âWhat are you looking at?â Shu Yan saw that Le was pushing her luck further and further. Le was pulling out every single article of clothing, looking at it, and then casually putting it back. She was making a mess on her shelves.
âOh! I am just checking out the style and quality of your clothes,â said Le as she put a jacket on herself. âThis one is quite pretty. Where did you get it from?â
âCity Hang, of course.â Shu Yan gave her a casual look. Unfortunately, Le has pretty thick skin. She leisurely took off the jacket and put on a windbreaker. âThis one looks good on me. Shu Yan, we are friends, right? Just give this to me.â
Shu Yan helped her out of the windbreaker as she smiled slightly and said to her, âWe had merely shared a ride once in the past, and we are competitors. Your taste is so good that I am sure you wonât like anything at my place. I wouldnât want to make you take anything from my shop. Your place seems very busy; you should go back to take care of your customers.â
As she was talking, she pushed Le to the door. With a bright smile, she said to her. âI ask you to join us for lunch, but you are too polite. We are neighbors after all. Come visit again soon!â
âYou...â said Le as she stomped away.
âIs that a good idea to antagonize her?â Zhang Huaxiu felt that itâs best to not offend anyone when running a business.
âLetâs eat,â said Shu Yan as she gave her a look but didnât explain herself.
Zhang Huaxiu was a nice person, except that she was too soft. She was easy to get along with in everyday life and also made a good service personnel as she could be very patient with customers. But she wasnât a good managerial candidate. She wouldnât be able to manage those under her and also wouldnât be able to take care of any sudden situations.
Shu Yan had thought about grooming her to become the store manager, but had put that on the back burner recently. She would need further observation.
As for the unpleasantness between her and Le? Le had been antagonizing her since the last time they returned and had made some snide comments here and there. Shu Yan had ignored her previously, but when she came to cause trouble in her shop today, Shu Yan was already very kind for not throwing her out the minute she stepped foot inside.
By 4 oâclock in the afternoon, the crowd was thinning out. Shu Yan gave Zhang Huaxiu a heads up and left to pick up her children.
She ran into Wu Xiuyue with the two children on her way.
âOh, you are back. Your Jingjing is so mature. When I went over to your place this morning, she was already dressed and even dressed her brother. Her face was washed and her teeth were brushed. My son is the same age as her, but boy, are they different.â The more she looked at Jingjing, the more Wu Xiuyue liked her.
âGirls always mature earlier than boys. Plus, your Hanhan was quite docile as well.â All parents liked to hear their kids praised. Shu Yan was quite happy from Wu Xiuyueâs words. Thatâs right. Her daughter was so cute and mature.
âHe? Heâs the reincarnation of the devil,â said Wu Xiuyue as she shook her head. âYou are still having promotions at your shop, right? I can take your kids home with me and you can pick them up after you and Xiuxiu get off work.â
âNo, itâs alright. I have troubled you enough.â Shu Yan didnât like troubling others. She only asked Wu Xiuyue for help today because she had no other options.
âDonât be such a stranger. Itâs not an inconvenience at all. I meant to ask you. Arenât you really busy lately? I can help you pick up the kids. I donât have a lot going on at home anyway, just sitting around most of the time.â Wu Xiuyue was very sincere when she said that. âIf you donât mind, you can have dinner at my place as well. Although, our meals wonât be as nice as yours.â
Shu Yan found that tempting. The promotion activities would last seven days, and she was slammed every day. She had to pick up the kids in the afternoon then head back to the shop. Never mind the time it took to run back and forth; it was also taxing on Shu Yanâs body. It would, indeed, be very helpful if Wu Xiuyue could help her pick the children up.
âItâs on my way anyway. I might ask you for favors in the future as well,â said Wu Xiuyue again.
âTo tell you the truth, I am quite busy as of late. With the promotions going on at my shop, I have to head to City Han every three days. As mature as Jingjing is, she is only 7. I worry about her taking Tianbo to school by herself. I will take you up on your offer for this week.â