"Aunt Zhao, I noticed you hadn’t left work yet, so I thought you might be working overti."
"Yeah, working overti was supposed to end at ten, but then he kept back to work even more overti. That bastard!"
Thinking about what had just happened, Zhao Shumin still felt incredibly furious inside.
That damned Liu Changming. Today, he tried to touch . If Xiao Yan hadn’t been there, I might have been seriously taken advantage of.
"Today, I thought about going upstairs to check on you, and I overheard Liu Changming muttering about wanting to assault you. I recorded it."
"Ever since your prospective daughter-in-law tried to set up last ti, I’ve been keeping this cara on all the ti."
Talking about this, Zhao Shumin also started feeling embarrassed.
Xiao Yan really is such an incredibly kind-hearted person.
But last ti, without even figuring out the truth, I ripped his clothes apart like a lunatic, totally unreasonable.
Every ti I think about the real story, I hate myself deeply for what I did.
Even while making breakfast for Li Zhiyan, she couldn’t shake the feeling of guilt towards him.
"I’m sorry, Xiao Yan."
"It’s okay, Aunt. That’s all in the past. Look how good our relationship is now, right?"
"You’re even making food, Aunt Zhao. You’re my favorite!"
"Besides, back then you had no idea about the truth."
"If it were , I’d probably have jumped to protect my family too."
"Hmm."
But Zhao Shumin couldn’t help still feeling guilty toward Li Zhiyan.
"I followed them, and you know what happened after that."
At that mont, the two passed by a barbecue bar.
"Xiao Yan, are you hungry? Let’s go in and have so late-night barbecue."
Although Zhao Shumin was usually very frugal, she never held back when treating Li Zhiyan. And especially today—if it hadn’t been for him, she might really have been assaulted.
"Alright."
Once seated at the barbecue bar, Li Zhiyan ordered so grilled skewers and also asked for a few beers. Nothing beats an ice-cold beer on a sumr night to cool down.
"Aunt, with this incident, I suppose you’re going to lose your job, right?"
Talking about this, Zhao Shumin let out a soft "hmm."
"The boss has been taken into custody, so there’s no way this job can continue."
"He probably hates my guts now."
"Aunt Zhao, don’t even worry about that. Getting detained—it serves him right."
"Honestly, I didn’t want to keep working there. Even though jobs are hard to co by, he was always harassing verbally."
"This ti, this is a blessing in disguise."
"Xiao Yan, thank you so much for tonight. I’m treating you to this al."
"Think of it as a token of gratitude."
"I owe you big ti."
Li Zhiyan asked worriedly, "Aunt, have you thought about what’s next?"
"What will you do moving forward? Jobs aren’t easy to find these days."
"So of my relatives are just sitting at ho jobless."
Li Zhiyan had read online about how easy job hunting supposedly used to be back in 2013–2014.
Casual jobs paid seven or eight thousand yuan monthly.
But he’d sent out resus for ages now, with no responses whatsoever, not even interview calls.
Eventually, it was only with Shen Hongi’s help that he’d managed to land a job completely unrelated to his field of study—and thus began his miserable journey as a wage worker.
There was a hint of confusion in Zhao Shumin’s eyes.
"Aunt has been considering a few options."
"One thought was opening a clothing store; I know quite a few wholesale suppliers."
"I could get inventory at good prices, but it’s only an idea."
"If I can find a job, it’s still better to find steady employnt."
Deep down, Zhao Shumin was conservative by nature. Starting a business seed too risky for her.
"Hmm, Aunt. People with ambition these days are mostly deep in debt, owing tens of thousands."
"Let’s keep things steady for now. If nothing pans out with jobs, then we can think about opening a store."
While speaking, Li Zhiyan caught sight of a piece of packaging sticking out of Zhao Shumin’s bag.
He recognized it instantly. Clearly, it was a pair of stockings—flesh-colored nylons.
Aunt Zhao bought stockings?! Li Zhiyan was dumbfounded!
This woman had always dressed conservatively and even boringly. Things like stockings, dresses, or heels that carried any femininity—she had never touched them.
Casually, he pulled the stockings out, and Zhao Shumin turned completely red-faced.
To her, such items symbolized "cheap and vulgar." She’d always believed that only provocative won liked wearing them.
If soone saw them, she’d feel indescribably embarrassed.
"Xiao Yan, put that away quickly."
Zhao Shumin shook slightly, wanting to stash the stockings away.
"These aren’t a big deal, Aunt Zhao. You’re overthinking. Honestly, it’s nothing to be bothered about. Look around you—this is modern tis."
Scanning the room, Zhao Shumin saw everyone engrossed in their own little worlds, indeed paying her no attention.
This allowed her to let out a small sigh of relief.
"Xiao Yan, Aunt really feels awkward wearing these stockings. But I thought you’d like them..."
"So I thought I’d wear them and then give them to you—I just don’t want you to steal anymore."
"Aunt Zhao, I swear, I’ve never stolen a thing."
Li Zhiyan knew there was no way to explain himself at this point.
"Oh, stop lying, Aunt saw that bit of cloth peeking out of your pocket before—weren’t those stockings?"
Li Zhiyan: "..."
Great. Now there’s no way to clear this up, not even in the next life—I’m really not that kind of person!
To avoid making Li Zhiyan feel awkward, Zhao Shumin stopped talking about it.
Very soon, the barbecue skewers and beers were brought out.
Li Zhiyan opened a bottle and handed it to Zhao Shumin. However, she seed a little nervous holding it.
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