Chapter 18: Receiving a Love Letter

“Hey, master, make this a little higher.”

“Yeah, yeah, that’s the right height.”

“And over there, the baseboard doesn’t seem level. Master, could you fix that later? Thanks.”

At 2:30 in the afternoon, Jiang Ning had already been in the shop for a while.

By now, the marble walls, tiles, and ceiling had all been completed.

Currently, they were working on the finishing touches—such as the wall shelves, side display area, and securing some tables and chairs.

A quick glance around showed that the shop was already looking quite similar to the vision Jiang Ning had in her mind.

At this moment, Tian Wenhao walked in from outside, holding some papers.

When he saw his cousin, who had changed into a completely different style of clothing, his eyes widened in surprise before he instinctively lowered his head.

“Ning… Ning Ning, these are the purchase orders for the kitchen equipment.”

“Oh.”

Jiang Ning glanced curiously at her stammering cousin and reached out to take the order forms.

A quick scan showed that the prices were acceptable.

She mentally calculated her savings and let out a small sigh.

She had put all her assets into this shop.

If it made money, great. If not, she’d have to think of other ways to make ends meet.

“How’s the business license and health permit coming along?”

“They’re still being processed. Should be ready in about a week.”

“Thanks for handling it, cousin.” Jiang Ning turned back and flashed a sweet smile at the shy university student behind her.

But Tian Wenhao shook his head and said, “It’s no problem. This is part of it—I do get a share of the profits, after all.”

“Hehehe, well, that’s different.” Jiang Ning chuckled before pausing for a moment and asking, “Are the flyers ready?”

Hearing this, Tian Wenhao suddenly remembered something and blurted out, “Ning Ning, isn’t the discount on the flyers too big?”

“A hamburger costs 8 yuan, and with a flyer, it’s buy-one-get-one-free. Won’t we be losing money?”

Losing money?

It’s just two slices of bread, a few leaves of lettuce, and a meat patty—how could that possibly lead to losses?

Even a buy-one-get-three deal wouldn’t make them lose money.

Of course, with several construction workers around, Jiang Ning wasn’t about to explain these details right now.

So she just patted her cousin’s shoulder lightly.

“Don’t worry, cousin. Trust me, you won’t go hungry.”

After that, the two of them discussed some other shop matters until dinnertime.

After buying dinner for the workers, Jiang Ning’s cousin-in-law, Xiao Mingxiu, also arrived and invited her to join them for a meal.

But Jiang Ning declined.

It wasn’t that she was unsociable—it was just that she had a class meeting to attend that evening.

As the first class meeting after entering high school, Yang Mei, the Homeroom Teacher, had already made it clear that attendance was mandatory.

So, with a sigh of resignation, Jiang Ning hopped onto her pink bicycle and rode toward school.

The city at dusk was bathed in the glow of the setting sun, painting the sky with scattered red clouds that seemed to resist the approaching night.

A young girl pedaled her bike, humming a tune, her long hair flowing in the wind, revealing the glistening curve of her neck.

Passersby couldn’t help but steal glances at her, captivated by the vibrant aura of youth she exuded.

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After a while, Jiang Ning arrived at school.

She parked her bike, entered through the school gate, walked through the dimly lit campus, and reached her classroom.

Ignoring the surprised looks from her classmates, she walked straight to her seat.

But as soon as she sat down, Luo Shanshan leaned over, resting her chin on the desk.

“Jiang Jiang, you’re getting prettier and prettier.”

“What should I do? I think I might be falling for you.”

Jiang Ning, who was tidying her desk, rolled her eyes at her friend.

“Oh really? Then what about a certain someone’s little Tang Bo?”

At these words, Luo Shanshan’s face instantly turned red. Flustered and embarrassed, she punched Jiang Ning lightly.

“Xiao Jiang Jiang! You’ve changed!”

But because her movements were too big, a blue envelope suddenly slipped out of Jiang Ning’s desk and floated to the ground.

Seeing this, their playful scuffle came to an abrupt halt.

Jiang Ning picked up the envelope and examined it for a moment.

“Yours?”

“How could it be?” Luo Shanshan denied immediately. Then, her eyes gleamed mischievously, and a grin spread across her face.

“Hehehehe, is this a love letter?”

“I think so too.” Another classmate, Sun Qian, had somehow joined them and spoke in a confident tone.

“Blue symbolizes loyalty, purity, eternity, and calmness. I’d guess this person has a melancholic personality.”

“Oh? There’s a meaning behind it?” Luo Shanshan was instantly intrigued by this random speculation.

Jiang Ning smiled silently.

Then, she opened the envelope and took out the letter inside.

It was written on a rather special kind of paper—its texture was strangely soft to the touch.

Scanning it briefly, she saw phrases like “Your presence occupies my world” and “I want to grow old with you.”

Clearly copied from somewhere.

Kids these days don’t even know how to write love letters. Back in my day, I could write—

Cough, cough, cough.

Jiang Ning quickly shook off those unnecessary thoughts and looked at the signature at the bottom.

Seeing the name, she sighed and handed the letter to Luo Shanshan.

“It’s Wang Zekai…”

“Huh? Oh, it’s him.”

Hearing it was someone familiar, Luo Shanshan lost interest in speculating.

But Sun Qian behind them seemed intrigued.

“The Wang Zekai you’re talking about—is he the study committee member from Class Six?”

Study committee member?

Jiang Ning was momentarily surprised but then remembered that Wang Zekai had always had good grades.

So it wasn’t impossible.

She nodded. “Probably.”

“I heard he’s pretty rich. He even brings a phone to school.”

“How do you know?” Luo Shanshan was surprised—she, as an old classmate, hadn’t even heard about this.

“My best friend from middle school is in Class Six. She told me that during military training, he was showing off his phone in class, and the teacher confiscated it.”

“Pfft.”

Hearing this, Luo Shanshan couldn’t hold back her laughter.

Jiang Ning also found it amusing.

Then, Sun Qian gave a serious warning to Jiang Ning:

“That guy has a bad personality. You absolutely must not accept his confession.”

“Don’t worry.”

A short while later, Homeroom Teacher Yang Mei arrived, accompanied by several boys.

Each of them was carrying a large stack of clothes.

From Jiang Ning’s angle, she could see that every piece looked similar—white shirts with blue collars and cuffs.

They were unmistakably school uniforms.

Sure enough, Yang Mei soon instructed Qi Wen to distribute the uniforms and announced that from now on, students must wear them every Monday.

Unlike Luo Shanshan and Sun Qian, who grumbled about it, Jiang Ning was quite pleased.

After all, wearing a uniform meant she wouldn’t have to worry about choosing outfits.

But the uniform distribution was a minor event.

The real bombshell was when Yang Mei announced that there would be a placement exam this week—causing the entire class to erupt in wails of despair.

And so, Jiang Ning’s high school life officially began amidst a chorus of groans.

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