Jiang Yixia poured them two glasses of water. Huang Minghao’s mother smiled as she took her glass, remarking with envy, "Oh my, I never expected Miss Jiang to be so beautiful. You must be under thirty, right?"

"I’m already thirty-seven," Jiang Yixia replied.

Huang Minghao’s mother immediately gushed, "Good heavens, you take such amazing care of yourself! I never would have guessed. If we stood next to each other, people would think I was your mother."

Jiang Yixia felt a little awkward hearing this.

’She couldn’t tell if she was being complimented or teased.’

After a few perfunctory pleasantries, Huang Minghao’s father finally got to their true purpose. "Miss Jiang, the truth is, besides the flower arrangement contract, there’s another matter we were hoping you could help us with."

"Tell me about it, but I can’t promise I’ll be able to help." Just as she’d suspected, Jiang Yixia knew their visit wasn’t really about flowers.

Huang Minghao’s father explained awkwardly, "Well, it’s a bit of a long story. A while ago, my good-for-nothing son was bullying a female classmate. Your brother, Teacher Jiang Ming, disciplined him for it. At first, I didn’t know my son was the one at fault; he just kept insisting that his teacher had hit him."

"Sigh... It’s all my fault. I wrongly accused Teacher Jiang Ming without getting the facts straight."

Huang Minghao’s father continued helplessly, "Later, your husband came to the school and explained the situation. Only then did we realize it was our boy who had been bullying his classmate."

Jiang Yixia felt a prickle of discomfort at his words.

She desperately wanted to explain to the couple before her that Lu Fan was not her husband.

’An ex, at most.’

’But of course, they wouldn’t believe that.’

Jiang Yixia figured there was no point in telling them.

She asked the couple, "So, your reason for coming today is..."

"We did apologize afterward, but your husband must have felt we handled the situation poorly. As it happens, one of your husband’s subsidiaries had a partnership with us, and he terminated it. We came today specifically to apologize for that."

Huang Minghao’s father bowed again in apology. "I’m sorry. We were truly neglectful in how we raised our son. We’re hoping, Miss Jiang, that you could put in a good word for us with your husband. In business, after all, harmony brings wealth."

Now Jiang Yixia finally understood their purpose.

She shook her head and replied, "I’m sorry, I don’t have a say in this matter."

Hearing this, Huang Minghao’s mother grew anxious. "Miss Jiang, please, I’m begging you. Business is so difficult these days. We worked so hard to get that partnership with your husband’s subsidiary, and now it’s been terminated. You know how hard it is to survive in Yangcheng."

After saying this, she once again pushed the gift she had brought onto the table. "Miss Jiang, this is top-grade bird’s nest and other health supplements. I thought they would be perfect for you. Please, take them home and try them."

Jiang Yixia quickly refused, "No, no, please. I don’t really care for these things."

"Oh, Miss Jiang, don’t say that," Huang Minghao’s mother explained. "I’m sure they can’t compare to the supplements you have at home, but they’re still quite good."

Jiang Yixia shook her head again. "I really can’t accept these. How about this? I’ll ask about the situation for you and see what’s going on."

At these words, Huang Minghao’s father’s face immediately lit up. "If you could ask for us, Miss Jiang, that would be absolutely wonderful."

After a few more pleasantries, the couple finally left.

But once they were gone, Jiang Yixia found herself in a predicament.

She didn’t know whether she should tell Lu Fan about it.

But even if Jiang Yixia didn’t tell Lu Fan, the bodyguards secretly watching her had already reported the matter to their boss. 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

A message from Lu Fan arrived moments later: "Don’t worry about them. I’ll handle it."

Jiang Yixia was surprised to see the message, but a glance at the pastry shop not far away made everything clear.

’He might be a womanizer and a total scumbag, but when it came to handling things, he was more competent than most men.’

’Damn it... he’s not that great! I take it back!’ Jiang Yixia immediately denied her own thought.

But a second later, a faint blush still crept onto her face.

「Meanwhile.」

After spending the whole day touring gardens, Jiang Silu and her friends finally returned to their hotel.

Lu Yao couldn’t help but complain, "The last two gardens we saw weren’t nearly as beautiful as Spring Glow Garden. I wonder if I’ll ever get the chance to visit it again in this lifetime."

"Spring Glow Garden is a private estate. It was a rare enough opportunity for them to open it for us just once," Song Miaomiao explained.

Liu Shiting glanced at Jiang Silu. ’Spring Glow Garden must have something to do with Uncle Lu,’ she thought, though she didn’t know that Lu Fan himself was the owner.

Seeing that everyone was talking about Spring Glow Garden, Jiang Silu shyly took out a card and said, "If you guys want to go again in the future, we could pick a weekend. My dad gave me a permanent pass to Spring Glow Garden..."

As soon as she said this, the other three girls were completely stunned.