Age: My Small World

That day, the weather was overcast and rainy.

After Yang Jun got off work, he told Ayili not to go back.

"It's raining outside, so you can stay here. It's not like you've never stayed here before."

He would occasionally rest here, which could be considered his personal rest room as a researcher.

"Alright, Brother Yang, then be careful on your journey."

She wanted Yang Jun to stay, but she didn't want to ask him to, since he had already told her to stay.

Watching Yang Jun's departing figure, Ayili pursed her lips, lost in thought.

On the other side, Yang Jun did not go home after leaving the house, but instead braved the rain to go to a mutton hot pot restaurant.

The aroma of mutton wafted from the shop, carrying far down the street, and even the rain couldn't mask it.

As steam rose from the pot, it looked like a paradise on earth.

This is certainly not the fairyland, but rather a place where Yang Jun and Jiang Xueying have arranged to eat mutton hot pot.

He arrived late; Jiang Xueying was already sitting and waiting.

Yang Jun folded his umbrella and sat down, when he saw Jiang Xueying hand him a handkerchief: "Wipe yourself off, you got wet in the rain."

"And you? Are you alright?"

Jiang Xueying smiled and shook her head: "It just started to drizzle when I left, so I rode my bike a bit faster. The rain only started to fall when I got into the store."

"That's good. Have you ordered the hot pot yet?"

"I've ordered, I'm just waiting for you."

Just then, the waiter brought the pot over.

The pot was bubbling and boiling, the charcoal inside enveloping the soup, and the heat rising from it kept the soup steaming.

"Careful, please make room for us, we're serving you two food."

Fresh mutton was served, five large plates in total. Most people would just order one or two plates as a token gesture.

"This mutton looks fresh."

As Yang Jun spoke, he directly put the two plates of meat into the pot.

"Xiaoxue, could you please make me a dipping sauce?"

"Hmm, the usual, just a little bit of sesame paste?"

"Too much would overshadow the main point; just a little is enough," Yang Jun nodded.

Jiang Xueying's dipping sauce was indeed much tastier than his, so Yang Jun always asked her to make it whenever they ate hot pot or something similar.

Lamb doesn't need to be cooked for too long; it'll be fully cooked in about a minute.

Of course, if it's a piece of meat, it will definitely need to be stewed for one or two hours.

As they ate mutton, the two of them gradually started sweating, even in the summer heat.

"This lamb hot pot is still the best. Xiaoxue, how did you find it?"

Jiang Xueying brought him to this restaurant, which is located in an inconspicuous alley, just like the many small restaurants with good food she had taken him to before.

The girl blushed slightly upon hearing this, but she had no intention of telling Yang Jun the real reason.

Actually, it's because Jiang Xueying loves to eat, so besides writing, her only hobby is eating all kinds of delicious food.

This has honed the girl's ability to find delicious food; she can often discover shops with unique flavors in the streets and alleys.

If this happened decades from now, she would most likely become a wildly popular food blogger. Right now, she can only eat in secret, since being a big eater isn't exactly a compliment these days.

In addition, she didn't want to be seen as a glutton in Yang Jun's eyes.

As it turns out, Jiang Xueying was completely overthinking things. If Yang Jun knew what she was thinking, he would definitely shake his head, since he is not a conservative, old-fashioned man.

After finishing the mutton hot pot, both of them were quite sweaty. Just as they were leaving, the rain stopped, which was perfect timing.

"The rain has stopped, shall we go for another walk?"

Jiang Xueying was also reluctant to go home so soon, as it was a rare opportunity for the two of them to spend so much time alone together.

"Alright, I'll risk my life to accompany you."

Yang Jun's words made the girl roll her eyes at him: "I'm not a gentleman."

"But in my opinion, isn't Jiang Xueying also a virtuous woman?"

"You've become quite glib."

The girl covered her mouth and smiled, a hint of delight flashing in her eyes. It seemed she also liked hearing such words, but she was just being disingenuous.

It had just rained, and the car mats were still damp, so Yang Jun wiped them clean for her.

"No need to ride a bike, just push it around."

She smiled slightly.

"Alright."

So the two of them pushed the cart along, not very fast.

The roadside was still damp, with many potholes filled with water. You had to walk carefully, looking down to avoid stepping into a puddle and getting your cloth shoes wet.
Water droplets were also falling from the trees nearby, occasionally dripping into puddles or onto the heads and clothes of pedestrians.

As they walked, Yang Jun asked about the many letters she had written.

"Anyway, these are all things I wanted to tell you. If you don't like them, then I won't write them down."

Yang Jun's lips twitched.

"Xiaoxue, you haven't been reading Dream of the Red Chamber lately, have you?"

"Huh? How did you know? Lately I've been quite fond of Dream of the Red Chamber, especially Lin Daiyu. She seems rather melancholic. I like her as a person, but her temperament isn't very good."

How did you know? You're practically the embodiment of Daiyu, speaking in that Daiyu-esque way.

"Oh? You like Lin Daiyu too?"

"What? You like her too?"

"Hehe, I think there isn't a single person who has read Dream of the Red Chamber who doesn't like Daiyu."

“That’s true.” Jiang Xueying nodded.

"But actually, my favorite character is Li Wan."

"Hmm?" Yang Jun looked at her with some surprise. Few people paid attention to Li Wan. After all, people were more focused on the love between Bao Yu and Dai Yu, and Xue Baochai. As an elder, Li Wan did not appear much. The only impression people had of her was the four words "chastity arch".

This is a typical example of someone who became a victim of traditional ethics and morality.

"As for Li Wan, I actually think she is the smartest character in the book. She has her own principles and a woman's perseverance, which is admirable. Of course, I won't comment on the rest."

Clearly, she was also aware of matters of etiquette and propriety.

"No wonder you've been using more archaic language in your letters lately; it seems you've been unconsciously influenced by the Dream of the Red Chamber."

"How about I reply to you with a classical Chinese text next?"

Yang Jun was quite adept at writing articles; otherwise, he wouldn't have been so highly praised by Shen Tang, and the curator wouldn't have accepted him as a researcher in classical literature.

This is a position that requires someone with extremely strong literary skills.

At the same time, Yang Jun also wanted to get into Jiang Xueying's preferences.

He had known for a long time that she loved to eat, otherwise he wouldn't have sent her food so many times. But girls are usually shy, so he didn't call her out on it.

Now that he'd discovered another of Jiang Xueying's interests, how could he not quickly observe her? He also happened to be quite fond of *Dream of the Red Chamber*, so the two of them could study it together. (End of Chapter)