Chang Lili was enjoying her meal when she choked, coughing until her face turned red before she recovered.
She was coughing so badly that Lu Ming turned around, patted her back, and brought her some tea.
Chang Lili drank some water and said, "You're overthinking it. I don't think so."
"Really?" Lu Ming's eyes lit up, then dimmed again. "But if that's not the case, why does he seem to hate me and ignore me?"
Chang Lili continued biting into her donkey meat sandwich, mumbling, "As the saying goes, a woman's heart is like a needle at the bottom of the sea, and the same goes for a man's heart; you can't fathom it."
Actually, she wanted to persuade Lu Ming, but it was all in vain. However, seeing Lu Ming's sincere appearance, she felt a little sorry for her.
"Sister Lili!" Lu Ming suddenly perked up and grabbed Chang Lili excitedly, "Can you ask him for me?"
"Huh?" Chang Lili almost choked again. "I asked him? Asked him what?"
Lu Ming turned to the side, and said shyly, "Ask him where he lives, how old he is, and whether he is married!"
Chang Lili's jaw almost dropped: "This...this isn't a good idea, is it?"
Although Chang Lili herself is a bold and decisive person and feels that there is no need to always be bound by some outdated and rigid etiquette, Lu Ming is faster, more direct and bolder than she imagined.
If she remembered correctly, this was at most their second meeting.
"What's wrong? Sister Lili, please ask her for me, please ask her." Lu Ming hugged her arm and shook her so hard that she couldn't even put the delicious donkey meat sandwich in her mouth.
"Lu Ming! Lu Ming, what are you doing here again? Deputy Lu Wei is looking for you everywhere!" The handsome young soldier who pulled Lu Ming away last time appeared again, his face still full of anxiety.
Lu Ming glared angrily at the soldier, who immediately blushed, dared not look Lu Ming in the eye, and lowered his voice: "If you don't go back, Fu Wei will be angry."
Lu Ming turned her head away unwillingly and said pitifully, "Sister Lili, please ask her for me. I'll come back to you later."
With that, she had no choice but to let go of Chang Lili and leave with the young soldier, glancing back at Su Ling every few steps.
The young soldier, seeing Lu Ming's expression, followed her gaze and looked over. When he saw Su Ling, a look of surprise appeared in his eyes. He blushed and lowered his head, looking quite sad.
Chang Lili was laughing so hard she lost her appetite. She watched the soldier and Lu Ming leave, the soldier urging Lu Ming on, who looked unhappy.
She thought the two of them were really interesting.
"He who eats another's food is bound to do his bidding." After finishing the donkey meat sandwich, Chang Lili had no choice but to clap her hands and move closer to Su Ling.
Firstly, because he had promised Su Ling that he would help him forge weapons; secondly, he still had to reassure Lu Ming.
After a long pause, she carefully chose her words before speaking: "Su Ling, judging from your appearance, you must have many girls who are infatuated with you, right? Are you married yet?"
Su Ling glanced at Chang Lili with a puzzled look. He was dressed in white with fair skin, and the noise and filth of the military workshop did not get close to him at all.
He was half-squatting to pick up a piece of iron from the ground; his hands were fair, and his bones were clearly visible.
There seemed to be a shifting light in his eyes, but ultimately, it was impossible to discern what color it was.
After a long pause, he revealed a cool, plum-scented smile: "I have never been married."
Chang Lili was wearing a light blue dress with her sleeves rolled up high, revealing her slender and strong forearms. The hair at her temples was damp with sweat. Smelling the stench of her own body, she suddenly felt that asking Su Ling such a question was a bit of a disgrace to his ethereal appearance.
She smiled awkwardly and casually said, "That's good, that's good. So, how old are you? Where do you live? What kind of girl do you like?"
Chang Lili almost thought she was seeing things. She blinked and realized that Su Ling was indeed smiling, and smiling very clearly.
His smile gave people a feeling of sudden warmth followed by chill.
"Nothing else to say." The words spoken were utterly heartless.
Chang Lili resisted the urge to roll her eyes, but she also became curious, wondering why he was so mysterious.
"So... are you from the capital?" she asked in a different way.
"Yes." Su Ling took the bait as expected.
"Then... what do you think a young lady should be like?" Chang Lili was impressed with her own intelligence at this moment. She asked with great emotion, "Should she be gentle and graceful, aloof and independent, or heroic and spirited?"
She would sometimes appear demure and dignified, sometimes aloof and indifferent, and sometimes stand with her hands on her hips, head held high and chest puffed out.
Su Ling looked at her, his smile growing even wider.
He felt that Chang Lili was very special. From childhood to adulthood, all the women he had met were dressed up and were gentle and quiet, but they made him feel disgusted.
No girl has ever been as interesting as Chang Lili, or viewed him in the same way as Chang Lili.
So, without even realizing it himself, he had begun to treat Chang Lili differently.
"It doesn't matter what you look like, true character is what's rare," he said.
Upon hearing this, Chang Lili felt there was a chance. If Lu Mingruo could be considered truly genuine, then there was probably no one else in the world who could be called truly genuine.
She told Lu Ming about this, and Lu Ming was overjoyed. But she went too far and insisted that Chang Lili ask Su Ling what he usually liked to eat, saying that the donkey meat sandwich she bought last time must not have suited Su Ling's taste.
While Chang Lili was speechless, she couldn't resist the temptation of sweet words and, as if possessed, agreed to continue gathering information.
And so, she taught Su Ling how to forge iron, and their relationship became closer. Su Ling, who used to ignore Chang Lili, would now take the initiative to talk to her.
"What do I like to eat? Food is just for filling one's stomach. If you really want to say what I like to eat, I can't really say," Su Ling said calmly, which made him seem even more like an immortal.
Chang Lili asked hesitantly, "So, do you have anything... that you usually eat a lot of? Or what do you like to drink?"
Su Ling thought about it carefully and said, "If I had to say, I really like Junshan Silver Needle."
"Junshan Silver Needle?" Chang Lili asked in confusion.
She thought to herself, "He really is a rich young master; he's talking about things I've never even heard of before."
At this moment, in front of the military workshop, Meng Yuxiu held a short knife in his hand. The short knife was old and needed repair.
He looked travel-worn, and indeed he was.
He went to the imperial tombs but found nothing useful. He rode there and back at breakneck speed.
Now that he had finally returned home, he dropped his baggage, and after taking a bath and changing his clothes, the first thing he did was to go to the study to get a weapon that needed repair, and then rush over without stopping.
Seeing that Chang Lili was safe and sound, he finally felt relieved.
But seeing her standing with a man, chatting and laughing, he felt inexplicably annoyed.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
