Just as she was about to leave, Mona sniffed the air and caught a whiff of an incredibly tempting aroma, making her stop in her tracks.
"What is this... slls amazing..."
Mona couldn't help but swallow twice.
She realized the scent was coming from inside the shop.
It seed like soone inside was cooking sothing.
"Isn't this a drink shop?"
Mona took a deep breath of the delicious aroma wafting through the air.
"Slls like fish... Why does it seem even better than the fish at Xinyue Kiosk yesterday? Isn't Xinyue Kiosk supposed to be the best restaurant for cuisine? And there's pork too..."
Standing at soone else's shop entrance for too long wasn't very polite.
People were starting to notice her.
Mona took a couple more reluctant sniffs of the mouthwatering aroma before finally turning away from the Sumr Shop's door.
Afterwards, she wandered the streets a bit absentmindedly.
There were all sorts of snacks being sold at roadside stalls, steaming hot and fragrant.
But Mona just couldn't muster any interest.
All she could think about was fish and pork.
Wandering around, ti soon reached noon.
Rembering her lunch appointnt with Charlotte, Mona arrived at the entrance of Liuli Pavilion.
After waiting a bit, she saw Charlotte arrive.
Chief Editor had brought two intern reporters with her, different from the two from yesterday.
"Miss Mona, sorry to keep you waiting!"
"It's fine, I just got here myself."
"Let's go in, then."
"Alright."
A beautiful waitress in uniform greeted them with a smile.
Charlotte took out a small, exquisitely crafted golden card and showed it to her.
The waitress imdiately put on a careful and attentive smile, leading everyone through the hall and into a large, luxuriously decorated private room.
Mona felt that the service at Liuli Pavilion was very similar to Xinyue Kiosk.
Rumor had it that these two restaurants had been competing for years—whatever one had, the other had to have too. It seed to be true.
Charlotte handed the nu over.
"Miss Mona, please order. Get whatever you like."
"Let see..."
"I recomnd you try Liuli Pavilion's signature dishes: Stone Harbor Delicacies and Cured Pork Dry Hotpot. Both are excellent."
"Really?"
At the ntion of pork, Mona's expression shifted slightly.
She couldn't help but recall the incredibly tempting pork aroma she'd slled at the Sumr Shop earlier.
No, stop thinking about it—her mouth was about to water again...
Mona quickly said, "Then let's get those two."
"Liuli Pavilion mainly serves mountain delicacies. Miss Mona, why not order two more?"
"Then let's add Mushrooms... You all order the rest."
Mona pushed the nu back.
Charlotte smiled and handed the nu to the two intern girls, letting them each pick a dish they liked.
Soon, the food was served.
Although everything looked, slled, and tasted great, Mona wasn't as excited as she'd been at Xinyue Kiosk yesterday.
Because she felt the aroma just wasn't fragrant enough.
"Miss Mona, here, try this!"
"Oh, okay."
The first thing Mona tried was the "Pork Hotpot."
Salty, savory, and juicy at first bite, with a rich smoky aftertaste upon careful chewing.
Delicious.
But not delicious enough.
It was much better than the old lady's cooking, but it still didn't satisfy Mona's craving for pork.
Sigh...
Isn't this supposed to be the most authentic Li cuisine? How could it not compare to a random drink shop on the street?
Mona sighed inwardly, a bit disappointed.
She looked up and noticed that after Charlotte took a bite of pork, a faint look of disappointnt also appeared on her face.
Huh? What's going on?
Is Chief Editor really that picky?
She'd acted the sa way at Xinyue Kiosk yesterday—very calm while eating.
"Chief Editor."
"Hmm?"
"Do you not like pork?"
"No, I actually love pork."
"Then why aren't you eating much?"
"Oh, that... I actually only like the pork made by Mr. Xia..."
"Mr. Xia?"
"The owner of the Sumr Shop."
"Huh?"
"Lady Ningguang is friends with Mr. Xia. Sotis she brings to visit his shop, and we'll have a al together. Honestly, before I tasted Mr. Xia's cooking, I never knew food could be that delicious."
A look of fond reminiscence flashed across Charlotte's face, and she smiled a little sheepishly.
"I know it might be hard for you to understand, Miss Mona, but after eating Mr. Xia's food, I just can't get interested in anyone else's cooking—not even the top chefs at Xinyue Kiosk or Liuli Pavilion."
Mona fell silent.
She felt like she could understand Charlotte.
After all, just slling a few whiffs at the Sumr Shop had already made her lose her appetite for everything else.
If she actually got to eat Mr. Xia's food, who knows what would happen...
Is this why Lady Ningguang favors him?
--
At night.
Since Ganyu had already returned to Yuehai Pavilion,
Shenhe ca over to keep him company again.
Now that Shenhe had fully unlocked her emotions and expressions, she was even more charming in her own unique way.
The sound of the bell faded away.
Suddenly, Xia Zhi heard the system's voice in his mind.
"Due to the effect of [Brings Luck to Husband], the host's Luck stat has permanently increased by 0.01."
Xia Zhi was stunned.
Brings Luck to Husband... so this is how it works?
"Boss?"
"Shenhe, let's go again."
Half an hour later.
"Due to the effect of [Brings Luck to Husband], the host's Luck stat has permanently increased by 0.01."
And then... that was it.
Well, if you had to say more, it was just that the bell and the system's voice kept ringing over and over again.
---
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