Chapter 248 - 172: If They’re Always Kept Inside, Won’t the Big White Rabbits Suffocate?
Sunlight slipped through the cracks in the curtains, scattering mottled specks of light across the bedroom.
Lin Jiang wasn’t fully awake, but his brain had already processed the sensation in his hand.
’What is this? It’s so soft?’
Grumbling inwardly, Lin Jiang opened his eyes.
They were lying face-to-face on their sides, and Liang Shuhuo’s fair white thigh was draped over his waist.
The curve between her waist and hips was like a rolling mountain range, filled with endless beauty.
"Mmm~"
As if sensing something, Liang Shuhuo let out a soft moan.
She snuggled deeper into Lin Jiang’s embrace.
The next second!
Liang Shuhuo’s eyes suddenly flew open!
Their eyes met!
Lin Jiang immediately pulled his hand back.
"Would you believe me if I said I have no idea what’s going on?"
"You were already touching me. How could it not be on purpose?"
Liang Shuhuo had seen all sorts of people; she wasn’t some innocent little girl.
Even if she was embarrassed, she could keep herself calm.
"Didn’t we agree yesterday? I sleep on the bed, you sleep on the floor."
She looked down at the bed—it was her bed—then at the leg draped over Lin Jiang’s waist.
This awkward yet intimate atmosphere made Liang Shuhuo’s expression particularly interesting.
"How... how did I end up sleeping here?"
"Did you have a naughty dream in the middle of the night and climb into my bed?"
For a moment, Liang Shuhuo didn’t know what to say.
’I actually did have that kind of dream last night.’
[You have gained favor from NPC Liang Shuhuo. Affinity +20]
[Affinity: 50]
[Reward: 2,000,000 NPC Special Development Fund. Has been deposited into your account.]
"I know! I was massaging the pressure point on your hand yesterday. You fell asleep first, and I must have dozed off while I was doing it."
"So you pulled a classic bait-and-switch, laying out a decoy blanket on the floor."
"No way, it wasn’t a decoy blanket. I really did plan to sleep on the floor at first."
"The sun’s already up, so there’s no use talking about this." Lin Jiang pointed to his waist. "Your leg is crushing the one who pays the bills."
"It’s just for a little while. Besides, you touched me too."
"I’m the one paying the bills. I’m giving you such a big project, I can’t get a little touch in return?"
"Alright, alright. Touch all you want."
Liang Shuhuo took her long, fair leg off Lin Jiang’s waist.
"It’s after eight. We should get up."
Liang Shuhuo got out of bed first, pulling down her nightgown.
’I wonder how much he saw last night. This is just mortifying.’
Getting out of bed, she saw the untouched blanket on the floor. It really was just a decoy.
After folding up the blanket from the floor, the two of them walked out of the room.
Liang Youjun wasn’t around, but Wang Chunmei was busy making breakfast in the kitchen.
Seeing them come out of the room together, Lin Jiang went to the bathroom to wash up while Liang Shuhuo, pretending nothing had happened, held her lower back and walked into the kitchen.
"Mom, do we have any pain relief patches? My back is killing me. I can’t sleep on surfaces that are too soft or too hard. Quick, put one on me."
"Why can’t you sleep on hard surfaces?" Wang Chunmei said while simmering congee, her full attention on the pot.
"I let him have the bed yesterday, so I slept on the floor," Liang Shuhuo said.
"He’d had too much to drink. I couldn’t just let him sleep on the floor."
"Is that so."
"What do you mean, ’is that so’?"
Liang Shuhuo held her lower back and even twisted it a few times deliberately.
"Where are the patches? I need to put a few on."
"Aren’t they in the drawer of your wardrobe?"
"Oh, right. They’re in my room."
With that, Liang Shuhuo went back to her room and made a show of taking out the pain relief patches.
"Mom, help me put it on," Liang Shuhuo said, walking into the kitchen. "I’m never sleeping on the floor again."
"Can’t you see I’m cooking? Have Xiaojiang help you put it on."
"Fine."
Liang Shuhuo took the patches to the bathroom and saw Lin Jiang drying his face.
He saw Liang Shuhuo come in and glanced at the patches in her hand.
"Looks like you’re not just good at diversions, you’re also an expert at ’no silver buried here’."
"Shoo, shoo. If I didn’t say this, how could I ever face my mom again?"
With that, Liang Shuhuo handed the patch to Lin Jiang. "Help me put it on."
"Your back doesn’t even hurt. Do you really need to put it on? Just pretending is enough."
"Even if it’s an act, you have to go all the way. I need them to know I slept on the floor yesterday."
"Alright, on your lower back, right?"
"Mhm."
Saying that, Liang Shuhuo lifted her nightgown, and Lin Jiang took the opportunity to apply the patch.
"Done."
At first, Liang Shuhuo didn’t think much of it. They were both adults; a little bit of playful flirting wasn’t a big deal.
It wasn’t until she stood up and lowered her nightgown that Liang Shuhuo realized the position they were just in had been a little too intimate.
"Go sit down for a bit. I’m going to wash up."
"Okay."
After leaving the bathroom, Lin Jiang went to the kitchen and politely asked if she needed any help.
When she learned that Lin Jiang could cook, Wang Chunmei smiled so broadly her eyes disappeared.
She praised Lin Jiang to the heavens.
She said that her daughter was truly blessed to have found Lin Jiang.
This made Liang Shuhuo, who was still in the bathroom, roll her eyes.
’But on second thought, Lin Jiang doesn’t really seem to have any flaws.’
’Especially the fact that he can cook. That’s a huge bonus.’
After she finished washing up, Liang Shuhuo was called into the kitchen to help.
Lin Jiang sat on the sofa. ’I’ve stayed the night, I even got to touch her, but there’s been zero progress on the mission.’
’This isn’t good.’
’It seems that despite everything I said to Liang Youjun yesterday, I still haven’t made him lower his guard.’
’I need to think of another way.’
"Come and eat."
Liang Shuhuo called out as she brought the freshly made congee to the table.
Just then, the door opened, and Liang Youjun returned, carrying the breakfast he’d bought.
"Oh, Xiaojiang, you’re up! How did you sleep last night?"
"Very well."
Lin Jiang took the food from him and brought it to the kitchen to plate it.
"That’s good. You young people wake up late. I was worried she would wake you two up."
Liang Youjun said, looking at Wang Chunmei,
"You need to be more careful from now on. Things are different now. Don’t go into your daughter’s room first thing in the morning."
"I forgot about that this morning. It definitely won’t happen again."
"Hmm?"
Liang Shuhuo looked at Wang Chunmei. "You went into my room?"
"You always sleep in, so I went to open your curtains. But as soon as I opened the door, I suddenly remembered Xiaojiang was staying over, so I left."
Liang Shuhuo: ...
Thinking about how she’d complained about her sore back and put on a patch that morning, Liang Shuhuo’s face felt like it was on fire.
’So you’re all having a good time while I’m the only one who’s embarrassed, is that it?’
"Come, come, let’s eat first."
Liang Youjun picked up a pan-fried bun he had bought and placed it in Lin Jiang’s bowl.
"Try this. Their pan-fried buns are famous in our area. You have to line up for them in the morning."
"Thank you, Uncle Liang."
"We’re all family now, no need to be so formal," Liang Youjun said.
"This kid, Miaomiao, has been arrogant since she was little. She thinks she can do anything and doesn’t listen to anyone. Well, now she’s learned her lesson after losing money on that investment. You’re more level-headed than her. In the future, if something like this comes up again, you’ll have to supervise her more."
"Right, I was just about to bring that up."
Lin Jiang realized this was a good opportunity to complete the mission.
"That project she invested in has actually started turning a profit due to some policy changes. As for dividends, it should bring in around 400,000 a year, so you don’t need to worry about it anymore, Uncle."
"It’s started turning a profit?"
Liang Youjun’s face lit up. "An investment of 2 million for a profit of 400,000 a year? That’s excellent."
"So you see, she has a pretty good eye for these things. You can’t criticize her for it anymore," Lin Jiang said with a smile.
"That’s a relief. But if something like this comes up again, you two need to discuss it. We can’t just listen to her alone."
"Uncle Liang is right."
[Mission Complete (The Obsessed Father): Reward: Entry and Exit Peace Card *1, 20 EXP]
Seeing the Entry and Exit Peace Card, Lin Jiang felt a chill run down his spine. ’Tongzi, you’re a real piece of work.’
’Good thing the mission is complete. Otherwise, this whole night would have been a waste.’
After the meal, Liang Shuhuo changed into her own clothes, and the two didn’t stay at the house for much longer.
As they were leaving, Wang Chunmei gave Lin Jiang a large red envelope.
Given Lin Jiang’s sensitivity to money, he guessed it was probably 8,800.
The two left the house, and Lin Jiang handed the red envelope to Liang Shuhuo.
"Here."
"I can’t take this. You bought so many things yesterday and spent a lot of money."
"Let’s keep things separate. I can’t accept the red envelope. Take it."
Lin Jiang didn’t dawdle on the matter. He tossed the red envelope into Liang Shuhuo’s car and turned to get into his own.
On the drive back, Lin Jiang opened his attribute panel.
[Name: Lin Jiang]
[Skills: Culinary Skill (Basic), Fighting Technique (Basic), Baji Fist (Beginner), Swimming (Beginner)]
[Attributes: Physique 21, Comprehension 35, Charm 22]
[Martial Force: 26]
[Teammate: Xu Lin]
[Item: Entry and Exit Peace Card *1]
[Treasure Chest: 40/100]
Lin Jiang did a quick calculation in his head.
’If I push my limits this week, couldn’t I bring in tens of millions in returns?’
’That’s pretty damn awesome.’
Instead of heading back to Berkeley, Lin Jiang drove back to the company.
As soon as he walked in the door, he heard He Siyao’s voice on the phone, seemingly discussing recruitment with someone.
He Siyao was wearing a business suit, standing in front of the window. Her silhouette already had the air of a professional white-collar worker.
Chen Jingxian, wearing a gray skirt and a white blouse, was squatting in front of the safe, organizing important documents.
"You’re here."
Seeing Lin Jiang, Chen Jingxian stopped what she was doing.
He Siyao also quickly ended her call and came over to Lin Jiang.
"How’s the recruitment going?"
"It’s not going very fast," Chen Jingxian said.
"The main issue is that neither of us has any experience in this area. We can hire regular staff, but the management positions are difficult. We’re afraid of hiring the wrong person."
"That’s normal. There’s always a process of trial and error," Lin Jiang said. "Tomorrow, I’ll transfer someone over to help you. It should speed things up."
"Okay."
In this regard, neither Chen Jingxian nor He Siyao had the ability to handle things on their own. It would be better to have someone guide them.
The most suitable candidate at the moment was Huang Youwei.
’I’ll send him over tomorrow to help out while he juggles both sides.’
"Show me the club’s accounts."
The main reason he came over this time was to look at the books.
’Tongzi gave me ten waitresses on par with He Siyao. I need to see how they’re performing.’
’If they’re utilized well, the daily cash flow could be quite substantial.’
"I’ll get them for you now."
Lin Jiang returned to his office. He looked at the vast space under his desk. ’I’ll have to find a chance to make good use of this.’
Before long, Chen Jingxian and He Siyao came in together, one holding a laptop and the other holding tea.
’What a treat.’
After setting down the tea, He Siyao tactfully left. Chen Jingxian came to Lin Jiang’s side to show him the club’s performance over the past few days.
But Lin Jiang’s gaze was completely captivated by Chen Jingxian’s two large "white rabbits."
’Keeping them cooped up in there all the time, won’t they suffocate? She doesn’t even let them out for some air.’
"Performance these past few days has been steadily rising. Compared to before the acquisition, revenue has basically doubled. There’s still room for growth. In another two days, we might even break 300,000."
Chen Jingxian said,
"If we calculate based on 300,000 in revenue, about 230,000 of that would be pure profit, which is quite substantial."
After a pause, Chen Jingxian continued,
"Yaoyao and I looked into it. If this trend continues, breaking ten million in annual profit won’t be a problem. Also..."
Halfway through her sentence, she noticed Lin Jiang wasn’t responding. She turned her head to look and found him staring at her chest.
"Don’t stare. We’re working."
"Mhm, work first. I’ll look later."
"You can’t look later, either."
"Your two big white rabbits are about to jump out."
"Hurry up and focus on work. Don’t think about other things."
[You have gained favor from NPC Chen Jingxian. Affinity +10]
[Affinity: 80]
[Reward: 1,000,000 NPC Special Development Fund. Has been deposited into your account.]
The Affinity has broken past 80!
A red exclamation mark appeared above Chen Jingxian’s head!
A new main quest has arrived!