Why didn't you tell me earlier that my little sister is still waiting for me?

While Ma Qiushan and Sang Biao were negotiating, Lin Bufan had already taken out his phone in room number five and dialed that familiar number.

The phone rang a few times before being answered. A cheerful, lazy, and bright voice came from the other end: "Hey, Mr. Lin, did the sun rise in the west today? You actually took the initiative to call me?"

It was Zhu Suosuo. Her voice came through the receiver, as if carrying the bright sunshine of Shanghai's streets and a hint of cunning.

"Look at what you're saying," Lin Bufan leaned against the window, a smile unconsciously creeping onto his lips. "Do I need to pick a day when I miss my own general manager? Or is it that Manager Zhu is so busy these days that he doesn't even have time to answer the boss's calls?"

"Don't give me that!" Zhu Suosuo laughed and scolded on the other end of the phone, her voice bright as if mixed with honey: "You, Boss Lin, wouldn't think of me unless you had nothing to do. Tell me, have you gotten yourself into some romantic entanglements that you need me to clean up?"

After exchanging a few playful words, Lin Bufan finally got to the point. He shared his ideas on developing new types of tea drinks that would appeal to the general public and asked Zhu Suosuo if she would be interested in introducing them to "Brother Biao's Paradise".

"Yes! Of course!" Zhu Suosuo answered without the slightest hesitation, with her usual straightforwardness: "With Chef Lin's divine touch, how could it not be good? This will definitely become our restaurant's new signature dish. You hurry up and study it, and I can immediately start updating the menu and promotion."

Sensing Zhu Suosuo's undisguised excitement, Lin Bufan quickly brought up the matter of Maqiu Mountain briefly, emphasizing that the final outcome depended entirely on Zhu Suosuo, the general manager of "Brother Biao's Paradise."

"Old Ma?" Zhu Suosuo's tone instantly became inquisitive, and she drew out her words: "Could it be... another stunning beauty that your CEO Lin admires so much?"

Lin Bufan chuckled: "What are you thinking? He's just an old man who failed in his previous business and is now thinking of starting over, opening a tea space."

"Just an old man?" Zhu Suosuo's tone became playful. "You're so interested even if he's not a beauty? Boss, don't tell me your tastes have changed that much lately?"

"Get lost!" Lin Bufan laughed and scolded, "I just saw how hard he was working, and as a neighbor, I was just helping him out. You know I'm soft-hearted."

"Alright, alright, soft-hearted Boss Lin." Zhu Suosuo seemed to roll her eyes on the other end of the phone, then changed the subject, saying, "Here's what we'll do: I'll go over there myself and meet your Mr. Ma. But let's make it clear, if he can't convince me, if he can't see his worth, don't blame me for not giving you face!"

"Whatever you want, do as you see fit." Lin Bufan said casually, not caring at all: "It's just giving him a chance anyway. Whether it works out or not is up to you, Manager Zhu."

After hanging up the phone, Zhu Suosuo casually placed her phone next to the coffee cup in front of her before leisurely looking at the person opposite her.

Jiang Nansun was slowly stirring her latte, her gaze lowered, seemingly deeply interested in the latte art. However, her slightly tilted ear and the instantaneous slowing of her movements when the phone call connected had already betrayed her.

All of this was clearly observed by Zhu Suosuo, who was sitting across the table!

"Ahem," Zhu Suosuo cleared her throat, leaned forward slightly, rested her elbows on the table, propped her chin on her hand, and gleamed with a mischievous light in her eyes: "Do you know who was on the phone with me just now?"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Nansun paused in her actions, then looked up, gave Zhu Suosuo a standard eye roll, her red lips slightly parted, and her tone was filled with undisguised contempt: "Do you think I'm deaf? Calling him 'boss' so affectionately, who else could it be but Lin Bufan?" She deliberately emphasized the word "affectionately," making it sound sour.

"Oh—I heard that." Zhu Suosuo drawled, deliberately feigning sudden realization, and nodded. "That's perfect. By the way, it seems like you haven't seen Lin Bufan in quite a while, right? How about coming with me to Yunnan? The scenery there is beautiful, the air is fresh, perfect... let my boss properly satisfy this lonely and empty high-achieving student like you!" As she spoke, she observed Jiang Nansun's expression, her smile growing wider.

Two red clouds rose visibly to Jiang Nansun's cheeks, spreading all the way to her ears. She looked away in a fluster, took a sip of her coffee, and tried to cover her burning face with the rim of the cup. Her voice was tight with embarrassment and anger: "Who...who needs his comfort! You...you go yourself if you're feeling hot, I'm not going!"

"Oh, I see..." Zhu Suosuo deliberately dragged out her words, sounding very regretful. She picked up her phone and pretended to put it back in her bag: "Well then, it seems I can only enjoy the blue sky and white clouds of Yunnan alone, and someone's thoughtful comfort."

As soon as she finished speaking, she saw Jiang Nansun's small spoon, used for stirring coffee, tap against the side of the cup with a soft but clear "clink." Jiang Nansun's lips were tightly pursed, and her eyes were glaring at Zhu Suosuo, her expression clearly saying, "You know perfectly well that's not what I meant, yet you're still deliberately trying to annoy me."

Zhu Suosuo was inwardly laughing her head off, but remained outwardly calm. She picked up her phone again, quickly swiped the screen, and dialed her secretary's number.

"Hey, Xiao Zhang, book me two tickets to Yunnan tomorrow morning... Yes, two. One for me, and the other..." She looked up, smiling at Jiang Nansun who had suddenly looked up, and clearly announced, "Jiang Nansun."

"Zhu Suosuo!" As soon as the phone hung up, Jiang Nansun couldn't hold back anymore. Her face was still flushed, and she was now even more embarrassed and annoyed. "What are you doing! I already said I'm not going! Why did you book my plane ticket?"

"Don't want to go?" Zhu Suosuo put her phone aside, crossed her arms, and looked at Jiang Nansun leisurely: "Then why didn't you say so when I called? Why did you have to wait until I finished my call to say so? Is it because..." She leaned closer, lowered her voice, and smiled mischievously: "Are you already secretly overjoyed? You even thought about which bra to bring?"

"I...I didn't realize it!" Jiang Nansun's face turned even redder after she hit the nail on the head, but she still tried to hold on, sticking her neck out and saying, "Who knew you'd hang up so fast! You didn't give me any time to think!"

"Fine, fine, you're just being stubborn." Zhu Suosuo sat back down, picked up her slightly cooled coffee, took a sip contentedly, and squinted her eyes like a cat that had just stolen some fish.

Looking at her smug expression, Jiang Nansun was both angry and helpless. In the end, he could only turn his head away resentfully to look at the street scene outside the window, and squeeze out a sentence through gritted teeth: "I'm happy! What's it to you?"

But the slight upturn of her lips and the fleeting anticipation and excitement in her eyes, which she herself was unaware of, had already revealed her true feelings.

The sunlight outside the window was just right, shining through the glass and bathing the two of them in a warm glow.

After hanging up the phone, Lin Bufan went straight back to bed for a nap. When he woke up again, Sang Biao and Ma Qiushan were no longer in the courtyard; it seemed that Chairman Biao's "business negotiations" had moved to a different location. He ignored it, rubbed his eyes, and shuffled towards the communal kitchen in his slippers—it was almost lunchtime, and there were clanging and banging sounds coming from inside.

Chen Nanxing, wearing a floral apron, was busy at the stove with her back to the door. The hot oil in the pan sizzled, and with a flick of her wrist, a handful of bright green vegetables slid into the pan, sending up a plume of white smoke carrying the aroma of the wok.

"Hey, Chef Chen, what's the good food for lunch?" Lin Bufan leaned against the door frame and started to chat.

Chen Nanxing didn't even turn his head, continuing to stir-fry: "Scrambled eggs with tomatoes, stir-fried romaine lettuce, stewed cabbage with tofu, and a cucumber salad. Let's eat something simple."

Lin Bufan looked at the vegetarian dishes on the stove and clicked his tongue: "Chef Chen, is this all for lunch? Why is it all green? Is there not a single meat dish? I'm still growing."

With a flick of her wrist, Chen Nanxing sent the bok choy in the pot tracing a beautiful arc. Without turning her head, she said with obvious mockery in her voice, "Wasn't last night's meal meaty enough? Aren't you tired of eating more meat?"

Lin Bufan was taken aback, then realized: "Nanxing, I've noticed that you're getting more and more... irresponsible."

"What?" Chen Nanxing turned off the stove, turned around with the stir-fried dish in her hand, raised an eyebrow at Lin Bufan, her eyes and brows full of charm: "Don't you like it?"

“I love it,” Lin Bufan stepped forward, naturally took the plate from Chen Nanxing and put it aside. Then he put his arm around her waist, pulled her in front of him, looked down into her eyes, and lowered his voice, which was filled with laughter and seriousness: “I love it to death.”

Chen Nanxing raised her hand and lightly punched Lin Bufan's shoulder: "Get lost! Who wants you to like me..." Although she said that, she did not break free from Lin Bufan's embrace. Instead, she leaned against his chest, looked up at him, and smiled.

The two lingered like that by the kitchen doorway for a while, the soup pot on the stove bubbling softly. Lin Bufan nuzzled Chen Nanxing's head with his chin before finally getting to the point: "Um... Nanxing, how's Dou'er doing? Did you manage to talk to her?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Nanxing deliberately dragged out his words: "Why are you in such a hurry? It's not that fast. You know Hongdou's temper. Last night... cough, in that situation, how could she not be angry? She needs to process it herself."

“I know,” Lin Bufan sighed, tightening his grip on her arm. “I was just asking so I could have a better idea.”

"Oh—" Chen Nanxing pulled away from his embrace a little, turned around to turn off the stove and ladle soup, her tone casual but with a clear "instruction" in her voice: "By the way, you, take advantage of this afternoon to write an apology letter, and wait for my call tonight."

"An apology letter? You want me to write that stuff?" Lin Bufan was stunned, then his face showed disbelief: "Nanxing, I'm a celebrity, you actually want me to write that kind of thing? Don't I have any shame?"

Chen Nanxing placed the soup bowl on the counter, put her hands on her hips, turned around and glared at him: "What? You don't want to? Boss Lin, you're not even willing to do such a small thing as writing an apology letter. It seems you don't care about Hongdou that much."

"That's not what I meant..." Lin Bufan felt a little guilty after being glared at by Chen Nanxing, and touched his nose: "Okay, okay, I'll write it, I'll write it, alright? It's just a few hundred words."

"That's more like it." Chen Nanxing's expression softened slightly. He walked over and poked Lin Bufan's chest with his finger, emphasizing, "Remember, you must write it yourself, by hand! Be sincere, be profound, and put away that joking attitude of yours, you hear me? This is a matter of attitude."

"I understand, I understand, Teacher Chen." Lin Bufan raised his hands in surrender, but there was a smile in his eyes: "I guarantee to complete the task, write it with great emotion and feeling, so that Dou'er will soften at first glance."

"Alright, stop joking around, go call everyone to eat." Chen Nanxing smiled and gave Lin Bufan a push, then turned around to continue setting out the bowls and chopsticks.

Lin Bufan replied with a "Okay," and turned to leave the kitchen.

Soon after, Da Mai, Hu Youyu, and Xu Hongdou arrived at the dining room next to the communal kitchen. The food was already laid out, simple yet refreshing.

After a morning of solitude and reflection, Xu Hongdou's emotions had clearly calmed down considerably. Her tone returned to its usual gentleness, and she was able to chat and laugh with others.

Of course, this does not include Lin Bufan!

Lunch ended in this seemingly peaceful atmosphere, but with undercurrents (at least to Lin Bufan). After helping Chen Nanxing clear the dishes, Xu Hongdou went straight back to her room. Lin Bufan rubbed his nose, then obediently went back to his room, spread out his paper and pen, and began to complete the "homework" assigned by Chen Nanxing.

This apology letter was truly difficult to write. It wasn't that Lin Bufan lacked vocabulary, but rather that after much thought, he felt that in this whole matter, there seemed to be no fundamental error!

The compensation was agreed upon in advance, and Xu Hongdou agreed to it!

As for the series of events that followed, they were all accidents. Even if we dig deep and trace the root cause, it should be blamed on Chen Nanxing. It was her sudden intrusion that caused everything. It was supposed to be a very beautiful night!

But can these words be written into an apology letter?

Obviously not!

Lin Bufan racked his brains over the letter, sitting there from afternoon until the sun began to set, but he couldn't come up with a few words that would even "move" him. Dinner time arrived, and the aroma of food wafted from the courtyard. Hu Youyu knocked on the door, but Lin Bufan only mumbled "Not hungry" before continuing his struggle with the letter.

When Lin Bufan finally snapped out of his "battle" with the letter, he looked up at the window and saw that the night was already as dark as ink. The courtyard was quiet except for the chirping of insects. He picked up his phone and saw that it was almost eleven o'clock.

Lin Bufan was taken aback, a question forming in his mind: What's going on with Nanxing? We agreed to wait for notification, right? Why is there no word at all? Could it be that Hongdou is still angry, and Nanxing can't handle it either?

As Lin Bufan was pondering this, the door was suddenly pushed open a crack very lightly, and Chen Nanxing, like a nimble cat, slipped in sideways and quickly closed the door again.