Ms. Tan Is The Real Boss

While laughing, Liang Lu patted Lan Ning’s arm, “Lan Ning, you agree, don’t you?”

Lan Ning was lost in thought. She hadn’t heard what Liang Lu said. It wasn’t until Liang Lu tapped her arm that she came back to reality, “What did you just say?”

Liang Lu chuckled, “We were talking about Li Li choosing handsome guys. Last time you told me that Li Li changed her crush three times in one week, right?”

Lan Ning was zoning out again, “Ah, what handsome guy?”

Tan Rou saw her expression and knew she wasn’t paying attention, “Ning Ning, what’s wrong? You seem distracted.”

Lan Ning furrowed her brows and shook her head, “It’s nothing, I’m just thinking about the task my advisor assigned.”

Liang Lu felt something was off, “Didn’t you finish your experiment? Is there a new task now?”

Lan Ning was a studious and diligent student. If her experiments were unfinished, she wouldn’t have come out to play.

“Oh, I got it wrong, it’s a paper assigned by my general course teacher,” Lan Ning corrected herself.

“Ning Ning, you’re not someone who lies,” Li Li quickly sensed something was amiss. Since the two of them were single, they spent more time together, and she was very familiar with Lan Ning’s character.

Lan Ning looked down, gripping her phone tightly and replied, “Really, it’s nothing. I’m just a bit tired lately.”

Li Li wanted to ask Lan Ning more questions but was stopped by Tan Rou. Tan Rou shook her head at Li Li and Liang Lu, then said, “If you’re tired, you should rest properly. We are out to have fun today. Don’t let a bad mood spoil our enjoyment.”

Lan Ning lifted her head and revealed a smile, “Mhm.”

Li Li suggested, “Let’s go buy clothes. The weather is getting hotter, and I’m running out of things to wear. I know a street where clothes are cheap and pretty. Let’s go there.”

Tan Rou had no objection. She rarely bought clothes outside because her clothes were all custom-made and delivered directly to her home, so she didn’t need to waste time shopping. However, she still went shopping with friends. If she saw something she liked, she would buy it, without feeling that those things were too cheap for her.

Lan Ning had been worrying that they would go somewhere expensive, but she breathed a sigh of relief when Li Li mentioned a cheaper place for clothes.

Her family’s financial situation had improved slightly over the years, with her parents getting new jobs, and her sister in school, everything was moving in a positive direction. But her family’s finances were still not good enough, so unlike girls of her age, she couldn’t spend money as freely and had to juggle studies with part-time work.

Among this group, everyone had better family conditions than she did. Even Li Li’s family was many times better off than hers. Lan Ning worked very hard, believing she could change her future, so she focused all her energy on her studies, ignoring distractions.

But lately, she had been feeling depressed.

Li Li was very moody, one moment she was sulking over not having a boyfriend, and the next, she was bursting with vitality.

She dragged Liang Lu by the arm, pushing her into the store, “Big director, come help me choose. What should I wear to look like a star?”

Liang Lu had no choice but to be dragged along.

Tan Rou and Lan Ning hung back. Lan Ning was naturally quiet. Whenever she was with Li Li, it was Li Li who did most of the talking while she responded. Tan Rou wasn’t one for starting conversations either, so the atmosphere between them was quite subdued.

“Do you have something you can’t talk to us about?” Tan Rou couldn’t help but ask, “Is it something to do with your family?” She felt that whatever was worrying Lan Ning must be related to her family, and couldn’t think of anything else that would trouble her.

“I…” Lan Ning hesitated before speaking, “Actually…”

“It’s okay, if it’s about your family, you can ask us for help, or let us give you advice,” Tan Rou said, “We’re good friends.”

Lan Ning sighed, “It’s precisely because we’re good friends that I can’t do that.”

Tan Rou felt that it probably wasn’t an issue with Lan Ning’s family that was causing her distress, “What’s troubling you?”