Chapter Nineteen: The Interview

  Listening to the occasional bursts of her daughter's long-awaited happy laughter, Liu Xiuzhen could completely imagine her daughter's current mood. She couldn't help but feel a twinge of guilt and sadness in her heart, wishing that her daughter would always be able to laugh like this! However, she was really too embarrassed to let a stranger who had nothing to do with her accompany her daughter for too long, actually Zhang Huban had already spent more than half an hour with Liu Feifei, it had been over an hour.

  Liu Xiuzhen let out a deep sigh, gently closed the account book that had already been settled for more than half an hour, stood up, and walked quietly towards the two people sitting by the window, who were still playing. Although her daughter was already five years old and Liu Xiuzhen herself was over thirty, she still maintained a very good figure and skin. A refreshing fragrance wafted into Zhang Huban's nostrils, and he found that his Dao heart was slightly moved, and he involuntarily lifted his head to see Liu Xiuzhen walking towards him. This was a woman whose age could not be immediately discerned at a glance, seemingly in her thirties with a mature appearance, yet with a complexion as delicate as a twenty-year-old. As she drew closer, one could only sense that her hands were like soft jade, her face like a peach blossom, her skin like condensed fat, and her aura like a faint orchid. Zhang Huban's heart skipped another beat, but years of cultivation still allowed him to control his emotions well. Since the little guy was still clinging to him, Zhang Huban could only slightly nod his head on the stool to greet Liu Xiuzhen.

  "I'm so sorry to keep you waiting! I feel terrible!" Yoo Hee-jin sat down across from Jang Ho-bin, gazing at her daughter with adoring eyes while speaking apologetically.

  "Mom, look! This is the KITTY cat that big brother gave me. Isn't it pretty?" Yanfei saw her mom coming over and hastily stuck out her chest, carefully holding up the jade pendant in front of her chest to show off to Liu Xizhen.

  Although Liu Xiuzhen had already taken it for granted that the KITTY cat was a piece of jadeite handicraft, the exquisitely crafted, emerald green and warm-to-the-touch jade pendant still made her eyes shine with wonder, and she couldn't help but exclaim, "How beautiful! What exquisite craftsmanship! What perfect imitation!" In fact, it's not surprising that someone like Liu Xiuzhen from high society didn't recognize the jade in front of her as top-notch. Who would have thought that a person they had never met before, who was also looking for a job as a bartender, would casually pull out a piece of premium jade to give away? This seemed more ridiculous than winning the lottery or encountering a fairy on the way out. But, as it turned out, Liu Xiuzhen and her friends really did meet a legendary figure, they just didn't recognize him.

  Upon hearing her mother's praise, Liu Feifei treasured the jade pendant as if it were a precious gem and pinned it to her chest. She then said in a very well-behaved manner: "Mom and big brother can discuss serious matters first, I'll go play on the side for now, but when you're done, big brother must still accompany me to play!" After that, she stared at Zhang Huban with those innocent and hopeful eyes.

  Zhang Hu couldn't bear to refuse such a lovely little girl, let alone feel the warmth he had never felt before when playing with her, so he nodded without hesitation.

  "Thank you for playing with my daughter for so long, and thank you for giving her such a delicate gift. She hasn't been this happy in a long time." Yoo Hee-jin's voice was very soft and pleasant to listen to, and Jang Ho-bin heard from her voice genuine gratitude and subtle sadness.

  I can feel the sadness in this charming and elegant woman's heart, and for some reason, Zhang Huban feels a little bit of sympathy. Although the jade was genuine, Zhang Huban didn't bother to mention it, saying: "It's just a small trinket, luckily Feifei likes it! Playing with her brings me joy too, you don't have to thank me!"

  I don't know why, but Yu Xiangzhen felt a good impression towards the young man in front of her who had an ordinary appearance and was well-behaved. Maybe it was because he brought back the long-lost smile to her daughter, or maybe it was because when this man looked at her, his eyes were clear and pure, without any evil intentions. Yu Xiangzhen still had confidence in her own physical charm and beauty, not to mention that since it was early morning, the room was relatively warm, and apart from wearing a loose jacket outside, she was actually still wearing a silk nightgown inside, with a low neckline and high transparency, vaguely revealing her snow-white and plump breasts. If it were another young person, Yu Xiangzhen would definitely go upstairs to change clothes before talking to him, but for some reason, Yu Xiangzhen felt that it was not inappropriate to chat with this young man like this. In fact, it was true, the young man in front of her, except for the first glance at his eyes being a bit different, was clear and pure, without any evil intentions for the rest of the time. Although Yu Xiangzhen was happy that her daughter liked a decent person, when she found out that her own physique and appearance, which she had always been proud of, couldn't arouse the interest of this ordinary-looking young man, she felt a sense of loss in her heart, and even wondered if she had really gotten old.

  Actually, Liu Xizhen overestimated Zhang Huban. In fact, Zhang Huban was distracted by the deep cleavage and fair skin that was vaguely visible in front of him, but after all, he came to find a job and attend an interview. Moreover, Song Feng's intense training for several months had taught Zhang Huban some taboos when interacting with girls. So, Zhang Huban successfully concealed his inner thoughts. As a cultivator who had reached the middle stage of the Yuan Ying period, if he deliberately hid his inner activities, how many people could detect even a hint of it? Not to mention ordinary people like Liu Xizhen.

  Although Yu Xizhen had already decided to recruit the young man who left a good impression on her and her daughter, she still asked Zhang Huban about his basic situation very seriously. When she heard that Zhang Huban was still an in-school university student and had no experience in catering services, Yu Xizhen actually felt some comfort and happiness for the young man's self-reliance. However, she did not consider as a boss that such an employee would waste a lot of her time on training.

  "How's your English? Since there are many foreigners here, it's better to use simpler English for communication." Yu Xizhen asked gently, knowing that Zhang Huban was just a student from the countryside who had been in school for over a month. She feared that this question would make Zhang Huban feel difficult to answer, and inexplicably added another sentence: "If you don't know how, it's okay, it's just fine to practice your oral English here!"

  When Yoo Hye-jin said this, she herself felt a little strange. As a high-achieving student who had returned from studying in the US, Yoo Hye-jin had already been influenced by the American way of doing things, which emphasized efficiency and results over personal relationships. So why was she repeatedly lowering her standards for this young man in front of her? Even to the point of breaking her own usual principles!

  You can clearly feel the affection and love that this charming woman has for herself, although Zhang Huban no longer needs anyone's help, that true feeling still stirred up some ripples in his heart. He also truly felt the painstaking efforts of his master calling him to enter the world to cultivate, if he hadn't entered the world, how could he have experienced such a rich life and emotions?

  "My English should be okay, if you don't mind, we can have a conversation in English." Zhang Huban was still very confident about his own English, even the Scottish beauty had to admit that Zhang Huban spoke authentic New York English, what's there to worry about?

  "Really?!" Yoo Hee-jin instinctively knew that the young man in front of her was not the kind of person who bragged, and since he said he could communicate in English, it meant his English must be quite good. Knowing that English education in remote areas nowadays is mainly focused on exams, while speaking and listening have always been a big gap between students from rural and urban areas, Yoo Hee-jin couldn't help but ask back when she heard Jang Ho-bin's confident tone.

  Next, Zhang Huban's authentic New York accent made Liu Xizhen feel like she was back in New York. A pair of beautiful eyes revealed an incredulous gaze. If it weren't for Zhang Huban's introduction earlier, Liu Xizhen would have thought that Zhang Huban was a scholar who had just returned from abroad with a golden aura.

  "Mr. Zhang's English is really very good, even I who have been in New York for nearly 4 years can't help but feel inferior!" Liu Xizhen praised sincerely.

  "Where, where!" Even with Zhang Huban's good upbringing, he still showed a hint of redness under the beautiful woman's praise. After all, he was a master of the Xiu Zhen realm and quickly returned to normal, saying: "Ms. Liu, if you don't mind, just call me Huban!"

  "Well then, Hupan, you can just call me Sister Hee-jin from now on!" Yoo Hee-jin said naturally and casually.

  "Alright, so can I be hired?" Although Zhang Huban felt that being hired shouldn't be a problem through their interactions, he still asked with some trepidation, hoping to have the opportunity to work here. On one hand, he could continue to be with the lovely Liu Feifei, and on the other hand, having such a beautiful and charming female boss made him feel eager just thinking about it.

  "Of course, you're hired! Not only are you a top student, but your foreign language skills are also excellent, making you the kind of talent we desperately need! However, since you've never been in contact with the catering industry before, let's start by having you work as an ordinary server first. Once you get familiarized, we can make adjustments later. As for salary, it's 15 yuan per hour, and working hours are from 6 pm to 1 am. Do you have any questions?"

  "No problem with the salary, it's just that I'm still in school and I hope to have Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays off. Can we adjust the evening work hours to 6pm-11pm?

  Due to the school dormitory closing at 11:30 PM, although it's impossible to lock a genius like me outside, as a student, I still need to follow the rules.

  As for the number of working days, Zhang Huban thinks that working four days a week is enough. With an income of around 1200 per month, he can basically meet his spending needs. So Zhang Huban made the above request."

  As a boss, everything is based on self-interest. Zhang Huban's request actually disrupted the arrangement of Liu Xizhen's personnel. However, Liu Xizhen didn't think it was inappropriate at all, and even felt relieved that Zhang Huban could take care of his studies in this way. She agreed without hesitation. After agreeing, Liu Xizhen herself felt a bit strange, wondering why she was so accommodating to the young man in front of her. Perhaps it was because he brought laughter to her daughter, so Liu Xizhen had to find an excuse for herself.

  After the interview, Zhang Huban was ready to return to school. However, due to Liu Feifei's persistence in clinging to him, and he couldn't bear to refuse such a lovely little girl, so he stayed on and accompanied Liu Feifei until noon. Then, Liu Xizhen changed into a very casual outfit, and the three of them ran to KFC on Yan'an Road for lunch.

  Because it was the weekend and there were many people, Zhang Huban had to take on the heavy task of queuing up for shopping as the only man. Liu Xizhen and her daughter, on the other hand, sat comfortably in a corner, waiting for Zhang Huban's triumphant return. Looking at the long queues, looking at Zhang Huban with a smile on his face, and occasionally turning back to make funny faces at Liu Feifei, Liu Xizhen felt a sense of happiness that she couldn't explain. She even stared foolishly at her daughter and the young man in front of her, whom they had just met less than half a day ago and was still very unfamiliar with.

  They had a great time eating Chinese food, and Zhang Huban's occasional clever tricks not only made Liu Feifei laugh repeatedly but also brought Liu Xizhen her first truly happy mood in years. After dinner, under the name of KITTY, Zhang Huban solemnly promised to come and play with Liu Feifei often when he had time, before Liu Feifei reluctantly let him go.