"Mom, that's what we say, but..." Xiang Yazhi was about to say something when Mrs. Xiang lifted her head, her gaze skipping over her daughter's head towards Lian He who just entered the room, saying, "It's just my old illness acting up, it's nothing serious, you didn't have to come over specifically to see me."
Mrs. Xiang wore a smile brimming with warmth.
Xiang Yazhi lowered her eyes and wiped them with her sleeve before she shifted her body to see Lian He carrying a pile of health care products.
"Mom, it may be an old illness, but you still need to watch your health," Lian He said as he set the items down. After working many consecutive days, Lian He looked noticeably tired.
Mrs. Xiang replied, "Alright, I understand your concern. You also need to take care of yourself. Work is important, but health is the capital for revolution. Yazhi, you must prepare more nutritious food for Dahe, did you hear?"
"I understand." In front of Mrs. Xiang, Xiang Yazhi was like a little girl who hadn't yet grown up.
After a brief chat, Lian He departed.
Mrs. Xiang cautioned, "Yazhi, don't do anything irrational. That girl, just let her be. Whatever he wants to give her, that's his business, don't interfere."
The final words of Mrs. Xiang were solemn and serious.
Xiang Yazhi pouted, feeling wronged, "If you say don't interfere, then I won't. I don't even want to see her anyway." Although Xiang Yazhi was nearly forty, she acted like a teenager, which made it awkward to see.
Looking at her daughter behaving this way, Mrs. Xiang sighed. She had been overprotective all her life; her daughter's demeanor was nothing compared to her granddaughter's.
She spoke earnestly, "You've kept that person in your heart for so many years, and now that you finally have a daughter, naturally you want to compensate. What you should do is be more gracious. After this compensation and when Dahe's enthusiasm cools down, with Qingqing and the siblings, do you really think Dahe will forget about them?"
"But..." Xiang Yazhi still felt jealousy and envy; Lian He had always provided well for the two children - they never lacked anything necessary.
Yet, Xiang Yazhi always felt something was missing. Now seeing Lian He's attitude towards Tang Yue, she understood it was the affection.
In front of the children, Lian He was always a strict father, but he never lowered his stance .
Mrs. Xiang tried to persuade with all her heart, but seeing it futile, she sternly ordered Xiang Yazhi not to provoke that girl.
Xiang Yazhi outwardly agreed, but what she truly thought, was another thing altogether.
Lian Qingyang completely turned into Tang Yue's little tagalong, the kind you can't shake off no matter how hard you try.
Besides computer class, Lian Qingyang followed Tang Yue to her fashion design classes - whatever class she attended, he attended too.
During class breaks, he would happily pull Tang Yue to play games.
Not to mention meals - Lian Qingyang acted pitifully and insisted on eating with Tang Yue. Facing his sincere and hopeful look, Tang Yue couldn't utter a word of refusal.
As soon as Qin Anyu entered, she saw Lian Qingyang and Bai Qing fighting in the courtyard. Having grown accustomed to it, Qin Anyu commented, "Lian Qingyang, you've really improved."
The very next moment, Bai Qing hit him.
Lian Qingyang wouldn't accept defeat, wondering how he could lose to a woman.
"Sister An Yu." Tang Yue was sitting in the studio surrounded by materials for making clothes and held up a finished garment, "Miss Liu's clothes are ready."
"Wow." Qin Anyu examined the dress and confidently said, "Xiao Yue, Miss Liu will definitely love it. By the way, I have a piece of good news and a piece of bad news. Which one do you want to hear first?"
"Bad news," Tang Yue replied without looking up.
"The bad news is, the studio's orders are booked until next year," Qin Anyu said with a downcast face.
Tang Yue raised an eyebrow, asking, "And the good news?"
"The good news is, our studio has become famous." Qin Anyu said excitedly, "Do you remember that celebrity? She wore one of our dresses on the red carpet just once, and now many celebrities are ordering their dresses from our studio."
Qin Anyu grinned, showing her delight. Star Bright's branches have recently opened many stores and the early two in Jing City have already made a fair amount of money. She believed that in the future, they would definitely earn even more.
As for Star Bright's studio, it had also made a name for itself. Qin Anyu felt that she was doing very good business, even her grandfather had praised her several times.
"Xiao Yue, ten sets of clothes a month, isn't that a bit too few?" Qin Anyu sat down beside her and continued, "If we could make twenty custom sets a month..."
"Sister An Yu, customization only has ten sets a month. Of course, due to the backlog, we can schedule five more, but fifteen sets a month is the limit. We shouldn't increase it beyond that," Tang Yue interrupted her, "Scarcity makes something precious. Star Bright still lacks fashion designers. And my uncle's factory, Sister An Yu, shouldn't you be looking for a few designers?"
She was only one person, not a god!
The current workload was already keeping her very busy, adding a few more sets might seem small, but it required a considerable amount of effort.
Qin Anyu looked guilty, "Xiao Yue, I'm sorry, I got too excited."
"It's okay," Tang Yue said casually, "We can include_once more assistant in the studio."
"Okay, I'll arrange that right away," Qin Anyu said with a smile, about to go find someone.
Qin Anyu approached Tang Yue and said, "Xiao Yue, I have good news: Meng Yanzhi has been grounded and might not be able to come to school for some time."
"Is that even possible?" Tang Yue asked Qin Anyu in surprise, "Sister An Yu, doesn't he need to attend classes?"
"Grandpa Meng has requested leave for him. If it weren't for Meng Yanzhi's strong opposition, he'd probably have been thrown into the company by now, not attending Jinghua University," Qin Anyu explained, "You and Brother Mo make such a good match. I think you two stand together like a match made in heaven. I don't understand what's going through Meng Yanzhi's head."
"Sister An Yu, what about you?" Tang Yue casually asked, "Grandpa Qin was talking about you last time, don't you have plans for when to get married? Who knows, I might get married before you."
Tang Yue thought seriously about this possibility; it was very likely indeed. She was nineteen this year, and by next summer, she would be twenty. Mo Siyu had been talking about wanting to get married early, so getting married next year was a big possibility.
"I'm not in a hurry," Qin Anyu said with a smile, yet her eyes weren't smiling.