"Heh heh..."

Tongtong sneered.

Jiang Liu said,

"Get dressed and pack your schoolbag. We’re getting ready to go."

"Oh yeah! Time to go sell buns and make money!"

Tongtong immediately grew excited, hopping up and down.

"Did you drink any water this morning?"

"Nope."

Jiang Liu poured a few mouthfuls of juice for Tongtong.

The little girl was astonished, staring blankly at the basin in Jiang Liu’s hands.

"This juice is so good! It’s way better than the juice I drink at kindergarten."

"Daddy, can I put some in my cuppy?"

"Of course. From now on, you can drink as much as you want, whenever you want!"

Jiang Liu magnanimously held the basin and poured it into her cup, spilling some on the floor. It made Tongtong’s heart ache as she muttered that her daddy was a spendthrift.

"Let’s go, Daddy."

"Hang on."

Then, Jiang Liu quickly tidied up the living room, and the two left wearing matching parent-child outfits.

Tongtong’s white short-sleeved shirt had Bramble on it, while Jiang Liu’s had Briar.

Yang Yixue was supposed to have one with Bald Qiang, but she thought it was ridiculously ugly, so she threw it away without ever wearing it after they bought it.

On the road, an old sanitation worker leaned on his broom, smoking a cigarette and watching the dark clouds on the fish-belly white horizon.

Jiang Liu pushed his bicycle, which was laden with sixty-six pounds of filling strapped to the front and back.

Tongtong gritted her teeth, straining to help push the back of the bicycle.

Passersby looked on with envy, taking in the sight of the father and daughter in their matching outfits.

One was handsome, the other was adorable, and the resemblance between them was clear in their eyes and brows.

"Tongtong, why don’t you get on? Daddy will push you."

"No! I don’t want to be a burden to Daddy! I have to help!"

Her expression was resolute.

Tongtong was very young, but she could be incredibly considerate sometimes.

Jiang Liu sighed, a pang of guilt washing over him.

He felt uneasy, his heart unsettled.

"Getting up so early every day, don’t you get sleepy at kindergarten?"

"I’m not sleepy! Daddy isn’t sleepy, so I’m not sleepy at all! Besides, every day at noon, I get to hug Teacher Qingmeng while I nap."

Jiang Liu was surprised. "Teacher Qingmeng hugs you to sleep every day? She doesn’t do that for the other kids, does she?"

"Yep! Teacher Qingmeng is the nicest to me! She treats me differently than the other kids!"

"Is that so? Don’t cause too much trouble for Teacher Qingmeng, you hear?"

"I know!"

"Daddy."

"Hm?"

"Can’t you please just consider Teacher Qingmeng? I really want us all to be together, sleeping together, eating together, and playing together every day."

"I’m begging you, Daddy."

Jiang Liu found this amusing. "You’re in such a hurry to find yourself a stepmom. Aren’t you worried you won’t be able to sleep with me anymore?"

Tongtong giggled. "It’s fine! The three of us can just sleep together. When I get to the upper-class, I’ll sleep by myself."

Jiang Liu didn’t answer right away.

After a moment, he said frankly, "Let’s not think about that for now. It won’t be too late to talk about it after we’ve made some money and have a house and a car."

"Okay!"

Tongtong nodded obediently, then looked down and wiggled her little feet.

"Daddy, my feetsies are getting sore from walking. When we’ve earned enough money, can we buy a car first?"

"Of course. Whatever you say."

"Oh yeah! A car! Then my feetsies won’t hurt, and I won’t be too hot or too cold!"

Tongtong’s mood brightened even more.

Jiang Liu mentally calculated his funds. He currently had a little over fifty thousand yuan.

If today’s profits were good, he could buy a cheap commuter car.

An electric car would be best. They were comfortable for city driving, with low taxes and cheap electricity, and he wasn’t planning any long trips for the time being.

His first priority was to run the stall well.

Once he had money later on, he’d buy an RV and take Tongtong to see the world.

They passed by a nearby wet market.

An idea suddenly struck Jiang Liu. He stopped a middle-aged woman who was out shopping for groceries and asked, "Hello, ma’am. Do you know if there’s anywhere nearby that sells disposable drink bottles?"

The woman, who had been in a hurry to pick her vegetables, was annoyed at being interrupted.

But when she saw Jiang Liu’s face, her eyes widened. "You’re... Boss Jiang?"

"Er... You know me?"

The woman, carrying her grocery basket, chuckled.

"And this little one next to you must be Tongtong, right? A lot of us in the Phoenix District know about you two. We even follow you on Douyin."

"Oh, so that’s how it is."

To run into a customer like this, what luck... Jiang Liu gave a polite smile.

"You’re looking to buy drink bottles? Are you coming out with a new product?"

"That’s right. I’m planning to sell some premium, fresh-squeezed juice."

The woman’s eyes lit up. She grabbed Jiang Liu’s arm. "Come on, come on! I know a place. It might not be open yet, but I can wake him up."

The woman was formidable.

Jiang Liu nodded happily. "Thank you, ma’am. Next time you come to buy buns and there’s a crowd, I’ll save a portion for you."

He always had to be mindful of social etiquette.

"Great, great! Boss Jiang, that’s what I was waiting to hear!"

The woman was thrilled to hear this. It gave her a lot of face, and she walked ahead with a vigorous, powerful stride.

From behind, Tongtong called out sweetly, "Thank you, pretty Auntie!"

"Aiyo, aiyo! This little one is so cute, and such a sweet talker too!"

The woman was so delighted by Tongtong’s "Auntie" that she was practically floating on air.

「A few minutes later,」

The roll-up door of a stall in the wet market was being pounded with a deafening RUMBLE.

"Xiao Wang, open up! I brought you a customer, hurry!"

"It’s the crack of dawn, what are you yelling about?"

The woman’s face darkened.

After the sound of someone getting dressed:

"Coming, coming."

The roll-up door was raised, revealing an impatient Wang Dongxu with dark circles under his eyes.

He had been gaming all night and had just fallen soundly asleep.

Only to be woken up by what sounded like "thunder."

Jiang Liu was a bit surprised to see the familiar face. He hadn’t expected to run into this guy here.

This was the same shifty-eyed young man from last night who had tried to buy a hundred of his buns to resell for a quick profit.

’What was his name again? Wang Dongxu, I think.’

"Xiao Wang, aren’t you going to greet your customer? This is Boss Jiang, a big client! You need to get on his good side, understand?"

The woman patiently coached from the side.

Wang Dongxu had been extremely impatient, just wanting to get rid of them, but the moment he heard the words "Boss Jiang," he shuddered.

He jerked his sleepy head up, and his eyes focused on Jiang Liu’s faint smile.

His drowsiness vanished instantly, and his gaze flickered away for a moment.

"Boss Jiang! What brings you here?"

He was dumbfounded and a little panicked, thinking Jiang Liu was here to settle old scores.

He clearly hadn’t heard what the woman said, only catching the two words "Boss Jiang."

Tongtong shrugged from the side. "We want to buy cups. Sell them to us."

"Cups?"

Jiang Liu said, "You look younger than me. Is it okay if I call you Xiao Wang?"

"Yes, no problem, Brother Jiang!"

Wang Dongxu was delighted and immediately changed his form of address. He was desperate to have a different kind of relationship with Jiang Liu.

"Xiao Wang, do you have any disposable cups in your shop? The kind like bubble tea cups, preferably with lids."

"We do, Brother Jiang! Are you using them for cold drinks or hot drinks?"

"Cold, I think. For iced fruit juice."

"In that case, PET plastic ones will be more than enough."

Then it dawned on Wang Dongxu. "You’re adding a new item to the menu?"

"Mhm. Premium fresh-squeezed fruit juice. Come by, and I’ll treat you to a drink."

Wang Dongxu grew even more enthusiastic, vowing that he had to give Jiang Liu a "bone-breaking" discount.

「Five minutes later.」

Jiang Liu bought two thousand sets of 500ml disposable cups, complete with lids for straws. The cups were similar to bubble tea cups, but made of a harder material.

These were considered medium-grade cups, a bit better than the ones used in most bubble tea shops.

The wholesale price for one cup was about 0.85 yuan.

Wang Dongxu gave him a thirty percent discount, so he paid a total of 1,190 yuan.

"Brother Jiang, I can deliver them to you in a bit."

Jiang Liu didn’t refuse, just nodded. "When you get there, I’ll treat you to the new juice."

The woman anxiously tugged on Wang Dongxu’s arm. "Xiao Wang, you can’t forget about your auntie here! Bring a bottle for me, you hear?"

Seeing that Jiang Liu hadn’t objected, Wang Dongxu magnanimously agreed.