Chapter 25 [VIP]
Chapter summary: "I thought you didn't like sweet drinks."
The evening market on weekends is the busiest time for rice noodle shops.
Xu Tianzhou's rice noodle shop is doing extremely well, not because, as some people say, the food is delicious and has the taste of home, nor because of good service or cleanliness, but because it is cheap enough.
Especially in a place like Huijing Center, it is all the more precious compared to restaurants that cost hundreds of dollars per person.
This rice noodle shop will never disappoint anyone who stops here.
At mealtimes, the rice noodle shop is packed with customers, and there are also many customers queuing outside. At the same time, a steady stream of takeout orders are pouring in like a tidal wave.
With so many people, it becomes difficult to manage. Customers and delivery drivers are urging the front of house, and the front of house is urging the kitchen. Everyone is on edge.
If you don't make any mistakes in a few hours, that's fine. But if you accidentally make the wrong dish or serve it to the wrong table, it's like adding a spark to a pile of firewood, and a raging fire can start immediately.
Xu Tianzhou is nominally the store manager, but in reality, he's more like a firefighter, serving food, packing leftovers, and defusing conflicts. While others only need to manage what's in front of them, he can't; he has to keep a close eye on everything and be careful at all times.
Xu Tianzhou was so busy that he didn't even have time to rest when Ni Zhenzhen called him for the first time.
A moment later, the second call came in. Xu Tianzhou was packing takeout, his head tilted to the side, holding the phone between his shoulder and his hands without stopping.
Xu Tianzhou put the lid on the takeout, wrapped it with plastic wrap, and then put in the cutlery. The whole set of actions was done in one go, as smooth as flowing water.
Ni Zhenzhen asked, "Rong Xiaodan is treating everyone to dinner, do you want to come along?"
Xu Tianzhou initially wanted to refuse, but when Ni Zhenzhen explained why Rong Xiaodan was treating him, he changed his mind.
Xu Tianzhou skillfully tied a knot in the plastic bag, put the takeout away, and said in a deep voice, "Send me the address."
"good."
Xu Tianzhou quickly received the address. He gave the clerk a few instructions, grabbed his coat, and left the rice noodle shop.
About half an hour later, Xu Tianzhou arrived at the location. He was lucky enough to park his car right in front of the elevator lobby.
Xu Tianzhou took the elevator upstairs and quickly found the Thai restaurant that Ni Zhenzhen had mentioned. He walked a few steps inside, turned a corner, and saw Ni Zhenzhen.
That was the most eye-catching spot in the entire restaurant. Ni Zhenzhen, wearing a loose white sweater, sat in a birdcage painted with gold paint.
She hadn't had time to let her hair down yet; it was still styled the way it was when she went to work at the counter. Her jet-black hair was tied into a bun, which accentuated her elegant and slender neck.
At this moment, Ni Zhenzhen was listening to what the man opposite her was saying. She was resting her chin on her hand, looking focused, but what was more eye-catching was not her profile, but a section of her wrist that was exposed from her sleeve.
Ni Zhenzhen's slender wrists were so white they seemed to glow. Xu Tianzhou sighed inwardly, lamenting that it was a pity there was no matching chain.
He was sketching out the image of the chain in his mind when Rong Xiaodan saw him.
Xu Tianzhou didn't know how Rong Xiaodan, who had only met him once, could recognize him at a glance. She excitedly shouted, "Handsome guy! Over here!"
Ni Zhenzhen lowered her hand, turned her head, and her eyes seemed to hold brimming autumn water. She hadn't said anything, yet it seemed like she had said everything.
Xu Tianzhou nodded to her and walked over quickly.
Rong Xiaodan's boyfriend was also there. Xu Tianzhou apologized to the two of them, "Sorry I'm late."
Rong Xiaodan said with a smile, "It's okay, it's great that you came."
Xu Tianzhou put his coat aside, and as he sat down, he unbuttoned his suit jacket and said to Rong Xiaodan, "I heard from Zhenzhen that you've changed jobs. Congratulations."
"What's the big deal?" Before Rong Xiaodan could speak, her boyfriend Deng Maolin said arrogantly, "To be honest, I don't want her to go at all. Being a teller is so much easier. It's just depositing and withdrawing money. Someone as clueless as her would just lose money as a teller. If she goes to the loan department, she might even go to jail. Don't you think so?"
Deng Maolin was asking Rong Xiaodan a question, but Rong Xiaodan did not respond.
She looked a little awkward, as if she hadn't heard, and casually picked up the menu, saying, "Let's order first."
Ni Zhenzhen also said, "Yes, let's order first."
The four of them ordered five dishes, one of which, steamed sea bass with lime, was highly recommended by Rong Xiaodan. She said it was sweet, sour, and a little spicy, and very delicious.
After ordering the food, Rong Xiaodan asked them what they wanted to drink. "There's a milk tea shop upstairs. Just place an order on your phone and we'll pick it up in a bit."
Ni Zhenzhen wanted to drink so many things. Her favorite was brown sugar boba, but mango cheese was also delicious.
Just as Ni Zhenzhen was hesitating, Xu Tianzhou's voice came, "I want brown sugar boba."
Perhaps it was because such a serious person didn't quite match the somewhat playful nickname "Brown Sugar Boba," especially when paired with his earnest tone, which was quite comical. Rong Xiaodan couldn't help but chuckle. "Where's Zhenzhen?"
Ni Zhenzhen's decision-making phobia was cured without medication, "Zhizhi Mango".
When Rong Xiaodan asked her boyfriend what he wanted to drink, Ni Zhenzhen nudged Xu Tianzhou's elbow and whispered, "I thought you didn't like sweet things." He had complained that the brown sugar boba was too sweet last time.
Xu Tianzhou said, "We need to change things up every now and then."
He maintained his serious tone, but this time it was Ni Zhenzhen who burst out laughing.
After chatting for a while, Rong Xiaodan's phone rang. She immediately jumped up and said, "I'll go get it."
Ni Zhenzhen said, "I'll go with you."
After the two left, Deng Maolin started a conversation with Xu Tianzhou, "Xiaodan told me you work at Huijing Center? Specifically, where..."
"A rice noodle shop on the basement floor."
“Oh…” Deng Maolin knew perfectly well, but he still asked. After hearing the answer, his eyes suddenly filled with sympathy. “That must be very hard.”
Xu Tianzhou did not deny it: "Isn't the catering industry called a 'hard-working industry'? It is indeed very hard work, but you get used to it."
Deng Maolin straightened his back instantly. "I have to thank my dad for this. I didn't like studying in high school. I was either skipping classes or sleeping. By my senior year, my grades were still terrible. It wasn't until my dad gave me a good beating that I finally woke up. For the next few months, I only slept three or four hours a day. I had given up hope, but I didn't expect to actually achieve some results in the end. Throughout high school, I only scored 30 or 40 points in math, but I performed exceptionally well in the college entrance exam and scored 120."
"Really?" Xu Tianzhou said. "That's impressive."
"Right?" Deng Maolin said with no small amount of pride. It's no exaggeration to say that his college entrance exam in mathematics was one of the most shining moments in his limited life.
He then asked Xu Tianzhou, "And you? How did you do on the exam?"
Xu Tianzhou paused, lowered his eyes, and said with some regret, "I didn't take the college entrance examination."
"I see..." This was similar to what Deng Maolin had thought, except that he assumed Xu Tianzhou had failed the college entrance exam, but he hadn't realized that Xu Tianzhou hadn't even taken the exam at all.
How bad could that be?
Deng Maolin deliberately put on a carefree demeanor and comforted her, saying, "It's okay, the college entrance examination is not the only way out."
Xu Tianzhou smiled and said in a calm tone, "Looking back now, I still feel a little regretful."
That's the truth.
From childhood to adulthood, Xu Tianzhou has always regarded the college entrance examination as his learning goal. Even his teachers said that among this year's students, they were counting on him to bring good results to the school.
But then everything changed. His parents sent him to an international school where the curriculum and assessment methods were completely different. Xu Tianzhou was completely clueless and had to start all over again.
Compared to the invisible pressure of studying, the visible stares and ridicule were even more unbearable for him.
Xu Tianzhou couldn't take it anymore after a few days. He mustered up his courage and told his parents his thoughts, "I want to go back."
His parents were furious. They scolded Xu Tianzhou for being useless, saying, "We went through so much trouble to bring you here, and you actually want to go back? How can you face us?"
Xu Tianzhou pleaded desperately, but his parents ignored him.
The mother wept bitterly: "I just borrowed three thousand yuan for the school uniform fee, and now it's all gone..."
The father said even more fiercely, "You have no way out now. Your old school won't accept you anymore! You either stay here or go out and find work right now. The choice is yours!"
Xu Tianzhou had no choice but to grit his teeth and persevere.
But compared to the familiar college entrance examination, he had no idea if this path would be viable. Fortunately, Ni Zhenzhen stayed by his side and taught him how to prepare for the SAT and how to prepare application materials.
In exchange, he would teach Ni Zhenzhen how to do math problems, just like Deng Maolin does now.
When Rong Xiaodan returned, she saw Deng Maolin talking animatedly, spitting as he spoke. As she served drinks, she asked curiously, "What are you talking about?"
"Let's talk about math," Deng Maolin said arrogantly.
Deng Maolin hadn't felt this carefree in a long time. At home, he had to listen to his parents nagging, and at the company, he had to listen to his boss scolding him. But no one listened to his lofty pronouncements.
Today, he finally had the chance. For as long as Rong Xiaodan and Ni Zhenzhen were out, he talked to Xu Tianzhou about how to learn math.
"Mathematics?" Ni Zhenzhen's expression seemed to change upon hearing this.
She glanced at Xu Tianzhou, who smiled and nodded, seemingly unaware that he had any problem.
Ni Zhenzhen's expression grew even more unpleasant. She immediately apologized to Deng Maolin, "I'm sorry, that's just how he is. Once he starts talking about his major, he just keeps talking and doesn't care whether others want to listen or not."
"..."
Deng Maolin was stunned. For a moment, he even doubted whether he had misheard.
The restaurant wasn't very warm, and Deng Maolin started sweating. Thinking about how he had shown off in front of Xu Tianzhou earlier, he felt incredibly ashamed. His face flushed red and then turned pale – it was quite a sight.
Deng Maolin feigned composure and asked, "Are you a math major?"
"right."
A math major, but didn't take the college entrance exam—combining these two conditions, Deng Maolin's voice trembled slightly, "Admitted through direct admission?"
Xu Tianzhou shook his head. "No, it's a school abroad."
"Oh..." Deng Maolin nodded thoughtfully. It's true that some students with poor grades choose to study abroad at some obscure, unknown school. Thinking of this, Deng Maolin finally felt a little comforted.
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