I Won’t Move If You Don’t

Just as the atmosphere in the front of the restaurant was getting better, Qin Anming and Zhuang Zhuang were stuck in a dilemma.

It started when Zhuang Zhuang ran in and told Qin Anming that his father was here. The latter immediately carried Zhuang Zhuang to the backyard when he heard this.

He had thought that he would be fine after changing into a fresh set of clothes. Unexpectedly, Zhuang Zhuang said that Jiang Danhe had woken up early in the morning and had dressed up specially to see him. He had even taken a shower before going to bed yesterday.

Hearing this, Qin Anming immediately sniffed himself. Fortunately, he had washed himself yesterday and still smelled good. But then he couldn’t just change into a clean set of clothes. At the very least, he had to comb his hair, wash his face, and change into a decent-looking outfit.

That was why he took quite a while to get ready.

When he brought Zhuang Zhuang out, Ruyi was closing the main door.

“Xiaoguo and the others have left?!”

Qin Anming asked a silly question. If Xiaoguo and the others had left, why didn’t they bring Zhuang Zhuang along?

Zhuang Zhuang looked up at his uncle. What was wrong with him?

“Brother…”

Xiaoguo called out to him helplessly. What was he asking?

Qin Anming looked in the direction of the voice and saw Jiang Danhe immediately.

Jiang Danhe also noticed him. Their gazes met in the air. For a while, both of them were very nervous.

Jiang Danhe was nervous to see his brother-in-law whom he had not seen for a long time. He was desperate to leave a good impression on him.

Due to his nervousness and excitement, he bounced up from his seat.

Qin Anming was also very nervous. He had heard that Jiang Danhe had become a general. He was worried about his own image and how it could affect Xiaoguo as a result. That was the reason why he paid so much attention to his dressing.

Seeing Jiang Danhe stand up, he did not know where to place his hands. So he could only stand up straight like him.

The two of them looked at each other from afar without saying anything. Both of them were wearing solemn looks on their faces.

Xiaoguo took out the dried fruits and melon seeds she had brought and placed them on the table. She invited everyone to eat the snacks while she looked on at the two men.

Unexpectedly, after a long time, they still remained standing at the same spot, even after Zhuang Zhuang had finished eating a dried plum. It looked as if they were trying to outdo each other.

Xiaoguo could not stand it anymore. She threw away the melon seeds in her hand and led Jiang Danhe towards Qin Anming.

“Brother, what are you doing? This is Jiang Danhe.” As she spoke, he pulled Jiang Danhe in front of Qin Anming. “Jiang Danhe, what are you doing? This is our brother.”

With those words, the reserved atmosphere between the two men was instantly shattered.

“Brother.”

Jiang Danhe spoke first. There was indeed nothing to be reserved about. This man was his wife’s brother, not an outsider. Moreover, the two of them had interacted many times before he married Xiaoguo.

“Ah, Danhe.”

Qin Anming greeted him happily. Indeed, they were family and not strangers.

“Ruyi just closed the door as she wants us to stay for lunch. That’s why she has temporarily closed the shop.”

Xiaoguo pulled the giggling pair back to the table and they instantly joined the group chat.

When Qin Anming heard this, he knew how stupid he had been to ask that question.

The few of them started chatting while munching on melon seeds. When it was time for lunch, everyone got busy together.

Xiaoguo liked this atmosphere very much. Just as she was sitting with Ruyi picking vegetables, Ruyi leaned over and asked her a question.

“Sister Xiaoguo.”

“Yes?”

Xiaoguo looked at her in confusion and motioned for her to speak.

“Should we sell your herbal cuisine too?”

When Ruyi first saw the casserole, she started thinking about a lot of things. Although the noodle shop was making money now, she wanted to do things more comprehensively. Nowadays, people are paying more attention to their health. So she was thinking about seizing this opportunity to open another shop.

“Of course we should!”

After hearing about her future plans, Xiaoguo was very impressed. Sure enough, Ruyi had really bold ideas. However, she was a little worried. “That’s a good plan, but are you able to handle it?”

“I just thought about it. When the time comes, I’ll buy the shop next door since it’s about to close down. I’ll remove the wall between the shops and merge them into a single restaurant. When the time comes, I will just hire more people.”

Ruyi had made a lot of money over this period of time. If she could easily buy the shop next door, she could definitely afford to hire more people. That was why she slowly came up with such a bold idea.

Xiaoguo thought about it carefully and decided it would work.

“Okay! I’m with you. Just tell me what you need help with.”

“Ah! Sister Xiaoguo! I love you!”

Ruyi threw down the vegetables and hugged Xiaoguo. She did think that her idea was too bold, but the feeling of having someone support her plans was awesome!!

The two of them thought about their plans while cooking and put no time to waste. The herbal soup that Xiaoguo brought was also heated up and brought to the table. Since it had nourishing properties, it was fine for everyone to drink it together.

While they were eating, Ruyi briefly explained her plan to everyone. The details still had to be worked out, but she gave them a general outline of what she intended to do.

Everyone was also a part of this place and Ruyi treated them like family, so she had to get their approval first.

In the end, she got everyone’s consensus.

Jiang Danhe nodded silently. This was indeed a good idea. When he was in the capital, most of the people he knew paid a lot of attention to their health. They stuffed large amounts of herbal cuisine and beverages into their stomachs. Although Yonghai County was not big, there were many rich people here. There were also many officials who had settled with their families within the county. Therefore, if they opened a shop that specializes in herbal cuisine, it should work out pretty well.

After lunch, Ling Long and Fu’er cleared the table. The others gathered around the table and discussed the plan together.

Everyone contributed their ideas and thoughts. After some time, a perfect and rigorous business framework was neatly laid out on the table. From hiring at the shop to the prices of the dishes, it was a thorough and comprehensive business plan.

Ruyi carefully put away the stack of rice paper. With the plan in hand, she had to implement it quickly. After all, time was money.

Xiaoguo let out a few coughs. Her throat was feeling a little dry. She had already given Ruyi all the recipes she could think of. Ruyi was in charge of taking notes. There were five large sheets of paper with the ingredients and herbs listed out in detail. It was clear and easy to understand.

Just as Xiaoguo was looking for water, Jiang Danhe, who had been watching her, immediately handed her a cup of warm water.

She didn’t thank him. Since they were already on such familiar terms, there was no need for formalities.

She took the cup and finished it in one gulp. Jiang Danhe then handed her another cup. Xiaoguo glanced at him before drinking up the water.

Immediately after, she burped. She had gotten quite full from too much water.

“It’s getting late. We’ll head back now.”

The group hung around until the afternoon when Xiaoguo got up and prepared to say her goodbyes.

Qin Anming picked up Zhuang Zhuang and said to the two of them, “Xiaoguo, Danhe, how about letting Zhuang Zhuang stay here with me for the next two days?”

He had thought about this for some time. Since Jiang Danhe had returned, it would be good for the two to enjoy some couple-time.

As he thought about it, he felt a little embarrassed. It wasn’t easy for Qin Anming to voice this out since he was still a little big kid.

“Huh? Why?”

Zhuang Zhuang was the first to ask.

“Why? Don’t you want to be with Uncle?”

In order to help his brother-in-law, Qin Anming had to wheedle Zhuang Zhuang into staying with him.

“… not exactly.”

Zhuang Zhuang turned his face away awkwardly. It was hard to watch his uncle doing that.

“Brother…”

The corner of Xiaoguo’s mouth twitched. What kind of expression was that? She couldn’t bear to look at him.

Jiang Danhe didn’t quite understand what Qin Anming’s intentions were. He thought that Qin Anming wanted to spend more time with Zhuang Zhuang, so he agreed readily, “Sure.”

With that, he looked at Xiaoguo again and asked carefully, “Will that be okay?”

Although he was fine with it, the decision-maker in the house was still XIaoguo.

Seeing that Jiang Danhe had agreed, Qin Anming wept tears of relief in his heart. It seemed that his brother-in-law understood his intentions.