Chapter 58
Everything is ready except for the puppy.
Cheng Sangluo completely admitted defeat.
She finally accepted the fact that no matter whether she tried to be forceful or gentle, she was destined to be controlled to death by the crazy woman.
She stood with her hands on her hips, pacing back and forth in the narrow alley for a while, seemingly lost in thought.
Although the raging fire burning in his heart was hard to extinguish, for some reason, this person's temper came and went quickly.
Cheng Sangluo was no longer as tense as before. Instead, she casually grabbed a bag of snacks, opened the seal, and stuffed a handful into her mouth.
She chewed hard until her mouth was completely stuffed, but then choked and pounded her chest in frustration.
Lin Jin could tell that the puppy was sulking. Seeing that her face was turning red from choking, she had no choice but to drag her leg, which was wearing a walking aid, step by step to the freezer and take out a bottle of mineral water.
Cheng Sangluo craned her neck to get over the shelf and saw the crazy woman walking with difficulty. Her once beautiful, straight eyebrows were now twisted into knots, and she looked like she was in a lot of pain.
The soft-hearted person silently hurried over, snatched the water bottle away in annoyance, and started grumbling again: "Your foot injury hasn't healed yet, can you stop messing around?"
"Is it my fault? Blame it on your lack of tact!" Lin Jin felt her good intentions had been wasted on that scoundrel, and launched into another tirade: "You can't even vent your anger, and you've choked yourself. Don't you think you're hilarious?"
Cheng Sangluo glared at her fiercely, then got back to the point: "So... you went through all that trouble to take over this convenience store just to keep an eye on me?"
"Otherwise what? Just watch you go to Shu Wan's shady place and make money in shady ways?" Lin Jin complained again, genuinely hating that awful bar, and wondering if her little dog had been groped a few days ago.
The arrogant madwoman was furious at the thought of this death.
When I get angry, I try to find ways to bully that bastard in order to vent my pent-up anger.
The crazy woman had a sudden idea. She grabbed the dog's arm and leaned her weight onto it. "There's no time like the present. After being a hands-off manager for so long, it's time to check the accounts and see if my cashier is doing a good job."
Cheng Sangluo was extremely unwilling, but she still subconsciously spread her arms so that the feather-light person could hang on her body, and said righteously: "Investigate, investigate as much as you want, but if there is a single mistake, you can deduct my salary."
"With your meager salary, can you afford to deduct it? Anyway, there's already been a complaint, so what's the big deal? Is this what you call 'what's the use of throwing money away'?" Lin Jin laughed, then ordered, "You clueless bastard, hurry up and help me to the cashier."
Cheng Sangluo, thinking that she hadn't received her salary for the month, had to swallow her anger and help the crazy woman to the cashier.
This guy was too honest. As soon as he got to the table, he grabbed his notebook and wrote down the bag of snacks he had just eaten.
Lin Jin, out of curiosity, snatched the notebook away before the puppy could put down its pen.
She sat down on the round stool and patiently turned the pages one by one. Her originally leisurely expression gradually froze, and finally the smile on her lips vanished.
Cheng Sangluo's dinner every day is always the same: two rice balls nearing their expiration date, sometimes even just one, and a whole table of milk nearing its expiration date.
It's clear that the puppy didn't do a good job at first, and often missed collecting money. Before leaving get off work, he would reconcile accounts with the store manager and could only use his salary to make up for his mistakes.
Lin Jin pursed her lips, trying to appear indifferent, but she found herself unable to smile, even her best-kept fake smile became extremely difficult.
She looked up at the silent puppy.
The man rested his hand on the counter, frantically picking at the peeling promotional image, looking terrified and seemingly less confident than before.
Feeling really uncomfortable being stared at, Cheng Sangluo stammered, "Why...why are you staring at me?"
"Not bad. You know you're not very bright, so you'll use the old-fashioned method of keeping a ledger." Lin Jin praised him while tearing the notebook in his hand to shreds. "I didn't see any mistakes, so it seems I can't deduct your salary."
A woman who says one thing but means another, even her desire to protect her puppy's self-esteem is so awkward.
After saying that, Lin Jin put her arm on the counter and beckoned to Cheng Sangluo with her finger, "Come closer."
The puppy leaned closer suspiciously, asking, "What are you up to now?"
Lin Jin cupped the puppy's face in her hands and said earnestly, "Since you've been behaving well these past few days, this convenience store will be your snack store from now on. You can eat whatever you want, but you can't eat rice balls or milk that are about to expire. Aren't you afraid of getting an upset stomach?"
"My snack stash?" Cheng Sangluo smacked her lips, her mind a little foggy, but then her eyes suddenly lit up. "Can I eat all the snacks here?"
"Hmm~"
"Really?!" Cheng Sangluo exclaimed, turning around and running to the front of the container to rummage through it.
Before long, she returned to Lin Jin with a bunch of snacks she had always wanted to eat but couldn't bear to buy.
Lin Jin looked leisurely at the happy little dog and sighed inwardly that this person was too easily satisfied.
Among that pile of snacks, the most expensive one was a cheese ball that cost only about twenty yuan.
Cheng Sangluo peeled one open and offered it to Lin Jin, repeatedly confirming, "Don't charge me after I've eaten it."
"So, in your eyes, I'm such a stingy person." Lin Jin was both amused and exasperated, and snatched the cheese ball from the puppy's hand.
"I'm not stingy, but you're full of tricks. If I'm not careful, I'll fall into your trap. I'm just being cautious." The puppy grumbled and peeled another one for itself, stuffing it into its mouth.
Finally tasting the rich milky flavor, she forced a happy smile and exclaimed, "It's delicious! Expensive things really are different!"
Lin Jin's smile, which had just returned, stiffened slightly as she realized that there could be someone in this world who could show such a pure expression of happiness because of a piece of cheese.
In that instant, she belatedly realized that the little dog was just a woman in her early twenties, who should be enjoying a vibrant and colorful life at this age.
But life has broken her spirit.
Cheng Sangluo didn't think too much about it. She thought the cheese was delicious, so she quickly peeled another one for herself. Wanting to stuff it symmetrically in her mouth, she peeled another one.
Her satisfaction seemed to end at that point, as if two pieces of cheese were enough.
"Cheng Sangluo".
Suddenly hearing the madwoman call his name sternly, the little dog puffed out his cheeks and stared blankly at her: "Huh? What's wrong?"
"Let's go shopping together." Lin Jin raised her delicate fingers and presented the item to Cheng Sangluo. "Little Sangzi, put on airs~"
Cheng Sangluo glanced at the slender, delicate hand in front of her and retorted irritably, "Do you think your foot injury isn't serious enough, or that it's healing too quickly? You've only just gotten a little better and you're already causing trouble, thinking about going shopping? Why don't you go shopping in space?"
Seeing the puppy's anxiety on her behalf, Lin Jin smiled warmly and said gently, "There's nothing I can do. The puppy is moving into my house soon, and I have to pick out her necessities myself. Even though she's injured, I have to prepare everything properly. See how much care I put into you?"
Cheng Sangluo was busy tidying up the snacks she had scavenged when she suddenly looked up, her eyes wide with surprise. "When did I agree to move into your house?"
"Um..." Lin Jin said in a soft, coquettish voice, "For the next few minutes, you agree to stay at my house."
"Heh, you can predict something like this?" Cheng Sangluo chuckled dryly, then became a bit reckless: "Then I just won't agree, and you can't do anything about it. You can't just kidnap me in broad daylight, can you?"
Lin Jin scoffed, knowing that the rebellious bastard wouldn't give in easily, but fortunately, this habitual refusal was harmless.
She was very confident, after all, she had endless tricks up her sleeve when it came to manipulating puppies, and with just a flick of her finger, that person would be utterly defeated.
"Which little dog accidentally lost his job again? Which little dog used to beg me to marry him? Now everything is ready except for the little dog, but he broke his promise." After a sigh, Lin Jin slowly stood up, dragging his heavy walking aid, and swayed alone towards the convenience store entrance.
Seeing that Cheng Sangluo was still unmoved, this cunning woman played the victim again, "Fine, I'll go shopping by myself, I don't need you to come with me, do whatever you want."
After saying that, Lin Jin pretended to lose her balance and stumbled towards the glass door in front of her, letting out a suppressed groan of pain: "Hiss..."
The scene Cheng Sangluo witnessed seemed to be filtered through a tragic lens.
The madwoman's back view was so thin it was pitiful; her frail body was not even as wide as the freezer door next to her.
She dragged her injured foot, each step she took felt like she was walking on knives and through fire, making people want to rush forward and help her up.
Her carefully styled long curly hair became quite messy as she limped, and a strand of hair falling beside her ear perfectly captured the madwoman's disheveled state.
"Be careful!"
Finally, the immovable man took a long stride and caught the slender waist of the crazy woman before she fell.
Lin Jin casually wrapped her arms around Cheng Sangluo's neck, tilting her head and revealing a triumphant smile: "I knew it, you have a soft heart~"
Ugh, I've been caught again!
Cheng Sangluo clicked her tongue, but didn't get angry. "I'm not one to go back on my word. I won't break my promise to you, but you have to give me some time to prepare. You came without saying a word and just announced the next arrangements. Can't you respect me a little? After all, we're partners, we're equals!"
Lin Jin listened to the puppy's incessant babbling, so she simply tapped the puppy's mouth with her fingertip and scolded, "You always say you'll have some time, but I don't have that much time to wait for you to prepare. The daylily has gone cold again and again, and I can't wait any longer!"
That soft, sweet voice saying "can't wait" seemed to be under a strange spell, drilling into Cheng Sangluo's ears and disturbing her peace of mind.
Lin Jin tightened her arms around the puppy's neck, pressing her advantage: "Besides, didn't someone say they would take good care of me and protect me?"
Now Cheng Sangluo had no chance to refute, and could only nod sullenly, as if acquiescing to the upcoming cohabitation life.
......
Cheng Sangluo tidied up the convenience store briefly and then repeatedly checked the lock on the door.
She seemed somewhat distracted, perhaps adjusting her emotions to accept the fact that they were living together, or maybe she was planning her next steps, which is why she walked slowly toward the Bentley.
When she reached the intersection, she saw Lin Jin leaning lazily against the car door.
That graceful figure created a unique scene on the bustling street, and even the elaborate walking aid seemed to have become a fashion item, easily attracting the attention of passersby.
Cheng Sangluo never acknowledged Lin Jin's stunning beauty, only thinking that rich people knew how to dress themselves up. She believed that beneath that glamorous exterior lay nothing but rottenness.
But eyes never lie.
She herself didn't realize that no matter when or where, she could always spot Lin Jin at first glance.
Just like at the yacht party, Bai Mu pulled her to steal a glance at Shu Wan, but what she saw was still that extremely annoying crazy woman.
At this moment, Lin Jin was holding a fork and eating watermelon in small bites.
Those bright red, translucent lips, glistening with the moisture of fruit juice, give the illusion that not only is the watermelon sweet, but the lips themselves are also sweet.
When Cheng Sangluo walked over, his gaze naturally fell on her soft red lips. Feeling that this was inappropriate, he hurriedly looked away.
Lin Jin smiled contentedly and handed the half-eaten watermelon to her. "Don't you love watermelon the most? I specially asked Sheng He to buy this. I've tasted it, and this piece is the sweetest."
She habitually raised the corner of her eye, probably to say, "The sweetest thing I've ever tasted is this; you have to eat it whether you want to or not."
Cheng Sangluo frowned, inwardly shouting, "Who wants to eat your leftovers? I'm not a garbage can."
However, his body betrayed him; he had already snatched the half-watermelon with his head, chewing it as if he were venting his anger, as if he had bitten Lin Jin to pieces and swallowed it.
She found a reasonable excuse; she could always convince herself not to waste food.
Lin Jin was very satisfied, reaching out to ruffle the puppy's head, her eyes full of undisguised doting affection. "Get in the car~"
......
The atmosphere in the carriage was quiet, with only the soothing piano music playing.
As Cheng Sangluo gazed at the fleeting street scene outside the window, a sudden heaviness gripped her shoulders, accompanied by a rich, sweet fragrance.
She turned her head to look at the peaceful sleeping face, the fine eyelashes trembling slightly, causing a strange flutter in her heart.
Her breathing slowed slightly, as if afraid of disturbing the sleeping person, and she unintentionally reached out to protect the head that was tilted to one side of the shoulder.
Lin Jin wasn't asleep. With her eyes closed, she quietly smiled triumphantly, stretched out her arms, and tightly wrapped them around the puppy's neck, transforming into the clingy koala once again.
"Don't move... let me lean on you for a bit..."
That voice, as always, captivated hearts; the soft breaths from her nose made Cheng Sangluo's earlobe feel weak as well.
Cheng Sangluo smiled helplessly. She knew that if she treated the crazy woman well, she would take advantage of her. However, she did not withdraw her hand from her head and even secretly stroked her soft hair.
Lin Jin raised her nose and rubbed it against the puppy's neck, enjoying the hard-won intimacy.
If we got a little closer, maybe we could steal a kiss.
"Don't rub! It itches!" Cheng Sangluo seemed to sense the crazy woman's little scheme, and her low cry revealed more helplessness than panic.
She was always afraid that being too ambiguous with each other would erode the strength in her heart, so she quickly withdrew her arm and created distance, saying, "You really are something, you get so arrogant just because I'm nice to you a little!"
Lin Jin, having lost the puppy's warmth, sat up straight, still feeling a bit unsatisfied, and started mimicking others again: "You really are something, you get so arrogant just because I'm nice to you a little!"
The puppy bristled: "Imitating me?"
The crazy woman teased, "I'll just copy you~"
The puppy angrily exclaimed, "How boring!"
The crazy woman joked, "You're so boring!"
The puppy lost.
[Author's Note]
1. The following chapters will contain content from before the revision, but they will not be entirely the same.
It roughly means that it continued using the content from chapters 21-34 before the revision.
So readers who have seen it before might find it somewhat familiar, please understand.
2. My upcoming novel, "The Sinful Lover," is available for pre-order. Please add it to your favorites.
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