Titanic: Parallel World

Titanic 4

Breakfast couldn't start until everyone was present. The croissant Shen Rui had eaten the night before had long been digested. Unlike Carl and Mrs. Kabot, who had snacks and tea, she was starving. Her eyes lit up as she stared at the abundant food on the table. Shen Rui had a metabolism that prevented her from gaining weight, and even eating five meals a day hadn't increased her bust size by even a little. Calling her skinny would be an understatement; she was more like a bamboo raft. Eating so much meat every day hadn't made her any fatter.

Her mother had tried to feed her five meals a day, but she still couldn't gain any weight. Every time she went to a lingerie store with her friends, she felt like a living tragedy compared to their C+ cup sizes. Being skinny might attract envy on the street, but in a lingerie store, that envy quickly turned negative. If she wasn't wearing thick padding, her front and back would be almost the same.

Thinking about this, she looked down and couldn't even see the napkin on her lap. Rose's bust was truly impressive. No wonder Carl spent so much money to marry her. Men, huh.

Shen Rui had been worried about her table manners, but once she sat down, she realized she didn't need to restrain herself. She let out a breath in relief, feeling like her internal organs had been squeezed together by her corset. But she was still hungry. Had she gone from being a foodie to a big foodie after time-traveling? Shen Rui silently mocked herself. With the help of the corset, she didn't need to pay attention to keep her back straight, but sweat beads formed on her forehead, and her movements were slow and deliberate. It wasn't that she didn't want to move faster; it was that every time she raised her arm, she felt a tightness in her chest. If she made any sudden movements, she couldn't breathe.

This meal was the most painful one Shen Rui had ever eaten. The woman who used to be able to eat her way in and out of a restaurant had suddenly turned into someone with a bird's appetite. She was puzzled. How could Miss Rose be so...round, given how uncomfortable it was? She had seen female celebrities on TV who became slim by eating only steamed vegetables and wearing corsets all day. How could they even survive? Shen Rui had never longed to breathe deeply like she did now. She snarkily thought to herself that maybe Rose's rebellion wasn't against Carl, but against the corset.

Carl looked at his fiancée with satisfaction, smiling all the time. No matter what he said, she nodded in agreement. She had a plate of fruit and grilled tomatoes in front of her, but she only nibbled at them. Carl raised an eyebrow. He still remembered Rose's appetite from their first meal together. She didn't wrinkle her nose at food like other women. In fact, the night before, she had drunk a bowl of cream soup and eaten a bread roll right in front of him. If there had been a grilled steak on her plate, she would have eaten it all. Was she finally trying to be a well-behaved lady now?

While agreeing with Ames's prediction that the stock of the White Star Line would continue to rise, Carl took a piece of salted meat for Rose. Shen Rui glanced at him. Eating salted meat first thing in the morning? She looked at Mrs. Kabot, who was delicately picking at her fried egg, letting the yolk run all over her plate. Was this considered good table manners? Shen Rui relaxed and decided to eat some cold chicken rolls, but they were too far away, so she settled for a croissant nearby.

Before her hand could touch the bread, Carl's knife and fork came over. He took a cold chicken roll for Rose and said, "You like this, right?" Shen Rui was flattered and could only nod. It was only after she reacted that she rolled her eyes in her heart. What a stubborn man. But she also enjoyed his service a bit. To be honest, she hadn't been treated like this for a long time. Except for the boys who had shown her attention when she was still naive in middle and high school, no one had paid her any special attention since then.

The boys in college were only interested in girls with good looks or outgoing personalities. The types of men she encountered after entering society were even more diverse. But for girls like Shen Rui, who stayed at home watching American, British, and Japanese dramas, there was no way to be discovered, and they ended up staying at home as leftover women. Blind dates were completely up to fate. How could love at first sight be possible? This wasn't a romance drama.

Next, Carl asked a male servant to bring Shen Rui an extra glass of juice. He even knew she preferred orange juice to apple juice. Shen Rui was surprised. If he was so attentive to Rose, how could Rose say he didn't understand her at all?

"Miss Kabot," Ames shared his views on current events and politics and talked about some investment projects. Then he turned his attention to Shen Rui, who had been silent the whole time. He seemed to recall the unfinished topic from yesterday's tea party and asked with a smile, "What kind of business does Mr. Freud run?"

Carl's face darkened. Shen Rui blinked innocently and stared at the half-eaten cold chicken roll on her plate. It tasted really good, and she was planning to ask the maid for more when she got back to her room. She didn't know how the topic had shifted from oil and soybeans to Freud. Did Ames also study psychology?

Shen Rui took a sip of water to swallow the food in her mouth and wiped her lips with a napkin. She looked at Carl and carefully said, "He's a doctor."

"Oh," Ames obviously wasn't interested in this, and his topic shifted back to soybeans and cotton. Shen Rui couldn't eat any more. The corset was torturing her. She moved her legs under the tablecloth. Sitting up straight like this felt like a form of t*****e. They didn't even practice sitting posture during military training.

It seemed that breakfast would take a while to finish. Shen Rui stared at the plate in front of her, carefully examining the flowers depicted on it. Then she focused on the tablecloth, trying to figure out whether it was machine-embroidered or hand-embroidered. Finally, she looked at the glass in front of her and imagined if it would break into pieces if she tapped it with a knife.

Carl cleared his throat beside her, bringing Shen Rui back to her senses. She looked at Carl and realized that she had unconsciously pulled at the tassel on the tablecloth. Blushing, she let go and placed her hands properly on her lap. Carl lowered his head to take a sip of tea, hiding the smile on his lips, his gaze shifting across Shen Rui's face.

The only person at the table who could engage in conversation with the men was Mrs. Brown. She was knowledgeable and even discussed topics about sailing with Andrus. Shen Rui's spirits lifted. Seeing her interest, Mrs. Brown spoke more enthusiastically. She seemed to be a traveler who had been to many places. Her language was witty and humorous, filled with slang, but Shen Rui listened with great interest.

"Have you ever thought about writing a travel journal?" Shen Rui asked. Mrs. Kebert cleared her throat to Shen Rui's left, and her coffee cup clinked against the plate, making a crisp sound. Shen Rui ignored her. She had already figured out that as long as she pleased Carl, Mrs. Kebert couldn't do anything to her.

Carl didn't react at all to her conversation with Mrs. Brown, instead signaling the butler to pour her a cup of breakfast tea with milk. Mrs. Brown laughed heartily, "A travel journal? Well, some places are indeed very interesting, but I can't write a book."

"What's the problem? You can just dictate it to a scribe," Shen Rui said eagerly. Just when she found someone she could talk to, Mrs. Kebert suddenly spoke up, "Rose, don't interrupt Carl and Mr. Ames's conversation." Shen Rui shut her mouth and remained silent. She told herself that she would get rid of Mrs. Kebert just as Rose had gotten rid of her mother.

Carl found her pouted face amusing. He didn't mind Rose getting close to Margaret Brown. Considering the Brown family's gold mine—goodness, it produced over a hundred tons of gold every day!—he encouragingly patted Shen Rui's hand, which was resting on her lap. "Dear, perhaps you can visit Mrs. Brown after breakfast."

Margaret nodded at Shen Rui, "Of course, I usually go for a horse ride or do some boxing after breakfast." Shen Rui was stunned. Riding a horse on a ship? She hadn't heard that you could ride horses on the Titanic! Her expression misled Carl, who smiled and nodded in agreement. "That's a great idea. Rose only loves books, which bothers me. She should have some hobbies too." Then he turned and whispered to a maid, "Prepare Miss Rose's riding outfit."

Shen Rui didn't know how to react. She turned her head and smiled at Carl. Carl took a sip of tea, feeling that he had found the key to making Rose happy. If he understood where her boundaries were, then indulging her was no different than petting a little kitten and rubbing its fur.

As they were leaving, they encountered an old gentleman. Shen Rui had thought Rose was beautiful, but the woman beside him was even more stunning. She greeted Carl with charm. Shen Rui blinked. Mrs. Kebert sniffed beside her, expressing her disdain to the fullest. The woman didn't even get a glance from her, but she didn't seem to mind. Even Mrs. Brown frowned.

"Who is that?" Shen Rui couldn't help but ask. The woman hadn't greeted her, so Rose shouldn't know her. The men were smiling, and Carl took the opportunity to whisper in Shen Rui's ear as they stepped onto the deck, "That's Sir Guggenheim, and the lady beside him is his mistress." He said it as if it was a matter of course. Having one or several mistresses was nothing worth discussing openly. For someone of his status, not having a few mistresses would only be laughed at.

Shen Rui's face wrinkled. The girl looked only a few years older than Rose, while Guggenheim appeared to be at least sixty. What a tragedy, Carl chuckled, as if Shen Rui had done something to amuse him. He looked at Shen Rui's waist, constrained by her corset, and said, "I've asked Tracy to prepare some snacks. You can eat a bit more before your horse ride."

Shen Rui swore she saw mockery in Carl's eyes! Hmph, let you all have small appetites!