Butler placed a super soft pink cushion on the soft chair, and Ruanruan curiously pressed it with her little hand, clearly seeing the cushion sink into a small palm-sized indentation.
"Butler Uncle, is this for me?" Ruanruan, the little girl, was too surprised, and delighted at how soft it was!
Butler stood beside her, smiling through squinted eyes, and nodded as he effortlessly picked up the little one.
"This was specially prepared for the young miss, try it out, and if you don't like it, we can switch to another one," he said, just as two maids came over with several other cushions in their arms.
Each one was exquisitely beautiful; the one Ruanruan was sitting on was a pink cat paw cushion, and there were all kinds of other designs.
Ruanruan looked at the several cushions the maids were holding, her eyes wide with wonder.
So many!
Ruanruan shook her head quickly, "No, no, I like this one!"
Butler's smile grew even wider, "I knew the young miss would like it; this was specially selected for you by me."
Saying so, he had already helped push the chair Ruanruan was sitting on towards the dining table, making sure Ruanruan could reach the food.
Mu Shen looked at the now beaming Butler and then at the cushion underneath Ruanruan's little bottom.
Childish!
Of course, these were words he wouldn't say out loud.
A bowl of fragrant, piping hot shrimp porridge appeared before Ruanruan. It smelled delicious, but Ruanruan furrowed her little brow.
"Auntie, do you have any vegetarian porridge?"
The kitchen auntie paused, then looked somewhat sadly at Ruanruan, "Does the young miss not like the porridge I made?"
"No, no, no... That's not it!" Little Ruanruan flailed her little paws and head all at once.
"It's just... it's just that Ruanruan is a Little Monk, and can't eat meat or drink alcohol!"
She remembered that clearly!
Upon hearing these words, both Butler and Mu Shen were taken aback.
Mu Shen looked at the chubby Ruanruan, frowning, wondering about something.
Butler's expression was more exaggerated, his face filled with shock as he looked at Ruanruan.
"Young miss, do you mean to say you've never eaten meat before?"
Ruanruan nodded honestly, "Nope~"
Butler suddenly felt distressed, "How can this be, young miss you're growing; how can you have balanced nutrition without eating meat? No wonder you look so thin!"
Mu Shen glanced at Ruanruan's plump little face, "......."
He never knew his Butler was partially sighted.
However, Ruanruan looked down at her little belly seriously and expressed doubt, "Am I really that thin?"
Her doubts stemmed purely from the fact she hadn't seen other children her age; she had only seen older but thinner children in the small village—except for one fatty who was chubbier than her.
Butler unabashedly nodded, "Yes, young miss, you are too thin. That's why you need to eat meat or else you won't grow tall!"
Ruanruan's little eyes immediately filled with alarm, her head shaking like a rattle drum.
"No, no, I must grow as tall as Daddy!"
That's an excellent, lofty ambition, thought Mu Shen with a deadpan expression.
But looking at Ruanruan's pint-sized figure, barely as tall as his shins, to grow to his height, he thought perhaps some supplements might help.
So...
You must eat meat!
"So, young miss, if you want to grow tall, you must eat meat. Not only meat, but you also need to drink more milk and eat eggs in the future. I will make you many delicious foods to ensure you grow up tall," he promised.
The cook, using a tone one would use to cajole a child, joined in the persuasion and felt even more tenderhearted toward Ruanruan. Such a tender and well-behaved child had never eaten meat before, which seemed pitiful. They wondered what kind of life the young miss had lived before.
Now that these people heard that Ruanruan had never eaten meat, they all ignored the chubby appearance that clearly showed she was well-nourished, as if they had all gone blind.
The only one in the villa with any sense, Mu Shen, didn't speak up. His daughter, still thinking about returning to the monastery to become a monk? Hah!
Ruanruan became even more conflicted after being persuaded, her little face wrinkling into a frown. She looked at her dad beside her with a pitiful gaze, hoping he would suggest something.
Mu Shen put down his spoon unhurriedly, then took a napkin to wipe his mouth, his eyes calmly watching Little Monk.
"Did your master specifically say you shouldn't eat meat?"
Ruanruan thought for a moment, then shook her head.
Her master had never said so, she had read it in a book, but her master had also never cooked with meat.
Mu Shen continued, "Buddha stays in the heart even as meat and wine pass through. Have you heard this saying? Do you understand its meaning?"
Ruanruan blinked and thought for a moment before answering with her fingers poked out, "You can drink and eat meat, but you have to keep Buddha in your heart."
Mu Shen nodded, pushing the bowl of porridge in front of Ruanruan, "Then eat."
Ruanruan "???"
Can she really?
She looked at Mu Shen doubtfully, feeling that something was not right.
"Dad, should I ask my master?" Little Monk said, hanging her head with a hint of uncertainty.
Mu Shen's aura suddenly turned colder.
He squeezed a hum through his teeth without any expression.
Ruanruan shrank her neck, hopped down from the chair to grab her phone from her little backpack, and quickly sent a voice message to her master.
"Master, master, can Ruanruan eat meat? Dad said that as the meat and drinks pass through, if Buddha is kept in Ruanruan's heart, I can eat it."
Hearing this, Mu Shen "..."
He hadn't said that!
Ruanruan, after sending the message, hugged her phone and sat back on the chair.
"Auntie, do you have vegetarian buns? Ruanruan loves eating vegetarian buns, and dumplings too."
"Yes, yes, yes, these here are vegetarian-flavored. little miss, you can start eating."
The kitchen auntie quickly handed a small bamboo steamer of buns to Ruanruan.
The buns were delicate and refined, each one smaller than Ruanruan's palm, steaming hot and smelling so delicious by just the aroma.
Ruanruan glanced at her phone, her master hadn't replied yet, so she placed the phone on the table and began eating a steamed bun she held in her hand.
When Ruanruan ate, her cheeks puffed out like those of a little squirrel sneaking a snack. With each bite, her dark eyes seemed to sparkle, and her little face looked remarkably content.
And as she ate, she didn't forget to occasionally glance at her phone, her little legs swinging in the air, looking quite relaxed and carefree.
Mu Shen finished the porridge in his bowl and, seeing Ruanruan eating so fragrantly, couldn't help but watch her several times, wondering if it really was that delicious.
The others watching her eat were also irresistibly drawn to look at the vegetarian buns. They had eaten the kitchen auntie's buns before, but today they seemed especially fragrant. Why was that?
As Ruanruan was focused on her eating, a particularly nice-looking hand appeared before her, and she watched wide-eyed as it took one of the remaining two vegetarian buns.
Following the hand, she saw the bun land in her dad's mouth, and he bit off half in one go!
"Dad, it's tasty, isn't it?" Ruanruan didn't mind at all that her dad had taken a vegetarian bun from her. Instead, she was especially pleased.
Mu Shen swallowed the bun in his mouth and nodded at a deliberate pace.
It seemed... it was a bit tastier than usual.