Chapter 413: Passing with Flying Colors
Chapter 413: Passing with Flying Colors
Lu Jiaxin's housewarming party was set for August 22nd, and Zhang Sining had already sent out the invitations. The chef and menu had also been decided, the latter approved by Nie Zhan.
Zhang Sining handed her a list of potential staff members. For such a large villa, they would need to hire a butler and additional servants. She reviewed the resumes and took a liking to a woman named Meng Hongjiao for the role of head housekeeper. The woman was forty-one years old and had twenty years of work experience.
Lu Jiaxin glanced at the resume and asked Zhang Sining to arrange a meeting. Aside from ample experience, the housekeeper also had to be someone she personally liked.
Shi Xinyu arrived promptly at 10 a.m. for their tennis game. As soon as she saw Lu Jiaxin, she exclaimed, "Jiaxin, you've gotten so tanned!"
Her assistant winced at the comment, understanding why their mistress had so few friends. Shi Xinyu meant no harm, but her bluntness could be off-putting.
Lu Jiaxin didn't mind and laughed it off. "I've been spending a lot of time outdoors lately, but don't worry, I'll be back to my fair self in no time. Now, let's get started with our game."
After the first set, Shi Xinyu sat on the sidelines, panting. "Jiaxin, Tao Yong said you've only been playing tennis for less than a year and don't practice much, yet your skills are better than mine."
Shi Xinyu had started playing tennis at the age of eight, and after hearing Tao Yong's comments, she had expected to easily defeat Lu Jiaxin. But to her surprise, their first game had ended in a tie. Given their current state, she knew her chances of winning were slim to none.
Lu Jiaxin smiled and said, "I haven't been playing for long, but I practice whenever I have free time at home, so my skills improved quickly."
Shi Xinyu studied her and said, "Jiaxin, your lifestyle doesn't seem like that of an eighteen-year-old at all. Tao Yong also said that Mr. Nie has a stoic personality, and that being with him would be boring. But I think the two of you make a perfect match!"
Lu Jiaxin was speechless. She couldn't believe Shi Xinyu would not only gossip about her behind her back but also bring up these private matters in conversation with her!
Her assistant's forehead glistened with sweat, and she quickly handed her a bottle of water. "Miss, please have some water to rehydrate."
Shi Xinyu took the water and sipped it daintily.
Lu Jiaxin, feeling parched as well, grabbed a bottle and tilted her head back to drink directly from the bottle. She never drank straight from the bottle; it just felt unsanitary to her.
Shi Xinyu was impressed by her bold drinking gesture and asked, "Jiaxin, who did you invite to your housewarming party?"
Lu Jiaxin didn't go into detail about the guest list but mentioned that Zong Shimeng and Yu Meitung would be attending.
Speaking of Yu Meitung, Shi Xinyu was reminded of the jewelry company. "Meitung has always wanted to create her own jewelry brand and asked us to invest. But after months of talking about it, nothing has happened. Yet, you quietly started your own jewelry company."
Lu Jiaxin shifted the credit to Nie Zhan. "Azhan suggested that we diversify our business, as relying solely on real estate is too limiting. Establishing a jewelry company has been his plan for a while, and it's not because Meitung wanted to partner with me that he came up with the idea."
"So, acquiring the grand hotel was also part of his plan?"
Lu Jiaxin hadn't known about this plan in advance, but she wasn't sure if Shi Xinyu's question was innocent or had a hidden motive. "It wasn't planned. He came up with the idea while discussing hotel operations with a friend. He's a man of action and immediately set things in motion."
Shi Xinyu lacked ambition, but influenced by Yu Meitung, she wanted to try her hand at something. "Jiaxin, I want to open a coffee shop. What do you think?"
Lu Jiaxin felt that the cost of opening a coffee shop was relatively low, and all they needed to do was hire a responsible manager. After all, Shi Xinyu didn't seem like the business type. "It's just a coffee shop. If you want to open one, just do it. There's no need to overthink it."
Shi Xinyu muttered, "Tao Yong said I'm not cut out for business, and if I open a coffee shop, it'll probably go bankrupt within three months."
"So what if it goes bankrupt?" Lu Jiaxin replied. Unlike ordinary people, she didn't have to invest all her savings into opening a shop. For Shi Xinyu, even if the coffee shop failed quickly, she would only lose a few months' worth of spending money.
Shi Xinyu had stayed in Hong Kong City because of Tao Yong, but their daily routine of eating and drinking was getting boring. "Jiaxin, do you have any good suggestions?"
Lu Jiaxin offered a detailed plan: "First, the location of the coffee shop must be carefully chosen, preferably surrounded by office buildings. Second, hire a skilled pastry chef to create a unique selling point. Third, you can decorate it according to your own taste instead of copying other shops."
Shi Xinyu understood the first two points, but the last one confused her. "Decorate according to my taste? Shouldn't I consult a designer instead?"
Lu Jiaxin laughed. "You're opening this coffee shop not to make money but to give yourself something to do. So, why not design it according to your own preferences?"
Knowing Shi Xinyu's personality, Lu Jiaxin added, "You should still hire a designer, but instruct them to create a style that you like and that fits your requirements."
"Okay."
The two spent the morning playing tennis, went shopping in the afternoon, and then indulged in a spa treatment. By the time they returned home, it was already past five o'clock. Lu Jiaxin figured that her second aunt would be back home by then, so she gave her a call.
"Second Aunt, did Lu An and Zaohua both pass the exams?" Lu Jiaxin asked.
Her second aunt replied cheerfully, "They both passed! Your eldest aunt wanted to host a celebration banquet, but your eldest uncle refused, saying that we didn't host one when you passed the entrance exam for Hong Kong University last year, so we shouldn't do it for Lu An either."
Based on their estimated scores, both cousins were expected to get into university, but it was still delightful to hear the confirmation. "When I got into university, didn't Granduncle host a few tables in the village?" Lu Jiaxin asked.
Her second aunt beamed. "Yes, we set up sixteen tables. Now, everyone in the surrounding villages knows that our Lu family has produced three university students."
These three university students were Lu Ping, Lu An, and Lu Jiaxin. Of course, all three had grown up in Si Jiucheng, where the education level far surpassed that of Dingjia Village.
"Second Aunt, is the funding for underprivileged students going well?" Lu Jiaxin asked.
Her second aunt had a close relationship with Granduncle's wife, often calling her birth mother, and she would occasionally call back to her hometown. "It's going well. There are a few children from the clan who dropped out of school despite being good students. Except for two families who want to keep their daughters to help with chores, the others have been persuaded by Granduncle. However, when the neighbors from the next village heard about this, they came to Granduncle, hoping that you would sponsor their children as well."
Lu Jiaxin had intended to sponsor outstanding students from the Lu clan, not those from other families, so Granduncle had refused those requests.
If this had happened before the incident in Rong County, Lu Jiaxin would have readily agreed to sponsor them as well, as it wasn't a significant amount. However, she had learned her lesson and realized that good intentions didn't always lead to good outcomes. So, if she were to sponsor those children, she would need to establish clear guidelines.
(End of Chapter)
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