Give Her a Chance to Flirt! - Chapter 19

Chapter 19

After the recognition banquet, the deepest impression left on the guests was unexpectedly the launch of the Hongran Project’s new product, the Iced Black Tea.

Lin Momo had been taken home by Lin Yuan. Seeing her dejected appearance and that Halo that didn’t dare to flash blindly anymore, Lin Jiu estimated she wouldn’t be causing trouble for a while.

The system hadn’t reacted lately, and no new messages had come through. As long as Lin Momo stayed quiet, Lin Jiu intended to wait for a system update before deciding her next move.

It was getting late, and Lin Jiu wanted to go home, but she was stopped by a sharp glare from the Old Lady. Like a collective punishment, Lin Father, Lin Mother, and Lin Wen were all made to stay for the hearing.

At the previous Hongran kickoff ceremony, Yu Yihan’s special treatment of Lin Jiu had already raised the Old Lady’s suspicions.

Lin Momo’s appearance had been so startling that it disrupted everything, causing the Old Lady to forget that thread for a moment. Recalling it today, she had to ask about everything, new and old alike.

Lin Jiu said modestly, “I only offered a few suggestions.”

The Old Lady narrowed her eyes. “Oh? What suggestions?”

Although Lin Jiu was full of “Green Tea” wit, she didn’t like lying, especially to her elders.

The Old Lady was clearly determined to get to the bottom of it, so she had no choice but to say:

“Well… I suggested she try using Hongran No. 77 for cooking. It turned out to be quite successful.”

The Old Lady pointed a finger at her, speechless for a long time, her expression complex:

“Should I praise you for making progress, or scold you for being brainless?”

“If you have ideas, you should talk to your own family first. This is something that could have secured benefits for our household. You foolishly gave it to Yu Yihan for free, letting her reap the rewards while our own family got nothing.”

Lin Father, who usually had a weak presence, spoke up:

“I heard from Big Brother that the contract is much better than expected. The Yu family has been very supportive of our offline tea houses during the rollout. We’re currently in a honeymoon phase with the Yu family.”

“Honeymoon? Your daughter is practically becoming a member of the Yu family,” the Old Lady scolded. She turned back to Lin Jiu. “Why is your face red?”

“It isn’t.” Lin Jiu touched her face. Darn, it really is a bit hot.

She immediately lowered her head. “Hearing Grandmother’s words, I feel very ashamed. I’m already reflecting on it.”

“And what has your reflection yielded?”

Lin Jiu stalled for a second, realizing this question came from Lin Wen.

Lin Jiu’s tone was cautious, but the content was stubborn:

“I did it because I wanted to. If I must reflect, perhaps it’s because I’m too excellent? My ideas always hit the mark.”

Translated: I was wrong, but I’ll do it again.

“…”

One thing at a time; Lin Jiu never regretted her actions.

Moreover, Lin Father was right—Yu Yihan was not the type to take benefits for nothing.

Lin Jiu hadn’t asked for anything at the time, but Yu Yihan seemed to have re-evaluated the value of their relationship. Throughout the execution of the plan, the preferential treatment the Lin family received was more than generous.

The Old Lady’s lecture now was more about being annoyed that the junior had kept her in the dark.

Lin Jiu added, “That was only once. In the future, business is business with Yu Yihan.”

Lin Wen looked at her sister, gaining a fuller understanding of her.

She looked submissive and obedient, but when she got stubborn, everyone else’s words were just wind in her ears. And… her art of conversation was top-tier.

Just look—the Old Lady had given up on communication and went to drink tea.

However, Lin Wen also noticed that when Lin Jiu mentioned “the future,” the Old Lady didn’t object.

No one doubted if Lin Jiu would have a “next time.” From the Hongran Project to this Iced Black Tea, no one was naive enough to think Lin Jiu had achieved these results by sheer luck.

As an outsider to the Hongran Project, Lin Wen couldn’t quite relate. She shifted her posture and said:

“Regarding this Iced Black Tea business…”

Lin Father said, “Xiao Jiu talked to her mother and me about it. She said she wanted to try making a new type of drink to see if she could cooperate with the Yu family. We didn’t expect it to actually work.”

Lin Father’s tone was full of pride. “We said we wanted to give everyone a surprise, so we didn’t hide it on purpose.”

Lin Wen said gloomily, “So that means I’m the only one in the family who didn’t know?”

Lin Father went silent and gave a small cough.

Lin Wen, who couldn’t quite grasp the Old Lady’s emotions earlier, now felt a strong sense of empathy for her.

She took a breath, refocusing her attention on the matter at hand, her pale eyes staring at Lin Jiu:

“If business is business, then you go and talk to Yu Yihan yourself about the Iced Black Tea.”

As soon as the Old Lady heard this, she knew what her most prized granddaughter was plotting.

The Old Lady thought it was worth letting Lin Jiu use this small project to practice, so she allowed it:

“Did you hear your sister?”

Lin Jiu opened her mouth.

“You can’t do it?”

Lin Jiu shook her head and said:

“You’ve misunderstood.”

“?”

“Iced Black Tea isn’t just one project.”

Lin Jiu smiled, her back straight, explaining in a soft voice:

“It’s just one of the drinks. I will continue to develop others in the future.”

“Hongran No. 77 just happened to fit my idea. I don’t just plan to cooperate with Yu Yihan; I also intend to use our family’s tea leaves and cooperate with the other two tea estates.”

Lin Jiu spoke eloquently. Looking at her silent family members, she thought for a moment and asked for their opinion:

“This is what I plan to do next. What do you think?”

In the silence, the Old Master was the first to clap happily:

“Not bad at all! Xiao Jiu being so capable is really not bad at all!”

Only then did the others snap out of it.

This time, the gaze the Old Lady directed at Lin Jiu was mixed with something heavier and more substantial. Her tone softened:

“Go ahead and do it—one more thing.”

Lin Jiu waited attentively for the second half of the sentence.

“Make some hot drinks first. Your grandfather’s stomach isn’t great.”

The Old Master blinked. “Don’t you also—”

“That’s all. The talk is over. You can all go back,” the Old Lady said with a stern face.

Lin Jiu looked at her grandfather with sympathy.

After stating her position to the family, Lin Jiu threw herself into the research and development of new tea drinks starting the next day.

The direction she wanted to take was obvious and not complicated to describe: she wanted to create milk tea shops tailored for this world.

With the foundation of tea already established, tea drinks weren’t rare, and there were many chain models. However, because the main focus hadn’t been placed in this direction, the product flavors were mediocre and lacked a good reputation.

Lin Jiu aimed at this market. Various types of tea leaves that could be collected from the market were continuously delivered by car for Lin Jiu to experiment with.

Because there were too many items and deliveries were frequent, Lin Jiu simply bought a first-floor apartment in the same building to use as her R&D studio.

Though called a studio, she was too lazy to go back at night, so she just slept in the master bedroom. She had essentially moved out to live on her own.

Aside from the tea leaf deliveries, almost no one came to her door.

Thus, when Lin Jiu pulled open the door and saw Yu Yihan standing before her, she was momentarily dazed.

Under the hazy lights of the corridor, her gaze traced Yu Yihan’s delicate features, finding them intimately familiar yet possessing a hint of unconfirmable strangeness.

It wasn’t until the elevator dinged and a tea estate worker carrying large and small bags stood behind Yu Yihan that Lin Jiu made way at the entrance:

“I haven’t seen you for a few days. Why are you here?”

Yu Yihan stepped in. When she bowed her head to change her shoes, her soft long hair covered her profile, the ends swaying gently.

Lin Jiu couldn’t see her expression, only hearing her say:

“So you know it’s been a few days since we last met.”

“It’s only been about a week,” Lin Jiu replied casually, her mind still on the several cups of tea on her workstation being compared.

Only.

Yu Yihan’s eyes darkened as she watched Lin Jiu go to greet the tea estate worker.

The worker placed the tea leaves at the entrance and said with a smile:

“Miss, I won’t come in; I’m rushing home. It’s raining hard outside. Thanks to President Yu giving me a lift, otherwise, it would be hard to get a taxi, and the Dianhong tea would have gotten soaked.”

It’s raining?

Lin Jiu looked at the glass window; it was covered in wet streaks. She could clearly hear the sound of raindrops hitting the glass, a dense patter-patter.

The raindrops must be many and heavy, yet she had only just noticed.

Lin Jiu didn’t keep him. “Thanks for the hard work. I’ll treat you all to a meal later.”

The person delivering the tea was from the tea estate under the Qingyu Mansion that Lin Jiu managed. They were familiar with each other, so he agreed with a laugh and left.

Lin Jiu closed the door. Turning around, she saw Yu Yihan was already helping her carry the bags inside:

“Where should I put these?”

Lin Jiu led the way, opening the second door on the left and stepping aside to let Yu Yihan in:

“Here is fine. Thanks! Sorry to trouble you with giving him a ride.”

As Yu Yihan walked in, both of them were squeezed into the space of a single doorway. The paper bags were in the way, making a rustling sound as they crinkled together, sounding like a gentle scrape against the ears.

Yu Yihan didn’t let the paper bags hit Lin Jiu.

She looked up to survey the room.

Top-tier apartments like this usually came renovated. Lin Jiu had moved in hastily, so it clearly hadn’t been remodeled; the extra furniture had simply been cleared out.

Currently, the most eye-catching thing in the spacious room was the pure white workstation. It held simple supplies, mostly related to tea.

In the center sat three tea cups that hadn’t been cleared away. It seemed her appearance had interrupted Lin Jiu’s work.

Behind her, Lin Jiu walked forward, all the way to the window.

She pressed a button on the control panel. The sheer curtains slid open to both sides, and the night view accompanied by the heavy rain burst into Yu Yihan’s eyes.

The distant night lights and the rain screen on the glass overlapped, inextricably weaving together a magnificent world.

Deep blue, dark purple, dim yellow, cold silver.

When it rains, rooms always seem particularly quiet.

Lin Jiu mused:

“Was it the Start of Autumn a few days ago? ‘One autumn rain, one layer of cold.’ Summer is about to end.”

Yu Yihan gave an “hmm,” her tone slow and rhythmic as always:

“It is indeed a bit cool tonight.”

Lin Jiu nodded, calculating that she could prioritize launching hot drinks to catch this winter. That should be just right.

Behind the Lin Jiu who was focused on her startup research, Yu Yihan stared intently at her silhouette.

The thin night light outlined Lin Jiu’s profile; her features were refined to a dreamlike degree.

For a moment, Yu Yihan couldn’t tell if those water droplets were attached to the glass or if they were trembling and rolling gently down along the curves of Lin Jiu’s exquisite body.

Her lips felt dry. she looked away, not daring to look further.

She watched the constant flow of neon-lit traffic and spoke the words she had already rehearsed and calculated:

“No need to thank me. My schedule tomorrow morning is nearby. Can I stay over for a night?”

Just a stay-over.

Stay in the second bedroom, Yu Yihan thought. She just wanted to be in the same space as Lin Jiu; it shouldn’t be too much. Lin Jiu had no reason to refuse.

President Yu was full of confidence.

The next second, she heard Lin Jiu’s answer:

“Ah, of course you can. But I’ve converted all the other rooms already.”

“The master bedroom is the only place with a bed. You won’t mind sleeping in the master bedroom, will you?”

Yu Yihan’s fingertips went numb.

“Then you…”

“Don’t worry about me. I’ll be sleeping in the master bedroom too.”

Rumble. A muffled, rolling thunder sounded, and a flash of brilliant white light tore through the summer night sky.

That faint numbness traveled rapidly, crawling right into Yu Yihan’s heart.