Chapter 49: 49

Time returns to the afternoon.

Lin Xiuyuan, who was busy behind the bar, suddenly heard footsteps approaching. He looked up and saw Park Jiyeon, her face full of smiles.

"Oppa, let me help you."

Lin Xiuyuan smiled and replied casually, "If you guys want to eat something, just go to the freezer and take it out; a quick zap in the microwave and it's ready to eat."

Faced with this statement from Lin Xiuyuan, Park Jiyeon couldn't help but laugh as she walked into the bar area. "Oppa~ so all the food in this tavern is pre-made and then just heated up in the microwave?"

"Pretty much, though some are boiled or mixed. But I'm too lazy to do much else. You guys just eat whatever; you came here to drink, not to have a full meal, right?"

As he said this, Lin Xiuyuan gestured toward the door. "If there's something you really want to eat, tell me and I'll go buy it for you outside. There's a snack stall right next door; it's very close and fast."

He said this without any hesitation, and his voice wasn't quiet, so Park Hyomin and Xueli over by the sofa heard every word clearly.

Xueli was slightly stunned, but Park Hyomin had already laughed out loud. "Boss Lin, shouldn't you be saying things like that behind our backs as customers? Isn't it a bit awkward to say it right to our faces?"

To Park Hyomin's shout, Lin Xiuyuan laughed and replied, "Ah, that. It's fine, these are all quality-assured products that I've tasted myself, so don't worry. Also, you don't have to call me 'Boss', just call me by my name."

After Park Hyomin and Lin Xiuyuan exchanged a few pleasantries, Xueli, sitting beside her, gently nudged her arm and asked with a hint of confusion, "Unnie, is this guy really the owner of this tavern? He's so young, is he some kind of second-generation rich kid?"

"Probably not, I'm not sure. He's Jiyeon's friend, seems like he's from Huaxia."

Park Hyomin's familiarity with Lin Xiuyuan was far less than what Park Jiyeon knew. "But this tavern is membership-only; non-members can't enter. Right now, only Jiyeon and Jessica are members."

"Then we..." This statement left Xueli momentarily bewildered.

"Jiyeon can bring people in. Besides, he told me yesterday that he wanted to get to know you, which is why I found you. But looking at it now, it seems a bit strange; he doesn't seem to have any intention of paying attention to you at all."

Speaking of this, Park Hyomin glanced at Lin Xiuyuan again, thinking perhaps the other party was too shy to face his idol.

As it turned out, Lin Xiuyuan behind the bar was chatting enthusiastically with Park Jiyeon, their laughter constant.

Watching this scene, Xueli couldn't help but laugh too. "It is indeed a bit strange. Someone who didn't know better might think the person he likes is Jiyeon, not me."

After another while, Lin Xiuyuan brought over two drinks and a fruit platter, placing them in front of them.

Looking at the fruit platter, Park Hyomin instinctively looked at him.

Lin Xiuyuan understood in a second and laughed, "I bought them at the fruit shop around the corner when I opened up and froze them. I don't have such good knife skills."

"Hahaha, Boss Lin, you have quite a lot of pre-made dishes here."

"It's fine, as long as the most important thing—the alcohol—isn't pre-made, it's fine."

Regarding this point, Park Hyomin was relatively accepting. "Indeed, as long as this isn't pre-made, it's fine."

After finishing, she looked at Xueli. "Try a sip. The drinks Boss Lin mixes, whether in texture or taste, are really much better than anywhere else."

Hearing her, Xueli picked up the glass and sniffed it first; a refreshing tea fragrance wafted up.

Taking a sip, the fragrance of tea and pine nuts intertwined in her mouth. It was slightly bitter at first, but it was quickly neutralized by the sweetness of the peach, and the lingering honey-peach aftertaste was endlessly memorable.

This taste really made Xueli, who had been drinking quite a bit lately, brighten up. She looked up at Lin Xiuyuan.

Park Hyomin chimed in from the side, "Isn't it pretty good?"

"Mm, much better than the ones outside." Xueli wasn't lying.

Just as she finished speaking, Lin Xiuyuan, under Park Hyomin's incredulous gaze, slowly smiled. "Then Xueli, would you like to get a membership here? You can come over and sit whenever you want to drink in the future."

"Ah?"

Xueli was a bit stunned, not expecting to be invited.

Although her first impression of Lin Xiuyuan was good, it wasn't enough to call it close, so she hesitated for a moment.

But Park Hyomin couldn't take it anymore and started wailing from the side. "Wow, Mr. Lin, you're being too biased! Is this what you call 'pleasing to the eye'? Yesterday, Enjing, YoonA, and I were all here, and you didn't mention membership once, but today, as soon as Xueli arrives, you invite her directly?"

Xueli, who had been hesitant, immediately brightened up when she heard Park Hyomin say that she, Lin Yun'er, and Xian Enjing hadn't been invited by Lin Xiuyuan.

A beautiful woman's self-esteem and pride were completely ignited by this sentence.

So she gave a light laugh. "It would be my honor."

Just like that, Park Hyomin, watching Xueli follow Lin Xiuyuan to register her fingerprint and iris, was so angry that she complained to Park Jiyeon, who had just brought over some snacks.

Her grumbling made Park Jiyeon laugh non-stop, and then she looked over at the two of them.

She knew very well why Lin Xiuyuan had invited Xueli, and was even more delighted that Lin Xiuyuan was in this space-time; only then would there be a chance to avoid so many regrets in advance.

At this moment, she heard Xueli ask Lin Xiuyuan, "Mr. Lin, what was the name of the drink I just had?"

A name?

Why does everyone like to ask for the names of cocktails?

Thinking of this, Lin Xiuyuan glanced at her. "White Peach Oolong Gin and Tonic."

Having received the answer, Xueli gave a shallow smile. "Peaches, huh? Haha, they really do suit me."

Early morning.

Krystal, upon learning that Xueli had already been here in the afternoon, took a long time to slowly come back to her senses.

At this time, Lin Xiuyuan had already mixed her a 'White Peach Oolong Gin and Tonic' and brought it before her. "Here, this is the drink I mixed for Xueli this afternoon. Want to try it?"

Zheng Xiuyan, who had been holding Krystal's small hand the whole time, went straight to the point with Lin Xiuyuan. "Lin Xiuyuan, did you register Xueli as a member?"

"Mm, it was only a matter of time, and I think sooner is better than later."

Lin Xiuyuan, not denying it, looked at Krystal, his tone serious. "If Krystal is ready, I plan to take her over there to look around in a few days. Because I've seen some comments recently saying that this 'human peach' seems to have been running into those scumbags lately."

It was precisely because of this that Lin Xiuyuan decided to speed up the arrangements and have Park Jiyeon act as a bridge for him to get to know Xueli.

Hearing Lin Xiuyuan say this, Krystal finally opened up that dusty memory from over a decade ago. She hurriedly widened her eyes, her gaze like a blade as she looked at Zheng Xiuyan.

"Unnie, after you go back, can you warn Jin Xiaoyuan in your group? If Xueli doesn't want to go to a dinner party, don't force her to do it. Why use others as stepping stones for the connections she wants to climb?"

Hearing Krystal drop the honorifics and call Jin Xiaoyuan by her name directly,

Zheng Xiuyan was suddenly stunned, her brows furrowed tightly. "You mean to say that regarding Xueli's matter, Xiaoyuan is involved?"

"Maybe not directly, but she can't escape the indirect connection even if you cut her head off." ===== CHAPTER 50 =====