Who Wants to Love Bad Girls - Chapter 31

After the opening of the “Garden” branch, business at “kilig” surprisingly improved. Kevin, in order to promote the new store, brought along the best host boys from the “Garden” branch, taking away a large portion of Bahe Road’s customers. The previously terrifying crowd of customers diminished, and many of “kilig’s” old customers returned. As a result, Ting Wan became incredibly busy.

“Ting Wan Mama, why don’t you hire a store manager? It’s exhausting to manage the store and entertain the customers at the same time. Can your body handle it?” Recently, the store has been busy until late at night, and Lán Líng noticed that Ting Wan was always the first to arrive and the last to leave. She felt tired just by observing her.

Ting Wan held a freshly picked flower in her hand, but her movements remained unchanged for a while. Unusually, her mind seemed elsewhere, and she didn’t respond.

“Ting Wan Mama?” Lán Líng called out again, and Ting Wan suddenly looked up, offering an apologetic smile. “I’m sorry, what did you say just now?”

Lán Líng had to repeat her question.

“Besides this store, I don’t have anything else. I can’t trust anyone else to handle it,” Ting Wan replied, her movements swift and graceful as she trimmed the flowers with her scissors. She carefully arranged the trimmed branches in a vase, creating an artistic display.

“Do they look nice?”

Lán Líng was still pondering over Ting Wan’s previous response, sensing a hint of loneliness. Indeed, during the years she had worked at “kilig,” Lán Líng had never seen Ting Wan show any interests or hobbies aside from taking care of flowers. Ting Wan was kind to everyone but maintained a certain distance from everyone. Lán Líng had never witnessed her having any real friends, and she had never mentioned her family. During holidays, while everyone else took time off, Lán Líng would return to find changes in the “kilig” store, realizing that Ting Wan had been there the whole time without leaving.

“That’s great! Ting Wan Mama, your skills are good enough to open a flower shop,” Lán Líng snapped back to reality and wanted to change the topic to something lighter. “Miss Chi hasn’t been to the store in a while.”

Upon hearing this, Ting Wan lowered her gaze. “It’s normal for customers to come and go. You seem quite concerned about her?”

“Well, I’m just curious if Ting Wan Mama knew Miss Chi before. It feels like you treat her differently,” Lán Líng replied.

“I don’t know her.”

Ting Wan’s response was calm and her expression remained unchanged, but Lán Líng couldn’t help but feel a sense of disbelief.

It was the preparation time before the grand opening, and most of the others were in the lounge. It was just the two of them at the counter. Lán Líng leaned on the table and hesitantly said, “I have something to tell you… Please don’t get angry.”

Ting Wan turned her head and looked at Lán Líng’s cautious demeanor, finding it somewhat amusing. “Go ahead, you’re acting so hesitant. It’s not like you.”

“I actually went to the ‘Garden’ new store during my day off yesterday… Let me clarify that I was there to gather intelligence,” Lán Líng glanced at her, seeing that she didn’t seem angry, and continued, “I saw Miss Chi and her friend there.”

Ting Wan’s movement paused for a moment, then she stood up and placed the flower vase on the table. “It seems that the promotion for the ‘Garden’ new store was not in vain.”

Lán Líng had expected some kind of reaction from her, at least a sense of crisis. But Ting Wan remained calm, as if the matter being discussed had nothing to do with her.

The more composed Ting Wan appeared, the more suspicious it seemed. Lán Líng had noticed several bottles of wine in the liquor cabinet with labels that read ‘Ojou-sama,’ written by Ting Wan Mama herself. It was obvious that they knew each other, so why deny it?

“Alright, you said you went to gather intelligence. So… what did you find?” Ting Wan’s tone was mocking.

Lán Líng blushed immediately, feeling caught off guard. She tried to maintain a tough front and responded, “The hosts there are especially good at pleasing customers. I, too, learned a lot from the experience!”

“Is that so?” Ting Wan smiled at her. “I look forward to seeing how Lán Líng will put her newfound knowledge into practice.”

Lán Líng hastily fled into the lounge, feeling embarrassed.

After Ting Wan watched Lán Líng leave, her smile faded, and she held a discarded stem of a lisianthus flower in her hand. She absentmindedly tossed it into the trash bin.

…

Once again, Ting Wan left work early. This wasn’t the first time this rare occurrence had happened recently.

The new “Garden” store was located in the bustling entertainment district of Duqiao, the liveliest area in N City. Even in the early hours of the morning, there were still people stumbling out of various bars, and a few bodies lay motionless on the streets, resembling corpses. The late-night traffic was sparse, and several taxis were parked on the side of the road, waiting for customers. Ting Wan gave the driver extra money and sat quietly inside, not getting out of the car.

As time ticked by, the driver happily pocketed the extra cash and dozed off in the driver’s seat, snoring loudly. It wasn’t until Ting Wan’s gaze caught a familiar figure that he appeared.

Chi Jianyue didn’t seem to be drunk. She was lazily leaning against Zhuang Xiao, and there were a few other women accompanying them. The male hosts sent them to the entrance and said something that made them laugh.

Ting Wan recognized the host who escorted them, Ban Kemu, the top host at “Garden.”

She dialed Chi Jianyue’s number and watched as the girl looked surprised when she took out her phone. Ting Wan had never called Chi Jianyue before, so this was the first time.

“Hello, Ting Wan?”

“Jianyue…” Ting Wan’s voice was gentle. “I got off work early today and didn’t see you at home. I was a bit worried.”

“Oh, I’m still outside. I’ll be back soon. Sorry, I forgot to tell you,” Chi Jianyue replied.

“It’s okay. Where are you, Jianyue? Do you need me to come pick you up?”

Chi Jianyue could hear the softness in Ting Wan’s voice, even through the phone. She couldn’t help but imagine the expression on her face as she spoke. Unconsciously, a hint of a smile appeared on her own face. Zhuang Xiao, seeing her reaction, couldn’t help but sneer in a sarcastic tone.

“Cough…” Chi Jianyue glanced at her. “I just finished dinner with a friend. You don’t need to come. I have a driver to take me back.”

Ting Wan stood at a distance, gazing in the direction of Chi Jianyue. The evening breeze caused her long skirt to sway, and she tucked a few unruly strands of hair behind her ear, smiling softly. “Alright, I’ll wait for you to come back.”

At this hour, there wouldn’t be any restaurants open.

Ojou-sama really doesn’t know how to lie, huh?