Hello, Mr Li Chapter 240 - A Christmas tip

"Yes. It'll be ready in a minute" Sara said to a customer with a smile on her face before heading towards the kitchen with an empty tray on her hand. 

The middle aged customer looked at her retreating figure lustfully. He admired her body on the brown sweater, black skinnies and black boot she was wearing. Even her dangling ponytail fascinated him for no reason at all but because he was simply a pervert.

He concluded that she was very much prettier than those annoying models and actresses he sponsored. 

"You should focus" A friend of his hit him playfully which caused the other two on the table to laugh at him. 

"I can't help it. She's even more prettier without make-up" He said with a laugh.

As soon as she entered inside the kitchen, she used both hands to massage her numb cheeks which were as a result of her effort to smile to every customer all day. 

"Ah... Smiling is stressful" She complained to Jianjun. 

"They didn't force you to smile. You can just be polite instead" Jianjun said from beside the fire. 

"Smiling is my only way of being polite" Sara pointed out to him.

The restaurant had been full all morning. Their major problem was the table and space to fit in the customers and also, the waiters to attend to them.

Sara and Bilike were already helping out with the servings but they obviously needed more hands to help. His employee, Lisa, do join them to wait on customers whenever there was lesser work for Jianjun in the kitchen. It seemed she was more interested in cooking than in serving and Jianjun was very much interested in teaching her.

Thankfully, Some customers had decided to have takeouts instead so it reduced the trouble.

"Put up a 'Closed' sign in twenty minutes. I need enough time to make more dishes"

Jianjun said to Sara.

It was just two in the afternoon but that was going to be the second time they'll be putting up the 'Closed' sign.

Sara didn't have the time to talk with any of them since they were all busy. Even Joreen was helping them arrange the drinks and had resused to go to the Christmas party her school had organised for the students.

 She was obviously still hurt and probably embarrassed after what happened during the prize giving day.

Sara could not wait for Cixi to come back so they'll finally know the idiot who had done that to her.

She went back to serve some customers who were happy to have her attention and even asked to take photos with her.

As she was about entering inside the kitchen again, her eyes caught sight of a familiar figure entering inside the restaurant.

It was a young lady who held a little boy's hand as they both approached where she was standing. She was tall, slender, pretty and was wearing a Faux-fur coat, leather pants and a thigh high boot. Her long dark hair was let loose and her make-up was moderate. The little buy who seemed to be around nine years old was wearing a cardigan, dark Jean and snow Boot.

"Martha!" Sara called in surprise. She hadn't expected to see her here. It was the same lady from the etiquette class who called her poor and mannnerless.  

Before Sara decided to upload the video online to invite people to her father's restaurant last night, she had been prepared for her cover to be blown. And this was just the beginning of this. 

"No wonder I thought you looked familiar. You're actually Sara Wang." Martha snickered as soon as she got to where Sara was standing.

"Hello Sis. Long time." The little boy Martha was holding greeted Sara familiarly with a smile on his face.

She looked at the boy who was probably around nine years old questioningly. She realised he looked familiar but she couldn't remember where she had met him before. But suddenly, it clicked. 

"Oh.. You were the one with Jin Cearo the other time right? His nephew?"  Sara asked him.

She was surprised he had recognised her immediately when she hadn't.

The little boy nodded happily. Of course he remembered her. She had been the one who convinced Heya to sing an English song so he could win a ticket to the WCI concert he had enjoyed so much.

"Oh wow! Nice to meet you dear. Merry Christmas" She said to him with a friendly pat on his shoulder. 

"You two know each other?" Martha asked in surprise with a raised brow.

"You are Jin Cearo's sister?" Sara asked back. 

"I guess both our covers are blown then. I'm Jin Cherry. This is my son Michael." Cherry introduced the little boy to her. 

Sara was a bit surprised since she hadn't known that Martha or rather... Cherry was married and had a son.

A group of customers entered through the door so Sara quickly said to her...

"I really have to hurry in. You need takeouts? Sorry, the place is full so they're no vacant seats" She apologized. 

"Sure. I'll have them. I hear you serve Chicken rolls with sesame seeds. Michael loves them to I'll have two servings" 

Sara smiled politely before going back inside the kitchen. When she came back a few minutes later, she didn't see Cherry or Michael anywhere. 

"Did you see the lady that was just standing here with a little boy?" Sara asked the nearest customer beside her. 

"Oh. She went outside not quite long" The lady answered.

She thanked her and went outside with the food bag in hand. She did not forget to change the 'open' sign to a 'closed' on her way out.

When she got outside, she saw Cherry and Michael standing beside a White Mercedes-maybach S 560 4Matic. For a minute, she forgot that she was there to deliver something as she admired the car with and suddenly remembered that Muchen had a black S 650 model. 

When her consciousness came back, she looked at Cherry and Michael and It looked like Cherry was having an argument with the person sitting in the back seat of the car. 

"I only came out to get something. Why are you overreacting?" Cherry asked the person inside the car angrily.

Sara wasn't interested in their conversation. She was very busy so she had to deliver the food to Cherry and go help out inside. She was also waiting for Changyu who had informed her that she was stuck in traffic and would be coming very soon.

"Miss Cherry. Your food is here" Sara raised the bag to show Cherry as she approached her. 

"See?" Cherry said to the person inside the car. 

"I have to go make the payment with my card before leaving" She explained in annoyance. 

Sara watched as the back door of the car opened. 

And for the first time, she saw the person Cherry had been talking to. 

It was a woman in her Mid or late fourties. She was not very tall, had a long dark hair, slim figure and a small pretty face. She was wearing a red and black plaid coat and Jeans with a wedge shoe. Her hair was in a bun, her make-up, mild and her jewelries, loud.

When her eyes landed on Sara, the woman looked at her with and unreadable expression without saying anything for close to a minute.

Maybe because she saw that her look made Sara uncomfortable, she moved her gaze to look inside the car. She then brought out a small white purse and took out some cash notes from inside.

"Here. This should be more than enough for the meal right?" 

Cherry scoffed in annoyance. "What do you think you are doing?" 

Sara was a bit skeptical about it but she took the notes from her and began to count.

"Can't you tell? I'm paying for my daughter and grandson's meal. You can just quietly get in the car and stop embarrassing yourself. Michael... Come to grandmother"

The woman tried to hold Michael's hand but Cherry quickly pulled the boy behind her. 

 Sara furrowed her brow and looked intently at the woman again. Why did she look so familiar? It seemed she had seen her before but she could not remember at all. 

It was a family's business and none of hers so she simply did what she came here for.

"Here. The change is over" She said to the woman who looked back at her with that same expression Sara couldn't read.

She stretched her hand to give the woman the excess change but she didn't take it.

"You can just keep it. A little Christmas tip for you" She said to Sara before looking back at Cherry.

"Your father wants you home this minute. So get in" She said in a gentle but authoritative tone.

There was something about this woman that seemed to give Sara the creeps.

She looked at Cherry whose expression had turned sour.

Sara watched as Cherry grumbled before stopping an empty taxi which was just close by. 

As the woman and Sara watched, Cherry sat down at the back seat of the taxi after Michael did. It seemed the boy didn't have a choice. He simply did whatever his mother asked him to do.

"I'll see you some other time. Merry Christmas Sara." Cherry said sadly before the taxi drove off. 

The woman turned to look at Sara with no much change in her expression. "Your name is Sara?" She asked. 

It was at that point that she noticed she was still holding the 'little Christmas tip' in her hand.

"Yes. Here's your money. It's too much for a tip" 

The woman looked up and down at her before running her eyes over the restaurant. She said nothing to Sara neither did she make any move to take the money from her. She simply entered side the car and the driver drove off immediately. 

Chapter end