Chapter 375: Chapter 299: Lin Lu’s Mother Chapter 375: Chapter 299: Lin Lu’s Mother Zheng Qingfeng was a bit clueless, what was the use of scalpers?

But Brother Zhu always liked to be cryptic and never spoke plainly.

He probably figured that even if he explained, with our level and rank, chances were we wouldn’t understand anyway.

We were all just ordinary freshmen; I couldn’t understand how Brother Zhu’s brain could come up with so many things beyond our comprehension.

Indeed, not everyone’s eighteenth year was the same.

Nevertheless, since Cheng Zhu had said so, Zheng Qingfeng let the matter go.

He had been worried that the abundance of scalpers would severely impact the milk tea shop.

An hour later, Cheng Zhu finished handling what needed to be done and left Star City with his three sworn sons.

On the way back to school, Dong Dong was engrossed in a heated chat with a girl he had just added.

Then we abruptly heard him slap his thigh with a look of wanting to cry but no tears to shed.

“What’s wrong, practicing self-harm?” Cheng Zhu asked.

Dong Dong’s voice was almost sob-laden, “Brother Zhu, she asked me if I could give her your WeChat, saying her friend wanted to add you.”

Cheng Zhu turned to look at him at a red light and intentionally smiled as he teased, “Why are you so upset? It’s just her friend who wants to add me.”

“I have a feeling she doesn’t have this ‘friend’!” Dong Dong was on the verge of stomping his feet in regret. He wasn’t that naive; he could vaguely detect her strong interest in Cheng Zhu from the way she spoke.

“Oh, look who’s grown up,” Cheng Zhu gave him a thumbs up.

Mr. Dong looked out of the window, speechless and wanting to jump out of the moving car.

Why! Why must I suffer twice in such a short time! Why!

…

…

After returning to school, Liu Feng and Zheng Qingfeng brought the colorless Dong Dong, now greyscale again, back to their dormitory.

Today was Friday, and Cheng Zhu went to return the car to Lin Lu.

He had been busy before and Lin Lu told him not to bother returning it, saying she didn’t need the car over the weekend.

But Cheng Zhu figured she hadn’t told her parents about lending it out and thought it best to take it back to make its presence known.

He’d been making a fair bit of pocket money lately and planned to visit a 4S store or auto mall over the weekend, just to pick up a new car on the spot.

No need to buy anything too fancy, a Land Rover “Discovery” would do.

It would cost just over a million on the road.

It would complement Ning Bao’s Land Rover “Range Rover” and Baby Lu’s Land Rover “Discovery” for a family of three.

After parking the car at Xinhang Apartment, he sent a WeChat message to Lin Lu.

Soon after, he saw Baby Lu coming downstairs.

Today, Lin Lu wore a deep brown sweater that looked very thick. The oversized sweater’s sleeves covered half her hands, and the hem wrapped around her behind.

She also wore a light brown scarf around her neck, similar in color to the sweater, but with a slight difference.

Uncommonly today, she even wore a light brown cotton cap to match the scarf.

Some people’s head shapes and faces just don’t suit beanie hats.

But Lin Lu seemed suitable.

She looked quite special in this outfit, vibrant and youthful.

Seeing her looking as if she was freezing and scurrying towards the car, Cheng Zhu couldn’t help but think, “Too cute. Trying to kill me?”

It was like seeing a little bear running towards him.

“Cold, cold, cold! The weather is getting colder, and it’s even starting to drop!” Lin Lu truly seemed to fear the cold.

“It might even snow in a few days,” Cheng Zhu said with a smile.

“Ah? Really? It’s going to snow?” She got excited at the prospect.

“Seems like it, hurry up and get in the car, it’s warm inside.” He opened the car door for her.

She didn’t want the meeting with Cheng Zhu to be so rushed.

But since he had already opened the door, she had no choice but to get in.

After she got in, Cheng Zhu waved goodbye.

Lin Lu first waved back through the window, then she rolled down the window to speak a few more words with him.

“Look at how you’ve adjusted this seat.”

She measured the distance between the seat and the steering wheel with her hands and legs.

“Long legs, what can I do about it?” Cheng Zhu said with smugness.

“Whatever!” While Lin Lu said that aloud, she thought to herself, “He really is tall.”

Their conversation carried on for a couple more minutes and, not wanting Cheng Zhu to catch a cold outside, she reluctantly said goodbye.

Watching Cheng Zhu enter Building B of Xinhang Apartment, she then drove away.

Not long after driving, while waiting for the red light, she noticed an unopened box of candy on the cup holder.

She immediately took a photo and texted Cheng Zhu, “How dare you leave candy in the car, I’m going to steal some!”

“Just bought it when I was getting cigarettes, it was meant for you anyway,” Cheng Zhu replied.

Lin Lu felt delighted, responding with a sticker that said, “Nice, nice, I’m quite satisfied.”

She quickly opened the candy box, took one, and put it in her mouth.

“Sweet, sweet, sweet! Then let’s play Jay Chou’s ‘Sweet’ to set the mood,” she really knew how to create an atmosphere for herself, starting the music in the car.

After parking in her residential area, Lin Lu backed into the garage, then put the candy in her bag and went upstairs.

Once upstairs, she found her mother, Meng Yue, and her younger brother, Lin Qi, sitting in the living room, each holding a cup of milk tea, indeed from Cheng Zhu’s Youu Tea!

“Eh? You guys went to get Youu Tea?” Lin Lu asked.

“Yeah, I just went to buy it, then went to pick him up from school afterwards,” her mother Meng Yue replied.

“Lu Lu, it’s actually my first time seeing a milk tea shop with scalpers.” Meng Yue seemed intrigued and impressed.

“Ah? You actually bought it from scalpers?” Lin Lu was stunned.

“Yep, or else the line would’ve killed me. My time is precious, you know,” the youthful-minded mother winked at her daughter.

Lin Lu was quite like her mother in many ways.

“What made you think of getting Youu Tea all of a sudden? Has it really gotten that popular among middle-aged folks too?” Lin Lu said, sitting down on the sofa, curiosity written all over her face.

“What do you mean ‘middle-aged folks’ circle’? You talk as if I’m no longer part of the young crowd,” Meng Yue sounded a bit disgruntled.

Lin Qi was silent the whole time, incessantly sipping on his tea.

It’s delicious, indeed much better than the milk tea at the high school gate!

His favorite part was the cheesy milk cap; the first sip was even a little startling.

“Alright, alright, you’re still young.” Seeing how her mother boasted about Youu Tea, Lin Lu flattered her a bit, then asked, “Do you guys like it?”

“It’s quite nice,” Meng Yue replied. “I thought it might just be a gimmick, but the taste is surprisingly good, and it feels a bit healthier than other milk tea shops?”

“Well, that’s for sure, they use really good ingredients,” Lin Lu chimed in promptly.

Meng Yue looked at her, slowly setting down her milk tea, and said, “I heard from Xia Liang that he designed this shop, and that you introduced the project to him.”

Xia Liang was Youu Tea’s designer.

“Yep, the owner is a good friend of mine,” Lin Lu replied. “Xia Liang must be thrilled now; his design became an internet-famous shop and he’s probably going to increase his design fee.”

“The company is now buzzing because of him, talking about it to everyone,” Meng Yue smiled.

To her, having a viral internet sensation designed by their own company was a great benefit.

It meant having one more successful case to show to future clients.

Those looking to open a popular shop would be more easily convinced.

And you have to realize, those wanting to create a viral shop tend to be willing to pay for design, investing more in the interior.

Even though the decoration industry is quite murky, these kinds of projects often bring in even higher profits.

“But let me tell you a secret, Xia Liang didn’t put too much effort into the design,” Lin Lu confided to her mother.

“He just did whatever my friend told him to.”

She thought Cheng Zhu was really impressive; he just had a knack for things!

Look, he created a distinct style for his small claw machine shop, established several check-in spots, and it immediately caught on as he had envisioned.

The same went for the milk tea shop; it was starting the new trend and might well be imitated by many in the future.

Sometimes she even felt it was a pity that such a person wasn’t working for their company.

He was far better than Xia Liang!

“Eh, wait, that’s not right. If I hook him, doesn’t that mean he’s pretty much part of our company?” The mercurial Lin Lu suddenly had this thought.

Listening to her daughter, Meng Yue chuckled and remarked, “Really? So this young friend of yours basically led the design? Seems like this youngster has quite the ideas, and our company is now basking in his glory?”

“Pretty much!” Lin Lu prided herself on this, sharing in the joy.

Meng Yue watching her, then said all of a sudden, “I chatted with Xia Liang today, and he said the owner of this shop is a young, handsome guy, tall and good-looking.”

Lin Lu felt a bit nervous upon hearing this, sensing some sort of signal in her mother’s words.

“I went to buy the milk tea today hoping I might run into this handsome guy, but the shop didn’t have any good-looking ones at the time; I guess he wasn’t there when I went,” Meng Yue chuckled.

“Ah? You wanted to go see him?” Lin Lu was shocked.

The high schooler Lin Qi, who had been focused on enjoying his milk tea, was now sensing something amiss in the conversation between his mother and sister; his ears perked up.

Gossip, I smell gossip!

“Why are you being so nervous? Can’t I meet your friend?” Meng Yue asked.

Lin Qi put his milk tea down and looked at Lin Lu, blurting out, “Sis, you aren’t in love, are you? That guy isn’t your boyfriend, is he?”

…

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