Chapter 55
Luo Chunyan suddenly said to Ji Wanmei, "Meimei, wait here for me for a while, I'm going to the restroom."
Luo Chunyan suddenly felt her stomach bloated and gassy, and she needed to defecate.
Maybe it's because I saw so many delicious dishes at the Sichuan restaurant and ate too quickly and felt too full.
Ji Wanmei nodded: "Okay, you go ahead, we'll wait for you here."
Luo Chunyan turned around and asked where the restroom was, then hurried off there.
Lei Tingjun came out and saw that only Ji Wanmei was standing there, so he asked, "Where is your friend?"
Ji Wanmei said, "She went to the restroom. Let's wait for her for a while."
“Okay.” Lei Tingjun actually wanted to smoke, but with Ji Wanmei there, he held back. He looked around and saw an old wooden bench in the aisle ahead.
He then said to Ji Wanmei, "Let's go sit over there for a while and wait for your friend."
Ji Wanmei nodded and walked over one after the other with Lei Tingjun.
The bench was 1.5 meters long. Ji Wanmei and Lei Tingjun each sat on one side, and the space in the middle was almost enough for two more people to sit.
There's no way around it; in this day and age, the separation between men and women is so strict. If a man and a woman who aren't a couple walk together, people will gossip about them.
Ji Wanmei turned her head and saw Lei Tingjun rubbing his thumb and forefinger, so she looked down, took out a White Rabbit milk candy from her small crossbody bag, and handed it to him.
Lei Tingjun was slightly surprised as he looked at the candy she offered.
Ji Wanmei said, "Do you want to smoke? Have some candy. If you want to smoke in the future, just resist and have some candy. Distract yourself and you won't want to smoke as much."
Ji Wanmei once read a report that said many people are addicted to smoking, but it's not that their bodies are actually dependent on cigarettes; rather, it's a habit to smoke when they're thinking or in a bad mood.
That's just a habit, not a dependency.
Lei Tingjun listened to her words and looked down at the White Rabbit candy wrapped in blue and white wrapper, lying in her soft and delicate palm, which instantly made his mood peaceful and gentle.
He reached out and took the candy from her palm.
His large, wheat-colored hands and well-defined knuckles contrasted sharply with her slender, fair hands.
As he picked up the candy, his fingertips lightly brushed against Ji Wanmei's palm, causing a ticklish, tingling sensation, like an electric shock, which made her move slightly.
Lei Tingjun felt that Ji Wanmei's palm was very smooth, but he only touched it lightly, not daring to disrespect her, nor daring to deliberately touch her hand under the pretense of getting candy.
It was just an accident, but I still bumped into it.
For a second, their fingers touched, and he quickly pulled them back.
He unwrapped the candy and put it in his mouth. A rich and fragrant milk candy flavor instantly melted on his tongue. It was indeed much better than smoking.
That kind of sweetness could go from his taste buds all the way to the depths of his heart.
This kind of sweetness was something Lei Tingjun had never experienced in his twenty-odd years of life, and it was Ji Wanmei who brought it to him.
Lei Tingjun sat in the bustling materials market, next to the girl he liked. They didn't say much, just sat quietly, and he had the first White Rabbit milk candy the girl had given him in his mouth.
In this situation, Lei Tingjun felt a simple, overwhelming sense of satisfaction.
"After the grocery store opens, will your friend from earlier be the one looking after it?" Lei Tingjun asked.
"Yes, I'm going to study in the provincial capital, and I'll mostly be living on campus. I'll only have a chance to come back during winter and summer vacations, or National Day, etc. Most of the time, Chunyan will help me watch the shop. She hasn't discussed it with my parents yet. If it really doesn't work out, I might have to hire someone else."
Ji Wanmei's voice was a little too soft. Her tone was very gentle, and she didn't like to raise her voice when she spoke, so it shouldn't have been very clear in the noisy materials market.
But for some reason, it seemed that Lei Tingjun could not hear any other noise except for her voice.
"So, does your father... also support your decision to open a general store?"
The answer to this question is obvious; otherwise, Mr. Xu, the watch repairman on the street, wouldn't have come to help Ji Wanmei look at the store because of Ji Xingguo's request.
Ji Wanmei nodded: "My dad is very supportive of me. Although he seems serious and old-fashioned, he can accept things as long as you can persuade him. He's not as difficult to get along with as people outside might imagine."
Lei Tingjun recalled that Ji Xingguo had only met him a few times, and each time he had a stern face and had severely reprimanded and warned him.
But Lei Tingjun didn't tell Ji Wanmei what he had said.
He didn't want her to know that her father actually had a very bad impression of him.
The only thing Lei Tingjun can do is work harder to earn money, change her current situation, and use her abilities to win her father's approval.
Upon hearing Ji Wanmei say that she would be going to study in the provincial capital at the end of August, Lei Tingjun's resolve was strengthened once again.
But he hasn't said it yet.
A man doesn't need empty words; he just needs to show her through his actions.
He showed her through his actions his determination to be with her.
"Don't worry, I know people who can find the materials and workers for you. You don't need to bother Uncle Xu anymore. He's getting old and has his own shop to look after, so he doesn't have the energy. I'll have Xiaoqiang find some workers. They're all locals, and they can finish the entire storefront renovation in three days. You don't need to worry about it."
"Don't you have to go to work too? Won't this interfere with your work?"
Ji Wanmei knew that working in a factory was actually quite hard.
Two shifts, or three shifts.
Ji Wanmei knew that Lei Tingjun was supposed to be resting today, but he insisted on taking half a day out to accompany her on these tasks.
He hardly got any rest.
Lei Tingjun said, "It's okay. I have a lot of brothers under me. If I really can't spare the time, I can have them cover for a few shifts. I also have a good relationship with the director, so he usually won't say anything."
Ji Wanmei chuckled: "Have you forgotten? My dad is the factory manager. He's a man who keeps public and private matters separate and can't stand his subordinates slacking off. If you talk about how you usually cheat on shifts in front of me, I might tell my dad about you."
Seeing her smile, Lei Tingjun smiled too: "I'm not afraid of you telling on me."
Lei Tingjun's appearance when he smiles is quite different from his appearance when he doesn't smile; there's a significant difference in his demeanor.
When he doesn't smile, he appears cold and rugged; when he smiles, he is handsome and sunny.
Ji Wanmei rarely saw him smile, and thought he looked very handsome when he did, so she was a little stunned.
Lei Tingjun suddenly moved half his body closer to her, his tall chest pressing down, his deep black eyes fixed on her, his voice slightly low and husky: "What are you looking at?"
Ji Wanmei's cheeks suddenly flushed red.
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