Push Me Away When I Come, Don't Hold Me Back When I Leave - Chapter 123

Chapter 123: I Heard You Opened a Coffee Shop?

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“Umm… if senior thinks so, then alright.” Luo Qingxuan hesitated for a moment before nodding, “Then, senior, regarding the ingredients, will you be responsible for them, or should I?”

Since Xia Ruoming wanted her to be the manager, she would take on the role. Luo Qingxuan wouldn’t try to guess what Xia Ruoming was thinking; she just wanted to help her.

Xia Ruoming was somewhat surprised but didn’t show it on her face. She had thought Luo Qingxuan would decline more, but before she could use any of her prepared reasons, Luo Qingxuan had already agreed.

As expected of her childhood friend, she was always so considerate.

“Regarding the coffee beans, you should contact the suppliers yourself. I won’t interfere with that, after all, you know that using these coffee beans, this cafe might go bankrupt in a few days,” Xia Ruoming said while glancing at the coffee beans in the jar, shrugging her shoulders, “However, you don’t need to worry about things like milk. I’m planning to open a milk tea and snack shop downstairs, and these items will be supplied to you uniformly.”

“Alright, senior.” Luo Qingxuan responded while recording the shop’s equipment and various conditions in the store’s notebook.

“Oh, right, Qingxuan, there’s one more thing I’d like to ask of you.”

Luo Qingxuan, who was taking notes, looked somewhat confused. What else could she help her senior with? Though she thought this, she still maintained her unchanging smile and said, “Just tell me what you need help with, senior. If I can do it, I definitely will help.”

“Um… it’s about Chu Suhe.” Xia Ruoming said softly, “I want Chu Suhe to be the acting manager when you’re not around, but she doesn’t have much experience either, so I hope you can guide her when you can. She’ll mainly be responsible for things downstairs, so it won’t trouble you too much, is that okay?”

“Pfft… senior, I thought it was something serious. Leave this small matter to Qingxuan.” Luo Qingxuan laughed. She was certainly willing to do this kind of thing, not only helping with her senior’s romance but also potentially preventing the story between Jiang Ruhua and her senior to some extent when Chu Suhe and her senior became closer. It was killing two birds with one stone.

After Luo Qingxuan accepted Xia Ruoming’s request, Xia Ruoming gave her a copy of the cafe’s keys and told her some things about the cafe and Chu Suhe’s contact information.

Then Xia Ruoming received a call from Yan Ming and had to leave the cafe hurriedly without much explanation to Luo Qingxuan, leaving her sitting confused at the counter.

……

……

When Xia Ruoming’s Macan arrived at the campus, Yan Ming had been waiting for her at the entrance for a long time.

“Director Yan, I’m back, let’s go.” After parking the car in the usual spot, Xia Ruoming got out directly.

After Yan Ming nodded, he led Xia Ruoming to the principal’s office. On the phone, Yan Ming had already told her that the principal seemed to have something urgent to discuss with her. Since Xia Ruoming wasn’t particularly busy, she naturally rushed back quickly.

“Knock, knock, knock.” The sound of knocking on the wooden door echoed.

“Come in.” The same elderly voice came from behind the door, a voice all too familiar to Xia Ruoming.

Upon entering and seeing Wu Kejin’s kettle on the table, Xia Ruoming immediately “thoughtfully” brewed another pot of Biluochun King tea for Principal Wu Kejin, who didn’t stop her and just watched from the side with smiling eyes.

“Please sit.” After taking the kettle, Wu Kejin gestured for Xia Ruoming to sit on the nearby sofa.

“It’s been a while, Principal. What did you want to see me about today?” Xia Ruoming quickly asked, feeling uncomfortable under Wu Kejin’s constant gaze.

“Haha, that previous patient and polite demeanor is gone now, eh? People really do change quite quickly.” Wu Kejin couldn’t help but laugh seeing how Xia Ruoming didn’t even refer to herself as a student anymore.

“Can’t help it, pretending to be nice is too tiring. I’m just not cut out for putting on that smooth, nice-person act, so I had to give up,” Xia Ruoming said helplessly, spreading her hands while sitting on the sofa.

“This genuine personality does seem more like an ancient top scholar… Well, never mind, we’re getting off track. I called you here today for something important.” Wu Kejin rambled on before suddenly realizing he was getting further from the main topic and brought it back.

“Please go ahead, Principal.” As soon as Xia Ruoming heard “important matter,” she immediately put away her smile, though she didn’t know what “important matter” the principal could have for her.

“I heard you opened a coffee shop, and its location is near the school.”

“Uh… so the school is some kind of KGB-like organization, monitoring what students do off campus every day? Feels not quite like… the FBI.” Xia Ruoming’s face twitched. Apart from Chu Suhe and the other two, she hadn’t told anyone about this yet. How the hell did the principal know? Did Zhejiang University have its own internal secret police? Besides, opening a coffee shop wasn’t illegal, so why was the principal concerned about this?

Seeing the irreverent Xia Ruoming, Wu Kejin smiled helplessly and shook his head.

“I also looked at some information about you. In high school, you donated 1 million yuan to the school to support poor students, right?” Wu Kejin continued asking after adjusting his glasses, ignoring Xia Ruoming’s little joke.

“Maybe probably possibly indeed there was such a thing…?” Xia Ruoming became increasingly confused, completely not understanding why Wu Kejin called her here today. If it was to praise her for what she did in high school, why make it so mysterious?

“Does your coffee shop need staff?”

“What?” Xia Ruoming was stunned. “Maybe… possibly… probably… needs some?”

She gave an uncertain answer too, thinking that if there weren’t too many people for the second-floor cafe, Luo Qingxuan might be enough alone.

“What I mean is, could your coffee shop provide some appropriate support for the school’s poor students? Of course, I don’t mean for you to just give money directly. You know, although poor students can apply for state subsidies, Zhejiang University’s subsidy doesn’t exceed 4,800 yuan, and even if it’s all used for tuition, the poor students still have to contribute some money themselves. Moreover, not all poor students receive these poverty subsidies…” Wu Kejin sighed deeply as he spoke. Some things weren’t completely within his power to change. “These poor students working part-time jobs outside often find work that’s too intensive and significantly affects their studies…”

“I understand what you mean, Principal. If Stellaris Coffee Shop needs staff, you hope I’ll prioritize considering the school’s poor students?” Xia Ruoming narrowed her eyes and said, “But Principal, you also know that since it’s my coffee shop, it’s not comparable to those chain stores that use instant coffee and cheap beans. I can’t possibly hire people who know absolutely nothing about being baristas.”