Chapter 283: Two Hundred and Eighty-First Chapter: Another Day of Losing to Sister

After taking the three of them to play in the Yuding Qunshan for two days, they had essentially enjoyed all the spring scenery and toured the ancient town. On the evening of the final day, Chen Shu took them to a local specialty restaurant at the foot of the mountain that he liked very much; it served clear-broth mutton.

The diet in Lingzhou also leans toward spicy and sour, so the clear-broth mutton comes with two types of soup bases: one is pure clear water, and the other is sour soup; the sour soup costs an extra eighteen yuan.

Then there is the mutton.

Since the shop is not in the ancient town, the prices are at a normal level, even appearing very affordable at eighty yuan per jin—that is a jin after it has been boiled. Every time Chen Shu comes here, he orders a jin of meat. The shopkeeper never skimps on the weight, and after slicing it thin, it is piled loosely in a small plate, which can be piled quite high.

The proprietress often gives a complimentary platter of vegetables. While called a platter, it is actually a basket for washing vegetables, filled to the brim, and you can add more if it is not enough.

Country folk are honest; seeing you spend nearly a hundred yuan, they would feel embarrassed if they didn't let you eat your fill.

Today, because Qingqing was there, they naturally ordered the sour soup base. With five mouths to feed, they only ordered three jin of mutton. This was because Chen Banxia's appetite is average—she belongs to the type with big eyes and a small stomach—and the two sisters prefer eating vegetables.

They also ordered a steamed bun.

There was nothing else to order.

The proprietress gave them a complimentary vegetable platter as usual, a basket filled with all kinds of greens—pea tips, lettuce, potato slices—with cauliflower florets mixed in the middle. Seeing that there were many of them, she even added a reminder that they could add more if it wasn't enough.

Chen Shu did not feel embarrassed and said to them, "This is complimentary. At first, I thought it was because I was handsome and the proprietress was giving me special treatment..."

Chen Banxia glanced at him and picked up the conversation: "And it turned out you discovered every table of guests gets this treatment?"

"Haha!"

"Narcissist!"

"Hahaha..."

The sour soup in the pot gradually began to boil, and the proprietress brought over the mutton and the dipping sauces.

Chen Shu hurriedly invited the three of them to start eating.

The meat is already boiled and sliced thin; when eating, one only needs to swish it in the soup base, and it is ready.

It sounds like shabu-shabu, but the difference is actually quite significant.

Shabu-shabu uses raw meat, emphasizing freshness and tenderness, and is frozen and sliced into rolls. Clear-broth mutton is already boiled and is pure lean meat, which allows one to taste the texture of the meat relatively better. Although it is also sliced thin, it is naturally not as thin as the mutton rolls for shabu-shabu, and the sheep used are also different. But the similarity is that for both to be delicious, they have certain requirements for the quality of the mutton.

This shop uses local mutton; the breed is average, but nourished by the spiritual energy around Yuding Mountain, the taste is considered top-tier.

The sour soup is a fermented sour soup, appearing orange-red.

Once the mutton is dipped in and heated, it is ready. The meat is rich in fragrance; whether or not you use the dipping sauce, it might not be called "exquisite," but you can't avoid calling it "delicious."

"Ah..."

Chen Shu revealed a look of satisfaction.

After a day of playing, being able to eat satisfying food is the most comfortable moment.

Just at this moment, he caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye and discovered that his own mentally challenged sister was constantly exchanging glances with the little girl, as if they were playing Tai Chi with their eyes, pushing back and forth.

"?"

Chen Shu was a bit puzzled and stared at them.

The two continued their eye contact.

Finally, Chen Banxia raised her head and asked as if casually: "What is going on with Qingqing these past two days? Is there some Joy? I always feel she is a bit different from usual..."

The little girl hurriedly lowered her head to eat meat, but her eyeballs rolled to the very top, secretly observing the movement at the table.

Seeing Qingqing raise her head, her gaze swept over Chen Banxia, and a few seconds later, she aimed at the little girl, scaring the little girl into hurriedly retracting her gaze and focusing on stirring the seasoning in her dipping sauce with her chopsticks.

Finally, she glanced at Chen Shu.

Consequently, Chen Banxia and the little girl also looked at Chen Shu, both curious and worried, waiting for his answer.

"..."

Chen Shu swallowed the mutton in his mouth before saying: "Don't let your imagination run wild, and don't make a fuss out of Surprise. She is just practicing a special technique, the same nature as her previous Closed-Mouth Zen. During this process, the Joy she feels will be doubled compared to usual; it is nothing major."

"Just this?"

Chen Banxia's mouth twitched: "Why didn't you say so earlier? You left me confused for two whole days; I thought something had happened..."

"What happened?"

"Nothing..."

Chen Banxia waved her hand, unwilling to say more.

The little girl also secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

So that was it...

But immediately her expression turned serious again, and the hand holding the chopsticks exerted a slight force—

The sister didn't say so earlier either! It was a waste that she had been on tenterhooks these past few days, always feeling that if her sister didn't hit her, she was holding back a big beating. So it was just this? If you want to hit me, just hit me; taking a beating only hurts for a tiny moment, but this Sword hanging over her head made her worry for two days!

Detestable!

Just at this moment, the little girl caught a glimpse out of the corner of her eye and received the gaze her sister cast toward her.

It seemed to carry a hint of a smile.

Still mocking her...

Detestable!

The little girl gripped her chopsticks tightly.

A few seconds later, she picked up a soup spoon and ladled herself a full bowl of sour soup, deciding to take revenge on her sister by "finishing the sour soup, making the boss add boiling water, and ultimately making the sourness of this pot of soup thinner and thinner."

"Hoo..."

The heat was blown away along the edge of the bowl.

The little girl took a sip and squinted from the sourness.

"Is it good?"

Her sister's voice came from the side.

"It's good!"

The little girl answered without hesitation and turned to ask her brother-in-law: "Brother-in-law, do you want to drink some? I'll ladle a bowl for you."

"I'm not in a hurry."

"Does Sister Banxia want to drink some?"

"Drink it later."

"Does Taozi want to drink some?"

"Woof~"

"Alright, I'll ladle a bowl for you."

"Woof woof!"

"Alright..."

"Woof!"

Ten minutes later.

The owner walked over carrying a plate of steamed buns, placed them on the table, took a look inside the pot, and without a word, picked up a kettle from the side, poured orange-red sour soup from it, and filled the pot to the brim.

The little girl silently put down her bowl and began to focus on eating her food, pretending that nothing had just happened, and turned a blind eye to the gaze cast by her sister.

The twenty-second day of the first lunar month, morning.

The Sect Master was feeding birds in the small courtyard again.

Chen Shu stood to the side: "I am returning to Yujing today, so I have come specifically to bid farewell to you, Sect Master."

"When does school start?"

"Tomorrow."

"Then you should indeed be leaving." The Sect Master scattered a handful of millet; one could hear the crisp sound of the millet landing on the tiled roof. A flock of birds swarmed over, and he asked again, "Do you have a Storage Artifact of your own?"

"Yes."

"Where did you get it?"

"I picked it up at the antique and artifact street in Wangxi Ancient Town at the foot of Xinzheng Temple; it was old military equipment."

"You have this kind of skill?"

"Luck, just luck."

"How is the space?"

"Less than one hundred liters."

"How much did you pay for it?"

"One hundred and twenty thousand."

"You got a huge bargain."

"Luck."

"However, this is too small; it can only be used as a suitcase." The Sect Master paused. "I have prepared one for you; take your Nameplate to the warehouse to collect it. Don't be polite about it; in our Spirit Sect, this is standard equipment for core disciples. However, you only have the right to use it, not ownership. When you die, it must be reclaimed and distributed to future disciples."

"Then I won't be polite." Chen Shu grinned.

"Enjoy your university life well; there won't be a second time for this." The Sect Master said, "As for the Spirit Body, you have already learned what you need to learn. The rest is nothing more than integrating them and supplementing with practice; there is no need to be too anxious."

"Understood."

"Go on, ask me on Feixin if there is anything you don't understand."

"Alright, then I'm leaving."

"..."

The Sect Master continued to scatter the millet.

Chen Shu left the courtyard and made a trip to the warehouse.

The flying car was already waiting in the parking lot.

Afternoon, Ling'an Academy, girls' Dormitory.

Zhang Suannai, who was cultivating in the living room, jumped up, ran to the door in a few steps, pressed herself against it, and listened to the movement outside.

The sound of footsteps grew closer and finally stopped outside the door.

There was the rustling sound of a card being taken out.

Zhang Suannai gripped the doorknob with her right hand, held her breath, and waited for the right moment.

"Click!"

She opened the door.

Standing outside were her two expressionless roommates.

The little girl was standing in front, holding a card and maintaining the posture of swiping the door; judging by the distance, the card in her hand was likely less than five centimeters from the door lock.

Zhang Suannai grinned, feeling smug, and glanced at her two roommates.

She saw that Qingqing remained calm, Xiaoxiao looked at her but said nothing, then went about her business, putting away her room card and walking inside. Taozi, however, tilted her head high to look at her and let out a puzzled woof.

These two don't understand the fun in this...

Zhang Suannai thought to herself, but didn't pay much mind to it; she just stepped aside to let them in, then diligently closed the door and followed behind them:

"Is Lingzhou fun?"

"..."

"Is Lingzhou fun? Xiaoxiao."

"It's fun."

"How many days did you stay?"

"More than two days."

"You didn't even call me..."

"I went to have fun with my brother-in-law, and by the way, to celebrate Sister Banxia's birthday."

"Hmph..."

Zhang Suannai felt sour just thinking about it, especially since Chen Banxia posted updates every day; it was clear they were having a great time, and her roommate was also very happy, happier than she had ever been, yet this happiness of her roommate did not include her own participation or company.

At this moment, the little girl turned her head and said to her:

"I'll perform a magic trick for you."

"What magic trick?"

Zhang Suannai's attention was diverted.

The little girl turned to look at her sister beside her, pondered for a few seconds, and asked: "Qingqing, can I grow as tall as you in the future?"

The corners of Ning Qing's mouth curled into an arc.

The smile carried a hint of mockery.

"Look!"

The little girl pointed at her sister.

"!?"

Zhang Suannai's expression went blank.

Yujing Academy, male Dormitory.

Chen Shu opened the door and walked in; the first thing he saw was Jiang Lai on the living room sofa, and he greeted him casually:

"Morning, Brother Jiang."

"It's afternoon."

"Don't worry about those details." Chen Shu walked to the living room, "Is it just you?"

"Brother Meng hasn't returned yet."

"Have you asked him? When is he coming back?"

"He said tonight."

"That's good."

Chen Shu breathed a sigh of relief, sat down on the sofa, and asked with a smile: "Brother Jiang, did you have a good New Year?"

"Better than previous years."

Just as Chen Shu was about to speak, his Mobile Phone suddenly vibrated.

A message came from the Ancient Cultivation Group.

Gate of All Wonders: Inside scoop @all members

Gate of All Wonders: The group owner has been found

Green Lamp Ancient Buddha: Joyous and worth celebrating

Qingcai Keke: Is it verified?

Grandma Always Says: @all members/pout

Gate of All Wonders: I got the news from my sect, it should be true; they were found on the border between Yuanzhou and Puluo. I don't know the details, if any of you know, be sure to inform us in the group immediately.