After finishing her phone call with Qin Shi, Fu Hong went to find Xing Zhaozhao.
"So these are the two gentlemen Miss Xing arranged to meet here," Fu Hong said with a smile.
Xing Zhaozhao nodded, worried that Fu Hong might not remember, so she specially introduced them to her: "These are Mr. Lu and Mr. Zhou. We also met Mr. Qin here last time. I wonder if Boss Fu still remembers."
“Of course, I remember all the friends that A-Shi brought.” Fu Hong said, looking at Mr. Lu and Zhou Huaixi, “It’s rare that you two are willing to come and support us, so this bill is on me today. Please don’t be shy.”
Seeing that Fu Hong was so straightforward, Mr. Lu felt embarrassed to be so hesitant and nodded with a smile, "Then thank you, Boss Fu."
Fu Hong waved her hand dismissively, then turned to Xing Zhaozhao, returned the spice list to her, and said, "I've already ordered the spices you wanted from them. Once they've prepared them, they'll have someone deliver them here immediately."
Xing Zhaozhao took the list, casually put it away, and asked, "Approximately how long will it take?"
"About half an hour." Fu Hong blurted out the truth unintentionally. Not sure when Qin Shi would arrive, she quickly added, "It might take an hour, I'm not really sure."
Fortunately, the time was not long. Xing Zhaozhao smiled and said, "It's okay. Anyway, I don't have anything important to do today. It's fine to wait a little longer."
"Thank you so much for your help this time, Boss Fu," Xing Zhaozhao said gratefully to Fu Hong.
Fu Hong felt a little embarrassed by her gaze, shook her head, and said, "It's nothing, just a small favor."
Xing Zhaozhao couldn't leave for the time being, and since Mr. Lu and Zhou Huaixi had nothing else to do, they decided to stay and have tea and chat with her.
Xing Zhaozhao was relaxed, but Fu Hong was extremely nervous.
Fearing that the spice shop staff might arrive too early, she specifically instructed one of her employees to stand guard at the intersection. If the spice shop delivery party arrived first, she was to stop them. However, even so, she remained anxious, worried that something might go wrong. On the surface, she appeared calm as she sat there reading a book, but her mind was elsewhere, and she didn't even turn a single page.
Just then, pleasant music suddenly filled the store.
Fu Hong was startled and looked up sharply in the direction from which the music was coming. She saw Xing Zhaozhao taking a cell phone out of her pocket not far away.
Fu Hong's heart leaped into her throat. When did she get a cell phone? Who was looking for her? Would something suddenly come up and call her away?
Fu Hong was extremely anxious, but there was nothing she could do. All she could do was strain her ears to listen to what was happening on the other end.
When Mr. Lu saw Xing Zhaozhao suddenly pull out a cell phone, he looked surprised and asked, "When did you buy this phone?"
"I just bought it not long ago," Xing Zhaozhao said.
"Do you have a bank card to transfer money?" Mr. Lu asked.
Xing Zhaozhao nodded: "That's fine."
Mr. Lu looked annoyed: "If you had said so earlier, I wouldn't have had to go to the bank to withdraw money."
Xing Zhaozhao smiled sheepishly: "I just couldn't remember for a moment."
"Give me your phone number later," Mr. Lu said decisively.
"Okay." Xing Zhaozhao nodded, glanced at the caller ID "the child's father" on the screen, and answered the phone, "Hello? Mingcheng?"
Gao Mingcheng quickly responded with a strange "Eh" from the other end of the phone.
Xing Zhaozhao was taken aback for a moment and asked, "What's wrong, Mingcheng?"
Gao Mingcheng was unaware that Xing Zhaozhao had come here. Bored, he casually made a phone call and, to his surprise, the call went through.
"You've come over here?" Gao Mingcheng asked.
“Mm,” Xing Zhaozhao replied.
Gao Mingcheng frowned, somewhat displeased, and said, "Why didn't you come to me?"
"It's nothing important. I just came to deliver some wild vegetables I picked yesterday to a few friends and to restock Fei Ge's supplies. I'll head back soon. My child is waiting for me at home. Even if I came to see you, I wouldn't be able to stay for long. I don't want to trouble you to run around," Xing Zhaozhao explained.
“I don’t find it hard,” Gao Mingcheng said.
"..." Xing Zhaozhao choked for a moment, then said, "Alright then, come if you want. Anyway, I'm tied up with something and can't go back for a while. Besides, Hongfei is coming over later, so we can meet together."
Gao Mingcheng's voice turned serious: "Hongfei knows you're here too?"
“Hmm,” Xing Zhaozhao said.
"When did he call you?" Gao Mingcheng asked.
Xing Zhaozhao: "..." She dared not speak.
Gao Mingcheng sensed something was wrong when the phone went silent, and narrowed his eyes slightly: "Zhaozhao?"
"He didn't call me." After a moment of silence, Xing Zhaozhao said weakly.
This time, it was Gao Mingcheng's turn to remain silent.
"Did you call him?" Gao Mingcheng asked.
"Hmm," Xing Zhaozhao replied, feeling uneasy.
“As expected, once she has a son, she doesn’t need her husband anymore. Zhaozhao, I’m heartbroken,” Gao Mingcheng said in a somber voice.
"No, that's not true." Xing Zhaozhao quickly reassured him, "I didn't mean to only call him and not you. When I came over, I suddenly received a bank transfer, and the amount was too large, so I called him to ask what was going on."
"How much?" Gao Mingcheng asked.
“A whole eight figures!” Xing Zhaozhao said.
Although Xing Zhaozhao had deliberately lowered her voice, Mr. Lu and Zhou Huaixi, who were sitting opposite her, couldn't help but look over in astonishment after hearing it.
"It's alright, he's rich, there's no need to save money for him," Gao Mingcheng said nonchalantly.
"Whether I save money or not, I can't spend it all anyway, so whatever," Xing Zhaozhao said.
Gao Mingcheng responded with an "Mmm" and asked, "Where are you now? I'll come find you."
“I’m at Xunlan Tea House in Zhaohong Square,” Xing Zhaozhao said.
Gao Mingcheng frowned and asked, "What are you doing at the teahouse?"
“I arranged to meet a friend here, the Mr. Lu I mentioned to you before,” Xing Zhaozhao said.
Mr. Lu hadn't expected that he would have something to do with this, and looked over curiously again.
"You haven't been here long, but you've already made quite a few friends," Gao Mingcheng couldn't help but remark.
"Yes, I've met a lot of good people," Xing Zhaozhao said with a smile.
"There are plenty of bad people in this world, so don't let your guard down," Gao Mingcheng warned worriedly.
"I know, I'm not a child anymore, I know my limits," Xing Zhaozhao said, sounding a little impatient. "After all this talk, are you coming or not? If you keep nagging like this, I'm going back."
"Come on," Gao Mingcheng readily agreed, but then, somewhat apprehensive, he asked, "Is that old Mr. Lu still here?"
"Yes, what's up?" Xing Zhaozhao said, glancing quickly at Mr. Lu, only to find her eyes meeting his.
Xing Zhaozhao didn't think anything of it, but for some reason, Mr. Lu felt inexplicably guilty and quickly looked away.
"Aren't you afraid that my visit will cause some unnecessary misunderstandings among your friends?" Gao Mingcheng asked.
Xing Zhaozhao was stunned for a moment before realizing what he was worried about. She couldn't help but roll her eyes and said, "I don't know what you're worrying about. Do you think you're shameful, Gao Mingcheng? When did you become so fussy? This is not like you at all. You are my pride for life, Gao Mingcheng. Don't make me dislike you now."
Zhou Huaixi, who had been acting as if it were none of his business, suddenly looked up at Xing Zhaozhao when he heard the familiar name "Gao Mingcheng".
Could this "Gao Mingcheng" be the person he knows?
On the other end of the phone, Gao Mingcheng chuckled softly and said, "I know, Zhaozhao, I'll be right there."
Xing Zhaozhao hung up the phone, still shaking her head in disgust: "Ugh, men."
Mr. Lu: "..."
Zhou Huaixi: "..."
Fu Hong, who was eavesdropping nearby, was speechless.
Xing Zhaozhao looked up and met the stunned gazes of Mr. Lu and Zhou Huaixi. She frowned in confusion and asked, "What's wrong?"
"It's nothing." Mr. Lu quickly looked away.
Zhou Huaixi was still looking at Xing Zhaozhao, hesitating whether or not he should ask.
Xing Zhaozhao looked at Zhou Huaixi and asked directly, "What is it?"
"That Gao Mingcheng is..." Zhou Huaixi asked.
“My husband,” Xing Zhaozhao said.
Zhou Huaixi breathed a long sigh of relief, feeling at ease. Thankfully, it wasn't the person he knew.
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