Food Expo (Part 3)
He Yinxin's brain went blank for a moment, but he quickly recovered and greeted the two foreign men in English.
The two foreign men, one with a full beard and the other bald and with long hair, exchanged a few words and then asked in English, "Where is your manager?"
He Yinxin gave a business-like smile and replied in fluent English, "She's still busy. I can help you contact her if you have any questions."
The foreign man nodded: "We would like to discuss this with your manager, because your products do taste really good."
"We are the buyers of xx supermarket in country x."
Xiaochun landed a big client just like that? Is she really that lucky?
He Yinxin was taken aback. She put down the bread knife, brought over the prepared tea from the side, and handed it to the two men: "Gentlemen, please have some first. Come with me and rest for a while in the seats we have prepared for you."
"I'm going to find our manager and discuss the follow-up with everyone."
The two men smiled and nodded, then followed him to the sofa chairs that had been prepared and sat down.
He Yinxin turned around, took out her phone with one hand, waved to Jiang Yichun with the other, and disappeared into the crowd.
Jiang Yichun frowned as he watched his retreating figure.
Didn't He Yinxin say that he was rejected by University A because of his poor English?
That fluent, almost British accent just now didn't sound like someone who didn't speak English well.
Jiang Yichun stroked his chin and stood in front of the stall.
"Hey little sister, do you know where the person in charge of this stall is?" A strong scent of perfume wafted over.
Jiang Yichun looked up and saw a blonde, blue-eyed foreign woman chewing on a piece of bread.
She immediately forced a smile and replied in fluent English, "Madam, the temporary worker at this stall has gone to call the manager. Please wait a moment."
"Are you working at this booth?" the foreign woman asked.
Jiang Yichun shook his head: "Sorry, no, I'm just a tourist passing by."
Are you here to discuss something with the manager?
The foreign woman smiled and nodded: "I'm looking for Judy. She is indeed the manager here."
Jiang Yichun thought for a moment, then immediately gave a business-like smile and made a "please" gesture: "Please follow me. I see that the previous guests were all waiting here."
The foreign woman then sat down next to that spot.
He Yinxin arrived in front of them just then, bringing Manager An with her.
Manager An's eyes lit up when he saw the foreign woman: "Hey, Anna! Long time no see!"
Upon hearing this familiar English name, Jiang Yichun's lips stiffened, and the image of "the mother of The Matrix" flashed through her mind, her delicate eyebrows swaying before her eyes.
She instinctively slipped back to the stall, stood far away, her eyes darting around as she watched the men in suits discuss business in fluent English.
"Xiaochun, you... brought in two clients in such a short time?" He Yinxin, wearing her employee badge and with her hair disheveled, ran towards her.
Jiang Yichun chuckled, crossed his arms, raised his chin, and nodded.
He Yinxin's eyes lit up, and she took out a large piece of bread from the side and stuffed it into her hand: "Thank you, Xiaochun. Manager An and I were worried that no one would come, but we didn't expect to have customers so quickly."
Jiang Yichun took the bread he offered and snorted, "You're welcome. Anyway, you don't lie to anyone but me."
"What?" He Yixin frowned, his hand gripping the hem of his pants. "What did I lie to you about this time? It was just Sister Xixi, wasn't it?"
"Heh." Jiang Yichun sneered, tore open the bread packaging, and began to chew it in large bites.
Is your English really that bad?
"I don't believe that someone who doesn't speak English well can use such professional spoken English to converse with foreigners at an international exhibition."
"Did you really not get into University A just because of your English?"
He Yinxin froze on the spot, her face turning deathly pale.
The knife he had finally managed to pick up clattered onto the table.
She seemed to pick up the knife and stab it directly into the most painful spot in his chest.
"Xiaochun." He lowered his head, and a few drops of dew had formed on his glasses.
His lips trembled, and an unknown force gripped his throat, making it impossible for him to breathe.
He struggled to get the words out: "Can I tell you the truth?"
When Jiang Yichun met his wet gaze, the sharp words that were about to come out of his mouth slowly disappeared.
She was speechless for a moment.
The truth brought them nothing but pain.
Whether it's Xixi or her current English grades.
He Yinxin took a deep breath: "The professional master's program at University A is not cheap, and the academic master's program... I didn't apply at the time. Because I saw that everyone applied for the professional master's program, I was also misled by the information gap."
"Okay. That's settled then."
He lowered his head, wiped his face with the back of his hand, picked up the knife, and began to slice the bread in his hand: "Xiaochun, do you... do you still want to eat? I... I'll cut it for you."
"I'm not eating anymore, I'm full. Don't cut any more, there aren't that many people to try it." Jiang Yichun grabbed his hand as he frantically cut the bread, her fingertips unconsciously brushing against the calluses on his fingertips.
She lingered a little longer than usual without realizing it.
"Well?"
He Yinxin felt as if he had touched a scalding kettle, but he also gently squeezed her palm before reluctantly letting go.
Jiang Yichun's face suddenly turned as if boiling water: "He Yinxin, you're not only a liar, but also a slut..."
She immediately took back her words when she saw the tears in the corners of his eyes.
I think I even forcibly kissed him?
Does that make me seem a bit more of a rogue?
"Someone who looks like a popular celebrity!" Jiang Yichun finally found the perfect way to put his words after he had been holding back for a long time.
He Yinxin sighed for what seemed like the umpteenth time, then handed her another piece of bread, trying to shut her up.
Jiang Yichun finally realized his mistake and accepted the bread, no longer putting on a stubborn act.
"That liar, I..."
"Hey, Xiao He, how's the tasting over here?" Manager An seemed to have already finalized the project and walked over to the two of them.
He Yinxin immediately stood up straight, but her voice faltered: "Hello, Manager An! Everything is running smoothly on our end, please rest assured!"
Manager An frowned: "Xiao He, what's wrong with you? I don't work on rocket launches."
"And what were you doing just now, acting so guilty?"
Her gaze shifted to Jiang Yichun.
Jiang Yichun forced a smile and nodded to her.
"Xiao He, is this girl also one of our customers?" Manager An's lips curled up slightly.
Before He Yinxin could speak, Jiang Yichun immediately denied it: "No, I... I'm his enemy. I came here specifically to cause trouble."
"Sister An, don't listen to her..."
“Hey, the little girl hasn’t left yet?” Anna, who was next to Manager An, popped up and turned to Manager An to add, “Judy, this is the staff member who brought me to your stall. Wait, she doesn’t seem to have a name tag on her.”
Manager An's gaze swept across the faces of the group, and he smiled, "Yes, I understand."
"Little sister, thank you."
Her voice carried a familiar accent.
Jiang Yichun waved her hand first, but her hand froze in mid-air.
"Hey, manager, you're not from Ijiang, are you?"
Manager An looked up: "Yes. Little sister, you're not one of them, are you?"
"Yes, I'm from Qinglin County."
"Wow, me too! What a coincidence!" Manager An laughed. "I didn't expect the first exhibition to go so smoothly, and I even ran into a fellow townsman."
Jiang Yichun looked up and carefully examined the woman in front of him. There were some wrinkles around her eyes, but her eyes were still bright and sparkling.
Despite its weathered appearance, it remains resilient.
"Little sisters, my daughter is about the same age as you. You really treat me like your own child." Manager An chuckled, and just as she was about to say something, someone patted her on the shoulder.
"Manager An, two guests over there are looking for you." Another staff member jogged over and whispered a few words to her.
Manager An waved his hand at the group, saying, "I have other things to take care of. You can continue your conversation."
She patted He Yinxin on the back: "Hey, keep up the good work. I'll give you a commission later. Those two clients did bring a big order."
After speaking, Manager An turned and left.
But Anna hadn't left yet.
"Couple?" Anna smiled, pointing at the two of them, and uttered a Chinese word.
The two stood there, hurriedly waving their hands at Anna: "No, no! We're just alumni!"
Anna switched back to English: "Oh, I see. I don't speak much Chinese. I just overheard you talking here and thought you were a couple."
"Okay, just kidding. I'm an old friend of Judy's, and I just came to see what her booth was like."
"Judy is still working as hard as ever."
The two young men finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Jiang Yichun's mind was filled with Manager An's resolute eyes. A curious thought popped into her head, and she asked Anna in English, "By the way, Ms. Anna, I'd like to know more about Sister Judy. I think... she seems like a strong person."
Anna's eyes lit up: "Oh, honey, you've come to the right person. Judy is indeed an outstanding woman."
“She told me about her story before. Her family wanted a son, and she was supposed to marry her neighbor’s son when she turned eighteen, but she ran away in the end.”
"Later she told me that although she didn't finish high school, she managed to learn English on her own and rose from an ordinary female worker to a manager."
"This was also her first time organizing an exhibition, and she did a great job."
"I have always admired Judy."
Jiang Yichun listened blankly as the woman in front of her spoke a lot of English. She felt as if she were in the CET-6 listening test room, but she could still piece together Manager An's life story from a few words.
He escaped from a small town, worked hard in a big city, and eventually built his own career.
Cut ties with the unbearable and backward past, and embrace a true and free self.
Are we not concerned with anyone else's opinions, but simply striving for our own happiness?
Jiang Yichun stared blankly at Manager An's retreating figure, then shifted her gaze to He Yinxin in front of her.
The number of people at the booth had increased without anyone noticing, and He Yinxin was running around, completely ignoring the girl who was staring at him expectantly.
You're a liar, aren't you?
They are also foolishly striving for their own happy life and freedom.
But what is happiness for me?
Is proving myself to those awful relatives really my way to happiness?
Will I truly be happy if I get into University A?
Whether it was the Russian beer or Manager An's matter that touched the softest part of her heart, Jiang Yichun's mind became dizzy again.
The word "happiness" magnified infinitely before her eyes, and finally returned to the young man not far away.
He was still wearing his employee badge and talking to another foreigner.
Jiang Yichun pursed his lips, intending to walk around the display case to see for himself what that swindler was really doing.
Her skirt was gently tugged.
"Xiaochun, I've caught you!" Yang Fei's voice rang in her ear, "What are you doing standing there like an idiot for so long?"
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