Perhaps because Donglin hadn't opened for days, not a single customer came to pawn anything the entire day.
Li Chonglou was also happy to have some peace. The proceeds from the charity auction, after deducting the cost of the bracelet, had earned the shop over 800,000.
Although it wasn't enough to repay the compensation his senior sister had fronted, it was still much better than dealing with small clients.
It could be considered a job done.
During the day, only Wang Dehai called, inviting Li Chonglou to his home for dinner.
However, due to a prior engagement with Jiang Yuxin, it was rescheduled for two days later.
Around 5:30 PM, Li Chonglou finished tidying up and took a taxi straight to Jinmen Street, located at the entrance of Fenglinxue Hotel.
Upon arrival, he saw Jiang Yuxin searching for a parking space.
"What kind of place did you choose? It's too crowded," Jiang Yuxin said, her beautiful eyes filled with distress and helplessness.
Jinmen Street was only a little over two meters wide and lined with numerous food stalls.
It was fine during the day, but especially after 5 PM when people got off work, it was almost shoulder-to-shoulder, mostly young people.
Finding a parking spot was far from easy.
Fortunately, Li Chonglou was lucky. Before he could say anything, a car started and pulled away nearby. He quickly gestured for Jiang Yuxin to park.
"Fenglinxue is right next door, why didn't we eat there? Why come here to squeeze?" Jiang Yuxin got out of the car, pushed back a strand of hair, and asked dissatisfaction, pointing at Fenglinxue not far away.
No woman is not vain, just as no man is not lustful.
The difference is only the degree of vanity.
Although the Jiang family was in decline, it was still far superior to ordinary families.
Even though Jiang Yuxin's parents were not around when she was young, her living conditions were beyond what ordinary people could compare to.
She had always kept her distance from roadside food stalls.
If Li Chonglou hadn't asked, she might never have appeared in such a place in her life.
Li Chonglou knew she was unhappy and explained, "I'm treating you. Fenglinxue is too expensive for me."
"Also, I have an important matter to attend to, so please bear with it."
Saying this, he naturally took Jiang Yuxin's hand and walked towards the Jianbing stall.
Jiang Yuxin's pretty face blushed all the way to her ears.
Her body felt hot.
Officially holding hands with Li Chonglou, though not the first time, was absolutely unprecedented in a dating context.
An indescribable tremor surged within her, a mix of panic and excitement.
Li Chonglou's dry and warm palm gave her an unparalleled sense of security, a feeling she had never experienced before.
"An illusion, it must be an illusion. He just helped me, I couldn't have changed my mind about him so quickly." Jiang Yuxin's palms were sweating, and she tried desperately to deny the emotions welling up inside her.
This was her last bit of pride and self-respect.
From her past indifference and coldness towards Li Chonglou to holding hands and dating him now.
She was unwilling to admit that she was so pragmatic because Li Chonglou had helped her connect with the Lu family.
Li Chonglou glanced at her and saw the subtle changes in her eyes. He understood perfectly.
He was well aware of Jiang Yuxin's personality.
Proud and aloof, reaching this point was already a first.
At this moment, he needed to save her some face to avoid embarrassing her.
So, he walked to the Jianbing stall, subtly let go of her hand, and took out his phone, saying, "Boss, give me one of each of your fillings for the Jianbing. We'll have them for dinner."
As he spoke, his gaze fell on the Shi Qiang plate.
He hadn't been here for a few days, and honestly, he often thought about it, fearing that someone knowledgeable might happen to see it and snatch it away.
Seeing that the item was still there, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Throughout his life, he could usually remain as steady as a mountain, except when his family or friends were in trouble or when he saw a rare treasure.
"It's you, young man. Haven't seen you for a few days. Oh, is this your girlfriend?" The boss looked up, recognized Li Chonglou, and said enviously.
Jiang Yuxin was already exceptionally beautiful, one of the three beauties of Qinzhou, so it was impossible for her reputation to be undeserved.
Coupled with the cold demeanor she had cultivated since childhood, she exuded even more of a goddess aura.
Coming to a place like this, she would attract a回头率 of no less than 95%.
Making many young men drool.
"You still remember me? This is my wife," Li Chonglou said with a smile.
"Tsk tsk tsk, you're so lucky," the boss praised, "With such a beautiful wife, and you still want to come here to learn how to make Jianbing? You're really full of ideas."
"What do you mean? You want to learn how to make Jianbing?" Jiang Yuxin's beautiful eyes widened in confusion and asked.
"Yes, I need to have a skill, right? A craftsman won't starve in a lean year. Don't underestimate Jianbing stalls." Li Chonglou saw her serious expression and felt playful, saying, "I did some research before. If the location is good, a Jianbing stall can have a daily turnover of over a thousand yuan. After deducting costs and labor, a net profit of four hundred is not a problem."
"If you're diligent, you can earn over ten thousand a month, surpassing 98% of people."
"Of course, the most profitable thing isn't the Jianbing stall, but barbecue. I heard someone bought a house in two years by grilling."
"But that skill is hard to learn, and the smoke is bad for your health. Jianbing is more suitable for me."
These words were half true and half false, but definitely not fabricated by him.
Jiang Yuxin knew nothing about antiques, and he couldn't mention the Shi Qiang plate in front of the boss, so he used this excuse to fool her for now.
He would explain later if he had the chance.
"Are you kidding me?" To Jiang Yuxin, these words sounded completely different.
Li Chonglou was her husband, after all, the son-in-law of the Jiang family.
During the Jiang family's most difficult times, she had never considered such issues, even if they went bankrupt, their dignity remained.
But Li Chonglou was actually thinking of learning to make Jianbing, and even earnestly wanted to make a living from it.
"I'm very serious," Li Chonglou walked to a small table nearby and sat down, beckoning Jiang Yuxin, "I can't always rely on you for living expenses."
"Although Jiang Tao is in prison now, who can guarantee that other relatives won't use it as an excuse to pressure you?"
"Having a proper occupation would also shut them up, and I can support myself."
These words were actually spoken by Li Chonglou for the boss to hear.
One never knows what others are truly thinking. If he was going to learn to make Jianbing, he needed a legitimate reason.
"That's enough!" As soon as he finished speaking, Jiang Yuxin's pretty face turned cold, and she said sternly, "I thought you had awakened and matured after your mother was hospitalized."
"I didn't expect you to still have this small-minded thinking. Why don't you think about something proper?"
"You clearly know executives at Lu's Group. If I tell Grandpa, he definitely won't object to you taking a position in the company."
"Why do you have to come to a place like this?"
"If people who know you find out, won't they laugh at the Jiang family?"
"You know how much Grandpa values face. If he finds out, he'll never let you stay in the Jiang family again!"
Her previously rapidly rising good feelings were, at this moment, pushed back to the bottom.
It turned out that the change was only superficial. Li Chonglou was still the child who grew up in the countryside, his thinking forever stuck at the stage of having enough to eat and wear.
No self-respect, no ambition, and certainly no goals.
Living aimlessly, and even demeaning himself like this just to survive.
"I'm doing honest labor, and labor is glorious! What's there to be ashamed of?" Li Chonglou was dumbfounded.
This was the first time he had heard such discriminatory words from Jiang Yuxin.
Wasn't this negating the working people?
Without the labor of these bottom-feeders, where would the food come from?
If anyone else had said this, he would have slapped them directly.
"Do you always only think from your own perspective?" Jiang Yuxin's beautiful eyes ignited with anger. Her previously good mood was completely ruined in a few words. "You might not be in Ke, but the Jiang family is. Especially since we are currently bidding with Lu's."
"If you work here and are seen by someone with an agenda, and it spreads to Lu's ears, what will they think?"
"What company would be willing to cooperate with someone who makes Jianbing!"
Jiang Yuxin's words were sharp and to the point.
If she had known before that Li Chonglou was going to sell Jianbing, she might not have even blinked an eye, because it didn't concern her.
Li Chonglou's honor or shame had little to do with her; at most, she would have given him a few reminders.
But now it was completely different.
Worry made her concerned, and his self-respect seemed to be linked to her own.
She couldn't afford to lose face, and neither could the Jiang family!
"Young lady, you look so pretty, why are you speaking so harshly?"
Before Li Chonglou could speak again, the boss was already indignant, "What's wrong with selling Jianbing? Not stealing or robbing, earning money with skill, whose face is lost?"
"At such a young age, your thoughts are so frivolous. I now feel you don't deserve this young man!"
"Young man, I agree to take you."
"Let's show these old women who only stare at branded goods and money all day that money earned through their own hands isn't dirty!"
The boss had been listening to Li Chonglou and Jiang Yuxin's conversation with his ear turned.
He really couldn't stand it any longer.
Women nowadays were becoming more and more excessive, daring to openly despise his profession. It was unbearable.
"Boss, I didn't mean that, I..." Jiang Yuxin's pretty face suddenly turned red.
She was a highly educated person, and her outburst at Li Chonglou was purely because the Jiang family was in a critical period, not because she despised ordinary occupations.
But when the words reached her lips, she didn't know how to explain.
Seeing Li Chonglou's indifferent expression, she became even more annoyed.
Gritting her teeth, she said hatefully, "Eat by yourself, I'm already full!"
With that, she turned and left.
Her beautiful eyes instantly became moist.
She had intended to treat Li Chonglou to a good meal as compensation for her past coldness, but in the end, she found that they had different paths and could not walk together.
Ants could never understand the situation and difficulties of an eagle,
nor could they have great aspirations.
Li Chonglou was only suitable to be a live-in son-in-law; thinking of him becoming an asset to her career was a pipe dream!
Watching Jiang Yuxin's hurried retreating figure, a hint of melancholy appeared in Li Chonglou's eyes.
A woman's heart is truly like a needle at the bottom of the sea.
A slight displeasure and she becomes agitated.
It escalates to the height of thought processes and family righteousness.
True high society doesn't care about these things because they have enough confidence.
Only those with an inner cultural inferiority complex care so much about what others think.
Jiang Yuxin was outwardly cold but inwardly warm. In fact, she was not strong inside.
"Brother, aren't you going to chase her? Your wife isn't entirely wrong, sorry for my meddling." The boss looked distressed and advised, "It's not easy to find such a beautiful wife, hurry up and go. I won't charge you for the Jianbing if it's not made well."
"No need, she'll figure it out herself." Li Chonglou smiled faintly.
The reason he didn't explain was partly because the boss was present, and partly because he wanted to see if Jiang Yuxin's assertiveness could be changed.
Women who are too assertive can lead to frequent family conflicts.
Because what women care about is more towards materialism and practicality.
For a family to last, it must have the husband as the sky and the wife as the earth, and they must respect each other.
The "earth" here doesn't mean humble or lowly, but rather humble and elegant.
Throughout history, families where women held sway have all eventually fallen apart and declined.
Since they were husband and wife, they had to accompany each other for life, and one of them had to yield. This person would definitely not be him, Li Chonglou.
"Alas, don't blame this old brother for meddling, women need to be appeased." The boss apologized alone, fried two Jianbing, and seeing no other customers, sat down with Li Chonglou to chat. "You have an extraordinary demeanor, you don't seem like an ordinary person, and you shouldn't be short of money. Why are you arguing with a woman?"
"I'm not like that."
"Although I'm not rich, I keep my wife completely happy and do whatever she says."
"Marriage requires wisdom."
He said this with pride.
What a man cares about most is his family. Having enough money and a harmonious family is what many people dream of.
"Brother, I've learned a lot," Li Chonglou said sincerely and humbly.
He indeed lacked experience in marriage. Although he understood human nature, some things were not as simple as he thought.
The boss's words enlightened him a great deal.
"Boss, a set of Jianbing Guo..." As soon as he spoke, a voice sounded at the stall, but it stopped abruptly halfway.
Li Chonglou and the boss looked up at the same time towards the voice.
The next second, Li Chonglou's pupils contracted sharply, and his face showed a rare look of solemnity.