Pats Little Shrike's Tail - Chapter 82

Chapter 82

Shan Ling was stunned upon hearing this, then suddenly understood everything.

No wonder Song Qinglan came looking for Shen Qingyi, no wonder Fang Ran didn’t come, and no wonder those two assistants were so afraid of Song Qinglan.

“Then isn’t Assistant Fang very pitiful?” Shan Ling sighed mournfully: “She must be feeling terrible now. Ms. Song is such a strong person.”

In Shan Ling’s eyes, Song Qinglan was a major celebrity with a powerful aura. She had heard that Song Qinglan had a bad temper lately and was very harsh toward her studio employees. Only Fang Ran could successfully soothe her and calm her negative emotions.

Shan Ling could imagine how difficult Fang Ran’s life would become with such a person.

With Song Qinglan suddenly showing up today, Shan Ling was certain that the two were no longer together, which meant Fang Ran’s assistant job might become very hard in the future.

“It’s so difficult,” For the first time, Shan Ling found human emotions hard to comprehend. She scratched her head and said: “Isn’t there any smooth-sailing relationship?”

Shen Qingyi replied calmly: “Mutual love is always difficult.”

She looked at the girl with the ponytail in front of her and sighed softly in her heart.

Mutual love was, indeed, very difficult.

Just as the two were lost in their own thoughts, a man in a black down jacket, wearing a mask and a hat, walked over and asked Shan Ling: “Can I ask if you’ll sell me Song Qinglan’s coffee?”

Shan Ling was slightly taken aback.

Shen Qingyi seemed surprised too. Song Qinglan had already taken a sip of the coffee, and it had remained untouched while the two were chatting.

The man in the black down jacket strangely asking for the coffee instantly made Shen Qingyi frown.

A sasaeng fan?

Shen Qingyi was not inexperienced. She immediately knew that this man was likely an extreme fan of Song Qinglan—the kind who would follow her car, knock on her door, and secretly stalk her.

“I’m sorry, we don’t sell coffee that other customers have already drunk,” Shen Qingyi quickly interjected before Shan Ling could react, telling the man: “And the cup is not for sale.”

The man looked unhappy. His small eyes darted at Shen Qingyi, and he whispered: “I’ll pay a thousand yuan.”

“It’s not about the money,” Shen Qingyi stood up, looking at the man: “If you like the coffee in our shop, we recommend buying a fresh one, rather than drinking someone else’s leftovers.”

The man looked like he wanted to lose his temper, but seeing the crowd around and how everyone was staring, he frowned unhappily, pulled down his hat, and turned to leave.

After the man left, Shen Qingyi’s frown remained. She picked up the coffee that had belonged to Song Qinglan, carried it into the back kitchen, and poured it out, not dwelling on the incident.

In the following days, Shan Ling discovered something online.

Previously, Song Qinglan would bring Fang Ran to every event, which could all be confirmed in past records. In fact, because their relationship was so close, Assistant Fang Ran’s Weibo account even had over a million followers, which was quite a following.

However, Song Qinglan hadn’t been seen with Fang Ran recently, only with unfamiliar assistants. Everyone was guessing why Fang Ran wasn’t accompanying Song Qinglan, but no one had an explanation.

After about a week of this, Shan Ling finally saw Fang Ran.

Fang Ran came to the coffee shop around 1 PM that day and ordered a coffee.

When Shan Ling brought it over, she naturally sat down.

Fang Ran looked at her in surprise and asked: “What’s wrong?”

“Can I ask you a question?” Shan Ling looked at her curiously, waiting for her reply.

Fang Ran rubbed the side of the coffee cup, gazed at the sunlit lake outside the window, and said: “What do you want to ask?”

Shan Ling blinked and asked: “Is your relationship with Ms. Song still good?”

“…No.”

Fang Ran took a sip of coffee, lowering her eyes: “Has she been here?”

Shan Ling nodded.

Fang Ran sighed, looking at the dark brown coffee, and slowly said: “She hasn’t spoken a single word to me for a week.”

After that day, Fang Ran was terrified. She didn’t know what awaited her next.

She and Song Qinglan had known each other for too long—long enough that both their families were acquainted. She didn’t know if Song Qinglan would tell her parents that this secret had been exposed.

Fang Ran braced herself for the next day. Based on Song Qinglan’s usual character, she would immediately fire anyone she disliked, like the little assistant who made the coffee incorrectly.

But Fang Ran waited all day, and Song Qinglan didn’t tell her to leave.

However, Song Qinglan was clearly still in a bad mood, throwing tantrums in the office, but this time, even Fang Ran couldn’t soothe her.

It was obvious that Song Qinglan was angry because of her matter, so how could Fang Ran console her?

For the following week, Song Qinglan seemed to deliberately exclude Fang Ran from her work and didn’t allow her to attend any social events with her.

She didn’t assign Fang Ran any work, nor did she allow her to take a vacation. She just kept her on standby.

There were no harsh words; it was as if Fang Ran were invisible. Song Qinglan refused to speak a single word to her.

Fang Ran looked at the lake outside the glass window, feeling a deep sadness in her heart with nowhere to vent.

“I don’t know what I did wrong. Maybe I was wrong from the moment I started liking her,” Fang Ran’s hands trembled slightly as she said with difficulty: “Now that things are like this, I really don’t know what to do.”

Fang Ran let out a long sigh: “Should I choose to leave? But I still feel that since she didn’t reject me outright, maybe she still has some feelings for me.”

Even if that hope was faint, Fang Ran wanted to grab it and try.

Shan Ling sat across from her, watching Fang Ran pour out her heart, but she was too awkward to offer any comfort.

Although little tits are chatterboxes, comforting people and talking a lot are two different things.

“Don’t be sad,” Shan Ling wanted to console her but didn’t know how. After thinking for a long time, she said: “My friend is opening a new shop in a few days. If you have time, come with me to check it out. You need a change of scenery, and my friend would be happy to have more people there.”

Shan Ling was talking about Anxin. Her shop had been renovated and was in its final stages of adjustment, planning to open before the Spring Festival to catch the New Year’s Eve dinner business.

The opening day was carefully chosen for this Saturday. Shan Ling had already agreed to go with Shen Qingyi and now thought she could bring one more person.

Fang Ran was surprised. She and Shan Ling had barely met a few times. Today, she mostly told Shan Ling her worries because she had been bottled up for so long. She hadn’t expected Shan Ling to be so enthusiastic.

“Wouldn’t that be inappropriate?” Fang Ran held her coffee, saying awkwardly: “I’m not familiar with your friend.”

And I’m not very familiar with you either.

Fang Ran didn’t have the heart to say the last part. She was used to suppressing her emotions and was a little taken aback by the sudden display of goodwill. She wasn’t sure how to accept this kindness.

She was used to being the one who offered care, and she was surprised to be on the receiving end today.

“What does it matter?” Shan Ling smiled brightly and told Fang Ran: “Sister Anxin said she hopes for more people to make it lively, to set the atmosphere. She’ll definitely welcome you.”

As for whether they were familiar or not, it didn’t matter to Shan Ling. In her eyes, as long as they were of the same species, they would become familiar after sharing a meal.

Fang Ran was about to say something more, but Shan Ling stood up directly: “You can think about it. It’s still two or three days until Saturday. Let me know when you’ve decided.”

Looking at Shan Ling, Fang Ran opened her mouth, but ultimately just smiled bitterly and told her: “I understand. I’ll consider it and let you know tomorrow.”

On the way home from work that evening, Shan Ling told Shen Qingyi about the situation.

Shen Qingyi thought for about two seconds while driving, then nodded slightly: “Then let’s pick her up on Saturday. Also, tell Anxin in advance that we might bring a friend along.”

Shan Ling looked at her curiously: “Yiyi, aren’t you curious about the relationship between Assistant Fang and Song Qinglan?”

“Curious about what?” Shen Qingyi asked, laughing.

“I don’t think Song Qinglan dislikes Fang Ran. Why would she not talk to her for a week?” Shan Ling leaned back in her seat and sighed: “If it were me, I’d find it hard not to talk to someone for even one day, let alone a week.”

“Perhaps they have their own way of resolving things,” Shen Qingyi said: “It’s best not to get too involved in other people’s emotional affairs, to avoid causing trouble.”

“Trouble?”

“Even an honest official can’t settle family disputes, let alone someone else’s emotional matters, which are even more complex.”

Shen Qingyi told Shan Ling: “Just don’t get overly involved, that’s all.”

Shen Qingyi was speaking with a bit of foresight. She felt the same as Shan Ling—the two of them wouldn’t easily untangle their relationship—so she didn’t recommend Shan Ling get too deeply involved.

Shan Ling appeared clumsy, and in essence, she was clumsy. She might act with good intentions but mess things up, ultimately landing herself in trouble.

Shen Qingyi had seen too many such incidents.

“Alright,” Shan Ling sat in her seat, looking at the gradually darkening night outside the window, and sighed: “Human emotions are so complicated.”

Shen Qingyi was slightly taken aback by this remark.

Shan Ling then realized what she had just said and quickly tried to cover her tracks: “If I’m reincarnated as a tree in my next life, I won’t have such complex thoughts.”

After saying this, Shan Ling timidly glanced at Shen Qingyi. Finding that the other person hadn’t made any connection, she secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

It seemed she needed to think more carefully before speaking in the future. If her identity was discovered, she could be roasted over a fire!

Roasted tit, sprinkled with cumin and chili!

Hiss—

The more Shan Ling thought about it, the more horrified she became. She looked out at the rapidly receding scenery, trying not to think about such terrifying things.

She had originally thought Fang Ran would take a day or two to consider and would only reply by Friday. Instead, Fang Ran showed up at the shop first thing the next morning.

“Oh?” Shan Ling stood beside Shen Qingyi, looking at the morning’s first customer, and asked curiously: “How come you…”

“I came to buy coffee for my colleagues,” Fang Ran smiled slightly: “Since I don’t have to follow Qinglan to all the events, my only job left is to buy coffee for everyone.”

Fang Ran ordered several coffees for her colleagues, and Shen Qingyi coolly gave her a bulk discount.

“Xiao Ling, I thought about what you told me yesterday,” Fang Ran, holding the coffee, smiled slightly at Shan Ling: “I do need a change of environment. Please take me with you on Saturday.”

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