Are You Allergic To Romance? - Chapter 21

Chapter 21: Loving Wives

“What are you staring at?” Xie Mianzhi leaned closer to Jing Yuan and waved her hand playfully at her.

Jing Yuan immediately shook her head, concealing her inner thoughts, and awkwardly said, “I thought you liked seals.”

Yes, when Xie Mianzhi was watching TV last night, the screen was showing harp seals. Humans usually love those kind of affectedly cute little creatures.

She remembered the other party muttering “Fluffy, so cute,” and then calling her an ungrateful wretch. Mmm, she remembered that very clearly.

“Seals?” Xie Mianzhi was a little confused by Jing Yuan’s slightly aggrieved tone. When did she ever say she liked seals?

“I never said that,” Xie Mianzhi said, bewildered.

“One night you were watching TV, and they were showing seals. You were very engrossed,” Jing Yuan pretended not to care, her tone merely stating a fact.

*’One night’ ?

Please, that was just last night!

This little Jing Yuan is quite evasive when she speaks.

Xie Mianzhi was completely amused by the other party’s awkward phrasing. Suppressing her laughter, she quickly said, “You misunderstood. It was just what happened to be on TV. I was just watching casually.”

“Oh…” Jing Yuan didn’t look up. She wasn’t trying to bring it up, she just remembered it. Her expression was slightly unnatural, but since her head was down, Xie Mianzhi couldn’t see it clearly.

Just ‘Oh’?

Xie Mianzhi’s bright eyes stared at the person sewing her shoulder strap. Was the little embroidery girl still not satisfied with her explanation?

“Mmm~ So, you want me to like seals, huh? If you do, you can embroider a seal,” Xie Mianzhi said with a hint of intent to provoke. She sensed that Jing Yuan didn’t like the “seal” she mentioned.

Jing Yuan’s hand holding the needle and thread paused. She finally looked up at Xie Mianzhi.

“I don’t know how to embroider a seal,” she flatly refused, her meaning clear: she had no desire to embroider one.

“Alright, then it’ll have to be a little whale, sigh,” Xie Mianzhi gave the second option with a touch of feigned regret.

Jing Yuan felt a subtle irritation at the other party’s tone. Didn’t Miss Xie say she liked the little whale? Why was she being so inconsistent now?

Or did she personally like seals more than little whales? Jing Yuan put down the sleep dress and thought hard before finally asking, “Are you very disappointed?”

Xie Mianzhi heard Jing Yuan’s extremely restrained tone.

Ew, she really didn’t expect little Jing Yuan to be so narrow-minded.

Xie Mianzhi forced her lips shut. Heaven knows how distorted her face was trying to hold back her laughter. She decided not to tease this person anymore. Although it was fun, it wouldn’t be good if she made the other party genuinely angry.

She was staying as a guest, so she should restrain herself a bit.

“Don’t accuse me! I really like the little whale. It was my first thought! You were the one who made me think about the seal. So hurry up and embroider it! I’m waiting to eat breakfast. Quick, quick,” Xie Mianzhi urged the little embroidery girl to hurry up and not stop.

Jing Yuan’s mood brightened upon receiving such a firm answer, and she picked up the needle to start stitching again.

“You can eat first,” Jing Yuan suggested to Xie Mianzhi. As for the blueberry milk, she would make a cup for her after the blueberries arrived.

Xie Mianzhi waved her hand, insisting on waiting to eat with Jing Yuan.

So, the noble young lady who had never touched a needle and thread before watched in a matter of minutes as the person in front of her embroidered a miniature little whale onto the plain shoulder strap.

“Wow, that’s amazing. Your fingers are truly dexterous,” Xie Mianzhi couldn’t help but compliment her after seeing the finished product.

The high-end sleep dress, which she had thought was ill-fitting because the strap was too long and planned to discard after one wear, had actually blossomed in the other party’s hands, adding a touch of playful cuteness to its sensuality.

“How did you manage to embroider it on such a narrow strap? You’re really impressive,” Xie Mianzhi leaned closer, touching the raised little whale with her fingertip. It was perfectly sewn. She was usually extremely picky about clothing details but couldn’t find a single flaw.

Jing Yuan kept her gaze down, looking at Miss Xie, who was crouched in front of her and touching the embroidered little whale. Listening to Xie Mianzhi’s unrestrained compliments, she shyly brushed the hair near her ear with her hand, her heart feeling like a sea of sweet honey.

“I just embroidered it like that,” she said softly. Because her body had been unstable since adulthood, she used needlework to calm her mind and pass the time, and her skill had gradually improved.

Her mother, the Deep Sea Elder, said it was her talent. She even teased that if she couldn’t find a partner later, she would at least have a skill to fall back on, and perhaps some little fool would be smitten by her embroidery skills.

“It looks great. If we had more time, I’d ask you to teach me,” Xie Mianzhi looked up and saw little Jing Yuan staring intently at her.

The expression was like a big dog waiting for its owner to lead it home in the rain—utterly endearing.

Jing Yuan had hair as black as ink. In this state, Xie Mianzhi felt a strong urge to reach out and pat her head.

Meeting the other party’s bright, clear, golden, lake-like eyes, Xie Mianzhi couldn’t help but look a few extra times.

She attributed her heart’s flutter to the rarity of Jing Yuan’s eyes.

“So, will you teach me?” Xie Mianzhi asked softly, out of the blue.

“If you want to learn, I can teach you, but the other side isn’t finished yet. You can eat,” Jing Yuan couldn’t refuse the longing look in the other party’s eyes. She could only point to the other shoulder strap, indicating that Xie Mianzhi didn’t have to wait for her to start eating.

“I told you—”

Dong, dong, dong—

A loud, heavy knocking sound echoed from the large iron gate in the courtyard nearby.

This immediately startled Golden Bean and Yuan Bao, who were resting in their kennel. They shot out and raced to the carved iron gate, straining their necks to peck at the outside person’s trousers through the gap under the gate.

(Oh my, Golden Bean and Yuan Bao are still so enthusiastic, ha ha ha ha.)

The voice outside was a woman’s. Although it sounded a bit old, it was full of energy.

Xie Mianzhi was annoyed by the unexpected arrival interrupting her conversation with Jing Yuan.

“…Who is it?” Xie Mianzhi asked, standing up alertly.

“It’s Grandma Shen from the small shop next door,” Jing Yuan clearly heard the person speaking outside and knew Grandma Shen had arrived. She was about to get up and open the gate to the courtyard.

“I’ll open it,” Xie Mianzhi walked ahead, swiftly stepping down the courtyard stairs.

She had been so engrossed watching Jing Yuan embroider that she had forgotten about the visitor. She wanted to see what kind of person this Grandma Shen was. After all, Jing Yuan was a young woman living alone here. There were all kinds of elderly people, and you couldn’t rule out the possibility of someone with ulterior motives trying to steal things after getting the “little thing” drunk if she hadn’t been here today.

Jing Yuan is too simple; she can’t be tricked.

Shing—

As the iron gate was pulled open, Golden Bean, who was huddled at Xie Mianzhi’s feet, immediately dashed out, quacking loudly around the old woman.

Xie Mianzhi’s sharp eyes openly scrutinized the elderly woman who appeared before her.

How to describe her?

Her clothing wasn’t overly plain. She was clean and tidy, with a fairly bright floral scarf on her head. Her face was kind. It looked like her small shop business was doing well.

She also seemed very robust, judging by her energetic voice—

“Jing Yuan, you finally opened… Huh?” Grandma Shen was amused by Golden Bean rubbing against her. She instinctively looked up to greet her, expecting it to be Jing Yuan, but when she saw the beautiful stranger, she paused.

Grandma Shen quickly took a small step back, looking up at the house. It was Jing Yuan’s place, no mistake.

She hadn’t taken the wrong path, and besides, Jing Yuan’s was the only house on this remote cliffside.

Grandma Shen didn’t dare to make a sound.

“Hello, this is Jing Yuan’s house. You must be Grandma Shen,” Xie Mianzhi curved her lips and held the doorknob very naturally. Seeing the old woman thought she had the wrong address, she greeted her first.

“Ah, yes, yes. Hello, young lady, hello. I’ve come to bring Jing Yuan some blueberries, and I also brought some homemade plum wine,” Grandma Shen immediately relaxed, explaining. She had been truly puzzled, wondering how her otherwise good memory could have failed her.

Xie Mianzhi followed the old woman’s words and glanced down. The other party was carrying a bag of blueberries and a basket containing a glass bottle of wine. It looked like there was another bag of fruit that she couldn’t quite see inside the red bag.

“Please come in,” Xie Mianzhi politely stepped aside to let her enter.

But she still felt uneasy about the old woman. Little Jing Yuan hadn’t mentioned she was bringing wine. If she hadn’t been here today, it wasn’t impossible that this old woman would try to get the little thing drunk and steal things from the house.

Xie Mianzhi watched the elder enter the courtyard, closed the gate, and turned around, sporting her signature fake smile, discreetly watching Grandma Shen.

At that moment, the woman walked out of the house, carrying a small table which she placed under the courtyard eaves. She greeted the elder warmly, “Grandma Shen, you’re here.”

“Ah, ha ha, Jing Yuan. You mentioned needing blueberries, so I picked a lot from the yard. I brought extra this time, and some plum wine. Oh, yes, and a small bunch of lychees…”

Grandma Shen chatted on, looking up to see the owner of the house coming out. She immediately presented the large and small bags of gifts in her hand for the other party to see.

Jing Yuan, though a woman of few words, was very kind to people. She missed her friend who sold the house, and she thought it had been sold to a real estate agent. She was surprised to find a very cultivated young lady living there alone.

As for why she knew the other party was kind and well-mannered? It was because Miss Jing Yuan had helped her when she went to her shop to buy things. The other party’s reaction time was excellent. She helped her catch a thief and recovered her money bag.

In short, Jing Yuan was a very excellent child.

“Grandma Shen, you walked all this way carrying so many things. You really don’t have to come in person next time. I can come to you,” Jing Yuan quickly walked over, signaling for the other party to let her carry the things.

“It’s fine. My body is very strong, truly. You know me,” Grandma Shen handed the large and small bags of gifts to Jing Yuan, chatting as she helped set up the small table: “I can still ride Zhang Shun’s electric tricycle from last time.”

“You’re truly impressive,” Jing Yuan praised her helplessly, then went inside to get the breakfast she had made and two more cups of blueberry milk for Xie Mianzhi and Grandma Shen.

After Jing Yuan went inside, Grandma Shen slowly turned around, curiously looking at the incredibly beautiful stranger.

Honestly, she was very surprised. In all the time she had known Jing Yuan, she had never seen anyone visit her house.

Neither men nor women. And Jing Yuan had told her she lived alone here.

So, who was this suddenly appearing beautiful woman?

Grandma Shen was full of curiosity. She wanted to ask but felt a little constrained, until Xie Mianzhi introduced herself: “My name is Xie Mianzhi.”

“Hello, Miss Xie. I’m Grandma Shen from the small shop down the road from Jing Yuan’s house.”

“Mmm, I know. She told me,” Xie Mianzhi nodded, adopting the demeanor of the lady of the house.

“That’s good. After all this time, this is the first person I’ve seen visit Jing Yuan’s home. I was a bit taken aback, ha ha ha,” Grandma Shen was very willing to strike up a conversation.

Xie Mianzhi also returned a smile. After hearing the conversation between Grandma Shen and Jing Yuan, she saw that the elder likely approached Jing Yuan without any malicious intent. She seemed like an honest old woman, very talkative, just a bit loud.

“Your clothes…” Grandma Shen suddenly noticed the blue loungewear Xie Mianzhi was wearing. That set looked very familiar.

It looked like something Jing Yuan had put out to dry before…

“Hmm?” Xie Mianzhi looked at Grandma Shen, whose eyes were wide open.

“So, are you two ladies waiting to be served?” Jing Yuan, carrying a tray full of food with both hands, looked calmly at Miss Xie and Grandma Shen in the courtyard, who were staring at each other.

The two who were being stared at quickly stepped forward to help, though they didn’t do much. Jing Yuan had done everything herself.

…

During the meal, Xie Mianzhi sensed Grandma Shen’s genuine kindness towards Jing Yuan and let down her guard, joining the pleasant dining atmosphere.

Xie Mianzhi smiled and complimented Jing Yuan’s tuna sandwiches, saying it was the freshest and best-tasting tuna she had ever eaten.

Jing Yuan simply smiled shyly and went back to the kitchen to fetch another serving of pan-seared small bites for the other party, which were also extremely fresh cuts of fish belly.

Seeing the uniformly sliced pieces, Xie Mianzhi just assumed Jing Yuan had bought them. She didn’t realize the other party’s knife skills were so excellent.

Furthermore, the dipping sauce Jing Yuan had prepared was a first for her, and it unexpectedly satisfied her discerning palate.

“I never knew you had this skill. You’re at a chef’s level,” Xie Mianzhi sincerely praised the person next to her.

Jing Yuan was happy to see Xie Mianzhi enjoying the food and proactively moved the water cup on Xie Mianzhi’s right to make it easier for her to eat.

Grandma Shen saw Jing Yuan’s thoughtful gesture, then looked at Xie Mianzhi, then back at Jing Yuan. They were interacting so naturally. She couldn’t help but ask, “So, are you two sisters?”

Grandma Shen’s curious gaze scrutinized Xie Mianzhi. Hearing her say that she and Jing Yuan looked like sisters, hmm~ did she and Jing Yuan really look alike? She smiled, gently denying it: “Grandma Shen, no, we’re not sisters.”

“Oh, really…” Grandma Shen watched Miss Xie deny it with a smile, then noticed Jing Yuan, who was drinking milk with a poker face but was clearly trying to hide something. Grandma Shen grew even more curious. If they weren’t sisters, could they be—

“Then, are you two lovers?”

The moment Grandma Shen’s words fell, Jing Yuan choked on her milk and coughed loudly.