"You seem to really like our Fengliang Kingdom?" While waiting for the noodles, Hong Xiaoduo pointed at John's clothes and asked with a smile.
John nodded immediately upon hearing this: "Yes, I love everything about this place, the mountains, the water, the delicious food, and the kind and simple people."
"Oh, you didn't encounter any bandits or robbers on your way here?" Hong Xiaoduo couldn't help but ask.
She genuinely didn't intend to smear Fengliang Kingdom; she just gave a slight hint because John described it so beautifully.
“I’ve encountered them before, but bandits exist everywhere, including in our country,” John said dismissively.
After he finished speaking, John felt that the female interpreter in front of him seemed to look at him more kindly.
"What do you think about us not taking the opium this time?" Hong Xiaoduo asked casually.
Although Mu Rongjing and Kaiyang were watching the stall owner cook noodles, they were both listening intently.
John was surprised that Hong Xiaoduo would ask him about this. After a moment of surprise, he smiled and shrugged, saying, "If you don't want it, then you don't have to."
"I see. But I remember that the other members of your delegation were all angry and upset, but John, you were the only one who was secretly laughing. Could it be that I saw it wrong?" Seeing that the other party obviously did not want to tell the truth, Hong Xiaoduo suppressed her laughter and pretended to recall seriously.
John hadn't expected that, under those circumstances, the interpreter would actually be paying attention to him.
Could it be because of the clothes he was wearing from Fengliang Kingdom? He subconsciously looked down at his attire.
Just then, John's stew was served.
Hong Xiaoduo pushed the vinegar bottle towards him: "I like to add this vinegar when I eat braised noodles. Do you want to try it?"
John thought for a moment, picked up a mouthful of noodles, blew on it, tasted it, then picked up the vinegar bottle and added a little vinegar. After tasting it again, his eyes lit up: "Hmm, it's delicious without this vinegar, but with it, the taste is a different kind of delicious."
John ate his noodles intently, and Hong Xiaoduo didn't continue the previous topic, as if that was the end of it.
Soon, the braised noodles for Hong Xiaoduo and the other two were served.
Kaiyang looked at the bowl of noodles in front of him and then glanced at Hong Xiaoduo.
"You need to adapt to your current status. It's okay if you can't finish it all; just leave some in your bowl." Hong Xiaoduo knew what Kaiyang was thinking. They had only eaten at the palace banquet less than an hour ago, and she wasn't hungry at all.
I was just thinking that sitting here eating noodles would make it seem more natural to chat with John, and I didn't consider anything else.
If she had thought about it, she would have ordered one less bowl of noodles, and she and Kaiyang would have shared one.
Wasting food is shameful. Right now, Hong Xiaoduo can only promise to finish her own bowl of braised noodles.
Listening to the conversation between the two, one big and one small, Murong Jing understood. He had met her and the children several times before and eaten with them, so he knew that she and the children never wasted food.
"Give me some. I didn't have much of an appetite at noon and only ate a few bites," Mu Rongjing said, pushing her bowl of noodles toward Kaiyang.
Kaiyang immediately smiled, picked up his chopsticks and started putting noodles from his own bowl into Murongjing's bowl, and even thoughtfully added a few pieces of mutton.
When Kaiyang's bowl was half full, Murongjing's bowl was almost overflowing.
Hong Xiaoduo reached out and carefully moved Murong Jing's bowl of noodles back to him.
Seeing her looking at him hesitantly, Mu Rongjing wanted to confirm if he was right, so he looked at her and said, "What about you? Can you finish it? Do you want to share some?"
No sooner had he finished speaking than he heard her excitedly say, "Okay, okay!" and immediately pick up her chopsticks and scoop out two full mouthfuls of noodles from his bowl.
In other words, Murong Jing's bowl was simply too full; any more would spill out of the bowl, so she had no choice but to give up.
Kaiyang was adding vinegar to his bowl, Hong Xiaoduo was adding chili to her bowl of noodles, and Murong Jing looked at the mountain of noodles in front of him, but he was not worried. On the contrary, he felt very happy.
I've eaten braised noodles countless times since I was a child, but I've never received any noodles from someone else's bowl, especially not from two bowls. That feeling is quite special.
John ate his noodles while observing the interaction between the three people opposite him, and he found it very heartwarming.
The four of them finished eating around the same time and put down their chopsticks. Just as Mu Rongjing was about to reach for his purse to pay for the noodles, Hong Xiaoduo gestured for him not to.
Mu Rongjing glanced at John but didn't try to pay the bill with Hong Xiaoduo.
"John, this bowl of noodles is on me." Hong Xiaoduo paid for the noodles.
“Thank you, translator Hong,” John said with a smile.
"We want to keep shopping, do you want to come along?" Hong Xiaoduo invited.
John thought for a moment and nodded: "OK."
As they left the noodle stall and walked forward, Kaiyang and Murongjing, as if by unspoken agreement, lagged behind.
"Your Highness, when will Uncle Wu be back?" Kaiyang asked, turning his head.
Perhaps because he shared his noodles, Kaiyang felt that the distance between him and Murongjing had suddenly shortened considerably.
Mu Rongjing responded to Kaiyang in a low voice, and the two of them, one big and one small, started chatting.
Hong Xiaoduo, who was walking ahead, also chatted with John about the goods at the roadside stalls and the snacks at the food stalls.
In about half an hour, they reached the other end of the market and set up a few tea tables.
"Would you like to sit down and try some big bowl tea? I mean, the cheapest kind of tea," Hong Xiaoduo asked tentatively.
John nodded without hesitation and sat down with her. After a moment's thought, Hong Xiaoduo asked him in the poppy language, "John, since you like my Fengliang Kingdom so much, would you consider staying here?"
"What did your mother say?" Murong Jing asked Kaiyang curiously, noticing John's expression after hearing her words.
Kaiyang translated it for him, and Murong Jing was quite surprised when he heard it.
“Of course I want to stay here, but what can I do as a foreigner, all alone? Even if I were to become an interpreter, your emperor wouldn’t trust me.” John said, shaking his head helplessly.
Hearing his words, Hong Xiaoduo felt reassured. She put away her smile and said seriously, "It doesn't matter whether others believe you or not, I believe you. If you are willing to stay, you can be my child's teacher. I can teach him your country's language to a good extent, but it would be even better if you could be by his side to guide him and have daily conversations with him."
As a translator yourself, you naturally understand better that you need to speak and use foreign languages more often.
Also, I can ask you if it's possible to teach your country's language at the academy.
"So, how about it? Hope you can give me an answer as soon as possible, so I can help you settle in before you leave Beijing."
"Kaiyang?" Mu Rongjing saw that Kaiyang's eyes were red after hearing Hong Xiaoduo's last words, so he called out to him in a low voice.
Kaiyang came to his senses and looked at Murong Jing: "My mother wants him to stay and be my foreign language teacher."
Upon hearing this, Mu Rongjing looked at Hong Xiaoduo with some emotion, realizing that she had gone to such lengths for Kaiyang!
"Translator Hong, why do you trust me so much?" John asked, quite puzzled...
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