Shocking! The entire court was drooling with envy because of me.

"There are even more people at Zhiwei Restaurant today," Chen Jie said apologetically, then quickly added, "Tomorrow, I'll definitely be earlier tomorrow!"

He placed the sausage on top of the food box and passed the box down.

"Fine, fine, I won't hold it against you. Just make sure you're early tomorrow!"

After Xiao Mo finished speaking, she stepped onto the stool and took the food box.

"What's in this food box?" she asked, her voice filled with anticipation.

"This is Shen Niangzi's new product, it's called, it's called, it's called Passion Fruit Lemon Sparkling Drink!" Chen Jie thought for a long time before remembering the name of the drink.

As soon as she finished speaking, Xiao Mo opened the food box and took out the passion fruit lemon sparkling drink.

The transparent glass cup has golden passion fruit pulp and small black seeds at the bottom, each seed like sesame seeds embedded in broken gold.

Thin lemon slices are half-adhered to the side of the cup, and bubbles rise from the bottom of the cup in strings.

The top layer is piled with crushed ice, the ice particles of varying sizes, which refract light into tiny fragments under the sunlight.

A small sprig of bright green mint is perched on the rim of the cup, looking both pretty and refreshing.

Xiao Mo couldn't take her eyes off it; she had never seen such a beautiful drink before.

Before even taking a sip, I felt a refreshing coolness, like mountain mist, instantly dispelling the surrounding heat.

She opened her mouth, put the bamboo straw in her mouth, and curiously took a small sip.

The cool liquid, carrying bubbles, rushed into my mouth.

Xiao Mo's eyes widened instantly, and her body froze.

The bubbles burst on her tongue, making a crackling sound. She pursed her lips, not daring to move.

She didn't swallow it until the bubbles disappeared.

"Little medicine master, what's in this drink? It tastes strange, especially on my tongue, it feels tingly and numb, it's really peculiar."

Chen Jie looked intently at the girl below and explained, "This is Madam Shen's new product. According to the diners, it's a bit uncomfortable at first, like needles pricking your tongue, but after a few more sips, you'll feel its wonder."

"Try it again!"

Even without Chen Jie saying so, Xiao Mo was already planning to take another sip.

Although the taste was peculiar, it was incredibly refreshing and made one's mouth water.

She took a second sip through the straw, this time a larger one.

At first, it was still those fine bubbles and refreshing coolness, but slowly, she felt a strong and unrestrained sourness, like lemon and passion fruit.

The acidity is clear and astringent, like a cool breeze after rain.

But it's not exciting at all.

The next moment, the sweetness of honey surged up, accompanied by a floral fragrance, enveloping the sour taste in my mouth.

"How is it? Is it good?" Chen Jie asked anxiously from the top of the wall.

Xiao Mo pursed her lips: "Sour, sweet, cool, and slightly numbing, it's very similar to..."

"What does it look like?" Chen Jie asked, perched on the wall.

The boy's face was flushed red from the heat, but his eyes were bright and he stared intently at Xiao Mo below.

Xiao Mo turned her head away, her ears turning slightly red: "...I'm not telling you."

It's very similar to... the "first stirrings of love" she secretly read in the storybook.

"If Miss Xiao doesn't want to talk about it, then she shouldn't." Chen Jie scratched his head, wiped his sweat, and said, "How about I tell you some interesting things I heard today?"

The sweat was impossible to wipe away; the sun was blazing at this hour.

Xiao Mo didn't think too much about it at first. She stood on the stool and handed the glass cup to Chen Jie.

"Don't rush, have a sip to cool down, it's too hot."

"No, no, I've already drunk it. I'm not hot, really not hot," Chen Jie waved his hands repeatedly, his eyes showing a hint of embarrassment.

Xiao Mo immediately realized that sharing a drink was indeed impolite.

This drink isn't like grilled sausage, which you can break apart.

So she hurriedly pulled out a handkerchief: "Fine, don't drink then! Considering you buy me things every day, here's a handkerchief for you to wipe your sweat. This is a handkerchief I originally intended to give to the maid, so don't be afraid!"

Chen Jie's gaze fell on the handkerchief, a moon-white handkerchief embroidered with intertwined branches, exuding gentleness.

Before he could react, the handkerchief was stuffed into his hand.

Light and soft as flowing clouds, warm and gentle as spring water.

"Thank you, Miss Xiao." Chen Jie stammered, then carefully folded the handkerchief into a square and stuffed it into his bosom as if hiding a treasure.

Xiao Mo: "For wiping your sweat!"

"I can't even wipe all this sweat off, and I've just made the handkerchief all dirty..." Chen Jie said, blushing.

God knows his ulterior motives.

He couldn't bear to use the handkerchief Miss Xiao gave him; he wanted to keep it.

"It's just a handkerchief..." Xiao Mo's eyes held a hint of secret joy.

Before he could finish speaking, a loud shout rang out from afar:

"Miss!!!"

"Miss! Master and Madam are looking for you!!!"

Xiao Mo was startled and quickly shoved the glass in her hand into Chen Jie's hand. She then jumped off the stool, picked up the food box and sausages on the ground, and gave them to Chen Jie as well.

"Little medicine man, I can't eat anymore. You can have the grilled sausage. As for this sparkling drink, you can deal with it for me. My family will find out if I keep it."

A whole bunch of things were stuffed into Chen Jie's hands.

Chen Jie knew that being discovered was no joke, so he grabbed his things and quickly jumped off the wall.

Separated by a wall, all he could hear in the end was the sound of Xiao Mo's footsteps running away.

He couldn't help but feel a little disappointed; he had heard so many interesting stories, but hadn't had a chance to tell Miss Xiao yet.

My gaze fell on that sparkling drink.

He held the glass very steadily, without spilling a drop.

But because of the shaking, many bubbles are floating up from the bottom of the glass, one after another, passion fruit seeds are swirling in the glass, and ice cubes and mint bring a touch of coolness.

Looking down, a fruity aroma and coolness filled my nostrils.

Chen Jie brought the cup closer, his lips touching the cool glass.

The sweet and sour drink, with its refreshing coolness, bursts into your mouth.

"...Indeed, it's sour, sweet, and tingly."

"What does it look like?" The boy tried to think, and Xiao Mo's bright and cheerful appearance came to mind again.

He had never read storybooks, so he naturally didn't know how they described the first stirrings of love.

Of course, he couldn't guess Xiao Mo's thoughts, and he dared not guess them either.

After thinking for a while, Chen Jie came up with his own answer.

The taste of this passion fruit lemon sparkling drink is very similar to his feelings every time he sees Xiao Mo.

Sweetness. Every time he saw her, he felt a sweet warmth in his heart and was very happy.

But the thought that she was a well-off young lady while he was just a penniless herb gatherer made him feel incredibly bitter.

I wonder how long this constant back-and-forth will last...

Xiao Mo jogged away from the courtyard wall, only stopping when she saw the maid who had called out to her earlier. She asked, panting, "..."

"What do my parents want? Why are they in such a hurry?"

The maid said, "Master and Madam said it's something urgent, a matter that will determine Miss's future, and they want Miss to go there now!!!"