JOY OF LIFE

[VOLUME 1]Chapter 22: Cat b.u.t.ton

"The young master has returned!" A male servant's voice rang out.

Everyone stopped whatever they were doing immediately and prepared for lunch. On the large table in the hall, Fan Xian sat opposite the Old Madam. In between them, there were around seven to eight dishes.

The atmosphere was rather strange; the servants who were not doing anything were all staring at Fan Xian's chopsticks and did not go to the back garden to eat. A few of the servant girls who were younger were also drooling secretly. They must be hungry.

This was the Count's Manor's unspoken rule. Under Fan Xian's insistence and after having the Old Madam's silent consent, everyone was already used to it. In the Manor, as long as young master Fan Xian was eating, it was mandatory for him to try and approve of every single dish before anyone else were allowed to eat.

No one knew why the adorable and kind young master would have such an outrageous thought. One time, the Eldest servant girl Dong-er, whom Fan Xian was closest to, tried the dishes before Fan Xian and thought it tasted rather plain. After she was chased out viciously by Fan Xian, everyone knew that this young master also had some shameless traits typical of a spoilt n.o.ble brat.

Moreover, when Miss Dong-er tearfully left, the Old Madam of the Manor only stared coldly from one side and did not say a single word.

The only sounds in the entire room came from the soft sounds of chewing and the slurping of soup by Fan Xian; everyone else was quietly waiting at a corner with their hands clasped at their side. Like most big households, the leftovers of the master would be sent to servants as a reward for those below him – that was why, the portions Fan Xian eats were not a lot. He only took a mouthful with his chopstick per dish.

He ate slowly and deliberately, his slender lips rippling gently like two clear lights melding and splitting.

The Manor's Old Madam's hands were caressing a statue, muttering a prayer silently.

After a long while, Fan Xian finally finished tasting all the dishes. Smiling sweetly with his eyes shining brightly, he pointed at the dish of stir-fried bamboo shoots (清炒竹篙 was used, 竹 meant bamboo, while篙 meant wormwood... hmmm... ~MCM) and instructed the servants, "This is my favourite dish."

The servants breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly prepared more rice. Those who did not have anything to do could finally go to the back garden to eat as well. There were also other servants who went back to the kitchen and brought the remaining stir-fried bamboo shoots to the hall, placing it in front of Fan Xian.

"Grandma, please enjoy."

Fan Xian stood up and respectfully bowed to the Old Madam. After receiving the bowl of rice in his hands, he placed it politely in front of the Old Madam. As for himself, he held his bowl of rice and continuously took the stir-fried bamboo shoots from the plate. Stuffing himself, a trace of a smile flashed across his eyes. This was a smile that seemed out of place on his pretty face; it was as if he finally found something that he had been searching for a long time.

The servant girls who were looking at the smile on the twelve year old boy thought back to the tight slap on Housekeeper Zhou's face in the morning. Their hearts chilled unprecedentedly.

......

......

"I'm bringing this to eat in my room."

Fan Xian informed the servant girls beside him and carried off the plate of stir-fried bamboo with a bowl of rice towards the direction of his bedchambers. The Old Madam was still in the midst of eating; it was extremely disrespectful for someone who was younger to simply leave the hall. However, the Old Madam did not say anything.