The coffee shop on the street corner had a very vintage decor. Through the huge floor-to-ceiling windows of the shop, Zhu Yaya watched as Xu Chun was led by a waiter to a window seat. A woman dripping in gold and silver was sitting there.
Zhu Yaya thought to herself, this must be Murong Beichen's mother, Madam He. Judging from her style of dress, emmm... she is exactly like Murong Beichen!
A thick gold chain, a white jade bracelet, an emerald ring, a diamond ring...
Zhu Yaya suddenly felt that this Madam He was simply a walking jewelry box.
Also, she was genuinely curious, isn't it hot wearing fur in the middle of summer in June?
Zhu Yaya and Yan Heng also entered the coffee shop, and the oncoming blast of cold air conditioning blew away the heat on Zhu Yaya's body.
Zhu Yaya pondered, no wonder this Madam He could wear fur in the summer.
A handsome male waiter greeted them with a smile: "Welcome."
At Zhu Yaya's strong request, the waiter led Zhu Yaya and Yan Heng to the table right next to Madam He and Xu Chun.
Zhu Yaya generously shoved the menu over to Yan Heng: "Yan Heng, you order! Order for me too while you're at it. You know my taste!" After saying that, Zhu Yaya focused all her attention on the next table, staring intently, perking up her ears, and even taking out a fruit container from her canvas bag and popping off the lid.
Yan Heng nodded, took the menu but didn't even look at it, and directly said to the waiter: "One iced Americano, one caramel macchiato, thank you."
Zhu Yaya glanced at Yan Heng: "Aren't you going to look at the menu?"
Yan Heng was concise: "Temp worker."
Zhu Yaya understood in seconds.
The scene shifted to Xu Chun and Madam He.
Xu Chun sat uneasily opposite Madam He. She had never been to such a place. She kept her head down, afraid to look around, her fingers tightly clutching a transparent pencil case.
"You must be Xu Chun, the one who seduced my son! I've heard so much about you," Madam He spoke first.
Xu Chun's voice trembled, but she still answered strongly: "Auntie, I am Xu Chun, your son Murong Beichen's girlfriend."
"Girlfriend?"
Madam He slammed the coffee shop's menu down in front of Xu Chun, and Xu Chun's body visibly shuddered.
Madam He sneered coldly: "Order whatever you want to drink. However, you probably haven't drank such a high-end item as coffee before!"
Zhu Yaya, who was stuffing watermelon chunks into her mouth: ...
Emmmm, Madam He, you should learn about instant coffee, two yuan a packet, enough to brew a whole cup!
Xu Chun shook her head slightly and said weakly: "Thank you, I'm not thirsty."
"Heh, sure enough, coming from a lowly family, reeking of poverty, and you still want to be with my son! It's simply wishful thinking!" Madam He raised her pinky finger and slowly took a sip of coffee. "Let's be frank!"
She placed her coffee cup on the table, and her hand, covered in diamond rings, pulled a check from a pink crocodile skin bag: "Here is thirty million, leave my son."
Zhu Yaya: Here it comes, here it comes, true love!
"Auntie!" Xu Chun looked up in disbelief. "How can you use money to humiliate me! Murong Beichen and I are truly in love!"
Madam He sneered, her eyes flashing with obvious mockery and disdain: "Truly in love? You are just greedy for money! I have seen plenty of girls like you! Always thinking about hooking a rich man to soar to the skies. Where in the world is there such a good thing?"
Xu Chun, with red eyes, emphasized: "Auntie, I am not that kind of person! Murong Beichen pursued me for a long time. If I were the kind of vain girl you think I am, I would have agreed long ago, so why would I keep rejecting him?"
"That is nothing but your tactic to seduce my son," Madam He said dismissively. "Playing hard to get!"
Xu Chun shook her head sadly: "No, it's not like that!"
Madam He didn't have time to continue tangling with Xu Chun here and threatened her: "Xu Chun, aren't you thinking about your uncle? I'll give you two choices. First, break up with my son Murong Beichen, take this thirty million check and leave, and I will arrange for you to go abroad. Second, stay here, but I will use all my connections to suppress you and your relatives."
Madam He took a leisurely sip of coffee: "Student Xu Chun, you are a smart person. You should know how to choose."
Xu Chun bit her lip and remained silent.
Madam He sighed as if she had a headache: "Student Xu Chun, you know, the environment in the West District of the Imperial Capital has always been chaotic. Over there in the West District, a few people dying is a very normal thing."
Xu Chun's body trembled.
"I, I," Xu Chun finally spoke hesitantly, her face full of humiliation. "I choose the first one."
Madam He nodded in satisfaction, staring sharply at Xu Chun: "Student Xu Chun, you are indeed a smart person who understands the times. By the way, you should know what should be said and what shouldn't be said when breaking up with my son, right?"
Xu Chun nodded in humiliation, a sobbing tone in her voice: "Madam He, rest assured! I know what to do!"
"That's good! If I find out you've gone back on your word, you know the consequences!"
Madam He finished the last sip of coffee in her cup and strutted away arrogantly, leaving only the pitiful Xu Chun in the coffee shop.
Holding the thirty million check, Xu Chun's tears fell like rain, her heart filled with endless sorrow.
She muttered to herself: "Murong, I'm sorry, I can't be so selfish as to only care about myself!"
She wiped away her tears with the back of her hand and also got up and left.
Zhu Yaya, who had read all kinds of bossy CEO novels, couldn't help but click her tongue. Sure enough, it was this familiar flavor again.
"Congratulations on successfully completing the twenty-second task. The reward is three years of lifespan and twenty thousand RMB."
The system's notification sound rang in Zhu Yaya's mind.
Zhu Yaya had just withdrawn all her attention from the next table when Yan Heng handed the caramel macchiato right in front of her eyes: "Your coffee."
"Thank you." Zhu Yaya put down the fruit container in her hand and excitedly took the cup of coffee. "I've never had coffee in a coffee shop before, I've only drank instant coffee."
The coffee Yan Heng ordered for her looked quite pretty. A thick layer of milk foam was piled on top of the coffee, and caramel syrup was squeezed in circles over the foam, drawn into a beautiful pattern with a latte art needle, with a small brown heart right in the middle.
Zhu Yaya took a curious sip. The texture of this cup of coffee had many layers; the delicate milk foam and caramel combined perfectly, as smooth and fine as floating clouds. The taste was sweet and mellow, much better than the instant coffee she had drank before.
However, it just wasn't enough to last. Being such a small cup, Zhu Yaya finished it in a flash.
