She used the cutting wire to separate the piece from the wheel at the base, then carefully lifted it with both hands and moved it to the drying board.
Then she turned to look at Zhang Jingxu's side. She had expected a mess, but surprisingly, the guy seemed to have some talent—he was handling it quite well.
After watching for a while, she praised him, "Didn't expect you to have such talent. You're doing pretty good."
Zhang Jingxu smiled at her and was about to say something, but the next second, he applied too much force, and the nearly formed cup wall suddenly collapsed.
Just like that, his joy turned to sorrow. His expression froze instantly, and he looked like a clumsy child who had made a mistake.
Yu Wanwan moved her chair closer to him and comforted him like a caring older sister, "It's okay. Just try again."
Zhang Jingxu took a deep breath, resigned to starting over.
But ever since Yu Wanwan, the master, sat next to him, his once smooth steps suddenly became fraught with difficulty.
He finally managed to shape it again, but once more, he used too much force, causing the cup wall to collapse again.
Yu Wanwan noticed his nervousness and patiently guided him to take it slow. During the most critical shaping step, she directly reached over to adjust it for him and instructed, "Keep your finger pressure even. Don't make the wall too thin."
Then she extended both hands, covering the man's mud-stained hands, and helped him fine-tune the details.
The moment Yu Wanwan's hands covered his, Zhang Jingxu's breath caught, and even his hand trembled involuntarily from the brief distraction.
"Don't shake." Yu Wanwan noticed his subtle movement and gently stroked the web between his thumb and index finger. "Almost done."
The man held his breath, struggling to maintain his composure on the surface, but inside, her sudden physical contact made it impossible to focus.
At that moment, what he felt in his palms was the smooth, slippery texture of mud, while on the backs of his hands, it was Yu Wanwan's cool, slender fingers.
She was too close. Zhang Jingxu could clearly smell the fragrance from her hair and the perfume she was wearing today.
Yu Wanwan stared intently at the shape of the clay, adjusting it. Her gaze suddenly fell on Zhang Jingxu's mud-covered hands.
On a normal day, he was either in a suit or dressed in casual, relaxed home clothes. Even when cooking, his hands were always clean and proper.
Now, those impeccably perfect hands were covered in dark mud, which instead accentuated the clear joints and long fingers. Under the moisture of the mud, the faint blue veins on the back of his hands were visible, exuding a restrained, masculine strength.
Yu Wanwan felt bewitched by those hands. Her mind couldn't help but fantasize about interlacing her fingers with his in a romantic scene. Realizing what she was thinking, her ears began to unconsciously heat up and redden.
The cup had been shaped, but she was reluctant to let go. The two of them held the semi-finished cup, the only sound in the room being the hum of the rotating wheel.
Sensing the atmosphere had become a bit ambiguous, Yu Wanwan lifted her head, forcing herself to look away, and made small talk, "I noticed your hands are really hot."
Zhang Jingxu half-lidded his eyes, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down as he guiltily hummed in response, not daring to meet her gaze.
Feeling the heat radiating from his hands, she couldn't help but think to herself that he was indeed a man full of masculine energy. She had heard that men with warm hands and feet usually have good kidney function, so his kidneys must be pretty good too...
No, Yu Wanwan, can you not daydream for one second? What does his kidney function have to do with you?
She struggled to pull herself back from her fantasies, blaming her overly active brain cells.
Thanks to Yu Wanwan's help, Zhang Jingxu didn't mess up this time. The cup successfully took shape under their combined efforts.
Yu Wanwan dipped her finger in water and gently smoothed the rim for him, making it even. Then she used the cutting tool to remove the piece and placed it next to her own to dry.
"Alright." Yu Wanwan patted the dried mud on her hands. "Let it dry here. Tomorrow we can do the carving and attach the handle."
She washed her hands at the nearby sink, habitually took a photo, and was about to go upstairs to edit videos when Zhang Jingxu called out again, "Wait."
"What now?" Yu Wanwan looked at him, exasperated.
Why does this guy have so many requests?
Zhang Jingxu hesitated for a long time, then pulled an exquisite red velvet ring box from his pocket. "Um... I bought you a wedding ring."
He opened the box, revealing a brilliantly lustrous diamond ring inside. The main stone wasn't overly large, but it was exquisitely cut, refracting a dazzling yet understated fire under the light. The band was simple yet ingeniously designed, like a flexible vine.
Yu Wanwan froze, staring blankly at the ring.
Zhang Jingxu took a deep breath, trying to keep his tone businesslike and calm to mask the turbulent emotions beneath. "At a business dinner last time, a client didn't know I was married and wanted to introduce me to his daughter. To avoid such麻烦 in the future, I think we need a more explicit proof of marriage."
"So..." He looked at her, his gaze intense and unyielding. "Put it on first and see if it fits."
Yu Wanwan didn't speak. Her heart missed a beat. Her fingers curled slightly as she hesitated whether to reach out.
Seeing this, Zhang Jingxu took out the ring, stepped forward, gently took her slender left hand, and carefully and solemnly slid the ring onto her ring finger.
"Seems... just right."
Looking at the ring perfectly fitted on her finger, he didn't immediately let go. His fingers, carrying a slight warmth, held her hand, his thumb brushing subtly over the joint of her ring finger.
That one small motion was like a faint electric current, striking straight from her ring finger to her heart.
She abruptly pulled her hand back, her fingers gently rubbing the ring that hadn't yet been warmed by her own body heat.
Yu Wanwan forgot what she said; she just felt as if the air had solidified. She could even hear her own heart pounding in the warm light filled with intoxicating fragrance.
............
Because of the viral travel video Yu Wanwan had made, their hotel welcomed a large number of tourists from all over the country in the span of twenty days. Not only that, but Queshui Town, Wuwei Inn, and the hairpin stall also became popular. Yu Wanwan even became the tourism ambassador of Fuyi City.
Zhang Jingxu still came home every evening to cook for Yu Wanwan and provide content, occasionally shooting some flirty little videos with her. Days passed like this. The difference was that after that kiss that night, their relationship began to undergo subtle changes. However, neither of them intended to break the surface.
At the beginning of August, Fuyi City welcomed its first typhoon of the year. Yu Wanwan stood at the door, watching the wind outside blow the flowers in the courtyard all over the place.
Zhang Jingxu specially sent her a WeChat message, telling her not to go out unless necessary.
With such strong winds, Yu Wanwan naturally wouldn't go out.