Chapter 104 Is there ever a time when the boss is this kind?

"Your voice is as robust as ever."

Ling Yue covered her ears and took a step back.

Song Xinyao no longer had time to find trouble with Jiang Ruoting; she squeezed out from behind the stall and walked up to Ling Yue, once again sizing her up carefully from head to toe.

"Did you go to South Korea for plastic surgery?

My god, it's only been... one, two, three years since we last met, right? How did you become so beautiful?

Fine clothes make the man, just as a fine saddle makes the horse. I knew you'd look great once you cleaned yourself up!

Hey, why are you in Suzhou?

Are you here for a trip?

To think you'd wander into my stall—what kind of crazy fate is this!"

Her mouth was like a loaded machine gun, rattling on and on without pause.

Luo Shanshan was stunned; this person could talk even more than she could.

But looking at her boss's expression, she didn't seem displeased.

Ling Yue raised a hand in front of Song Xinyao. "Wait a second, which question should I answer first?"

"Uh... did you go to South Korea for plastic surgery?" Song Xinyao reorganized her thoughts.

Good.

Her traits hadn't changed.

Still a sucker for a pretty face.

"It's all-natural, original parts," Ling Yue rolled her eyes.

Song Xinyao paced back and forth in front of Ling Yue. "I didn't look closely just now, but the texture of your clothes, the state of your skin, this seaweed-like hair, and..." She suddenly leaned in and took a deep breath. "Sister, you smell so good!"

Good.

Her perverted streak hadn't changed either.

Ling Yue pushed her face away. "Did you wash your hands after using the bathroom? You're just pawing at me."

Song Xinyao instantly puffed up her cheeks like an inflated punching bag. "I only got lazy that one time and didn't wash my hands, and you've remembered it until now.

I really can't afford to have a grudge with you in this life, or you'll be cursing me in your heart forever."

Liang Hanlin: What? Cursing in her heart? Since when was the boss so merciful? I've never seen it.

"Forget it, a reunion is rare." Song Xinyao's face deflated again.

She took Ling Yue's arm. "Come on, let's find a place to have a good chat. It's been over three years. You have no idea how much gossip I want to tell you; I've saved up a whole basketful.

You vanished all these years, and I had no idea where you went to make your fortune, but looking at you now, you must have been very successful.

You little brat, you didn't even send us a message. As expected, people forget their roots once they get rich!"

Being dragged along by Song Xinyao and listening to her constant chatter, Ling Yue felt for a moment like she was back in the second semester of her sophomore year.

Back then, she used to go tutor an elementary school student on weekends.

Once, the child didn't do well on a monthly exam because they were feeling unwell. The employer blamed her for not teaching well and didn't want to pay the tutoring fee.

Ling Yue called the police. Even with police mediation, the other party only agreed to pay 60% and even declared that she should sue them if she had the guts.

Suing required money, and Ling Yue had none at the time. Being alone in Hangzhou, she didn't dare trouble her teachers and thought she'd just have to accept the bad luck.

Unexpectedly, after her roommates found out, they were furious and wanted to go demand justice for her.

Back then, Song Xinyao had dragged her along just like this, venting her anger the whole way: "Those shameless bastards. If they don't give us the rest of the money, I'll make sure the whole neighborhood knows what kind of people they are.

What kind of skill is it to bully a college student! Do their parents know? Does their workplace know? Does the kid's elementary teacher know? If they don't, I'm going to make sure everyone knows!"

With that momentum, the four roommates stood downstairs in the residential area and spread the word to every passing household. As luck would have it, that person lived in the same neighborhood as their boss.

To save face, the employer ended up paying the remaining 40% of the tutoring fee to Ling Yue.

That was the first time she experienced the feeling of having someone back her up.

Ling Yue was moved to tears.

Once she got the money, she said she wanted to treat her roommates to a meal.

Song Xinyao stopped her. "Since you're treating us to food, shouldn't we be the ones to decide what to eat?"

Ling Yue nodded. "Of course!"

She was still a college student then, and since she was tutoring general subjects, the fee was 120 yuan per session. With eight sessions a month, paid monthly, it totaled 960 yuan.

In the past, she had to deposit 500 yuan into the bank every month for next year's tuition; the rest was for living expenses.

This time, because her roommates helped her get the rest of the money back, she decided to spend 400 yuan to treat them to a meal.

Then she'd save 100 and have 460 yuan left for next month's living expenses.

However, her roommates dragged her to Mixue Ice Cream and Tea and only bought four ice creams of different flavors.

The four of them squatted on the curb, taking bites of each other's ice cream in a circle so that everyone got to taste every flavor.

Thinking back now, her decision to go find trouble with the Mao family mother and son must have been inspired by this event.

"Sis, what about the stall?" Jiang Ruoting shouted from behind.

Song Xinyao called out loudly, "You close up later, and I won't hold it against you for pocketing the money."

Jiang Ruoting thought to herself, the pocketed money hasn't even made it into my pocket yet, and the person paying was dragged away by my big sister!

Ling Yue and Song Xinyao arrived at a snack shop.

Song Xinyao greeted the shop owner and skillfully ordered two cups of Suzhou-style mung bean soup, a portion of 'wolf-tooth' potatoes, two pieces of fried tenderloin, a portion of chicken strips, and a bowl of hot and sour rice noodles.

"This snack shop has been open for twenty years. My elementary school is right next door. It's economical and delicious without being expensive. You won't look down on it, will you, Miss Rich?" Song Xinyao teased while paying.

Ling Yue crossed her legs. "Then what are you still standing there for? Hurry up and come serve me."

"Ling Yue, oh Ling Yue, you've learned some bad habits, you little rascal!" Song Xinyao waved her phone at the owner to show the payment was made, then turned around. Just as she was about to say something else, she was stunned by the scene before her.

Seven or eight people were standing behind Ling Yue, protecting her. Looking out the door, there were five more burly men holding various items, standing there like pillars.

"You..." She opened her mouth, but couldn't quite find the words.

Only then did Ling Yue realize that her people had crowded into the small shop, filling the already narrow space.

This would make it impossible for the owner to do business.

"A-Lan stay. The rest of you can keep shopping if you want, or go back if you'd like." The next part was for sisters to catch up; she didn't need so many people following her.

No one questioned Ling Yue's command.

Only Qu Shu was a bit worried. "There are too many people here. Is it okay to only leave A-Lan?"

"It's fine." Ling Yue nodded. She probably wasn't famous enough yet to be at risk of assassination.

Qu Shu: "What about the massage therapist?"

Ling Yue: "Pay the waiting fee and let him go back first."

"Understood."

After Qu Shu complied, everyone except Zang Lanyi turned and left the small shop.

Smooth arrangements, superb efficiency.

Song Xinyao's mouth hung slightly open. "I'm shocked for a hundred years!"

She dashed over to sit in front of Ling Yue, her gossip soul burning. "Have you really struck it rich?"

Ling Yue brushed a lock of her smooth, shiny hair. "Isn't it obvious enough?"

Song Xinyao clutched her heart and leaned in close to Ling Yue, whispering, "Traveling with bodyguards to carry your bags and so many people accompanying you—ah! I know!"

"Know what?"

"You passed the civil service exam and have been transferred to Suzhou as a big leader! Because it's a confidential unit, they're both monitoring you and protecting you!!"

Ling Yue: "...Your way of thinking is as eccentric as ever."

Seeing Ling Yue's eye roll, Song Xinyao knew she hadn't guessed right.

She pursed her lips, thought some more, and said, "Then it's that you worked hard after graduation, started a successful business, and became a big boss yourself. You're in Suzhou this time to negotiate a multi-million dollar project!"

Multi-million? Big project?

Ling Yue indicated she hadn't negotiated anything like that.

"Not that either?" A lightbulb suddenly went off over Song Xinyao's head, and her previously confused eyes instantly became suggestive.

"It couldn't be~~ that you provoked some overbearing CEO and tried to run away with his child, and the CEO is worried about being abandoned by his wife and kid, so he arranged bodyguards and secretaries to look after you, but actually to monitor you!"

As she spoke, her eyes kept glancing at Ling Yue's stomach.

"That's enough..." Ling Yue took the Suzhou-style mung bean soup from the shop owner and shoved the straw into Song Xinyao's mouth.

She continued, "Your second guess is closer to reality. Just think of me as having succeeded in my business and transformed into a rich woman."

It only took Song Xinyao a second to believe it. "No wonder you vanished right after graduation; you were busy building your career.

True, in our whole dorm, you were the one busy with part-time jobs all day. You started accumulating work experience in college, so you'd definitely be more successful in society than us.

These three years must have been very hard, right?"

"Not really hard."

Ling Yue glossed over those past difficult moments.

Not because she didn't want to reopen old wounds, but because it really didn't matter anymore.