They are still close to me today despite their negative feelings

"Oh, you're so good with words."

The proprietress covered her mouth with her hand shyly and smiled faintly.

"Since you're so good at pleasing an old lady like me, you'd better finish all of this."

"what?!"

My flattery is just an occupational hazard and a conditioned reflex, why torture me like this?!

"Oh my gosh, this is incredible! Boss lady, you've been charmed by Xiao Ning too!" A barista surnamed Zhang, who had also arrived at the store, chimed in from the side.

"Little Zhang, you're different. The first thing you say is never pleasant to hear," the proprietress said with a smile. "There are some goods at the back door that need to be sorted and categorized. Would you like to go and do some preparation first?"

"Huh?! But I'm a weak woman, I insist on going with Xiao Ning!"

"Xiao Ning just got back, and he did all the sorting and organizing after get off work. Are you really going to bother this junior colleague again?"

As I brought the teacup to my lips, I observed the proprietress's expression. Pre-sorting and managing goods was a habit from my previous life in the service industry; after all, back then, they also had to store champagne. But this was truly remarkable; although she didn't say anything usually, the proprietress seemed to know everything that happened in the shop.

...No, I really can't drink this coffee anymore, I'm going to get acid reflux.

"Xiao Ning, are you the king of rolls... Boss lady, Xiao Ning's business skills are beyond compare in the industry, he's way too good!!"

While complaining, she pulled away Ms. Li, the receptionist who was also watching the drama unfold. Although Ms. Zhang was usually cheerful and easygoing, she seemed to be quite perceptive.

At least for now, she very tactfully left this space to me, the landlady, and Qiu Luxi, who was playing with the cat.

"..."

The proprietress sipped her coffee tactfully, while I silently watched Qiu Luxi, who was beaming with joy, my hand holding the coffee cup trembling slightly.

"Sorry, I wasn't able to help."

After a long wait, the proprietress spoke with deep apology.

"It's so embarrassing for someone who's an adult."

"Because you are an adult, you should be more aware of what you can and cannot do. Boss lady, you have done a great job."

I was finally able to put the cup down, and I felt a huge weight lifted off my shoulders.

"but……"

"Moreover, before the official clarification, there was a small ripple online that a winner of the Chopin International Piano Competition had publicly expressed support for Qiu Luxi. Her daughter, a winner of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, also voiced her support for Qiu Luxi as a classmate."

“In that situation, it would be very comforting if you didn’t kick someone when they were down, let alone being willing to go to such lengths to help them.” I sighed. “Boss lady, you’re not a shameful adult. If most adults were like you, I think more children still in the ivory tower would be willing to believe that the world isn’t actually that bad.”

Thinking about it this way, the adults around me weren't actually that bad during this time. Although the school's senior leaders were still acting like idiots, at least Xiao Lai tried his best to fulfill his responsibilities as an adult until the very end.

"Xiao Ning, you're really good at comforting others."

The proprietress smiled wryly.

"You are so good at touching people's hearts and comforting others. It's obvious that you have spent a long time when you had no one to rely on and could only make peace with yourself in silence."

"Wow, I haven't heard such a literary talk in a long time, but this conclusion is actually a logical fallacy, isn't it?" I smiled. "I'm just cunning. From what you've said, you sound like a miserable, unlucky person."

"Oh dear, you're clearly a kind person, yet you always reject the kindness others extend to you. That attitude is quite endearing," the proprietress laughed. "If you don't mind that I'm an old lady, would you like to come over and give me a hug? Although a hug from an old lady like me wouldn't be of much value anyway."

"When it comes to self-torture, you're the real expert, boss lady," I said with a wry smile, brushing it off.

"That's true, but they still really don't want to hug an old lady like me."

"Please let me go. If the age gap is too big, it's easy to explain, but if I hug you, boss lady, the rumors that I'm dating a beautiful older sister might be taken as true."

"Xiao Ning, you're really guarded," the proprietress said with a smile, seemingly in a much better mood.

Sure enough, no matter what they say, no woman is indifferent to her age and appearance.

"By the way, the tone you just used seemed to suggest that you believed Gu Yin's stance was taken at my request?"

"Huh?" This time it was my turn to be confused.

"That's very rare, that's what Koto herself meant."

The proprietress narrowed her eyes.

"Although the child didn't offer any suggestions, he still came to me asking if there was anything I could do to help you."

"Senior, she..."

"Well, although she still doesn't have a reaction of her own, at least she seems to be hiding you in a different place."

"........."

“I don’t know why, but I never thought you would win that bet. Now, I’m actually looking forward to it.” A glimmer of light appeared in the proprietress’s eyes. “Although the child is still expressionless, I feel like he understands what ‘unease’ means.”

"Xiao Ning, you are much more important to us than you realize."

The proprietress stood up gently.

"If you can't finish the coffee, then forget about it. I'm just giving someone a little punishment for secretly going out and drinking coffee made by someone else when they work in my coffee shop."

"?!"

"Oh, didn't I tell you that I also own that coffee shop on Flower Street? It's just that they have a hired manager there, but this is the first shop I opened."

Chu Qingya looked at me with a half-smile.

"When you were drinking that coffee over there, didn't you think it tasted similar? They were trained by me."

! ! ! !

I knew that guy with the gold teeth and thick eyebrows didn't know anything about coffee. To him, what's the difference between coffee and mud? Does this guy even need to write stand-in literature about coffee?!

And could the proprietress actually be very rich?! Come to think of it, she must be a woman with a rich family background and extensive life experience… Damn, wouldn't she be considered one of the three most unapproachable, incredibly wealthy and beautiful widows?!

—It's best to keep these thoughts to yourself; if the landlady heard me, I'd be completely doomed.

"Boss lady, I actually still prefer it here—"

A gentle breeze brushed past me, and a faint scent of jasmine wafted into my nostrils. It was a very delicate fragrance, yet its suddenness made me feel slightly dizzy.

"You don't mind the hug from the older lady, do you?"

I felt myself being embraced in a restrained yet passionate way, only to be quickly released, leaving behind a soft, lingering sensation and a faint aftertaste.

Chu Qingya, standing before me, blushed slightly, her usual ease and nonchalance gone, and winked at me with a smile.

"The employee benefits are too generous; it makes people want to work hard. This doesn't fit my image as someone who slacks off."

I smiled.

"Xiao Ning, well... never mind, it's too late to care anyway."

This woman, who was mostly mature and intellectual but could inadvertently reveal a childlike playfulness, first sighed softly, then turned around somewhat hastily, as if fleeing.

"I'm going back to prepare for opening the shop now. Xiao Ning, you too, it's time to get started!"

Chu Qingya disappeared around the corner of the stairs leading to the second floor.

"...You're such a womanizer, Luo Bei Miao."

"?! You scared me!"

I looked at Qiu Luxi, who had somehow become somewhat wary of me and stood beside me like a cat guarding its food, and sighed helplessly.

"Hmph, you've got something to hide, meow."

"what?"

I don't quite understand this strange resentment.

Qiu Luxi's face was full of displeasure, and then she glanced at the coffee that was still emitting wisps of steam.

"...I didn't say you meow."

[Next chapter preview: "Is he very famous? Do I have to know him?"]

"...Here you go, ma'am."

"Senior, you have absolutely no idea about your influence."

He seemed to have thought of something and instructed his secretary.

Worship is the emotion furthest removed from understanding.

Bonus Chapter: Even now, I still wish you happiness.

"Hey, Lao Jin, have you heard of that Senior Chu from the second year of high school?"

That evening, the sky outside the window was a deep crimson. Many boys and girls who were studying were marveling at the scenery. Even though the bell for evening study had already rung, the classroom was still filled with the restlessness of midsummer and the excited chatter of the boys and girls.

"Who is that?"

Jin Shuheng, who was engrossed in writing chemistry problems, looked up and frowned. He had been doing very well in science at the time and planned to choose science and engineering as his major. At this moment, he was working hard to improve his weaker science subjects to prepare for the class selection in his second year of high school.

"Chu Qingya! Wow, you don't not know her?!"

"Is he/she very famous? Do I have to know him/her?"

The boy in the front row was a lively and energetic one, the kind that probably exists in every class: short, but full of information, always trying to cause trouble in class, making the teachers both annoyed and amused.

"Well, that's not it. It's just that they're too famous."

The boy said with an embarrassed smile.

"A senior in the second year of high school, she probably doesn't have any interaction with us, right?"

Jin Shuheng sounded rather impatient at that time.

"But after all, she's the school's recognized beauty queen, and she's also very good at playing the piano. Many people from other schools even sneaked into our school during the New Year's Day cultural performance just to catch a glimpse of Senior Chu Qingya."

"A pianist, a music student?"

Jin Shuheng's tone carried a hint of disdain. To him, who was aiming for a regular university entrance exam, these students with special talents were often seen as wasting their time.

"Oh, Jin, you're really something." The boy in the front row was speechless. "Never mind, you'll understand once you see the senior—she..."

"The teacher is here!"

Someone reminded them, and the previously noisy classroom instantly fell silent. Through the back window, a balding middle-aged man stood silently watching the students with an unfriendly expression.

He then walked into the classroom.

"I could hear our class arguing from the second floor! In the whole school, the entire first-year high school class, it was just our class, really..."

The uncle opened and closed his mouth, revealing the gold teeth hidden inside.

I absolutely cannot become such a terrible middle-aged man in the future.

As Jin Shuheng was thinking this, his homeroom teacher's words brushed past him like a breeze. Because he had been distracted by the conversation, his pen had lingered on this multiple-choice question for too long, causing the ink to overflow and leave a dark droplet on the paper.

Jin Shuheng frowned, then casually wiped the ink with his finger, leaving a black mark on the paper, like a fleeting shooting star.

……

"Do you want to buy it or not?"

At the entrance of the convenience store in front of the school, the proprietress, wearing slippers, asked Jin Shuheng somewhat impatiently.

"Please, please wait."

Jin Shuheng, his face flushed, frantically searched through all his pockets, sweating profusely.

"Why don't you go look for it over there first, so as not to delay other people from paying their bills?"

Even though there weren't many people, the proprietress glanced at Jin Shuheng coldly and waved her hand.

Just then, the boy behind him let out a sneer, which made Jin Shuheng, who was already a little flustered, feel as if he had fallen into an ice cave.

"Never mind, I won't..."

Are you a first-year high school student?

A clear, melodious voice came from the doorway. Jin Shuheng looked up and saw a young girl who had just entered, looking at him with curious eyes.

How can I describe the feeling I had when I saw the girl? It's like the end of a long rainy season, and on your familiar commute, you unexpectedly see a solitary flower blooming in a garden.

"Ah? Um..."

Jin Shuheng answered subconsciously, completely unaware of the surprise and delight on the face of the boy behind him.

"Oh, I see. You have a monthly exam for first-year high school students soon, right? Did you forget your watch?"

In fact, Jin Shuheng didn't own a watch. He got into this school on a scholarship based on his grades and had always been quite frugal. The plastic timer he used for exams broke, so he planned to bring a new one to school on his way there, only to realize he'd forgotten his wallet.