Help! The Frosty Noble's Son Is in Love With Me!-Chapter 390 - 389: Envious Radiance

Because Li Niang is pregnant, and considering her age, she is classified as a high-risk pregnancy, so she has to be very careful. Most of the shop’s matters are left to Li Hua.

However, Li Hua’s skills ultimately can’t match Li Niang’s. Although the tofu skin buns she makes aren’t bad, they always lack something compared to Li Niang’s.

But today was different; Li Hua’s skills seemed to have improved significantly. The tofu skin buns she made were comparable to Lady Li’s.

"Has Li Niang returned?" a customer subconsciously asked after eating the tofu skin buns.

"Li Niang probably won’t be back anytime soon; Miss Li is in charge now," the shop assistant responded with a smile.

"Wow, Miss Li’s skills have become remarkable. I was just eating and suddenly thought Li Niang was back. It seems Li Niang has a successor now."

Everyone heard this and laughed.

Li Hua rarely comes to the front while making tofu skin buns in the back. She heard the customers’ discussions but remained silent, merely pursed her lips when praised before moving on.

The other workers thought she hadn’t fully recovered and couldn’t joke and chat as usual, so they didn’t pay it any mind.

Li Niang comes over every evening to check on things, and Shi Yi comes with her.

One’s affection cannot be hidden; Shi Yi’s care for Li Niang was genuine and clear to everyone.

Shi Yi wouldn’t let Li Niang get involved in the shop’s business. Whatever needed to be done, she just had to say it, and he would do it while Li Niang watched from the side.

Such a loving couple made the other workers incredibly envious.

Not to mention the workers, sometimes watching Li Niang and Shi Yi together, even Li Hua would be moved, her eyes filled with something that seemed like envy. Yet whatever she thought of, the tender light in her eyes quickly faded.

Li Niang mentioned something about that Prince Xiao to Li Hua, saying he seemed to rarely patrol this area in the past six months. She used to think he was interested in Li Hua, but now it seemed she might have been mistaken.

When Li Hua heard the words Prince Xiao, her hands paused for a moment before resuming calmly. She didn’t pursue the topic with Li Niang, who assumed she was too shy to discuss such things and didn’t continue.

Xiao Shiqing seldom patrolled this area for a reason. The emperor wanted to keep Heir Pei busy but worried about implicating his daughter, so he had to let him take it easy.

Where some have leisure, others bear the burden; the one burdened was Xiao Shiqing.

After all, only Xiao Shiqing could match Pei Ji’an’s capabilities, and isn’t it said that the able do the most work? Who else could it be?

So while Heir Pei spent his days accompanying his wife to shops or out drinking and playing, Xiao Shiqing worked tirelessly like an ox without rest.

Finally, catching a breath, he strolled to the vicinity of the tofu skin bun shop to have some tea.

He followed his heart there without understanding why.

Even though Li Jirou was with Pei Ji’an, he still came by, as if it were Li Hua in the tofu skin bun shop who attracted him more.

Perhaps it was her habits, or maybe it was because she could embroider a pouch like his, letting him see her past self in her.

This time around, however, she didn’t seem fond of selling buns outside as before. He sat for half a day without seeing her.

Just while thinking this, she appeared from inside.

It turns out someone had come to deliver goods and needed a signature.

Li Niang and Shi Yi took a look and, finding no issues, left. Li Hua remained in charge of many things in the shop.

Li Hua picked up a pen and signed the delivery note, paid the person, and sent him off. She instructed someone to move the goods inside, preparing to return and continue making tofu skin buns when the sound of hoofbeats on the road caught everyone’s attention.

Since Xiao Shiqing couldn’t frequently come around, there needed to be someone responsible for maintaining safety in the area, and that person was none other than Xiao Shiqing’s cousin, Zhou Baiying.

He was an exceedingly arrogant person, creating a ruckus wherever he went, focusing only on looking impressive, scaring the passersby pale, sometimes even carelessly overturning people’s moving stalls.

People had a strong distaste for him, but how could civilians fight against officials? Moreover, being the son of the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel and Xiao Shiqing’s cousin, his background was solid, who would dare offend?

They could only swallow their anger silently.

Zhou Baiying and his group galloped over, raising dust all around, causing those nearby to suffer.

The group stopped in front of the tofu skin bun shop, loudly shouting, "Bring us some baskets of tofu skin buns."

The shop assistant cautiously asked how many baskets they wanted.

The person replied impatiently, "Can’t you see with your eyes? We have so many people; how many baskets do you think are appropriate?"

The assistant felt troubled. How would he know? Moreover, these people never paid when they came to eat, only mentioning the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel’s son by name, saying they would pay back at the house later. Who would dare go to claim payment? It was no different from freeloading.

But the assistants didn’t dare not comply, knowing they couldn’t afford to cause a scene.

Though Li Niang’s tofu skin bun shop had the emperor’s personal endorsement, which deterred ordinary troublemakers, Zhou Baiying was no ordinary person. His father, holding an official position at court, had received many imperial rewards—what was Li Niang in comparison?

"Where’s that delicate-skinned girl from your shop? Let her come out and pack the tofu skin buns for us," the group laughed evilly.

The delicate-skinned girl, who else but Li Hua?

As for Li Niang, although beautiful, she was in her thirties and naturally couldn’t compare to a young girl. Before Li Hua came, Li Niang often faced teasing from young lordlings, but after the emperor wrote the inscription, those incidents ceased.

But against someone like Zhou Baiying, a scoundrel, it was pointless; they had seen Li Hua during patrols several times. Who wasn’t fond of a clever and skilled young girl?

But they had been too busy to linger long; today, they finally had time.

"Get your shop’s Miss Li to come out and entertain us. Make our Lord Zhou happy, and we’ll reward you with some money," they said, humiliatingly.

Such words transformed the assistants’ expressions, though they dared not speak out.

Li Hua also tightened her grip.

She had never faced such a situation and didn’t know how to deal with it for a moment.

"Where’s everyone? Come out quickly, lest you delay serving our Lord Zhou."

"Miss Li, you mustn’t go out. We’ve already sent for Li Niang, and as soon as she arrives, Shi Yi will too. Shi Yi is associated with Heir Pei, and with him here, it will be easier to handle," the assistants, concerned for Miss Li, were afraid she’d be bullied.

These scoundrels, indifferent to whom they hurt, knew any trouble could be covered by their families, leaving only the helpless ones to suffer losses.

Li Hua, unused to such spectacles, was indeed frightened and didn’t know what to say—she even squeezed the tofu skin bun in her hand out of shape.

As everyone stood helpless, a deep voice resonated from outside the door.

"Who do you want to serve you?"