The distant view was unclear, he thought, perhaps that Xiao Yushuang girl? Impossible, she must be angry with me today, why would she come to see me? If it's Xiao Qingxuan, it's even less likely. She never has the habit of welcoming me when I come.
As he got closer and could see clearly, there was still a slight surprise in his heart. The woman turned out to be Miss Xiao from the Xiao family.
Miss Xiao held a small booklet in her hand, flipping through it page by page. Her expression was strange, with a mix of smiles, shyness, envy, longing, and more.
Upon closer inspection, Lin Wanrong was surprised to find that the booklet was actually the original manuscript of the three editions of the newspaper he compiled, taken by Xiao Yushuang.
"Oh, no, did this lady find out and come to settle scores with me?" Lin Wanrong thought. But after careful consideration, this possibility was unlikely. Xiao Second Miss despised him and would never mention him in front of Miss Xiao. Besides, Miss Xiao's impression of him couldn't be worse, and she wouldn't care about his affairs. It was strange.
"No need to fear her. She's just a lady. I can just push her down and be done with it," Lin Wanrong thought after some contemplation. He walked slowly towards the circular gate.
Seeing him return, Xiao Yuruo quickly tucked the booklet into her bosom, composed herself, and said in a sweet voice, "Lin San, you're back?"
Seeing her actions, Lin Wanrong felt relieved. It seemed that this lady was just sitting here idly, looking at the booklet absentmindedly. But she seemed to enjoy reading her own fabricated gossip news, which was quite amusing.
Lin Wanrong chuckled and said, "What wind blew today, bringing the talented Miss Xiao to my humble courtyard? Quite unusual."
Xiao Yuruo saw the mischievous smile on his face and, though resentful inside, had to suppress her feelings. She said, "Lin San, your words today make sense. I wonder if you have a way to resolve this crisis?"
"None," Lin Wanrong replied decisively. "With such an attitude, jokingly, you have no sincerity. Do you take me for a fool to be easily bullied?" Without paying much attention to the young lady, he walked into the room.
Xiao Yuruo, anxious, quickly put away the booklet and said in a tender voice, "Lin San, you're back?"
Seeing her actions, Lin Wanrong felt at ease. This lady seemed to be just bored. Watching her flip through the booklet was rather entertaining.
Lin Wanrong laughed, "What's the occasion today that brings the arrogant Miss Xiao to my humble abode? Quite rare."
Xiao Yuruo, seeing the sly smile on his face, though harboring resentment, had to hold back. She said, "Lin San, your words today make sense. I wonder if you have any way to resolve this crisis?"
"None," Lin Wanrong replied firmly. "With such an attitude, jokingly, you have no sincerity. Do you take me for a fool to be easily bullied?" He then walked into the room.
Xiao Yuruo gently bit her lip. Seeing him enter, she summoned her courage and followed him silently into the room. In that moment at the doorstep, she felt like she could hear her own heartbeat.
This girl does have some courage, Lin Wanrong thought to himself. He turned around and looked at the puzzled Miss Xiao, saying, "Miss, it's quite late. Why would you intrude into the room of a stranger? Could it be that you have ulterior motives?"
"You—" Xiao Yuruo never expected that the person in front of her would be so shameless, even saying such things. As a pure young lady, how could she withstand such flirtation? In her extreme anger and embarrassment, she pointed her jade-like finger at him, her face flushing, and tears swirling in her eyes. Annoyed and indignant, she turned and ran out.
Lin Wanrong shook his head helplessly. This girl's resistance was too weak; she needed some proper discipline.
Feeling a bit tired today, Lin Wanrong didn't bother with the young lady. Just as he was about to lie down, he heard someone outside saying, "Lin San, can you talk to me?"
It turned out she hadn't left yet, Lin Wanrong thought to himself. He grinned and said loudly, "I've already gone to bed today. Come back tomorrow."
Xiao Yuruo stood still at the door for a long time. Hearing no movement inside, she remembered the grievances she had suffered. With a stomp of her foot, she turned and left.
Listening to the faint footsteps, Lin Wanrong shook his head helplessly. This Miss Xiao was quite smart, but her temper was too fierce. I'll have to teach her a lesson and let her know what it means to be tough.
He chuckled, lost in thought for a while. Suddenly, he realized it was getting late. Why hadn't he seen Xiao Qingxuan's figure today? Normally, she would be waiting in the room at this time. Why was she not here today?
Curious, he glanced around and saw a neatly folded white handkerchief on his bedside table. Walking over, he picked it up and unfolded it. Embroidered on it was a connected branch of roses, with a few small characters below: "Waiting for you to return, already gone back."
No signature, and the ink had dried. The handkerchief emitted a faint fragrance. Needless to say, it was handwritten by Xiao Qingxuan.
Early the next morning, Lin Wanrong was still asleep when he heard a woman's voice outside saying, "Lin San, have you gotten up?" The voice sounded familiar; could it be Miss Xiao again?
Lin Wanrong got up and saw Miss Xiao standing at the door in a purple satin dress, looking exhausted as if she hadn't slept all night.
Lin Wanrong's heart softened a bit. He wondered if he was being too stingy. After all, she was Xiao Yushuang's sister and nominally his master. It seemed a bit unreasonable to torment her like this.
However, the mixture of distress, anger, and provocation in Miss Xiao's expression reignited Lin Wanrong's irritation. She hadn't realized the seriousness of her mistakes yet. He waved his hand and said, "Miss, are you here to urge me to work? I'll go to the garden to cultivate the soil right away."
Miss Xiao hastily said, "Lin San, that's not what I mean. I want to hear your thoughts on how our Xiao family can overcome—"
Lin Wanrong interrupted her, yawning, "Miss, I just woke up and haven't had breakfast yet. How about—"
Miss Xiao, clenching her small fists tightly, suppressed her anger and said, "Fine, I'll order someone to prepare it for you." She bit her lip and walked out, her face turning red. In a short while, she personally brought the prepared breakfast to him.
After Lin Wanrong had eaten his fill and dawdled for a while, seeing the reluctant expression on Miss Xiao's face, who obviously disliked serving a servant, he changed his demeanor, saying coldly, "Miss, thank you
for the breakfast. I'll start working now."
Miss Xiao hurriedly said, "Lin San, I'm not saying that. I want to hear your ideas on how our Xiao family can—"
Lin Wanrong cut her off, "Miss, my job is to maintain the flower garden, making it blossom for our Xiao family. Other matters can be discussed when I'm off duty."
Feeling challenged by this cunning and sarcastic servant twice in a row, Xiao Yuruo held back her grievances and anger. She looked at Lin Wanrong helplessly, and then left.
Seeing her leaving, Lin Wanrong sighed. This Miss was indeed somewhat intelligent, but her temperament was too strong. I'll have to discipline her properly; otherwise, neither she nor I can endure this.
He took out the perfume samples and smelled each one carefully. The scent testing proved effective, as he noticed slight changes in two bottles. After checking his records, he adjusted the ratios, and finally, it was a success.
Yesterday, he had asked Dong Qingshan to find some breweries and obtained some fermented yeast, filtered from impurities. He filled a large jar with it, uncorked it, and was greeted by a pungent smell of alcohol.
Lin Wanrong poured some alcohol, added some essence, and then poured in the pure water that had settled for a few days, adjusting the proportions according to a certain formula. When the fragrance was too faint or too strong, he continuously added essence, alcohol, or pure water until he was satisfied with the scent.
The world's first bottle of true perfume was finally born. It had a light pink color, a pure and distant fragrance, as if a fragrance from afar, and also a hidden, lingering scent. The rich and fragrant aroma captivated even Lin Wanrong, a big man.
This was a bottle of rose perfume, though the craftsmanship was a bit crude. It was the first finished product, and Lin Wanrong couldn't help but feel excited.
He carefully filled several bottles with the perfume, thinking, "This is rose perfume, and the first one should be given to my little sweetheart, Qingqing." He continued to experiment with the ratios for jasmine and orchid perfumes, and when everything was finished, he stretched lazily, feeling unparalleled joy.
Looking at the sky, it was already afternoon. He had been so busy that he had forgotten even about lunch. Just as he was about to go out, he found that Miss Xiao was standing in front of him again.
Lin Wanrong couldn't help but let her in and said, "Miss, what do you command this time?"
Upon entering the room, Xiao Yuruo smelled a faint, refreshing fragrance, seemingly from roses, but not as strong. Elegant and slightly elusive, she would never forget it after the first whiff.
"Lin San, what is this?" Xiao Yuruo pointed to the small bottle on the table and asked, "Is this fragrance coming from inside? What is this thing?"
Seeing Miss Xiao slightly overshadowing him, Lin Wanrong helplessly said, "Miss, this has nothing to do with you. Why did you come to find me? What's the matter?"
With great effort, Xiao Yuruo shifted her gaze away from the perfume and looked at Lin Wanrong. She said, "You know my purpose. Lin San, do you have a way to deal with this joint venture? As long as you can save my Xiao family, I can agree to any conditions."
Any conditions? Lin Wanrong broke into a cold sweat. Could it be that this young lady wants to seduce me?
"Are you really willing to agree to any conditions? Then I only want one condition."