Xiao Xun couldn't understand when she started to care so much about Mu Jiahe.
To be precise, it was worry, fear of never seeing her again, fear of losing her.
Could this be love? But what about Chu Ningxiang? Was she truly a scumbag who tried to have it both ways?
As the elevator slowly arrived at the CEO's office floor and opened, Secretary Gao's face was the first thing that appeared. She looked at Mu Jiahe behind her and used her hand to block the elevator door.
Mu Jiahe looked up and saw Xiao Xun looking at her with a worried expression. She smiled, "I was in a hurry this morning and forgot my phone at home."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Xun's face instantly turned red. He then remembered hearing faint singing sounds while playing games. It turned out to be Mu Jiahe's ringtone.
The assistants and secretaries tactfully stepped aside, "CEO, please take care."
Then they watched Mu Jiahe enter the elevator and saw the floors descending to the basement.
"See, didn't I say it? Our President Mu is so happy today, it must be related to Director Xiao."
"What kind of relationship does Director Xiao have? She's a criminal suspect accused of murder, yet she can openly and brazenly come to the company?"
"It's not Director Xiao's relationship, President Mu must have paid a lot of money to bail her out, otherwise the child in her belly would have no father."
"Wow, that's so explosive! No wonder President Mu has been gaining weight lately, so that's how it is!"
"..."
Mu Jiahe, watching Xiao Xun drive, asked curiously, "Were you worried about me just now?"
"Of course. My life now depends on you. If anything happens to you, I won't be able to live either."
Mu Jiahe burst out laughing, "Don't worry, no one in this world can take my life yet!"
Xiao Xun glanced at the rearview mirror, "President Mu, where are we going next? Home, or somewhere else?"
Mu Jiahe looked out the window, gently tapping her knee, "By the way, do you like noodles?"
Xiao Xun thought about it, it was late, and a simple meal would be fine, "Yes."
Mu Jiahe gave him an address. He drove according to the address, leaving the city, and even passing the villa area before arriving.
It was only when they reached a seemingly lively town that the car stopped.
On the left was a noodle shop that looked very old. An old woman was vigorously kneading dough, another old woman was tending the stove to boil noodles, and a third old woman was serving noodles to customers.
Dim lighting, a plastic cat on the windowsill, and an old television showing the news. A calendar from the current year hung on the wall, along with a poster made of large laminated paper, the kind distributed in the village.
It looked so nostalgic. Although the noodle shop appeared old, the bowls and chopsticks were very clean, and the kitchen was bright.
Mu Jiahe and Xiao Xun, dressed in their elegant attire, seemed out of place in this environment, to the point of being jarring.
The diners consciously made way for them, as if an ingrained sense of inferiority made them feel that these people belonged on television, not in reality, and that even looking at them was a form of sacrilege.
"Grandma Tang, two bowls of ramen."
Mu Jiahe casually sat down on a chair, not looking around, as if she often ate here.
The person called Grandma Tang lifted the curtain, "Do you want scallions and cilantro?"
Mu Jiahe looked at Xiao Xun, "Do you?"
Xiao Xun nodded, and Mu Jiahe said to Grandma Tang, "We want both."
Grandma Tang turned and went into the kitchen. Mobile payment was not accepted here; only cash.
The three old women had no mobile phones, likely because they had no one to contact. The three old sisters lived and ate together.
A large bowl of noodles cost six yuan, and a small bowl cost five yuan. The price hadn't increased in many years. The broth was made from chicken carcasses, and sometimes pig bones were added, depending on what was cheap in the market or given to them for free.
There was no processed seasoning, not even MSG, relying entirely on the original flavor of the ingredients.
The flour was the cheapest available at the grain and oil station. To achieve the right chewiness and texture, they might have mixed in some coarse grains.
The noodles, hand-pulled, varied in thickness but had a great texture. The noodles were served with tofu and potato pieces the size of soybeans, and a couple of small bok choy, making a bowl of noodles.
Grandma Tang placed two bowls of ramen in front of them. Xiao Xun felt that the noodles were a bit far from him.
He reached out to pull them closer, only to find that the bowls were very hot.
He looked up at Grandma Tang, who was walking away, wondering if she didn't feel the heat.
At this moment, Grandma Tang had already entered the kitchen. When no customers were around, none of them were willing to come out, and they didn't seem afraid of people running off without paying.
However, in this era, unless one was at their wit's end, no one would come to eat a bowl of noodles from these three old ladies for a few yuan.
These three kind old ladies would leave a shred of dignity for those who couldn't afford to eat.
Mu Jiahe looked at Xiao Xun, who had not yet started eating, "Do you know why I brought you here to eat noodles?"
Xiao Xun took a pair of chopsticks from a very clean canned jar, picked up some noodles, and shook his head, "I don't know."
Mu Jiahe said with a smile, "Because this was the first meal I ate when I came to this world, and it was the most delicious meal. Most importantly, I didn't pay for it."
Xiao Xun nodded and started eating the bone broth ramen in front of him.
Despite their age, the three old ladies made noodles that were perfectly chewy, and the broth was rich. Inhaling them and swallowing them brought great satisfaction.
Mu Jiahe ate faster than Xiao Xun, completely unconcerned about smudging her expensive lipstick or getting soup on her custom-made clothing.
Seeing Mu Jiahe eat so happily, Xiao Xun also felt a sense of satisfaction. This must be what life is about!
After eating, Xiao Xun took out his phone, ready to pay.
Mu Jiahe took out cash and said to Xiao Xun, "Grandma doesn't have a QR code for payment, only cash."
Xiao Xun looked at the twelve yuan that Mu Jiahe took out, feeling a bit confused, but he held back from asking immediately.
Mu Jiahe placed the money on the small counter used for serving noodles and left with Xiao Xun.
After coming out, Xiao Xun turned and looked up at the four large characters "Sisters Noodle Restaurant" above. This signboard was uniformly made for the whole town, with no cost to the merchants.
"President Mu, since they are all so old and rely on selling noodles to make a living, why didn't you give them more money?"
With Xiao Xun's inquiry, Mu Jiahe said expressionlessly, "Do you think money is very useful to them? If I give them more money, wouldn't that be showing pity?"
Xiao Xun was speechless for a moment. Mu Jiahe continued, "What they want is dignity, the courage to live upright, not pity."
Xiao Xun looked at the four characters again, feeling that they were full of stories.
When they returned to the villa area, it was still early, but it had started to rain, a drizzle, and the weather had cooled down considerably.
Xiao Xun brewed some soup for Mu Jiahe to drink, "This is the ingredient list my mom sent me at noon. She said it's good for women, so I made it for you. Try it."
Mu Jiahe looked at the white fungus, red dates, longan, and lotus seeds in the soup bowl and chuckled, "Did you make a mistake?"
Xiao Xun took out his phone, "No! I made it entirely according to the ingredients my mom sent me!"
Mu Jiahe used a spoon to scoop out some of the soup and showed it to Xiao Xun, "If you add some rice to this, it becomes Eight Treasures Congee."