Pampered By All In Different Planes

"The dishes are ready, go serve them." The shopkeeper, seeing the chef bringing out a dish, patted the waiter to have him carry the plates.

Meanwhile, inside the private room.

Su Zhiruan rested her chin on her hands, stealing glances at Ji Xiaoyuan from time to time.

Ji Xiaoyuan put down his teacup, "What do you want to ask?"

"I'm curious, since you own an inn, why do you still work as a hunter?"

Su Zhiruan looked at him.

However, as she spoke, a guess had already formed in her heart.

Not to mention an inn, perhaps this county, this district, and even many of the surrounding districts were his territory.

"This inn... was passed down from my ancestors," Ji Xiaoyuan sighed deeply and continued, "But I prefer being a hunter to running an inn."

Su Zhiruan nodded. She was about to say something more when the door was knocked several times.

The waiter said, "Shopkeeper, Madam, I've come to serve the dishes."

The first dishes brought out were cold plates and freshly stir-fried bites.

"Shopkeeper, Madam, if you need anything at all, just call, and I'll be right outside the door," the waiter bowed deeply again toward them.

"Try some?" Ji Xiaoyuan picked up a piece of marinated meat and placed it on her plate.

Su Zhiruan picked up her chopsticks, took a bite, and chewed slowly.

The flavor was decent, nothing extraordinary, but compared to what she had been eating while recuperating, it was a significant improvement.

They had arrived unexpectedly, and the shopkeeper hadn't known Ji Xiaoyuan's itinerary in advance, so some of the slow-cooked dishes and aged broths weren't prepared.

Su Zhiruan ate quite a bit, while Ji Xiaoyuan beside her devoured his meal as if a tornado had swept through.

Even though she already knew he had a big appetite, she was surprised each time she saw it.

The man didn't eat crudely; perhaps due to the royal etiquette and upbringing ingrained in his bones, his movements were subtle while eating, and he even subconsciously reduced the clatter of the utensils.

But perhaps because he had spent years campaigning outside, living and eating with soldiers, he ate very quickly; a lion's head meatball would disappear from the table in just two bites.

"Is that enough for you to be full?" Ji Xiaoyuan, seeing that she had stopped using her chopsticks, curiously asked her, "Eat some more."

"I'm full," Su Zhiruan shook her head, she scooped a spoonful of beef soup, took a sip, and then also set the spoon down, "I ate quite a bit today."

"You're easy to nourish," Ji Xiaoyuan looked at her, his eyes smiling, "like a little cat."

Su Zhiruan: "..."

In fact, she really had eaten a lot today; the table was piled with dishes, and she had tried a bit of each dish, which added up to quite a large amount.

"I have some errands this afternoon, if you feel sleepy, you can sleep here at the inn while I'm gone, and I'll pick you up when I return."

"I'd like to go out for a stroll," Su Zhiruan shook her head, she looked outside the window, "It's not often I come here."

Ji Xiaoyuan nodded, sitting in his chair in a commanding posture, and upon hearing her words, he nodded in agreement, "That sounds good."

He stood up, his long legs striding toward a wooden box by the window. The box was initially locked, but he didn't use a key, rather skillfully picking the lock, he pulled out a heavy money bag and turned to hand it to Su Zhiruan.

"This is—" Su Zhiruan accepted it, feeling its substantial heft through the burlap bag, she could sense the shape of ingots inside.

Ji Xiaoyuan tilted his chin, gesturing her to open it.

Su Zhiruan placed the bag on the table, and after untying it, revealed various silver ingots and fragmented silver, sifting through it, she even found two gold ingots at the bottom.

The gold ingots were at the very bottom, large and shiny, on top of them were the silver ingots, with broken pieces on top, each one exquisitely beautiful.

"Buy some pearl jewelry or dresses that girls like, or anything else you want, don't worry about saving money for me,"

*

Since the shopkeeper had brought his wife along, naturally, he wanted to showcase all of the inn's specialties, which even made the chef feel the pressure to be more meticulous in his cooking.

The waiter poured Su Zhiruan and Ji Xiaoyuan some tea and hurried to serve a few more cold dishes.

In the private room, Su Zhiruan removed her face veil, and the waiter, glimpsing only from the corner of his eye, didn't dare look any further. He quietly closed the door and then went to find the shopkeeper.

"Shopkeeper, just what kind of person is our shopkeeper…?" The waiter was new and only knew that Ji Xiaoyuan was the boss, not aware that he also had a wife, nor that his wife possessed such an ethereal beauty, leaving him utterly confused.

The shopkeeper repeatedly gestured for him to keep quiet, looking around to ensure no one was nearby, then leaned in close to the waiter's ear to explain.