Chapter 49: Drink More Hot Water
“Have some water. Sister Yu will take care of this, so you don’t need to worry too much.”
After seeing that Lin Muqing had calmed down, Ye Ziming stood up again, picked up his water cup, and filled it with some plain hot water from the dispenser nearby.
He tested the temperature with his hand. After making sure it wasn’t too hot, he handed it to Lin Muqing.
“Besides, they might not even recognize you.”
Seeing that Lin Muqing slowly lifted her head and looked like she was about to refuse, Ye Ziming continued speaking.
“If they did recognize you, what would they do?”
As he spoke, he sat down too and took her hand, firmly placing the water cup in it.
Then he held her hand to make sure she was gripping the cup properly.
He paused for a moment to let Lin Muqing think, then gently continued.
“Would they call your name out loud? Try to contact you by phone? Or tell a staff member that they know you?”
His voice was soft, and he spoke slowly to make sure Lin Muqing could hear every word clearly.
As she listened, her frown slowly faded, and she looked at Ye Ziming with a slightly blank expression.
It really did make sense.
She quickly pulled out her claw-style phone from the pocket of her maid outfit to check.
There were no messages at all.
Instantly, her mood lifted. When she looked at her close friend again, all the gloom on her face was gone, replaced by a happy, surprised smile.
“Now you can relax, right?”
As he said this, he gently held her hand that was holding the water cup, hinting for her to drink more hot water.
“Mm-hmm.”
It was only now that Lin Muqing noticed the cup in her hand. She nodded at her friend and took a big sip from the cup.
She instantly felt much better. All the nervous feelings from before seemed to vanish.
After she finished drinking, Ye Ziming thoughtfully reached out again, took the cup from her hand, and placed it on the desk.
Maybe because Lin Muqing was smiling again, Ye Ziming also couldn’t help but smile.
Just as they had finished settling Lin Muqing’s emotions, there was a knock on the office door, along with Sister Yu’s voice.
“Stay here.”
Ye Ziming looked up, gently pressed Lin Muqing back into the office chair, then stood up and walked toward the door.
Earlier, when Lin Muqing came rushing in, she had locked the door in a panic, so Sister Yu couldn’t get in now.
With a small click, Ye Ziming unlocked the door and opened it.
“Manager, here’s what happened.”
Outside the door stood only Sister Yu. When the door opened, she didn’t come in but chose to explain things right from the doorway.
What happened was three people had snuck into the staff-only area when the maids weren’t paying attention, which led to the earlier situation.
This cafe had a special rule, most of the maids working here were very good at fighting (except for Lin Muqing).
When one maid saw Lin Muqing running away and heard Lin Wenbin shouting in the hallway—
She immediately dashed forward and showed everyone what it meant to take someone down in one second. And the person she knocked down was a guy close to 1.8 meters tall.
Poor Lin Wenbin was taken down on the spot. He didn’t even have a chance to fight back.
“All the photos on their phones have been deleted. The three of them said they didn’t clearly see Lin Muqing’s face. Only managed to take a picture of her back…”
While handling the situation just now, Sister Yu suddenly received a message from Ye Ziming. It was his “punishment plan.”
As the assistant manager, Sister Yu carried out the manager’s instructions well and gave Lin Wenbin a harsh lesson.
Actually, anyone who knows a bit about this cafe knows that the maids here aren’t to be messed with. You don’t even see many customers staring at them with creepy eyes.
But as long as no one causes trouble, the service here is really great, and the environment is nice too. Customer reviews are always very positive.
Of course, the maids are all beautiful and have sweet smiles.
Unfortunately, Lin Wenbin clearly didn’t understand. He only knew that there was a cute cat-eared maid working here.
“Is Lin Muqing okay? I heard she got really scared just now.”
After explaining everything, Sister Yu remembered what she had heard earlier. Some of the other maids said Lin Muqing had been frightened quite badly.
She didn’t know exactly what happened, but she was sure that guy must’ve done something. Otherwise, why would something like this happen?
So she made a quick decision. Lin Wenbin was blacklisted and would no longer be welcome at this cafe.
“She’s fine now.”
Ye Ziming nodded and stepped to the side so Sister Yu could see Lin Muqing inside the office.
“Phew, that’s a relief.”
Sister Yu saw Lin Muqing sitting on the office chair behind the desk, holding a white mug with both hands, sipping water, and staring blankly in her direction.
She let out a breath and felt glad nothing worse had happened.
But soon, she noticed something.
That white mug Lin Muqing was holding. Wasn’t that the one she had specially bought for the manager?
“Well, since everything’s okay now, I’ll get back to work.”
She gave Lin Muqing a meaningful look, then turned her gaze away and acted like nothing was unusual.
After saying a word to the manager, she turned and walked back to the front of the cafe.
After Sister Yu left, Ye Ziming turned around and walked back into the office, not bothering to close the door.
At the desk, Lin Muqing held the mug with both hands, her big almond-shaped eyes wide open as she stared at her good buddy.
She had heard what Sister Yu said just now. She knew the crisis was over, and she knew it was thanks to him.
“Um… thanks.”
As Ye Ziming got closer, Lin Muqing shyly turned her head to the side and mumbled a thank-you.
When she’s nervous, she tends to grab onto something. Right now, she was gripping the mug tightly, her fingers fidgeting.
“It’s fine. If you’re hungry, go eat something. It’s safe outside now.”
Ye Ziming smiled gently and said softly.
“Mm, okay.”
She put the mug down and looked up at her good buddy, then quickly looked away again, feeling embarrassed.
In a situation like that, he had helped her so much. It would be impossible not to feel touched.
But Lin Muqing was naturally shy and bad with words. She really wanted to say something to show her thanks, but after a long time, all she could manage was a simple “thank you.”
She stood up from the chair, paused for a second, her gaze a little dazed, and then walked toward the door.
Ye Ziming watched her leave, smiling until she gently closed the door behind her.
A shy Lin Muqing… was very cute, he thought.
But as soon as the door shut, the smile on Ye Ziming’s face vanished. A dangerous aura quickly surrounded him.
“Lin Wenbin.”
Narrowing his eyes, he whispered the name as he picked up his phone and began typing a message.