Chapter 103: We women should have some skills in flirting
Ji Shubai thought that since Song Jin liked someone like Miss Pei, why not learn to become a gentle, well-educated girl. However, Song Jin asked: What if I like you?
His face suddenly turned red, he half turned around, stammered, and his eyes darted around the lake, but he didn't know where to look, so he finally looked at the tip of his shoe, muttering in a low voice:
"Why are you saying you like me out of the blue?"
Song Jin stared at the lake, not noticing anything unusual: "If I say I like you, will the adults also ask me to become like you?"
"ah?"
Song Jin explained: "I said I like Miss Pei, and you asked me to act like her. If I said I like you, would you also suggest that I act like you?"
"In fact, I would rather learn to be like you, study hard, pass the imperial examinations, become a fifth-rank official, and be powerful and impressive. Why don't you ask me to learn from you?"
She stared into Ji Shubai's eyes, making his face turn even redder.
"...You can't learn from me."
She really couldn't learn from him.
Not to mention whether she could pass the imperial examination, she couldn't even fool the body search in the examination room. She was destined not to be able to learn from Ji Shubai.
Song Jin sneered and turned away, without a trace of joy on his face: "Your Excellency, what you said makes it seem like if I want to learn from Miss Pei, I will definitely be able to do it."
"Are you unhappy today?"
Song Jin bit her lip and pressed one side of her face against the awning, but said nothing.
To be honest, she felt that she was too greedy. At this moment, she felt ashamed of her greed and sad that her greed could not be satisfied.
"Maybe my arrangement today is not appropriate? I saw you talking at the table today..."
"My Lord, I am fine. Besides, I have to make money."
Song Jin said that everything was fine, but her expression betrayed her, the corners of her mouth drooped uncontrollably.
"You are just not good, why don't you tell the truth?"
Song Jin hid his face even more fiercely, burying his entire face in the awning.
"After sending you away today, I thought a lot." Ji Shubai's tone was a little anxious: "I shouldn't have asked you to go to the Chai family. I didn't think it through. It's all my fault. I just wanted to help you make money, but I didn't expect you to feel uncomfortable."
Song Jin buried his head in the boat awning and refused to turn around no matter how Ji Shubai explained. Ji Shubai became more and more anxious and tried to pry Song Jin's shoulders with his hands.
"Turn around and talk to me. I was wrong today. I won't embarrass you again. Don't be angry."
Song Jin's eyes felt hot and tears rolled down.
Compared to the grievances I felt today, joy actually dominates the moment.
Ji Shubai cared about her and would consider her. Thinking of this, she didn't seem so aggrieved.
"You think my cooking is not good."
Song Jin faced the boat awning and muttered something.
"When did I dislike you?"
"You said the other day that I cut the bitter melon too big and it was inconvenient to eat."
"I take that back, okay? It tastes really good."
Song Jin turned his head and asked: "Then why are you picking on me?"
When people are in a good mood, they talk more.
"I was wrong, okay? Stop crying."
Song Jin smiled, tilted his head against the awning, and wiped his face with his hand: "Okay."
"In fact, today's wine is better. Mrs. Chai also said it's good. Shall we drink together next time?"
Song Jin bit her lip and asked him, "Then you have to prepare ice."
"good."
Song Jin smiled, and Ji Shubai instantly felt a lot more relaxed. Only then did he realize that he was sweating from anxiety.
He led Song Jin to sit inside the boat awning, and the two chatted while looking at the scenery on the lake.
There are many customs of the Ghost Festival, one of which is releasing river lanterns, which is meant to guide the souls of the dead to reach the other side as soon as possible.
After hearing about this custom, Song Jin decided to release a river lantern today.
River lanterns are usually made of wood and paper in the shape of a lotus, with a lamp or candle placed in the middle, which is then lit and put into the river.
Water represents Yin, and it is said that this method can be a path for people in the underworld. Some people will even write the names of the deceased on the river lanterns to ensure that the wrong person is not ferried across.
Song Jin also wanted to release a river lantern, and Ji Shubai couldn't help but become curious: "Who are you releasing the river lantern for?"
Song Jin was also wondering, for whom should she release the river lanterns?
Myself? Or the weeds?
If I came to this world, where did the weeds in this world go?
Will it be in the world she is familiar with?
If so, can she handle the mess she left behind?
Thinking of this, the slavery that Mancao gave her suddenly seemed insignificant.
"A friend."
Song Jin didn't explain, but just chose one river lantern, while Ji Shubai chose two river lanterns.
The two lit them on the shore and put three river lanterns into the water under the cover of night, watching them blend into the other river lanterns. The river during the day became a stream of lights at night.
Song Jin looked at the lanterns all over the river and wondered if Mancao was still alive, would she follow the custom she remembered and light a lantern for her body? Would they meet in the future?
"It's getting late, I'll take you back."
The two of them boarded the boat again and headed towards Guhuai Street.
"You don't have to come again on the 25th of this month."
"Ah?" Song Jin had just calmed down a little when Ji Shubai told her not to go to Ji's house. She seemed to hear her heart thumping as if it hit the bottom of a lake.
Unexpectedly, Ji Shubai smiled and said, "I have to go out on business at the end of the month and will not be in the government office throughout August, so I told you not to come."
"When I come back, I will send someone to give you the message. Don't miss it."
Song Jin looked much more relaxed: "I understand."
Ji Shubai reminded him again: "If you have any problems during this period, you can go to the government office to find Lord Lu, I will ask him to help. Otherwise, you can go to Chai Heng, as long as he can help, he will help."
Song Jin savored the taste of these words and felt something was weird.
"What could possibly happen to me? Why do you treat me like a troublemaker?"
Ji Shubai still smiled faintly: "I just gave you a few instructions, why are you angry again?"
“No!”
"That's good. When I come back, I'll invite you to my house for a drink."
"good!"
Ji Shubaizhi sent the person to the ancient locust tree, watched Song Jin enter the door of Lu’s restaurant, and then turned around and left.
At this moment, the atmosphere in Lu's restaurant was weird. A group of people closed the door, sat together, and stared at the big bag of silver on the table.
Chai Heng gave a full fifty taels of silver, and it was fine silver.
Not to mention that they had never seen it before, Song Jin had never received so much before.
"Where did so much silver come from?" Song Jin asked, standing there in a daze.
Meng Qi answered her, "Manager Song said it was specially given by Master Chai, saying it was a festive occasion and everyone should be happy together."
This reason is too casual.
Song Jin stared at the bag of white silver, suddenly rushed over, picked it up and ran to his room in the backyard, and heard Lao Lu's voice behind him.
"Where are you taking it? We earned it, why are you running away with it? That's outrageous!"
Song Jin ignored him and went straight to his bedroom on the second floor and spread the big bag of silver on the bed.
With so much silver, if it were in the past, Song Jin would have been extremely happy, but today was different. She always felt something was weird.
Ji Shubai made the atmosphere weird.
"Sister Mancao," Chunyun followed up from downstairs: "What's wrong with you? Are you unhappy?"
Song Jin smiled and said, "No, I'm happy. I made money, so I'm happy."
She guessed that Chai Heng saw that Ji Shubai was not in good condition today and suspected that she had a special relationship with Ji Shubai. Moreover, he entrusted him to take care of her, so he was very generous in giving the reward money.
But this misunderstanding made her uncomfortable.
Song Jin looked at the silver on the bed and couldn't help thinking of land, houses, bigger restaurants, and more waiters. When he thought of these, he felt that even if he was very hypocritical, he should hold back in front of the silver.
But her heart didn't listen to her brain.
She was thinking: How does Ji Shubai see her?
At least it is different from others, but where exactly is it placed?
Friend? Lover?
Ugh!
What a shitty lover. He can’t even kiss me. What a shitty lover.
Song Jin took a deep breath and made a decision: she wanted to be a good person, a good person who was as close to Ji Shubai's moral standards as possible.
Song Jin's old habit as a scholar came back again. He thought that as long as he behaved well, he would be treated differently. This was the case in the past, and even though he suffered losses, he still didn't learn his lesson.
People who refuse to change their bad habits probably refer to people like Song Jin.
After Song Jin made the decision, he felt relieved. He slept well that night and started to get busy early the next morning.
Every morning, they had to kill a chicken first. When the boiled chicken was cooked, Song Jin would no longer take care of it and leave it to Mrs. Chen and Chunyun. She would go buy milk with two assistants, and when she came back, she would prepare milk tea.
Every afternoon, two runners from the yamen would come with a load on their shoulders and take away a full pot. They would then bring back an empty pot the next day.
In the morning, the two waiters will deliver the boiled chicken to the customers who have placed orders. When they come back, they will start washing the peanuts and edamame. In the afternoon, they will boil the peanuts and edamame in salt water.
Now is the season for eating peanuts and edamame. In addition to fried peanuts and spiced broad beans, Song Jin also made salted peanuts and edamame, which cost much less than fried ones, and the customers in the restaurant liked them very much.
In the evening, the store would sell alcohol and she would tell stories.
After hearing what Ji Shubai said, Song Jin did not continue to scold Song Jiang for being a coward and Qin Ming for being a wimp, but changed the topic.
She started to tell the story of "Romeo and Juliet". This was the only restaurant in Suzhou that told foreign stories.
She spent a lot of time turning the story outline in her memory into a complete story full of rich details. After practicing it several times in front of the people in the shop, she began her new storytelling journey.
The response was good, everything went as planned, and there were no surprises, except for one thing.
It was a day after the Ghost Festival. The Chai family sent someone to tell them that Mrs. Chai wanted to meet Shopkeeper Lu to discuss something.
Song Jin didn't think much about it and followed him.
In the main hall of the Chai family, Mrs. Chai sat on the upper right side, holding a cup of tea in her hand. Her right hand, which wore three gold stirrup rings, was slowly scraping the tea foam, while her eyes were fixed on Song Jin with a smile on her face.
She was wearing the same blue cotton dress today, the same as always.
But it was different now. Ji Shubai treated her differently.
That day, Chai Heng called her to the table to question her. Song Jin's eyes were evasive, so Ji Shubai helped to deal with it. Then he hurriedly ended the table, and asked himself to take Miss Pei out to play. When he came back, Chai Heng told him that Ji Shubai would be away from Changzhou County for some time, and asked him to take care of Song Jin.
When did Ji Shubai become so close to this woman? Didn't he righteously refuse to help her get rid of her citizenship?
The person in front of me has some tricks.
"Manager Lu, it's been a long time since we last met. Please take a seat."
Mrs. Chai smiled and motioned for her to sit down. Song Jin thanked her and sat down.
"The wine that Shopkeeper Lu prepared that day was quite special. I have never seen it before. I heard that Lord Pan also liked it. I don't know how he made it. Can Shopkeeper Lu share a little bit?"
Song Jin smiled and said, "It is my honor that Madam Chai likes it."
Then he explained in detail how the wine was prepared. Everyone in the kitchen had seen it before, but he didn't explain how to make the apple syrup.
"This method is quite novel, especially the syrup. I think it tastes good. I want to use it often at home in the future."
Song Jin couldn't help but wonder, is he buying syrup, or the formula? Or...
"Go back and help me make some syrup. I want to drink it at home."
Song Jin naturally agreed.
"Also, I heard that you supply milk tea to the government office?"
"Yes, the weather is hot right now, and the people in the government office are tired in the afternoon. Milk tea is just right to quench thirst and refresh. If it is paired with ice cubes, it will be even more refreshing."
Mrs. Chai smiled and said, "That's right. The snacks you made in the past were always very pleasing. Let me tell you, from now on you should prepare a portion for me, and I will send someone to get it every day. Also, please send the boiled chicken as usual. And add a bitter melon wine, which I think is refreshing in summer."
Song Jin agreed to all of them, but she felt puzzled as to why she had to personally give instructions for such a small matter.
"Are you familiar with Lord Pan?" Mrs. Chai turned around and asked.
"I'm not familiar with him. I just ran into him by chance in Wu County last time. We had the good fortune to drink and play cards together, so I drank with him once."
"Oh, really?" Madam Chai smiled with a fake smile, lowered her head and took a sip of tea, and said, "You and Master Ji have been out together for a long time, so I guess your relationship must be special now, right?"
What you guess is true.
"I remember when you wanted to leave your citizenship, I asked my husband to go to Master Ji, but he rejected you outright. I didn't expect that you two would become friends now."
Song Jin hurriedly said, "Master Ji has put aside past grudges and is willing to help me. How dare I call him a friend?"
"Why should I be afraid? This is what Master Ji said himself."
Song Jin guessed from Mrs. Chai's smile that Ji Shubai must have said a lot about herself on the Ghost Festival, but she didn't understand what he said and what it meant.
"Lord Mengji did not abandon me and allowed me to serve you..."
Song Jin felt awkward saying this, but he didn't know how to say it. Mrs. Chai, on the other hand, didn't seem to mind.
"Do you know why Master Ji has not married yet?"
Song Jin said honestly: "I don't know."
"When a person reaches a certain age, he should do what he should do, such as studying for the imperial examinations, or getting married and having children. But this Lord Ji, with his perfect age, perfect looks, and perfect job, just refuses to get married."
"Not to mention getting married, he doesn't even have a woman by his side. That day he asked me to invite Miss Pei, and I thought he had changed. Now it seems that the direction of change is not quite right. I think his treatment of you is special."
After hearing this, Song Jin did not feel lucky at all. Instead, he felt like a thorn in his back and felt uncomfortable all over.
"Madam is joking."
"I'm not kidding. I have a clear vision and can see clearly that you have some skills."
Song Jin couldn't sit still any longer, and clenched his knees with both hands: "Madam, where did you get this from?"
Mrs. Chai smiled, where else to start.
She is not stupid. She saw that the man who was unwilling to help her get rid of her citizenship and almost sent her to jail turned out to be her friend.
"I'm complimenting you. You're a capable person to be the last one to serve as Lord Ji. I would say that we women should have some skills, especially since you're a business woman."
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