43. Sitting and talking late into the night at Zhuochun Tower
I wanted to kiss him, and he found out.
As the saying goes, a new store needs a lively atmosphere to thrive. Five people need to stay at Zhuochunlou for a while to ensure the new store's success.
The accountant and the head maid had finished handing over their duties and gone home. Yan Yunzhao marked some key points in his small notebook, went through the accounts roughly, and then took a break from work today.
The new kitchen is spacious, making cooking much easier. After several months of training, Jingming, Qingxi, and Shuyu have become increasingly skilled at cooking, mastering simple modern home-style dishes such as scrambled eggs with tomatoes, stir-fried pork with chili peppers, eggplant casserole with minced meat, and corn and pork rib soup.
With the three grass demons assisting, Yan Yunzhao prepared a sumptuous evening meal.
All five of them love meat, but it's always good to have a few vegetarian dishes too. Yan Yunzhao sliced some tender, thin pieces of pork and rendered the fat in the pan before adding the greens to stir-fry. This way, the greens had a subtle meaty aroma, and the oil was also fragrant.
The restaurant catered to everyone's preferences, and a large table was set up in a lively and festive manner. The first day of business was very profitable, much better than the old Cui Liang shop. After all, in terms of scale, Zhuochunlou is now one of the top restaurants in Lixi Town.
"I never imagined that I would not only become the head of the business, but also open a branch. I would never have dared to dream of such things before," Yan Yunzhao said with a touch of melancholy.
Jingming chuckled and said, "Boss's cooking is excellent, so I expected the restaurant to be so popular. But I also have to thank the princess for her help."
Yan Yunzhao nodded in agreement.
"The princess's pig's trotters? When did she bring them? Are they delicious?"
Qingxi, who always adhered to the principle of "not speaking while eating or sleeping" and silently ate her rice, suddenly looked up and asked a question. After hearing what she said, the group couldn't help but burst into laughter.
"It seems Qingxi wants to eat pig's trotters, but where can we find pork for you right now?" Shuyu covered her mouth and chuckled.
"Alright, alright, stop teasing Qingxi. Be careful the food gets cold."
Yan Yunzhao smiled and placed a piece of glistening braised pork into Qingxi's bowl. Qingxi chuckled and scratched her head, unable to resist the temptation of the delicious food.
Strangely enough, the three grass demons were all around the same age and gained sentience at the same time, but Qingxi was much less intelligent than Jingming and Shuyu. However, it didn't matter. Yan Yunzhao didn't expect her to pass the imperial examination or become extremely wealthy, so Qingxi's love of eating and playing wasn't necessarily a bad thing.
After a hearty meal, the three grass demons, laughing and joking, took the initiative to move the plates to the kitchen. Yan Yunzhao recited a spell, and the towels and mops started cleaning the kitchen by themselves.
Looking at the elegant decorations inside Zhuochun Pavilion—bonsai, carved screens, and jade porcelain were all there—Yan Yunzhao felt something was missing. Why not hire some opera troupes and dancers to perform on a regular basis? Zhuochun Pavilion happens to have a stage for opera performances; that would make it more lively.
"Lou Su, what do you think?"
Lou Su always had some fresh insights of his own, and Yan Yunzhao liked to ask him for his opinion.
He was pruning the branches of a crabapple bonsai with a small pair of scissors when he heard this. He pondered for a moment and said, "Each restaurant has its own niche. For example, Biyuefang is famous for its pastries and elegant music, while Guiyuelou is for serving dishes with wine. We are not good at making wine, so why don't we focus on preparing the banquet dishes for our guests? We can have home-style dishes and introduce some new dishes from time to time, as well as tea and snacks. It should not be too bad."
"Yes, that's somewhat similar to my view."
Yan Yunzhao was somewhat stunned as he gazed at the beautiful scene of crabapple blossoms and a beautiful woman before him.
Since recovering from her illness, Lou Su's body has become stronger thanks to the nourishing meals she has provided every day. Her once somewhat frail body is now more upright, and her lips have become rosy, much like the bright red crabapple blossoms, delicate and beautiful.
Noticing Yan Yunzhao's gaze, Lou Su turned around and smiled slightly: "Is this crabapple branch well pruned?"
Yan Yunzhao's gaze was focused on him just now, and she hadn't had a chance to look at Haitang. Now she looked at Haitang for a long time, her mind filled with the thought that the person was more beautiful than the flower.
Lou Su couldn't suppress a smile. Just as he was about to say something, Jing Ming came running over noisily, shouting, "Boss, Young Master Lou! The bed's made, I'm going to sleep now."
After Jingming finished speaking, he hurriedly ran upstairs as if someone was chasing him.
Lou Su smiled, his expression as gentle as melting snow. "My lady, you don't mind, do you?"
Yan Yunzhao turned his head away and said coldly, "Who is your wife? You have no title or status, Young Master Lou, don't call me that."
Lou Su leaned closer to Yan Yunzhao, looked down into her eyes, and said with a smile, "I wonder when Miss Yan will have time to go back with me to visit my grandfather."
Lou Su's eyes seemed to bewitch people. Yan Yunzhao's face felt hot under his gaze. He turned around and went back into the house, leaving him with only his back: "Then we'll see how you perform."
...
At this moment, in the room of Jingming, Qingxi and Shuyu.
The three grass demons squeezed behind the door crack to observe the situation outside.
"Jingming, you said..."
As soon as Qingxi uttered a sound, Jingming and Shuyu hurriedly covered her mouth.
"Shh! Don't make a sound." Jingming lowered his voice.
The two breathed a sigh of relief and released Qingxi after seeing Yan Yunzhao and Lou Su return to the house one after the other.
Three heads huddled together, plotting: "Have Young Master Lou and Boss been acting a little strange lately?"
"I just read in a storybook the other day that only married couples sleep together," Qingxi said with her bright, watery eyes.
"But the picture book says that only after a wedding ceremony can one be considered husband and wife." Jingming rested his chin on his hand, seemingly unable to understand.
Shuyu said, "It might be soon."
Jingming and Qingxi cast suspicious glances at her, and Shuyu's ears turned red. Urged by them, she continued, "Didn't Young Master Lou just say that he was going to take Miss Yan back to the Demon Realm to see her grandfather? Doesn't that mean they're going back to have a wedding ceremony?"
The three exchanged a smile and nodded solemnly.
On the other side.
Yan Yunzhao and Lou Su had already lain down together, one sleeping on the bed and the other on the floor.
Yan Yunzhao lay on the bed and turned to the page about cultivation in "The Record of Divine Spirit".
Why haven't I made any progress in my magical power despite my recent intensive training?
Yan Yunzhao tried to activate her magic power as described in the book, but after waiting for a long time, there was no response. She tried several different ways of activating her magic power, but still couldn't get it right.
Yan Yunzhao glanced discreetly at Lou Su, who was fast asleep not far away, and, afraid of waking him, subtly moved further in. Perhaps the bed was a bit old, because as soon as she turned over, a loud creak came from the bed beneath her.
In the darkness, Yan Yunzhao held his breath and dared not move, for fear that his sneaky actions would disturb Lou Su who was standing nearby.
creak—
The bed creaked again, and Yan Yunzhao sensed something was wrong. Before she could lie back down, she heard Lou Su's muffled voice from next to her: "Can't sleep?"
"Hmm... I still can't figure out the key to cultivating as a grass demon."
But then a soft chuckle came from the other end: "Why don't you just ask me directly?"
Yan Yunzhao was about to get up and light the lamp, but Lou Su stopped him: "Don't light the lamp yet."
Moonlight streamed in through the thin gauze curtain, casting long shadows on the silvery ground. Yan Yunzhao vaguely saw Lou Su rise and walk to the window, lifting the gauze curtain to let the soft moonlight spill onto the floor.
Lou Su pulled the blanket towards Yan Yunzhao and sat down with a flick of his sleeve.
The dappled moonlight cast a soft glow on Lou Su's jade-like profile. In the dimly lit room, only his clear eyes and the bridge of his nose and thin lips, partially hidden in the light, were clearly visible.
Take a deep breath and regulate your breathing.
Yan Yunzhao sat on the bed and did as he said. Lou Su's clear voice was like a gurgling spring in spring, and the slight depression in her heart was soothed.
"Slowly gather your inner strength into your dantian, absorb the surrounding spiritual energy and integrate it into your limbs and bones, and slowly circulate your energy."
Yan Yunzhao followed the instructions step by step, but felt that the spiritual energy in his body was stagnant and blocked.
“The cultivation of grass demons requires years of accumulation and cannot be accomplished in a day. But there is another way... which may be feasible.”
"What method?" Yan Yunzhao's eyes lit up, and he quickly asked.
Lou Su remained silent, bending down to stand in front of her. A pleasant, tingling scent wafted over her, and she stared at the sharply defined profile before her, momentarily lost in thought.
Beneath his straight nose, his lips were like a touch of rouge, and his long neck was close at hand. His warm breath brushed against Yan Yunzhao's ear, sending a shiver down his spine.
Lou Su's lips... were soft and sweet.
Yan Yunzhao's heart pounded like a drum, and she couldn't help but recall that day's intimacy, when suddenly a chill ran down her spine.
Lou Su lightly touched her neck with two fingers, and a tingling sensation went straight to her lower back. Yan Yunzhao was about to back away when she realized that he was directly transferring spiritual energy to her. So she endured the tingling sensation all over her body, steadied her breathing, and circulated her energy to absorb it.
"Zhaozhao, don't be nervous."
His clear, cheerful voice lingered in her ears. In just two breaths, Yan Yunzhao felt his body brimming with spiritual energy, so light he felt like he was about to float away, yet as strong as an ox. He felt he could easily run the entire town of Lixi.
Just as she was enjoying the feeling, Lou Su stopped.
"Your body has limited capacity. If we supply you with more fluids, your body might break down."
Lou Su spoke casually, but Yan Yunzhao felt a chill: every immortal disciple knows that if the spiritual energy far exceeds one's capacity, the physical body will explode like a firecracker...
She quickly waved her hand: "That's good, that's good."
She got out of bed and did a simple version of radio calisthenics, feeling full of energy. Now she couldn't wait to go out and run a couple of laps.
Lou Su laughed and said, "If you run out of magic power in the future, just come find me again."
"How could I trouble you, Young Master Lou?"
Yan Yunzhao sat back on the bed with a playful expression, looked up at Lou Su in front of him, and suddenly asked, "What does your true form look like?"
Lou Su paused, raised an eyebrow, and asked, "You really want to see?"
In the dim moonlight, the dragon scales shimmered with tiny, flowing light, but the discarded clothes still hung limply at Yan Yunzhao's feet...
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