Chapter 3 What's with laughing at someone else's boyfriend...?

Most of the resumes that were sent out went unanswered, so Sheng Yi had to rely on quantity and sent out more than a dozen more in one go.

She had no idea when Fu Xiaodan returned yesterday. When she woke up this morning, Fu Xiaodan had already left again. The only proof that she had come home was the clothes that had been changed out of the washing machine.

Living with such a fickle person, Sheng Yi felt she could increase her intensity even further. As long as money arrived in her account, she could still squeeze some water out of the sponge.

But some money is indeed not so easy to earn.

For example, right now, just because her male companion glanced at the shop assistant a couple of times, the young lady next to her started giving her a cold shoulder. Unfortunately, Sheng Yi was that shop assistant.

When she didn't have a regular job, she would occasionally work part-time at a nearby bookstore café. This morning, the café was mostly empty, with only a few regular students sitting around. She was feeling rather bored when the wind chimes at the door tinkled softly, and a tall girl walked in arm in arm with a young man.

Sheng Yi stood behind the counter, smiled politely at the person who came in, then retreated to her seat and continued to daydream.

She was counting on her fingers how many audition clips she had submitted a few days ago still hadn't received a reply when a sharp scream suddenly rang out in the quiet book cafe.

The girl who had just entered was angrily speaking to her male companion. The guests' eyes swept over, then quickly returned to their books, pretending to focus on what they were doing.

Sheng Yi was hesitating whether to step forward and offer a warning when the girl raised her voice again, "Have you never seen a woman in your eight lifetimes? Why don't you go and live with her?"

Seriously? I can't even find myself dealing with relationship issues while working on the weekend. Couldn't they have chosen a time when it's not my shift? She steeled herself and walked over, pointed to the sign on the wall, and whispered, "Excuse me, could you please keep your voice down a little?"

To everyone's surprise, the girl immediately turned on her and launched into a tirade, "So what if I have a loud voice? And you're shameless enough, what are you doing laughing at someone else's boyfriend?"

What is all this nonsense? Are you talking about when she walked in? Heaven knows, she didn't even get a good look at her boyfriend.

With that shout, Sheng Yi felt everyone's eyes instantly turn to her face, and her cheeks involuntarily began to burn. She forced a smile, maintaining her standard business-like demeanor, "Excuse me, could you please calm down first?"

Her skin was fair, and even a hint of redness would stand out clearly. When the girl heard her say this and saw her alluring, flushed face, her anger instantly flared up to seven-tenths, and the words she uttered became even more offensive.

The man next to her couldn't stand it anymore either. He grabbed the girl's arm and apologized repeatedly, "I'm sorry, she's not in a good mood today. Please don't take it to heart."

Oh no, this guy wants her to confess here. In that instant, Sheng Yi suddenly had a bad feeling.

Sure enough, the girl completely exploded. She flung the man's hand away, stormed up to Sheng Yi, pointed at her nose, and yelled at the man, "Is this what you like? What do I lack compared to them?"

Well, it seems he has a story to tell. It turns out I was just caught in the crossfire, Sheng Yi thought.

The man, who had just been in a good mood, seemed to have been provoked by a single sentence. He gritted his teeth and lowered his voice, "Huang Bei, what's wrong with you now?"

The situation was completely out of control. Sheng Yi was caught in the middle, listening to the girl calling him "shameless" and "vixen" repeatedly, and even felt a numb calm.

Forget it, why bother arguing with a madman?

The once quiet bookstore and cafe had suddenly become a scene of shrewish shouting, and a few onlookers had gathered at the entrance. Sheng Yi sighed silently. Normally, she would have preferred to avoid trouble and seek peace and quiet, but now, there were genuinely interested customers sitting in the store.

She had no choice but to straighten her back and speak to the two people opposite her again: "Excuse me, please don't make loud noises, it will disturb other guests."

Huang Bei's words caught in her throat. The girl's clear eyes reflected her frantic state. Why was she always the one going crazy?

She pulled out her phone and threatened aggressively, "Where's your boss? Let your boss come talk to me. What kind of employee did you hire? Does she spend all her time seducing men? Do I have to teach her the principle of 'customer first'?"

"We apologize for the unpleasant experience. If you have any comments or suggestions, please leave us a message through our official channels." Sheng Yi's voice remained calm and unhurried.

However, since the other party insisted on "reporting to the emperor," she didn't want to continue arguing with her pointlessly. Sheng Yi led them to a rest area and poured two glasses of water, placing them on the table. "Please wait a moment, the manager will be here soon."

There was no panicked pleading as expected. Huang Bei's punch landed on cotton; there wasn't even a sound. She slammed her bag on the table, picked up a glass of water to moisten her throat, and said, "Hurry up, I don't have much time."

"How about we go to another shop?" The tension inside the shop was getting increasingly palpable, and Cao Jun asked in a low voice from the doorway. It wasn't really appropriate to just stand there and watch the show.

"What's there to change? The fighting hasn't started yet, has it?" Seeing that the conflict had temporarily subsided, Yan Shen simply stepped into the shop. Cao Jun went to look at the other ancestor, only to see him also silently following him inside.

Okay, he forgot that this person hates trouble the most.

With a gentle tinkling of the wind chimes, Sheng Yi forced herself to shake off the little incident from before, put on a smile, and continued to serve the next group of guests.

The three people were tall and imposing; they were none other than the onlookers from the front row. She nodded and smiled at them as usual, showing no sign of disappointment.

A colleague quietly approached, his tone tinged with concern: "Are you alright?"

"What could possibly happen?" Sheng Yi smiled. The difference between people is sometimes greater than that between humans and pigs.

Several customers headed straight for the bookshelf against the wall. Her gaze followed them, but before she could take a closer look, the store manager hurriedly lifted the curtain and came in.

The girl, who had just been so arrogant, now seemed to have suffered a great injustice, accusing her of unprofessionalism word by word, "She has to apologize to me."

Sheng Yi strongly suspected that this person might be a screenwriter, as their ability to fabricate stories was more realistic than the scripts she had acted in.

The store manager was well aware of Sheng Yi's character. She looked at Sheng Yi, whose gaze remained unwavering: "You can check the surveillance footage."

Hearing her say that, Huang Bei panicked for a moment, "Why are you checking the surveillance footage? Aren't you ashamed? I find it disgusting."

The man standing nearby couldn't stand it anymore and said, "Could you please say less?" He then said to the store manager, "It's not this young lady's fault; we're the ones causing trouble for the store."

Huang Bei sneered, "You mean I'm being unreasonable?" She took out her phone, tapped a few times, and pushed it in front of the store manager. "She has to apologize to me today, or I might accidentally let something slip."

The store manager looked at the bright logo on the screen and the string of numbers following it, weighed the options for two seconds, and quickly made a decision: "I'm sorry, it was our poor service. As compensation, your entire bill for today will be 30% off."

Huang Bei crossed her arms and remained silent for a long time. After enjoying the apprehensive expression on her face, she lazily clapped her hands and said, "The leader is still the most understanding."

With that, she stretched out her finger, her rhinestone-covered nails almost scratching Sheng Yi's face. She said, enunciating each word clearly, "I want her to apologize in person."

Sheng Yi didn't know what the store manager had seen, but it was clear that Huang Bei had firmly gained the upper hand. A strong premonition in her heart told her what was about to happen.

"Shengyi, apologize to the customer." Sure enough, the store manager gave the order in a deep voice.

The man beside her suddenly looked up and saw the girl with her neck held high and her lips pursed in a stubborn curve.

But so what? If you work here, you have to follow the rules. Huang Bei flicked her finger and blew away non-existent dust from her nails. "Looks pretty resentful."

Perhaps knowing that victory was assured, her fierce but cowardly demeanor faded considerably. Leaning back in her chair, she waited with almost certainty for Sheng Yi to speak.

-

“I remember now, that woman is an internet celebrity.” Cao Jun finally remembered why that arrogant person looked so familiar. He covered his face with a book and added in a low voice, “I heard he has someone backing him.”

Upon hearing this, Yan Shen glanced at Sheng Yi not far away. Amidst the standoff among the group, she stood alone in a row, while the store manager, who had just been standing shoulder to shoulder with her, had clearly joined the line of judgment. From this angle, her figure appeared even smaller and thinner, yet her plain face showed no sign of fear.

His eyes flashed. "It seems this young lady has gotten herself into trouble."

Hearing this, Cao Jun couldn't help but worry, "Won't this young lady be scolded to tears? She looks so frail."

He glanced at Huang Bei, who was watching him intently, and then at Sheng Yi, who remained silent, and murmured, "Having a lot of fans is nothing special."

Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, Cao Jun noticed someone's gaze falling on him. He turned around and saw that Wen Shili had just withdrawn his gaze.

He shrank back guiltily, "Brother, I wasn't talking about you."

Suddenly, a large book was thrown into Cao Jun's arms. He looked up at the cover with a puzzled expression after seeing the handwriting on it. "Hey? Bro, why are you giving me this?"

I've never heard of him being interested in ophthalmology. And for a singer, isn't this a bit of a leap?

The man wearing a baseball cap kept his head down and didn't explain why. "I'll go see an ophthalmologist sometime."

"Me?" Cao Jun pointed to himself, looking puzzled. "But I just had a physical exam at the end of the year, and my eyes are fine."

-

After a brief yet long silence, Sheng Yi finally met everyone's gaze and slowly opened her lips.

Huang Bei smiled and waited, so that she could put on an understanding demeanor at the appropriate moment.

"I don't know what I should apologize for."

A crack suddenly appeared in Huang Bei's confident expression. She wondered if she hadn't heard clearly. "What?"

The store manager's clothes were already soaked with sweat.

Sheng Yi calmly repeated what she had just said.

Huang Bei sneered and was about to get up when the man next to her pressed her shoulder, frowned, glared at Sheng Yi, and then quickly looked away, saying, "Forget it."

After saying that, he bent down and whispered a few words in Huang Bei's ear. Huang Bei's face visibly brightened, and she forgot to pursue Sheng Yi's responsibility. She took the man's arm and said happily, "Okay, darling, let's go."

Sheng Yi didn't know why her attitude had suddenly changed so drastically, or perhaps all the trouble today was just part of a couple's little game. Fortunately, it was finally coming to an end.

Before she could finish exhaling, the store manager strode up to them, his voice earnest, "Please wait a moment, I'll talk to her again. It's our responsibility, and we absolutely cannot shirk it."

After saying that, he pulled Sheng Yi aside and said, "I know you're wronged. Just lower your head and don't make things difficult for the shop."

Who's making things difficult for whom? Are you so afraid of upsetting them? Sheng Yi wanted to say something, but then felt there was no need to say anything more.

The store manager, anxiously watching Huang Bei's movements, tried to reason with her and appeal to her emotions. Sheng Yi's gaze swept across Huang Bei's face and landed not far away. Several young people stood in front of the bookshelves, holding books she had arranged this morning. It's a pity, it's almost time to say goodbye again.

The man who was looking down at the bookshelf was looking up. His facial features were covered by his hat and mask, and only his eyes, which were like deep pools, could be seen, attracting people to explore.

"That's an internet celebrity. If they actually post it, it'll be hard for us to say anything." The shop manager's voice was still buzzing in my ears.

No wonder. In this era where traffic is everything, a KOL's voice can garner countless responses, and even if things eventually calm down, it can leave the brand deeply embroiled in public opinion.

"Consider it compensation; I'll pay you double your wages for today," the store manager continued, trying to reassure her.

"Okay, I'll handle it." Sheng Yi looked away and heard herself agree.