Chapter 147: Chapter 147: Renovation Plan Finalized

I’m usually too lazy to even make my bed. My clothes, novels, and other things are just tossed all over it, and now Sakai Kaori has seen everything! ’My image is ruined,’ Shen Yibin thought, starting to regret letting her sleep in his bed.

"Looks like that idiot Egg is about to be bought," Cheeky said lazily, lying on a throw pillow. It glanced at Sun Qian, then upstairs, and finally its gaze landed on Shen Yibin and Hah’Er. It shook its head and sighed. "Sigh, poor Hah’Er. Egg and I both have smart, pretty girls for masters. You’re the only unlucky one, stuck with an idiot like Bin."

"Hmph!" Hearing Cheeky badmouth his master, Hah’Er was naturally displeased and lunged forward. But Cheeky had already taken flight before it finished speaking, causing Hah’Er to pounce on empty air.

"Well, I was going to make some fig salad tonight, but I guess I’ll skip it now," Shen Yibin said in a drawn-out voice. He was quite frustrated; this Cheeky character would chat and laugh with Sun Qian but was just sarcastic and mocking toward others.

Hearing this, Cheeky immediately shut its beak. Although it now belonged to Sun Qian, it still lived and ate at the store. Offending Shen Yibin would definitely not end well for it.

"Boss, your room is a complete mess! Can’t you clean it up a bit?" Just as Shen Yibin was about to fire back at Cheeky, Sylvie came down from upstairs and immediately started complaining.

"Uh, well, the store is usually too busy. I really don’t have the time." ’Besides, other than Egg and Hah’Er, no one else ever goes in my bedroom, so why worry about a little mess? Aren’t all bachelors’ rooms like this?’

"No wonder you’re still single," Sylvie said, not bothering to persuade him further as she shot Shen Yibin a look.

’As if you have a boyfriend,’ Shen Yibin thought but held his tongue. "We have customers. Hurry up and go help, or I’ll dock your pay."

"Soulless capitalist," Sylvie muttered, then immediately put on a warm smile to greet the customers. "Hello, what kind of pet are you interested in?"

’You’ve got some nerve. You’re a decadent and corrupt noble, even worse than a capitalist,’ Shen Yibin grumbled internally, leaning back on the sofa and stroking Hah’Er’s head.

While the two of them were happily playing, the designer from the renovation company, Li Zhen, arrived. He came into the store, sat down next to Shen Yibin, and took out a tablet to show the sketches he had made over the past few days. "Boss Shen, here’s the proposal we’ve put together based on your requirements. Please take a look. If you’re satisfied, we can start working on the details."

"Okay, thank you for your hard work." Shen Yibin took the tablet and began to look through it. ’Hmm, Li Zhen is pretty good. He’s grasped all the key points I emphasized perfectly.’

Judging from the renderings, more than half of the second floor of Mrs. Wang’s tea shop had been knocked out, and the ceiling was replaced with transparent glass. The two stories were combined into a single, high-ceilinged floor, making the space feel vast and uplifting—unlike the oppressive feeling of the current store.

Sunlight streamed down from the main roof, landing right on a large tree in the middle of the room. Next to the tree was a bamboo grove nearly a hundred square meters in size. The bamboo was lush and dense, and it was surrounded by play equipment for Hah’Er, like a slide and a swing. Shen Yibin was very satisfied with this. "Did you reference the designs of the Giant Panda Base for this?"

"Yes, we found a lot of photos of the Giant Panda Base online. In addition to these features, we’ve also included designs for a large-scale air conditioning system. Whether it’s the hottest part of summer or the coldest part of winter, you’ll be able to regulate the temperature to a level that pandas find most comfortable. Furthermore..." Li Zhen explained in detail.

"Hah’Er, come take a look. Do you like it?" Shen Yibin was quite satisfied. Li Zhen’s design completely matched his vision for the new store and even exceeded it in some ways.

"Hmm?" Hah’Er stuck its head over, curiously examining the renderings on the screen. When it saw the big tree, the bamboo grove, the swing, and the slide, it immediately grew excited. "Ooh! Ooh!"

"The overall direction is fine. Let’s go with this. If construction starts next month, how long will it take to complete? And what’s the total budget?" Since Hah’Er was satisfied, Shen Yibin had no objections.

"The other parts are straightforward, but retrofitting the glass ceiling and planting the indoor vegetation will be a bit tricky. It might take a little longer than your last renovation, probably about two months? As for the total budget, I’ll calculate it and email it to you later." Seeing that the deal was about to be sealed, Li Zhen was thrilled. At this scale, the renovation cost would be substantial, which meant he’d get another nice commission.

"Alright, let’s settle on that then. When the budget is ready, if there are no major issues, we’ll sign the contract." With that, Shen Yibin saw Li Zhen to the door. ’Looks like I’ll have to talk to Mrs. Wang tonight and get that lawyer Zhang Danxuan’s contact information. I’ll ask her to help me look over the contract.’

"Hah’Er, in a few more months, you’ll be able to live in the place from those pictures." ’This is all thanks to Egg,’ he thought. ’But by the time the new store is finished, Egg will probably be long gone, right?’ At this thought, some of Shen Yibin’s happiness faded into melancholy.

Just as he was speaking, he heard Egg’s cries from upstairs. It seemed the little Raccoon Cat had woken up from its drunken stupor. Looking up, he saw Sakai Kaori carefully cradling Egg as she came down the stairs.

"Ooh!" Still excited, Hah’Er immediately pounced, starting to roughhouse with Egg. Sakai Kaori watched, at a complete loss, as Hah’Er pinned Egg down and started rubbing its head. ’Hey, that’s no way to treat Lord Raccoon Cat!’ But seeing that Egg’s expression seemed to be enjoying the rough play, Sakai Kaori was stuck, not knowing whether to stop them or just keep watching.

’Sigh, out of sight, out of mind.’ Sakai Kaori forced herself to look away from the scene and turned to ask Shen Yibin, "Mr. Shopkeeper, may I please use the washing machine upstairs?"

"Oh, no problem. Feel free to use it." ’Tsk, tsk, her clothes don’t look dirty at all. Is she going to wash them already? Man, being a girl sure is a lot of work. I usually just let my dirty clothes pile up and wash them once a month.’

"Thank you for the trouble." Sakai Kaori bowed again, then took her suitcase and went upstairs. A short while later, the sound of the washing machine starting up came from the second floor.

Once it started, it didn’t stop. A long time passed, and Shen Yibin could still hear the washing machine running. ’How many clothes does she have to wash? Even if her entire suitcase was full of clothes, they should be clean by now, right?’

’Could the washing machine be broken?’ With this question in mind, Shen Yibin went up to the second floor, and... he was immediately stunned by the scene before him.