150 The Fluff 12 (1/2)

Lin Kang did not breathe a word about the proposal and his confession for the rest of the day. Since he promised he was going to give Xiu Ling time and space so he would not speak of that again until Xiu Ling brought it up herself.

To not put Xiu Ling on the spotlight and thus make her uncomfortable, Lin Kang urged them to return to the baking as soon as possible. That was a neutral ground they both could be comfortable in.

Xiu Ling retrieved the oven tray and preheated the oven. She placed parchment paper on the tray. She was thankful that Lin Kang did not press her further and allowed her to take things at her own pace. She appreciated that.

Xiu Ling dusted the top of the dough generously with flour. Then she lifted the basket of dough and turned it over. She allowed it to fall gently on the tray. She tapped the back of the basket several times before peeling it off.

Even though she did not give Lin Kang any instruction, the man had been following her closely. This time he did not screw up. Perhaps the procedure was easier this time around or earlier the man had too many things on his mind to really pay Xiu Ling's teaching any attention.

When Lin Kang was ready, Xiu Ling said, ”Alright, this is the last step before we send the dough into the oven. It's called scouring and we need to use this.”

Xiu Ling picked up a metallic tool that looked like a large razor. ”This is called a lame.”

Lin family was wealthy enough to afford two of these so Xiu Ling pointed at another one on the table. ”You can use that one.”

Lin Kang picked it up and Xiu Ling led by example. ”Now, you just cut on the surface.”

A beautiful slit appeared on Xiu Ling's dough.

Lin Kang tried to follow suit but he was only halfway through when Xiu Ling stopped him, ”Wait, you're using too much force, the slit is cutting too deep into the dough.”

Xiu Ling grabbed Lin Kang's hand and guided the lame over the dough. ”Perfect,” she said.

Lin Kang put the tool down and he commented, ”So the key is to use a light hand. A valuable lesson both in baking and in life if I do say so myself.”

Xiu Ling did not know what exactly he was referring to. There were many occasions in the past where he could have toned down his aggression. Xiu Ling certainly had not forgotten them but the question now was, could she look past them? That was a question she needed to answer before she could think about accepting Lin Kang's confession.