Setting Up Stalls – Chapter 56

Crush on the New Skin

Sun Miao didn’t hide her sexual orientation because there was absolutely no need. She didn’t have parents, so she wouldn’t face that biggest mountain in a society built on kinship ties. Besides, she never felt her sexual orientation was something that needed to be hidden away.

If a customer wouldn’t buy from her because of her orientation, that just meant the customer wasn’t worthy.

But Hip-Hop Mei’s reaction was too calm, making Sun Miao feel a bit surprised. Not just Hip-Hop Mei, but Yabi Mei and the Rich Second-Gen Guy next to her were also unusually calm. On the other side, Manman and Xiaoxiao, were actually a bit surprised: “Wow! It’s my first time seeing a real-life¹ lesbian²!”

Compared to them, the three of them were a bit too calm. The Rich Second-Gen Guy even added, “But it doesn’t make much difference, right? If Little Boss Sun hits it off with some rich woman and moves straight into her big house³, we still won’t have anything to eat.”

You’ve really got something, Sun Miao thought. Just as expected of Hip-Hop Mei’s good friend, all he thinks about all day is food.

Hip-Hop Mei slapped her thigh, “Exactly! Little Boss Sun, you absolutely can’t do something like that, you can’t run off with a rich lady!”

Sun Miao twitched the corner of her mouth. “I won’t.”

But then Yabi Girl suddenly said something astonishing⁴. “If you’re considering finding a partner among the customers, I can also recommend some friends of mine. I know some fellow…”⁵

Hip-Hop Mei’s jaw dropped, and she blurted out, “Are you trying to get the spoils because you’re in a favorable position?⁶ You’d even sell out your friends for food!”

“Shut up, you!”

As they argued noisily, they actually steered the conversation away from the previous topic. Sun Miao realized that the reason they were so calm was because they had friends with all sorts of orientations. Indeed, only when you’ve seen more of the world do you stop making a big fuss about things.

Manman and Xiaoxiao calmed down too, and instead started cheering Sun Miao on⁷, “Go, Boss-jiejie, keep making delicious food!”

Right, she thought. All my customers think about is food.

After they finished eating, they waved goodbye and left, and Sun Miao’s stall fell quiet again. But after a while, many more customers came. Among them, the one Sun Miao knew best was the Little Nurse. Today, the Little Nurse had also brought her bestie – the one who had been standing next to her last time when she bought the beef pancakes.

Today she even had a big box. Getting out of her bestie’s car, she dragged the large box down and ordered over twenty servings of Duck Blood Vermicelli Soup and her duck products all at once.

This time, Sun Miao didn’t even need to ask, “Can you finish all that?” Needless to say, the Little Nurse was definitely getting it for people at her hospital.

“Coming all this way, will you make it to work on time?”

“I’m on backup duty⁸ today. I’ll drive back later, and this afternoon I’ll just be sitting in the department office.” The Little Nurse smiled and answered Sun Miao. She and her bestie each ordered a Duck Blood Vermicelli Soup first, and while Sun Miao was packing the rest, they slurped up their noodles together nearby.

The two of them ate very happily. By the time they finished their Duck Blood Vermicelli Soup, the takeout order was ready too.

The Little Nurse and her bestie worked together to hoist the big box into the trunk. “My colleague is coming tomorrow! Little Boss Sun, see you next time!”

Sun Miao waved goodbye to them, thinking to herself with feeling: The people at their hospital really love to eat, huh? Coming all this way, even taking turns relay-style, someone else is coming tomorrow.

But in just one morning, Sun Miao’s duck products were basically all sold out. Apparently, some customers hadn’t been able to buy any yesterday and knew they had to come early today, so they all rushed over first thing in the morning just to buy duck products.

Sun Miao thought for a moment and still saved a portion of the five-spice duck products. This habit of casually saving something had become second nature for Sun Miao. She wasn’t looking for Su Ruixi’s gratitude; just seeing Su Ruixi for a few moments each day made her happy.

This is probably a crush, right? she thought. You don’t even need to exchange a few words; just seeing her is good enough.

Su Ruixi also arrived today around 11 AM. When she got out of the car, Sun Miao’s eyes lit up. Today, Su Ruixi wasn’t wearing professional attire or high heels; instead, she had changed into sportswear. On top, she wore a white racerback⁹ sports tank top under a thin sports jacket, paired with casual, loose-fitting light gray sweatpants, and white sneakers on her feet.

Her hair, usually worn down her back, was tied into a ponytail, making her look several years younger.

Su Ruixi already looked young, and dressed like this, Sun Miao felt she looked even younger than herself.

Sun Miao’s eyes truly lit up, as if brushed by a spring breeze¹⁰, her spirits instantly lifted: Crush on the new skin!

Su Ruixi slowly walked over and ordered a Duck Blood Vermicelli Soup. Sun Miao casually asked, “Did you finish yesterday’s five-spice duck products?”

Su Ruixi hesitated for a moment, then nodded. “Finished.”

“Want another portion?”

“Yes.”

The conversation between them flowed much more smoothly. Sun Miao noticed that ever since the beef pancake incident last time, Su Ruixi hadn’t been so awkward. She would answer her questions properly, and when faced with something she wanted, she wouldn’t hold back politely at first but would straightforwardly state her thoughts.

Since there were no other customers, after bringing the Duck Blood Vermicelli Soup over, Sun Miao naturally¹¹ sat down next to Su Ruixi. Su Ruixi had also gotten used to Sun Miao doing this. She even waited with wide eyes for Sun Miao to give her the candy. Sun Miao didn’t disappoint her, truly pulling out a candy from her apron pocket.

Su Ruixi didn’t start eating the soup right away, but just like yesterday, ate the candy first, waiting for the soup to cool down a bit before eating.

Today’s flavor was orange, the one Sun Miao had eaten yesterday. And the one Sun Miao got today was the grape flavor she didn’t like.

Her brow furrowed slightly. “Aiya, it’s grape flavor.” Yesterday Su Ruixi already knew that Sun Miao didn’t like this flavor. Seeing Sun Miao’s expression, Su Ruixi suddenly found it rather amusing.

“Is it really that bad?”

But Sun Miao shook her head. “The candy Susu-jie gives me is actually quite delicious. Even the grape flavor is better than other candies. It’s just that there are so many types, the grape flavor feels like it can’t compare to the others at all.”

Hearing her talk like that, Su Ruixi couldn’t help but wonder what flavor of candy she would get tomorrow.

This feeling of uncertainty yet control felt somewhat wondrous and full of anticipation for Su Ruixi.

While eating the candy, Sun Miao’s mouth wasn’t idle either; she continued chatting about interesting things. She would occasionally mention Hip-Hop Mei to Su Ruixi, but today, she kept it hidden. She was actually a little scared. She could openly state her sexual orientation in front of Hip-Hop Mei, yet she didn’t dare reveal the slightest hint of it to Su Ruixi.

Because… her intentions toward Su Ruixi weren’t pure.

Even knowing nothing was possible between them, Sun Miao still developed feelings for Su Ruixi… under these circumstances, if Su Ruixi found out about her orientation and guessed that Sun Miao liked her, what would she think? Would she find it disgusting? Or would she completely disregard it? Or, like Hip-Hop Mei, just say, “Oh, I see.”

But no matter which response, none seemed like a good outcome for Sun Miao. It was better to just leave things as they were, holding onto this small heart full of admiration, maintaining the current balance.

She didn’t have that many topics of conversation, and in the end, she subconsciously blurted out a compliment to Su Ruixi, “You look really good today.”

Sun Miao genuinely thought Su Ruixi looked good – whether yesterday, today, or tomorrow, she was consistently beautiful.

Su Ruixi, having been complimented, paused for a second. She realized Sun Miao was sincere, so she also sincerely said “Thank you,” and honestly told Sun Miao, “…Actually, I didn’t really want you to compliment this outfit today. Because yesterday, that client of mine specifically told me to dress like this. Coming here in sportswear today was actually me bowing down to her.”

Only then did Sun Miao understand there was such a reason behind it. She apologized straightforwardly, “I’m sorry…”

“No need, you don’t have to say sorry. It’s not your fault, it’s my own business.” Having finished the candy, Su Ruixi started eating the Duck Blood Vermicelli Soup. For a moment, the two fell silent. It wasn’t until Su Ruixi finished the soup and paid that Sun Miao said, “Susu-jie, you’ll definitely succeed.”

Su Ruixi gave a small smile. “I hope your auspicious words come true.”

That day, Sun Miao actually felt quite uneasy. She was waiting for Su Ruixi, her gaze occasionally sweeping over the entrance of the golf course, but she never saw Su Ruixi’s car drive out. She didn’t know if this was good or bad for Su Ruixi. Staying for a long time could mean they were talking, maybe it would really work out today. But it was also possible that the detestable client was deliberately tormenting Su Ruixi, just wanting her to stay inside and be bullied.

Sun Miao was restless, but fortunately, when she started making Duck Blood Vermicelli Soup, she became completely focused. Even if that weren’t the case, she could probably do it with her eyes closed without making a mistake.

By just past 4 PM, Sun Miao grew even more restless. Su Ruixi should have come out around this time yesterday, but now there wasn’t even a shadow of her. She waited quite a while longer before finally seeing Su Ruixi’s car. Sun Miao breathed a sigh of relief.

The car slowly stopped in front of Sun Miao’s little stall. After Su Ruixi got out, Sun Miao’s breath caught in her throat again.

Su Ruixi’s expression wasn’t good; to be precise, it was rather terrible. Her brows were tightly furrowed, and her expression held a trace of stiffness. When she reached Sun Miao, her tone also became somewhat wooden, “I… I want a Duck Blood Vermicelli Soup.”

But Sun Miao didn’t rush to make it. Instead, she had Su Ruixi sit to the side, then ladled out a bowl of broth, carried it over, and said, “Susu-jie, sit for a bit first, have some broth. Let’s calm down first.”

Su Ruixi was silent for a moment, then nodded. She took the disposable container Sun Miao handed her and drank a mouthful of the duck broth. The duck broth, with nothing else in it, was crystal clear, with a few chopped scallions floating on top, adding a slight sharpness. As the broth entered her mouth and flowed down her esophagus into her stomach, Su Ruixi’s mood also began to ease.

Seeing her expression relax somewhat, Sun Miao finally asked, “Susu-jie, what happened?”

Su Ruixi didn’t answer, just took another two or three sips. At that moment, two customers arrived, and Su Ruixi told Sun Miao to tend to them first.

Sun Miao wasn’t entirely reassured, but Su Ruixi said, “You go ahead and take care of them. I need to gather my thoughts anyway. I’ll tell you later.”

Since Su Ruixi had said that, Sun Miao could only stand up, make Duck Blood Vermicelli Soup for the two customers first, and inform them that the duck products were already sold out.

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