Cupid's Kitchen Episode 6 Recap
> Cupid's Kitchen Recap
The following day, Lin Kesong continued her training with Jiang Qianfan on precise salt measurement. Despite practicing countless times, she couldn't get it right, lamenting that she might starve to death before mastering the skill. Jiang Qianfan scoffed, telling her that dying would be easier than her current task and urged her to keep practicing.
After one particularly frustrating attempt, Lin Kesong believed she had finally measured two grams of salt, excitedly calling Jiang Qianfan to see, only to realize her eyes had deceived her. Blaming the "lousy, stupid scale," she was silently given a new one by Jiang Qianfan to continue. Meanwhile, Lin Xiaoyu received a call from the Future Star Competition organizing committee, informing her that she had qualified and would need to meet her mentor for an interview.
Her father, excited, asked who the mentor was, but Xiaoyu simply stated it wouldn't be Jiang Qianfan. Lin Xiaoyu arrived to meet her mentor, Boris, who was already livestreaming. She candidly told him that she disliked his tone and didn't want him as her mentor, but since she was already there, she would demonstrate her skills for his fans. She prepared stir-fried freshwater shrimps with peas.
When comparing her dish to Boris’s, she was surprised that his prawns were translucent while hers were reddish. She also found his dish juicier, with a more pleasant aftertaste and a better chew.
Boris explained his techniques: he kept the prawn tails for better appearance, shelled them in ice water to maintain translucence and prevent oxidation, added lotus seeds for crunch to counter the mushy texture of prawns and peas, and finally, cooked the dish for three extra seconds at high heat before serving to enhance taste and temperature.
Boris revealed that he and Jiang Qianfan were both apprentices under Montgomery, but Montgomery chose Jiang Qianfan over him for the Future Star Competition, leading to his resentment. He mused that he still couldn't understand why Jiang Qianfan, a competitive person, would take the "Evil Dragon Princess" as his apprentice. When asked about her sister, Lin Xiaoyu described Lin Kesong as a "lazy good for nothing" but admitted she possessed a very sensitive palate.
Apologizing for her earlier imprudence, Lin Xiaoyu decided to choose Boris as her mentor, stating that they shared a common enemy who had taken what rightfully belonged to them, and together, they would defeat them. Separately, Blu went to meet his mentor, Huang Shi, to learn from him. Huang Shi, however, was preoccupied with going fishing and unwilling to discuss work. Blu persisted, offering a 50-year-old Baipu Yellow Wine to entice him.
Huang Shi, appreciative of Blu's taste and interest in Chinese traditions, agreed to let him join his fishing trip. Song Yiran arrived at Jiang Qianfan’s house, demanding to see Lin Kesong. He claimed she had called him last night saying she wasn't being fed and insisted on taking her out to eat. Jiang Qianfan, after a heated exchange, took Song Yiran to the kitchen, only to discover that Lin Kesong was missing.
He immediately instructed Nina to check elsewhere, while he and Song Yiran split up to search for her. Meanwhile, Lin Kesong had sneaked out and gone to her uncle’s shop, where she enjoyed a substantial meal. Her uncle, realizing she had run away, urged her to call Jiang Qianfan, fearing he might report her missing to the police.
Lin Kesong initially dismissed the idea, believing Jiang Qianfan didn't care about her, but eventually called him, briefly stating she was "getting food outside" and would be back later, then quickly hung up. After eating, Lin Kesong went upstairs to find Lin Xiaoyu, saying she missed home. Xiaoyu coldly retorted that it was "her" house, not Kesong’s.
When Kesong tried to appease her, even suggesting she could beg Jiang Qianfan to teach both of them, Xiaoyu accused her of being a manipulative actress. Xiaoyu claimed Kesong was truly in Shanghai for Jiang Qianfan, not Song Yiran, and had merely pretended to dislike Jiang Qianfan during the auditions. Hurt by Xiaoyu’s accusations, Lin Kesong defensively asked why she would say such insulting things, to which Xiaoyu angrily told her to "get lost."
Feeling deeply wronged, Lin Kesong sadly bid farewell to her uncle and left. Jiang Qianfan, who had discreetly followed Lin Kesong from her uncle's shop, found her looking miserable. He approached her and shared his own past with Boris, revealing that Boris was his senior brother. He explained that Montgomery had chosen him for the Future Star Competition over Boris, leading to Boris’s intense hatred.
Jiang Qianfan then told Kesong that to counter such animosity, he had won the competition, refusing to let Boris ridicule his incompetence. He advised Kesong that to earn respect and understanding from others, one must become strong and powerful, a true winner. Upon returning to Jiang Qianfan's residence, Lin Kesong found Song Yiran still waiting for her.
Song Yiran tried to persuade her to leave, arguing that she wasn't cut out to be a chef and should instead happily remain a foodie with him. Lin Kesong, however, chose to stay. Later, Lin Kesong was astonished to find a lavish dinner prepared for her, which Nina confirmed was arranged by Jiang Qianfan himself. Still uneasy about Jiang Qianfan's reaction to her escape, she went to his room, anxiously asking how he intended to punish her.
Jiang Qianfan, initially claiming he wouldn't, leaned in menacingly when she pressed him, successfully scaring her away. The Future Star Cooking Competition officially announced its final eight contestants and their mentors. Meanwhile, Elise, speaking to her mother, declared that if a flower she had long awaited bloomed for someone else, she would rather cut it and let it wither in her own vase, rather than offer blessings.
News circulated that "Evil Dragon Princess" (Lin Kesong) was undergoing secluded training with her mentor, Jiang Qianfan. Seeing this, Lin Xiaoyu also pleaded with Boris to provide her with closed-door training. Boris questioned if she was scared, then explained his secret to defeating many Michelin-starred restaurants: using a "spear to strike their weakest point." He advised Xiaoyu not to follow others' footsteps but to maintain her own rhythm while simultaneously disrupting her opponent’s.
During a livestream, Lin Xiaoyu formally declared war on Jiang Qianfan on behalf of her mentor, Boris. She boasted that since Boris and Jiang Qianfan had the same chef, Boris knew all of Jiang Qianfan's techniques. Boris then chimed in, stating he had come from hell to find Jiang Qianfan and urged him to spare no effort in dealing with him.
After watching the livestream, Jiang Qianfan informed Lin Kesong that Lin Xiaoyu and Boris formed a very strong team, emphasizing her need to train even harder. He set a timer for her push-ups, instructing her to return to salt measurement once it was up. Lin Kesong attempted to secretly adjust the timer, but Jiang Qianfan, ever vigilant, immediately stopped her. Li Yan arrived at Jiang Qianfan’s house to deliver ingredients. He apologized to Jiang Qianfan for a past transgression.
Jiang Qianfan acknowledged Li Yan's years of loyal service as the reason he hadn't dismissed him but sternly reminded him that he detested being lied to. After Li Yan left, Lin Kesong, curious, asked what Li Yan had lied about. Jiang Qianfan revealed that Li Yan had told him Kesong was married. Later, Li Yan delivered a ticket from Jiang Qianfan to Song Yiran for a "Fire Scorpion Special Forces Experience Camp."
Song Yiran found the gift "pretty cool," noting that Jiang Qianfan seemed to understand him well. Victor Quentin visited Lin Xiaoyu's private kitchen, asking her to prepare a dish using abalones he had brought. Lin Xiaoyu, initially unaware of his identity, refused, stating that she only cooked items from her menu and was not his personal chef. Victor provocatively responded that during the competition, she wouldn't be able to guarantee what ingredients she would be given. Recognizing him as Victor Quentin, Lin Xiaoyu then accepted his challenge and headed to the kitchen.
