It's Better to Have One More Friend Than One More Enemy

After exchanging a few pleasantries with Guo Xin and saying they would meet again another time, Jiang Beiran returned to Xu Meiying's estate.

The one who opened the door for him was Xu Ruxuan. The moment Jiang Beiran saw her, he cupped his hands and said, "Something sudden came up just now, and I left you there alone. That was discourteous of me."

Xu Ruxuan immediately waved her hands after hearing that, and then Jiang Beiran heard her voice ring out in his mind.

"It's all right. Master Jiang truly needn't take it to heart."

Following Xu Ruxuan into the estate, Jiang Beiran found the surroundings astonishingly quiet, so he asked, "Where are your grandmother and the others?"

"Grandmother had matters to attend to, so they all went out. She told me to entertain you properly."

...

Good grief. That 'entertain' sounds more than a little improper.

Once again feeling the fervor of Xu Meiying's matchmaking efforts, Jiang Beiran shook his head and followed Xu Ruxuan into the house.

Then he heard Xu Ruxuan's voice ring out in his mind.

"Because I didn't know when you would return, Master Jiang, I hadn't started stir-frying the dishes. Please wait a moment. I'll go cook them now."

After saying that, without waiting for Jiang Beiran's reply, she had already gone to the kitchen.

Before long, plate after plate of steaming-hot delicacies was brought out.

As far as color went, Jiang Beiran could give her a high score.

Only after bringing out the final plate of salted duck did Xu Ruxuan take off her apron and hand a pair of chopsticks to Jiang Beiran, saying, "Master Jiang, all the dishes are here. This is everything I know how to make, so please make do with it."

Taking the chopsticks Xu Ruxuan handed him,