Forced to fall
That day, Yu Ran woke up and went to Jiang Liu's studio to help deal with the flowers. After all, when people leave, the tea gets cold, and what will happen to all the beautiful girls in this room is also a big problem.
Yu Ran plans to take some of the ones that are easy to care for home and plant them; those with good quality can be sent to Qi Zhen’s flower shop, and those that are eliminated after two rounds can only be thrown away.
Yu Ran picked and chose, and looked up to see two tightly wrapped figures standing outside the door. They were wearing sun-protective jackets, big sunglasses and wide straw hats. They were tall and slender, like a pair of popsicles, which was refreshing.
"Ding-ling-ding-ling." The girls came in and took off their hats to let their hair breathe, without taking off their sunglasses.
Yu Ran stood up to greet the customers. He felt dizzy after squatting for so long. Looking at the large LCD screen with no emotion on the faces of the two customers, he had the illusion that humans were no match for robots.
The next second, a girl exclaimed, indicating that she was an Earthling with emotions: "Oh my God, it really is you, Teacher Ranyuan!"
"Yes, hello, did you recognize me?" Yu Ran was surprised.
"Ahhh, Teacher, we're fans of your books!" After the two of them finished their declarations of affection, they said buying flowers was the real deal. Yu Ran wanted to say that the flowers weren't sold individually, but then he figured they were going to be disposed of anyway, so having another outlet would be a good thing, so he enthusiastically introduced them. After they finished selecting, he helped bandage the flowers. After all, after being by Jiang Liu's side for so long, it would be a shame to lose even this simplest of skills.
Two large bundles cost twenty yuan, and the two girls, assuming they were being discounted because they were fans, refused to pay, insisting on paying the full price. Yu Ran wasn't sure what the ideal price would be, so while he was refusing, the two girls slipped two hundred yuan between a twenty-yuan box and tossed it on the counter before running off...
"Why does Teacher Ranyuan run this flower arrangement studio?" said the girl in the purple sun-protection jumpsuit as she walked out of the door.
"You should ask why the flower arrangement studio run by Teacher Ranyuan is exactly the same as the setting in the book." The girl in the big straw hat had a scorpion braid tied at an angle and was inserting baby's breath into her hair.
"Everyone seems to have tacitly accepted that Ranyuan is the prototype of Song Yiran." As she got closer to the truth, she became more and more excited. "From the looks of it, it seems like Song Yiran has a prototype and a studio. Could it be that... Jingliu also has a prototype?"
"Now that you mention it, I suddenly thought of a candidate. It's very likely, but I'm not sure..."
"Who? You're the one who said a few days ago that you've seen the picture of Teacher Ranyuan a long time ago?"
"Hey, don't make me sound like a stalker. This is a photo of Mr. Ranyuan and my friend's family. My friend sent it to me at first, but I didn't think much of it until I ran into Mr. Ranyuan in the dressing room at that author exchange meeting. Then I remembered that he was the person in the photo and I had seen him before!"
After searching for a long time without success, she sent a voice message: "Zhenzhen, do you still have the photo of your family and the sponsor?"
Qi Zhen sent a message quickly and asked, "What's wrong, Qi Nian?"
Ding Qinian typed, "Nothing, just that the person in the photo looked familiar." "Huaiyou, come and see!"
The photo features a large pot of flowers in the background, with four people in total. "From left to right are Ran Yuan, Qi Zhen, Qi Zhen's mother, and the one on the far right is..." Ding Qinian pointed vaguely.
"The beauty with long hair really looks like Jingliu! But I'm afraid she's a girl?" Lin Huaiyu suppressed his surprise.
"You see, this guy has a flat chest, he's just too pretty. Qi Zhen seemed to say that this is her master." Ding Qinian asked directly, and after getting Qi Zhen's confirmation and confirming that it was a boy, she inquired about the relationship between the two boys on the left and right.
"Well, they didn't tell me that at the time. They just told me to call him Brother Yu Ran. He came with me to give me flowers, and he's a very nice guy." Qi Zhen dropped some insignificant clues. She knew Jiang Liu and Yu Ran were exes, but that didn't mean she was free to discuss other people's private affairs.
"Yu Ran!" Ding Qinian and Lin Huaiyu exclaimed in unison.
Well, now it’s not only a done deal, but also an axe and a flying knife. It’s like Song Yiran’s prototype is stuck on the target and has nowhere to hide!
"Ran Yuan equals Yu Ran equals Song Yiran."
"Oh my god, aren't Yi and Ran homophones of Yu and Ran?" Lin Huaiyou used his expertise as a broadcaster.
"Yu Ran previously accompanied this beauty to deliver flowers, and considering that he appeared in the studio today to entertain guests, he must be working for the beauty's boss, which is consistent with the setting in the book. That beauty must be the prototype of Jing Liu!"
Finally, Qi Zhen got tired of being asked so he added, "My master's name is Jiang Liu."
Jiang Liu and Jing Liu, a pair of twins, completely stripped off their masks.
The two girls have fallen into a frenzied state of "the couple I'm supporting is real."
Jiang Liu, still unaware of his own impending betrayal, waved his finger through the window and asked, "Are you talking about those two girls who just came in to buy flowers?"
Yu Ran nodded, his eyes first lingering on the smooth back of the other person's hand, then looking out along the finger. What on earth had those two customers been going crazy in the hot sun for half an hour?!
"You're quite clever, thinking of a way to sell it cheaper, even though it's a bit off from my original intention."
“Isn’t it good to cash out?”
"Okay, but it's not enough." Jiang Liu stuffed the two hundred yuan back into Yu Ran's hand, thinking about giving him twenty yuan as well.
"Not enough money?" Yu Ran pondered in his heart, feeling that it was not something Jiang Liu would say. No matter how down and out he was, he would never lose his spirit, and no matter what he lacked, he would never lack wealth. How could he say something as "OOC" as not having enough money?
"What's not enough?" he asked carefully, not daring to mention the money issue in case the other party got angry like last time.
Jiang Liu squatted down, wrapping flowers, the ribbon of the bow hanging down from his waist. Yu Ran walked around behind him, pulled the two tails of the bow, looked at his hair, and heard the dejected tone in Jiang Liu's voice, "Not enough customers..."
Yu Ran's mind raced, meaning that as long as there were customers and the customer base was stable, Jiang Liu could continue to use the excuse of "the studio is busy" to perfectly perfunctory his parents and stay?
Unfortunately, the opportunity came too late and there was no chance of implementation.
He said nothing more, merely twisting and twirling the two ribbons together. Jiang Liu suddenly stood up, feeling the strain. His knees and calves were crimson from squatting, and must have been very hot. Yu Ran grabbed his belt and ordered him to sit down.
They had decided that Yu Ran would take the pots away, and as the weather was too hot, they wanted to wait until the evening when it was cooler before sending the remaining flowers to "Zhizhen Huashi".
The two were having lunch upstairs, wind chimes swaying under the eaves. Another guest? Yu Ran put down his chopsticks, and Jiang Liu ran to the French window to look.
Hurrying downstairs, he saw two customers, a man and a woman. Yu Ran guessed they were a couple who came to buy flowers.
Both were languid from the sun, panting upon entering. They weren't in the mood to admire the flowers, more like they were there to escape the heat. It wasn't until the handsome man appeared that their irritability subsided. Some people have a sweet, "juice" look, others a refreshing, "soda" look. Yu Ran has a "cold-brew coffee" look, a combination of mellow melancholy and a soft smile.
"Hello, are you giving me a gift or raising it yourself?"
"Oh, let's just take a look. Which kind of flowers do you have is the most expensive?" The boy looked around symbolically and his eyes fell on Yu Ran's face again.
Yu Ran touched his nose. He knew the expensive species, but he didn't know the specific purchase price or selling price, so he could only recommend a few rare and precious flowers.
The girls were the ones choosing the items the whole time. They were so dazzled that they just crossed their arms and listened to Yu Ran's explanation. As for the boys, their facial features only had one expression - a silly grin.
No matter what Yu Ran said, he would just say "Hmm, oh ~ so that's how it is!" and still pout.
"If you have any further needs, please tell me."
"Come on, have you seen enough?" The girl grabbed the boy's arm and gave a signal.
The boy waved his hand and said generously, "Okay, then I'll take all the ones you recommended. Please help me wrap them beautifully. Can I choose the flowery paper?"
Yu Ran was taken aback. The purchase prices of the items he had just introduced were quite high. Protea, Poseidon, Cymbidium, etc.
"Okay—" Jiang Liu slowly descended the stairs, his gaze drawn to him. He wore a light cherry-colored shirt, tightly cinched at the waist. The double collar and cloud-shoulder design accentuated his broad, upright shoulders. The front hem was short, and the back hem was a swallowtail or butterfly, its irregular shape covering his hips. He wore denim-blue embroidered shorts. His lipstick-like legs flowed into mid-calf socks, and he wore sneakers.
"Such expensive flowers are suitable for flower arrangements. Please tell me your preferred style or occasion."
The man and woman looked at each other, caught off guard by this plot development.
"Oh, that's right!" the boy said, "It's for the birthday of a teacher I respect very much."
"Okay. What are your preferences, style, and timeframe?"
"A festive and pleasing one would be better. Oh no, I think it should be more simple and elegant. He is a very simple person. As for the time... I'll come to pick it up on June 20th. Is that okay?"
June, the 20th! Yu Ran was as stunned as if he hadn't noticed there were other days after June 10th on the calendar. It sounded strange to him. He stole a glance at Jiang Liu, his mind repeating over and over again: "Impossible."
"What kind of flowers did you just ask for? Protea, Strelitzia... Well, this is my business card."
That's not just handing out a business card, it's handing out a burning heart full of eagerness!
It's not handing it to the customer, it's clearly asking God for more time.
"Pay the deposit first." Jiang Liu went to the bar and took out a calculator, typing away rapidly. Every click was like typing out a string of thoughts for Yu Ran:
"Jiang Liu is willing to stay! Even if it's just for a few more days, no one knows what will happen during these few days. What if there are a constant stream of guests like today!"
"Flowers, design fees, labor... this amount. If there is no problem, pay a 20% deposit. If you have any subsequent ideas, please feel free to contact me." Jiang Liuliang used the calculator.
The order was settled! The two men saw off the man and woman, their faces filled with unconcealable joy.
"Great! You're amazing." Yu Ran said excitedly.
"Then..." Jiang Liu's eyes flickered and he dodged at the same time, "By then our contract will have ended, are you still willing to help me?"
"Of course, of course." Yu Ran said sincerely, "When I was in the most difficult time, you gave me the opportunity to work. Now I will help you even if I don't ask for a penny!"
Yu Ran patted his shoulder, startling him. It actually brought out the deepest sadness and vulnerability in Jiang Liu's heart, and tears immediately filled his eyes.
Under the green grass outside the door——
Boy: "I'm going to go, I just wanted to see the prototype of Song Yiran, but it seems that the florist behind is the prototype of Jingliu! No, I have to tell Qi Nian and the others."
"The paper figure I'm eating has a real prototype, and the prototype is so handsome. It's so good that I want to read the original novel." The girl was deeply moved. She picked up the postcard, turned it over, and saw several lines of dense words:
"Japan International Flower Arrangement Exhibition Runner-up"
"Runner-up of the xxth Asian Cup Flower Arrangement Competition"
LFA Association Member
“…”
"We really came here... We originally wanted to see the person, then we wanted to spend money to buy flowers for him, and finally we invited a master of this level! Jiang Liu looks so young but has such rich experience." The girl handed the business card to the boy.
"It's worth the price. Hey, do you think I should share this explosive news with my readers?"
"No, ah, what group? Drag me in! I'm ready to start!"
…
Yu Ran was so busy that he didn't even check his phone all day.
When I have some free time, I just write and edit my articles. Looking at the readership is just a pastime.
It used to be a pastime, but after what happened today, the opportunity has been revealed.
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