Chapter 32: Chapter 32 A Cup of Coffee

    Sister Li said, "Our young master has a habit of drinking coffee at night, or sometimes tea. Do you like it too, Jun Xi? How about a cup?"

    An Junxi immediately poured out the water in her cup and handed it over, saying unceremoniously, "That would be great! I have a plan to work on when I get back, and I’ll probably need to stay up late. A good cup of coffee would be perfect!"

    Sister Li shook her head, "Young people nowadays have such irregular routines." The young master is the same.

    An Junxi laughed and said, "It’s just occasionally, I don’t usually stay up late."

    Sister Li couldn’t do anything about her. Instead of using An Junxi’s cup, she turned and took a set of delicate cups from the shelf, saying, "You have to drink coffee from these cups to get the real flavor."

    An Junxi covered her mouth, laughing, "I didn’t expect Sister Li to be so classy. Suddenly, I feel like I live so roughly!"

    Sister Li pretended to be angry, "What’s all this talk of being classy? You just like teasing me, child."

    An Junxi swayed happily, "Don’t be shy, Sister Li. I’m sincerely complimenting you!"

    Sister Li’s face blossomed into a big smile, "Alright, let’s stop joking around." But she was secretly pleased.

    She poured two cups of coffee, handed one to An Junxi, and said, "I’ll get you a couple of cookies. I baked them myself, and they go best with coffee. They’re easy on the stomach too."

    An Junxi was really touched, "Sister Li, you’re the best."

    Sister Li smiled as she busied herself, thinking to get the cookies first and then the young master’s coffee, as it was still a bit hot.

    An Junxi looked for milk and sea salt on the kitchen counter; it was her habit to add a spoonful of milk and sprinkle some sea salt in her coffee for a special taste.

    The milk was in a visible spot, and An Junxi quickly found it. The sea salt took a bit more effort; she finally found it at the back of a cupboard, saw it was not expired, opened it, and sprinkled some into her cup, eagerly preparing to enjoy this handmade Blue Mountain coffee, which was quite expensive outside.

    Just as An Junxi picked up her cup, Sister Li called from the kitchen, "Jun Xi, do you want a small cake?"

    "What kind of small cake?"

    "Why don’t you come over and choose?"

    An Junxi put down her cup and walked over. She liked desserts quite a bit and felt hungry seeing the freshly baked small cakes in the oven. She picked up the tongs and said, "I’ll help myself."

    She wasn’t shy at all.

    Sister Li liked her personality, "Alright, help yourself. I’ll go take the coffee to the young master."

    "Okay," An Junxi responded, picking three small cakes and two cookies. She deeply inhaled the aroma of cream mixed with eggs, feeling hungrier.

    Back in the tea room, An Junxi took a bite of the small cake and a sip of coffee, and her expression changed immediately.

    Why was it black coffee? She clearly added sea salt and milk!

    Could Sister Li have taken the wrong cup?

    This was a disaster. She’d heard from Jin Xiu that Gu Yikun hated milk the most!

    An Junxi had just made a fool of herself in front of Gu Yikun. If he thought she did something to his coffee on purpose, what would she do?

    This was no place to stay; she quickly finished the coffee in a few gulps, took the small cakes back to the kitchen, rushed out to grab her bag, and told the maid at the door, "I have an urgent matter and won’t wait for the young master to finish his class. Please tell him I went home first."

    "Alright, Miss An, take care."

    "Thank you!"

    An Junxi darted to the door and called to the driver, "Xiao Liu, I need to go home."

    Sister Li brought the coffee up to the third floor. She knocked on the door and placed the coffee on Gu Yikun’s desk, "Young master, your coffee is ready."

    "Hmm." Gu Yikun didn’t stop what he was doing. He habitually freed a hand to take the cup and sipped it. As soon as the coffee touched his lips, he frowned slightly. After slowly swallowing the coffee, he detected a faint sweet taste in his mouth.

    Sister Li silently watched the young master’s reaction. Given his unpredictable taste, she tried to learn his preferences to make his favorite drinks. Today, she’d used a bit more coffee beans. Judging by his reaction, it seemed acceptable?

    Gu Yikun asked, "What’s in the coffee?"

    Sister Li was stunned, "Nothing special, just black coffee."

    Gu Yikun took another sip, "It has milk. What else?"

    Only then did Sister Li realize, "I must have brought Jun Xi’s coffee by mistake... But don’t worry, she hasn’t drunk it yet. I’ll bring you another black coffee right away."

    Gu Yikun said, "No need. Go ask her what she added."

    Sister Li said nervously, "Okay." Though she made a small mistake, she could tell the young master didn’t dislike the taste of this coffee. She even felt curious to try it herself.

    When Sister Li went downstairs, both the kitchen and tea room were empty. The maid said, "Miss An had an urgent matter and went home first."

    Sister Li noticed that the young master’s original cup of coffee had been finished, the cup washed and placed back. This meant Jun Xi also realized the coffee had been switched.

    Sister Li smiled helplessly. This child left in such a hurry. Was she afraid the young master would scold her?

    An Junxi returned home, showered, and came out to see a message from Sister Li on WeChat. For convenience, she had added Sister Li and another maid on WeChat to easily communicate any arrangements from the Gu family.

    She opened the voice message and heard Sister Li’s voice, "Jun Xi, I brought the wrong coffee earlier. But the young master liked it. What did you put in it?"

    An Junxi paused while drying her hair, surprised that Gu Yikun wasn’t averse to it?

    She replied to Sister Li, "Sister Li, I added a spoonful of pure milk and sprinkled some sea salt. I thought Mr. Gu would be angry!"

    Sister Li replied quickly, "Not at all. Even if he’s angry, our young master is reasonable. So next time, don’t be so afraid of him. You left so quickly tonight because you were scared, right?"

    Sister Li’s bluntness made An Junxi a bit embarrassed, but she admitted, "Who isn’t afraid of President Gu! He’s practically our bread and butter!"

    Sister Li replied, "True. I’ve been with the Gu family for decades, and sometimes even I find the young master’s thoughts unpredictable. Alright then, I’ll make his coffee like this from now on. It’s getting late, don’t stay up too late. Take care of yourself."

    An Junxi felt touched, "Thank you, Sister Li. You should rest early too!"

    After putting down her phone, An Junxi went to the balcony for some fresh air, and her mind gradually cleared. So Gu Yikun wasn’t that scary after all.