After four years of living alone after marrying far away, he went back to his parents' home and

Lan Yujuan's invitation to become a partner caught Xiao Qi off guard.

Perhaps he had been deceived by someone he trusted completely before.

Therefore, when the opportunity came again, Xiao Qi looked quite conflicted.

There was a mixture of delight and obvious defensiveness and resistance.

Xiao Qi opened his mouth, hesitant to agree directly. But he was clearly reluctant to refuse outright.

Lan Yujuan guessed what he was thinking and didn't press him.

Instead, he took out his own business card from the business card holder on the bar and handed it to the other person.

"It's okay, you can go back and think about it slowly."

"My contact information is here."

"If you've made up your mind, you can contact me through the methods mentioned above, or you can come directly to the store to find me."

"As long as you are willing to partner, we can sit down and discuss the specific details and cooperation methods."

Xiao Qi paused for a moment, then slowly took the business card, his expression clearly beginning to change.

Just then, a commotion came from outside the coffee shop, and a bread truck stopped in front of the shop.

The people in the shop were idling around, chatting in small groups about where to go for lunch.

Hearing a noise outside, they all peeked out.

"Boss Lan, has the store received new stock?" Xiao Qi, who was standing next to him, asked as he walked out wearing an apron.

It seems like they're ready to lend a hand at any time.

Seeing this, Lan Yujuan was also very puzzled.

"No. The goods I ordered arrived all yesterday."

Before she even reached the door, she saw Chen Mo, who had been missing for half a day, get out of the passenger seat of the van, wave at her, and then walk straight to the back of the van.

Then, box after box of items began to be unloaded from the truck.

Lan Yujuan glanced at the time and guessed that Chen Mo must have ordered lunch for everyone in advance.

Just as she was about to go out to help move things, Qi Pei called out to her and quietly pulled her aside.

"Boss Lan, don't go over there!"

"That guy doesn't seem like a good person. He even took advantage of you behind your back today, and he won't let us call him 'brother,' he wants us to call him 'brother-in-law' instead!"

As Qi Pei spoke, she pursed her lips. Seeing the busy man outside the glass door, she seemed to still harbor resentment.

"And, it was him who was being so annoying, being the first to say my coffee wasn't good!"

"So for the rest of the morning, nobody wanted to drink the coffee I made... Humph!"

Lan Yujuan was surprised. She looked at Qi Pei and then turned to look outside.

At this moment, the man was working while secretly glancing into the house, seemingly very curious about what they were talking about inside.

"Peipei, that man you were talking about, the one who didn't seem like a good person, you wouldn't mean... the one who just got out of the passenger seat, would you?"

Qi Pei nodded without hesitation.

"Yes, that's him!"

"Boss Lan, don't be fooled by his appearance."

"When looking for a partner, you should prioritize character!"

After listening, Lan Yujuan was somewhat amused and exasperated, and said tactfully:

"Actually, he's a decent person."

"Age-wise, I'm several years older than you. It's not wrong for you to call him brother-in-law."

Qi Pei was initially quite angry, but gradually, she began to understand what was going on.

"What do you mean?"

"Boss Lan, that man moving things outside, could he be your annoying ex-husband they were just talking about?"

Lan Yujuan blinked; she knew without even guessing.

Just now, Li Rui and his group of friends were probably talking about his past behind my back while I wasn't on the first floor, and Qi Pei happened to overhear them.

Lan Yujuan gently shook her head and said with a faint smile, "He's not my ex-husband."

"His name is Chen Mo, and he is my current family member."

Upon hearing this, Qi Pei gasped, her pupils dilating in shock. "Ah?"

Seeing the little girl's exaggerated reaction, Lan Yujuan smiled, patted her shoulder, and comforted her:

Did he bully you this morning?

"It's alright, Boss Lan has your back. Once we're done, I'll have him apologize to you!"

"Let's go, we've bought lunch, let's go get it first."

As expected, Chen Mo went to order food, and it has now been moved into the store and placed on the table at the entrance. Everyone gathered around to get their food.

It looks like today's lunch is quite lavish.

Not only were there a variety of staple foods, with a mix of meat and vegetables, but each person was also given a soup, a fruit, and a dessert.

Then, just as she was about to lead Qi Pei over, the little girl suddenly clutched her stomach and groaned softly.

"Ouch~, why does my stomach suddenly hurt?"

"Boss Lan, you can eat first, no need to wait for me."

"I need to use the restroom first..."

Before Lan Yujuan could react, Qi Pei took off her apron, picked up her backpack, and headed towards the side gate of the backyard.

The coffee shop's restrooms are built separately on the outer perimeter of the courtyard.

You can either go around from the front door or go through the courtyard and pass through the side door.

Lan Yujuan didn't think much of it, but she set aside Qi Pei's portion of food separately in advance.

Even after everyone had finished eating and the dishes had been cleaned up, Qi Pei still hadn't come out of the bathroom.

Lan Yujuan was a little worried, and immediately stood up and said:

"Strange, why hasn't Peipei come back yet? I'll go to the bathroom to check."

After finishing his meal, Xiao Qi stood to the side with his phone, digesting his food while watching videos to learn.

When Lan Yujuan said she was going to the restroom to find someone, she immediately turned her head away.

"Boss Lan, are you looking for Qi Pei?"

Lan Yujuan nodded, "Yes, she suddenly had a stomachache and went to the bathroom."

"Half an hour has passed now, and he still hasn't come back. My lunch is almost cold."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Qi immediately turned off the video, opened the chat window, and said:

"Did you hear me correctly?"

"She texted me just half an hour ago, saying that the school had given her a last-minute notice about something, and she was in a hurry to get back, so she skipped lunch."

"Look."

Xiao Qi handed over the phone, and Lan Yujuan saw that he had indeed gone home early.

Lan Yujuan was a little surprised. "Oh, I didn't even notice."

As they were talking, several baristas came over together, ready to say goodbye to Lan Yujuan.

"Boss Lan, there aren't many customers in the store right now."

"If we don't have any other plans this afternoon, we'll head back now."

Lan Yujuan immediately expressed her gratitude and then hurriedly walked behind the bar.

"Wait a mininute!"

"I've prepared a small gift for everyone, I hope you like it."

Last night, Lan Yujuan temporarily pulled ten baristas from the group chat to volunteer at the store.

This morning, she arrived at the shop early and prepared twelve gift sets:

A brown paper bag with a cartoon sticker that reads "Grand Opening" inside contains a packet of coffee beans and a custom-made coffee cup from Jingdezhen.

In addition, she prepared twelve red envelopes, each containing 200 yuan in cash.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, she gave out the gifts and red envelopes.

"Xiao Qi, I'm entrusting Pei Pei's share to you. Please remember to pass it on to her for me!"

Xiao Qi accepted the two gifts, but he insisted on only accepting one of the two red envelopes, refusing with a flushed face:

"Boss Lan, you're too kind!"

"Peipei only came along to join in the fun, but not only did she not help, she almost caused trouble in the store."

"You've already been very polite to her by not kicking her out."

"I'll keep these coffee beans and cup for her for now, but I really can't accept the red envelope."

Without saying a word, Lan Yujuan stuffed the red envelope into the brown paper bag.

"We must accept it!"

"Who said she didn't help? She was a huge help to me this morning!"

The other baristas around also joined in to persuade them.

In the end, Xiao Qi couldn't refuse and could only accept it with a blush on her face.

After distributing the gifts, Lan Yujuan said with a smile:

"Thank you all for your hard work this morning!"

"There are no other activities at the café in the afternoon."

"If you don't have any other plans, feel free to sit anywhere in the shop, and all the coffee is free-flowing!"

Everyone cheered enthusiastically, and then they were free to do as they pleased.

Less than an hour after the meal, nine of the ten baristas who came to help left one after another.

In the end, only Xiao Qi remained in the shop, standing behind the bar, quietly brewing and tasting coffee, occasionally taking photos with his phone to record the moment.

Lan Yujuan said that everyone could drink coffee as they pleased.

Judging from his expression, he was really determined to try every type of coffee in the shop.

At first, besides Lan Yujuan and Chen Mo, there was one other person sitting around the bar drinking coffee.

That's the food blogger who just ate with us and is still reluctant to leave, so he's gone to the bar to get some coffee.

After trying only three types of coffee, Chen Mo's stomach couldn't take it anymore, so he voluntarily returned to his studio in the backyard to start working.

Lan Yujuan drank a few more kinds of drinks, and she could still hold her liquor.

But when she checked her phone, she realized that she didn't have much time left in the afternoon and had other work to do.

So I quietly took out my laptop, found a seat in a corner near the floor-to-ceiling window, and got busy.

In the entire café, apart from the soft, lyrical music, the only other sound was the tapping of a keyboard in the corner.

Inside and outside the bar, there were only two people left, one standing and one sitting, and they seemed to be in perfect sync.

One person quietly brews coffee, while the other quietly savors it.

If you encounter any problems you don't understand, just ask a few questions, and Xiao Qi will answer them very professionally.

This is the atmosphere she wants.

Occasionally, you'll encounter one or two customers who randomly walk into the store to have coffee.

Xiao Qi doesn't talk much, but his hospitality is very professional and appropriate.

It was as if he had become one with the coffee shop the moment he stood behind the bar.

His passionate gaze was unmistakable; he seemed born for this line of work.

Lan Yujuan occasionally glanced up and secretly made up her mind:

She absolutely must keep this talented person!

Just as she was lost in thought, the wind chimes on the glass door rang again.

Someone pushed the door open and entered: "Who's the boss?"