Chapter 102: Chapter Title Was Censored

It wasn’t until they walked out of the store—That Meng Qing’s face was still full of disbelief.

Thinking back to the expression on Manager Ma’s face, that look of being utterly shut down, she couldn’t help but feel a strange sense of satisfaction.

At that moment—A wad of cash was suddenly stuffed into her hand.

Meng Qing looked down at the money. A rough count—at least a hundred or two.

Completely puzzled, she looked up at the smiling girl in front of her.

“Queen, what’s this money for?”

“Take it. It’s the rebate that store clerk gave me just now.”

“Rebate?”

“Yeah, a rebate from buying those phones just now.”

Noticing Meng Qing’s reluctance to accept the money, Jiang Ning immediately explained:

“Just think of it like I bought those phones from you. You just happened to quit after completing the order.”

“This is your commission.”

Sure enough—With that explanation, Meng Qing hesitated.

Holding the wad of cash in her fingers—After a long pause, her eyes reddened.

Seeing she was about to start crying again, Old Man Jiang got a little flustered. In a hurry, he said:

“What are you crying for! Aren’t we family?!”

Sure enough—Hearing the word “family,” Meng Qing clearly froze.

Then smiled.

Eyes still red, she said:

“You really are still the Queen.”

“You know, during those six months you didn’t contact us, I cried so many times…”

“I was afraid that once you got into No. 1 High, you’d change and leave us behind…”

“But now I know, even though your appearance has changed, your heart hasn’t.”

“Still as sharp-tongued and soft-hearted as ever.”

Saying that, she hugged Jiang Ning’s arm and leaned against her.

Feeling the unusual closeness, Old Man Jiang raised a brow.

“I used to be very hard in other places too.”

“Hm? Where?”

“Not anymore…”

“Oh…”

“By the way, can I ask you something?”

“What is it?”

“Can you call me Ningning from now on?”

“No.”

“Come on, let’s negotiate…”

“We’ll see.”

Meng Qing clung to Jiang Ning like a shy little wife.

The two walked a long way together, bathed in the winter sun—Until they reached where the bike was parked.

“What are you doing next?”

“Probably keep looking for part-time jobs.”

As if expecting that answer, Jiang Ning casually hung the bag with eight phones on the handlebars, then turned back to the crybaby beside her and said:

“Get on.”

“Where are we going?”

“Somewhere you can work part-time.”

Fifteen minutes later—Jiang Ning stopped in front of Shi Ning Ji, a shop near Jiangzhou University, with a curious Meng Qing in tow.

“This is…?”

“My cousin’s shop.”

Hearing it was a relative’s store, Meng Qing didn’t ask much—she just softly replied and followed Jiang Ning inside.

It was the second day of the Lunar New Year.

Normally, during the holiday season, a store like this should’ve been pretty empty.

After all, most students—the main source of customers—had gone home for break.

But once they stepped in, that clearly wasn’t the case.

The 100-square-meter shop was full of people waiting in line—All the seats were already taken.

At a glance—Most of the customers were older, and they had kids with them.

A closer look revealed—Almost every kid was holding a little piglet plushie.

Seeing that—Jiang Ning seemed to realize something. She looked toward the corner and saw that a mini children’s play area had already been set up at some point.

Several kids were playing there happily.

Fast work.

Jiang Ning had only casually mentioned the idea to her cousin’s wife before the holidays, yet they’d already pulled it together in just a few days.

She was genuinely impressed with her cousin-in-law’s efficiency.

At that moment, Xiao Mingxiu walked out of the restroom and immediately spotted the familiar figure in the crowd.

She washed her hands and quickly walked up to Jiang Ning.

“Ningning! Happy New Year!”

Saying that, she pulled out a small red envelope and handed it over.

Faced with a red envelope, Money-Grubber Jiang had zero resistance. She accepted it with a big smile.

“Thanks, cousin-in-law! Wishing you happiness every day and smooth sailing all year round—and hopefully, next year you’ll come back to our hometown with us!”

She rattled off the festive phrases like a pro—Making Xiao Mingxiu blush a little.

But then, Jiang Ning pulled out another red envelope and discreetly passed it to her.

“This one’s a boss bonus! You’re not allowed to refuse.”

Xiao Mingxiu understood what that meant right away.

She chuckled and nodded.

Then, Jiang Ning pushed Meng Qing forward.

“This is my middle school classmate. I’m putting her here as a temp.”

“Don’t need to pay her.”

At first, Xiao Mingxiu didn’t understand why no pay was needed. But when she heard the girl was Jiang Ning’s classmate—She seemed to get it.

Nodded and looked at Meng Qing.

“What’s your name?”

“Do you know how to organize inventory?”

“What’s your availability?”

After a round of questions, Xiao Mingxiu gave Jiang Ning a confirming nod.

Satisfied, Jiang Ning patted Meng Qing’s shoulder.

“Be good. Work hard.”

“I’ll give you a little something on the side.”

“Won’t that be a problem?” Meng Qing hesitated.

“Don’t worry. Just tell anyone who asks that you’re volunteering and not taking a salary.”

Hearing that, Meng Qing nodded—half-understanding.

A short while later—Wearing her new uniform, Meng Qing stepped into the kids’ play area and quickly became one with the children.

Meanwhile, Jiang Ning pulled Xiao Mingxiu into the break room.

“Cousin-in-law, can you do me a favor?”

She placed the bag of phones on the table—Then pulled out five Nokia 8810s.

“When you have time, make a reward plan.”

“Distribute these five phones along with the bonuses.”

Phones?

Five of them?

Xiao Mingxiu was instantly stunned by Jiang Ning’s grand gesture.

You had to know—the bonuses they’d originally planned were already way above what most stores offered.

And now they were even giving out phones as rewards?

“That’s way too extravagant…”

“It’s nothing,” Jiang Ning said casually.

“Money is meant to be spent.”

“Rather than spending it elsewhere, I’d rather use it to boost employee morale.”

“It benefits both you and me, and the store as a whole.”

Even though Xiao Mingxiu understood Jiang Ning was using money as a strategy to retain staff, such a big move was still a bit much for her to take in.

But then again—Jiang Ning was the boss. If she was willing to spend money on her employees, that was a good thing.

It was way better than those stingy bosses who hoard profits and never share.

With that in mind, Xiao Mingxiu gradually began to accept Jiang Ning’s way of thinking.

Still, she had a suggestion of her own.

“Can we increase the rewards for the delivery team?”

“What do you mean?” Jiang Ning, who was busy unpacking a new phone for herself, asked with a puzzled expression.

“The base pay for the delivery team is about the same as the in-store staff,” Xiao Mingxiu explained.

“But in terms of performance bonuses, they get way less. Even with the added delivery orders, it doesn’t make up for it.”

“If this goes on for too long, I’m worried the employees might get ideas…”

“Worried they might get ideas?” Jiang Ning frowned.

“Did someone come to you asking for a raise?”

“No, no,” Xiao Mingxiu shook her head immediately.

“I was just chatting with the store manager of the specialty shop next to the station store. She mentioned it in passing.”

“Later I thought about it—while our in-store employees are well-compensated, the delivery team’s pay is comparatively much lower.”

Ah, so that’s what it was.

After hearing that, Jiang Ning’s frown eased slightly.

After all, issues related to wages and benefits are fundamental. One wrong move could shake the whole foundation.

The delivery team was still a new setup, with an unstable structure.

If something went wrong, the whole team could collapse.

Given that, Jiang Ning thought it over and agreed with Xiao Mingxiu’s suggestion.

She even planned to go back and draft a detailed wage growth plan.

That way, the delivery team could see a promising future for themselves.

After a while, Jiang Ning and Xiao Mingxiu chatted a bit more about the store, then left the other two Nokia 3310s there for now.

Then Jiang Ning stepped outside, greeted Meng Qing and the others, and left.

It was already close to 3 PM.

She had originally agreed to go to Teacher Du Xinrui’s home at 2 PM for piano practice, so she was quite late now.

Even though she’d sent a text earlier using her new phone, it still didn’t feel quite right.

And on top of that, it was the New Year—showing up empty-handed wouldn’t be very polite.

So Jiang Ning bought a bunch of fruit and New Year’s gifts and hung them on the handlebars.

Then she wobbled off, pedaling in the direction of Teacher Du’s home.

Teacher Du Xinrui lived in Jiangzhou Tianxia Community, located in the northern district.

It was a luxury villa area near a scenic spot, with a prime location and beautiful surroundings.

Naturally, property prices there were among the highest in all of Jiangzhou.

In her previous life, Jiang Ning used to dream about owning a house there—if she did, she’d definitely invite a few cute girls over for house parties.

And in this life, while she already had enough money to buy a place there outright…

That dream from her past life somehow didn’t seem achievable anymore.

Thinking of this, Jiang Ning let out a slightly wistful sigh.

She then politely turned down the overly helpful security guard, hung her things on the front of her bike, and rode into the community alone.

She cruised through the roads lined with greenery and landscaping.

Soon, she arrived in front of a villa.

With practiced ease, she parked her bike by the wall and locked it up, then trotted up the steps.

Facing the bronze door, she carried her gifts in one hand and rang the doorbell with the other.

“Ding-dong.”

The bell rang once.

A moment later, the peephole opened, and a middle-aged woman’s voice came from inside.

“Who is it?”

“Aunt Hu, it’s me, Jiang Ning.”

“Oh, Xiao Ning!”

A clicking sound followed, and the door opened to reveal a plain-looking but kind-faced middle-aged woman with a warm smile.

Seeing her, Jiang Ning immediately smiled and said,
“Happy New Year, Aunt Hu!”

She then picked out a box of honey from the gifts she was carrying and handed it over.

“A little something for the New Year—not much, so I hope you don’t mind.”

Aunt Hu had always liked this good-looking, polite girl.

She never expected that Jiang Ning would even think to bring a gift for her—the housekeeper.

Instantly, Aunt Hu’s smile deepened, and even the wrinkles on her face seemed more pronounced with joy.

Just then—A girl’s voice called out from inside the house:

“Aunt Hu, who is it?”

—

(Author’s Notes)

Got censored again. Damn it.

Haven’t been in the best shape lately!

Even the chapter titles are getting blocked.

I’m losing my mind here.

(End of Chapter)