CHAPTER 189: CHAPTER 189: EARLY MORNING MEAL APPOINTMENT

Gao Mingsong: [Don’t forget about the exclusive teaching materials you promised us.]

Gently Melancholy: [Don’t worry, Mr. Gao, I’ll find time to sort them out once I get home.]

After tutoring Sang Chuan and Song Shiye for 30 days, Sang Ning had prepared teaching materials. She just needed to tidy them up and send them to Gao Mingsong, which wouldn’t take much time.

After replying to the message, Sang Ning casually opened Gao Mingsong’s social media feed. Scrolling through his posts, dozens were all about teaching topics.

Feeling a bit bored, she was about to exit when one post caught her eye—it was relatively unique.

[The flowers in the security guard’s garden have bloomed. Just looking at them cheers me up. (photo attached)]

Sang Ning glanced at the post’s timestamp—it was from half a year ago. She clicked to enlarge the photo—it was a flower species she hadn’t seen before.

Could this be the expensive orchid that Sang Chuan ruined? Sang Ning saved the picture and opened a browser to use the image recognition tool.

The search results revealed that it was... a potted cactus!

Sang Ning was completely dumbfounded. Blame it on Gao Mingsong’s appalling photography skills; if she hadn’t zoomed in on the photo and stared carefully, she wouldn’t have figured out that it wasn’t a flower at all.

When in doubt, ask the all-knowing social media.

Sang Ning used the photo that Gao Mingsong had shared as an attachment and edited a post: [Calling on my wise and experienced friends—does anyone know what flower this is?]

Before posting, she took care to block Sang Chuan’s teacher group from seeing it.

She didn’t want Gao Mingsong to realize she’d been snooping on his feed; that’d be embarrassing.

Since Sang Chuan would still be studying at Shuixi for another year, he’d inevitably cross paths with the security guard. If their relationship wasn’t mended, it would likely mess up his quiet focus on studying.

With the orchid already destroyed, the only solution was to figure out how to gift the security guard a new one.

By the time she got home and reopened her social media, her post was brimming with comments. Sang Ning clicked into them and began replying individually.

Manager: [Sis, are you rested yet? If you’re good to go, hurry back to work. Stop daydreaming over flowers!]

Gently Melancholy: [Hey, even the village’s donkey gets some time to catch its breath. I’ve been back barely a day; please respect my human rights!]

Shen Yi: [What’s up with your taste? If you want flowers, I’ll send you a few of the pretty ones.]

Gently Melancholy: [Let’s see—are you an offline social recluse or an online social hazard? Come roast me in person if you’ve got the guts!]

Chu Xi replied below: [Teehee, I like flowers too! If Shen Yi could send me flowers, I’d be over the moon.]

Gently Melancholy: [Grab your "teehee" and leave Earth, thanks.]

Song Shiye: [Sister Sangsang, I know what flower this is—it’s as radiant as your smile.]

Gently Melancholy: [Sang Chuan’s already back at school, and you’re still trying to butter me up here? Looks like you need a "Little Genius" smartwatch too.]

The appeal to social media for help didn’t yield much, leaving Sang Ning mildly disappointed as she closed her feed.

The 30-day recording, coupled with tutoring Sang Chuan and Song Shiye, had nearly drained her energy completely. Her plan was to sleep to her heart’s content before tackling work again.

Setting her phone to silent, she entered hibernation mode.

That sleep was restful and oh-so-sweet. By the time Sang Ning woke up naturally, the room was already pitch dark.

Groping around for her phone in her daze, she realized it was already 5:00 a.m. the next day!

Now fully recharged, there was no chance she could fall back asleep. She flicked on her bedside lamp and sat up.

Her phone showed countless unread messages. In the "Happy Family" group chat, Sang Youming and Hu Zhi had sent tons of selfies.

Sang Youming mentioned they were no longer in Jiangkou Village; they’d followed Grandpa Chen to the neighboring village to help with carpentry work. Meanwhile, Hu Zhi was learning culinary theory and experimenting with new snacks.

The group was flooded not only with their selfies but also with pictures of Hu Zhi’s homemade snacks.

Sang Ning nearly started drooling; she suddenly missed Hu Zhi’s amazing culinary skills.

A warm sense of gratitude surged over her—it was so wonderful that each member of the Sang family now had their life goals, working hard towards them with gusto.

Gently Melancholy: [Dad, Mom, keep it up! You’re the best!]

Sang Ning sent her words of encouragement in the group chat, reasoning it was still early. Her parents probably weren’t awake yet, so she closed the group after posting.

Upon returning to the chat interface, she noticed many other unread messages. One stood out in particular.

It was a message from Li Juezhou sent the night before: [I have the flower you need.]

In an instant, Sang Ning perked up and clicked into the chat. Before the text, there was also an attached photo.

The flower in the picture was obviously larger and far prettier than the one belonging to the security guard. Sang Ning opened the security guard’s photo and carefully compared the two side by side.

They were strikingly similar, but with Gao Mingsong’s sloppy photography, it was impossible for her to confirm instantly.

Not sure if Li Juezhou was awake yet, Sang Ning tentatively sent a message: [Is this flower an orchid?]

The reply came almost instantly: [Yes!]

Sang Ning was stunned—it was barely 5 a.m.! Had Li Juezhou not slept all night, or was he just an early riser?

Despite her puzzlement, she was thrilled—it felt like there was finally hope for mending relations between Sang Chuan and the security guard.

Gently Melancholy: [Are you available for a phone call right now?]

Li Juezhou: [As long as the call is from you, I’m always available.]

Sang Ning suddenly felt like Li Juezhou was one of those genuinely warm-hearted people who’d go all out for a friend.

With his consent, Sang Ning dialed him directly, as typing on the phone felt way too slow.

When the call connected, she got straight to the point: "Hey, where did you buy that flower? I want to purchase the same one."

"I actually don’t need it anymore; it just takes up space at my home. If you like it, I’ll give it to you," Li Juezhou replied, his voice tinged with an easygoing smile.

"Uh..." Sang Ning hesitated—wasn’t that just taking advantage of him?

While she deliberated, Li Juezhou’s voice came from the other end once more: "Didn’t you say you owed me a meal? How about this—you treat me to dinner, and I’ll give you the flower."

Ugh.

Sang Ning raised her hand to her forehead, realizing she’d nearly forgotten about that promised meal for Li Juezhou.

"Alright, I only have until tomorrow off. Could you let me know if you’re free in the next two days? If not, we can schedule for another time—"

Before she could finish, Li Juezhou interrupted: "I’m free right now. Why not now?"

Sang Ning glanced outside the window: "Uh, it’s still dark outside!"

"Perfect. Let’s grab breakfast," Li Juezhou suggested, his tone sounding utterly reasonable, as if eating breakfast at this hour was the most natural thing in the world.

Sang Ning: ?!

"You’ve got to be kidding!"

"What can I do? The life of a working stiff isn’t always in their control. I have to head to work soon." There was a hint of helplessness in Li Juezhou’s voice.