Kapitel 11: People Like to Gossip

Gu Xin Ye opened her eyes and quickly shut them once the bright light shone on her face. However, her phone at the bedside did not stop ringing. She reached for her phone in a groggy state and narrowed her eyes as she tried to see the caller ID.

Seconds later, Gu Xin Ye swiped a finger on the screen and pressed her phone on her ear. "Shen Yi Nian. It's still too early."

"What's too early? Xin Ye, don't tell me you're still sleeping?" Shen Yi Nian's voice in the other line sounded shocked. "Wow! This is amazing. Usually, at this time, you would be wide awake with a newspaper in your hand."

Hearing her friend's noisy voice, Gu Xin Ye rubbed her eyes tiredly. She distanced the phone from her ears as Shen Yi Nian continued to rattle on to look at the time. She squinted her eyes to get a clear look and gasped when she finally saw the time.

Gu Xin Ye quickly get off the bed and looked out the window. The sunlight streamed in, brightening the room. From where she stood, Gu Xin Ye could see the beach. The sunlight against the water made it appear as if it was glittering.

Gu Xin Ye pressed her phone to her ears and heard Shen Yi Nian's voice.

"Hello? Xin Ye? You're still there?"

"I'm here." Gu Xin Ye cleared her throat. She walked over to the coffee table and opened up a mineral bottle. She took a few mouthfuls of water and felt a bit refreshed.

"Xin Ye, what have you been doing yesterday? Why do you sound so tired?"

Gu Xin Ye took a deep breath and sat down lazily on the bed. Yesterday, after washing up the bowls and cutlery, Qin Zhan then took a massive stockpot, pan and such and let her clean everything, while he went away to god knows where and the two kids were cleaning up the chair, table and such.

Washing the bowls and cutlery was easy, but the massive stockpot was not so much. She spent almost an hour just to scrub one stockpot, and Qin Zhan had sent her two of them. In the end, her waist hurt so much that she could not stand up straight. Of course, she could only curse Qin Zhan in her mind and not say them out loud.

Perhaps this was her karma for lying and trying to trick Qin Zhan.

Gu Xin Ye could only hear Shen Yi Nian's laughing voice after she finished recounting what she has been doing yesterday.

Of course, Shen Yi Nian would find it amusing to hear that her friend spend hours as a dishwasher. Shen Yi Nian was tempted to go to Z Town to see this scene herself.

The once noble princess of GDB Group was working as a dishwasher at a noodle stand in a small town. If she could snap a few pictures and write something about it, Shen Yi Nian was sure that her boss would give her a raise or promotion!

"Shen Yi Nian, are you not done laughing?"

This girl really thought that her suffering was amusing!

"Sorry, sorry!" Shen Yi Nian tried her best to muffled her laugh. "But, what are you doing washing dishes? Didn't you say you were going to recruit him to work for GDB Group? How come Qin Zhan became the person who recruits you to work for him?"

Gu Xin Ye's face turned a shade darker at her friend's words. "The first day I met him, Qin Zhan was waving his cleaver around, trying to shoo the Manager of Ming Hotel Group who came to offer him a job. Yi Nian, if Qin Zhan found that I came to this town to recruit him, do you think he will try to drive me away from here the same way?"

"Waving his cleaver? Hey, that's extreme!"

"Anyway, the people in this town seemed to be on his side." Gu Xin Ye then told her about the two elders who pretended that they saw nothing.

"Well, I guess if you want to find out why Qin Zhan came to the small town and operated a noodle stand, perhaps you should ask the locals," Shen Yi Nian said after a while. "Didn't I tell you that in a small town like Z Town, people like to gossip?"

...

When Gu Xin Ye walk down to the dining area, the breakfast period has already ended. She looked around and saw Mrs. Li's son, Li Jun Xuan sitting behind the counter with his attention towards the computer.

Once he heard her footsteps, Li Jun Xuan lifted his head.

"Sorry, breakfast is over."

"I know. Thank you." She looked around the place and frowned when she could not see Mrs. Li's silhouette.

According to Shen Yi Nian, it would be better if she tried to find out some gossips from the locals around, and from her observation, Mrs. Li happened to be the perfect candidate for it. Mrs. Li was someone who loved to gossip. Gu Xin Ye had planned to come down and chat with Mrs. Li to find and perhaps find out more about Qin Zhan, but that woman was not around.

"Is Mrs. Li around?" Gu Xin Ye asked Li Jun Xuan.

"Sorry. My mother stepped out for a while," Li Jun Xuan glanced at the clock hanging on the wall and frowned. "I'm not sure when she will be back."

Hearing that, Gu Xin Ye could only let out a sigh. She could not stay here and wait until Mrs. Li decided to show up. Her shift in Qin Zhan's noodle stand would begin in a few hours.

As she thought about coming back to Qin Zhan's noodle stand to work, Gu Xin Ye wanted to cry. It was Sunday and she knew that the noodle stand would be as busy as it was yesterday.

Gu Xin Ye turned towards the exit and paused when she heard the man's voice again.

"Miss Gu, if you're going out to eat, I suggest you go to the bus station. Auntie Pei had a small stall over there and she's selling the best steam buns in town."

Gu Xin Ye's gaze stayed on Li Jun Xuan for a while before she nodded. "Auntie Pei. Got it. Thank you."

Since it was still early for her to go over Qin Zhan's noodle stall, and her stomach was screaming to be fed, Gu Xin Ye decided to listen to Li Jun Xuan's suggestion and walk over to the bus station. Fortunately, the bus station was within a walking distance.

It was not hard for Gu Xin Ye to spot Auntie Pei's stall, as the elder woman was the only one who sold steamed buns around the bus station. She ordered a serving of steamed bun and a cup of hot soybean milk.

"Miss, don't you have a small change?" Auntie Pei asked as she looked at the money in Gu Xin Ye's hands.

Gu Xin Ye looked in her purse but did not find any small notes.

Yesterday, she had kept away the small amount of money that Qin Zhan had given her, thinking that perhaps she should keep them as a token to remember that those were the money that she had received after scrubbing the pots for hours. Other than that, she did not have any small changes.

"Sorry," Gu Xin Ye looked at the old woman apologetically. "That's the smallest I have."

Auntie Pei sighed as she looked at the money. Earlier, the people from town had come over to buy some steamed buns from her stall and almost everyone gave her a big amount of money. In the end, the small changes that she brought with her had all gone.

Just as Gu Xin Ye thought that perhaps she should order more steamed bun so that the old lady did not have to give her changes, Gu Xin Ye saw a muscular arm went pass beside her.

"I'll pay for her."

Gu Xin Ye looked up at the voice and winced when she saw Qin Zhan stood beside her.