or not, and color, aroma, and taste are the standards for judging whether food is delicious or not.

Color, aroma, and flavor?
Han Zhou was taken aback. Aren't color, aroma, and taste used to evaluate food? When did they become used to evaluate people?
He sensed something was wrong and asked again, "Sister Yin, are you sure you really want me to evaluate you?"

"Why are you spouting so much nonsense?" Zhong Yin frowned. "It's me, Xiao Ling doesn't need your evaluation."

Xiaoling had made pastries a few times before, and this guy had eaten them. She thought Han Zhou also wanted to take the opportunity to comment on Zhongling's cooking skills.

Okay, so the person being evaluated is indeed the one...

Han Zhou felt relieved and then asked, "What does this 'color' refer to...?"

"Of course, it's the shape and color."

Zhong Yin felt that this guy was doing it on purpose. What normal person doesn't know the meaning of color, aroma, and taste?

This question has stumped me. I hate commenting on other people's appearances the most... Han Zhou pondered for a moment and said, "I think your appearance is certainly very good. You have a high face value and a good temperament, but you are a bit cold. It would be great if you could improve that."

"Does it need to be improved that it's cold?" Zhong Yin frowned. It's not like it's a freshly baked pastry; isn't it normal for it to be a little cold?
"It's a matter of opinion. Some people might like your type," Han Zhou said with a smile. "Anyway, in my opinion, you'd be more likable if you weren't so cold."

How can I stop feeling so cold?

Zhong Yin felt that he was nitpicking. It wasn't summer yet. If he felt cold, didn't he know to heat it up himself?

How would I know how to not be so cold... Han Zhou hesitated for a moment: "Um, why don't you learn from your senior and smile more?"

Drawing smiley faces on pastries... Xiaoling does like to do that when she makes pastries. Although she doesn't know what it has to do with whether it's cold or not, she can try it.

Zhong Yin secretly noted it down and then asked, "Is there anything else?"

"What else?"

"The pros and cons of 'color'." Knowing that Han Zhou was a little afraid of her, she added in the gentlest tone possible, "Just tell me, I won't get angry."

"I can't see any weaknesses right now, but as for the strengths..." Han Zhou hesitated for a moment, but decided to answer truthfully, saying with difficulty, "...very interesting."

Zhong Yin has a very attractive figure, the kind that's hard to look away from. Since the other party has granted him "freedom of speech," it's necessary to mention this advantage.

"Any information?"

Zhong Yin was taken aback, then realized that the pastries she made were indeed made with generous amounts of ingredients, but this might not be a good thing, as it could be too sweet. So she asked, "Do you think this is a good thing?"

"what?"

"I mean, do you like this type of thing? Or... does it make you more hungry?"

Han Zhou looked blank. "You're asking me this kind of question? And... what does 'appetite' mean?"
Could this guy be a hidden racing genius?!

Taking a deep breath and clearing his mind of the unhealthy images, he cautiously said, "Of course I like this type... but there's one thing I need to clarify: whether someone is well-endowed or not isn't that important to me; I value looks."

Actually, Han Zhou preferred larger ones; his answer was mainly to be wary of Guzheng.

As a representative of "lacking substance," Gu Zheng might throw a tantrum if she got the information about Zhong Yin's favorite food from him in the future. To avoid being hurt by the boomerang, he had to answer cautiously. Han Zhou secretly praised himself for his wit, only to hear Zhong Yin question, "Value appearance? Shouldn't you value whether it tastes good or not?"

Han Zhou's face stiffened, and unhealthy images flashed through his mind again. He exclaimed, "Is it tasty?"

"Isn't it true that whether there's plenty of filling or little filling, the final taste is the key?"

"Where does it taste like?" Han Zhou blurted out the thought that had been on his mind.

"Of course, it's the overall taste."

Zhong Yin frowned, increasingly feeling that this guy wasn't trying to answer properly and was just asking meaningless questions.

What a wonderful overall taste! I guess I was too narrow-minded...

Han Zhou felt a chill run down his spine. He was now almost certain that this woman, who usually seemed cold and aloof, was indeed a hidden driving expert, just like Mo Yixia!
The difference is that Mo Yixia's car is mostly seen in the open, while Zhong Yin's car is more discreet.

He smiled wryly and said, "I don't think I can answer that question right now..."

“That’s true. If you have the chance, come to my house sometime, and I’ll try to let you try some new flavors.”

Zhong Yin nodded. The pastries she was making were too limited in variety, making it impossible for the other party to sample more flavors and thus impossible to provide an objective evaluation.

Han Zhou was startled. Before he could understand what the other person meant, he heard them continue, "Let's talk about 'fragrance' next. What do you think of the fragrance? Is it attractive enough?"

Han Zhou recalled for a moment, then smiled wryly and said, "I don't think I've ever really smelled this before..."

As if he had just thought of something, he hesitated and said, "It should taste similar to what my senior sister tastes like, right?"

After all, they are biological sisters, and they usually use similar shampoos and body washes, so the smell shouldn't be too different, right?
Zhong Yin thought for a moment and replied, "Yes, almost. Isn't Xiao Ling right next to you? Go and smell her."

She had recently sent her sister a package of pastries, and given Xiaoling's personality, she would usually carry some with her. Her intention was to take out the pastries and smell them.

Han Zhou was stunned and asked incredulously, "You just brought it up close to smell it?"

"Nonsense, how much more do you want to smell?" Zhong Yin said impatiently. "Hurry up, don't waste my phone bill."

Han Zhou stood there stunned for two seconds, then turned to look at Zhong Ling, who had been standing obediently beside him, looking as if he wanted to say something but couldn't.

Zhong Ling smiled faintly and asked in a soft, sweet voice, "What's wrong?"

She could tell that her sister's call wasn't because of an emergency, so she stopped worrying. Just as she was imagining her sister's happy expression when she received the cake machine, she looked up and saw her junior's troubled look.

Han Zhou forced a smile and said, "Um... Sister Yin asked me to come closer and smell your scent."

Zhong Ling: "?"

She tilted her head, looking adorably confused.

A few seconds passed, and seeing Han Zhou standing there awkwardly, she moved closer to him and whispered, "Will... can you smell it like this?"

She believed that her junior wouldn't lie to her, and her older sister wouldn't joke about her. Since neither of them would harm her, she had nothing to worry about.

However, even though that's what she thought, she was still a little nervous. She wasn't that nervous when they hugged before, but now, the thought of her junior smelling her scent made her heart beat faster for no reason.

I shower every day, and I didn't sweat much today, so there shouldn't be any strange smell, right?
Actually, Han Zhou really wanted to say that he had smelled Zhong Ling's scent before, and his powerful memory had allowed him to remember it. However, seeing Zhong Ling approaching him, he didn't want her to move away from him, so he just took a symbolic sniff and nodded, saying, "Thank you, senior. It smells very nice."

"This...is like this."

Zhong Ling blushed slightly and gave a shy smile.

Han Zhou subtly moved a few steps to the side, put the phone to his ear, and said, "Sister Yin, I smelled it, it smells very good."

"Does it smell appetizing?" Zhong Yin asked.

Why is it appetite again...?

Han Zhou gasped. Zhong Ling, standing beside him, wore an innocent and naive expression. He sighed, "I'm sorry, Sister Yin, I don't have a habit of eating people..."

"what?"

"What I mean is, can we have a serious discussion instead of always talking about our appetites?"

Zhong Yin was taken aback: "But if we don't mention appetite when evaluating food, what should we mention?"

"Why evaluate food... wait, food?"

"Yeah, what else did you think it was?"

Zhong Yin finally realized the problem and frowned, saying, "From the very beginning, I asked you to evaluate my pastry-making skills. What did you think it was about evaluating my pastries?"

"……food."

"Be honest."

"It really is food..."

Zhong Yin was silent for a moment: "You're probably judging me as a person, aren't you?"

She's already realized what's going on.

Han Zhou's heart skipped a beat, and he said seriously, "Delicious food originates from the chef's rich inner world. In a sense, there is no difference between the two in terms of emotion. Evaluating food is the same as evaluating the person who made it."

“This explanation seems to make no problem,” Zhong Yin said calmly.

Han Zhou had just breathed a sigh of relief when he heard the other party say coldly, "But first, explain to me... what does 'having something to say' mean?"

Unlike her innocent sister, she blushed slightly as she recalled their conversation, then became embarrassed and annoyed.

Han Zhou's heart skipped a beat, and he forced himself to say, "It...it just means I have a good figure...you said you'd let me give you the truth and you wouldn't be angry!"

"Is this what I asked you to evaluate?"

"I didn't hear you clearly," Han Zhou explained.

“You can even hear Xiaoling’s voice, how could you not hear what I’m saying?” Zhong Yin said coldly.

"It was so noisy on your end, my eardrums were about to be pierced, that's why I couldn't hear you clearly." Han Zhou became more and more assertive as he spoke. "Speaking of which, it's still your fault. You didn't even know to choose a quieter place to make a phone call."

Zhong Yin remained silent for a moment, seemingly realizing that Han Zhou couldn't be entirely blamed, and said, "I do bear some responsibility."

Although his tone was still stiff, it wasn't as cold as before.

"But I have another question..."

"Did you really lean in and smell Xiaoling's scent just now?"

(End of this chapter)