Probing

"Xiaoyu, you only had two soup dumplings?" Ning Chen asked softly. His unfocused gaze inadvertently shifted towards Uncle Wen.

"Yes! There were no more of these in my house after that! Your place is so nice! There's a lot of tasty food!" Qin Yu said as she ate happily.

"Xiaoyu, pour the coffee for me," he suddenly ordered.

Qin Yu had been stretching out her hand toward the platter of dumplings, but paused when he said that.

"Coffee... Oh, is that the black water?" she looked at Ning Chen with uncertainty.

He nodded. "Yes."

"Okay!" Qin Yu answered loudly and grabbed the coffee cup with her oily hands.

"Hey, is this black water yummy? I've seen my parents and sister drink it before. Can I have a taste?" she asked as she peeked at Ning Chen.

He nodded again.

She was ecstatic as she gushed, "Yay! You're so kind!" 

She took a big sip of coffee, but spat it all out almost immediately.

Coincidentally, it all went on Ning Chen's long white robe.

The world stopped moving.

Qin Yu hopped down from the chair and immediately snatched a tissue to wipe off the stain on his clothes. 

"Oh my goodness, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. Brother, I was wrong. Don't be angry. I'll go to the punishment room by myself, please don't send me away!" 

The coffee stain could not be wiped off no matter how vigorously she rubbed at it.

The moon-white garment was made of silk, and as such, it was extremely absorbent.

Qin Yu lowered her eyes as she threw herself in a kneeling position on the ground.

"I'm sorry, I'm really sorry. I did something wrong. I'll kneel in that room myself, so please don't chase me away from this place!" This time, even Ning Chen was taken aback.

He reached out, pulling her up from the ground before realizing her hands were cold, clammy, and trembling. 

'This is an instinctive reaction! What kind of experience did she have had to go through to develop such a conditioned reflex?'

Fury rose in Ning Chen's heart as he thought of that.

"Xiaoyu, don't be afraid. There is no small dim room here." He convinced her as he gently pinched her hand.

Qin Yu's crying stopped for a moment. 

"Then, do you plan on sending me back home?"

He looked at her a little helplessly. "You said that you were born to be a part of us, and that you'll die a ghost of my family. I can't send you back after you said something like that."

Qin Yu stopped her whining and looked at him with uncertainty. 

"Really? You... you're not going to kick me out?"

Ning Chen shook his head gently. "No."

Qin Yu brightened up, tear stains remaining on her face. 

"Brother, let's go get your clothes changed. I'll wash this one. I'm really good at doing the laundry, they always end up really clean."

Very clean?

Uncle Wen looked at Qin Yu, unsure of what other absurd words he would hear next from this crazy and silly girl.

What kind of life had she been living with the Shi family?

She had been given two soup dumplings, and that had been such a huge deal that she could not forget them. She did not recognize milk, youtiao, and coffee. On top of all that, she even did the laundry? 

Ning Chen prompted her to sit down. "Let's eat first. We'll change after we're done with our breakfast."

Qin Yu obediently listened to him. This time, her gaze fell on the butler and surrounding attendants, her eyes shrinking at the sight of them. She was afraid.

She shifted her attention to the chopsticks on the table, clumsily picking up a soup dumpling and placing it on the plate in front of Ning Chen. 

"Ning Chen, here's a small dumpling."

Seeing that he did not react, she suddenly remembered about his eyes. 

She lifted up the small plate, picked up the dumpling, and touched his lips with it. 

"Come on brother, eat."

She finally recalled her task of taking care of the Ning family's eldest young master. 

He held her hand still and took a bite of it, nodding in satisfaction. 

"Yes, it's very delicious. 

"From now on, make some for the young mistress every day. She likes it."

The second half of his words were directed toward the servants.

The attendants who had been watching the both of them straightened their backs. The maids in charge of kitchen affairs responded respectfully.

However, Qin Yu did not react. She did not have the self-awareness that she was the young mistress and instead, she was awkwardly adding food into Ning Chen's bowl. After breakfast, Young Master Ning Chen's white traditional robe had turned into a terrible sight. 

Not only were there blotches of coffee stains, but there were also a few vegetable soup stains, deeply set into the cloth.

Every bite of his meal had been fed by the young mistress, and even when the young master had finished eating, she did not take another bite of her own food. 

She said that she was full. From the start to the end of her meal, she only ate a mouthful of youtiao and a soup dumpling

"Xiaoyu, we don't have a punishment room in our house, and you can have as many dumplings as you want. 

"From now on, you are the young mistress of the Ning family. Just tell the kitchen whatever you would like to have. 

"Do you understand?" Ning Chen said lightly to Qin Yu.

She waggled her hand that was sore from holding the chopsticks, clearly confused.

Ning Chen tilted his head slightly and turned towards the servants. "She doesn't understand, but do you all understand?"

All the maids stood up and bowed in unison. "Yes, Young Master!"

Ning Chen was satisfied. He stood up and said, "Xiaoyu, help me get dressed."

"Oh." Qin Yu quickly followed along.