Jia Tengying lowered his head in a daze, glanced at the half-empty bamboo basket, then looked up at Zhao Rong who was eating with gusto.

He was stunned for three breaths, his lips tightly pursed, his eyes fixed on this new roommate who had taken over.

Zhao Rong, who seemed to be fine, paused his mouth movements slightly, turned his eyes and glanced at Jia Tengying.

There was a sparkling light in his eyes as big as copper bells, and his face gradually turned red, but it was hidden under his dark skin and could not be seen.

She looked like a wronged young wife who couldn't express her grievances.

Zhao Rong curled his lips slightly without being noticed. It was obvious to Zhao Rong what Jia Tengying was thinking. He had seen him hesitatingly wandering not far away before.

However, this kid let his senior Yu into Dongli Cottage without informing anyone in advance.

Zhao Rong was a little unhappy.

Snap——

He took another bite with relish, and then pretended to notice Jia Tengying's dazed look.

Zhao Rong turned around, looked at Jia Tengying with a smile on his face, and repeated, "Thank you, Brother Tengying."

In front of the stone table, Fan Yushu, who was busy writing, and Yu Huaijin, who was tuning the piano, were attracted by the second thank you and looked up.

Seeing this, Jia Tengying hurriedly lowered his head and responded in a muffled tone, "No, you're welcome."

Zhao Rong blinked his eyes. "The cucumbers grown by Brother Teng Ying are cool and crispy, and quite delicious. It is a great blessing for me to be able to live in Dongli Cottage."

"Dongli Cottage?" Yu Huaijin asked with a slightly curious tone.

Zhao Rong raised his hand and pointed to the eastern corner of the courtyard, saying casually: "I planted bamboos as a fence and left a bunch of autumn chrysanthemums, so it is called Dongli Xiaozhu."

Yu Huaijin looked in the direction he pointed and nodded gently, "Good."

After hearing Zhao Rong's teasing, Jia Tengying buried his head even lower. At this moment, seeing that Zhao Rong was talking to Yu Huaijin and no one paid attention to him, Jia Tengying changed to holding the bamboo basket with both hands, looking a little at a loss.

"Zhao, as long as Brother Zhao likes it, Brother Fan, Senior, you guys continue. I'm leaving first."

After saying this in a hurry, Jia Tengying wanted to run away as if his butt was on fire and he couldn't stay for a moment.

Zhao Rong couldn't help laughing. Why did she act like a wronged little girl?

"Wait." He stood up slightly and immediately grabbed Jia Tengying who was about to escape.

Zhao Rong grabbed his arm and pulled him back, scolding him with a smile, "Why are you running so fast, kid? I've eaten, but the guests haven't yet. You're not unwelcoming Brother Yushu and Senior Yu, are you?"

Upon hearing this, Jia Tengying looked up in surprise and quickly shook his head.

Zhao Rong reached out and grabbed the other two cucumbers in the bamboo basket.

One was thrown to Fan Yushu and the other was handed to Yu Huaijin.

"Try it. We grow this in our Dongli Cottage. It's the only one of its kind in the entire academy. You immortal guests on the mountain probably haven't tasted this kind of delicacy from the foot of the mountain. Hey, you guys are having a good time today."

Fan Yushu bit the pen, freed his hand, raised it and took it, saying thank you in an inarticulate voice.

At this moment, he heard Zhao Rong's words, took out the wolf hair brush from his mouth, and said with disdain:

"Tsk, isn't it just a cucumber? Ziyu talks about it as if no one has ever eaten it. The immortals on our mountain also need supplies from the mountainside. Besides, in our Duyou City, except for a small number of cultivators in the East City, the majority of the population is still civilians. This kind of fruit is quite common in this season. Hey, except for those immortals who were born in the clouds among the clouds, who hasn't seen it?"

Fan Yushu shook his head.

Yu Huaijin stood beside the stone table with her hands held high. She did not immediately take the strange thing that Zhao Rong handed to her. At this moment, she slightly turned her head and glanced at Fan Yushu.

The hand that Zhao Rong held out was still suspended in the air. He raised his hand forward and said, "Senior Yu, please try it. It's not poisonous and can also beautify your skin. Besides, this was planted by Brother Teng Ying. If you don't trust me, how can you trust Brother Teng Ying who admires you so much?"

Zhao Rong emphasized the word "respect" in the last sentence.

After saying this, he glanced at Jia Tengying with a smile on his face.

After Jia Tengying found out that Zhao Rong was helping him pass something to Yu Huaijin, he immediately raised his head. All the grievances and depression in his heart the moment before disappeared in an instant. He looked at Zhao Rong with gratitude in his eyes. However, when he heard Zhao Rong's meaningful tone, Jia Tengying's face flushed again, and he wanted to explain but stopped.

Yu Huaijin on the side still had a stern face, as if she didn't notice the pronunciation of Zhao Rong's words. She lowered her eyes to look at the cucumber in front of her, then turned around and saluted Jia Tengying.

"Thank you, Brother Teng Ying."

Yu Huaijin's movements were very regular.

Jia Tengying quickly returned the greeting, following the etiquette of returning a courtesy.

Zhao Rong looked at Yu Huaijin speechlessly, "Yu Huaijin, is it so troublesome for you to receive something? We are both students of Ruxing Hall, is it necessary to go through such empty formalities?"

Yu Huaijin stood up and thought about it in silence after hearing this. Finally, he nodded seriously.

Zhao Rong was speechless for a moment. He stared at her and said "boring" in his heart.

It's so old-fashioned and polite. If you get married in the future, do you have to bow to each other before holding hands?

Then if you want to do something more in-depth, it will be even more troublesome. Do you have to kowtow again?

This kind of cumbersome formalities is just like that of the emperors and empresses of the dynasties below the mountain. They have to set an example for the country and abide by the ethics and morals in every move, and cannot transgress in the slightest.

Are you going to be a queen living under the eyes of others all day long in the future?

Zhao Rong curled her lips and glanced at Yu Huaijin who was taking the cucumber. She finally decided to stretch out her jade-white little hand that had been hidden in her sleeve for a long time.

Zhao Rong felt somewhat fortunate that his Qingjun and Xiaoxiao were not such boring women. Sometimes they would even spit at him and call him a nerd in private.

I don’t know which unlucky person will marry this piece of “wood” in the future.

But logically speaking, no one should want it, but...

The handsome face of senior Han from the monastic hall emerged in Zhao Rong's mind. He turned his head and glanced at Jia Tengying who was looking at Yu Huaijin with bright eyes.

Zhao Rong smiled. Is there anyone competing for this piece of wood? Ahem, Brother Han, Brother Teng Ying, come on.

Yu Huaijin never thought that someone would frame her like this in their mind. However, even if she knew, she would probably still remain calm and not say a word.

At this moment, Yu Huaijin looked down at the cucumber in her hand. Her white hands formed a sharp contrast with the emerald green color. The emerald green color seemed to be about to drip down and dye Yu Huaijin's hands.

She raised her eyelids slightly, with a look of curiosity in her eyes, and looked at it closely for a while.

Yu Huaijin suddenly raised his head and asked, "What is beauty?"

These days, in Shuexing Hall, Zhao Rong would occasionally utter some strange words and short sentences, which she heard. Yu Huaijin was always eager to learn and devoted herself to studying, and when she heard a word she didn't hear often, she asked directly.

Zhao Rong raised his eyebrows, "It means to beautify your appearance, or it can be used to refer to someone with a very beautiful appearance."

At this point, he looked at the woman in front of him, blinked, and said seriously, "Here, take its former meaning, it can make Senior Yu look better."

"Oh." Yu Huaijin said calmly. She lowered her eyes, and the interest that had originally been in her eyes disappeared completely.

The old-fashioned woman's expression remained unchanged, and her eyes were as calm as a deep well. She was not at all disturbed by this potentially beautifying thing.

Yu Huaijin felt a little depressed.

He lowered his head, raised his hand, and took a small bite with elegant movements.

moment.

There was a crisp sound between the teeth and lips.

The elegant and cool taste blooms on the taste buds.

Her eyes lit up slightly, just like a bright peony reflected in a pool of withered autumn water, suddenly lighting up the dry water in the pool.

The corners of Yu Huaijin's lips twitched gently back and forth, with a very small amplitude, but he couldn't help chewing a few times.

It's sweet, light and refreshing, yet it seems to carry the flavor of an autumn morning, and is refreshingly cool.

This is the taste she likes.

Yu Huaijin immediately lowered his head again, gently opened his lips, and took a small bite, but his movements still followed etiquette and he did not show his teeth.

She squinted her eyes slightly, chewed slowly for a few times, and savored it carefully.

At this moment.

CRACK——

A slight sound still came out.

The corners of Yu Huaijin's lips stopped moving suddenly. She had been biting very lightly, but the crisp sound was still unavoidable.

The old-fashioned woman who always abided by etiquette and never overstepped the boundaries frowned slightly and hesitated for a moment... She continued to move the corners of her lips, but her movements were lighter and almost imperceptible.

He seemed to be aware of the gazes of the people around him.

Yu Huaijin's Adam's apple rose and fell slightly, then he looked up, raised the cucumber slightly with his hand, and said, "Excellent."

Her expression was serious and her tone was affirmative, as if even tasting a cucumber was a serious matter that should be taken seriously.

As old-fashioned and solemn as ever.

However, at this moment, Yu Huaijin's eyes were brighter, which was very different from the calmness of the past, which was very rare.

Zhao Rong, Jia Tengying, and Fan Yushu looked at each other.

Their eyes widened a little, obviously they didn't expect that a small mountain cucumber would cause such a reaction from Yu Huaijin. It was like the door to a new world opened for this senior from Suixing Hall.

"Ahem." Zhao Rong coughed lightly and exchanged glances with the other two.

He looked at Yu Huaijin and spoke with a smile. Of course, he did not tell her that this thing could open the door to some other new world. Moreover, Zhao Rong was very sure that if he dared to tell Yu Huaijin the truth with a bad taste, he would definitely not be able to leave Dongli Cottage upright, and might even be eliminated by Yu Huaijin on the grounds of enforcing justice.

"If you like the cucumbers from our Dongli Cottage, you can take some back. We don't have other things, but we still have plenty of this stuff in our Dongli Cottage. Don't you agree, Brother Teng Ying?"

Next to him, Jia Tengying, who had been excited and ready to go, nodded rapidly. As soon as Zhao Rong finished speaking, he ran away to pick cucumbers in the vegetable garden without waiting for Yu Huaijin's reaction.

Zhao Rong's mouth twitched slightly as he looked at Jia Tengying's back as he jumped every three steps. He sighed in his heart and became more and more pessimistic about him.

Zhao Rong shook his head and came back to his senses. He looked at Yu Huaijin who was eating cucumber in small bites. He saw that she had a stern face and a serious expression while eating, and she ate in a very elegant manner.

Zhao Rong said with a smile: "Senior Yu, this is the right way to eat cucumbers. You won't be able to experience the pleasure of the taste buds this way."

After saying that, he picked up the half-eaten cucumber in his hand, took a big bite, and chewed it with his cheeks puffed out, eating it with a crisp sound.

Yu Huaijin, who was eating this new thing slowly, had a dazed expression on her face. However, to outsiders like Zhao Rong, she still looked expressionless, because she always had a stern face, and the dazed expression at this moment was the same as a stern face, and it was difficult to tell the difference between the two.

Yu Huaijin narrowed his eyes and looked at Zhao Rong, who was eating casually, smiling brightly and with dazzling white teeth, and pursed his lips.

She was quiet for a while and shook her head gently. She did not imitate Zhao Rong. However, driven by the crunching sound of someone, the corners of her lips moved a little more unconsciously. She was no longer afraid of the slight crisp sound when chewing the cucumber.

While eating, Zhao Rong glanced at Yu Huaijin and waited for a moment. Seeing that the time was almost right, he spoke with a sincere smile.

"Senior Yu, this food can be eaten in other, more delicious ways than just eating it directly."

Zhao Rong's eyes were sparkling. He paused, keeping the subject in suspense.

Yu Huaijin looked at him calmly for a while, and finally asked softly, "How do you eat it?"

Zhao Rong Zhao Rong's face became brighter, revealing his neat white teeth. "For example, for a cold dish, first peel the cucumber, crack it, and put it in a bowl. Then add some minced garlic, chili pepper, and salt, mix well, and finally add the fried peanuts... mix well again... and add coriander for flavor..."

After talking for a long time, Zhao Rong even felt hungry. He tilted his head slightly and said with emotion: "Hiss... that taste."

Zhao Rong glanced at Yu Huaijin and coughed twice.

But after Yu Huaijin listened to his words carefully, although his eyes became brighter, he just looked at him intently and did not respond or ask him for help.

Zhao Rong couldn't help it first. Feeling that the time was right, he looked at her sincerely.

"Senior Yu, we don't have the ingredients for making cold cucumber salad here. It's hard to find. But if you want to eat it, I must make it. This is my unshirkable responsibility as a student of Ruxing Hall. If I can't share your worries, then I will share your worries for your stomach.

So, I'm going to go out and buy some ingredients. I'll be back soon. Ahem, you should get out of the way first. When I bring back the ingredients, I'll make you some cucumber salad. What do you think?"

Zhao Rong's smile was sincere and his eyes were frank.

Yu Huaijin stared at him for a while without saying a word. Suddenly, she lowered her head, took out a blue and white handkerchief, spread it out on her palm, placed the half-eaten cucumber in the center, then folded the handkerchief in half and wrapped it up carefully.

Yu Huaijin flipped her hand, put it into her sleeve, and looked up.

She had a blank expression on her face.

"no."

"..."Zhao Rong.