This time, Shu Yan didn't just sit outside waiting foolishly. She found a decent-looking hotel nearby, borrowed an alarm clock from the owner, and set it to wake up at 3:30.
She fell asleep shortly after lying down. When the alarm rang, Shu Yan sat up abruptly, checked the time (3:30), quickly washed her face, grabbed her things, and headed to the wholesale market.
After several training sessions, Shu Yan was able to quickly snag items. The business she had been doing these past few days gave her a lot more confidence in her eye for quality. She bought quite a few clothes she liked and also picked up some new styles from a store she was familiar with.
Back at the parking spot, the mechanic helped Shuyan carry her things to the trunk.
"Boss Shu, my friend won't be back for a few more minutes. Could you wait a little while?" the driver asked.
Shu Yan glanced at the time; it was already past 7. "It won't be long, will it? I'm in a hurry."
"No, they should be back in about ten minutes."
Shu Yan went to buy breakfast and brought the driver a drink. While waiting, she asked, "Your friend looks pretty fierce, is he also a taxi driver?"
"He's somewhat related. Don't let his fierce appearance fool you, he's actually a very nice person." The master spoke of him with a look of admiration on his face. "See that scar on his face? That's no ordinary scar, it's a man's badge of honor."
"Is he a soldier?" Shu Yan didn't look at the man closely, and besides, most people couldn't tell that kind of so-called temperament.
“Yes, he used to. Once, he was seriously injured during a mission and had to return. He didn’t say anything, and everyone guessed it was a state secret. He’s also my savior. We taxi drivers, especially on long-distance trips, sometimes encounter robbers. Once, I was robbed on the road, and if he hadn’t passed by and saved me, I might be dead.” The driver became particularly excited as he said this, “You know, he took on seven or eight people by himself, hehehe, and subdued them in no time.”
So that's how it is. No wonder the driver was so respectful to him. I initially thought he was a gang leader.
About ten minutes later, the man returned. When Shu Yan saw the scar on his face again, she wasn't scared at all; instead, she found him very handsome.
"What's up?"
Hearing the voice, Shu Yan realized that she had been staring at him for too long. She quickly came to her senses and said apologetically, "It's okay. Are you thirsty?" She handed him a bottle of drink.
The man paused, then said, "No need."
Since she didn't even know his name, Shu Yan wasn't very enthusiastic. Actually, she had a bit of a hero complex; she used to get very excited whenever she saw soldiers looking heroic on TV.
Running back and forth to buy goods left Shu Yan exhausted, and she fell asleep shortly afterward. Having a soldier around, even a retired one, always made Shu Yan feel much more at ease.
As they approached Nancheng, the man in the passenger seat suddenly said, "Let's drop her off first."
Shu Yan glanced at him and whispered a thank you.
When they arrived at the store around 9 a.m., the driver helped unload the goods. Unexpectedly, the man also helped. Shu Yan ran to a nearby shop, bought a bottle of drink, and gave it to him, saying, "This is to thank you for helping me move my things."
Shu Yan was so busy that she didn't have time to rest, so she naturally didn't think about a passerby anymore. She had people move the things to the warehouse and took out the clothes she had snatched to put together some outfits.
Business was a little slower today than yesterday. After running the promotion for so many days, it's impossible for it to be this good every day, which is normal. Actually, it's not bad at all. It's just that some people have become too complacent because of the booming business of the past two days.
In the afternoon, someone won the first prize—a bicycle—and business picked up a bit again. But around 4 p.m., a light drizzle started, and fewer and fewer people went shopping, so business naturally dried up.
"Go and tidy up the warehouse, then you can go home." Shu Yan paid the temporary workers their wages first. There was no extra pay today, just ten yuan. The workers didn't say anything, after all, they were leaving get off work several hours early, so they still made a profit.
Zhang Huaxiu and Yingying certainly couldn't leave so early. "I have to pick up the kids. You two keep an eye on the shop. If the rain still isn't stopping by seven o'clock, pack up and go home early."
When Tianbao saw Shuyan, his eyes lit up immediately. He ran to Shuyan's side and asked happily, "Mom, are you done with your work?"
"We'll be done in two more days. Did you listen to your teacher at school today? Were you a good boy?" Shu Yan picked him up.
"I've been very good. This is my little red flower for today. I've received a little red flower for five days in a row." Tianbao proudly raised his head.
"Really? Our Tianbao is so great." Shu Yan gently patted his head. "Let's go pick up your sister. Mom will cook something delicious for you tonight."
On the way, they met Wu Xiuyue, who was on her way to pick up Tianbao. "The shop is all done."
"It's been raining a bit, so business has slowed down a lot, and I came to pick up the kids myself. I was going to tell you, but I figured you'd probably be here by now, so I didn't go to your house," Shu Yan explained, to avoid Wu Xiuyue misunderstanding.
"I'm going to a friend's place for something. You went to Hangzhou to buy goods late last night and didn't sleep all night, right? You've been busy all day today, so don't cook. Just eat at my place." Wu Xiuyue looked at Shu Yan, who had lost a lot of weight since they first met, but looked much more energetic.
"No need. I arrived in Hangzhou around 10 a.m. yesterday, found a place to sleep, and then took another nap in the car on the way back. I'm still quite energetic now."
The two chatted as they walked and soon arrived at the apartment complex. Shu Yan hadn't cooked for several days and was out of groceries. She took the children to buy some, and when they got home, they saw someone standing at the door. Upon closer inspection, they found their landlord standing there.
"Excuse me, what can I do for you?" I've only been renting the apartment for a short time, and I've already paid the rent and deposit. There haven't been any problems with the apartment, so why are you here all of a sudden?
"Um..." The man opened his mouth somewhat awkwardly, then said embarrassedly, "I don't really know how to bring this up. It's like this, my wife's younger brother is coming from his hometown. It would be fine if he were alone and stayed in our new house, but he has a family with him, so it's inconvenient for him to stay with us. My wife and I discussed letting him stay in this house. Don't worry, I'll refund your rent and deposit."
Shu Yan frowned. "We signed a three-month contract. According to the contract, you can't take the apartment back without reason during my rental period, or you'll have to compensate me for my losses."
“I’m not doing this without reason. My relatives are coming, and I have no choice but to rent the house to you. I can still collect rent every month. If my brother-in-law stays here, not only will I not get any rent, but I might even have to pay out of my own pocket. As for compensation, I will return your deposit and rent in full, so you can stay for free for more than half a month. Consider it compensation for your loss.”
Taking a deep breath, Shu Yan suppressed her irritation. "When is your brother-in-law coming?"
"They'll be here tomorrow."
"Coming over tomorrow? This is too sudden. You should at least have told me in advance so I could be mentally prepared. Where am I supposed to find a place to live now?" Shu Yan really didn't expect the landlord to take the house back so easily.
"He caught me completely off guard, but he'd already bought the tickets, look at this..."
"Tomorrow won't do. You need to give me at least three days to find a place to live. That's not an unreasonable request, is it?" Shu Yan opened the door and let the two children go in first.
The man looked at Shu Yan and the two children who had just entered and sighed, "The request isn't unreasonable, but I really have no choice. My wife gave me a firm order."
Well, he's a man who's very afraid of his wife. Obviously, his wife gave him an order to take the house back. No matter how angry Shu Yan is, it's useless. The house belongs to someone else. Even if you've signed a contract, if the landlord really wants to take it back, there's nothing you can do. That's the tragedy of renting a house.
"Okay, I understand."
As if things weren't going to go wrong, things just kept getting worse. The shop was already busy lately, and she was also taking care of two children. Now, there was a problem with the house, and Shuyan didn't feel like cooking. She made something simple and ate it with the children. While washing the dishes, she kept thinking about what to do.
"Mom, can't we stay here anymore?"
Looking at her daughter's worried eyes, Shu Yan tried her best to compose herself, not wanting to let her heavy mood affect the child. She forced a smile and said, "It's okay. Mom bought a new house near your school. Didn't I take you to see it? It's already renovated, and we can move in during the New Year."
Aren't we going home for Chinese New Year?
Shu Yan was stunned for a moment before realizing that Ye Jingjing was referring to her hometown in Xicheng.
Ye Jingjing is older than Tianbao and can remember things; she knows a lot of things.
"Do you want to go back?" Shu Yan asked her directly.
"I don't like it." Ye Jingjing shook her head. Before, when she was in the countryside, her grandmother always scolded her for being a good-for-nothing, and her parents ignored her and only cared about her younger brother. Now she was with her mother, and her mother treated her and her brother equally well, sometimes even better than her brother. Here, she also made many new friends, all of whom were very clean, polite, and never swore. Compared to her hometown, this place was paradise, and she wished she never had to go back.
“Well, Mom doesn’t like it either, so from now on this will be our home, and that place… let’s just consider it Grandma’s house, and visit each other as distant relatives in the future.” These words were spoken to Ye Jingjing, but also to herself.
Moving was inevitable; after all, it belonged to someone else, and besides, she was a woman with two children, and being from out of town, she couldn't possibly argue with the landlord. Fortunately, she hadn't bought too much stuff since she only planned to stay for a short time. She threw away what she could, and packed up what she couldn't and sent it to the new house. The belongings were a minor issue; the main problem was how to accommodate the two children.
Ye Jingjing is in first grade and is already struggling to keep up. She absolutely cannot fall behind in her studies. When Shu Yan went to pick up her child last time, she saw that some students were living at the tutoring center. It was possible that some parents had entrusted their children to the teachers. Shu Yan planned to ask around, and if possible, she decided to let Jingjing stay with the teacher for a month.
“I only have one extra room here, which is occupied by two male students. It wouldn’t be appropriate for Ye Jingjing to move in. You could ask Teacher Liu. Although she has also taken in a male student, her daughter has a room that has been empty since her daughter got married. It should be fine for her to stay for a month.”
Ms. Liu, Jingjing's English tutor, said when she heard Shuyan's purpose, "No problem, you can leave your child here without worry. My daughter rarely comes back anyway, so she sleeps in her room."
"Thank you so much, Teacher Liu. I really have no other choice. The house I was renting was fine, but the landlord suddenly wants to take it back. My own house is still under renovation, and the smell is too strong and bad for my child's health, so I don't dare to move in now. I can only turn to you for help."
"What's wrong with these landlords? They don't make any sense at all," Teacher Liu said angrily.
"Who knows? There's nothing we can do if it happens. Well, Jingjing, I'll have to trouble you for the next month, teacher."
Shu Yan took Jingjing to school, squatted down and said to her, "You'll stay with Teacher Liu for a month. It might not even be a month before Mom comes to pick you up. Mom will come to see you often during this time. If you have any problems, be sure to tell Mom, okay?"
"I understand, Mom, don't worry." Ye Jingjing smiled broadly.
This child is so sensible!
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