Distinguishing Flavors

Although the two of them didn't speak much, mostly just meeting briefly before he left the Earl of Suiping's Residence, people don't necessarily have to express their feelings with words.

To express his feelings, he would occasionally bring Qingfeng small gifts. Qingfeng never refused them, but silently accepted them. It was clear that she also valued him.

When the Fifth Prince and Fifth Miss Zhao get married, he'll get married right away too. Hehe...

Thinking of this, Wang Tong even had more energy to start a fire and fetch water.

Seeing that Wang Tong had left, Qingfeng was still standing there without Zhao Ruxi's orders, Xiao Lingyan couldn't help but feel a little annoyed. He ordered Qingfeng, "Go and see, Wang Tong probably can't even start a fire."

Zhao Ruxi had seen Qingfeng blush and feel shy earlier. She was still thinking about Qingfeng and Wang Tong when she heard Xiao Lingyan's words, and quickly said to Qingfeng, "Go ahead."

Qingfeng bowed before heading to the kitchen.

As soon as she left, Zhao Ruxi's hand was grabbed by Xiao Lingyan.

Holding her soft little hand in his large palm, Xiao Lingyan felt completely satisfied.

He said, "Once we get married, we'll let them get married."

Zhao Ruxi looked at him in surprise. "You knew they were interested in each other all along?"

"Hmph. Every time Wang Tong returns from delivering or retrieving a letter, he has a smug look on his face..." Xiao Lingyan with dissatisfaction.

What he didn't want to say was that he felt very uncomfortable every time he saw Wang Tong like that.

He's spent enough time with Xu Xi, hasn't he? Two lifetimes already. Yet he still hasn't won Xu Xi heart.

Wang Tong had only met Qingfeng a few times and barely exchanged a few words with her, yet he had already won her heart. It was simply outrageous.

This is probably the difference between what people in ancient times and people today pursue.

In ancient times, people always focused on passing down their lineage; only he and Xu Xi pursued a spiritual connection.

Thinking of all this, Xiao Lingyan was no longer satisfied with just holding hands.

He had already sent his men away. When Zhao Ruxi entered the second courtyard, she only brought Qingfeng with her. Now that the two eyesores were gone, it was just him and Zhao Ruxi in the second courtyard, the perfect time to do something.

He looked at the graceful Zhao Ruxi and said, "Xixi, I want to hug you."

Zhao Ruxi glanced at him sideways. "After the hug, do you want a kiss too?"

Xiao Lingyan immediately nodded his head vigorously, like a chick pecking at rice. "Yes, yes, yes."

"Get out of the way." Zhao Ruxi pushed his head aside, walked into the main room, and sat down. "I have something important to tell you."

Xiao Lingyan had no choice but to go inside and sit down on the other side, waiting for Zhao Ruxi to get down to business.

Zhao Ruxi opened the bundle she had brought, took out the tea set inside, and placed it on the table. She then took out a can of tea.

What kind of fine tea is worth such serious consideration?

Xiao Lingyan opened the jar and glanced at the tea leaves inside. He immediately raised an eyebrow.

"Isn't this the tea I brought you?" he asked.

As the Fifth Prince, he naturally had the best of everything. He knew from his previous life that Zhao Ruxi liked to drink tea, so he would often ask Wang Tong to send some tea leaves from the palace to Zhao Ruxi.

It wasn't that he was reluctant to send out a lot at once, but tea is best when it's freshly made in the spring; if you want to drink good tea in the autumn, you have to store it properly.

The Imperial Household Department in the palace naturally stored the tea better than the Earl of Suiping's Residence. So every month he would send someone to the Imperial Household Department to collect some tea, and then send half of it to Zhao Ruxi.

In his past life, he liked drinking coffee. Later, because Zhao Ruxi liked tea, he also started drinking tea and even devoted himself to studying tea culture.

In ancient times, there was no such thing as coffee, and because he wanted to find good tea for Zhao Ruxi, his knowledge of tea became even deeper. Therefore, he knew at a glance that the jar Zhao Ruxi was in contained the tea he had sent.

"Yes, it's the Gu Zhu Purple Bamboo Shoots you sent," Zhao Ruxi said.

Xiao Lingyan looked at her, puzzled. "Are you perhaps planning to give me a demonstration of your tea ceremony skills?"

Zhao Ruxi twitched her lips. "No. As a science and engineering student, I don't have that kind of acting talent."

Fortunately, Wang Tong and Qingfeng worked together, and the water boiled very quickly. By this time, Qingfeng had already boiled the water, poured it into a kettle, and brought it over.

"Alright, all of you go out and keep watch in the outer courtyard," Zhao Ruxi said.

Seeing that the two had left, Xiao Lingyan was still quite satisfied, even though he hadn't managed to hug or kiss them.

He looked at Zhao Ruxi.

Then Zhao Ruxi pointed twice at the air, and a pill slowly emerged from the empty space.

Zhao Ruxi took the pills in her hand and held them out to him. "Eat them."

"This... this is..." Xiao Lingyan pointed to where the pills had just appeared, then pointed to the pills in Zhao Ruxi's hand.

"Stop talking nonsense and eat first," Zhao Ruxi said.

Although Xiao Lingyan didn't know what Zhao Ruxi was holding, he knew that listening to his wife and following the Party was always the right thing to do.

He took the pill and swallowed it without hesitation.

He was thinking of getting a glass of water to wash it down, but the pills dissolved instantly in his mouth. Before he could even react, his mouth was empty.

As Zhao Ruxi rinsed the teaware with water, she asked him with a smile, "Aren't you afraid I might put some kind of poison on you?"

"I'm not afraid. I'm already under your love spell, so I'm not afraid of a little more," Xiao Lingyan said, patting his chest.

Zhao Ruxi: "..."

That guy's such a smooth talker!

Gu Zhu Zi Sun is a green tea, which is very easy to brew, without the complicated brewing process of Pu'er or Oolong teas.

Zhao Ruxi washed the teapot, added tea leaves, and poured in water. After a while, she poured a cup into a teacup and handed it to Xiao Lingyan: "Would you like to try it?"

Xiao Lingyan was puzzled. But no matter how much he didn't understand, Zhao Ruxi never asked him to do anything without a reason. Even if it didn't, he had to obey. Being a boyfriend meant having the self-awareness of a boyfriend.

He picked up the teacup, blew on it, and took a small sip.

His eyes widened immediately.

"This... this is..." He pointed to the teacup and asked in surprise, "Is this the tea I gave you?"

"Yes." Zhao Ruxi also a little curious and asked him, "Is there anything different about how it tastes compared to usual?"

"Very different." Xiao Lingyan frowned, looking at the teacup in his hand. "When I drink tea, I only distinguish between good and bad. As for what makes it good or bad, I really can't say."

"But now, I can clearly distinguish every flavor in the tea in my mouth: fresh, bitter, refreshing, and sweet."

Zhao Ruxi poured another cup of tea and handed it to Xiao Lingyan: "Take a look at this cup again."

Xiao Lingyan took it, blew on it, and tasted it carefully. Then he frowned. "This has... lotus leaf added?"

At this point, he looked at the table with a puzzled expression.

There was only one tea canister on the table, and only one pot of tea that Zhao Ruxi had just brewed in front of him. There were also only two teacups. Originally, Zhao Ruxi and he each had one, but now he had used both teacups.