Quick Wear: Cousin, Come to the Bowl Quickly

The sudden verses stunned Mrs. Tasha. Her azure eyes widened slightly, and the sarcastic words that were on the tip of her tongue caught in her throat.

Not only her, but also Ivanov and several other Belarusian guests beside her showed the same surprised expression.

After all, none of them had expected that this young woman with black hair and black eyes, and a typical Chinese appearance, would speak fluent White Russian, and with the accent of St. Petersburg's high society.

Sensing the strange looks from everyone, and although he was somewhat surprised that Lin Xi could speak Belarus, Shen Jingyuan still slightly turned his body to block everyone's view for her.

Feeling his movement, Lin Xi smiled and gently squeezed his arm muscles in a reassuring way. Then she turned to Mrs. Tasha and greeted her in fluent White Russian, "Good evening, Mrs. Tasha. It is my honor to meet you on such an occasion."

Hearing Lin Xi's greeting, Mrs. Tasha finally recovered from her initial surprise and looked up to examine the beautiful Eastern woman in front of her again. She said hesitantly, "It's really...surprising. I didn't expect Mrs. Li's Russian to be so fluent."

"You flatter me." Lin Xi lifted her skirt and bowed slightly, her demeanor elegant and natural. "I have been fascinated by your country's culture and art since I was a child. My family specially hired a Russian teacher for me. The few lines of poetry I just heard were my teacher's teachings."

Upon hearing the words "Russian teacher," Mrs. Tasha's eyes flickered slightly, and she swayed as if she wanted to say something, but then held back.

Lin Xi seemed oblivious to the fleeting change in her expression and continued, "I have long heard that Madam not only possesses a noble air, but also has profound attainments in the appreciation of painting. I have come here today with a humble work of my own, and I wonder if I would have the honor of receiving Madam's guidance?"

As soon as Lin Xi said this, several guests around who understood Russian couldn't help but show a mocking expression on their faces.

Such blatant flattery seemed a bit too deliberate in this setting. Although Mrs. Tasha was skilled in painting, she was always proud. How could she possibly lower herself to give pointers on her paintings to this arrogant Chinese woman?

Therefore, for a moment, everyone in the ballroom waited with anticipation to see how Mrs. Tasha would coldly reject Lin Xi.

However, to everyone's surprise, Madam Tasha's gaze lingered on Lin Xi's dark green dress for a moment, and after a moment of silence, she raised her chin slightly and said with an arrogant air.

"Since Mrs. Li and I chose the same color, it means that we do have similar aesthetic tastes."

As she spoke, she gracefully raised the feather fan in her hand and tapped her chin twice, then extended her hand, gloved with silk, toward Lin Xi, "Then let me admire your work."

"It's my honor." Upon seeing this, Lin Xi quickly stepped forward and said respectfully.

Having said that, she calmly took Mrs. Tasha's hand, and the two walked side by side toward the side hall.

Only after the two dark green figures disappeared behind the pillars did everyone turn their attention away.

Ivanov turned his gaze back to Shen Jingyuan, who was still staring intently in the direction the two had left. He couldn't help but curl his lips into a smile. "Don't worry, Mr. Li, Tasha has a gentle personality and won't eat people."

Ivanov was no simpleton, having risen to the top position in the arms trade in Fengtian.

Therefore, after his initial dissatisfaction, Ivanov quickly understood the purpose of the young Chinese couple's grand entrance that night, and was also well aware of Mrs. Li's intention to use Tasha to build a closer relationship.

In order to win over their husbands to make a deal by pleasing their wives, this is a common tactic in business, and the shrewd Chinese are particularly adept at it.

Ivanov disliked the Chinese people's roundabout ways, but he liked Tasha.

Knowing that Tasha had been depressed and sighing lately because she missed her homeland, and had even lost interest in her favorite dances, she didn't stop her now that someone could pique her interest.

“Mr. Ivan is too kind. Your wife is noble and gentle. I was just worried that my wife might be impulsive and offend her.” Shen Jingyuan withdrew his gaze, suppressed his doubts, met Ivanov’s probing gaze, and gave a polite smile, picking up where Ivan left off.

Meanwhile, Mrs. Tasha led Lin Xi into the elegant and quiet small reception room on the second floor.

The moment the heavy oak door closed behind her, she turned around abruptly, her azure eyes locking onto Lin Xi, and questioned her sharply.

"What's your relationship with Fuya?!"

Faced with Madam Tasha's sudden questioning, Lin Xi blinked, a perfectly timed look of surprise on her face, and said sincerely, "Fuya? Madam, I don't know anyone with that name."

"You're talking nonsense!" Seeing her denial, Mrs. Tasha took a step closer, her emotions running high. "If you don't know her, how could you possibly know that poem? She wrote it especially for me when she was sixteen! There's no way any third person could know the complete verses except for her and me!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Xi's face immediately showed a look of sudden realization. She covered her lips in surprise, her eyes filled with disbelief.

"Could it be... that you are the older sister that Teacher Nina often mentions? But... how could that be? Teacher... she clearly said..."

"Nina?" Madam Tasha grabbed Lin Xi's wrist with such force that Lin Xi couldn't help but frown slightly.

Mrs. Tasha's beautiful blue eyes filled with tears, and her voice trembled slightly, "That's the name she used after she left home? How is she? Tell me quickly, where is she now? Is she doing well?"

Seeing this, Lin Xi gently grasped Mrs. Tasha's trembling hand and helped her to sit down on the velvet sofa next to her. She said reassuringly, "Madam, please don't be agitated. Teacher Nina... she's fine."

“She always said she was ‘traveling freely’ and having a great time. When she was teaching me, she was in high spirits and often told me about her travel experiences, which were always very vivid and interesting. I liked her very much.”

She paused, a hint of regret in her eyes, "But later she left, saying she wanted to continue traveling the world."

"Her last letter was from France. In it, she said she had found a small apartment by the Seine and was living a leisurely life, but later... her address changed, and we gradually lost contact."

Tasha, who had been listening quietly to Lin Xi's story, tensed up when she heard this. Seeing this, Lin Xi quickly added, "But in her last letter, she did emphasize that she was fine and told me not to worry."

“France…the Seine…” Madame Tasha murmured to herself, “It’s her, it must be her…she always wanted to go to France to see those museums.”

As she spoke, she suddenly grabbed Lin Xi's hand as if grasping at a lifeline, and asked hesitantly, "Does she really... look happy?"

“I assure you, Madam,” Lin Xi said earnestly and solemnly, “Teacher Nina is one of the most open-minded and life-loving people I have ever met. She never complains and her eyes always sparkle with curiosity about the unknown world.”

Upon hearing this, Lady Tasha seemed unable to hold back any longer and began to sob softly. Lin Xi silently handed her a handkerchief and quietly stayed by her side.

After a while, Mrs. Tasha gradually calmed down, took the handkerchief to wipe her tears, and gazed unsteadily at the deep night outside the window, beginning her reminiscence.

Everyone knew that she came from a noble family and had a high social status, but few people knew that she actually had a younger sister.

Compared to Tasha, who is beautiful, talented, and famous, her younger sister Fuya, who is two years younger than her, seems much more ordinary.

However, if she were just ordinary, that would be fine. Compared to ordinary noble ladies, Fuya was practically an anomaly.

She disliked socializing, disliked dances, and had no desire to dress up extravagantly to attract the attention of eligible young men.

Instead, she had a particular fondness for reading—not the romance novels favored by young girls or the pretentious popular poetry, but rather those obscure and difficult historical, philosophical, astronomical, and geographical texts.

She was so engrossed in books that she became obsessed, vowing never to marry and determined to travel the world.

As noble parents, they naturally could not understand Fuya's shocking ideas and believed that she was possessed by an evil spirit. They not only sent her to the church to forcibly exorcise the evil spirit, but also personally selected a marriage partner for her.

The once lively and cheerful girl was tortured beyond recognition and was on the verge of disappearing. Tasha, unable to bear seeing her sister suffer, secretly rescued her and sent her away.

However, Fuya's existence was ultimately seen as a disgrace by the family, and her name was removed from the family genealogy.

At this point, Mrs. Tasha was already in tears. Although Fuya's behavior was outrageous, she had a very good relationship with her older sister. The poem that Lin Xi had just recited was one that Fuya had written for her when they were young.

She had initially sent Fuya to a safe place, intending to wait until she recovered and the storm had passed before gently persuading her.

But when she went to see her several months later, she only found a letter that she had left behind.

"Over the years, I've used many connections to secretly search for her, but I've never heard from her... I even thought that she might already be somewhere unknown..."

At this point, Lady Tasha seemed unable to continue, clutching the silk handkerchief tightly in her hand.

Lin Xi gently patted Mrs. Tasha's back and softly comforted her, "Madam, your teacher has always missed you, but perhaps she is just too guilty to contact you."

"Look, the teacher has achieved her wish and is living the life she wanted. Perhaps this is the best ending..."

After a long while, under Lin Xi's gentle and soothing words, Mrs. Tasha finally calmed down. She took out a small mirror she carried with her, tidied her tear-stained makeup, and then looked up at Lin Xi in front of her again.

"Alright, since you've gone to such lengths to get close to me and brought me news of Fuya, just tell me what you want."

“Let me touch up your makeup, Madam.” Lin Xi’s smile remained unchanged as she naturally reached out and took Madam Tasha’s powder box, her tone sincere. “Just as the teacher said, her sister is the smartest and most beautiful young lady in the world…”