Watching their extreme caution, Lin Yuan couldn’t help but laugh. Were they really that obvious? It was as if she were some flood or ferocious beast.
She didn’t want to go to the Century-old Cake Shop anymore and couldn’t enter anyway. Perhaps the moment she stepped in, she would be entangled by the guards and chased out.
But that couldn’t stop Lin Yuan from learning about their situation. Couldn’t she just listen to the conversations of customers leaving the shop?
Just then, two old women who had shopped together came out. Lin Yuan saw they were headed toward Fuman Building, so she took Xiao Linshuang’s hand and followed them.
"I just bought this Osmanthus Cake, and the young chap even gave me two extra pieces. The Century-old Cake Shop really throws its weight around; can’t believe they’d give away such good stuff for free."
"Isn’t that what you’d expect from an establishment with a century of history? It’s so much better than those new little shops! Hey, have you heard? That new Rice Flower Fragrance on West Street, they say they actually add Five Stones Powder to their mix! How deceitful is that? That boss must have lost his conscience to the dogs!"
"And that’s not the end of it. I’ve heard that the shop assistants there are rude and even yell at people! Humph, the pastries aren’t even tasty to start with, and then they treat customers like that. No wonder their business is lousy! They deserve it!"
Lin Yuan helplessly touched her nose. Her family’s pastries weren’t tasty? The assistants were rude and yelled at people? When had she ever seen that happen?
Ah, so the Century-old Cake Shop would stop at nothing to pull customers their way.
The two women turned the corner at the entrance of the alley. Lin Yuan, feeling she knew enough, didn’t follow any further.
It was then that Xiao Linshuang, who had been quietly listening, huffed discontentedly after the two women turned the corner, "What nonsense, it’s all hearsay. If you’re so sure, why not check out the store yourself? Big sister, don’t be sad. It’s not worth it for such casual gossipers."
"Right, they’re not worth it, big sister, don’t be sad."
Fondly touching her little sister’s hair, Lin Yuan smiled tenderly. However, she knew all too well that hearsay was everyone’s common fault. If she didn’t take action soon, things could escalate into a situation where rumors become accepted as truth, and that would be even harder to control.
When they arrived at Fuman Building, as expected, they saw Lin Yi had already parked the carriage at the entrance and was waiting. His grim face, devoid of any expression, was suffused with dissatisfaction.
After he dropped off Liu Siqi and his spouse, Lin Yi had rushed back to Rice Flower Fragrance to pick up others, fearing something might have happened to them, only to be told by Liuzi that they had already left a while ago. Still, even after he drove out to search, he couldn’t find them.
If he hadn’t seen the two sisters coming from the main street from afar, he might have already reported to Xia Zheng to start a citywide search.
"Hey, Uncle Black Face, sorry to have kept you waiting so long," Xiao Linshuang knew by Lin Yi’s expression that he was being prickly again and greeted him cheerfully. That black face of his, she recalled, usually only appeared when he failed to beat her in snatching tasty treats. Why the gloom today? She hadn’t stolen any delicacies from him.
Lin Yi, long used to Xiao Linshuang’s nickname "Uncle Black Face," rolled his eyes inwardly, "The young master and the others are upstairs. Miss, please hurry up."
"Is Master also there?"
Seeing Lin Yi nod, Xiao Linshuang exclaimed joyfully and scampered upstairs.
Lin Yuan was speechless; that little girl was now closer to Lao Fan than to her own sister.
When Lin Yuan arrived on the second floor, Lao Fan was already taking Jeng Ruyue’s pulse, with the leisurely Xia Zheng and an anxious Liu Siqi sitting by her side.