Chapter 15. Mind your own business. —No!
Sure enough, the best way to deal with Taurus is to stimulate their sense of responsibility.
After that, Ruan Tang didn't see Feng Xue for three consecutive days. Several times, when the coffee shop was closing time, several groups of customers wanted to continue their meals there but had to go back disappointed.
One time, two middle-aged women who often came to the restaurant to chat and sit for the entire afternoon asked Ruan Tang when they were checking out: "Boss, why has the late-night restaurant been closed for so long? Did they have a fight?"
Ruan Tang smiled: Yes, so before we split up, you two should come visit me more often.
The two exchanged glances, immediately understanding each other. One of them asked, "Did he also see the article that Teacher Xu posted? When you were chatting with that guy...were you with the boss?"
Another woman who was dressed relatively fashionably in a Gi sweatshirt chimed in: Men, they pretend to be generous on the surface, but they are actually very petty. Otherwise, why do you think Nicholas Tse divorced Cecilia Cheung?
The two of them sang in unison and gave Ruan Tang a small emotional class like performing a crosstalk. Ruan Tang, who was standing behind the counter, rolled her eyes in her heart, but still maintained a warm smile on the surface. She interrupted at the right time and asked: Sister, your sweatshirt looks so nice, what year is it from?
Rather than teaching how men and women get along, the complacent look on this woman's face was even more pronounced when she talked about it. She pinched the logo with two fingers, looked at Ruan Tang mysteriously and asked: I bought it several years ago, guess how much it cost?
Ruan Tang answered cooperatively: This brand of sweatshirt should cost around four or five thousand yuan, right?
The woman stretched out two fingers and shook them, deliberately lowering her voice and said: Just over two hundred.
Ruan Tang pretended to be surprised: "Huh? I can't tell at all, the texture is so good."
"You can't tell it's fake, right? It's mainly because at my age, I've got the experience and the aura to wear fake goods like they're authentic. I always tell the younger generation around me, young people, don't spend a lot of money on these so-called big brands; it's pointless. You can buy a few bags, though." She glanced around the store displaying the designer bags, shook her head, and continued, "But besides a few classic styles, some of these bags you have aren't worth buying."
As she spoke, she did not forget to nudge her companion with her elbow and warned: Hey, you can't tell anyone else.
Ruan Tang smiled and said: I was young, and I just wanted to look good. I still needed the sisters to come and teach me from time to time.
The two of them satisfied their gossip addiction and were praised a lot, then left happily. Ruan Tang breathed a sigh of relief and took out her cell phone to open the chat room with Feng Xue.
She probably sent him more than twenty messages in the past few days, but he didn't reply to any of them. She could not remember ever being treated so coldly by a man.
Ruan Tang had just finished taking a shower in the evening when the phone on the bed suddenly started to sound an alarm.
A few days ago, she installed cameras in the store to monitor the treasures in the display cabinets at all times. When the lights are off, the alarm will sound if someone enters.
Ruan Tang's heart tightened, and she quickly opened the software to enlarge the picture, only to see a familiar face.
She didn't even have time to change out of her pajamas. She picked up her bag, put on a pair of sneakers and rushed out of the house.
In the only memory Feng Xue had left, he seemed to have never seen Ruan Tang like this.
Even when she was drenched in water by the hose in the green belt on the roadside, she was still beautiful and delicate, her dripping eyelashes still curled like the upturned eaves of an ancient building. Whenever he saw her, he would always think of the doll that the girl next door always held in her arms when he was a child.
But today she...felt different.
She was bare-faced, and under the dim light, her acne scars and dark circles were still clearly visible. The ends of her hair hung on her shoulders, wetting her cotton nightgown and vaguely revealing the shape of her shoulder straps.
Feng Xue quickly looked away, pulled out a chair and sat down, and asked: Why are you here so late?
I don’t know if it was his illusion, but Ruan Tang’s voice trembled slightly: Where have you been these days?
Ruan Tang ran over, pulled out the chair opposite him and stared at him.
Feng Xue opened the lunch box in front of him, neatly broke open the disposable chopsticks, and said: There is something going on. I hope it doesn't affect your normal business?
His tone was polite, but Ruan Tang still heard the hidden meaning in his words: Mind your own business.
Ruan Tang grabbed the lunch box in front of him. It contained shredded pork with fish flavor, braised pork with potatoes full of fat, and green beans and eggplant. She recognized it as the work of the mobile fast food stall on the corner of the street. It was like poking at the Daqing oil field. The rice was soaked in the oil and the grains were separated.
"As for me, I naturally don't have the leisure to ask about your private affairs, but we are partners now. What should I do if you can't continue with your intermittent work? You are being irresponsible to me." She complained aggrievedly.
Sure enough, Feng Xue's attitude softened a lot and he comforted her: Don't worry, I won't give up this store easily.
Ruan Tang muttered: What's the point of a verbal promise? You can go back on your word.
Feng Xue added seriously, "We paid three years' rent to get a discount, which means you can use it for at least three more years. If you're worried, we can sign a contract." As he spoke, he pulled the lunch box back in front of him.
As expected, the best way to deal with Taurus is to inspire their sense of responsibility. Ruan Tang chuckled inwardly.
She pulled the lunch box over again and looked at it with a frown: Is this all you want to eat?
Feng Xue smiled bitterly: There's nothing wrong with this, I want to save money...
"To your ex-wife?" Ruan Tang interrupted him and asked. Seeing Feng Xue acquiesce, she helplessly held her forehead. "Since you said before that we were friends, then speaking from a friend's perspective, do you think that by living a frugal and ascetic life like this, she will be moved and forgive you? Even if she forgives you, isn't this moral blackmail? Feng Xue, do you think you are so noble?"
"Then what should I do?"
Ruan Tang took a spoon and a small bowl from the counter, scooped out most of the food in the lunch box, stirred it, and scooped a large spoonful into her mouth under Feng Xue's surprised gaze.
She chewed a few times, frowned, and swallowed. She continued, "I remember when I was in elementary school, my mom would sell snacks at the school gate after her breakfast stall, so she'd send me to the fast food restaurant behind our neighborhood for lunch. Back then, what I looked forward to most every day was coming home for lunch and ordering a six-yuan bowl of fish-flavored shredded pork fried rice. Oh, and the fish-flavored shredded pork was just as cheap as it is now, because a rice bowl with more vegetables cost seven yuan. But now, I can't eat that kind of food anymore."
Feng Xue moved his lips and softly called Ruan Tang's name, but didn't know what to say next.
Ruan Tang smiled, her lips still glistening with oil. She winked at him and jokingly said, "Do you feel miserable? I don't mean to play the victim. I felt very happy at that time. I just want to say that people want different things at different stages. Maybe your ex-wife wanted to share the good and bad times with you, but you pushed her away. Now she just wants to move on and start a new life. Since you feel sorry for her, why can't you fulfill her wish? You have to force her what you think is good for her? Are you doing this to make her happy, or to comfort yourself?"
Feng Xue pulled over the half-empty lunch box, took a few big bites, and sobbed: Thank you.
Ruan Tang also took a few more bites and ordered: I was starving when I ran here just now. I see that this meal is not enough for the two of us. I want to eat the seafood udon noodles you made.
Feng Xue nodded and stood up to head back to the kitchen. Ruan Tang followed him and asked, "Would you like a cup of coffee? I just learned a new recipe, and mint soda is super refreshing. Oh, by the way, these past few days several of your regular customers have been asking when you're opening the shop. They all say they miss your craft. If you open tomorrow, treat your own customers well and stop bothering me. I still have to run the business and I'm exhausted, okay?"
That night, Ruan Tang and Feng Xue first drank coffee. In order to neutralize the nervous excitement caused by coffee and avoid insomnia all night, they also opened a bottle of wine to numb their nerves.
When Ruan Tang woke up the next day, she felt a splitting headache. She only remembered that she seemed to have said a lot of things. It seemed that she had never said so much to a man at one time.
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