Nan Qiao went to the bakery to buy some desserts. She didn’t expect to see Chen Man there.
Chen Man was with Lu Zhengyang, which took Nan Qiao by surprise.
Chen Man still hadn’t seen Lu Zhengyang’s true colors, yet she was willing to stay with him?
Nan Qiao pretended not to know Chen Man, bought her desserts, and left with her things.
As she was about to leave, Chen Man called out to her.
"Nan Qiao, wait a second. I have something to tell you."
Nan Qiao turned around, maintaining a distance from Chen Man.
"Nan Qiao, don’t tell my parents about me being with Lu Zhengyang."
"Don’t worry, I won’t. Whoever you choose to be with is your business. I won’t say a word."
Hearing this, Chen Man felt much more at ease.
"Alright, just remember what you said today."
"Relax, I have no desire to stir up trouble for myself."
Nan Qiao left with her desserts.
Chen Man watched her back with a complicated expression in her eyes.
Lu Zhengyang came out from inside and asked gently, "Manman, what were you talking to her about?"
"I was afraid she’d blab to my parents and ruin our relationship."
"Manman, you’re always so thoughtful." Lu Zhengyang held her hand.
Chen Man smiled and said, "Brother Zhengyang, when are you going to buy me the necklace I wanted?"
"Manman, I don’t have much money right now."
"You don’t have money? You just bought a car. How could you not have money? Or do you think just because my family went bankrupt, you can mess with me however you like?" Chen Man said willfully.
"Didn’t I just buy the car? My money’s tied up in that. In a couple of days, I’ll get it for you, okay?"
"Fine, I’ll wait two more days."
Lu Zhengyang held her hand. "How about coming to my place tonight?"
"I need to go back to the dorm. If it’s too easy, I’m afraid you won’t cherish me."
Another painfully awkward afternoon.
Nan Qiao went to see Deng Bingying, reviewed the books, and checked out the location of Huai Xi’s shop in Jing City.
"Mr. Qiao, I’m planning to open two more stores, but I haven’t found suitable locations yet."
Nan Qiao: "You handle that. Once you’ve picked the locations, send them to me and I’ll take a look."
"Mr. Qiao, I’ll definitely send them to you for approval. Honestly, though, good spots in Jing City are hard to come by."
"It’s fine. Take your time finding a spot; no rush. The company’s focus should still be on quality and design. If a location isn’t right, I’d rather not expand than compromise on making every piece perfect."
"Don’t worry, Mr. Qiao. I won’t let expansion come at the expense of quality."
They discussed some company matters, and then Nan Qiao left once the work was done.
When Nan Qiao got home, Old Mr. Li was also there.
Seeing Nan Qiao return, Old Mr. Li was delighted. "Qiaoqiao, you’re back! Is school tiring? If you’re tired, you need to take good care of yourself."
"Hello, Grandpa Li. School isn’t tiring at all. I love studying medicine. When it’s something you enjoy, it doesn’t feel like work."
Nan Qiao walked over and sat down next to Chen Xinwan.
Chen Xinwan said, "Qiaoqiao, you should go have a bowl of the red bean porridge Sister Liu made first. It’s good for you."
"Alright, Mom." Standing up politely, Nan Qiao said, "Grandpa Li, I’ll grab some red bean porridge first and come back shortly."
"Go ahead, Qiaoqiao."
Nan Qiao smiled and left for the kitchen.
The Bai family’s kitchen was enormous, with sections for both Chinese and Western cooking, a walk-in freezer, and every ingredient one could imagine.
Liu Feng brought over a bowl of soft red bean porridge for Nan Qiao. "Miss, Old Mr. Li came by today with a lot of gifts—top-tier ingredients of all kinds. He said they’re all for you, to nourish you."
Eating her red bean porridge, Nan Qiao understood the purpose of Old Mr. Li’s visit.
Li Yehan had fought Li Tianhong at the grave and then got schemed against by him.
Old Mr. Li’s visit—was he here to thank her for stopping Li Yehan or for warning him?
Whatever it was, Nan Qiao thought the gifts were far too lavish.
"Grandpa Li brought way too much stuff. It’s all so expensive. I need to think about what kind of gift I should give in return."
Liu Feng smiled. "Old Mr. Li already regards you as his granddaughter-in-law. He’d probably give you the whole family estate if he could. Miss, Old Mr. Li really dotes on you."
"I know Grandpa Li treats me well, but I can’t keep accepting such expensive gifts."
Nan Qiao put down her spoon and messaged Li Yehan, asking him to come over and take some of the gifts back.
Li Yehan replied: "Qiaoqiao, if Grandpa gave it to you, just accept it. It’s a token of his goodwill."
Nan Qiao: "Li Yehan, this isn’t just goodwill—it’s a lot of money. It’s unsettling to keep taking these gifts without reason."
Li Yehan: "Unsettling? Then shall I come over and calm you down?"
Nan Qiao: "Li Yehan, I’m being serious. Can you stop being a flirt for once?"
Li Yehan: "Qiaoqiao, this is serious. If you’re unsettled, I’m worried about you."
She didn’t even want to continue the conversation. This man was impossible!
Nan Qiao put aside her phone and resumed eating her red bean porridge.
"Aunt Liu, you have no idea. Li Yehan is absolutely infuriating!"
Aunt Liu kept giving her a look, and Nan Qiao followed the direction of her gaze.
When did Li Yehan get here?
Aunt Liu smiled knowingly as she slipped away to avoid playing third wheel.
"Qiaoqiao, I’m infuriating?"
"Li Yehan, when did you get here?"
"Just now. I came as soon as I saw your message—to check if you’re still unsettled."
Li Yehan was so sincere in his response that Nan Qiao almost wondered if she was overreacting.
He sat down, picked up her unfinished red bean porridge, and took a sip.
"Li Yehan, didn’t you eat dinner?"
"No, when I heard Grandpa was at your house, I dropped everything at work and came over."
Nan Qiao suddenly didn’t know what to say.
She grabbed another bowl of porridge and brought over three plates of side dishes: braised pork, shrimp with garlic vermicelli, and shredded pork in garlic sauce.
Li Yehan picked up his chopsticks. "Thanks, Qiaoqiao."
"Eat something first to settle your stomach. My parents are still chatting with Grandpa, so dinner might take a while."
Eating, Li Yehan looked at her with a soft gaze. "Qiaoqiao, thank you for caring about me."
Nan Qiao sat beside him and ate with him.
"Grandpa brought way too many gifts. They’re too expensive. Li Yehan, can you talk to him about not bringing anything next time? And take some of this back with you today."
"Qiaoqiao, if Grandpa gives you something, just accept it. If it’s not now, everything will be yours eventually."
"But it doesn’t feel right taking so many things now."
"Qiaoqiao, don’t stress yourself out. Anything our family gives you, you can take. No one would dare say anything. If they did, I’d deal with them personally."
Nan Qiao chuckled. "So I’m supposed to take everything?"
Li Yehan nodded seriously. "Exactly. Including me—you have to accept me too."