Ning Bingyu smiled and readily agreed: "Ningning, you can call me Brother Yu."
He gently pushed up his glasses on the bridge of his nose—
“Anan is my good friend, his sister is also my sister. If I had known that Ningning’s shop was opening today, I would definitely have sent her an opening gift.”
Rong Zhaonan's sister doesn't look like him at all. The only thing they have in common is that she can understand Cantonese.
Ning Yuan smiled generously and said, "Brother Yu, you're too kind!"
If Ning Bingyu really is his elder brother, it's no wonder he was able to surpass the eldest son's children and become the next head of the Ning family.
How could someone who will lead a business empire in the future be a truly gentle person?
But Ning Bingyu can make people like him if he wants to.
But she also possesses the basic skill of speaking to people in a human language and to ghosts in a ghost language!
Ning Yuan smiled with her big, bright eyes: "It's already a gift that you people even came to our store. I'm so honored!"
Ning Bingyu was only being deliberately affectionate towards Rong Zhaonan's 'younger sister' because he valued Rong Zhaonan.
Ning Bingyu looked at the little girl in front of him. Her big, bright eyes were curved and sparkling, which made him feel good.
He smiled gently and approvingly: "Ningning is very good at speaking."
He looks like a young and innocent college student, but his words are mature and sophisticated.
Perhaps it's just my imagination...
He inexplicably caught a whiff of something familiar about himself—the scent of a cunning businessman.
Rong Zhaonan smiled at Ning Yuan: "Ningning, will you show us around your shop?"
Ning Yuan smiled at Chu Hongyu and Yan Yangyang standing behind her and said, "Let's go! Take a look at my shop?"
She wasn't worried that Yan Yangyang and Chu Hongyu would discover the strangeness in her conversation with Rong Zhaonan.
After all—everyone knows that Rong Zhaonan is indeed Ning Yuan's "brother," and everyone likes to call her Ningning!
They didn't lie to Ning Bingyu; he just misunderstood that they were siblings.
“Okay.” Chu Hongyu stepped forward and took Ning Yuan’s arm.
Ning Bingyu glanced at the girl next to Ning Yuan, a hint of amazement flashing in his eyes.
This era in Hong Kong was a time when all sorts of stunning beauties vied for attention.
Alluring and seductive like Chu Hong, beautiful and heroic like Qing Xia, and Zhi Lin who uses her beauty to commit crimes...
His girlfriends are either from wealthy families or stunning movie stars.
But Chu Hongyu's features are sharp chin, upturned fox-like eyes, snow-white skin, and a striking beauty bordering on alluring, with her long, black hair casually tied back.
He had never seen someone dressed in such a simple sweater and corduroy trousers, yet possessing both a glamorous and innocent style.
Chu Hongyu also noticed Ning Bingyu's indifferent gaze.
He smiled slightly, nodded at her, and his eyes showed nothing but appreciation, not a trace of vulgarity.
Chu Hongyu also nodded and smiled generously at the handsome Hong Kong gentleman, who was different from the mainland men.
One of them was used to being surrounded by beautiful women throwing themselves at him, while the other was used to men following his gaze.
After that brief encounter, they didn't pay much attention to each other again.
Everyone's attention was drawn to the shop in front of them—a coffee shop.
This coffee shop doesn't have windows in the walls; instead, it has two large floor-to-ceiling windows that I've never seen before.
You can see what the coffee shop looks like from the outside.
Nowadays, upscale coffee shops and restaurants in mainland China and Hong Kong are trending towards warm color schemes—wooden cabinets, tables, wall tiles, and even red carpets on the floors.
The wallpaper is ornate, the chandeliers are luxurious, all in a European style, or the shutters have a Southeast Asian style.
But Ning Yuan's coffee shop is completely cool-toned; the walls were waterproofed and then simply painted white.
Unlike the warm-toned sofas that are common in coffee shops these days, the stools and tables in this shop are made of simple oak with a clear varnish finish.
Then a thick cotton cushion in its natural cotton-linen color was placed on the armrest beanbag chair.
The curtains are light green, the tablecloth is dark green, and there is a ceramic pot on the windowsill or table with a bunch of fresh wildflowers inside.
It looks simple and natural... yet it inexplicably has the artistic conception of an oil painting.
The only luxurious thing in the entire café was the row of magnolia-shaped lamps.
And there are oil paintings on the four walls—
Vast forests, lakes, and snow-capped mountains; forest leaves are scattered, and the snow-capped mountains are white, so there are large blank spaces on the walls.
Standing in the coffee shop is like standing in a vivid, dreamlike forest, where you can see the mist on the icy lake and smell the fragrance of the earth.
There are wooden bookshelves along the walls and on the table, displaying some classic works in English and Chinese.
Ning Bingyu stared blankly for a moment, a strange thought popping into his mind—
This place doesn't resemble a coffee shop; it's more like an art space for an international art exhibition.
But the rich aroma of coffee wafted out, and he suddenly felt like sitting by the window, drinking coffee and admiring the picturesque forest and snow-capped mountains.
It's like sitting at the foot of a mountain drinking coffee while skiing in Switzerland.
"Who are the two masters who painted this oil painting?" Ning Bingyu asked Ning Yuan with admiration.
The Ning family began to rise to prominence during the Ming and Qing dynasties, and by the time of liberation, they were already a well-known family in Guangdong and Guangxi.
Of course, prominent families never skimp on cultivating their children's appreciation for art—music, chess, calligraphy, painting, tea, wine, and music.
Whether it's to enhance personal taste and interests or for business socializing, it has its necessity.
Ning Bingyu himself has collected many works by famous artists from abroad.
Ning Yuan coughed lightly: "I didn't expect Brother Yu to have such a good eye. These are works by two professors from the oil painting department of the Shanghai Theatre Academy. If you are interested, I can introduce them to you."
Painters rarely collaborate on a single work; each has their own unique style and character.
But Feng Gu was starving at the end of 1979.
Even after receiving their back pay, the group of renowned artists who had been sent back to the countryside were still struggling to make ends meet for their families.
Moreover... at this time, they didn't have many students to mentor.
They made a living by drawing posters promoting the Four Modernizations and eliminating the Four Pests!
Marx above, drawing can't fill your stomach like a bastard!
Ning Yuan asked Tang Grandpa about his acquaintances at the Shanghai Theatre Academy and managed to get in touch with two professors.
She paid 100 yuan per person and provided paint, food, and lodging for free.
In the future, oil painting masters who can easily sell a painting for millions will quickly arrive with their bedding, eating, sleeping, and lodging in the shop.
She even tricked the two big shots into buying one and getting one free—one of them would give her an extra painting, which would appreciate in value decades later.
Ning Bingyu: "..."
Listening to how Ning Yuan 'exploited' the oil painting master, Ning Bingyu thought that the smell he had just caught was indeed right—the smell of a profiteer!
Ning Bingyu looked at the girl, who was more than ten years younger than him, with amusement: "So what's the name of this coffee shop?"
The coffee shop's name was covered by a red cloth, so the name was not visible.
Ning Yuan smiled and said, "My coffee shop is called—Heart of the Epoch."
Ning Bingyu was taken aback. This coffee shop was different from others, especially in this area where the streets were full of dusty state-owned stores.
Even in Shanghai and Hong Kong, he could say that this coffee shop was special, but that was all it was.
However, Ning Yuan's name for the coffee shop sounds like a large shopping mall abroad, and it has a very artistic style.
Such a small coffee shop, yet it has such a high-class atmosphere; it's clear this girl has big ambitions.
Although he didn't think selling coffee would make him rich, he still had to give Rong Zhaonan face.
Ning Bingyu smiled and said, "Great name. How about you treat us to coffee?"
Ning Yuan smiled brightly: "Of course, I'll cover the coffee and tea today."
She pushed open the glass door, and before Ning Bingyu and his group even entered the coffee shop, they smelled a rich aroma of coffee.
Ning Bingyu smelled it and said softly, "Espresso?"
"We also have cappuccino, latte, skinny latte, Americano and restretto... whatever the customer prefers, we grind and pour it over fresh."
A barista with gray hair, dressed in old-fashioned barista attire, stood behind the counter and looked up.
He smiled at Ning Bingyu as he helped three students working part-time grind coffee.
Upon hearing the standard, fluent British English, Ning Bingyu's expression shifted slightly behind his tinted glasses as he looked over.
Ning Yuan smiled at the old barista: "Grandpa Tang, this is a guest from Hong Kong."
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