The landlord has multiple personalities and wants everyone to pay him.

The afternoon sun streamed warmly through the glass windows of Corner Tea House, making the tables, chairs, and plants inside feel cozy.

Several tables of guests were either chatting quietly or scrolling through their phones, the air filled with the rich aroma of freshly ground coffee beans.

Ye Shu pushed open the shop door, and the wind chimes on the door frame tinkled, as if welcoming Ye Shu back.

Behind the bar, Chen Xing was resting his chin on one hand, twirling a pen around his thumb in the other, his eyes fixed on his phone, which was playing a TV series on the phone stand.

Upon hearing the wind chimes ring, she reflexively stood up, a professional smile appearing on her face.

"Hello, welcome! What would you like to drink...?"

She was halfway through her sentence when she recognized the person who had approached her. Her eyes lit up instantly, and her professional smile became genuine.

"Xiao Ye! You're back?"

Ye Shu had already changed back into his usual hoodie at home. Chen Xing leaned against the bar and looked him up and down before asking:

"How did it go? Did the interview go well?"

Ye Shu scratched his head, gave a helpless yet self-deprecating smile, and shook his head:

"No, it fell through. The person who interviewed me gave me a whole introduction to their job, but I couldn't understand half of it. It was all so confusing... I was completely overwhelmed, and I basically gave up after the second half. If I couldn't even understand it, how could I possibly do it?"

He sighed, looking at Chen Xing with a hint of embarrassment:

"Um... Sister Chen Xing, I..."

Although Chen Xing had said before that he would come back if he didn't get the job, Ye Shu still felt a little guilty about returning in such a dejected manner, as if he had let Chen Xing down.

Before he could even speak, Chen Xing had already pulled his apron from under the bar and tossed it to him.

"If you can't handle the work, then don't go. We don't do jobs we don't understand. Hurry up and change, then you can continue being my lucky charm."

Ye Shu reached out and grabbed the apron. It had a faint smell of laundry detergent on it, which meant that Chen Xing had already washed it.

He was touched and warmed by Chen Xing's attitude. He sighed and put on an apron.

"Oh, right."

Chen Xing suddenly remembered something, leaned against the bar, and looked at Ye Shu:

"you……"

"I didn't see it."

While tying the belt around his waist, Ye Shu answered without turning his head, knowing without a doubt what Chen Xing wanted to ask:

"Their big boss isn't someone I can just meet whenever I want. But the person who interviewed me was apparently their company's vice president, something like Shen, and they said their boss wasn't in the office today."

"The vice president is interviewing you?"

Chen Xing asked, his eyes wide.

Ye Shu walked behind the bar and, as was her habit, began wiping the counter. She then recounted to Chen Xing everything she had seen and heard at Qianxue Group that day, focusing only on events within the group. As for Jiang Yining's affairs, there was no need to mention them.

He described things in great detail, from the large porcelain vase that could be used to plant trees that he saw upon entering, to the somewhat dull attitude of the employees inside, and especially mentioned the name tag that he cared about the most.

Chen Xing listened as if to a storyteller, and when he heard the name tag of the vice president, he finally couldn't hold back any longer:

"Vice President and spouse? What kind of position is that? Could the vice president and their boss be a couple?"

"I don't know, but I guess so."

Seeing Ye Shu's serious analysis, Chen Xing joked:

"What? Jealous? How about I get you one too?"

As he spoke, Chen Xing began counting on his fingers:

"If you want one, I'll order one for you too, I guarantee it'll be even longer than his! Let me think... how about you call yourself... 'Corner Tea House's Top Gold Medal Clerk, Invincible Mascot, Top-Tier Cleaning Specialist, Security Team Captain, Security Team Member, Food Safety Officer, Senior Barista, and Future Store Manager Trainee'! How about that? Long enough, right?"

Ye Shu listened to this title, which sounded like a tongue twister, and gestured to her chest:

"Sister Chen Xing, if I want to remove this name tag, wouldn't it have to go from here all the way to here?"

He drew a line between his two shoulders:

"Wow, I'm wearing a safety bar on my chest to work all the time; it'll be good for self-defense."

The two joked and laughed for a while, and just then, the wind chimes at the door rang again, indicating that the afternoon customer traffic seemed to be increasing.

A woman who regularly comes to the shop for coffee walked in and greeted the two of them:

"Xiao Ye, do you have a boyfriend yet? Auntie will introduce you to a girl!"

"Aunt Wang, I have a girlfriend."

Caught off guard by this direct expression of concern, Ye Shu quickly smiled and waved her hand as another regular customer entered.

"Xiao Ye, where did you go this morning? Give me the usual one."

"Xiao Ye, about that low-drug guy I mentioned last time..."

"Xiao Ye, do you have any dessert recommendations for this year?"

"Xiao Ye..."

Regular customers came in one after another as if they had arranged it, greeting Ye Shu and chatting about everyday matters.

Ye Shu was busy with a smile, her hands moving quickly, and she also had to spare a few words to reply. Although she was very busy, the smile on her lips never faded.

He really loves this atmosphere.

The air was filled with the aroma of coffee, and the sounds of familiar greetings, children's laughter, and the hum of the coffee machine filled the air.

There's none of the pervasive coldness of Qianxue Group here, nor the polite yet distant glances between colleagues.

Here, he doesn't need to wear a suit and tie, nor does he need to carefully consider every word. He is Xiao Ye, the Xiao Ye who can remember that Aunt Wang is going to lose weight and doesn't want to add sugar, that Teacher Li likes a slightly sour taste, and that Sister Zhang, the fake maid, loves to add extra cocoa powder to the cake.

He increasingly felt that his decision not to stay with Qianxue Group couldn't have been more correct.

Putting aside whether the other person wants me or not, I certainly don't have that kind of interest.

Although the salary there was incomparable to what Chen Xingjie was paying, Ye Shu felt a wave of despair when she thought of the white-collar workers with empty eyes in the lobby, the potential backstabbing among colleagues, the unwarranted pressure and accusations from her boss, and the endless meetings and tasks...

That kind of life might be glamorous, but it's definitely not suitable for him.

In contrast, this small, warm place in front of him is where he feels at ease.

The customers chatted about how vegetable prices had gone up again, whose child had gone astray, and whose kitten had given birth to kittens...

Listening to these trivial gossips, smelling the rich aroma in the air, and having a good boss like Chen Xing, who is just like her own sister, beside her...

He seems to have truly fallen in love with this little shop, with the somewhat arduous but fulfilling work, and with the vibrant, everyday life it offers.

"What's so beautiful about it?"

Ye Shu was patted on the lower back, which brought him back to his senses. He found himself holding a cup and grinning foolishly.

Chen Xing moved closer to him, watching her intently; she was so busy she barely had time to breathe.

Since Ye Shu returned, the shop has been flooded with customers like extras.

Ye Shu himself has begun to accept this lucky cat physique; otherwise, how can this be explained?

"No, nothing much, it's just that... it's really nice to be able to work here."

Upon hearing this, Chen Xing stirred his drink in his cup and turned to Ye Shu with a smug smile.

"I also think it's great that you work here."

She paused, then added in a voice only the two of them could hear:

"I make money while you're here."

After saying that, the two looked at each other and smiled.

After laughing, Chen Xing said to Ye Shu very seriously:

"Xiao Ye, seriously, how about... you forget about changing jobs and just stay here and work here. I'll give you a salary. From now on, you'll be my store manager, close this business down, and then I can retire early, relax, and count money at home every day. How about that?"

Ye Shu put the drink in a plastic bag and handed it to the customer, then turned around, picked up another cup, and started making a drink, laughing:

"Manager? Aren't you afraid I'll ruin your business?"

Chen Xing curled his lip, not even raising his head, focusing on the latte art in his hands:

"If you work hard and manage to make this shop fail, that's your skill."

Ye Shu knew that Sister Chen Xing was not joking, so he didn't reply immediately.

The wind chimes at the door rang again, and Ye Shu's smile didn't fade; instead, it became even more genuine.

He took a deep breath, inhaling all the aromas, warmth, trust, and anticipation of the little shop, then turned to the new customer and uttered the words he had said countless times, yet which still made him feel at ease:

"Welcome to Corner Tea House! What would you like to drink today?"