Once the shop renovation was finished, there wasn’t much left to do — just airing the place out and waiting for the raw materials to arrive before opening. Lin Shuang had been tired for days, so she rested at home for a few days to loosen up.

She had gone from an unemployed drifter to a shop owner, and since the new shop was about to open, she needed a new look to match. Lin Shuang went to Miao Cai’s salon for a fresh manicure, then to a beauty parlor for a massage and facial, and finally to a hair salon.

Lin Shuang’s hair had been permed into big winter waves; now that the weather was warm, she wanted a lighter, more refreshing color and style, and chose a milk-tea-colored perm. The salon’s stylist Tony accidentally added an extra dose of dye, and when it was washed out, her hair turned out to be a milk-tea color with a rose-gold sheen and a touch of pink. The whole salon let out a gasp.

Several of the young women getting their hair done saw her color and asked for the same: “That’s gorgeous, I want that color too.”

Even the salon owner came out to look: “Miss Lin, would you be willing to be our salon’s hair model for a shoot? We’re pushing this shade this season — as payment, we’ll waive your fee.”

Lin Shuang wasn’t hurting for that kind of money and turned the owner down, though she was in a great mood and got a membership card at the salon.

By the time the tea shop was getting ready to open, Beiquan High School had already entered summer vacation. The whole campus was empty, and even the once-crowded student street was deserted.

The teachers, rarely able to catch a breather during the short summer break, were mostly resting — except Zhou Zheng, who was single, had no particular hobbies to fill his time, and was easygoing enough that he often covered for other colleagues on duty at the administration office every few days. Going downstairs to pick up a registration form, a colleague handed him a cup of milk tea: “Here’s one for you too, Teacher Zhou.”

“Where’s this from?”

“Old Zhang at the gate said the tea shop across from the school gave them out.”

Lin Shuang had been testing recipes in the shop and sent some over to the neighboring stores as goodwill, with a few extra cups delivered to the school’s security office, hoping to get on friendly terms with the gatekeepers.

The tea shop hadn’t officially opened yet, but the protective film had already been peeled off the windows, cute tea-themed stickers decorated the walls, and the electronic display by the window cycled through mouthwatering drink photos.

Lin Shuang was tasting the milk tea sip by sip when she saw Zhou Zheng come in and asked him, “On duty again today, Teacher Zhou?”

He noticed her new look and paused in the doorway, nodding reflexively. “Are you open for business now?”

“Still prepping ingredients these days.” Lin Shuang handed him a cup. “Not officially open yet — help me out and give it a taste, tell me how it is.”

He rarely drank sweet drinks and couldn’t offer any constructive opinion, so he just nodded honestly. “It’s very good.”

Lin Shuang leaned against the counter and asked him leisurely, “Teacher Zhou, when does the school start supplementary classes?”

Zhou Zheng glanced at her and answered seriously, “The school doesn’t support summer supplementary classes.”

“However.” He paused, his reply extremely formal, “the school is actively responding to students’ enthusiasm for learning. Starting July 25th, the incoming senior year will have self-study classrooms open; the junior-senior grade will gradually arrange self-study starting in August, with teachers rotating daily to keep order. The other grades — middle school and sophomore year — start on September 1st.”

It was the first time Lin Shuang had heard him tell such a formal, straight-faced fib, and she couldn’t help laughing. “Tsk, the education bureau’s hotline must be busy this year.”

A hint of a smile rose on Zhou Zheng’s cheeks too. “The school and the students both have their own positions to maintain.”

It was now early July; there was still some time before the senior supplementary classes began. Beiquan High School’s senior class was huge, two to three thousand students in a single grade. Lin Shuang was mulling over setting the tea shop’s official opening date for July 25th.

Watching her flip through the calendar with her head down, Zhou Zheng thought it over and spoke up: “Actually, a large batch of students will already be back at school on the 24th — a lot of boarding students and repeat-year students coming from nearby counties, along with their parents. That day the students will be getting familiar with the campus and preparing daily necessities, so it should be quite lively.”

“Is that so? Thanks for the heads-up, Teacher Zhou.”

When she thought about the seniors returning, an idea for an opening gimmick struck Lin Shuang. “Teacher Zhou.”

“Hm?”

“Seniors care a lot about exam questions, right? I remember there’s that must-have book everyone owns, called Five Years of College Entrance Exams, Three Years of Mock Exams.”

“Right…”

She smiled. “When the students come back, I want to run a themed promotion — buy milk tea, get this year’s real exam papers free. What do you think? Would they go for it?”

If it had been the Lin Shuang of ten years ago, a teenage girl, she’d have pointed her finger and cursed this shop owner for being ruthless — while still drinking the tea with an upset stomach.

Zhou Zheng was tongue-tied. “I’m not sure the students would like it… but the parents would definitely love it, at least.”

A set of exam papers wouldn’t cost them anything to try, and the students could relax while studying — good for body and mind alike.

Her tea shop could also become famous around campus for a while.

Lin Shuang looked at him with a bright smile. “Teacher Zhou, could you help me download a set of this year’s provincial college entrance exam papers?”

“Of course.”

Lin Shuang added Zhou Zheng on WeChat. “Then I’ll trouble you, Teacher Zhou. Just send me the digital files.”

Setting the blind date aside, it wasn’t bad to make a friend on these terms either.

Even with school out of session, the tea shop still had to keep going. Lin Shuang hung a trial-opening sign outside the door.

Miao Cai brought a group of old classmates to show support, bringing an opening flower basket and a lucky cat figurine, contributing to the first day’s revenue.

The old classmates took all sorts of photos in the tea shop to post on their social feeds and caught up with Lin Shuang.

“Shuangshuang, why haven’t you been back to Beiquan all these years? We couldn’t find you at any of our reunions.”

“Right, and that old phone number of yours got disconnected too.”

“Everyone thought you’d gone missing.”

“Work was just too busy.” Lin Shuang smiled faintly.

“Come on, everyone, have some milk tea.” Miao Cai called everyone over. “This ice cream is so good — someone help me finish it, I can’t eat any more, I’ll get too fat.”

Fu Min also brought Qi Shan to see Lin Shuang. Qi Shan spent his days running wild outside with his classmates, his skin tanned dark and glossy. Lin Shuang handed him a bowl of strawberry ice, and he buried his face in it, eating happily.

The shop hadn’t hired any staff yet — only Lin Shuang was tending it. Fu Min glanced around the empty shop, a little worried. “Many customers? How much revenue in a day?”

“It’s the off-season, that’s just how it is.”

Milk tea was priced around seven or eight yuan; the cheapest, lemon water, was four yuan, and the most expensive was only twelve — plus there was a trial-opening discount. A day’s revenue wasn’t even enough to cover the rent.

Lin Shuang crossed her legs leisurely, not showing a hint of worry.

“It’s so good, Sis, you should open a shop outside our school too,” Qi Shan chimed in, his mouth stained red. “I’ll come support you every day.”

Children she’d fed always felt a bond with her. Lin Shuang teased him idly, “If you manage to get into the middle school attached to Beiquan High, and if my shop hasn’t gone under by then, you can come mooch off me every day.”

“That’s way too hard.” Qi Shan frowned.

Fu Min went out to wander around the neighboring tea shops and came back to worry on her behalf. “The other shops don’t have many customers either. It’ll probably pick up once school starts, when the students are all in class.”

She and Qi Xiong ran a hardware store, so she had a bit of experience to pass along too. “You have to keep good relations with the neighboring shops when you first open — there’ll always be some troublemakers at first, but it’s better to stay amiable, money follows peace. It’s best to put a security camera at the door, and if you hire help, keep a close eye on the books — the little things are where money gets stolen the easiest…”

Qi Shan’s ears were practically ringing from hearing it, and he shook his head repeatedly at his mother.

People were like that — Fu Min had been quite cool when she was young, but as she got older she’d started to nag.

Lin Shuang saw Fu Min and Qi Shan off, and heard a “ding-dong” — someone had come in.

“Excuse me, is this Miss Lin Shuang? Could you sign for these flowers, please?”

It was a large, elaborately wrapped bouquet in an exquisite gift box.

Cappuccino roses — the petals were delicate and silky, a gentle milk-tea color, elegant and romantic. There were no such varieties at any flower shop in Beiquan; these had been sent specially from a shop in Wancheng.

The buyer was from Linjiang, hundreds of kilometers away. Mr. Polo Shirt, having learned she’d become a tea shop owner, wanted to give Lin Shuang a little surprise.

Lin Shuang asked him.

[Why cappuccino roses? Why not a money tree?]

He couldn’t help laughing on the other end. [They have a beautiful flower language.]

“Unexpected tenderness and unceasing love.”

Lin Shuang updated her WeChat profile picture — her hair color matched the roses beautifully, her cheek resting against the branches, her eyelids lowered slightly, lashes long and feathery, her expression wistful, her face more radiant than the roses.

Mr. Polo Shirt promptly sent his praise.

[This is probably the most captivating cappuccino rose in the world.]

For the next few days, every customer who came into the shop got a delicate rose as a bonus gift.

Lin Shuang’s old WeChat avatar had always been a stock photo; this was the first time she’d changed it to an actual photo of herself, and Miao Cai quickly picked up on it.

“Who sent you the roses?”

“Your boyfriend’s colleague.”

Mr. Polo Shirt’s name was Zuo Yuan. Miao Cai, following her boyfriend’s lead, called him Director Zuo, and stammered as she asked Lin Shuang, “How far have you two gotten?”

“Just ordinary friends, chatting sometimes.”

It really was just a little chatting — the conversations often cut off right at the interesting part, never dragging on or getting long-winded.

A moderate amount of flirty banter kept the mood pleasant; who cared whether the conversation had any substance, or whether it would give her goosebumps looking back on it later.

Miao Cai probed her. “Do you like Director Zuo?”

Lin Shuang admired her own nail art. “Who wouldn’t like a good-looking man?”

Not to mention Mr. Polo Shirt had money to back it up — visually striking enough, with taste and style that were more than passable.

As for his other flaws, Lin Shuang could overlook them.

Lin Shuang had started dating in high school, and her past boyfriends had all been the handsome type — tall, good-looking, brimming with youthful energy. A handsome man and a beautiful woman standing together always caught the eye.

“I heard he has a lot of women around him…” Miao Cai frowned. “Shuangshuang, guys like that are usually pretty fickle.”

“I’m not looking for a boyfriend anyway.” Lin Shuang’s eyes were lazy and unbothered.

She simply, purely and physically wanted to sleep with him, nothing more.

A message came in on her phone.

A photo of Mr. Polo Shirt at the horse ranch — the purebred horse was gorgeous, its coat glossy and gleaming, hooves kicking up as it ran across the grass. The man on horseback… posed for the photo quite well.

[Next time, I could teach you to ride.]

[No, thank you — I got kicked by a horse once, I don’t plan on getting near one again in this lifetime.]

Mr. Polo Shirt threw out a question. [Kicked?]

[When I was little, I was mischievous and snuck into a circus. I pulled a horse’s tail, and it bucked and kicked me hard. I cried for three days.]

Lin Shuang added a crying-face sticker.

The other side slowly typed out three words.

[Poor little thing.]

She played coy. [Stay away from tragedy, or I’ll upgrade to a bigger poor little thing.]