Chapter 49

After Xiao Bing and Xiao Bei finished chatting, Xiao Bei went back to rest first. Xiao Bing carried the vegetables back home. The matter with Xie Lun ultimately needed to be resolved; otherwise, it would always be a threat. This was also the main reason why Xiao Bing had Xiao Bei investigate.

Upon entering the house, he saw that Su Xiaoxiao wasn't idle either; she was mopping the floor. Seeing Xiao Bing return, she smiled and said, "You're back early. Put the vegetables in the kitchen, and I'll cook later."

After last night, Su Xiaoxiao's attitude towards Xiao Bing had indeed changed 180 degrees. She used to be cold and distant, but now she was smiling.

The moment the ice melted, the brilliance was dazzling. Even though Xiao Bing was used to seeing beautiful women, he couldn't help but feel his heart skip a beat, sincerely praising, "Actually, you look very beautiful when you smile."

After praising her, Xiao Bing realized he might have said something wrong. If it were in the past, Su Xiaoxiao would have already changed her expression, but today she didn't. Instead, she still smiled and said, "Go put the vegetables away, then go rest well."

"I'm not tired today," Xiao Bing said with a smile. "I only worked for two hours, then went to the hospital, and came back after buying some vegetables. I haven't done anything today."

Su Xiaoxiao asked, "How is my mother?"

"Pretty good," Xiao Bing replied with a smile, but the true condition of Su Mother was like a thorn in his heart. With so many things happening in the Su family recently, he really didn't know how to tell Su Xiaoxiao about it, so he could only continue to delay.

After putting the vegetables in the kitchen, Xiao Bing didn't go to rest. He first washed his hands and then started cooking. Su Xiaoxiao, after mopping the floor, walked into the kitchen and looked at Xiao Bing's busy back. Her eyes were slightly dazed. When Xiao Bing turned around and saw Su Xiaoxiao standing there staring at him, he couldn't help but laugh, "What are you looking at? Do you think I'm too handsome?"

Su Xiaoxiao sighed, "I suddenly feel so warm and cozy at this moment."

"Oh, really? Then I'll cook for you often."

"Aren't you going to take care of your girlfriend?"

Xiao Bing was speechless for a moment, realizing he might have overpromised.

Su Xiaoxiao smiled understandingly, "When you're dating, you can't let the girl feel neglected. You should spend time with her often. Although I've never dated, I am a girl, so I have some experience in this area."

"Right, by the way, I won't be back for dinner tomorrow night. The Ye family is inviting me to dinner."

"That's great, go ahead...," Su Xiaoxiao smiled, "Ye Xiaoxi is the top beauty of our school, and you've already won her over. You're going to meet her parents so soon. I bet all the boys in school are envying you."

Xiao Bing laughed, "I'm just handsome."

Su Xiaoxiao giggled, "You're quite funny. I'll help you, let's cook together."

Damn, am I funny? Xiao Bing touched his chiseled face. Girls these days are too shy; what they think and what they say are different.

Xiao Bing's cooking skills were really good. With Su Xiaoxiao helping, the two of them quickly finished dinner. They had three dishes and a soup. After dinner, Xiao Bing supervised Su Xiaoxiao taking her medicine. Just as he was about to go back to his room, Su Xiaoxiao suddenly looked at Xiao Bing and said, "You promised to help me with my studies. You won't go back on your word, right?"

"Go... How could I? A man's word is as good as gold."

"Then come in and help me."

"Sure thing." Xiao Bing agreed readily.

When he first came to the Su family, Su Xiaoxiao had warned Xiao Bing not to enter her room. Now, just a few days later, Xiao Bing was frequently entering and leaving her room. Su Xiaoxiao herself didn't understand why such a big change had occurred. Could this man, who made her sister willing to die for him, really have such a great charm?

Su Xiaoxiao handed her Chinese textbook to Xiao Bing and sat down on a chair. Xiao Bing opened the book and asked, "Where should we start?"

"Lesson five."

Xiao Bing carefully flipped through the pages. Su Xiaoxiao secretly observed this man. He had a face that could be described as chiseled, not just handsome but exuding a strong masculine aura. He was kind, confident, and dominant... no wonder her sister was so devoted to him.

Xiao Bing found lesson five, glanced at Su Xiaoxiao, who quickly looked away and said, "Start teaching me."

"Sure, let me read through it first." After reading it, Xiao Bing began to explain the text confidently. Su Xiaoxiao discovered another strength of Xiao Bing: he was very well-versed.

Su Xiaoxiao was very smart, and with Xiao Bing as a good teacher, she quickly caught up on the lessons she had missed. What surprised her was that Xiao Bing was not only good at Chinese but also proficient in other subjects. The two of them, one teaching and one learning, Su Xiaoxiao put aside her strange thoughts and fully immersed herself in studying. Before they knew it, it was already past ten o'clock at night.

Xiao Bing closed the book and smiled, "You learn quickly. No wonder Pei Ya often tells me she has a smart sister."

As he spoke, Xiao Bing stood up, "That's enough for today. You just recovered from a cold, and you have class tomorrow. Get some rest."

"Thank you, Bing. Good night."

Xiao Bing smiled, "Good night."

Back in his room, Xiao Bing saw a text message from Ye Zi, asking if he was asleep. Xiao Bing closed the door, lay down on the bed, and called Ye Zi back. They chatted on the phone for a while, then both went to sleep satisfied.

The next day, Xiao Bing got up early and made breakfast for Su Xiaoxiao. As usual, it was egg cakes. Su Xiaoxiao seemed to have gotten used to it. They ate breakfast together, chatting and laughing, then left the house together. They parted ways near Su Xiaoxiao's school, one heading to the campus and the other to the noodle shop.

The relationship between Xiao Bing and Su Xiaoxiao had completely improved. When everyone in the noodle shop gathered, Xiao Bing told them about the expansion and wage increase. Everyone cheered.

Erguo didn't understand or care about such things. He greeted everyone and went to the market to buy vegetables. Recently, he enjoyed buying vegetables, feeling a sense of accomplishment every time he carried a basket of various vegetables back.

Seeing everyone so happy, Xiao Bing smiled and said, "It's a bit tiring, but I think everyone is more motivated now. I'll try to finalize the expansion in the next few days. There are two plans: one is to expand on the current site, which involves negotiating with the neighboring store to buy it. The problem is that they might not want to sell. The second plan is to find a new location, a larger store, and then renovate it. Once the renovation is complete, we can move in."

Wang Guifang smiled, "Xiao Bing, I didn't expect this. A few days ago, the owner of the neighboring store mentioned to me that she wanted to sell her store. It's a stationery shop, but now stationery shops are all inside schools, and each school has several. Business is getting worse, and they are planning to sell. I think if we talk to her now, we might get a good price."

Xiao Bing looked excited, "That's great, it's like we're getting exactly what we want... I'll go talk to her later. Aunt Wang, if this deal goes through, the noodle shop will have to close for a while. We'll have a grand reopening after the renovation. Don't worry about your wages; I'll talk to Aunt Li, and your wages will be paid as usual."

"Long live Bing!"

"Bing, we love you so much."

Xiao Bing smiled, "Don't get too excited yet. I'll go talk to her later."

When Xiao Bing arrived at the neighboring stationery shop, he saw that they were clearing out the store. The entire shop was almost empty. Xiao Bing suddenly had a bad feeling.

"What are you doing? Is the owner of this shop not continuing?" Xiao Bing asked the leading worker.

"Oh, you don't know. The shop has a new owner. They're planning to open a restaurant, and the old owner asked us to move everything out."

Xiao Bing sighed, realizing he was too late. Just as he was about to leave, he heard a woman outside giving instructions to the workers. The leading worker pointed outside and whispered, "That's the new owner, a young woman. She's quite pretty..."

Xiao Bing ignored the last part, still holding a glimmer of hope to talk to the new owner and see if there was any chance of getting the store back, even though the possibility seemed slim.

Xiao Bing now felt a strong sense of responsibility for the small noodle shop. Whether it was for Aunt Li, who had only two years left to live, or for the deceased Su Pei Ya, he was determined to make the noodle shop successful and grow. So he took the expansion very seriously.

Stepping outside, he followed the sound and finally remembered what the moving worker had said. Even with a very critical eye, the new owner was very beautiful. She was wearing a well-fitted long dress and pants, with a good figure, tall and curvy. She was wearing high heels, and through her sheer stockings, a delicate flower tattoo on her ankle was visible, looking very alluring.

At that moment, Xiao Bing could only see her side face, but even so, he could tell she was a beautiful and cold woman in her thirties.

She was hugging her arms, instructing the workers to be careful. When Xiao Bing was observing her, she noticed him and walked over in her high heels. When he saw her face clearly, Xiao Bing's heart skipped a beat. Her features were indeed beautiful, flawless, and she exuded a cold and alluring aura. Even with her cold expression, she still had a hint of allure. Most importantly, her appearance was very similar to one of the most famous Japanese actresses, Yuta Ayaka, so for Xiao Bing, who occasionally watched Japanese movies, he immediately felt a stirring desire.

Damn, it's a bit hard to persuade her to sell the store. She's like a female demon.

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**End of Chapter**