"Yunli, let me treat you. What kind of tea would you like?"
"Uh... anything's fine. I'll just have something simple."
As they entered the teahouse, the faint aroma of tea in the air triggered a reaction in Yunli's body. She had once drunk too much tea, leaving her feeling slightly uncomfortable whenever she smelled it now. Fortunately, a few sips wouldn't be a problem.
Yunli found an empty table, and Lumina soon arrived with their tea order, carrying a wooden tag engraved with a number. She placed the tag prominently on the table before settling down beside Yunli.
Perhaps by accident, their bodies brushed slightly as Lumina sat down. This was unavoidable; the tables and chairs in the teahouse were placed close together to maximize space, making accidental contact inevitable.
Well... not entirely unavoidable. After all, there was still a seat available across from Yunli.
It was clear to anyone what Lumina was up to: she wanted to enjoy tea while basking in the faint, refreshing presence emanating from the beautiful girl beside her.
Yunli didn't think much of it. It was just bodies brushing against each other. Even if other parts might be questionable, shoulders and arms rubbing certainly weren't a problem.
As for the distance between tables and chairs, that was no big deal either.
After all, who would come to a teahouse to take advantage of someone?
A glance around revealed mostly "elderly middle-aged people"—those who were four or five hundred years old but looked like teenagers or middle-aged adults.
"Yunli, are you uncomfortable in this setting?" Perhaps sensing Yunli's faint aura, Lumina shifted slightly, moving closer to Yunli and narrowing the distance between their bodies.
As the aura grew stronger, Lumina nodded in satisfaction.
"Not exactly uncomfortable," Yunli shook her head, explaining, "It's just that any random person here could be twenty or thirty times my age..."
"Right now, I feel like a child who's accidentally stumbled into the adult world, a bit awkward and out of place."
Lumina: Huh?
Why does that sound so odd?
Lumina slowly scratched a question mark into the air above her head at Yunli's analogy, her lips twitching involuntarily.
Without much thought, Lumina followed Yunli's train of thought. "You can't judge a Xianzhou person's age by their appearance."
"Unless you say something, no one will know you're just a child."
"So, there's no need to hold back. Just act like you're already this age."
"Besides..." Lumina glanced at Old Mettle, which Yunli had placed beside her, and said helplessly, "Even if there were any constraints, wouldn't they be imposed on others?"
Just like earlier, when Yunli had walked down the street with Old Mettle on her back, most pedestrians had quickly made way for her.
If Yunli left Old Mettle here, the teahouse's business would probably be cut in half.
Speaking of the teahouse's business, it was quite remarkable. When Yunli arrived earlier, the staff didn't show any fear at all; instead, their eyes lit up as if something wonderful had happened.
Lumina hadn't quite understood it at first, but seeing the steady stream of customers leaving the teahouse, she finally grasped the situation.
It turned out they were simply too busy. Yunli's arrival—or rather, Old Mettle's arrival—effectively alleviated the problem of excessive foot traffic and overwhelming workloads.
"Hmm... You're right, Lumina."
"It's just tea. What's there to be so formal about?"
After a moment's thought, Yunli nodded in agreement.
"Your tea, along with the sugar, is here. The tea is very hot, please be careful."
Just then, a server approached with a teapot and a box of sugar, placing them on the table while taking away the wooden tag.
Lumina picked up the teapot and poured a cup for Yunli first, then one for herself.
Seeing this, Yunli lifted her teacup, pursed her rosy lips, and gently blew on the tea.
Lumina set down the teapot, picked up the sugar, and gestured toward Yunli. "Yunli, do you want to add sugar?"
"Add... add sugar?" Yunli froze, turning to Lumina with a puzzled expression. She blinked, clearly not understanding what Lumina meant.
Sugar and tea together—Yunli knew that was just milk tea, which was delicious.
But adding qualifiers like "to boiling tea" confused her. What was that?
"Exactly like this." Lumina nodded, picked up a spoon, and added several spoonfuls of sugar to her own cup.
Yunli: ?
Watching this, Yunli became even more bewildered.
Sugar was added to the scalding tea.
The bitter aftertaste of the tea disappeared, but so did the sweetness of the sugar... What was the point of drinking it like this?
"You'll only know the point by trying it," Lumina said with a smile, seeing through Yunli's thoughts.
She scooped up a spoonful of sugar and gestured toward Yunli with a warm smile. "How about it? Want to give it a try?"
"Um... Add... add some, I guess," Yunli said hesitantly after a moment of consideration.
"How many spoonfuls?"
"How many spoonfuls would make it taste better?"
"It depends on your taste. Three or four spoonfuls are usually enough."
"Then... add three spoonfuls for me."
"Alright." Lumina swiftly added three spoonfuls of sugar to Yunli's teacup, giving her no time to regret her decision.
"Um..." Yunli watched as the sugar dissolved rapidly in the tea. She cautiously lifted the cup, but after another moment of hesitation, she still couldn't bring herself to drink it.
She treated every action with extreme caution, as if she were about to violate a sacred taboo.
"Don't worry, it tastes great," Lumina said with a smile, picking up her own teacup and taking a gentle sip.
Immediately, an indescribable flavor bloomed on her taste buds.
Lumina wanted to die from the taste, but to trick Yunli into drinking it, she forced herself to maintain a blank expression, even feigning enjoyment, as she drained the tea cup—now heavily sweetened with multiple spoonfuls of sugar—dry.
Not a single drop remained.
"See? I'm setting a good example," Lumina said, waving her empty cup at Yunli.
To further entice her, she added persuasively, "It's actually quite delicious. This is a conclusion personally reached by Lady Fu Xuan, the Master Diviner of the Luofu Divination Commission, you know."
Since it's Fu Xuan's conclusion, Lumina thought, even if it tastes terrible, it's not my fault.
"I... I'll try it," Yunli said hesitantly. Recalling Lumina's earlier display of apparent enjoyment, she slowly brought the cup to her lips, tilted her head back, and swallowed the tea.
In an instant, her taste buds exploded. An indescribable flavor instantly overwhelmed her entire tongue.
Hot, bitter, astringent, sweet, salty... A chaotic medley of tastes seemed to be warring across her tongue.
Ugh... Uh-huh... Ugh!
Yunli's feet lifted off the ground, her face flushed slightly, as if she were enduring something excruciating.
Ptooo!
Finally, with a resounding splash, a perfect parabolic arc erupted from Yunli's mouth.