Chapter 168 Lunch with New Colleagues
The conditions in the Beauxbatons alchemy laboratory were excellent. Even though Livia and Zhou Shiyu were only using a small three-person laboratory, the conditions were still excellent.
The ceiling was covered with warm lights of the brightest color. When walking in the laboratory, the sound of everyone's footsteps was swallowed up by the carpet - Della was sure that the slight vibrations were also eliminated. Various experimental equipment were placed neatly on the table. Della could recognize most of them, but it was obvious that her previous alchemy environment seemed "old" compared to here.
"I think you must be familiar with this. It's the warm light needed in the experimental environment." Della had never seen such a ceiling full of lights without color difference.
"Obsidian countertop! Because this is an independent small laboratory, there are only three pieces here. There may be more than twenty pieces in a large experiment!" This is the most familiar to Della.
"Here are various types of reaction hourglasses," Livia said, stepping on the thick, shockproof carpet and explaining everything in the lab to Della like introducing a friend. "But we are all four-phase alchemists. Mr. Weiss said that the two-phase hourglass is still being used."
"You are the only six-phase alchemist here now." Zhou Yushi added somewhat unconvinced.
"There's probably no rush for the reaction hourglass," Delado glanced at the obviously improved large reaction hourglass, "I know the basic operations, I think I need to get familiar with the laboratory environment."
"Beauxbatons' alchemy is the best in the world, and its alchemical equipment is also the best in the world. This is known to everyone in Beauxbatons." Zhou Yushi raised his head proudly. He took the main position of guidance at this time, made a "please" gesture, and introduced their laboratory in more detail than the easily emotional Livia.
Perhaps because she had been with Bellinda for too long, Della's mind subconsciously shuddered when she heard the sentence "I know everything". The muscles in her entire back tensed for a moment, and then slowly relaxed. She tried the new equipment one by one under the hands-on guidance of Zhou Yushi and Livia.
Della got the hang of everything quickly, and by noon, it was visibly clear that Zhou Yushi's last bit of resistance to her had disappeared, and Livia's eyes became brighter as she looked at Della.
"Do you want to go to Iris Garden, or come with us to the open rest area on the first floor of the institute?" As it was approaching dinner time, Zhou Yushi asked Della at the right time.
"Does the rest area of the institute also provide meals?" Della felt that she knew too little about Beauxbatons.
"There are no meals in the lounge. Yushi lives in the Lily of the Valley area. He has a small kitchen and can bring his own Chinese food!" Livia added, smiling at Della, revealing her neat braces.
"I haven't prepared my lunch box today. I think I have to go to the cafeteria." Della said, and her nose wrinkled obviously when she saw Zhou Yu.
"Come on, Della, if Yu Shi can say that, it means he has done your share!" Livia uncovered Zhou Yu Shi's awkwardness, "This guy likes to watch others eat the food he cooks. It doesn't matter if you can't use chopsticks. I've been eating with a fork and spoon all year."
"I don't think it's anything to brag about if you can't use chopsticks after eating Chinese food for a year." Zhou Yushi muttered. He didn't refute Livia's words, but just raised his eyelids and looked at Della.
"Then I'll be welcome." Della blinked, the smile on her face deepened politely, and she accepted the invitation to dinner.
Della's superficial understanding of Chinese food came from the past eleven years in the Muggle world, such as orange chicken, braised pork, and various incomprehensible fried rice, but in Zhou Yushi's lunch box, she didn't see any Chinese food she knew.
What can be recognized is a large bowl of steaming white rice, six meatballs soaked in red sauce neatly arranged in a food box, a box of round and translucent shrimps with distinct red and white colors, and a bowl of soup that seems to have tomato in it.
There was also a bowl... Della couldn't tell what it was. It was a pile of things that looked like noodles soaked in a rich yellow soup, with some vegetables and meat slices randomly placed on top. But it would be a stretch to say that those things were noodles, as they were flat and short, and looked a bit rough.
"It's enough for you to know that this is a soy product. Oh, I always forget to ask, you don't have any allergies, right?" As he said this, Zhou Yushi paused in taking out the tableware.
"I'm not allergic to anything, Senior Zhou." Della said, her eyes tilted slightly to the left not so obviously. From the moment she came in, she felt a burning gaze glued to her.
"It couldn't be better," Zhou Yushi looked at Della with such appreciation for the first time. He took out the plates and cutlery, but was not in a hurry to share them with Livia and Della. Instead, he first put different amounts of rice into each plate, and then added dishes to them one by one. "I know you are used to sharing meals."
"You know me, Yushi. If I use a fork to pick up the meatballs from the food box, the table will be full of soup," Livia looked intently at Zhou Yushi's hands as he served the food, "I want two meatballs!"
"What about you?" When Zhou Yushi picked up Della's portion, he looked at her inquiringly.
"Just one is enough, Senior."
Thinking about the quality of Della's finished product, Zhou Yushi felt that the polite "senior" had a certain ironic meaning, so after he picked up the meatballs, he angrily scooped a large spoonful of shrimp for Della and said with a sour tone, "Just call me Zhou, I just graduated a year ago."
"But Della can call me Livia!" Livia immediately seized the opportunity and said.
"Okay, Zhou, Livia." Della didn't refuse. She smiled and changed the way she addressed them.
"Very good," Zhou Yushi handed Della's plate over, "Today is Thursday, and we have a meeting tomorrow."
"Meeting?" Della took the plate and looked up at Zhou Yushi in confusion.
"Friday is the junior researcher meeting, Wednesday is the intermediate researcher meeting, but maybe Della can attend the meeting on Monday, which is the senior researcher meeting." Livia hurriedly took her share from Zhou Yushi.
"No matter what, it won't be that serious... Never mind. I'll take you to the meeting tomorrow anyway. After all, you've been assigned to our laboratory." Zhou Yushi curled his lips and shared the spoon and fork with the two people who were eating for free.
"Thanks for your care, Zhou." Della replied. She took the cutlery and was about to pick up a shrimp when the gaze behind her became increasingly hot. Della knew that the person who was staring at her was coming towards her. In order to avoid the embarrassment of talking while chewing something in her mouth, she fiddled with the dish twice and slowed down her movements.
"Della Riddle," a slightly dull and gloomy male voice sounded from behind. Della opened her eyes appropriately and pretended to be surprised and turned to look. A tall but thin chestnut-haired boy stood there with his lips pursed. He raised his hands to his chest, tightly holding a letter. His smooth chestnut hair almost covered half of his eyes. "Can you please help me give this letter to Bellinda?"
As soon as the name of Bellinda came out, people in the lounge looked over in groups of three or four. Della frowned, but she didn't respond, and didn't even stand up politely. She just gently put down the plate under the gaze of Zhou Yushi and Livia, "Excuse me, who are you?"
"I saw you having breakfast with Belinda this morning. Are you her new roommate?" The young man holding the letter explained first, and then immediately introduced himself awkwardly, "I am Olivier Langheim, a mid-level researcher at the institute."
"I'm Belinda's new roommate," Della said quietly, "but I refuse to deliver a letter that can't even be delivered by owl."
"Tsk~" Livia, who was watching from the side, covered her mouth and laughed, and Zhou Yushi also raised her eyebrows.
"No, it's not like that," Langheim's pale face turned red with shame, and he stammered to explain, "I sent her a letter, but she never responded. I, I just wanted to..."
"What are you just thinking about?" A familiar, soft and arrogant female voice sounded in the lounge. Belinda was carrying a picnic basket and wearing a slightly loose light-colored floral shirt. The hem of the shirt was neatly tucked into a short A-line skirt that showed off her waist, revealing a pair of slender and toned legs.
No one complained about her loud voice in the lounge. Men and women looked at her admiringly. Della also looked at Belinda, and after praising Belinda's beauty in her heart, she thought that her roommate was not wearing this in the morning.
Then she realized that Belinda had no qualms about wearing Muggle clothes in the wizarding world.
The one who defines beauty...she really wasn't exaggerating.