The waiter couldn't bear to see Li Menglan's dejected expression. Gritting his teeth, he said, "Uh... little girl, how about... you wait here for a moment? Although our shopkeeper isn't here, you're in luck today—our young master happens to be in the teahouse at the moment. How about... I go in and ask him for you?"
"Really?" Li Menglan's eyes lit up at his words, her entire face becoming much more animated because of her smile. "Big Brother, you're truly a good person. Then I'll trouble you." Li Menglan bent down and gave him a perfect one-hundred-and-eighty-degree bow.
Uh... This instead made the other party feel embarrassed. "N-no need to be polite, little girl. You two wait here! I'll go in and ask the young master to come out." The young, fresh-faced waiter fled in panic because of Li Menglan's actions.
Hahaha... After the waiter left, a crisp, clear laugh sounded from behind.
"Little girl, Uncle, this is our boss's young master." Very quickly, the waiter brought out a white-robed youth from the back hall, introducing him to Li Menglan and Li Dazhu.
"Greetings, Young Master." Li Dazhu only lifted his head slightly to glance at the other party before hurriedly hanging his head in shame, not daring to look at him.
Li Menglan, however, was different... Instead, she looked at him with an expression of amazement, sizing him up quite openly. Wow... So beautiful, utterly adorable... Li Menglan never dreamed that in a small place like Qingshui Town, she would see such a beautiful, stunningly perfect pretty boy.
Ah... What a beautiful, gentle boy... A pair of clear, gentle eyes that seemed as if they would drip water were set in a perfect, handsome face. Fine, long hair covered his smooth forehead, hanging down to his thick, slender eyelashes. Beneath his white robes was skin more delicate than anyone else's, revealing not a hint of flush in the sunlight. His delicate face showed a somewhat sickly pallor, and his bearing exuded a noble, elegant temperament. Matched with his tall, slender figure, he was so perfect it gave one an unreal illusion...
Good heavens! Li Menglan couldn't help exclaiming aloud, "My God, how can there be such a perfect person in this world? Uh... is this a real person?"
"Haha..." Probably amused by Li Menglan's words, the other party couldn't help laughing. "Little girl, you're very cute too!" Although he seemed slender like a girl, this laughter was very hearty and bright, completely mismatched with his appearance.
"Cute." Li Menglan's forehead was immediately covered in black lines upon hearing this. She mumbled, "Uh... 'cute' means pitiful and unloved. Big Brother—aren't you being sarcastic?" Cute? Cute my ass!
"Little girl, what did you say? Could you speak a little louder? I didn't hear clearly just now." The white-robed youth possessed hearing beyond that of ordinary people, so naturally he heard every word Li Menglan said clearly. He found it even more amusing in his heart. Heh... what an interesting little girl.
To be honest, although Li Menglan's small frame had been skinny, weak, and severely malnourished when she transmigrated here, Li Menglan had once looked at this body's original appearance in the water's reflection while washing her face. Though it couldn't be called world-shaking beauty, it was fairly decent—clear and delicate. A very cute little girl.
She had a round oval face, pitch-black eyes, and flushed cheeks; her whole body exuded a youthful, lively aura. Her complexion was slightly pale and sallow—after a serious illness, her health wasn't very good. There was a small dimple on her oval face that gave people a very sweet feeling when she smiled.
"Oh... it's nothing?" Li Menglan naturally wasn't stupid enough to repeat her original words. She blinked her eyes and smiled sweetly. "Young Master, today my father brought some special food. I wonder if your 'Idle Guest House' would be interested?" Li Menglan still wasn't quite used to speaking in such literary, roundabout ways, and only with great effort managed to express what she wanted to say.
"Uncle, this one's surname is Zhao, given name Qingyun. Uncle, you can just call me by my name." The white-robed youth also knew that country folk didn't like to beat around the bush when speaking, so he spoke very directly. Heh... this fellow still thought the person who came to discuss business was Li Dazhu, completely failing to realize that the real party was Li Menglan standing right before him.
Li Dazhu's honest face flushed slightly. "Young Master Zhao, that... the one who wants to discuss business with you is my daughter." Li Dazhu was somewhat ill at ease, saying awkwardly with a grin. Regarding this matter, it was something Li Dazhu and Li Menglan had discussed before leaving the house. Li Menglan was worried that her father was too honest and would be deceived by others.
Li Menglan didn't mind these things. What she cared about most right now was... whether the sugar-roasted chestnuts could be sold or not? While her father was talking to him, Li Menglan had already taken out the sugar-roasted chestnuts she brought for free tasting. "Big Brother, could you help me get a few small plates?" Li Menglan smiled sweetly at the waiter.
"Young Master." The waiter turned his gaze to his young master, Zhao Qingyun.
"Go ahead!" Zhao Qingyun casually waved his hand. A fifteen or sixteen-year-old youth pretending to be mature; uh... really not cute at all, Li Menglan secretly criticized in her heart.
The efficiency of a large teahouse was indeed different. Very quickly, the waiter brought over a dozen or so small white plates. "Little girl, is this enough? If not, I'll go get more."
"Enough, thank you, Big Brother." Another sweet smiling face.
Li Menglan worked quickly. Very soon, the dozen or so small plates were filled with sugar-roasted chestnuts. "Big Brother, Young Master Zhao, please have a taste and see how the flavor is?" Li Menglan handed a full plate of sugar-roasted chestnuts to Zhao Qingyun. A faint sweet fragrance permeated the air.
Zhao Qingyun hesitated slightly. "Uh... how do you eat this?" Zhao Qingyun considered himself fairly well-read, yet he truly had never before seen the food in this plate.
"Here, like this..." Li Menglan proactively picked up a sugar-roasted chestnut and began demonstrating. "Like this... like this... and like this..." A cleanly peeled sugar-roasted chestnut lay in Li Menglan's palm.
Very quickly, Zhao Qingyun also followed suit and peeled a sugar-roasted chestnut, then mimicked Li Menglan by putting it in his mouth. "Mm... truly delicious. Sweet, glutinous, and with a faint aroma." After one sugar-roasted chestnut went down, Zhao Qingyun couldn't help but praise, "What is this thing called?"
"Sugar-roasted chestnuts."