Didn't you go to Teyvat to earn money to support me?

"My sister."

"Then call your sister to cut it!" Coral Palace Xin Hai was sore from exhaustion. She was in poor health and could only do clerical work at most. She had never done this kind of work before.

Although I was mentally prepared to be a maid, being a maid is just too tiring.

Coral Palace Xin Hai now felt that even if she had to sleep with someone, it wasn't such a big deal. At least it would only be Shen Liang who would be tired. She could just read military strategy books in bed to distract herself.

"Nonsense! If you don't finish cutting it all, you won't get any to eat," Shen Liang sneered.

"Fine, I didn't want to eat it anyway!" Coral Palace Xin Hai threw a little tantrum. She decided to go on strike and see what Shen Liang could do to her!

Although I am your maid, I truly have no strength left. I simply lack the physical strength to cut anything. What can you do to me? Now, even if you want me to serve you in bed, I agree! Come on!

It's bound to happen sooner or later anyway, so might as well just do it now!

The little witch, in despair, stabbed the kitchen knife into the cutting board.

Shen Liang squinted at her for a while and realized that she had indeed put on an act.

—It seems that I, this little maid, do not have a deep understanding of the contractual nature of the master-servant game.

"You have absolutely no strength left?"

"Yes!" Coral Palace Xin Hai squatted down, rubbing her arm. She had been cutting for half an hour and couldn't even lift her shoulder anymore.

"Okay, then I'll give you an easy job."

Coral Palace Heartsea mentally gave herself a thumbs-up, overjoyed! She knew this little master was cold on the outside but warm on the inside, and wouldn't take things so seriously. Look, even though they're master and servant, he's still very tolerant of her! The master-servant contract is just a game; it won't be taken so seriously at all!

"Okay, I'll do anything, just don't make me keep chopping vegetables!"

"Take off your clothes, lie down, and don't move." Shen Liang casually pointed to the stone table in the courtyard. "Or you can go to the hot spring to take a bath first before lying down. I prefer things to be clean."

Coral Palace Heart Sea stared blankly at him.

"Don't you understand? I want to eat your Inazuma specialty, Nyotaimori. You just need to lie there, you can even sleep. I'll treat you like a piece of tableware." Shen Liang said nonchalantly. "I've never seen this specialty before. I heard that Nyotaimori must be made with a clean young girl, so take a bath now. I won't peek."

Is this a question of whether or not someone is peeping?

Even if I lie there, you'll still be watching the same thing!

No, that’s not the point!

"You insulted me!" Coral Palace Heart Sea roared in fury.

"Where did I insult you? A maid is supposed to obey all her master's orders, and you agreed to it yourself." Shen Liang shrugged. "I felt sorry for you being tired, so I wanted you to rest. Don't worry, I didn't mean anything by it. I just wanted to try it out. I'll put the hot stuff on you later..."

"That would burn me! Nyotaimori (female body sushi) can only be used for sushi!"

"Don't you know water magic? This little injury can be healed. Do you expect me to cool it down? That will ruin the taste."

"I! Ahhh, you despicable Ryoko... I'll kill... I'll kill you!" Coral Palace Heart Sea was finally driven mad with anger this time. She was completely oblivious to the soreness all over her body. She jumped up and pounced on Shen Liang, knocking him into the hot spring.

"Oh my, by the grace of the Great Goddess, are the younger generation of shrine maidens already this adventurous? No wonder she's my niece." The woman who entered the courtyard looked at the boy and girl struggling in the hot spring and couldn't help but cover her mouth, exclaiming with a smile.

--------

The hot pot is finally ready.

Both Shen Liang and Coral Palace Xin Hai, soaking wet, took off their coats and were too lazy to change. Anyway, the bonfire under the hot pot was warm, and after eating a few more bites of meat, they didn't feel cold at all.

Coral Palace Ryuka smiled as she watched the boy picking up meat, then looked at her niece.

My niece looked quite beautiful in her wet outfit. After taking off her coat, she was left with only a thin shrine maiden outfit, a gauze skirt underneath, and white tabi socks that went past her knees. The wet fabric clung to her delicate body, and her small toes could be seen through the somewhat transparent stockings. She was so cute that Ryuka almost wanted to touch her.

Perhaps because the boy and girl were both still young, their attire didn't seem to affect them at all. The boy was focused on the hotpot, and so was the girl. Occasionally, they would look up and exchange a glance in the slightly distorted air caused by the flickering flames, only to let out a cold snort, without any hint of romance.

Coral Palace Liuge picked up a piece of sashimi, blanched it in the congee for a dozen seconds, and then, as Shen Liang had taught her, spread it on a dipping sauce made of sesame paste, chopped green onions, vinegar, minced garlic, and chili powder before putting it in her mouth.

"Wow...that's amazing!" Ruka Sango exclaimed like a little girl.

Having eaten fish for so many years, I never imagined there could be such a delicious way to eat it! Fresh raw fish is already tender, and when paired with rice porridge, it becomes even smoother and more fragrant. Add to that a dipping sauce that I've never tried before... No wonder people say Chinese people know how to eat!

All these years of eating fish and rice have been a waste!

Coral Palace Xin Hai also ordered a serving with some skepticism. She didn't really trust Shen Liang. After all, it was just rice porridge and boiled fish. How delicious could it be? Besides, she actually didn't like eating fish and had almost become a vegetarian over the years.

"Well!"

Coral Palace Xin Hai covered her lips, trying her best not to let Shen Liang see her surprised expression, so as to prevent him from showing a smug look.

But...it's so delicious!

So it turns out it wasn't that I didn't like eating fish... I was just too ignorant!

Shen Liang glanced at the two witches, who were engrossed in their delicious fantasies, and took a sip of fish soup with considerable satisfaction.

Isn't this what chefs are most proud of?

At this moment, Coral Palace Heart Sea picked up the blanched oyster meat.

"Wait a minute, you have to dip this in satay sauce!" Shen Liang hurriedly taught her the best way to eat it. He was just about to scoop a spoonful of sauce onto her oysters when Coral Palace was still sulking with him and didn't want to talk to him. With a twist of her body, Shen Liang's sauce fell onto her chest.

"Oh ho." Coral Palace Liuka's eyes widened, anticipating Shen Liang's actions. But seeing that Shen Liang didn't react, she bent down herself, pressed her niece's shoulder, and stuck out her little tongue to lick the sauce that had been spilled on the little shrine maiden's chest clean.

Then she chuckled and looked at Shen Liang, proudly showing him the satay sauce on her tongue.

Chapter Thirty-Eight: Ji Jun consulted Liang Zi on governance, and said...

The little witch blushed, but the big witch seemed completely unconcerned. However, she was quite disappointed to see that Shen Liang didn't react and pouted, "You don't even blush or feel your heart race? Do you two usually play even more wildly than this?"

"Auntie, I'm going to get angry if you keep talking like that!"

Coral Palace Liuge made a reassuring gesture, while Shen Liang continued cutting the crab shell without looking up, saying, "I'm only fifteen years old."

"Fifteen years old isn't young anymore. Most men and women in our Inari family get married around this age. Hey, tell me, what do you think of my Xinhai? Do you have any feelings for him? As an elder, I'm really curious!"

"Auntie, why do you always keep bringing up this boring topic?" Coral Palace Xin Hai felt exhausted. "Ryoko and I really have a pure friendship. There's nothing like what you're thinking, really."

"Not even a little bit?" Ruka Sangokami's eyes widened.

"Not at all!"

The high priestess stared intently at the little priestess for a long time before finally scratching her head, looking somewhat troubled, and said, "Oh... it's completely different from what I imagined."

"I'm going to succeed my aunt as the next generation of human goddess priestess! Aunt, don't expect me to get married!" Coral Palace Heart Sea joked.

“Well…” Coral Palace Liuge cupped her hands, looking pleading, then smiled, “Auntie understands…Auntie…I’m sorry.”

Her sudden change in tone made Coral Palace Xin Hai momentarily flustered, and she quickly waved her hand, "It's not that serious. I know Auntie is a person who likes to joke. There's no need to apologize for jokes."

Coral Palace Liuge did not respond. Shen Liang looked up at her, then lowered his head to continue cutting the meat.

At this moment, the high priestess reached out with her chopsticks again, picked up a piece of sashimi, didn't scald it, and simply dipped it in the sauce. She carefully caught it with one hand, then gently parted her lips and swallowed the sashimi.

Then a happy expression appeared on his face.

“I just tasted it again, and the flavor is so complex… It’s not like the style of Haiqi Island. We don’t think we have these seasonings on Haiqi Island either. How did you manage to do it?” Coral Palace Liuge leaned to the side, sitting next to Shen Liang and nuzzling him, full of curiosity. “I know Liyue cuisine is rich, but even a skilled cook can’t make a meal without ingredients.”

“Your Inazuma cuisine probably only knows crude techniques like raw food, frying, hot pot, and stewing. You pursue the freshness of ingredients but not the refinement.” Shen Liang said this with a little pride. “Liyue cuisine not only pursues complexity but also popularization. It should allow ordinary people to enjoy delicious food with their meager budgets. Therefore, using local ingredients, adapting to local conditions, and being flexible are essential.”

Actually, he didn't know anything about Liyue cuisine, but he felt that Liyue cuisine was not much different from Chinese cuisine when he was helping out in the kitchen on the Beidou ship. He was just talking nonsense this time.

“Take this chili sauce for example. You can use star anise instead of Sichuan peppercorns on your island. And the Jueyun chili peppers aren’t just for frying skewers. Chop them up and add some minced garlic for an even spicier flavor,” Shen Liang said. “They’re just some very basic ingredients. You lack the ability to be flexible.”

Actually, this was also a lie. The main reason was that he carried satay sauce and Lao Gan Ma chili sauce with him in case the food in the other world was bad.

As she ate, Ruka Coral Palace exclaimed in amazement. Holding her bowl, she looked at Shen Liang with sparkling eyes like a little girl, "You're amazing, Liang-chan! To be honest, are you really a businesswoman?"

"If you think it is, then it is."

"Alchemy, seawater rice, and chef-level skills again, Liangjiang, what other surprises do you have that your aunt doesn't know about?" Coral Palace Liuge had drunk several bowls of rice porridge that was incredibly delicious because it had been cooked with too much seafood. At this moment, she rubbed her slightly protruding belly and sighed, "It was worth the trip. I really made a fortune by mooching this midnight snack."

After finishing their hot pot meal, Shen Liang was too lazy to clean up the dishes and asked Coral Palace Xin Hai to do it.

He and Ruka Sango sat around the steaming hot spring pool, both of them taking off their shoes and enjoying a foot bath in the hot spring.

"Miss Ryuka, you've come to visit so late at night. Now you should say what you need."

“I can’t hide it from you, hey, are you really fifteen?” Sangokami Ryuka kicked the water, not caring that the water splashed onto her twelve-layered kimono. “I could have told you as soon as I arrived, but I didn’t expect Kokoro to be here with you too—oh, she’s your maid now.”

"Don't you have any objections to this?"

"No, if Xin Hai's maid job is exposed, I can embellish the story and she'll be ruined and unable to remain a priestess. I can continue for decades to come!" Coral Palace Ryuka clenched her fist. "Wouldn't that be wonderful!"

"So that's what you were thinking?"

“That’s right!” Coral Palace Ryuka smiled, wanting to see his reaction.

"Then I'll go tell Xinhai." Shen Liang made a move to get up.

"Hey, hey, hey, can't you tell I was joking?!" Coral Palace Liuge hurriedly pulled him back. "That kid Xinhai is so adorably silly, he'll take it seriously!"

Shen Liang discovered that he wasn't the only one who realized this; Xin Hai's soft and gentle nature made her too easy to bully.

"I'm here not really for any important business, but there are some things I can't say in public yesterday, so I'd like to ask you for your advice, sir," said Coral Palace Ryuka with a smile. "I hope you can enlighten me, sir."

When she changes her address from "Liangjiang" to "Mr.", it means she's getting serious again.

It's actually quite easy to understand.

"I'm just a seller. It's unrealistic for you to treat me like a strategist. Please speak." Shen Liang had a clear understanding of himself. Although he put on airs and spoke eloquently to increase his standing in the Coral Palace, he was actually just relying on his knowledge of history books as an Earthling.

If Coral Palace Ryuka asks some real strategic questions, he will definitely show his ignorance, so it's better to explain things clearly first.

“I’ve asked this question to many people, but I’m not satisfied with any of their answers. I don’t expect to get the truth from you, sir, so please feel free to ask,” said Coral Palace Ryuka with a smile. “Then I’ll ask.”