At the apartment entrance, Qin Wang stood with his hood up, one hand in his pocket, the right side bulging conspicuously.
Jiang Wan’s face paled.
Having lived in the neighborhood for twenty years, she had an instinctive fear of troublemakers, let alone Qin Wang, the top figure in the area.
“Xiao Ning, that bulge in his pocket—could it be a gun?”
Hearing this, Jiang Shining’s lips twitched.
She looked somewhat speechlessly at her mother, whose face was etched with fear.
“Mom, how could you think that?”
Was the Japanese confection she gave Qin Wang a gun?
If that were the case, the bag she carried would have to contain at least a dozen of them, and both mother and daughter would be facing life sentences.
“I’ve bumped into Qin Wang several times, and he always came back covered in blood.”
“I’ve heard people say that Qin Wang kills without batting an eye. Otherwise, with how chaotic Obsidian Street is, how could he have become the boss of this area?”
Covered in blood was one thing.
But killing without batting an eye…
Jiang Shining sighed. “Don’t listen to those customers’ exaggerations.”
After a few drinks, they could claim the Earth was shaped like a pentagram.
“Boss, are you still selling jianbing or not?”
A customer at the stall urged impatiently.
“Coming,” Jiang Wan replied.
She stood up and began preparing the jianbing.
They worked until nine o’clock before finally packing up.
Back home, Jiang Shining collapsed onto the bed, exhausted.
From morning till night, she had been busy.
She could only pray that Gu Yan would confess sooner, so she could escape this life of endless toil.
Early the next morning.
As soon as Jiang Wan pushed open the apartment door, she spotted a box on the floor.
No sender’s name, no return address.
Puzzled, Jiang Wan carried the box inside. “Xiao Ning, did you buy this?”
“No, I didn’t!”
Still enjoying her delicious breakfast, Jiang Shining turned her head in confusion to look at the cardboard box.
She hadn’t ordered any delivery.
A utility knife sliced through the cardboard.
Jiang Wan pulled out the contents.
“All in English? Imported medicine?”
Seeing the medication, Jiang Shining immediately understood who had sent it.
Gu Yan already knew where she lived.
She feigned nonchalance. “Oh, I remember now. I bought this a while ago but forgot about it.”
Jiang Wan looked at her daughter suspiciously. “Really?”
Jiang Shining nodded. “Imported medicine works better. Remember to use it later.”
Jiang Shining finished the last bite of her fried dough stick and glanced at the clock.
“I should get to work.”
With that, she left the apartment.
ANYTIME Coffee Shop.
As soon as Jiang Shining entered, she saw Lin Momo already organizing inventory inside.
“How are you feeling today? Is your hand any better?”
“Much better.”
Lin Momo flexed her wrist.
Jiang Shining placed a Japanese confection in her hand.
Seeing the delicate little dessert, Lin Momo’s face lit up with surprise. “For me?”
Jiang Shining nodded. “Mm-hmm.”
“I know you didn’t have breakfast, so I brought it for you.”
Lin Momo hadn’t come to the apartment today.
Arriving at the coffee shop so early, it was almost certain she couldn’t stand the atmosphere at home and had run out early.
“Jiang Shining, you’re such a good person!”
While handing out the “good person” card, Lin Momo eagerly unwrapped the packaging.
Remembering yesterday’s events, Lin Momo looked at Jiang Shining curiously again. “By the way, what’s the deal with you and that uncle from yesterday?”
With others around yesterday, Lin Momo hadn’t dared to ask.
Now that it was just the two of them, she finally mustered the courage.
Recalling the older, wealthy man from yesterday—how Jiang Shining had saved him, and how he had rented out the entire place—Lin Momo probed, “That uncle isn’t interested in you, is he?”
Jiang Shining wiped the cashier counter, her expression calm and unruffled.
“You’re overthinking it. It’s not me they’re interested in.”
“Though, I wouldn’t mind being her daughter.”
Reuniting with a wealthy father could also let her frail, sickly mother live a better life.
Ding-dong.
The coffee shop doorbell chimed.
Jiang Shining: “Hello, welcome.”
But when she clearly saw the female student at the door, Jiang Shining was somewhat surprised.
“You were the first customer yesterday?”
The female student visiting the coffee shop today was clearly the same person as yesterday.
Song Ya hadn’t expected the beautiful waitress from yesterday to recognize her, and a hint of joy instantly appeared on her face.
“You… you remember me?”
Jiang Shining nodded and asked, “Caramel macchiato again today?”
“Mhm, caramel macchiato… wait, no hurry!”
“I’m Song Ya, a student from the nearby media college. I run a self-media account with a tiny bit of success. Yesterday I posted on Xiaohongshu, and the likes broke five figures. Today I came to propose a collaboration.”
Collaboration?
Jiang Shining looked puzzled.
Song Ya patted the oversized paper bag she had dragged in.
“Miss, would you be interested in learning about clothing modeling?”
Modeling?
Jiang Shining’s gaze fell on the oversized paper bag Song Ya was carrying. “This is…?”
Since it’s modeling, could this huge bag be full of clothes?
“These are just simple accessories and matching clothes inside. You only need to pose. Four hundred per hour, how does that sound?”
Four hundred per hour.
The most Jiang Shining had ever earned was as a waitress at Qinhe Ji, but that was only four hundred a day.
This one hour equaled a whole day before.
Modeling pays that well?!
Seeing Jiang Shining not responding, Song Ya thought she considered it too little and continued, “If you think it’s too little, I can add more.”
Add more!
Jiang Shining took a sharp breath, closed her eyes tightly, and opened them again. “No, this price is more than enough. Four hundred an hour is already wonderful.”
Seeing Jiang Shining didn’t refuse, Song Ya quickly handed over her phone.
“These are models I’ve worked with before.”
“I just bring some simple accessories and the clothes from the merchant. You only need to learn from the photos and pose.”
The photos on the phone scrolled one by one.
But the models in the photos were mostly European and American, with sharp features and a mixed-race vibe.
Jiang Shining pursed her lips. “They’re all European and American beauties.”
She was Chinese, without the blonde, mixed-race buff.
She turned her head to look at Song Ya beside her, a hint of timidity in her eyes.
“Can I really do this?”
The two were very close.
Song Ya could see her flawless skin and the reflection of herself in those almond-shaped eyes when she looked down at her with a lonely gaze.
Being looked at so intently by such a beauty.
“You can, you absolutely can!”
Song Ya straightened her back.
“This time it’s new Chinese style. Those European and American girls can’t pull it off—it needs someone like you.”
Song Ya opened the bag she had brought, revealing a folding fan inside, then raised an eyebrow and looked at Jiang Shining boldly. “Want to give it a try?”
Uh.
“Ning! What are you hesitating for?”
“Four hundred an hour! Don’t forget to treat me to a meal when you’re done!”
Lin Momo from behind gave Jiang Shining a push.
For her best friend, Lin Momo was extremely confident.
Four hundred an hour.
Working one day would equal a whole week of her part-time job.
Jiang Shining no longer hesitated. “Okay.”
She accepted this street photography modeling job.
“Boss, is this really okay?”
Jiang Shining held her phone to her ear, speaking with the coffee shop owner, while slightly tilting her head back to let Song Ya fasten a pearl necklace around her neck.
The coffee shop owner said, “Taking photos for my shop is like free promotion, so of course it’s fine. Don’t worry about it.”
With the coffee shop owner’s approval, Jiang Shining breathed a sigh of relief.
“All done!”
Song Ya clapped her hands, looking as if she had accomplished something great.
There was no mirror in the coffee shop, so Jiang Shining lowered her gaze, stood up, and looked toward her best friend Lin Momo.
“How do I look?”
Her jet-black hair was half tied up and secured with a silver hairpin. The new Chinese-style qipao perfectly accentuated Jiang Shining’s figure, with a cashmere shawl draped over her shoulders and a string of pearls around her neck. Her face was lightly made up.
“Absolutely stunning!”
Lin Momo clapped enthusiastically, her eyes fixed on Jiang Shining as she stood up.
“Ning! This outfit suits you so well. You look exactly like a gentle and elegant young lady from the Republic of China era.”
“Not to mention, this qipao of yours is going to sell like hotcakes. Even I’m tempted just looking at it.”
Lin Momo tossed her barista hat onto the table, turned to Song Ya, and declared boldly, “Just tell me how much this qipao costs. I want to buy it!”
Song Ya smiled and said, “Five thousand.”
Lin Momo froze for a few seconds in the coffee shop.
Then, as if snapping back to reality, she looked at Song Ya in disbelief. “How much did you say?!”
Song Ya repeated, “Five thousand.”
Lin Momo, who had been excited just moments before, now seemed as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over her. Silently, she picked up the barista hat she had tossed aside and placed it back on her head, adjusting it properly.
Lin Momo said woodenly, “Five thousand! That’s not much at all.”
“I can just make a few thousand latte arts, and I’ll be able to afford it, right? Sob—”