Chapter 16 [VIP]

Chapter Summary: More Than Enough to Support a Wife

In her subsequent recounting, Yao Ye realized she still had room for excuses. For example, she could have said this:

"Because I'm a VIP customer of Kazamado, ordering a special edition with added alcohol is no problem at all."

In fact, she had wanted to answer her sister in the same way, but when faced with her sister's suspicious gaze, she was so nervous that she couldn't catch her breath. She stammered for a long time, unable to speak clearly, and her face turned bright red.

The elevator doors opened, and Yao Qin silently pressed the button to return to the fifth floor. Yao Ye wanted to say something more, but meeting Yao Qin's meaningful gaze, she understood.

Sigh, no matter how she tries to argue, my sister won't believe her now!

"Take your bag, I'll drive you back to school first," Yao Qin said. "Don't worry, I thought about it carefully and made sure that after I went to the front desk to find you and took the wrong cup, I didn't drink it again."

"...No need, you go on your date, don't keep your brother-in-law waiting. I'll stay here and lock the door!" Yao Ye said with an embarrassed smile.

"Just leave the closing to Liu Yue." Yao Qin glanced at her sideways. "What, did you make plans with him after get off work?"

"No!" Yao Ye sighed, her expression completely unconvincing. "Alright, alright, it's best if my sister takes me."

After saying that, she hung her bag and head down, and while her sister wasn't looking, she secretly sent Li Fengjian a WeChat message: "My sister caught me. She said she's going to drive me back to school, and she might interrogate me the whole way. Don't wait for me or send me any more WeChat messages."

It took her quite a while, until she was sitting anxiously in the passenger seat of Yao Qin's car, to receive Li Fengjian's reply.

Her phone vibrated. At first, she didn't dare to look, but after stealing a glance at her sister who was bending down to fasten her seatbelt, she quickly tapped the screen to check.

"Okay, see you later."

Just those few words? Was he too lazy to write a few more words of encouragement or comfort? Yao Ye pouted angrily, and then Yao Qin beside her asked quietly,

"The WeChat message he sent you?"

Yao Ye subconsciously hummed in response, then pursed her lips and remained silent.

Now that things had come to this, Yao Qin had a general idea of ​​what was going on. Considering that Boss Li had been frequently appearing at Tulip recently, and then considering Xiao Dong's words, "Our boss...", Yao Qin felt both amused and exasperated; the answer was right there all along.

"Speak..." Yao Qin drove the car onto the road, "How long has it been?"

"What do you mean, how long?" Yao Ye wasn't pretending to be stupid; she just couldn't explain herself when her relationship with Li Fengjian had changed.

"Then let me ask you another question: Do you know him?"

"...I guess I understand."

"Then can you introduce yourself to me?"

"As you can see, he runs a milk tea shop on the basement floor of Belle Department Store, and business is booming." She emphasized the last two words, intentionally or unintentionally.

Yao Qin couldn't help but smile wryly. "I saw all of that. What about the others? Age? Education? Health? Family background? Hobbies? And so on?"

"Age... seems to be under thirty? Education... probably a college graduate? Health should be fine, he looks very healthy, he doesn't even stay up late much! Family background... normal? Interests... um... researching new milk tea products?" She counted on her fingers, becoming more and more guilty as she spoke.

"So, you don't really know each other that well, right?" Yao Qin concluded bluntly. "Does 'not yet thirty' mean you're twenty-eight or twenty-nine? Isn't that a bit too old for you?" She paused. "Imagine if your parents suddenly arranged a blind date for you and told you the man was eight or nine years older than you, would you accept it readily?"

The older sister's barrage of questions nearly left Yao Ye speechless. Yao Ye imagined that if she really had such a blind date, she would definitely complain, "Isn't he too old?" But in reality, she stubbornly pursed her lips and said...

“But he looks quite young, not much older than me.”

Yao Qin sighed as she listened. Yao Ye immediately became anxious, "Sister, why are you sighing!"

Yao Qin gave her a wry smile and a sidelong glance. "Why did I sigh? I was just feeling sorry for your protectiveness of your own in your words. Alright, alright, since you don't think age is a problem, I don't want to interfere too much. But in any case, I hope to see him show sincerity in dating you."

"Sincerity?" Yao Ye was stunned.

"Yeah, after all, you're not having a campus romance with a guy your own age. He's almost thirty, so he should at least have some sincerity."

"For example?" Yao Ye covered her face with her hands. "Sis, I'm still in college. You wouldn't be thinking of letting him come home to meet Mom and Dad, would you?"

"At the very least, you shouldn't be doing it secretly!"

Upon hearing this, Yao Ye finally understood: her sister's wariness and dissatisfaction with Li Fengjian didn't stem from their age difference, but from their concealment. Li Fengjian was clearly the one who hadn't wanted to go public from the beginning, and hadn't even officially confirmed their relationship until now.

"Sister, I..." Yao Ye hesitated, wanting to say a few words in defense of Li Fengjian, "Actually..."

But Yao Qin turned a corner and said, "We're here. Let's park at the usual spot at the school gate."

There is only one parking spot at the school gate closest to the girls' dormitory area, and Yao Qin always parks there when she drives her younger sister.

Interrupted, Yao Ye immediately lost her courage, slumped her shoulders, and prepared to get off the bus. Yao Qin added, "In short, he has to show sincerity. What kind of behavior is this, sneaking around like this..."

But Yao Ye paid no heed. She stared incredulously ahead of the car as a man strode towards them. Under the streetlights, he appeared exceptionally tall and imposing; was it because he too seemed nervous that his back was so ramrod straight?

In short, by the time he silently walked to the car, Yao Ye was already single-minded, gracefully opening the door and getting out. He then took her hand.

"Why are you here?" Yao Ye looked up and asked him.

“I already told you, see you later.” Li Fengjian looked down at her and lowered his voice, “You were taken away by my sister, how could I let you be questioned alone? The nearest parking spot to the girls’ dormitory area is here, so I took a taxi and came here. Luckily, I got here before you.”

Yao Qin also got out of the car, her face still bearing the imposing air of an elder, and she stood by the car door with a cold smile.

Li Fengjian quickly straightened his expression and looked directly into Yao Qin's eyes, "Good evening, Boss Yao."

“We’re not exactly colleagues in the business world right now,” Yao Qin said casually.

“That’s true,” Li Fengjian nodded. “Then let me reintroduce myself. My name is Li Fengjian, I’m the owner of Fengjian Hall, I’m twenty-nine years old, in good health, have no bad habits, my parents are alive and well, and my family is reasonably well-off—more than enough to support a wife…” As he spoke, he felt his palm being pinched hard—Yao Ye’s silent protest: ‘What nonsense are you talking about? Who’s your wife?!’

Li Fengjian winced in pain, but couldn't help but smile. "Okay, although I've said a lot, in the end, I'm just..." he sighed, "just a prospective boyfriend who's pursuing your sister and hasn't yet been officially recognized."

Yao Qin was taken aback and almost laughed at his words.

Li Fengjian felt his palms being pinched even harder, but he continued, "Ah, of course, I'm still working hard. Sincerity can move mountains, right? I believe I'll be a full-time employee soon. When that happens, I'll definitely treat all the Tulip employees to milk tea."

At this point, Yao Qin finally couldn't hold back and burst into laughter.

………………

At this point, Yao Qin's previously icy expression softened slightly.

She glanced at her watch. "I have to go. Lu Yufeng is already at the restaurant."

"Bye-bye, sister, have a great date!" Yao Ye said hurriedly.

Before getting into the car, Yao Qin glanced at the two of them again, her gaze finally settling on Li Fengjian's face. "Aren't you leaving? Do you need me to give you a ride?"

"No need." Li Fengjian said frankly, clearly showing that he didn't intend to leave, still holding Yao Ye's hand tightly. "I closed early because I wanted to take Yao Ye back to her dormitory."

Yao Qin nodded, then waved her hand and said, "Don't stay out too late," before getting back into her car.

…………

It's only a five-minute walk from the school gate to the girls' dormitory area. But Li Fengjian, holding Yao Ye's hand, walked extremely slowly, so slowly that Yao Ye protested, blushing.

"Hey, if we keep moving at this snail's pace, the students and teachers around us will start to suspect that you're secretly holding a knife to my back."

Li Fengjian smiled, but his pace didn't quicken much.

Yao Ye felt her hand being tightly held, and she tried to pull it out several times but failed. She protested again, "Hey, hey, how could you talk nonsense in front of my sister?"

"What nonsense did I talk about?" he asked.

She glared at him, "...Hmph, what do you mean by supporting a wife? Who said I'm your wife?"

"Yeah, I was just stating that I have enough money to support my wife, I didn't say who my wife is."

"You...you...you!" Yao Ye was stunned, then tried to pull her hand away forcefully. "Then why are you holding my hand? Go hold your wife's hand!"

But Li Fengjian wouldn't let it go. She struggled to pull her hand away, but he shamelessly grabbed it again. She shook him off fiercely, baring her teeth and saying, "I told you, why are you grabbing my hand? Go grab your wife's hand!"

"Okay!" Li Fengjian answered readily, then stubbornly grasped her hand, holding it tightly. "Okay!"

……………………

The following evening, Yao Qin went downstairs alone to visit Kazamado.

She stood in front of the cashier and said, "I'd also like to order a special mulled wine milk tea with alcohol in it. Don't worry, I'm not driving today."

Li Fengjian nodded, "Of course."

After receiving her milk tea, Yao Qin took a sip with great interest. "Indeed, it tastes even better with red wine. No wonder Yao Ye likes it." As she drank, she turned to leave, but Li Fengjian couldn't help but call out to her.

"Boss Yao..."

"Hmm?" Yao Qin turned around, biting her straw.

"You...don't have anything else to say?" Li Fengjian asked, assuming Yao Qin was there to interrogate him privately.

But Yao Qin just raised an eyebrow and smiled, "Nothing else. I was just curious about the taste of the special edition today. As for what's going on between you and my sister... well... to be honest, I have a bit of an image to maintain. Yao Ye has relied on me since she was little. Although I really want to expose you completely, I really don't want to be the kind of old-fashioned person who interferes with my sister's love life... Besides, you did show some sincerity yesterday... so, I'll just accept you for now."

Despite Li Fengjian's sincere thanks, Yao Qin could only purse her lips helplessly, then turned and left.

Ah, the image of Yao Ye as a toddler, learning to walk, remains a beautiful flower in her memory. She doesn't know when it happened, but her little sister has quietly grown up, is about to fall in love, and even get married and have children, starting her own family. Yesterday, Yao Qin's mind was filled with these thoughts, causing her to suffer from insomnia for half the night, and in the end, she couldn't help but feel sad for her sister.

However, Yao Ye's reply was, "Sister... don't make it sound like we're facing a life-or-death separation... and after all, isn't it you who got a boyfriend first, wanted to get married, and left this family?"

Wearing the large diamond ring, Yao Qin was speechless. She could only hug her sister's shoulders tightly and whisper, "Fine, you're right. Remember, dating is dating, but remember to be careful! You're still young and in school, so please, please be careful!"

Yao Ye understood, then blushed and protested, "Sister, what nonsense are you talking about! We're far, far away from that point!"

Yao Qin pinched her cheek hard again, thinking to herself: "With how protective you were of your own last night, humph, it was only a matter of time."

………………