Pats Little Shrike's Tail - Chapter 55

Chapter 55

The credit of 100,000 karma nearly made Shan Ling jump up with excitement!

She realized that whenever she and Shen Qingyi worked together to find a book for someone, she consistently gained large amounts of inexplicable karma.

Last time it was Miss Chen, this time it was Ji Lingyao.

And each time it was 100,000 karma, which was infinitely better than helping an elderly woman cross the street.

Shan Ling looked at Shen Qingyi, her eyes practically sparkling, feeling that her future boss was simply a walking Karma ATM!

She now vaguely understood why she passively absorbed karma when she was around Shen Qingyi. It might be because Shen Qingyi had helped people find so many books, and this karma was invisible to ordinary humans and had no obvious use.

Shen Qingyi was like a Karma Container with a capacity. As she accumulated more karma, the container filled up, and when it was full, it had to overflow. The +1+1+1 karma she usually got was probably accumulated this way.

Shan Ling felt her decision was incredibly wise; she absolutely had to stay with Shen Qingyi!

Facing Shan Ling’s intense gaze, Shen Qingyi didn’t quite understand.

Why is she looking at me like that?

Like I’m the God of Wealth.

Shen Qingyi was confused but didn’t dwell on it. If Shan Ling liked looking at her, then so be it; it wouldn’t hurt her.

Ji Lingyao got the book she wanted and was reunited with her beloved, so she was naturally very generous with money. The next day at the coffee shop, she transferred ¥350,000 to Shen Qingyi.

“This is your payment for helping me,” Ji Lingyao said. “I know you’re Shen Hongjun’s daughter. Since you’ve done me such a big favor, if your Shen family ever needs anything from our Ji family in the future, I’ll talk to my second brother about it.”

Shen Qingyi looked at the amount in her account and said, “I may never need your help because I don’t intend to accept my father’s business.”

She didn’t ask how Ji Lingyao knew her background. Since Ji Lingyao had been able to find information about her initially, knowing she was Shen Hongjun’s daughter wasn’t surprising.

Ji Lingyao looked at her, blinked, and said, “I actually think you are much better than your sister.”

“Jiao Jiao is only 8 years old. Her future will be better than mine,” Shen Qingyi glanced at her and said, “Having this coffee shop is enough for me.”

“People have different ambitions, just like how I only care about Jiejie,” Ji Lingyao picked up her coffee, speaking with a mix of smugness and emotion. “Even if someone gave me a trillion dollars, I wouldn’t leave Jiejie.”

“An Xin might not think that way,” Shen Qingyi mocked. “She might take the trillion dollars, give you half, and run.”

Ji Lingyao’s face twisted awkwardly. The sip of coffee she took was neither swallowed nor spat out, catching in her throat and making her uncomfortable for a while.

“You talk too much. I shouldn’t have told you about me and Jiejie,” Ji Lingyao stood up, grabbed her backpack, and said, unhappy, “I have a class soon, so I won’t talk to you anymore.”

Shen Qingyi finally noticed her backpack and asked in confusion, “Why are you suddenly attending class?”

“What do you mean, suddenly?” Ji Lingyao crossed her arms and said crossly, “I was admitted to college with high marks, okay? A college student should act like a college student.”

That was An Xin’s exact phrase.

A college student should act like a college student. If you skip class every day, how will you graduate?

At first, Ji Lingyao would whine and say that even if she skipped class, her grades were perfectly fine, but An Xin lectured her for a long time.

“Do you know how many people don’t have access to education? Do you know how hard it is for college graduates to find jobs now? I know you’re a rich second generation and don’t worry about employment, but you shouldn’t waste such good educational resources.”

An Xin, when nagging, really sounded like a worried mother, giving Ji Lingyao a headache.

But she knew Jiejie was worried about her, so Ji Lingyao wasn’t angry. When she truly got annoyed, she would pick An Xin up, toss her onto the bed, and all the nagging would stop, leaving only happy moans.

Thinking of this, Ji Lingyao felt immensely refreshed. She leaned in and asked Shen Qingyi, “I heard that Shan Ling is coming to work at the coffee shop?”

“Mhm,” Shen Qingyi looked at her sideways: “What do you want to say?”

“What could I say?” Ji Lingyao laughed. “Just hurry up and make a move. Shan Ling is so cute; if you don’t, someone else will snatch her up.”

Shen Qingyi grumbled unhappily: “You’re getting too nosy.”

“Not bad. My family owns property by the sea and has several sea-view houses, so naturally, I have a wide scope of management.”

“Just leave already.”

Shen Qingyi impatiently shooed her away: “Come over with your classmates and friends more often for coffee. I’ll give you a 5% discount for group orders.”

“That’s stingy. Only 5%?”

“Can’t help it. I’m narrow-minded.”

Ji Lingyao pouted, slung her backpack on, and left.

After she was gone, Nuonuo came over to clean the table. She watched Ji Lingyao ride off on a bicycle and then said to Shen Qingyi, “Boss, why is Miss Ji riding a bicycle now? Where’s her Ferrari?”

Shen Qingyi said, “Who knows.”

After cleaning the table, Nuonuo said to Shen Qingyi, “Boss, tomorrow is the 1st. Shouldn’t you go pick up Xiao Ling tonight? Otherwise, where will she stay tonight?”

“Mhm,” Shen Qingyi nodded when Shan Ling was mentioned. “I’ll go pick her up after closing the shop.”

“Did Shan Ling find a place to live?”

“Not yet. For now, she’ll stay at my place.”

Shen Qingyi didn’t mention that Shan Ling would be living with her long-term, worried that Nuonuo might overthink it. Since they were going to be colleagues, it was best to avoid such “unnecessary” misunderstandings.

Otherwise, Nuonuo would be constantly pestering her about whether Shan Ling was the proprietress.

Nuonuo understood and remarked emotionally, “I wonder where Xiao Ling is from. I haven’t heard of her having any relatives or friends in this city. I wonder how she managed to come here.”

“We’ll just take good care of her from now on,” Shen Qingyi said.

“Mhm,” Nuonuo felt the same way.

After the coffee shop closed, Shen Qingyi drove to the mall. As she neared the location, Shen Qingyi called Shan Ling. After learning that Shan Ling was still at the amusement park, she went over to find her.

It was just 6 o’clock when she arrived. From a distance, she saw Shan Ling chatting with a few colleagues, who dispersed when Shen Qingyi approached.

“What’s wrong?” Shen Qingyi sat down in her usual spot, asking Shan Ling and Xu Wentao in confusion.

Xu Wentao pouted and said to Shen Qingyi, “You should talk some sense into Xiao Ling. The boss already gave her her final pay today, but she insists on staying until 10 PM to work her last shift.”

Shen Qingyi looked at Shan Ling and asked, “Is that so?”

Shan Ling, however, spoke with righteous conviction: “The boss paid for a full day’s work, so I have to stand here until closing time. Even if it’s my last day, I can’t leave early, or people will talk.”

Xu Wentao said helplessly, “Who’s going to talk about you? We clock out at 10 PM. You still have to pack when you get back. Do you really have the heart to make Miss Shen wait for you for four more hours?”

Shan Ling looked at Shen Qingyi and realized that the other person would indeed have to wait that long for her.

“Well… I didn’t think of that,” Shan Ling said. “Then, Yiyi, why don’t you go back first?”

Shen Qingyi hadn’t even spoken when Xu Wentao interjected: “She’s already here. Why would you send her back? Miss Shen came specifically to pick you up.”

Shan Ling was conflicted. On one hand, she had just declared she would work her last shift diligently; on the other, she truly didn’t want Shen Qingyi to wait that long.

Four hours was truly a bit much.

“It’s fine,” Shen Qingyi said. “I don’t mind. I have nothing much to do at home anyway, so I might as well wait for you to get off work here.”

Xu Wentao blinked, nudged Shan Ling with her elbow, and said, “Look at her.”

Shan Ling looked at Shen Qingyi, a little embarrassed: “Then, can I leave an hour early? Would that be okay?”

Shen Qingyi didn’t mind an hour or two. Since she had nothing to do at home, she might as well let Shan Ling finish her last shift properly.

“Don’t worry about me,” Shen Qingyi smiled. “You work your normal hours. Then, I’ll help you pack. We have a car, so it doesn’t matter how late it is.”

Shan Ling nodded, finally solving this big dilemma, and smiled widely: “Yiyi, have you eaten? I got paid today, let me treat you to dinner?”

“Sure,” Shen Qingyi propped her head on her hand and smiled: “Anything is fine.”

So, Shan Ling took Shen Qingyi to a night market food stall.

Shen Qingyi, wrapped in a black coat, sat on the low stool, still looking slightly bewildered.

Shan Ling wore a padded jacket and bought items from various stalls. Then she ordered a portion of fried noodles. The two shared it, eating along with a table full of snacks.

“Do you remember the late-night snack you treated me to the first time we met?” Shan Ling chewed on an oden skewer and said to Shen Qingyi, “I’ve been thinking I absolutely must treat you back.”

Shen Qingyi’s hair was blown by the cold wind. She squinted and said miserably, “Do we really have to eat at a night market stall in the cold wind?”

“That’s why we need to eat quickly, or it’ll get cold,” Shan Ling stated confidently.

Seeing no way to refuse, Shen Qingyi had to grit her teeth and eat the snacks in front of her, alternating between a bite of noodles and a gulp of cold wind.

However, seeing how much Shan Ling enjoyed the food stall, Shen Qingyi didn’t complain anymore. She even picked some food for her, telling her to eat more.

The two didn’t chat much, as opening their mouths meant a blast of cold wind. Shan Ling was at least sheltered from the wind, but Shen Qingyi was eating directly into it, making it much harder for her.

After eating the wind-mixed fried noodles, Shen Qingyi was full, but she thought she might get a stomach ache in the middle of the night. After all, the food was cold by the end, and she had swallowed a bellyful of the cold North wind.

Shan Ling wasn’t so picky. She finished her meal happily and even ordered a roasted corn when passing a stall.

The roasted corn was golden-yellow, sprinkled with cumin and chili, and smelled delicious from the charcoal fire. It looked exceptionally appetizing.

Shan Ling loved these grains the most. She broke the roasted corn the owner gave her in half and gave one half to Shen Qingyi.

“Roasted corn is so delicious, try it,” Shan Ling said. “I love the roasted corn here. Other places skewer and roast the kernels one by one, but only this stall roasts the whole cob.”

Although eating individual kernels was convenient, it wasn’t as satisfying as eating a whole cob.

Shen Qingyi took the half cob of roasted corn, wrapped it in a plastic bag, and took a bite, commenting, “It’s spicy.”

Shan Ling’s eyes curved in a smile: “Spicy is what makes it delicious.”

Shen Qingyi took another bite and commented, “It is spicy and delicious.”

Shan Ling was very happy. She walked through the crowd, munching on the corn with Shen Qingyi, and suddenly said, “Yiyi, starting tomorrow, we’ll be colleagues.”

She looked back at Shen Qingyi and smiled: “That’s wonderful!”

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