While Shi Dazhuang was talking in Qingmu's room, Yu Meiren was taking a shower in her bathroom. As soon as Shi Dazhuang left, Yu Meiren came over and knocked on Qingmu's door.
"Where is my father?" the Beauty asked.
"Your uncle went out on errands, so you can stay with me tonight. I'll take you to dinner now," Qingmu said.
Yeye Yu Meiren said, "But Qingmu, I want to take a bath first. I've been playing all day and I'm all sweaty and smelly!"
"Weren't you taking a shower just now?" Qingmu asked.
Yu Meiren said a little shyly, "The bathroom here is so big, and I don't know how to use anything in it." Her face flushed slightly as she spoke, embarrassed by her lack of worldliness. She grinned shyly, " Qingmu - Yeye, am I so unsophisticated?"
"Ah, what's so earthy about it! There's always a first time for everything. You'll get the hang of it after you use it once," Qingmu encouraged.
"But those things are so delicate and beautiful, I'm afraid I'll break them!" Yu Meiren looked at Qingmu very seriously, " Qingmu Yeye, why don't you help me wash them?"
"..."
Qingmu, exasperated, scratched his scalp—which wasn't itchy but felt uncomfortable not scratching—and muttered, "This, this..."
What an innocent mountain girl!
Yu Meiren wasn't very old, but she wasn't young either. However, she had suffered from malnutrition since childhood, so she didn't develop as early as city children. In the mountains, especially in remote places like Kuaziba, the food and drink were the purest things, and people's hearts were as pure as the mountain springs, without a trace of filth.
" Qingmu, what's wrong with you?" Yeye Yu Meiren looked at Qingmu's comical appearance and felt strange.
"Ah, it's nothing, I just... well..."
Just as Qingmu was in a dilemma, the doorbell rang.
Qingmu felt as if he had been granted a pardon. He went to open the door and saw Yao Jingjing standing there. It was as if he had seen a savior. He said, "Oh, you've come at the right time. Come in, come in quickly and help the Beauty take a bath." As he spoke, he went to pull Yao Jingjing up.
Qingmu is a lazy person, and sometimes a very oblivious one, especially when it comes to money and interpersonal relationships, he has absolutely no concept of them and often does things that are both laughable and absurd. Bi Shenghua once sighed that it was a miracle that someone like him could survive alone in today's society.
Of course, Qingmu never thought that much. He just lived his life his own way and did what he wanted to do. When he was lazy, he didn't want to do anything. Even if you pushed ten million US dollars over, in his eyes it would just be a pile of paper with not-so-pretty patterns. When he decided to do something, like when he went to rescue the Beauty that day, even if airplanes, cannons, and rocket launchers blocked his way, he would do it without hesitation.
Yao Jingjing was taken aback by Qingmu's enthusiasm and was suddenly pulled into the room. If she hadn't been convinced that Qingmu wasn't a bad person, she would have almost screamed for help. Her face flushed, she said, "What did you say? Take... a bath?"
Qingmu pointed at Yu Meiren and said, " Beauty doesn't know how to use the bathroom, can you give her a bath for me!" He suddenly remembered that Yao Jingjing wasn't Bi Shenghua after all, and they weren't very familiar with each other yet, so he scratched his head and chuckled, "Ah, was I a bit too abrupt?"
Yao Jingjing stared wide-eyed at Yu Meiren: " Beauty? This is the Beauty you were talking about?"
Qingmu nodded. "Yes, her name is Yu Meiren, my friend's child."
Yao Jingjing relaxed, a relieved smile spreading across her face. She knelt down and said to the Beauty, "So you're the Beauty! You really are a little Beauty!"
Yu Meiren blushed slightly at her words, stuck out her tongue, and said, "Hello, Auntie, my name is the name of a flower. My father hopes that the world will be full of beautiful Yu Meiren, and without harmful opium poppies."
Yao Jingjing remarked with emotion, "Your father not only knows how to name things, but he's also a good person."
"Yes!" Yu Meiren nodded vigorously.
Yao Jingjing said, "Okay, Auntie... Oh, you call me Auntie? Then how about Auntie takes you to take a bath?"
"Good!"
Yu Meiren followed Yao Jingjing to the bathroom.
Qingmu went out onto the balcony alone, where he could enjoy a panoramic view of most of Spring City. He sat down in a wicker chair, took out a cigarette, and lit it with a hotel match.
Just then, his phone rang. It was Bi Shenghua calling. Bi Shenghua asked him when he would be back, saying that a man named Huang Ziqiang had come looking for him several times. Qingmu asked him what he wanted, Bi Shenghua said that the man hadn't said anything, only left a business card, saying he would come to visit again when he returned.
Qingmu racked his brains for a while before finally remembering that when Bi Shenghua and Mo Yu were kidnapped by Jiang Deqian and taken to the hot spring resort, the owner's name seemed to be Huang Ziqiang. Huang Ziqiang must have been terrified at the time; Qingmu had given him his business card, jokingly saying he'd introduce him to others if he had any business. Was he really going to introduce him to others?
However, such people were nothing to Qingmu, so he didn't pay much attention to them. After asking about the Boss Coal and Xiao Qi, Bi Shenghua said that his bird was becoming increasingly difficult to raise, giving Xiao Qi and Mo Yu a lot of trouble.
Qingmu knew that apart from himself and Bi Shenghua, probably no one could control this chattering Crow. Just thinking about Xiao Qi's face full of black lines made Qingmu laugh.
After chatting for a few more minutes, Bi Shenghua said she was busy and hung up the phone.
Qingmu felt quite apologetic towards Bi Shenghua. He was now the major shareholder of Ruhua Bar, yet Bi Shenghua had handled everything from renovations to the opening, while he, the man, remained uninvolved, enjoying his time in a five-star hotel in Spring City. Thinking about this, he suddenly regretted not taking more US dollars from Wu Suotun's safe. Although he didn't have much of a concept of money, he knew it could be useful in certain situations, at least making things easier for Bi Shenghua.
Yao Jingjing also came to the balcony and said to Qingmu with a smile, "Your little Beauty is such a well-behaved girl, so understanding!"
Qingmu asked, "Why are you out here? Where's the Beauty?"
"Even in the most luxurious hotel, a faucet is still just a faucet. No matter how fancy it looks or how many smart switches it has, it's still just water, not some kind of nectar. Your little Beauty is very smart; she learned it in no time."
Yao Jingjing stretched, her clothes and hair still damp, her graceful figure fully revealed in the sunlight.
Qingmu breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Thank you."
"Don't mention it, I bumped into it myself!" Yao Jingjing said with a smile. "But it's such a simple thing, why don't you just teach her yourself? You looked so nervous just now, like the sky was falling!"
Qingmu laughed and said, "Would you believe me if I said I never take a bath?"
"Huh?" Yao Jingjing's eyes widened in surprise, then she giggled, "I don't believe it!"