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Chapter 104 Procurement
"You're just saying it so openly, like you're taking a commission?"

Ai Liang looked at Ye Qing packing the items one by one and asked with a strange expression.

Judging from Ye Qing's eloquence just now, this shouldn't be her first time selling products. A seasoned salesperson wouldn't be so blunt about getting commissions.

"Although I haven't known you for very long, I can tell you're not the stingy type. Besides, you were going to buy these things anyway, weren't you?"

Ye Qing stacked everything together and tied it with a strap: "I'm not just randomly pushing a bunch of things you don't need. The things I'm recommending are all very practical, and I use them myself."

"You're surprisingly honest."

Ye Qing made no attempt to hide the fact that she was taking a commission, which allowed Ai Liang to witness her straightforwardness once again.

"Then could you please keep these things safe for me? I need to buy other seasonings."

Ai Liang picked up the notebook, waved it at Ye Qing, and then walked outside.

"Wait a minute, didn't we agree that I would take you shopping? Why are you running so fast?"

After finishing packing, Ye Qing grabbed Ai Liang's shoulder.

"You still have work to do, is it really okay for you to just wander around with me like this?"

Ai Liang politely declined.

After sensing Ye Qing's wariness, he decided to distance himself from her to avoid misunderstandings.

Given Ye Qing's shrewdness, she should be able to quickly see that this series of coincidences is really just a coincidence.

"Oh my, have you ever seen anyone go to the supermarket early in the morning to buy bed sheets or anything like that... except you."

Ye Qing was halfway through her sentence when she saw Ai Liang about to point at her, so she quickly added a sentence to exclude him.

"Everyone says I know this area well. I'll take you there. It's better than you wandering around like a headless fly by yourself."

With an air of undeniable authority, Ye Qing pulled Ai Liang to the condiment shelf.

"But with so many seasonings, do you even know how to cook? You seem to be becoming more and more like a girl," Ye Qing said from the side.

Ai Liang, on the other hand, was picking and choosing among the bottles on the shelf.

"You're introverted, you do laundry, and you even buy seasonings and cook for yourself. You're not a woman disguised as a man, are you?"

Ye Qing stared at Ai Liang's chest with a suspicious look, as if she was about to attack his chest with both hands to see if he was wearing a chest binder.

"...Please don't ask me questions about the fact that I'm a boy."

Faced with such questioning, Ai Liang's tone became somewhat weak. He knew very well that these were just preludes, and the real problems were yet to come.

"I was just kidding, I just felt you would look really good in women's clothing."

Ye Qing stared at Ai Liang's profile with a grin.

Before Ai Liang's mood could turn sour, she quickly changed the subject: "But speaking of which, do you really need so many seasonings to cook?"

"Isn't it enough to have oil, salt, soy sauce, and MSG? Is it really necessary to buy things like cinnamon and star anise?"

"It's useful when making some dishes, and adding some spices to stir-fries also makes them taste better."

Ai Liang picked up a bottle of oyster sauce and checked the production date.

Medium or large supermarkets typically take inventory every two to three months.

For items with long shelf lives, such as oil, salt, and toilet paper, only the quantity and packaging are checked.

The production dates will only be checked one by one during the major inspection.

Of course, some supermarkets have dedicated staff who check the expiration dates once a week, but Ai Liang is unsure whether this supermarket also has quality inspectors.

He only checked the expiration date of the oyster sauce to be on the safe side.

"Oh? I see. I usually cook with the goal of making a lot of food that will fill you up. I just add oil, salt, soy sauce, and MSG, stir-fry it until it's done, and then take it out of the pan. I rarely pay attention to the taste."

Ye Qing pointed to the light soy sauce and dark soy sauce on the shelf and asked, "What's the difference between these two soy sauces? They're both soy sauce, so why are they divided into two categories?"

"Light soy sauce is salty and doesn't color easily. It's mostly used to dress cold dishes to enhance their flavor and texture, and it's quite refreshing."

Dark soy sauce is made by adding caramel to light soy sauce, resulting in a darker color. It's used to color meat. People who prefer a stronger flavor usually add a little light soy sauce in addition to dark soy sauce.

After checking the oyster sauce, Ai Liang also grabbed a bottle of light soy sauce and a bottle of dark soy sauce and put them in her shopping cart.

"Then why did you take two bottles? One bottle is enough," Ye Qing asked.

"Some dishes require both types of soy sauce."

Ai Liang pushed the cart forward.

"They're so particular! I only care that it's edible, not bad, and filling. I never care about the taste. Just looking at all these seasonings is overwhelming..."

Ye Qing looked at the shelves full of seasonings and couldn't help but admire how amazing the chef was.

"The spices are over here," Ye Qing called out to Ai Liang as she walked to a shelf.

Ye Qing was very curious about these spices that she had never used before.

In the past, when she helped with inventory, she would check the names, confirm the expiration dates, and verify the quantities before putting the items back. She never had time to actually keep track of what was being inventoried.

Moreover, she was never assigned this section during inventory checks.

So Ai Liang would pick up and ask about every single spice she put in her shopping cart.

Until she smelled the spices, she was immediately choked by the pungent aroma.

"Cough cough cough, this thing, cough cough, should we add it to the dish too, cough cough."

Perhaps during packing, the packaging of one bag of spice powder broke, causing some powder to remain on the surface of the other bags as well.

Ye Qing inhaled the powder into her nose, causing her to cough incessantly, and it took her a while to calm down.

The naughty child learned his lesson and never smelled spices indiscriminately again.

After buying these items, Ai Liang also replenished all the daily necessities that were inconvenient to carry yesterday, such as bowls, chopsticks, toilet paper, and garbage bags.

Ye Qing stayed by Ai Liang's side the whole time. Putting aside Ye Qing's work clothes, the two looked like a newlywed couple shopping at the supermarket together.

However, Ai Liang knew very well that she was doing all this to get closer to him and lower his guard so that she could easily get information out of him.

The two arrived at the cashier with large and small bags.

"Please inform the delivery person to deliver these items to Building 8, Garden Road."

Ai Liang said after putting this huge pile of things on the cashier's counter.

The cashier was a little confused: "Huh? Isn't the delivery person right next to you?"

"Next to me..." Ai Liang turned to look at Ye Qing, who revealed a smug smile.

"That's right, I'm in charge of deliveries, aren't you surprised?"

"Ye Qing, do you know this handsome guy? Could he be your boyfriend?"

While the cashier was asking Ye Qing questions, her hands didn't stop moving as she deftly unfastened the towels and other items.

"This...you two have started living together?"

The cashier looked at the bedding on the counter, and a hint of ambiguity gradually crept into her gaze as she looked at Ye Qing.

"I never expected that you, who were still in school, would be the first to find a boyfriend. Tsk tsk tsk, you kept it a secret from us for so long, and only showed up with him after you started living together."

"However, young people should be careful about some things, after all, you have only just come of age."

As an aside, the laws of the Asian Union stipulate that regardless of gender, anyone over the age of sixteen is considered an adult.

Ye Qing remained composed despite the teasing remarks, explaining calmly, "Sister Li, what are you thinking? Wasn't that hooligan arrested recently? This is a new neighbor who just moved in."

"I understand, I understand. Neighbors are just rooms separated by a wall."

After unfastening the packaging bag, the cashier surnamed Li looked at the two of them with a knowing look.

"You two are both so good-looking, your future children will definitely be handsome men and beautiful women, it's a virtuous cycle."

Sister Li's tone was somewhat regretful: "It's a pity that the next generation will have to benefit from it all; I won't be able to make it..."

She seemed to remember something halfway through her sentence: "Perhaps my child can make it?"

(End of this chapter)