Chapter 35 Where Did He Go Wrong? Chen Junbo's First Confession (1)...
Li Yang carried the tray and walked slowly and deliberately out of the small kitchen, heading straight for the study.
When Chen Junbo returned to the courtyard, he saw that the study door was wide open. He strode to the door, but before he arrived, his eyes were already inside. He glanced at the room and then stopped.
On the desk sat a plate of golden fried rice, glistening with oil, and beside it sat the young woman who had ignored him for the past few days.
It's unclear what piqued Young Master Chen's interest, but he raised an eyebrow slightly, put his fist to his lips, and coughed lightly.
Upon hearing the sound, Li Yang quickly turned around and stood up, a bright smile on her face. "You're back?" she said, her movements flowing smoothly.
Chen Junbo responded softly, walked in and sat down beside the table, gesturing for her to sit as well.
The two looked at each other, with a plate of fried rice in the middle. The rice and eggs were mixed very evenly, garnished with bright green scallions and green peas, and interspersed with diced meat and bamboo shoots, making it plump and distinct.
The aroma of eggs filled the entire study.
Li Yang glanced up discreetly and saw Chen Junbo leaning back in his chair, looking at her with an inscrutable expression. She swallowed slightly. "I made you fried rice with eggs." As if realizing this was a redundant question, she added, "Are you hungry now?"
Chen Junbo's gaze swept across the table, then settled on her face, but he didn't say anything.
Li Yang's heart was pounding. Was he... angry? He had seen him in the study every day for the past few days, but the two of them hadn't spoken. Now, he had finally managed to climb up a step, and his silence meant he didn't want to talk to him?
She leaned closer and tentatively asked, "Are you feeling unwell? Don't you want to eat? There's still some hot porridge on the stove, shall I go and get you a bowl?"
Seeing that the other party still did not react, she knew that she would not be able to get through this day without apologizing. Who told her to be so audacious as to give her employer a hard time a few days ago... Taking a deep breath, Li Yang lowered her head and said in a low voice, "I know I was wrong... You are a magnanimous person, please don't hold it against me."
"This bowl of rice is just a small token of my appreciation, it's just..." Before Chen Junbo could react, she immediately added, "It's just... the accounts of the Flower Bureau..."
She had said nine-tenths of what she needed to say, but she couldn't bring herself to ask for anything more. She could only hide her hands under the table and twist the hem of her clothes.
With a tinkling sound, Li Yang looked up and saw that the person had already scooped rice into their mouth.
For this bowl of rice, she sautéed minced meat in lard and soybean oil until cooked, then stir-fried eggs in both oils until fragrant, before adding rice, minced meat, diced bamboo shoots, and other ingredients. In addition, she left salt and sugar at the bottom of the pan, stir-fried diced mushrooms, and then mixed them with the rice.
She spent the entire afternoon chopping ingredients for just a small plate of rice, leaving her with a sore back and aching waist.
Young Master Chen took a spoonful, his eyes flickered slightly, then he offered another spoonful, nodding without saying a word.
"I've finished reviewing all the accounts of the Flower Bureau today," Li Yang said softly while he was eating. "There are some parts I don't understand."
Young Master Chen seemed unsurprised, continuing to scoop rice, only glancing up to signal her to continue.
Li Yang pursed his lips and said, "Chen Junbo, could you... help me?"
Chen Junbo was half full when he put down his spoon, picked up the teapot on the table and shook it lightly. It seemed that there was no water in the pot, so he put it down.
Li Yang quickly got up, picked up the kettle to add water, ran back to the table, lit a match to boil water and make tea, and did all the work in one go.
After drinking his tea, Young Master Chen's expression softened slightly. He glanced around the study, then suddenly frowned and coughed lightly.
This is?
Li Yang took a deep sniff; the room smelled of cooled scrambled eggs, not as enticing as before. She hurried to the table by the window, lit incense, gently waved her hand to disperse the smoke, then pushed the window a crack before returning to the table.
As dusk settled outside the window, the candlelight inside the room glowed softly.
After eating and drinking his fill, Young Master Chen stopped walking her around and slowly tapped his knuckles on the armrest: "Have you asked the manager about the unclear accounts?"
Li Yang lowered his head and shook his head sullenly: "No, that manager is shrewd. I plan to go find the manager after I've finished reviewing the account books."
Chen Junbo nodded: "The accounting of the flower shop is slightly different from that of your previous shop and tea shop. It is more complicated in terms of inventory turnover. How about I assign the writing to you?"
"Really?" Li Yang suddenly looked up, his eyes shining like stars. "That's wonderful!"
Chen Junbo: "How many days will it take?"
Li Yang hurriedly replied, "Ten days!"
"How about... five days will do, I'll speed things up."
"Then... three days? Just three days? There are really many things I don't understand."
It wasn't until she herself reduced the number of days from ten to three that Chen Junbo sent someone to deliver the pen.
A moment later, the brush was brought into the study.
Chen Junbai instructed, "Stay at home for the next few days to help the young mistress sort out the flower shop's accounts." As he spoke, Li Yang silently held up three fingers in front of him. Chen Junbai glanced at this, a slight smile playing on his lips, "Steward Bi, will five days be enough?"
Upon hearing this, Bi Fang was surprised.
It is truly rare for the young master to be so fickle when it comes to matters of the flower party.
He had been with Chen Junbo since childhood and knew his character well. To outsiders, this young master of the Chen family appeared gentle and refined, but inside he was extremely strict, always valuing efficiency and especially averse to inconsistency.
They were just as demanding of others as they were of themselves. Whether it was family matters or salt business affairs, they would only make decisions after careful consideration. The fact that they were so hesitant and indecisive about a small matter like this today is truly a spectacle of the Chen family salt business.
This is?
Just as she was pondering, she suddenly heard the sound of knuckles tapping on the table. Looking up, she saw her young master with his brows furrowed and looking at her. She quickly said, "Young master, don't worry. The young mistress is quick-witted and intelligent. Within five days, I will definitely assist her in completing the flower shop's accounts."
As he spoke, he thought to himself: those two were like strangers when they met yesterday, how could they have changed so drastically in the blink of an eye...
He couldn't help but recall the day he threw the embroidered ball. From afar, he saw the young lady standing with her hands on her hips, cursing angrily. He advised the young master at the time, "This lady seems to be no simple woman. Why don't we just give up now, or make an excuse that the embroidered ball was thrown into the pot and throw it again?" But the young master glanced at him and ordered him to arrange the marriage.
Seeing the young master so engrossed in such trivial matters, and even changing his mind for the young mistress in a short while, how could this be the same refined gentleman admired by all the young ladies of town? As the candlelight flickered, Bi Fang seemed to see Chen Junbai's mischievous and playful appearance in his youth.
"Is there anything else?" Chen Junbo's voice came coldly.
Bi Fang snapped back to reality. "I'll get out right now..." He bowed and shuffled out of the study. With each step he took, his sorrow deepened. In the past, he and the young master were inseparable, like brothers. And now, the young mistress had banished him from the study?!
She lowered her head and glanced back, a slight sneer playing on her lips: "Hmph! Men!"
Inside the room, a huge weight was lifted from Li Yang's heart.
After checking the accounts for several days, the initial anger she felt towards Chen Junbo gradually dissipated. In addition, the accounts were indeed complicated and strange, so she had no choice but to back down and admit defeat...
Hearing that Bi Fang had agreed to the matter, she finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"Enjoy your meal, I'll head out now."
"Wait a minute." Chen Junbo suddenly stood up, closed the door in a few steps, and returned to her side.
Li Yang felt his warm breath brush against his head, and he lowered his head, staring blankly at the black boots in front of him. He then heard a man's voice from above: "You just said that you knew you were wrong."
Li Yang mumbled, "Mm."
A soft chuckle came from above, not mocking, but rather tinged with helplessness. "Where did I go wrong?"
Li Yang looked up in surprise, "What did I do wrong?" She involuntarily took a half step back, frowned and pondered for a moment, "Wrong, wrong was... I shouldn't have ignored you because I was angry with you..."
He uttered an "Hmm?" and narrowed his eyes slightly, taking half a step closer.
"I shouldn't have..." Li Yang pondered for a long time, "I shouldn't have..."
She finally gave up, turned her head to look at the other person, and asked, "Where did I go wrong?"
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Author's Note: The next chapter will be full of sweet moments! [Red heart][Pink heart][Green heart][Yellow heart][Orange heart][Cyan heart][Purple heart][Pink heart][Heart emoji]
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