Song Ning stayed to play chess with Xie Linzhou. Although she didn't know how, Xie Linzhou would teach her.
He patiently taught her how to play chess, even though she wasn't really interested in it. But she told herself that there was no harm in learning another skill.
The two stayed out until dinner time, when a servant came to call them, and Song Ning was finally free.
During the meal, Song Ning began to have a problem.
How did they eat? Did Xie Linzhou sit while she stood?
She had heard that wealthy families had maids serving them food when they ate, but after looking around, she didn't see any maids.
Xie Linzhou entered the dining room and sat down, while Song Ning followed behind without moving.
"What are you standing there for? Sit down."
"Ai."
Song Ning breathed a sigh of relief; she could now sit down and eat.
The servants filed in and brought out the food. After just one glance, Song Ning felt dizzy and lightheaded.
No, what decent family cooks dishes that include shiitake mushrooms?
Stir-fried mushrooms with meat, stir-fried mushrooms with greens, mushroom porridge, and even a soup with mushrooms.
Song Ning asked with a smile, "General Xie, do you like to eat shiitake mushrooms?"
Xie Linzhou was surprised: "You actually know its name? This thing was just transported from Yizhou in the south. Have you seen it?"
Song Ning was startled; she had been too talkative.
"Oh, I've heard others mention it before."
Zhang Ping set out the bowls and chopsticks and said with a smile, "Miss Song, this is a rare item, and there aren't many of them. Our young master thought you'd never seen one before, so he made it for you to try today."
No sooner had he finished speaking than Xie Linzhou kicked him in the foot.
"I told you not to talk too much."
Song Ning chuckled dryly. She really didn't need it at all; she hated it for the rest of her life.
"Don't misunderstand, I just happened to want to eat this today, so I asked the kitchen to make some," Xie Linzhou quickly explained.
Song Ning nodded. Whatever the reason, it didn't matter. What mattered was how to eat this meal.
Eating it would be too much to ask, but not eating it would upset Xie Linzhou.
After all, they prepared a meal for her, and it would be impolite not to eat it.
I'll say it again, Xie Linzhou really is her nemesis.
"Eat up, don't be shy."
Song Ning ate a couple of mouthfuls of rice, but couldn't bring herself to eat the dishes on the table.
Seeing that she wasn't eating the vegetables, Xie Linzhou asked, "Why aren't you eating the vegetables? Don't you like them?"
"No, no, it's just... this stuff is precious, let's save it for the general."
Xie Linzhou smiled helplessly: "It's alright, you can eat as much as you want." As he spoke, he put a few pieces of shiitake mushrooms into Song Ning's bowl.
Song Ning hardened her heart, closed her eyes, gritted her teeth, and shoveled the rice into her mouth. She didn't dare to chew it too much, afraid that she would spit it out if she tasted the mushroom.
The meal was extremely long and painful. After eating, Song Ning made an excuse to go to the toilet, squatted in the corner and vomited up everything she had just eaten.
She simply couldn't stand the smell of shiitake mushrooms. She'd always been like that; she'd vomit as soon as she ate them. She never expected that even after transmigrating, this problem would still be there.
After glancing around to make sure no one was nearby, he went back.
Why did she have to suffer like this?
The servants accompanying her noticed that she didn't look well and asked, "Is the young lady feeling unwell?"
"Oh no, it's just that I'm not used to it yet."
When they returned, Xie Linzhou was fiddling with something at the table. Song Ning quietly went over to take a look and saw that it was the Luban lock that had been broken last time.
Xie Linzhou seemed oblivious to her coming in, completely absorbed in the wood he was holding.
I tried and tried with the piece of wood in my hand, but I just couldn't find the right spot.
Song Ning couldn't stand it anymore: "Shouldn't this be placed here?"
Xie Linzhou looked up and saw Song Ning standing on tiptoe, looking at what he was holding.
Then he pressed the piece of wood in his hand onto the spot where Song Ning pointed.
With a "click," the wood went in and fit perfectly.
Xie Linzhou looked up again, this time with some surprise: "You know about this?"
Song Ning shook his head: "I don't understand. I just saw the steps the general took just now and thought it should be placed there."
Xie Linzhou smiled. Song Ning was full of surprises; he should get used to it.
Song Ning tentatively asked, "General Xie, is this very important to you?"
Xie Linzhou lowered his eyes: "This was left to me by my father."
Song Ning had heard Zheng Gaoyi say that the Xie family was full of loyal martyrs. Xie Linzhou's father, grandfather, and uncles were all generals who fought for the Jin Dynasty. Now, Xie Linzhou was the only male member left in the entire Xie family.
Thinking of this, Song Ning suddenly felt a little guilty: "I'm sorry, I broke something so important to you last time."
Xie Linzhou laughed out loud: "Don't just apologize, how are you going to make amends?"
"ah?"
She was sincerely apologizing, but Xie Linzhou took advantage of her kindness, saying that what happened last time wasn't entirely her fault.
"Last time, it wasn't entirely my fault. The general insisted on giving me something, and that's why I accidentally bumped into it."
There's no way she'll take full responsibility.
Xie Linzhou didn't mind and put down what he was holding.
It was already dark outside, and the courtyard was quiet; no one dared to speak loudly.
Fearing that Xie Linzhou would drag her into playing chess again, Song Ning quickly pretended to be sleepy and wanted to go back to her room to sleep.
Xie Linzhou seemed about to say something, but ultimately didn't speak, and instead had Zhang Ping take her back to her room.
Walking under the corridor, Zhang Ping kept praising his young master.
“My young master values Miss Song very much. Today, when Miss Song came, he even instructed us to rearrange the room.”
"General Xie is so kind."
The two walked to the door of the room, and Zhang Ping thoughtfully went in to light the lamp. There were also two servants at the door.
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
