Lin Jiang went up to the second floor. It was much quieter here, unlike the noisy first floor.
Pushing open the door to Room 203, Lin Jiang paused.
Inside the private room, it wasn't just Qin Youyou; there was another woman.
She was wearing slate-blue cropped suit trousers, a white V-neck blouse, and a matching double-breasted suit jacket that looked to be custom-tailored.
Her side profile was stunning, but it exuded a certain coldness.
She also wore a women's Cartier watch on her wrist, inlaid with diamonds, which was clearly expensive at a single glance.
"Brother Jiang, you're here! This is my sister, Qin Yangyang."
Seeing Lin Jiang, Qin Youyou stood up and welcomed him in.
"Sis, this is Lin Jiang. When I hurt myself, he not only massaged my foot but also brought me food. He's a really great guy."
Qin Yangyang rose to her feet, a professional smile on her face, and extended her hand toward Lin Jiang.
"Qin Yangyang. A pleasure to meet you."
"Lin Jiang. Nice to meet you."
The two shook hands briefly.
Qin Yangyang's hand was a bit cold. 'She might have been a fallen angel in a past life,' Lin Jiang thought.
But this woman's presence was truly powerful. Even without high heels, she had a cold, intimidating aura that made it hard to look her straight in the eye.
"Please, have a seat."
Lin Jiang sat down to Qin Youyou's right, and she pushed the menu over to him.
"Brother Jiang, I've already ordered a few dishes. See if there's anything else you'd like to eat."
"This should be enough. We can always order more if it isn't," Lin Jiang said politely.
"Then I'll add a few more."
Qin Youyou took the menu and ordered four more dishes without the slightest hesitation.
Lin Jiang felt a little awkward. 'This was supposed to be a simple meal between the two of us. Why did she bring her sister along?'
"Brother Jiang, when I passed by your shop this morning, it was completely packed. I had no choice but to get takeout."
After speaking, Qin Youyou looked at Qin Yangyang. "Sis, when you have time, I'll take you to try it. The noodles at Brother Jiang's place are amazing."
"Alright."
Soon, a waiter came in carrying the food. There were centerpiece dishes like king crab and lobster, along with several different styles of stir-fries.
"Brother Jiang, go on, try some. The food here is pretty good. I come here often."
"Mm, okay."
Lin Jiang picked up his chopsticks and took a bite. The flavor was better than he had imagined.
Glancing over unintentionally, Lin Jiang saw Qin Yangyang on her phone, constantly replying to messages.
"Sis, we finally managed to come out for a meal. Can't you stop working for a bit?"
"This case is urgent. I just need to reply."
'So she's a lawyer.'
"No matter how urgent it is, it shouldn't be eating into your off-hours," Qin Youyou said.
"Besides, you've done enough with your job. The family business is still counting on you to take over."
"You should do it. I'm not that interested in the company's affairs."
Qin Yangyang picked up her chopsticks, that professional smile returning to her face as she looked at Lin Jiang.
"Their stir-fries are also excellent. You should try them. If you can't handle spicy food, I can have them make a non-spicy version."
Qin Yangyang had skillfully changed the subject, not wanting to talk more about her family's affairs.
"It's fine. I can handle spicy food quite well."
"That's good." Qin Yangyang looked at Qin Youyou. "Don't just eat by yourself. Serve some food to Mr. Lin."
"I know, I know."
Qin Youyou broke off a crab claw and placed it on Lin Jiang's plate.
"Brother Jiang, care for a drink?"
"I drove here, so I won't be drinking."
Lin Jiang's alcohol tolerance was decent, but he usually didn't drink.
"Our tolerance isn't great either. Let's just toast with tea instead of wine."
"Okay."
"Brother Jiang, with business at the shop being so good, do you have any plans to expand?" Qin Youyou asked.
"Business just started picking up. I'll wait for it to stabilize before thinking about that. I'm not in a rush."
"When you do decide to expand, let me know. I can invest a little. That way, my dad won't be able to say I'm not doing anything serious."
"My shop is too small. If you were to invest..."
RING RING RING—
Before Lin Jiang could finish, Qin Yangyang's phone rang.
"Excuse me, I have to take this call."
"Hello, Mr. Zhang."
"The case is a bit tricky. The other party has already transferred the assets overseas. Right now, the only way we might recover the assets is to catch her."
"Okay, I'll give you a reply as soon as possible."
"That works too. See you tomorrow."
After a brief exchange, Qin Yangyang hung up the phone.
Her cold, beautiful face showed hints of exhaustion. Her sharp aura slackened in that moment, losing some of its unapproachable chill.
"Sis, I saw this case of yours online. That woman is ruthless. She rented a few apartments and managed to scam people out of several hundred million. She's really something else."
"There are plenty of capable people in this world, but they have to use their talents for the right things," Qin Yangyang said seriously.
"I know."
After speaking with Qin Yangyang, Qin Youyou turned to Lin Jiang.
"Brother Jiang, did you see that video going around? There was a woman who rented five apartments at Century Triumph, claimed they were hers, sold them for over five hundred million, and then fled to the Beautiful Country."
"Something like that really happened?"
"It's true! My sister is in charge of the case. Look how worried it's made her. She had to put on several layers of foundation before you came, otherwise she wouldn't have been able to cover up her dark circles."
"I was actually planning to go look at apartments at Century Triumph. If I ran into a scammer like that, all my money would go down the drain."
"Huh?! You're going to buy an apartment at Century Triumph?!"
Qin Youyou was shocked. "The places there aren't cheap at all! I want to buy one too, but I don't have enough money in my pocket."
"It's just a place to live. No need to overthink it, really. Just do what's within your means."
Qin Yangyang shot a glance at Lin Jiang.
Previously, her impression of Lin Jiang had been pretty good. He was polite and knew his boundaries.
But when he said he was going to buy a place at Century Triumph, her favorable impression instantly dropped.
'A place like that isn't something an ordinary person can afford.'
'She herself was only renting an apartment there.'
"Oh, right! I remember now!"
Qin Youyou exclaimed with a start.
"Sis, didn't our family negotiate the property management contract for Century Triumph? It should be under our family's management now, right?"
Lin Jiang's eyes shifted.
'Their family runs a property management company?'
"Mm," Qin Yangyang nodded lightly.
"Since Brother Jiang is buying a place there, we can help him get in touch and see if we can get him a discount. Every little bit saved helps."
"Alright."
Qin Youyou didn't notice Qin Yangyang's coldness and turned to Lin Jiang, saying:
"Brother Jiang, don't rush into anything. I'll ask around for you. I'm sure we can get an inside discount."
"You don't have to go to all that trouble. It's a favor, and those are hard to repay later."
Qin Yangyang's mood also made Lin Jiang lose interest in the meal. If it weren't for Qin Youyou keeping the atmosphere lively, he would have wanted to leave already.
"It's no problem. You helped me out, so now it's my turn to help you."
"Alright."
RING RING RING—
Lin Jiang's phone rang. He glanced at it and saw it was a call from Li Yuanyuan.
"You guys go ahead and eat. I'm going to step out and take a call."
He walked out of the private room and answered the phone.
"Brother Jiang, the shop is a little swamped, and we can't keep up with the takeout orders. Is it okay if I turn them off?"
"Didn't I tell you before I left? You can just make the decision on your own for things like this."
"I know you said that, but I'm just an employee. I still have to call and confirm with you, or I won't feel right about it."
Li Yuanyuan's actions earned his approval. She was a very down-to-earth girl.
"Go ahead and turn them off. Just remember to lock the door properly when you close up."
"Mhm, got it."
After hanging up with Li Yuanyuan, Lin Jiang decided to go to the restroom and "free up some memory."
AH—
Just as Lin Jiang turned around, he bumped right into a woman.
"I'm sorry... It's you!"
Looking at Chen Jingjia, Lin Jiang was also a bit baffled.
'Isn't this too much of a coincidence? Running into her here?'