Chapter 36: A Late Start and a Familiar Face

“No way… seriously? How could something like this happen? I could just scream!”

Standing at the subway entrance, YuYang let out this profound sigh about life.

He was just short of cursing aloud!

He had been so certain he had meticulously managed his time, yet to his utter disbelief, he had missed this train!

And by mere seconds!

This was truly… if only he had known, he wouldn’t have tried to act cool with Sishi in the library, exchanging those extra few words. Now, despite his mad dash, he had missed the subway!

Other subway lines arrived every two or three minutes. However, the line YuYang needed to take to the East City, where the station had only recently opened, had fewer trains and required a full fifteen-minute wait.

Those fifteen minutes were more than enough for him to be late for work!

A sharp hiss escaped him.

Taking a taxi now would not only be far more expensive but also likely slower than waiting for the next train.

Sigh… there was nothing for it. YuYang settled into the waiting area outside the subway entrance, nervously pulling out his phone to scroll through the work group chat.

Yes, nervously.

This was because the manager of the LingXing Restaurant, where YuYang worked part-time, was exceptionally serious about her job.

She was a woman in her early forties, and everyone called her Aunt Liu.

YuYang suspected her excessive diligence stemmed from the frustration of consistently missing promotion opportunities.

He had heard that she had several chances to be promoted from restaurant supervisor but had missed them all for various reasons.

Well… that had nothing to do with YuYang. He only knew that Aunt Liu was not only strict with herself but even more so with the restaurant staff.

For something like being late, YuYang could practically see his wages being docked in the future.

And a stern lecture would undoubtedly follow.

YuYang tapped open the work group chat. Just then, Aunt Liu had conveniently tagged him in a message.

[The shift change is almost here. Bai YuYang, are you not here yet? How much longer will you be?]

“……”

Ugh, YuYang, a second-year high school student, was truly enduring pressure beyond his years.

Fortunately, his psychological age far surpassed that of a mere high schooler.

He was already someone with initial experience in the workplace!

Even so, his reply… well, he couldn’t exactly conjure up an elaborate excuse.

YuYang tried to be as subtle as possible, explaining his current predicament.

[Aunt Liu, I’m at the subway station right now, and I’ve encountered a small issue… I need to wait for the next train. I’m truly sorry! But I’ll only be five minutes late at most!]

[What did you say!!]

Eek!

Just as he expected! When facing the earnest Aunt Liu, no matter your reason, being late would inevitably lead to a reprimand!

The other employees in the group chimed in, purely for the gossip, devoid of any real malice. They simply enjoyed a good spectacle.

[Wow! Unbelievable, YuYang is late too?! Aren’t you known as the workaholic demon?!]

[Don’t be ridiculous. He’s only in his second year of high school; he’s busy with studies.]

[I don’t think he’s busy with studies. He’s probably busy accompanying his little girlfriend, causing delays. We understand, we understand. I heard YuYang is the campus heartthrob at his school, so we definitely can’t guess his reason for being late~]

They truly seemed intent on stirring up trouble.

YuYang saw Aunt Liu send more questioning messages in the group. He hastily replied twice, then quickly locked his phone.

It was too terrifying.

Knowing he was late for work, every minute before the subway arrived was pure agony.

But what could he do? He was already late, and he couldn’t run all the way there.

So, the ‘scummy’ YuYang opted to play a game to pass the time, clearing his daily stamina.

This trick worked! In no time at all, the subway pulled into the station.

This time, YuYang dared not be careless and quickly boarded the train.

It was past rush hour, so the passenger flow had noticeably decreased, allowing YuYang to finally sit down and rest for a moment.

***

The subway exit was not far from LingXing Restaurant, only about a kilometer away.

Therefore, YuYang didn’t need a taxi; he just needed to walk slowly…

Walk slowly, my foot! Shouldn’t he be running at full speed?

That brief rest was precisely for this moment!

Back at school, YuYang never imagined he would sprint a full thousand meters just for a part-time job!

The crucial point was, after running that kilometer, he arrived at the restaurant’s main entrance, breathless, yet still couldn’t escape the fate of being late.

He checked his phone: 6:41.

Well, he was eleven minutes late for work, but he had done his best, with no regrets.

As YuYang swiftly stepped through the restaurant’s automatic doors, he didn’t forget to glance around at the exterior decor.

He could only say he felt a strong sense of nostalgia for this restaurant, where he had worked for two years during high school.

The restaurant, though upscale, wasn’t a towering structure. It was a single, low-rise floor, but it occupied a considerable area, easily five or six hundred square meters inside.

From the outside, the restaurant’s architectural style was a blend of East and West: several European Gothic-style columns paired with two large stone lion statues, one on each side of the entrance.

Alright… YuYang couldn’t praise it anymore. This mixed architectural style wasn’t particularly appealing, was it?

It left people wondering whether it was a Chinese or Western restaurant!

In fact, the menu was quite comprehensive, offering a wide selection of both Chinese and Western dishes.

Due to its pleasant dining environment and positive reviews for its cuisine, LingXing Restaurant had become quite popular in the area.

Its popularity, combined with the current dining hour, filled YuYang with an ominous premonition.

Sure enough, as he stepped through the restaurant’s main doors, he found every table fully occupied. Several waiters, busy bringing dishes to tables, were completely overwhelmed.

YuYang’s part-time job was as a front-desk cashier. He looked towards the cashier counter and saw Aunt Liu, dressed in a women’s suit, holding down the fort. However, having recently been in a management position and out of touch with cash register duties for a long time, Aunt Liu was clearly struggling to cope with the large volume of customers checking out.

Perhaps ‘struggling’ wasn’t the right word… normally, two people staffed the cashier’s desk. For Aunt Liu to manage alone was already impressive.

YuYang quickly walked over, circling behind the cashier counter.

“Aunt Liu, let me take over.”

“You finally showed up?” Aunt Liu sighed in relief but didn’t stop her work. “Go to the back to change into your uniform first. How many times do I have to emphasize that you must follow the rules during work? As a front-desk cashier, you represent the restaurant’s image. How can you not wear your uniform?”

Aunt Liu’s tendency to nitpick when working had flared up again.

The root cause seemed to be a surprise inspection by upper management last time, where an employee was found not wearing their uniform, which affected Aunt Liu’s promotion.

However… a flicker of secret delight crossed YuYang’s mind. She hadn’t mentioned his tardiness. Perhaps he had gotten away with it?

He quickly turned, intending to dash to the staff backroom: “Okay, Aunt Liu! I’ll go change into my uniform right away!”

“Oh, right, we’ll discuss your tardiness after your shift.”

YuYang’s steps halted.

Damn it! So he couldn’t get away with it after all!

Before YuYang could move, Aunt Liu, having just finished her current task, suddenly remembered something and turned around to instruct him.

“I almost forgot, there’s a new employee in the back who was just hired this afternoon. Like you, they’re a high school student working part-time.

It’s a young girl, and her position is also cashier, but she needs training before she can officially start. When you come out for your shift change later, call her out with you. Let her observe your work process; that can count as her training.”

Regardless of anything else, Aunt Liu had complete confidence in Bai YuYang’s work ability.

During the month he worked there over the summer, he was efficient, capable of doing the work of several people, and knew how to do everything, significantly boosting the entire store’s work efficiency.

YuYang, however, was quite confused.

A new employee? Who could it be?

In his previous life, during the two years he worked there, had he ever trained a new employee? No, he hadn’t, had he?

This wasn’t right.

Carrying his confusion, YuYang entered the staff backroom.

Indeed, someone was sitting in the staff lounge.

Since they had their back to YuYang, the first thing he noticed was the Qifeng No. 1 High School uniform they were wearing.

From the same school, too?

Then, those brown twin pigtails struck YuYang as remarkably familiar…

Sensing someone’s arrival, the girl turned around in a startled manner and immediately stood up.

And when YuYang clearly saw her face, his eyes widened in astonishment.

The girl reacted in exactly the same way.

Their words were uttered in unison.

“How could it be you?!”

YuYang was shocked. Wasn’t this the twin-tailed girl he had bumped into earlier at the corner while running on his way to the school library?

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