JR Chapter 21

Based on Cheng Lulu’s voice message, Mo Lin understood that their rise to fame happened in three steps. First, Cheng Lulu’s fall spread around and became a joke. Many people teased that selling goods was not easy nowadays, and that you had to take a solid fall to get noticed.

Then someone said that the two boss ladies, one enthusiastic and silly, the other calm and composed, had great CP (couple) potential, and they were really shipping them.

Next, someone chimed in telling everyone not to ship them, because the calm and composed boss lady was already married and her marriage was very happy. They claimed that the jewelry bought from their store had a love-related blessing (buff), and that she had visited their offline store, bought a bracelet, and found a tall, handsome, and ideal boyfriend within a week!

From there, things got out of hand.

In the comments section, some of Mo Lin’s former clients actually appeared. Several people posted photos of themselves holding hands with their partners, wearing rings from her store, with captions like, “I don’t know about you, but we haven’t broken up.”

Cheng Lulu’s trial designs listed backstage were sold out in a flash. Her account’s comment section and private messages were flooded with requests to restock.

“Please, I really want a tall, handsome boyfriend who meets my expectations too.”

“I’ve been single for over twenty years; it’s my turn for some good luck now, right?”

“Why is it out of stock? If I miss my chance at love, can you take responsibility?”

There were also customers wanting to buy for their girlfriends and those looking to customize engagement rings; various customers were coming in.

Mo Lin was a bit stunned by the changes that happened almost overnight. But she quickly took action that very night.

She packed the sold jewelry, ready to ship them out once the courier service opened the next day. Then she took inventory of the store’s items and picked out a few simple designs. She realized that most online customers weren’t suited for custom-made designs.

She needed some “standard” items, so she decided to move from 18K gold to 925 silver and find affordable, high-quality stones that could be mass-produced for her designs.

She contacted a few partner factories, but unfortunately, the gold jewelry factories didn’t make silver jewelry. However, she was lucky enough to get recommendations for a few silver jewelry factories from a factory owner. Mo Lin called them immediately.

Since traffic could come and go quickly, Mo Lin wanted to seize this opportunity and do it well, not letting Cheng Lulu’s big fall go to waste.

After arranging everything, Mo Lin sketched out some silver jewelry designs for mass production, planning to visit the factory with these designs the next day. She also organized her tasks for the next day and finally had a moment to stretch.

She was exhausted and needed to catch a ride home. Picking up her phone, she was shocked to find it was already 12:30 AM!

She also noticed two missed calls from Jiang Yuanmu.

There were two calls, not one.

They always had a tacit understanding; normally, they would send messages if there was something to discuss, and even in urgent cases, they would make only one call. But today, there were two missed calls, which was unprecedented. Mo Lin figured it must be something related to the little Border Collie.

Mo Lin started to worry, all sorts of strange speculations popping into her mind. She grabbed her coat and hurriedly dialed the phone while heading outside, intending to hail a cab by the roadside.

As soon as she dialed the number, she suddenly heard a phone ringing outside the store.

It was already very late, and all the other stores in the cultural park were closed. The streetlights were dim, so when Mo Lin heard the phone ringing and looked up, she immediately saw the lit-up screen of the phone and the person holding it outside.

Jiang Yuanmu… came again.

This time, he even brought the dog.

“You…” Mo Lin dumbfoundedly walked to the door.

“Finished with work?” Jiang Yuanmu spoke first. The little Border Collie excitedly rushed over to Mo Lin, wagging its tail so vigorously it seemed like it would wag its entire rear end off.

Mo Lin couldn’t ignore the presence of the little Border Collie. She had to squat down and pet it first to calm it down before looking up at Jiang Yuanmu.

“Why are you here?”

“It’s too late, and you didn’t reply to my messages or answer my calls, so I came to check on you.”

Mo Lin opened her phone and saw that Jiang Yuanmu had sent a message around nine o’clock. The first call was made after ten, and the second at eleven.

“Sorry… I was too busy and didn’t notice.”

“Hmm, I saw.”

“How long have you been outside? Why didn’t you come in?”

“Not long,” Jiang Yuanmu replied. “I just took it as an opportunity to walk the dog.”

Mo Lin silently petted the little Border Collie’s head.

Although Jiang Yuanmu didn’t say anything more, Mo Lin did the math in her head and figured it out.

He had called her at eleven, and when she didn’t answer, he got worried and came over directly. It took him about twenty minutes to get there, and he had been waiting outside for over an hour.

He didn’t come in because he didn’t want to disturb her. If he had come in and sat beside her, even without saying anything, Mo Lin would have felt pressured. So when he saw she was busy, he just walked the dog around outside…

“I’m all packed up.” Mo Lin naturally took the leash from Jiang Yuanmu’s hand. “Let’s go.”

“Yeah, the car is parked in the garage.”

It was late at night, with few cars on the road. The streetlights flashed yellow at every intersection, ensuring a smooth drive.

The scenery outside the car window quietly passed by, and the faint wooden aroma from the car air freshener was a scent she had grown accustomed to over the past five years. Holding the little Border Collie, Mo Lin quietly fell asleep in the passenger seat.

When the car finally stopped, Jiang Yuanmu helped her unbuckle her seatbelt, “Mo Lin, go home and sleep.”

Mo Lin groggily opened her eyes. The little Border Collie was already eager to get out of the car. Mo Lin opened the car door, letting it jump out first, and then she got out as well.

After closing the car door, she looked at Jiang Yuanmu, who was getting out from the other side, a bit dazed. “Mr. Jiang.”

These three words made Jiang Yuanmu raise an eyebrow, but tonight, Mo Lin seemed a bit slow and didn’t notice.

“In this situation tonight, you picking me up isn’t part of your contractual obligations,” Mo Lin said, looking at him. “You went beyond your duties.”

Upon hearing this, even Jiang Yuanmu couldn’t help but tilt his head and examine Mo Lin.

So, did he do something wrong?

Jiang Yuanmu couldn’t grasp Mo Lin’s meaning and, after thinking about it, felt a bit annoyed. Laughing in exasperation, he asked, “Do you need me to apologize?”

Mo Lin was visibly taken aback by these words. “Of course not, I mean… if a similar situation arises in the future, you don’t have to come and pick me up.”

“I had nothing else to do.”

“Even so, you are busy, and any extra time you have could be used for resting. Don’t waste it.”

“Picking you up is not a waste.”

“Really, it’s not necessary. We each have a responsibility for our own safety and property. I’m an adult and can take care of myself.”

Resting his hand on the car roof, Jiang Yuanmu thought for a while before asking, “Mo Lin, why are you so resistant?”

Mo Lin opened her mouth but didn’t know how to respond.

In the past, she could always predict Jiang Yuanmu’s actions because she felt he was like another version of herself in the world; their thoughts were always surprisingly aligned.

But recently, Jiang Yuanmu had become unpredictable to Mo Lin. Many of his actions and words were beyond her expectations.

Like now, his persistent questioning left Mo Lin completely unsure of how to respond.

Why resist?

“Because… this isn’t part of our contract. You don’t have this obligation…”

As Mo Lin spoke, she saw Jiang Yuanmu walk around the front of the car and step closer to her.

“I still have the right to do it, and that’s enough.”

Jiang Yuanmu took the leash from Mo Lin’s hand and led the little Border Collie to the elevator. He held the elevator door open and looked back at Mo Lin.

Only then did Mo Lin step forward to follow him.

The elevator played repetitive ads, like dental floss and learning machine ads, adding some background noise to the silence between them.

As they exited the elevator, Jiang Yuanmu went ahead to open the door. Mo Lin, accompanied by the fading sound of the ads, softly said:

“Mr. Jiang… thank you for picking me up.”

With a “ding,” the door opened, and warm light spilled out from inside. Jiang Yuanmu glanced back at Mo Lin and entered the house first.

“You’re welcome,” he said with a hint of teasing in his voice, “Ms. Mo.”

Mo Lin was taken aback, finally realizing what he meant. She couldn’t help but smile, “Thank you for picking me up, Yuanmu.”