"Come on in."
Lin Jiang welcomed Xu Lin in. She was wearing a light purple nightgown and holding a bag.
"What happened to your foot? Did you injure it?" Xu Lin asked, seeing Lin Jiang limping.
"I overdid it a bit this morning while exercising. A little sleep should fix me up, but I won't be able to drink with you today."
Lin Jiang said this deliberately, wanting to find out why she was here.
"I didn't come here to drink. Remember when I took your pulse yesterday? I prepared some medicine for you."
Xu Lin helped support Lin Jiang. "You're too much. Why do you push yourself so hard when you train? Of course your body wouldn't be able to take it."
"I guess I overestimated myself."
"Oh, right, I forgot to tell you something," Xu Lin said.
"Ma Shangxi was exposed. Someone recorded a video of him cheating, and some of my friends at the mall are all passing it around."
"That's great news! With this, his reputation is ruined. The mall probably won't be able to keep him around."
Xu Lin glanced at Lin Jiang, her expression questioning.
"The person who exposed his cheating used a new account. It looks like someone was deliberately targeting him."
"And?" Lin Jiang asked, feigning calmness.
"We were just talking about this yesterday, and today Ma Shangxi gets exposed. It wasn't you, was it?"
Lin Jiang suddenly realized.
'This could kill two birds with one stone. I can even get her to owe me a favor.'
"Of course not. You're overthinking it."
"Let me borrow your phone, then. I'll just use it for a second. I promise I won't look at your browser history."
'This woman knows the rules.'
"Uh, I don't think that's a good idea..."
Lin Jiang glanced at the phone on the dining table. "There's nothing on my phone, nothing to see."
When a woman wants to look at a man's phone, if he's being evasive, it means he's hiding something.
'My acting is pretty convincing,' Lin Jiang thought. 'Worthy of a best actor award.'
"I just want to borrow it for a second."
Xu Lin proactively picked up Lin Jiang's phone and, as expected, opened the Douyin app.
Lin Jiang breathed a sigh of relief. 'Good thing I didn't switch back to my own account. I'm a goddamn lucky son of a bitch.'
"And you said it wasn't you! Didn't you post this video? You even posted it three times, afraid the platform wouldn't promote it," Xu Lin asked, holding up the phone.
"It wasn't a big deal. I wasn't trying to take credit for it."
Lin Jiang gave a sheepish smile, setting himself up as an honest, long-suffering character.
"What do you mean it's not a big deal? What do you mean it wasn't necessary?"
Xu Lin's gaze softened. "I was just mentioning it to you casually. You didn't have to go to so much trouble to do something like this."
"I couldn't just stand by and watch him bully you."
"It's not like I'd lose a piece of flesh if he bullied me a little. Besides, I have another shop, so I don't have to worry about food or drink. If he had caught you, you would have been in danger."
Xu Lin stepped forward to support Lin Jiang's arm, accidentally brushing against her ample chest, but she didn't seem to mind.
"Don't stand if your leg is bothering you. Go sit on the sofa for a bit."
"Okay."
After helping Lin Jiang to the sofa, Xu Lin looked at him with a gentle gaze, tinged with concern.
"I was wondering why you suddenly decided not to open for business today. Did you plan all this out right after I talked to you last night?"
Lin Jiang: ???
'She can even fill in the blanks herself?'
'Is she giving me way too much credit?'
But in front of a smart woman like Xu Lin, the best answer was no answer.
Lin Jiang just gave an honest, simple-looking smile and said nothing.
To Xu Lin, that expression was an answer in itself.
"You silly boy. I give up. You'll be the death of me one day."
"It's fine. The goal has been achieved. From now on, you can do business in peace."
"I really don't know what to say to you. Your leg must hurt a lot," Xu Lin said with concern.
"I told you yesterday not to do any strenuous exercise. Why don't you listen? It's easy to pull a muscle that way."
[You have gained favor with NPC Xu Lin. Affinity +30]
[Affinity: 40]
'I can actually increase Affinity this way!'
'And it gave me so much!'
'Not bad, not bad. Just 40 more points and I can unlock the main questline.'
"Where's the medicinal oil? I'll rub it in for you."
"It's on the nightstand in the bedroom."
Xu Lin turned and walked into the bedroom.
Lin Jiang secretly sighed in relief.
'Good thing I bought another bottle. Otherwise, I would've been exposed right now.'
Returning with the medicinal oil, Xu Lin opened the cap and poured a little onto her hand.
"Don't move. Let me rub it for you."
"This is so embarrassing."
"You've done so much for me. Me just rubbing your leg is nothing."
Xu Lin sat down on the sofa, placed Lin Jiang's leg on her lap, and began rubbing it back and forth.
I have to say, Xu Lin's hands were very soft, and the rubbing felt incredible.
Especially with both her hands moving up and down...
'Now *that's* the stuff...'
Xu Lin was very focused, her hands sliding up and down... massaging him.
When there wasn't enough lubrication, she'd pour more medicinal oil onto her hands and continue.
Her gaze was professional, her expression serious, and she didn't say a single unnecessary word the entire time.
'I strongly recommend this model be implemented in all massage parlors.'
'Do you think I'm going to spend more money just because you keep running your mouth?'
'If I had that kind of money, would I need you to chatter at me? Seriously.'
All in all, Xu Lin worked on him for over thirty minutes. Lin Jiang felt that was just about his limit.
"That should be about right. Get up and walk around, see if it feels any better."
Lin Jiang sat up from the sofa and took a few steps. He was surprised to find it really didn't hurt as much.
"It's a miracle! It really doesn't hurt as much."
Xu Lin lifted her chin, a little smug. "This is my own secret formula, of course it works well. I have a lot of repeat customers."
"You're amazing, Boss Xu."
"But with your condition, your leg will probably still be sore tomorrow. Take it easy at the noodle shop. If you get tired, just close up early. You don't have to earn all your money in one day."
"Got it."
"You silly boy, don't do this again," Xu Lin said in a gentle tone.
"It's getting late. You should get some rest. I'm heading back."
"Okay."
After seeing Xu Lin out, Lin Jiang lay back down on the sofa.
'What a day for an award-winning performance.'
...
The next morning, when Lin Jiang opened his eyes, it was already past ten.
He glanced at his phone and saw it was flooded with messages from Zhou Wanyu, over a dozen of them.
Zhou Wanyu: "Boss!"
Zhou Wanyu: "Huge news!"
Zhou Wanyu: "Ma Shangxi's affair was exposed!"
Zhou Wanyu: "His wife even showed up at his workplace."
Zhou Wanyu: "I heard the higher-ups are dealing with it now."
Zhou Wanyu: "I think he's going to be fired."
Zhou Wanyu: "It's so satisfying!"
Zhou Wanyu: "And that other woman, it turns out she's from our..."
'Can't this girl just say everything in one go?'
Lin Jiang: "Wicked people get what they deserve."
Zhou Wanyu's reply came back quickly.
Zhou Wanyu: "Right, right! Now we can finally work in peace."
Lin Jiang didn't reply again, but just then, a message from Xu Lin arrived.
Xu Lin: "Feeling better?"
Lin Jiang: "Much better. That medicinal oil is the GOAT."
Xu Lin: "Take it easy today. Come back early and don't overwork yourself."
Lin Jiang: "Roger that."
After chatting with the two women, Lin Jiang decided he wasn't going back to sleep.
He hadn't felt it much while lying in bed, but after getting up, the swollen feeling returned. It wasn't a big deal, though; he just had to walk slowly.
Just then, a prompt appeared.
[Time limit expired. Within the specified time, the player walked a total of 100,945 steps, with 100,834 valid steps. You will receive a cash reward of 100,834 yuan, which has been deposited into the player's account.]
Over 100,000 steps. Lin Jiang was very satisfied with his utilization of the Sports Card.
'If I keep this up, I'll be middle class in no time.'
[Mission Complete (Even a cornered rabbit will bite): Reward: Lucky Card x1, 40 EXP]
'It's already complete?'
'Looks like Berkeley Mall works fast.'
Huh?
Suddenly!
Lin Jiang noticed something.
'My experience points seem to be over 100!'
'I can do the treasure draw!'