Chapter 549: Hidden Meanings

"He actually stole clothes from the warehouse for Tang Lili? This is truly love."

Lin Chuxia was amazed; getting caught wouldn’t just be a minor work mistake.

Wang Tianxue sneered, "That Tang is pregnant, Yang Rui is desperate for a son, of course, he wants to take good care of her."

Lin Chuxia: "..."

For some reason, it felt like there was more to Wang Tianxue’s words.

Thinking back to the incident that day, is the child in Tang Lili’s belly really Yang Rui’s?

"Mr. Lin, it’s really you. I thought I was mistaken."

A voice from behind interrupted their gossip, and they saw Liu Na walking over with a smile.

In just a year, Liu Na had completely transformed into a different person.

The naive and humble girl at Qin’s Restaurant had now evolved into a confident and graceful woman of strength.

She managed the service staff at the mall, constantly attending to customers’ preferences, controlling the direction of supplies, and became Wang Tianxue’s right-hand woman.

Especially after getting engaged to Houzi, Lin Chuxia noticed Liu Na became even more confident.

Someone who loves you will not dim your light or overshadow your talents but will make you shine brighter and more assured.

Counting the days, their wedding was less than half a month away.

"How are the wedding preparations going? Do you need me to talk with Manager Wang to give you a few days off?"

"I’d rather make money than prepare for the wedding," Liu Na smiled, "In recent days, our mall’s customer flow is several times better than before. I don’t want to miss such a good opportunity to earn money."

"You little money-grubber, Houzi would cry if he knew your thoughts."

"No, he is more obsessed with money than I am."

After Liu Na said that, everyone laughed.

These days, it’s indeed a good time for business to boost performance.

With Liu Na accompanying her, Lin Chuxia simply let Wang Tianxue handle things and went around the mall.

The membership system proposed last time was already in place, and each floor offered free alteration services.

Any clothes purchased from Huamei Mall could be altered once for free.

Lin Chuxia found a queue at each alteration stall.

Liu Na explained, "These days, many people are buying clothes, most of them are just having their pants shortened, but it’s okay, if any tasks can’t be completed, we keep the measurements, set a time, and they can come back..."

Lin Chuxia listened to her explanation while nodding continuously.

The various plans she and Wang Tianxue made last time were diligently implemented, along with some unanticipated supplements; no wonder the mall’s business was booming.

"Mr. Lin, you wouldn’t believe, because of our free alteration services, many customers immediately choose our mall, no matter how much the department store across the street imitates us, they’re always a step behind. I had a service staff member investigate, many customers go to the department store, just to look around, see the styles, but ultimately they come to Huamei Mall to buy. Don’t be fooled by the similar number of people on both sides, the real spending over there is definitely not as much as ours."

Lin Chuxia was surprised Liu Na had such insight, "Keep up the good work, and I’ll give you a big bonus at the end of the year."

"Mr. Lin, even without your big bonus, I’ll do my best," Liu Na said with gratitude in her eyes.

By noon, Wang Tianxue wanted to go out for lunch with Lin Chuxia, but Lin Chuxia refused.

Out all morning, if she didn’t go back at noon, Qin Yang surely wouldn’t be at ease.

Because of this, Lin Chuxia got laughed at by Wang Tianxue.

Laugh if you want, Lin Chuxia always considered those she cared about more important than those harmless jokes.

When she got home, Qin Yang was already cooking, and when he saw her return, he came out of the kitchen to greet her.

Although he didn’t say it, his eyes showed concern.

Seeing Lin Chuxia was fine, his eyes shifted from worry to layers of affection.

"What’s for lunch? I’ve been running around all morning, I’m hungry, Sister Tianxue wanted me to eat out with her, but worrying that my husband was bored alone at home, I decided to come back, friends aren’t as important as a husband, am I right?"

Qin Yang smiled and took her scarf, "Naughty."

Lunch was rice, Qin Yang cooked braised pork using Lin Chuxia’s special seasoning, it tasted great.

He also stir-fried two vegetables to balance out the richness, and made a soup with white radish and egg.

Just as they were starting to eat, Yuan Bao barked lowly outside, and shadows moved in the yard.

"It’s Jiadong, why is he here today?"

Qin Yang put down his chopsticks and stood up, while Lin Chuxia frowned.

They were supposed to return directly to school after the competition in the capital.

With the final exams approaching, academic pressure was intense.

"Second sister," Lin Jiadong entered from outside, calling Lin Chuxia first.

Lin Chuxia nodded, seeing his face was red from the cold, his eyes showed fatigue, she didn’t ask much, pointing to a seat, "You haven’t eaten yet, sit down and eat first."

Qin Yang already served him a bowl of rice.

Lin Jiadong removed his scarf and gloves, looked up with the bowl in his hands, "Thanks, brother-in-law."

"Eat first, we can talk after."

Lin Jiadong said no more, sat down quietly and ate.

After eating, Lin Jiadong instinctively collected the bowls to wash them, Qin Yang took the bowl from his hands, "I’ll clean up, you talk to your second sister."

"Okay," Lin Jiadong obediently replied and followed Lin Chuxia to the main room.

"What happened?" Lin Chuxia asked.

Lin Jiadong sat on the chair with his head down, after a long time he said, "Nothing really, I just missed you, second sister, and came over."

Lin Chuxia didn’t believe his words.

"Does it have to do with the competition in the capital?"

Lin Jiadong suddenly looked up, then lowered his head again.

Lin Chuxia understood immediately.

"Did the results come out?"

Lin Jiadong nodded, "They came out yesterday, third place."

"That’s great, placing third in a national competition, Jiadong, I’m proud of you."

Lin Jiadong looked up again, this time his eyes were slightly red.

"Second sister..."

Lin Chuxia patted his shoulder, "Tell your second sister what’s troubling you. You placed in a national competition; what can’t you overcome?"

Lin Jiadong nodded, calming himself before speaking slowly.

It turned out that during their trip to the capital for the national math competition, a small incident happened.

When they arrived in the capital, the guesthouse they stayed at was mostly filled with exam participants—a room for six people.

They were three girls, seven boys plus the teacher—three rooms were booked.

But no one wanted to share a room with the teacher, so in the end, Li Youmin pulled Lin Jiadong and Xu Cheng to share a room with the teacher.