In Shangjing, in a quiet courtyard residence.
The instant Old Xu saw Ye Yuan, his face broke into a smile. He was clearly in a very good mood.
Seeing Ye Yuan come in carrying gifts,
Old Xu nodded and pointed at the sofa.
"Sit! Help yourself to whatever you want to drink."
After saying that, he pretended nothing had happened and went back to teasing
the prized Hwamei thrush he had just acquired in its cage.
Ye Yuan did not stand on ceremony.
He decisively walked over to the tea cabinet in the corner.
He opened the small drawer at the very back.
On the other side, Old Xu, who was teasing the thrush, could not help twitching at the corner of his mouth when he saw what Ye Yuan was doing.
He immediately turned his head away, deciding that what he could not see would not bother him.
After brewing the tea, Ye Yuan finally sat down and said,
"This won't do, Old Xu! You don't even have a servant, yet you make your guests brew their own tea."
"Don't act like you're getting a bargain after taking advantage of me. If I had someone here, do you think you'd still get to drink this?"
As he spoke, he pointed at the teapot in front of Ye Yuan.
"Hehe, didn't you tell me to help myself?
If you're drinking tea, you have to drink the good stuff. Otherwise, it's not even as good as the wild tea at my place.
Where would that leave your dignity, Old Xu?"
Ye Yuan grinned cheekily, treating himself like he was right at home.
He knew Old Xu did this not because there was no one in the house to make tea, but because it showed how familiar he was with Ye Yuan.