Chapter 15: Brewing Tea
Jiang Panyue, a woman dressed in luxurious clothing, was almost fifty years old, yet she maintained herself well.
Her face hardly had wrinkles, and just one look at her bearing revealed that she was no ordinary person, carrying a strong air of elegance.
Today, she was having a small private meal with her close girlfriends, but halfway through, the restaurant owner suddenly told her that her daughter was also dining here, using her husband’s card, and even chose a private room for two.
When Mrs. Jiang heard that her daughter was around, she naturally wanted to take a look.
Very quickly, she arrived outside the private room her daughter had booked.
The sliding-door design revealed a space not too big, just right for couples to meet.
She originally thought her daughter was just greedy and came alone, and she was just about to push the door open when she suddenly heard her daughter’s voice inside along with a man’s reply.
“Yuan-jie, can I eat this?”
“No, don’t push your luck, eat this instead.”
“Wow, it’s so tender!”
Mrs. Jiang: Σ(⊙▽⊙“a
Having lived through much, she immediately thought of unspeakable scenes.
After all, in her wealthy social circle, she had heard too many stories of children playing wildly—there was no “most chaotic,” only “even more chaotic.”
How could this be acceptable?
She did not want to end up like one of her old friends, whose daughter went out to fool around, got pregnant without anyone knowing, and then had to suffer through a forced breakup drama.
Thinking this, Mrs. Jiang could no longer stay calm and immediately pulled the door open.
“Shut up!”
As the door was flung open, the two people inside eating instantly froze.
The abalone in Lin Mo’s mouth was halfway eaten, and he choked it down in a rush, almost suffocating himself.
Sauce was still at the corner of his lips, and his eyes carried panic.
What’s going on? Was the abalone poisoned?
Beside him, Yuan Meng was so startled she dropped the sweet rice balls in her hand, which happened to be her favorite.
She was about to turn back to scold, but in the next second, she saw her mother standing at the doorway with an angry face, and her mind completely froze.
“Mom? Why are you here?”
Hearing this, Lin Mo quickly swallowed down the abalone, stood up, and greeted nervously: “Ah… Hello, Auntie.”
At that moment, Mrs. Jiang at the door was also stunned.
Inside was nothing like what she imagined—both kids’ clothes were intact, and it even looked like the young man had been scared half to death.
Even with her years of worldly experience, she found the situation terribly awkward.
Fortunately, Mrs. Jiang was someone who had weathered many storms, and she quickly adjusted her expression and smiled.
“Ah, hello. I just heard from the owner that Yuanyuan was here, so I came to take a look.”
Mrs. Jiang smiled as she spoke, and Yuanyuan was Yuan Meng’s childhood nickname.
“Yuanyuan, aren’t you going to introduce me?”
At her words, Yuan Meng stood up, her eyes helpless as she said: “This is my mom. This is my colleague from the company and also my good friend, Lin Mo. Mom, just call him Xiao Black Dog.”
Lin Mo: …
“You little rascal.”
Rolling her eyes at her daughter, Mrs. Jiang glanced at Lin Mo.
Well, she had to admit, he didn’t look bad, but he seemed quite young.
She didn’t know what kind of family background he had.
She continued: “I’ll just call you Xiao Lin then. Don’t worry, I just came by to take a look. You two continue eating. I’ll go to the teahouse across the street. Yuanyuan, bring Xiao Lin over later to sit with me.”
After speaking, she gave Yuan Meng no chance to object, nodded slightly at Lin Mo, and turned to leave.
Once she was gone, the two inside were left staring at each other blankly.
“Uh… Yuan-jie, what do we do? Should I leave?”
After all, they weren’t that close.
Meeting her mom for the first time and going for tea would be awkward, not to mention—what if she was just being polite?
“Leave my ass. Eat first. After we’re done, we’ll go sit for a while, no big deal. What are you afraid of?”
Yuan Meng didn’t care at all.
“Alright then.”
Lin Mo realized it would be rude to slip away now.
Since that was the case, he might as well go and at least enjoy a full meal.
Meanwhile, Mrs. Jiang excused herself from her girlfriends and headed across to the teahouse.
Usually, when her husband discussed business, he often came here for tea after meals—it was very convenient.
Actually, Mrs. Jiang knew in her heart that her daughter was grown up and would eventually date, which she did not oppose.
Because she understood that dating was one thing, but marriage was another—it depended on actual circumstances.
In her social circle, after all, marriage alliances were the norm.
Though she didn’t oppose, since she had run into this situation, she didn’t mind learning more about the young man.
On the other side, Yuan Meng and Lin Mo finished quickly.
In less than twenty minutes, the two of them walked into the teahouse across the street.
“Mom, I’m here!”
“Hello, Auntie.”
“Ah, don’t just stand there, Xiao Lin, sit.”
Inside an elegant and refined tea room, the three sat before a table with a set of Ru kiln tea ware laid out.
Since they had things to discuss, the server prepared everything and left.
Seeing that Mrs. Jiang was about to brew tea personally, Lin Mo quickly spoke up.
“Auntie, let me do it. I’ve learned a bit.”
First, as the younger one, it felt improper to let an elder brew tea.
Second, he wanted to try out his tea skills.
The moment he saw this tea set, movements for brewing had automatically surfaced in his mind.
“Oh? Then I’ll have to try it.”
Mrs. Jiang was surprised.
Nowadays, those who learned tea brewing were either professionals, enthusiasts, or from families with means, learning it by exposure.
Lin Mo got up to wash his hands, then sat down, took a deep breath, and relaxed his whole body.
Even his aura shifted slightly, giving off a calm and composed feeling.
He picked up the tea leaves, glanced at them, and immediately recognized that this was a type of green tea—Xinyang Maojian.
He boiled water, rinsed the tea, let it flow gracefully from the pot.
The first infusion was not for drinking, so he discarded it, then brewed again.
Skimming foam, awakening the leaves, coaxing fragrance, pouring into the fairness cup, dividing into tasting cups—each movement in his hands flowed with practiced ease.
His actions were unhurried yet smooth, pleasing to the eye, clearly showing he had been taught properly.
Finally, he poured the tea into three cups arranged in a triangle.
“Auntie, please enjoy the tea!”
“Mm.”
Mrs. Jiang accepted the cup with both hands, sniffed it, then took a small sip.
Her eyes lit up instantly.
She had to admit—it tasted far better than the tea she usually drank.
With just one sip, her mood calmed, and she found the young man before her looked more pleasing than before.
Lin Mo also drank a sip.
The taste was indeed excellent—sweet aftertaste, fragrance lingering.
Far better than anything he had tried before.
Truly, you got what you paid for.
As Lin Mo and Mrs. Jiang silently savored the tea, Yuan Meng glanced at him and couldn’t help blurting out:
“You’re acting like such a poser!”
Lin Mo: …
Mrs. Jiang: …
……