CHAPTER 253: CHAPTER 253: THE STORYTELLER

The meal was quickly prepared, chicken soup stewed with tea tree mushrooms, along with some jerky and some wild vegetables whose names were hard to identify.

It has to be said, even though they’re just ordinary wild vegetables, the ones Bai Yun made were delicious, while the ones Shen Qingju made, as Shen Qingzhu said, could rival the pig feed at Grandma’s house.

Speaking of Shen Qingju, I wonder how she’s been doing lately. It seems I should find a time to visit her.

By the time the two finished eating in the mountains and returned to town, the sun was already setting behind the mountains.

By then, the vendors had long packed up their stalls, and there were few people left on the streets.

Duan Yunfei looked at her, his eyes twinkling with a smile and tenderness: "Thank you for accompanying me today, I had a great time!"

Shen Qinglan smiled, looking at the half-set sun and said, "Life is short, so seize the moment to be happy."

"Looks like you two had a lot of fun, huh?"

Laughter drifted down from the eaves of the street buildings.

The two looked up to see Le Zhao and Yan Yijie, along with Xuan Ming and Xuan Ying, standing or sitting on the eaves, gazing down at them.

The two exchanged a glance and then laughed softly in unison.

The four above the eaves soon jumped down, and the two quickly dismounted.

Xuan Ming and Xuan Ying promptly stepped forward, each leading a horse, following behind them.

"Where have you guys been?" Le Zhao asked.

"Went for a walk in the mountains," Duan Yunfei replied.

Le Zhao raised an eyebrow, "Did you go to see Elder Chu?"

"Yes," Duan Yunfei looked at them, "Did today’s story entertain you?"

"Not at all, it almost put me to sleep!" Xuan Ying complained, "It’s still the same storyteller and the story never changes!"

The others laughed lightly at his words.

Only this unobservant guy couldn’t tell Le Zhao was just making stuff up today.

As the conversation shifted to storytelling, Shen Qinglan’s eyes lit up instantly.

She wondered, if she invited a storyteller to Guest House, would the business improve?

She asked the group, "Do people here like listening to stories?"

"They do, especially the more bizarre and mystical stories," Le Zhao laughed, "Speaking for myself, I find them quite interesting."

"Then... if I were to invite a storyteller to share stories no one has heard before, do you think people would come to listen?"

"Well, that would depend on how captivating your stories are," Le Zhao said, "The young ladies and gentlemen enjoy tales of poor scholars and rich young ladies, while people like us prefer stories of fights or mystical beings."

Hearing this, Shen Qinglan showed a faint smile.

As a modern person, what story hasn’t she heard? Not to mention the Four Great Classical Novels, any one of them would surely be exciting enough, right?

She asked the group again, "Do you know where to find a humorous and entertaining storyteller?"

"Speaking of storytellers..." Duan Yunfei mused, "Old Tang knows someone. This person lives in our Jinxi Town. A few years ago, his father fell gravely ill, so he quit his job to return and take care of him with his wife. After his father passed away, he wanted to go back to storytelling, but by then, the teahouse had already hired someone new."

"A teahouse?" Shen Qinglan frowned, "Can’t a restaurant hire a storyteller?"

"Of course they can!" Le Zhao nodded, "Many large restaurants in the Capital have storytellers."

Duan Yunfei raised an eyebrow, "You want to hire a storyteller?"

"Yes," she said, "I want to set up a storytelling stage at Guest House and hire a storyteller, but..."

She frowned slightly, "Guest House is too small. If I set up a stage, there wouldn’t be room for many guests."