She was really hungry, the sweet potato soup was ready, and the roasted bird was emitting bursts of fragrance, tempting her cravings.
Then, embarassingly, her stomach grumbled loudly.
Then, with their exceptional hearing, both Quan Shifang and Changtian heard it.
Changtian was silent as always, while Quan Shifang's brows twitched, as if he knew he should leave, but he looked somewhat awkward. He moved his lips as if to say something but ended up not saying anything at all.
Could it be? A thought jumped into Ning Xiaoxian's head, "Did Quan Shaohua get lost?"
This idea was so amusing that even she wanted to laugh, but after Quan Shifang dawdled for a while, he finally said softly, "Could Miss Ning guide me back to the feast after she has had dinner?" His sense of direction had always been poor. As a Sword Immortal, he always flew in the sky, not bothering with the streets and alleys on the ground, so not knowing the way was not a big deal. But this was the Main Peak of Chi Xiao Sect, and to fly on his sword here would be disrespectful to the hosts, so he walked instead. As a result, he wandered off further and further from his destination.
If it were any other servant, they would surely have abandoned their pot and hurriedly escorted him back in fear. However, Ning Xiaoxian always strictly adhered to her working hours; her work time had ended, and now it was her private rest time. To labor for someone else now would depend on her mood. Besides, Changtian had told her from the beginning that to cultivate, one must first cultivate the mind, and how could she strengthen her own will if she always acquiesced to others?
Of course, the main reason was that she intuitively felt that Quan Shifang really didn't mind waiting for her to finish eating before taking him back.
So she replied with just one word: "Okay!"
But when it came time for her to actually start eating, she felt a bit awkward because Mr. Quan was staring straight at her. To be more explicit, he was staring at the pot of sweet potato soup. No matter how thick-skinned she was, she couldn't just eat sweet potatoes in front of a handsome man while letting him stand there and watch!
So she had no choice but to add, "Does Master Quan want to try this sweet potato soup too?" If he declined, she would quickly drink a couple of mouthfuls of soup and then take him back. After all, being stared at by a handsome man while eating wasn't actually as nice as she had imagined.
Who would have known that Quan Shifang would also nod earnestly: "Okay!"
She was dumbfounded; was this man too honest? Mr. Quan, instead of enjoying the delicacies at the banquet, came here to compete with her over a pot of sweet potato soup?
Then she saw Quan Shifang touch his storage ring, and immediately, two jade bowls and two sets of jade chopsticks appeared in his hand. This act made her almost green with envy. A storage ring, ah! How convenient that would be! Yet she forgot that she was carrying an entire God Demon Prison with her.
Without waiting for her to reach out, Quan Shifang first served a bowl and handed it to her, then he served his own.
Ah, such a thoughtful and considerate man.
After just one sip, his eyebrows rose, obviously surprised by the good taste. He drank the soup elegantly, yet quickly, finishing off both the sweet potatoes and the soup in a few mouthfuls.
She, with timely insight, promptly said, "Please, help yourself to more if you'd like."
As a result, Quan Shifang unceremoniously served himself another bowl.
She exclaimed, "Master Quan, didn't the banquet dishes suit your taste?" To think he relished the sweet potato soup so much. If he dared to say that the banquet food was bad, Granny would despise him for a lifetime!
"Master Mei treats us to a meal, the taste is naturally good, but I think it doesn't compare to this bowl of sweet potato soup," Quan Shifang said, not noticing that Ning Xiaoxian's face had turned dark in an instant.
What does he mean by that? Is he saying the extraordinary dish she racked her brains out to create isn't as good as this simple sweet potato soup? Handsome as you may be, it's not right to insult someone like this!
"When I was young, my family was poor, and my mother often made this sweet potato soup, which left a deep impression on me. But as I grew older, I couldn't find that taste anywhere else. Only Miss Ning's soup remarkably resembles the one my mother made." His words always carried a convincing significance.
So, Handsome Quan also had a poor childhood. Alright, forgiven. She pulled out something and shook it at him: "If I'm to be honest, it's not worth much, but my sweet potato soup tastes special because I put this in it."
Quan Shifang looked over and had a sudden realization: "So that's how it is!" She was holding a large apple in her hand.
Ning Xiaoxian casually gave him a chicken leg: "Try this."
He didn't like meat, but after looking at it in his hand for a while and seeing her gaze fixed on him, he reluctantly tore off a piece and put it in his mouth.
"It's very fragrant," though the meat was very tender, "It doesn't taste like chicken."
"The chickens from the immortal sect aren't for us to eat." She shrugged her shoulders, "Today I caught a big fat bird, consider yourself lucky."
His smile was gentle, even the way he ate a chicken leg was elegant.
Suddenly, Ning Xiaoxian remembered something and asked, "By the way, what attire was Miss Mei wearing today?" She had sabotaged Mei Wanting's custom-made new clothes and wondered what she ended up wearing to meet Quan Shifang. Come to think of it, although Mei Wanting had the temperament of a proud princess, she hadn't done anything bad to Ning Xiaoxian, who, on the contrary, had tampered with her dress, and felt somewhat guilty about it.
But the outstanding young man in front of her was stunned, and after thinking hard for a long time, he finally shook his head. Ning Xiaoxian sighed to herself; Miss Mei's show was all for naught, with Quan Shifang not even paying any attention to her.
After gobbling up their meal like a windstorm, Ning Xiaoxian swept the chicken bones into a pile of leaves and cleaned up the pots and dishes, ready to take him back. Suddenly, a cook came running in haste, wiping sweat and calling out: "Xiao Xian! Elder Shan is looking for you, hurry. To think you're the head cook, and you just left the feast without..." She didn't finish saying "permission" when she stopped dead, stunned, as a handsome man had suddenly appeared in the Banyan Forest and was politely smiling at her.
Ning Xiaoxian apologetically said to Quan Shifang, "It seems I have to go first, please ask her to escort you back." She curtseyed and then left.
Quan Shifang's face turned even more embarrassed at this moment. Such a young girl is the head cook? He remembered he had just criticized the chef's delicacies, "The taste is naturally good, but I think it doesn't compare to this bowl of sweet potato soup," and wondered what she must have thought of him. He was usually a very composed person and had never before experienced such repeated slips of the tongue in front of a lady.
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After finishing a day's work, Ning Xiaoxian quickly ran back to Shallow Water Village and comfortably took a bath. After bustling around under the big sun all day, she was drenched in sweat; how could she not clean herself up to face the important moments ahead? Ning Xiaoxian, oh Ning Xiaoxian, today you are going to transform and take the first step on the path from mortal to immortal!
Of course, she covered her Demon Eye before undressing, but she forgot that although Changtian could not see, his hearing was extremely good.
The girl in the flower of youth sat in the large tub, happily bathing, and the splash of water alone was enough to stir the imagination, let alone the odd song she was singing, "I love baths, they make my skin oh so good"?
In the Demon Prison, Changtian shook his head. Sometimes this girl's mind was as fine as hair, and at other moments, how could her nerves be as thick as steel wire? Yet he didn't close his eyes to rest because the moment he did, the outside noise became even clearer. His senses were that acute; once Ning Xiaoxian put the Demon Eye near her chest, the faint, warm scent of the girl enveloped him. Too bad she never thought about such things.