Chapter 17: The Queen

"Are you using a laptop?"

"Why?"

"Secretary Ning, your looks are truly top-tier; even from an upward-slanting angle, you look so good!"

"Heh... is there something?"

"Part-time job finished, got paid!" Chen Shu smiled cheekily at Ning Qing on the Mobile Phone screen. "When does your part-time job end, Secretary Ning?"

"Anytime."

"Secretary Ning is amazing!"

"Have you ever heard that there is a type of Cultivator who can kill even across the internet?" Ning Qing was wearing a white shirt, staring fixedly at the camera. She had thought this would make Chen Shu feel her killing intent, but realized it was a bit silly, so she decisively gave up and slightly lifted her chin. "You are not allowed to call me Secretary Ning anymore."

"Then what do others call you at the company?"

"Secretary Ning..."

"Then why can't I call you that?"

"You are teasing me."

"I am not!"

Chen Shu firmly refused to admit it.

"I am not stupid."

"Alright."

Chen Shu stretched his back: "I want to go out for a stroll, are you going?"

"Going."

"You didn't even ask me what I'm going out for."

"Going."

"When?"

"Anytime is fine."

"Then let's make it tomorrow, and call Xiaoxiao too."

"Mm."

Ning Qing was still sitting in the office, watching the video call end. After pondering for a while, she glanced at President Ning, who was sitting in the secretary's seat: "Chasing this gimmick is meaningless. We ourselves follow a route of being affordable, approachable, and providing good service; our foundation is here. And the market here is very large. I don't think it's necessary to pretend we are high-end. Maintaining the impression of good quality, good service, and high cost-performance in the minds of young people today is the top priority. What we should be thinking about is not how to make a twenty-thousand-yuan bed, but how to make a two-thousand-yuan bed that is of good quality, beautifully designed, and liked by young people."

"Do as you see fit."

"You could discuss it with me."

"I trust your judgment very much. Just make the decision; don't bother me."

"Pfft..."

Ning Qing took a sip of water and, catching a glimpse out of the corner of her eye, saw that she had actually received two messages from Curator An.

How rare.

Withdrawing her gaze, she looked up at her father, who was still reading a report, and said indifferently: "President Ning, your wife says she wants to eat together tonight and asks if you have any restaurant recommendations."

President Ning frowned, not even lifting his head: "Why does your mother suddenly want to eat together? Is she sick? Annoying. Can't she just pick whatever she wants to eat?"

As soon as he finished speaking, he heard a "whoosh" sound.

President Ning looked up instantly.

Ning Qing had just released her finger from the screen and was looking at him very calmly: "Oh, I found typing troublesome, so I sent a voice message. I pressed the talk button right after asking you."

After saying that, she even played it back for him to hear: "Why does your mother suddenly..."

President Ning looked at Ning Qing with an expressionless face.

"Buzz."

Ning Qing lowered her head to glance at it, then lifted her head again, still in that clear and indifferent tone: "President Ning, your wife asks if you are looking to die."

President Ning put down the report and took out his own Mobile Phone.

The next day, Taiye Square.

Chen Shu brought the soy milk boxes he had made for the two sisters and found a milk tea shop to sit and eat.

"Is it delicious?"

"Delicious!"

Xiaoxiao answered more enthusiastically than her sister. She looked up at Chen Shu and said: "I've never eaten this before."

"I hadn't made it before."

"Why didn't you make it?"

"I tried twice a few years ago, but it didn't turn out well. Even my sister didn't like eating it, so I didn't bring it to you. I've been a bit free these past few days, so I tried making it again. It actually turned out okay. Even Chen Jiaoshou thought the taste was good, so I brought it for you to try."

"Thank you, brother-in-law."

"Xiaoxiao seems to be in a very good mood today. Is there anything worth having Joy over?"

"Yes, two things."

"What things?" Chen Shu really wanted to hear.

"One is that I ordered takeout at home yesterday and found that the boss had made a typo, so I left a note to remind him." Xiaoxiao scooped a spoonful of soy milk into her mouth, pursed her lips, and shared her daily life Joy with her brother-in-law. "As a result, the boss gave me a small cookie and left me a note. I felt so happy when I saw the cookie and the note."

"That's really nice."

Chen Shu couldn't help but want to pat her head. If only the older sister could be this nice too.

"And the other one?"

"It's that Mom was so irritable yesterday; she found an excuse and grabbed Dad to give him a beating." Xiaoxiao didn't forget to eat while talking, so as not to let her sister eat it all. "But what's not happy is that lately, people keep coming to ask me and my sister how we study. My sister ignores them, so they all come to surround me."

Ning Qing glanced at Xiaoxiao sideways:

"I see you're having quite a good time playing."

Xiaoxiao ignored her sister and sighed softly:

"Sigh, so annoying."

She sounded like an adult when she said this.

Chen Shu pursed his lips and smiled, took a sip of milk tea, heard the gurgling sound of the straw in the empty cup, and seeing that they had almost finished the soybean milk box, he casually threw away the milk tea cup: "Eat quickly, once you're done we can go shopping, let's walk through this entire mall."

"Brother-in-law, what do you want to buy?"

"Just wandering around, if I see something I want to buy, I'll buy it; most of the things I need, I've already bought online."

"Oh."

The young girl quickened her eating speed.

Two hours later.

Chen Shu hadn't bought anything, but he had picked out a few shirts, pants, and a pair of shoes for Xiaoxiao; some were paid for by him, and some were paid for by Ning Qing.

If Chen Shu remembered correctly, the last time he took the young girl out to buy clothes was last year. He didn't feel right picking them out for her online, and Xiaoxiao didn't shop online herself, nor did she care for dressing up. But how could a young girl not buy a few new outfits every year? Chen Shu had no choice but to bring her along every time he went shopping with Qingqing.

On the way back after shopping, Chen Shu was still thinking about that pair of strappy high-heeled sandals he had seen earlier, and the pair of long legs above them, and couldn't help but feel a sense of regret:

"What a pity, those shoes were really good-looking."

"If I wore them, I'd be taller than you." Ning Qing walked forward at a steady pace.

"I don't mind if you look taller than me; it would actually make me look very rich." Chen Shu finished speaking and turned his head, "Isn't that right, Xiaoxiao?"

"No, it wouldn't."

"Why?"

"Brother-in-law is too good-looking," the young girl said seriously. "You'd have to be older and uglier for it to look like that."

"That's true..."

Chen Shu nodded, feeling the same way.

Ning Qing rolled her eyes.

They didn't take a taxi; each carrying a few things, they walked slowly for an hour before returning to the small courtyard of Ning Qing's house.

There weren't many flowers still blooming in the courtyard.

Most rose varieties do not like high temperatures and don't bloom well in midsummer, so Ning Qing often chooses to pinch off the flower buds as soon as they emerge. Since they won't bloom well anyway, it's better not to let them bloom at all, saving the nutrients to grow properly and bloom better in the autumn.

This was the reason most of the flowers had no buds.

But there were some that bloomed well.

Some "Summer" series roses can bloom normally during high-temperature seasons, and sometimes even fail to open if the temperature is too low; Chen Shu admired them one by one.

What surprised him slightly was that the "Queen" in the corner had actually bloomed.

The Queen has a pink-white rosette shape, full of ethereal charm, and stands straight just like a lotus flower. The flowers on the branches were not as large as those in spring or autumn, and had fewer petals, so they lacked a bit of nobility but gained a touch of youthful tenderness.

Chen Shu hurriedly called Ning Qing over to see, and although Ning Qing had already seen it in the morning, she still walked to his side and stood watching him.

"Click, click."

Chen Shu took two photos.

This variety has good uprightness, with every branch growing straight upward, and a tall plant shape, but it has a cold and aloof personality—it has many thorns, like a mace, and it doesn't like to bloom; even if it does bloom, it fades very quickly. In spring and autumn, it can stay on the branch for three to five days, but in summer, it withers in a day.

It could be said to be full of flaws.

But Chen Shu still liked it; as long as it bloomed, he would forgive it.

Putting away his Mobile Phone and sniffing the floral scent, Chen Shu said to Ning Qing beside him: "When you go to Yujing, what will you do with these flowers? Will you let Xiaoxiao take care of them for you?"

"Mm."

"You're so particular about everything, isn't that making things difficult for Xiaoxiao?"

"I'll let her help look after them for one semester first; I've already buried slow-release fertilizer, so she just needs to water them and apply medicine regularly for prevention." Ning Qing paused, "Once I get to Yujing, I'll try to find a house with a courtyard around the school and move the flowers there."

"Oh, so you've already planned it out!"

Chen Shu glanced at the flowers filling the courtyard; even though there was land, most were planted in pots, and potted plants are naturally far inferior to those planted in the ground.

Ning Qing gave a hum of agreement.

Before long, another neighbor came to ask about the sisters' study secrets, knocking on the door with a loud bang, which was a bit impolite.

The homeowners in this residential area were all quite wealthy and placed great importance on their children's education. Having learned a few days ago that one girl in the neighborhood had been admitted to Ling'an Academy in advance and the other had skipped two grades with excellent grades, they all wanted to come and learn from them.

Ning Qing arranged for Xiaoxiao to receive them, while she took a pair of gardening shears and followed silently behind Chen Shu.

Whenever Chen Shu took a fancy to a flower, she would go and cut it down, and clean off the thorns as well.

The sound of Xiaoxiao talking to the neighbor in the distance drifted over faintly.

"How did you get such a high score?"

"If you get more questions right, your score will be higher."

"My child's paper is full of wrong answers."

"Then the score will be lower."

"Then why are you so good at studying?"

"Because I'm smart."

"Is it just because you're smart? My child isn't stupid either, so why are their grades so bad?"

"That's very normal, Auntie. People who are good at studying will naturally be a little better at it, and people who are worse at studying will be relatively not as good."

"Oh my, my child only scored four hundred something on the mock exam this year. I don't know what kind of Talent Academy they can get into next year, and I don't know if there's still room for improvement."

"If you scored four hundred something on the mock exam, you can probably get into a Talent Academy that requires four hundred something... If you improve, you can get into a better Talent Academy, and if you regress, you'll have to go to a worse one."

"Do you have any study secrets?"

"Don't sleep or play games when you're supposed to be studying."

"That is so right! My child is always sleeping or playing games when they should be studying!"

"Then they are very impressive."

"..." The auntie paused for a moment, "Little girl, I heard you have an older sister. Where is your sister?"

"Not at home."

"I will come again next time."

The neighbor auntie left.

The little girl whispered a goodbye to the auntie, and when she turned around, a trace of imperceptible joy was still hidden in her eyes, but the moment she turned, this bit of joy vanished completely.

The little girl frowned slightly and said to Chen Shu:

"Brother-in-law, these people are so annoying."