Chapter 249 – Ran Jin and Coffee
Lin Mu’an’s “performance” was clearly recognized by Yang Yi. Yang Yi took down the innermost jar and carefully took out two servings of Mandheling coffee beans for both of them.
Yang Yi was not a stingy person, but he wouldn’t just offer Mandheling coffee to anyone. It wasn’t because the special Mandheling coffee beans he collected were expensive, but because he was afraid that the other party wouldn’t know how to taste it and would waste it!
But Lin Mu’an was different. His relationship with his girlfriend made Yang Yi feel it necessary to “bring out” the Mandheling. The acidity of these coffee beans wasn’t strong, but it was easily distinguishable, and it also had a rich herbal fragrance, just like their love?
After exchanging a few words with his girlfriend, Lin Mu’an walked over and looked at Yang Yi nervously: “Boss, may I ask if my performance was okay?”
“The song you just sang was pretty good. Is it your original creation? What’s its name?” Yang Yi didn’t answer directly. He focused on manipulating his utensils and only asked when Lin Mu’an felt awkward and a little at a loss.
“No,” Lin Mu’an quickly replied, “the song is called ‘Coffee Goes Sugar.’ It’s a song by a singer named Virgo from Hong Kong. My girlfriend, Ran Jin, likes it very much, so I sang it for her.”
Such a name, very good, very powerful…
“Coffee Goes Sugar” implies both with sugar and without sugar in Hong Kong.1TN: Two translation results comes up for the title of the song: Coffee with Sugar and Coffee without Sugar. As for Virgo, Yang Yi couldn’t help but find it a bit amusing. Who uses the English word for Virgo as their stage name?
Of course, he was just secretly criticizing to himself. Yang Yi still jotted down the name of the song and planned to buy it and play it in the shop, hoping those customers who always add a lot of sugar to their coffee would learn a thing or two.
Seeing that the atmosphere was about to become awkward again, Yang Yi brought up two cups of freshly brewed coffee. He smiled at Lin Mu’an and said, “These two cups of coffee are for you. You sang well, keep it up and keep going!”
The latter sentence was, of course, Yang Yi encouraging Lin Mu’an.
Every resident singer in a bar has a dream of stepping onto a real stage. Lin Mu’an should also be pursuing his music dream, just like the two boys from Thousand Miles Chuan-Shu. Yang Yi believed that Lin Mu’an could also succeed, just like Thousand Miles Chuan-Shu.
Lin Mu’an was somewhat stunned, and then a hint of surprise appeared on his face. He had already prepared to pay for the coffee.
“Thank you, boss!” Lin Mu’an happily held the two cups of coffee and carefully carried them back. He couldn’t wait to share the good news with his girlfriend.
Lin Mu’an’s girlfriend, the girl named Ran Jin, curiously asked him some questions and then brought Lin Mu’an to Yang Yi.
“Boss, hello. May I ask how much these two cups of coffee cost?” Ran Jin was much more generous in her interactions compared to Lin Mu’an. She nudged Lin Mu’an and whispered, “Running a business is not easy these days. You’ve already allowed Mu’an to use the piano. We are already grateful. How could you still spend money to treat us to coffee?”
Lin Mu’an also took out his wallet, ready to pay once Yang Yi mentioned the amount.
Yang Yi smiled wryly, waved his hand, and said, “What’s all this talk about money? How much money can you students have? This time I feel like I have a good connection with Lin Mu’an. Let me treat you to two cups of coffee, just two cups of coffee, it’s not a big expense, is it?”
“You misunderstood. Actually, we’ve both graduated for several years now,” Ran Jin quickly explained. “I work as a counselor in Jiangcheng Media and Lin Mu’an also has his job. We’re not without income.”
“Yes, we can still afford two cups of coffee!” Lin Mu’an took out a 100 yuan bill and said to Yang Yi, “Boss, please take the money!”
In fact, with this 100 yuan bill, they couldn’t even afford a cup of Mandheling coffee on their table…
“Alright, alright, you have money. Come back to the shop and spend it next time you have a chance.” Yang Yi smiled and put the 100 yuan bill back into Lin Mu’an’s hand, saying, “I’m treating you to these two cups of coffee as a rule of the shop. Lin Mu’an moved me with his singing.”
“Don’t say so much, Lin Mu’an. You and I are both music lovers. You should understand my thoughts. Coffee has a price, but music is priceless. You brought beautiful music to me and this coffee shop. Isn’t it worth me treating you to a cup of coffee?” Yang Yi said with a firm tone that couldn’t be refused.
Ran Jin was indeed a counselor, and her emotional intelligence was higher than that of Lin Mu’an. She no longer insisted on paying, but instead asked Lin Mu’an to put the money away and gratefully said, “Thank you, boss. We’ll come back and spend money next time, but don’t refuse to take our money again!”
“Of course, the rule only applies once!” Yang Yi shrugged and smiled slightly.
……
In the evening, Mo Fei and Mo Xiaojuan saw off Jin Yingming. Mo Xiaojuan comfortably stretched out on the sofa and lazily said, “Sister, we finally finished recording this song. When Teacher Jin finishes the rest in the next two days, we can hand it over to the company! Last week almost drove me crazy!”
Mo Fei looked at his cousin with a strange look in her eyes and said, “What? Are you going to take another leave?”
“It’s not about taking leave! I noticed that you’ve been busy recording songs recently. And coincidentally, the place where Xiao Ai and I are staying doesn’t have all the furniture yet. I thought of finding some time to go shopping with her. Don’t worry! Sister, I know what to do and won’t delay your work.” Mo Xiaojuan got up from the sofa and smiled happily.
However, she noticed Mo Fei’s gaze.
The perceptive Mo Xiaojuan saw the teasing in Mo Fei’s eyes, and her heart skipped a beat.
She restrained her racing little heart and cautiously probed, “Sister, you already know?”
Mo Fei actually wanted to tease this girl a little longer, but she didn’t expect her to react so quickly, so she simply nodded along.
“How did you know?” Mo Xiaojuan asked awkwardly.
“What do you think?”
“Brother-in-law? Did brother-in-law tell you?” Mo Xiaojuan, being quite clever, immediately thought of the key point.
Mo Fei no longer hid it and nodded, then said unhappily, “Why didn’t you discuss setting up this studio with me in advance? You even bypassed me and asked Yang Yi for money! Do you think I don’t have the financial means to support you?”
Mo Fei’s tone had more of a hint of reproach than blame. Mo Xiaojuan keenly sensed that she wasn’t particularly angry, and the heavy stone in her heart finally dropped. She moved closer to Mo Fei and said with a cheerful smile, “Alright, alright, sister, don’t be angry! I had my reasons for doing it this way. If I had told you directly, would you have agreed?”
“So you’re saying I would have agreed if you acted first and informed me after?” Mo Fei asked in response.
“Of course, that’s not what I meant. I just wanted to slowly work on your thoughts with brother-in-law’s help. After the contract is over, let’s lay it out and talk to Sister Ling.”
“And what if I renew my contract with Sister Ling? Won’t the money you got from Yang Yi go to waste?” Mo Fei was still a little unhappy.
“Yes, yes, I didn’t think it through. It’s my fault. I’m a big idiot. Sister, please don’t be mad at me anymore.” Mo Xiaojuan pouted and acted a bit spoiled.
Mo Fei had no choice but to deal with this person who acted childish when faced with a problem. Besides, she didn’t really care much about this matter, so after Mo Xiaojuan apologized, Mo Fei let it go.
“This shouldn’t happen again. Whatever you do, make sure to discuss it with me first!” Mo Fei tapped her on the head and said.
“Yes, yes, I promise!”
“Also, don’t tell Sister Ling about the studio. I haven’t even figured out whether to leave yet.” Mo Fei hesitated for a moment and said softly.
“Yes, once you’ve thought it through, we’ll lay our cards on the table with Sister Ling!”2 摊牌 – could also be translated as to confront / have a showdown
Mo Xiaojuan happily agreed to all the requests.
This girl’s happy appearance didn’t look like she was apologizing at all. Of course, her happiness stemmed from not having to rack her brains to come up with excuses for taking leave in the future. She could skip work openly in the future!
TN: If you like my translations support me in ko-fi: Here.
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