"Brother Li, what happened?"
As soon as Chen Ping entered, Li Jianqin, looking grim, grabbed him by the collar and dragged him into the private room. Li Jianqin kicked him behind the knee, and with a thud, Chen Ping fell to his knees. The sound of his knees hitting the concrete floor made people's teeth ache.
"Hiss..."
Chen Ping gritted his teeth to endure the pain, twisted his face, and looked up. What met his eyes was a pair of spotless leather shoes with sharp, pointed toes. The person sat on a stool, legs crossed, twirling a cup between his fingers, his other hand resting on the rim. He looked down at Chen Ping with a faint smile that could stir one's heart.
But Chen Ping dared not be stirred.
He shrank back and stammered, "Young... Young Master Lin..."
"Oh," Lin Shanghuai raised an eyebrow in surprise. "You know me? That makes things easier."
Chen Ping quietly turned his head, but saw Brother Li subtly shaking his head, signaling him not to speak. He had to suppress the restlessness in his heart.
Lin Shanghuai shook his leg cheerfully, took out his wallet from his jacket, and tossed it between his fingers. His tone was calm: "I heard from Huang San'er that something went missing from your Wanzi Qianhong a while back. Found it yet?"
He was asking Li Jianqin.
Li Jianqin, standing nearby, quickly bowed and scraped: "Yes, yes, found it long ago. The culprit has also been dealt with."
He hesitated: "Did you... lose something, sir?"
"Of course." Lin Shanghuai smiled maliciously. He deliberately said, "Last week, when I went home from here, I found a hundred yuan missing from my bag. It's not much money, but since Wanzi Qianhong keeps having these incidents, who else would dare come here to play? It would ruin our Huang San'er's reputation, wouldn't it?"
Li Jianqin smiled bitterly upon hearing this. Last week, this Young Master Lin had slapped their boss's face in public, which had already smashed Wanzi Qianhong's reputation. Not to mention ordinary customers, even the various "young masters" in the private rooms had lost more than half in the past two days, all feeling that they had stooped too low.
He understood. This was just Young Master Lin finding a new way to torment them because he had a grudge against Boss Huang.
He glanced at Chen Ping, who was still kneeling on the ground, sweating profusely, gritted his teeth, and said, "Then, Young Master Lin, how would you like to resolve this?"
Lin Shanghuai didn't even look up and said lightly, "Just put it back the way you took it."
"But!" Chen Ping couldn't help but protest when he heard this: "Young Master Lin! I never took your money! I didn't even serve you! You... you might have mistaken me for someone else?"
Besides, it was only a hundred yuan. To these young masters, what was a hundred yuan? What was ten thousand? They could let money fall like snowflakes if they loosened their fingers.
Lin Shanghuai let out a meaningful "ha."
Li Jianqin immediately went over and kicked him in the face, scolding, "If I say you took it, you took it! Why so many words? Do you still want to keep working here?"
Chen Ping trembled, curled up, and didn't argue anymore.
He was a smart man and understood that everyone present knew that even if Chen Ping hadn't taken it, with Lin Shanghuai saying so, he was the guilty party beyond a doubt.
Lin Shanghuai disdained to get involved in their twists and turns. He stood up, his leather shoes so clean that even the soles were a brand-new wood color, and said lazily, "Alright, that's settled."
He glanced slightly towards the dressing room inside the private room, frowned, and dismissed them: "Have him return my money today."
He had wanted to ask for more, but that stubborn woman with eyes as big as an ox's had repeatedly insisted she only wanted a hundred yuan. Lin Shanghuai didn't understand—since she loved money so much, why pretend to be honest? No wonder she ended up with such a useless man.
The man lying prone on the ground didn't move a muscle, enduring the scrutiny of this Young Master Lin. He didn't understand whether Lin Shanghuai had it out for him because he remembered something, or if it was simply dissatisfaction with Boss Huang.
Li Jianqin pulled him out and stood at the door, giving him a symbolic scolding for a long time. But Lin Shanghuai, propping his head up in the room, listened boredly, completely uninterested in him.
"Alright, come out."
The small door to the dressing room was gently pushed open, and a little head poked out, still with her rustic hairstyle. Lin Shanghuai frowned in disgust and said dissatisfied, "What? Am I that embarrassing?"
Hiding in the door, as if he, Young Master Lin, were some kind of flood beast.
"No... it's not that."
After witnessing Young Master Lin's resolute actions, Qi Sui's feelings towards him were only fear. She raised her round face, put on a flattering smile, rubbed her hands together, and cautiously approached this noble cat-like young master.
"Thank you, Young Master Lin—"
Lin Shanghuai raised his hand, "Spare me."
"Stop pretending."
Did he not know? Just now, when she saw it was him, the disappointment on this country woman's face was practically overflowing.
What? Disappointed that it wasn't her lover boy?
Seeing her awkward demeanor, Lin Shanghuai, for once, showed some mercy and said, "Hey, are you short on money?"
Qi Sui nodded firmly and counted on her fingers: "I have to send a fixed amount to my parents every month. Next month, I have to attend someone's wedding and prepare a gift. Oh, and also, I need to save up to buy a small western-style house! I want my parents to move to the county town too!"
"Small western-style house"...
Young Master Lin frowned as he listened to her rambling and interrupted impatiently: "Hey, country girl, how long have you been away from the county? Most of the houses in the county now are commercial apartment buildings. Small western-style houses? Can you afford one?"
Just the private transfer would be a big problem. This country girl, daydreaming about who knows what.
Qi Sui didn't understand these terms and just looked bewildered. She asked, "Do you mean I can't buy a small western-style house?!"
Her expression was as if a thunderbolt had struck her.
Lin Shanghuai curled his lips, revealing a sharp white canine tooth, and smiled slyly: "You couldn't afford one even if you sold yourself. A fool's dream."
"But I have a good idea—" Lin Shanghuai twirled the cup deftly between his fingers, making people stare at his hands. "Come to Wanzi Qianhong, and I'll pay you a salary. How about that?"
Since she liked money so much, why not just give her money?
"Ah?"
Qi Sui was startled. After a moment's thought, a troubled look appeared on her chubby face. "But, but I'm a little scared."