The Outdoor Cooking Club President

“You must be the Shen Xian that Tao Si mentioned?” The girl seated opposite Zhuang Xun and Shen Xian suddenly spoke.

Zhuang Xun’s chopsticks paused mid-air. She looked up at the speaker, then lowered her gaze, continuing to eat her food in silence.

“Hello. You must be the club president?” Shen Xian put down her own chopsticks, a distant yet polite smile gracing her lips.

Guan Shi rested her chin in one hand, waving at Shen Xian with a bright grin. “That’s right, I’m Guan Shi. We’ve actually met before.”

“We’ve met?” Shen Xian blinked, then a look of sudden realization crossed her face. “It seems we did meet during the last club presidents’ meeting.”

“You remembered?!” Guan Shi exclaimed excitedly.

Shen Xian picked up a piece of meat and popped it into her mouth. “Not at all, actually.”

Guan Shi feigned a look of heartbreak, then lowered her head to sip her coffee. “I thought you might have actually remembered me.”

Shen Xian simply smiled, her true emotions as unreadable as ever.

“Well, we can start making an impression now,” Guan Shi suggested.

“Alright then.”

The next second, Zhuang Xun felt a direct gaze fall upon her. She slowly lifted her head. Guan Shi was looking at her, a gentle, curious smile playing on her lips. “What’s your name?”

Zhuang Xun stared at Guan Shi. The president’s smiling eyes revealed nothing of her inner thoughts. Zhuang Xun put down her chopsticks, her voice characteristically calm. “Zhuang Xun.”

“So, it’s Zhuang Xun…” Guan Shi stirred her coffee with a stick. “Interested in joining our Outdoor Cooking Club? A beauty as stunning as you would surely attract many newcomers.”

Before Zhuang Xun could even think of a reply, Shen Xian interjected from beside her. She chided playfully, “Are you implying I’m not a beauty?”

“How could I? You’re renowned in your department. Moreover, you give off the impression of a gentle and understanding senior. I’m sure many people adore you.”

Zhuang Xun’s gaze drifted between the two of them. Shen Xian feigned shyness, touching her own cheek. “Oh, my… it’s a bit embarrassing to hear you say that.”

Guan Shi was unfazed. “I’m only speaking the truth. So, will you join?”

Shen Xian answered decisively, “No, thank you.”

Immediately after, Zhuang Xun felt a soft weight lean against her shoulder. She tilted her head slightly; Shen Xian hadn’t put her full weight on her, but the proximity was unmistakable.

“Little Zhuang Xun won’t be joining, either,” Shen Xian added nonchalantly.

Guan Shi sounded genuinely regretful. “Eh? Why not?”

“Because she’s mine. Don’t even think about poaching someone from my department,” Shen Xian said smoothly. “It’s the same principle as you, a president, being unable to join my club.”

Guan Shi maintained her smiling demeanor. “I could, you know. If your club is still recruiting.”

Shen Xian teased, “How could it be that easy? You still have your own club members to consider.” She subtly glanced at Tao Si and the others standing nearby, signaling Guan Shi to look.

Guan Shi did not avert her gaze, her eyes still fixed intently on the two of them. “Haha… I trust Tao Si will handle everything~ She’s much better suited to be president than I am.”

Shen Xian’s smile didn’t quite reach her eyes, and a keen listener would have detected a hint of steel in her words. “Hmm… that’s a pity, then. Our club isn’t recruiting new members right now.”

Guan Shi sighed. “That really is a shame.”

“A shame about what, President?”

A familiar figure appeared at the table next to Guan Shi. Guan Shi turned her head. “Oh… Tao Si.”

Shen Xian, ever the instigator, chimed in, “Tao Si~ Your president just said she was going to abandon you all to join my club. What are you going to do?”

Tao Si looked down at Guan Shi. “Is that so?”

Guan Shi gave a faint, nervous smile. “How could that be? Haha. I was just joking with Shen Xian.”

“Wow… President, that’s really mean. How could you play such a prank on us?” Yin Ning had approached at some point, resting her head on Tao Si’s shoulder and joining in on the teasing.

“Oh, dear…”

“In that case, it looks like the President will have to complete all these tasks alone.” Tao Si handed Guan Shi a long, daunting list of chores, then turned to leave.

Seeing the length of the list, Guan Shi quickly apologized to Shen Xian and the others before chasing after her vice president. “No, wait! Vice President! I’ll die if I have to do all this work alone!”

After Guan Shi scrambled away, Yin Ning remained. She pulled out a chair, sat in Guan Shi’s spot, and began softly, “I apologize. Our president is like that sometimes. If she made you uncomfortable, I apologize on her behalf.”

Zhuang Xun felt the weight on her shoulder disappear as Shen Xian sat up straight. Shen Xian continued eating her unfinished breakfast, though her peripheral vision tracked Guan Shi’s departure before returning to her plate. Zhuang Xun noticed all of it.

“It’s fine. Have you two made up?” Shen Xian asked.

“Yes.” Yin Ning clasped her own wrist, her gaze fixed on Tao Si’s retreating figure. “Sort of. At least she’s giving me a chance.”

Seeing Shen Xian finish her meal, Zhuang Xun offered her a tissue. Shen Xian paused, then took it from her hand, whispering a soft “thank you.”

Then, she turned back to Yin Ning. “Well, it seems you have your chance, then. Remember to seize it.”

Yin Ning declared confidently, “Of course. I won’t miss this opportunity again.” She paused, then looked at the two of them. “What about you?”

Yin Ning’s question set off silent alarm bells for Zhuang Xun. Did I reveal something? She looked up, feigning indifference as she met Yin Ning’s eyes.

Shen Xian looked puzzled. “Me? Do I have something going on?”

Zhuang Xun felt Yin Ning’s gaze land on her briefly, but it vanished as quickly as it came.

Yin Ning stated calmly, “I’m talking about how your junior carried you all the way back from the mountain yesterday. Aren’t you going to properly thank her?”

“Hmm…”

Before Shen Xian could reply, Yin Ning pulled two tickets from her pocket and placed them on the table. “These are my apology. If you two are free, go together.”

Shen Xian and Zhuang Xun exchanged a glance, then Shen Xian picked them up. “The Polar Museum…”

Yin Ning added, “Those tickets are a gift from me. Don’t you dare pass them off as your own thank-you gift to your junior.”

Shen Xian pouted, looking slightly offended. “Hey! What kind of person do you think I am? Of course I wouldn’t use someone else’s gift as my own!”

“Good.” No sooner had Yin Ning spoken than Tao Si’s voice called out from a distance. “Little Ning!”

“I’m leaving now.” Yin Ning stood up, waved goodbye, and walked toward Tao Si.

Once they were alone, Shen Xian held the tickets, her eyes sparkling as she looked at Zhuang Xun. “Next Saturday, shall we go together?”

Zhuang Xun nodded. With such hopeful eyes fixed on her, how could she possibly refuse?

Shen Xian smiled and tucked the tickets away, then addressed her junior seriously. “Oh, right, did you feel uncomfortable just now? I was so busy talking to Guan Shi that I couldn’t pay enough attention to how you were feeling.”

Zhuang Xun hadn’t expected the sudden concern. She was never very comfortable talking to anyone other than her senior, but listening to Shen Xian chat with others was, in itself, a form of enjoyment for her. Observing from the side gave her a feeling akin to the early days of her crush. It was a familiar, quiet comfort.

So, she shook her head. “I didn’t feel uncomfortable.”

Shen Xian breathed a sigh of relief, then indignantly added, “But she actually tried to poach you! How outrageous! You’re mine! To try and poach you right in front of me…”

Zhuang Xun looked at Shen Xian. Whenever her senior said she was “hers,” it always sent a sharp jolt through her heart.

Without thinking, Zhuang Xun reached out and touched Shen Xian’s earlobe. “Senior, why are your ears red?”