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

Lan Yujuan turned her head and looked at the little girl walking towards her, her heart tightening involuntarily.

I haven't been able to contact Qi Lei for the past few days. Could it be because of some relationship troubles?

She only inquired about the other person's professional skills and personality background.

As for other aspects, Lan Yujuan hadn't thought of them at all.

However, if Qi Lei crosses the line in his personal relationships...

She would never choose such a person as her partner, no matter how outstanding the other person is!

"I'm looking for Qi Lei. Is he home?"

The more Lan Yujuan looked at the girl in front of her, the more she felt that the girl might be related to Qi Lei.

One always sports a head full of dreadlocks, and the other wears smoky makeup that doesn't suit their age; both exude a strong rock and roll rebellious vibe.

Then, the little girl was clearly a bit confused after hearing what she said.

"Qi Lei? Who's that?"

The other party's question left Lan Yujuan completely bewildered.

She took out the address again and carefully compared it with the house number. "That's right, this is the address."

The little girl rubbed her eyes and leaned closer, half-believing and half-doubting.

"Auntie, you've got the wrong person. Let me see."

Upon hearing the term "auntie," Lan Yujuan felt a lump in her throat, unable to speak, and her face darkened.

"Auntie?"

"I'm only 26 this year, how old are you?"

The little girl was about to open her mouth, but then swallowed the words back down.

"Never mind that, she's definitely younger than you anyway."

"Strange, the address really is here..."

After confirming the address, Lan Yujuan raised her hand to knock on the door again, completely ignoring the other person.

Having finally climbed to the eighth floor, she couldn't be bothered to argue with such an ignorant little girl!

"Bang bang bang!" This time, Lan Yujuan's knocking was clearly emotional.

Seeing this, the little girl next to her couldn't help but retort:

"Keep your voice down, someone's still sleeping inside!"

Upon hearing this, Lan Yujuan realized the person inside was asleep, so she knocked even louder.

"Of course I'm here to find someone. If I don't knock hard, who's going to open the door for me?"

The little girl stood to the side, her cheeks puffed out, glaring angrily at her.

However, banging loudly on the door was clearly more effective, and soon a response came from inside.

"They're here! They're here!"

The person who came out to open the door was Qi Lei.

"Boss Lan? How did you find your way here...?"

When Qi Lei saw that the person standing outside the door was Lan Yujuan, he was both surprised and delighted.

However, judging from the way he and the little girl next to him were looking at each other curiously, they probably didn't know each other.

"Who...who are you looking for?"

The three stood apart, and Qi Lei looked at the little girl next to him with a cautious and wary gaze.

The little girl sniffed and mumbled in a nasal voice:

"Oh, so your name is Qi Lei. I've seen you before."

"Excuse me, I need to go in to find Xu Jian!"

After the girl finished speaking, she suddenly pushed Qi Lei away and rushed inside.

Judging from how familiar she was with the place, it was clear that this wasn't her first time here.

"Hey, little girl, you can't just barge in!"

As Qi Lei chased after him to stop him, he lowered his voice and said:

"Xu Jian had a performance last night and didn't get back until dawn. They're sleeping inside now!"

Despite his best efforts to stop him, Qi Lei was unable to do so.

This rented room wasn't very big to begin with. The door to the master bedroom was diagonally opposite the main entrance.

After the little girl rushed into the house, she smashed open the door to the master bedroom and saw two people lying naked on the bed, with only a thin blanket covering their private parts.

Not to mention how thoroughly the little girl who rushed into the room saw everything at that moment.

Even Lan Yujuan, who was standing at the door, couldn't help but catch a glimpse of four white legs.

"Ah!" The little girl's piercing scream came straight from the master bedroom.

"Xu Jian! You shameless scoundrel!"

Soon after the screams, the sounds of fighting could be heard.

On the other hand, Qi Lei seemed unfazed, not only covering his ears as he left the master bedroom but also considerately closing the door behind him.

Qi Lei walked to the door and looked at Lan Yujuan, who was standing there watching the commotion. He felt both embarrassed and at a loss.

"Boss Lan, have you had breakfast yet?"

"How about we go downstairs and talk somewhere else?"

Lan Yujuan quickly looked away, smiled and nodded, "Okay."

So, Qi Lei put the fruit back in the room, grabbed his keys, and went out.

As the door to room 802 closed, the hallway returned to silence.

Qi Lei led the way, explaining awkwardly as they walked:

"That Xu Jian is my roommate."

"He went to the same university as Qi Pei, where he studied music. I heard he formed his own band and performs at several regular bars every night."

"Xu Jianren is handsome and talented, so he is quite popular with girls."

"I'm used to seeing scenes like this all the time."

Lan Yujuan smiled faintly, hesitated for a moment, and then couldn't help but say:

"But that girl from earlier, judging from her appearance, she probably hasn't gone to university yet, right?"

"Xiao Qi, you'd better keep your eyes open when you're looking for someone to share an apartment with."

"Don't let your roommate's illegal or disorderly conduct implicate you."

Upon hearing this, Qi Lei quickly waved his hand and explained:

"Boss Lan, you can rest assured about that. Things aren't as you think."

"Actually, Xu Jian is a decent person."

"He just changes girlfriends quickly, but he still has a bottom line."

"That little girl was just his neighbor's little sister, who has admired him since she was little."

"Xu Jian told me personally that he treated that girl like a younger sister and never had any other thoughts."

"Moreover, even when Xu Jian is looking for a girlfriend, he prefers someone older than himself."

"Let alone that girl from earlier, even if it were upperclassmen or underclassmen from his school chasing after him, he would still think it was childish."

Lan Yujuan was stunned by these words.

No wonder that little girl was sitting on the steps crying so sadly.

"And what about you?"

Qi Lei was stunned for a moment. After realizing what was happening, his face turned bright red, and he began to stammer.

"Me? Well, I don't have any plans to find a girlfriend right now."

"Dating without getting married is no different from being a scoundrel."

"My plan was to earn money first so I could support my sister through university."

"Then save up some money and open a shop."

"I'll consider finding a partner after my work and life are stable and I've saved up some money."

"You're still young. Focusing on your studies and getting things done is the most important thing. There's no rush."

After hearing these words, Lan Yujuan couldn't help but look at Qi Lei with even greater respect.

After the two went downstairs, they left the residential area and went directly to the farmers' market.

Qi Lei, familiar with the place, led Lan Yujuan to a rice noodle shop, where they each ordered a bowl of rice noodles.

At this time, it was past breakfast time and lunchtime hadn't arrived yet, so there weren't many people in the store.

The two found a quiet corner to sit down and started chatting while eating their noodles.

"I've sent you a lot of messages and made many phone calls these past few days, but I still can't get in touch with you."

Lan Yujuan looked up and asked earnestly, "Is there anything else?"

"I just wanted to ask you, what's your decision regarding the partnership?"

Qi Lei put down his chopsticks, wiped his mouth, and quickly apologized:

"Mr. Lan, I'm so sorry!"

"I lost my phone on the bus on my way home from the coffee shop that day."

"I was planning to get a new SIM card and a new phone the next day... but something else came up and I was delayed."

Lan Yujuan paused with her chopsticks and said softly:

"Don't be so nervous, let's eat and chat."

"So, what about you now? Have you bought a new phone? Have you gotten a replacement SIM card?"

Qi Lei scratched his temple, blushing and embarrassed, and said:

"I haven't bought it yet."

"I was thinking that there shouldn't be anything particularly important that I absolutely had to contact them by phone in the short term."

"I'll get a replacement SIM card and a new phone next month."

After saying that, Qi Lei lowered his head and began to eat in silence, without saying another word.

Lan Yujuan's eyes flickered slightly, and she guessed that Qi Lei must have encountered a series of difficulties and was now short of money.

When things are going smoothly for a person, their confidence will naturally increase.

However, if one is in a slump, one will become more hesitant and conflicted, just like Qi Lei is now.

After thinking it over, Lan Yujuan decided to change her approach to cooperation.

"Xiao Qi, how about this?"

"I'm currently opening a new store and I'm short-staffed right now."

"If you really haven't decided whether you want to work with me, how about you try being the store manager for three months first?"

"Base salary of six thousand, plus a 5% commission on sales."

"If you can help the store get additional orders through your own efforts, the profits will be split 50/50."

"Try it for three months first. If you think the coffee shop has potential, then we can sit down and talk about the specifics of the collaboration. What do you think?"

As the two were talking, a familiar figure suddenly passed by outside the shop.

Lan Yujuan couldn't see the figure clearly, but as if she had a premonition, she subconsciously looked up at the window.

But outside, it was bustling with people coming and going, and there wasn't a single familiar figure to be seen.