My wife and I are both time travelers.

Chapter 123 Missing
Xie Xiangrong burst into laughter, shaking his head as he laughed.

"Look! Look! The fox's tail is showing itself, isn't it?" he said, pointing at Ge Xianlin and turning to Lin Ying.

"What fox tail? Don't try to mislead me, you young master Xie. Don't spread nonsense and corrupt young girls. I'm talking to you about serious matters."

"Is this considered serious business?" Xie Xiangrong's smile faded, and he said seriously, "You see something nice and try to grab it all? You're a robber!"

"People say that if you eat someone's food, you're obligated to do so. But you, after eating the egg tarts they sent, you think you can just take the whole thing, including the recipe and the technique, with a few casual words? I think you shouldn't be called Ge Xianlin, you should be called Ge the Skinflint! Even Zhou the Skinflint wasn't as ruthless as you."

"Learn something? Learn my ass! The skills belong to Xiaolin, and the ingredients belong to our coffee shop. You think you can just take them all? Dream on! You ordered egg tarts today, are you going to beat me up for making coffee tomorrow? In a few days, I might as well just take the whole coffee shop home with you!"

"Nonsense! I absolutely didn't mean that!" Hearing Xie Xiangrong's blunt and rude words, Ge Xianlin immediately became anxious, his face flushed and his voice rose three degrees: "Did I say that? Did I say that? No, right! Let's keep things separate. After all, the coffee shop is part of our hotel, isn't it? We're all on the same side, shouldn't we help each other out? Besides, I didn't say I wanted your egg tart skills for free."

"We're just discussing this, asking if we could teach our pastry chef so the hotel can make some egg tarts to sell, to improve the hotel's catering service and give guests more choices. Why are you so resistant all of a sudden, as if you've stepped on someone's tail? Besides, these egg tarts were made by Xiaolin, and the young lady hasn't even said anything yet, so why are you in such a hurry?"

As he spoke, Ge Xianlin smiled and asked Lin Ying, "Isn't that right, Xiao Lin? Do you think what I said is correct?"

"Uncle Xianlin, I'm young and don't understand. I'll listen to you, Uncle." Lin Ying wasn't fooled at all and smiled as she performed a quick shift in her demeanor.

Upon hearing this, Ge Xianlin was somewhat stunned, while Xie Xiangrong burst into laughter, clapping his hands and saying, "Look at you, at your age, still trying to fool young girls. You've miscalculated today, haven't you?"

“Speak so rudely, what do you mean by lying? I’m discussing this! Discussing this!” Ge Xianlin retorted stubbornly, continuing to ramble on and on, trying his best to persuade them to teach their egg tart-making skills to their people.

No matter what Ge Xianlin said, Xie Xiangrong refused, shaking his head repeatedly, until Ge Xianlin started talking about the big picture. Only then did Xie Xiangrong say, "Forget about having someone teach you. As the saying goes, 'Teach your apprentice and you'll starve yourself.' If you really want to sell egg tarts, it's easy. Just have the catering department place an order with our coffee shop. It'll save you the trouble of sending someone to learn. It's not like I can't do it. This way, it's convenient for everyone. What do you say, Xiao Lin?"

"Hehe, I'll listen to Uncle." Lin Ying was very cunning; she would answer any question with this sentence, just like a non-stick pan.

"You..." Seeing that Xie Xiangrong and Lin Ying were unwilling to budge, Ge Xianlin was at a loss. It seemed that simply taking over the egg tart making skills wouldn't be so easy. However, Xie Xiangrong's suggestion was also a possibility: having the catering department cooperate with the coffee shop and order egg tarts directly from the coffee shop was feasible. Although egg tarts were delicious, he wasn't sure if they were suitable for the hotel. Let's make do with this for now and see how things go later?

Putting that matter aside for the time being, Ge Xianlin turned to Xie Xiangrong and the others to discuss preparations for the opening of the coffee shop.

Judging from the current progress, the coffee shop can try a trial operation in another week. The official opening time will be determined based on the trial operation. Even if there are problems that need to be adjusted, they are all minor details and will not cause too much delay. It is estimated that there will be at most about half a month.

Ge Xianlin is very concerned about this coffee shop. It is not only an experiment for the hotel, but also involves the current policy adjustments. Moreover, as the first four-star hotel in Shanghai to serve foreign guests after the reform and opening up, the official opening of the coffee shop is of great significance.

Therefore, Ge Xianlin dared not be negligent in the matter of the official opening. Not only did he have to make sure everything went perfectly, but he also had to prepare to receive some leaders who might come to inspect the place on the opening day. In addition, there were the requirements for clothing that Lin Ying had mentioned before. Since the coffee shop was a business in cooperation with the hotel, the work clothes also had to match the hotel. Therefore, the clothing of Xie Xiangrong, the three Lin sisters, and all the staff who would be joining the coffee shop later had to reflect uniformity and distinctiveness.

Regarding the current hotel uniforms, Lin Ying had met with the clothing factory that the hotel collaborates with a few days ago, but she did not approve of their proposed uniform design. This is because the current clothing factories are all state-owned, and although the uniforms they produce are Western-style according to the hotel's requirements, the fabrics and workmanship are quite ordinary.

As a hotel waiter, it might be barely adequate, but from a coffee shop perspective, it was insufficient. So, after discussing it, Lin Ying and Xie Xiangrong decided to find a suitable Hongbang tailor to make it themselves. This would be slightly more expensive, but it would still meet their needs.

"You don't need to tell me this. You can handle it yourselves. It would be better if I knew." Ge Xianlin thought for a moment and waved his hand. This old fox was also very cunning. He decided to pretend to be deaf and dumb about this matter. If word got out, some people at the hotel would be unhappy. Anyway, there weren't many people at the coffee shop. As long as the colors and styles looked similar, he didn't care who did it. It's better to be ignorant in this kind of thing.

The three chatted in the office for a while, discussing other matters as well. Seeing that it was almost time, Lin Ying and Xie Xiangrong got up to say goodbye. On the way back to the coffee shop after leaving Ge Xianlin's office, Xie Xiangrong whispered to Lin Ying that she should be prepared. He knew Ge Xianlin too well, and since the coffee shop and the hotel were currently partners, the egg tart technique probably wouldn't be a secret for long and would eventually have to be handed over. He regretted bringing the egg tarts to show off today.

"Uncle, egg tarts are a simple dish that doesn't require much skill. It's all about the ingredients and the control of the heat. If you really know how, you'll understand it as soon as I explain it. Even if we don't teach you, the hotel can find ways to learn it from other places."

"I think we should find an opportunity to do Uncle Xianlin a favor and have him send two people to help me. I'll pick some things to teach them, and as for how far they can go, that's up to their skills."

"That's true..." Xie Xiangrong stroked his chin and nodded. "Let me think about this carefully. This guy won't get away with taking advantage of us so easily. We'll find an opportunity to skin him alive. He can't get something for nothing!"

"Hehe, I'll listen to Uncle." Lin Ying said happily. With Xie Xiangrong overseeing things, she definitely wouldn't suffer any losses, and might even get some benefits. At worst, having two free laborers would make her life much easier. As for the rest, it would depend on how Xie Xiangrong negotiated with Ge Xianlin.

Back at the coffee shop, everyone continued working until evening, when they all left, agreeing to meet again the next morning. Xie Xiangrong rode his bicycle home. As for Lin Ying, Lin Wen, and Lin Xi, since one bicycle couldn't carry two people, and neither of the younger sisters could ride a bike, they hadn't ridden one when they came. The buses were too crowded during rush hour, but luckily, the coffee shop wasn't far from home, so they chatted as they walked, deciding to walk home, which would only take about half an hour.

Chatting and laughing, they quickly arrived near their home. As soon as they entered the alley and walked a short distance, Lin Ying spotted Lao Wen wandering around near her small building.

"Brother Wen!" Lin Ying was overjoyed to see Lao Wen. More than three weeks had passed since they went south to Lingnan. Compared to the previous two trips, this time they were gone for several more days. Lin Ying had been wondering when Zhou Jiye and the others would return. This time, they had brought more money and wanted to take more goods. In addition, they were not the only ones going south; they were also accompanied by several people from Awei's group. Perhaps for this reason, it was normal for it to take longer.

Even so, they should be back by now, probably in the next two or three days.

So when Lin Ying saw Lao Wen, her first thought was that Zhou Jiye and the others had returned. It had been almost a month since they last met, and to be honest, Lin Ying had missed him a bit. Moreover, with everything going smoothly at the coffee shop, Lin Ying had been thinking of telling Zhou Jiye about it when he returned and taking him to see the coffee shop.

"You're finally back!" Old Wen looked up and saw Lin Ying and two young girls walking towards him. He quickly threw the half-smoked cigarette on the ground and hurried towards Lin Ying.

As they approached, Lao Wen's gaze swept over Lin Wen and Lin Xi. Although he had never met the two girls before, he knew that Lin Ying's two younger sisters had recently come to Shanghai. Judging from their resemblance to Lin Ying, these two girls must be her sisters.

Sure enough, Lin Ying introduced Lao Wen to her two younger sisters: Lin Wen on the left and Lin Xi, who was slightly taller on the right. Lin Ying then introduced Lao Wen to her two sisters. Lin Wen and Lin Xi quickly greeted Lao Wen, calling him "Brother Wen." Lao Wen nodded, forcing a smile as he greeted his two younger sisters, then looked at Lin Ying with a hesitant expression.

"Where's my Xiaoling? And Brother Qing? Brother Wen, why are you waiting at the door? Did Xiaoling go home first and leave you outside to wait for him?" Lin Ying asked with a smile.

“Let’s talk over here…” Old Wen glanced at Lin Wen and Lin Xi beside him, then winked at Lin Ying.

Lin Ying was stunned for a moment, and for some reason, she suddenly had a bad feeling. The smile on her face disappeared instantly.

"I'm going to talk to Brother Wen for a bit, you two go home first," Lin Ying said to her two younger sisters, then walked away with Old Wen.

After walking a few meters, Lin Ying came to the side and asked Lao Wen in a low voice with a serious expression, "Has something happened? Where is my husband? Where is Brother Qing? Why don't I see them?"

"Aqing is still in Lingnan and hasn't returned yet," Old Wen said. This made Lin Ying feel a little relieved, but the next sentence was like a bolt from the blue, leaving her completely stunned.

"Jiye is in trouble! He... he's gone missing..."

(End of this chapter)