Chapter 16016 "A father's status rises with his daughter's."
Meng Ran and Jiang Yuqing each held a cup of milk tea and strolled casually through the mall.
Compared to the brand counters on the first floor, the second and third floors are home to a variety of fast-moving consumer goods stores and creative boutiques.
“Look at that one, I think it’s quite suitable for starting a business.” Jiang Yuqing pointed to a cultural and creative store on the right. “Shall we go take a look?”
The two went inside, and Jiang Yuqing took a sip of her milk tea: "Didn't you tell me that if you didn't have to worry about making money, you would actually prefer to study painting or art design?"
Meng Ran nodded: "Yes, you actually still remember."
She loved drawing since she was a child. Her mother enrolled her in a sketching class when she was in elementary school, and her teacher praised her for her talent.
After her mother passed away, her extracurricular classes naturally stopped, but she still maintained the habit of drawing and painting from time to time.
However, the cost of art exams is something that even ordinary families may not be able to afford, let alone her situation at the time.
Learning what she likes is a luxury for Meng Ran, and she excluded it from her life options long ago.
Jiang Yuqing casually picked up a keychain from the store and fiddled with it: "Have you ever considered opening a similar store? Cultural and creative products seem to be quite popular these days, and you can also draw some illustrations or something."
Meng Ran smiled and said, "I can draw whatever I want, but I can't compare to professionals."
“You can have someone else draw it and then check it,” Jiang Yuqing said. “But it’s not wrong for you to be cautious; you really have to think things through when doing business.”
There were many similar shops on this floor of the mall, and the two of them chose to browse some of them.
Throughout the morning, Jiang Yuqing provided Meng Ran with many ideas.
However, Meng Ran also knew that the worst thing about starting a business is making an impulsive decision on a whim. Many rich second-generation entrepreneurs with family resources have failed in their ventures, let alone someone like her.
So after this tour, Meng Ran only had a few vague outlines left in her mind.
In the afternoon, the two went to a nearby pet store.
“The pet economy has been booming in recent years,” Jiang Yuqing said. “People don’t want to have children anymore; instead, they prefer to keep cats and dogs.”
A family of three came to choose a cat, and the owner brought out several for the customer to choose from.
Meng Ran joined in the fun and interacted with one of the kittens.
The shop owner, noticing this, approached with a smile and said, "Young lady, if you like cats, you can take one home to raise. The one in front of you is quite nice; it has a good appearance and a good personality."
Meng Ran smiled and said, "No, I already have one at home."
The owner, a gentle auntie, didn't insist when she saw this and went to look at other customers.
Jiang Yuqing walked over and said in surprise, "I didn't even know you had a cat."
Meng Ran: "It was raised by my daughter, her name is Anna."
Jiang Yuqing asked curiously, "What kind of breed is it? Do you have a picture?"
Meng Ran: Yes.
She found a photo in her phone's album and handed it to Jiang Yuqing: "It's a cow cat."
Jiang Yuqing zoomed in on the photo and looked at it with surprise: "You actually have a cat at home?"
Meng Ran found it strange: "Didn't you always know that I like cats?"
When they were in school, they rescued a stray kitten together. Since they couldn't keep it in their dormitory, they eventually found it another home.
“I know that,” Jiang Yuqing said, “but isn’t your husband allergic to cat hair?”
Meng Ran looked surprised.
Jiang Yuqing was even more surprised than her: "You didn't know?"
Meng Ran: "How did you know that?"
“You told me that yourself,” Jiang Yuqing replied. “Oh, it was you who told me that before.”
After a few questions and answers between the two, Meng Ran finally understood.
After they got married, she rarely mentioned Chen Sulin to Jiang Yuqing.
On one occasion, she complained to Jiang Yuqing that Chen Sulin, who seemed immune to all poisons, was actually allergic to cat fur, which prevented her from having a cat.
This was one of the very few times she mentioned Chen Sulin to Jiang Yuqing, and Jiang Yuqing has remembered it clearly ever since.
"Could it be that he was lying to you back then?" Jiang Yuqing was completely puzzled. "He wasn't actually allergic at all; he just didn't want to keep the pet?"
Meng Ran: "It shouldn't be that bad, right?"
He could have just said he wanted to reject her; why make up such a lie?
Jiang Yuqing: "So your daughter really loves cats, so she endured her allergies to keep one?"
Meng Ran, however, felt it didn't seem like it either.
Cat allergy, if severe, could probably affect daily life and work.
She didn't doubt Chen Sulin's love for Chen Miaoying, but she always felt that doing this wasn't Chen Sulin's style.
The two discussed it for a while, but ultimately couldn't reach a conclusion.
After leaving the pet store, Meng Ran asked Jiang Yuqing if there was a suitable place to buy gifts for men.
Jiang Yuqing was shocked: "What's wrong? You've decided to completely give up on the divorce and live a good life with Chen Sulin from now on?"
Meng Ran: "Of course... no."
Jiang Yuqing asked, puzzled, "Then why did you suddenly think of buying him a gift?"
Meng Ran truthfully replied, "Chen Sulin's birthday is coming soon, and my daughter insists that I prepare a birthday present for him."
Jiang Yuqing looked at Meng Ran thoughtfully for a few seconds.
Meng Ran was puzzled by his gaze: "What's wrong?"
Jiang Yuqing shook her head: "It's nothing... I just suddenly felt that Chen Sulin seems to be getting ahead of himself because of his daughter."
Meng Ran was amused by her choice of words.
Jiang Yuqing also found this funny, and the two of them laughed heartily for a while.
After laughing, Meng Ran asked, "Seriously, do you have any recommendations?"
"Let me think..." Jiang Yuqing pondered, "There's a flagship store for a fountain pen brand on the first floor of the mall. A colleague of mine bought a gift for her boyfriend there."
Jiang Yuqing mentioned it casually, but Meng Ran thought it made a lot of sense.
The essence of gifts is to choose those with low cost-effectiveness, so among the common gift options, a watch was the first one she ruled out:
Even if she does have several million in her account right now, she wouldn't be willing to spend a lot of money to buy Chen Sulin an expensive watch.
As for the lighter, Meng Ran had never seen Chen Sulin smoke.
A fountain pen would be more suitable, as he can use it when signing documents.
As Chen Miaoying once said, her father loves his job the most.
The flagship store was in the same shopping mall as before, so the two went back around.
Meng Ran had never been to a flagship store for such high-end fountain pens before. It was her first time there, and she was amazed to discover that a fountain pen could have so many different features.
The shop assistant patiently explained the brand's history and various crafts to Meng Ran, leaving her completely bewildered.
After recalling Chen Sulin's daily outfits, Meng Ran intuitively chose a fountain pen with a matte black casing.
As for the pen's cap, barrel, and nib, and how sophisticated the craftsmanship was, she didn't remember a thing.
After making her selection, the shop assistant asked Meng Ran, "Do you need any engraving? We recently launched a new service where you can have your own handwritten text engraved on the inside of the pen cap, up to eight Chinese characters."
Meng Ran blurted out, "Do we need to pay more?"
The shop assistant smiled and said, "No need, it's free."
Meng Ran: "Then... let's carve it."
It feels like a waste not to take advantage of free services.
The shop assistant said "Wait a moment," and a moment later handed Meng Ran a piece of cardboard and a pen.
"You can write it on this paper, and we will scan it into an electronic version for you and send it to the head office for engraving. It will take about three business days to pick it up."
Meng Ran agreed.
Seeing that she didn't immediately put pen on, the shop assistant kindly said, "Generally, customers choose to have their own and the other person's names engraved, either the full name or the initials, or birthdays, anniversaries, or other blessings engraved."
Meng Ran thanked her.
After thinking for a moment, she wrote the four characters "peace and prosperity" on the card.
Chen Sulin lacks nothing: wealth, fame, and fortune.
Besides those four words, she seemed to have nothing else to bless him with.
After she finished writing, Jiang Yuqing snatched the paper and took a look, exclaiming, "Ranran, your handwriting is still so beautiful! Unlike me, my handwriting was just average before, and after working for so many years, it's even worse."
The shop assistant took the card and asked for Meng Ran's phone number, saying that she would be notified by text message after it was engraved.
"Will it be mailed to your home, or will you pick it up in person?"
Remembering Chen Miaoying's repeated emphasis that the surprise should not be revealed in advance, Meng Ran said, "I'll get it."
Meng Ran paid the money using the bank card under her own name.
As she walked out of the store, she paused for a moment.
Jiang Yuqing was walking out with her when she almost bumped into her. After braking abruptly, she asked in confusion, "What happened?"
Meng Ran pursed her lips.
She had just seen a familiar figure from behind.
For a moment, her heart almost jumped out of her chest; she thought she had seen Zhao Yanzhou.
But if you think about it carefully, what a coincidence! And what kind of person can remain unchanged for seven years?
She must be seeing things.
The figure vanished in an instant, quickly blending into the crowd, and she had no way of confirming it.
Meng Ran shook her head: "It's nothing, let's go."
Both Meng Ran and Jiang Yuqing were a little tired after shopping all morning.
After finalizing the gift, Jiang Yuqing suggested, "How about we leave it at that for today? Anyway, your matter can't be rushed; we have to plan it step by step."
Meng Ran had no objection.
Jiang Yuqing then said, "I remember you live not far from my house, I'll give you a ride since it's on my way."
Meng Ran glanced at the time; it was 3:30 PM.
Since arriving seven years ago, she has never once picked up Chen Miaoying from kindergarten.
She knew that Chen Miaoying hadn't asked for anything because she was sensible, but Meng Ran also wanted to give her daughter a surprise.
However, if I'm going to pick up my daughter, I definitely can't ride in Jiang Yuqing's car.
Firstly, Jiang Yuqing wasn't her driver, and even if they were best friends, Meng Ran wouldn't feel comfortable troubling her like that.
In addition, Chen Miaoying is of a certain age and needs a child safety seat, which Jiang Yuqing's car did not have.
After hearing Meng Ran's idea, Jiang Yuqing said decisively, "The kindergarten must be near your house, right? Anyway, it's on the way. You can contact your driver, and I'll give you a ride, how about that?"
And so the two set off.
Meng Ran called Uncle Dong and asked him to meet Jiang Yuqing near her house and then take her to kindergarten.
When we arrived at the kindergarten, it was just the time for the children to be dismissed.
The children from each class lined up in two rows, holding hands and following their teachers out of the kindergarten gate.
Chen Miaoying is quite tall for her age, standing near the back of the group, holding hands with another child.
This morning, her father told her that he had work to do and that Uncle Dong and Aunt Zhang would pick her up after school.
So Chen Miaoying wasn't as excited as she usually was when her dad picked her up, and she chatted incessantly with the little boy next to her.
Until she looked up unintentionally and saw a familiar figure.
Chen Miaoying blinked, and after confirming that the person was indeed her mother, she even forgot to say goodbye to the child next to her.
She shouted to the teacher, "My mom is here!" and then ran towards her mother with her short legs.
"Mom—" Chen Miaoying threw herself into Meng Ran's arms, "Why did you come to pick me up?"
Meng Ran squatted down and gently rubbed Chen Miaoying's little face: "Because Mommy missed you and wanted to give you a surprise."
Chen Miaoying was even happier, her eyes crinkling into crescent moons as she smiled: "Mom, you're so amazing!"
As she spoke, she reached out to touch her mother's face—she and her mother had made a pinky promise, and her mother had agreed that she could rub her mother's face!
After spending some time with her mother, Chen Miaoying was finally satisfied.
Chan Miu-ying loudly announced: "I'm so happy today, super happy!"
Meng Ran smiled with her eyes narrowed, the curve of her eyes exactly the same as Chen Miaoying's: "Mom is super happy today too."
Chen Miaoying's eyes lit up, and she suddenly had a brilliant idea: "How about we make Dad as happy as we are! Mom, let's go give Dad a surprise!"
At Chen Miaoying's insistence, the mother and daughter got into Uncle Dong's car and went to Chen Sulin's company building.
Meng Ran was worried that she would disturb Chen Sulin.
But Uncle Dong was clearly adept at handling this situation. He quickly contacted Chen Sulin's assistant and told her that Chen Sulin would be off work before dinner today, so it would be just right for them to go now.
Meng Ran guessed that Chen Miaoying had done something similar to "surprise her father" before, except that back then it was Uncle Dong or Aunt Zhang who accompanied her.
The company is very close to the kindergarten. Although there was some traffic congestion, the car quickly arrived at the Hengyue Group building.
This was Meng Ran's first time visiting Chen Sulin's workplace. Standing beneath the glass building, she couldn't help but look up in awe.
In contrast, Chen Miaoying was much more familiar with the place. Like a little guide, she stretched out her hand to point out to her mother that her father's office was at the very top of the building.
"It's so high up there!" Chen Miaoying gestured a huge circle with her arm. "It's a hundred times higher than the slide in kindergarten. It would take a really long time to get there by elevator!"
"Let's go, Mom, let's go find Dad!" Chen Miaoying's eyes sparkled. "Let's give him a surprise!"
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Author's Note: Red envelopes will be randomly given away in the comments section!
Because of a work stoppage on Tuesday, the next chapter update will be delayed a bit. [heart emoji]
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