Chapter 397: I Can’t Handle It
"Well, let me think about it. I do feel short of manpower recently, so it wouldn't be a problem if you come."

Because it is the first day, there are no formal classes. The theme of today is mostly about getting to know the new classmates in the class and readjusting to school life.

With nothing to do, Zhuo used this little time to go to the blind spot of the stairwell and contacted a ramen chef who owned a ramen shop. The contact information was exchanged with him when he went to eat noodles with him a long time ago. At that time, he did not think that the other party would be Uesugi Yue. As a result, a surprised voice came from the other end.

Because Zhuo wanted to take this matter seriously and give Ling a surprise, well, maybe not that surprising, anyway, he didn't want her to know, so he left the classroom and walked to the stairwell to tell her all this. He thought that if he left suddenly, she would follow him, and he would have to spend some time explaining, but it turned out to be surprisingly smooth. Ling just followed his back with her eyes as she left, which was not what Zhuo thought, but confused Zhuo instead.

"No, what about interviews and stuff?"

"Interview? You're telling me this now? Okay, okay, I'll go through the formalities when I get here. But Utsunomiya Yuki, will your girlfriend agree? It's not that tiring here, and I can guarantee that there won't be any problems with the cooking, so your job will probably be reception, but will your girlfriend be jealous?"

"Who is talking too much this time?"

The last time they met at a convenience store, Uesugi Yue stated that he had learned from Ren that Utsunomiya Shuo had started a relationship. It is said that the version he heard was that Shuo was irresistibly infatuated with the other person and had no room for maneuver at all.

Although Uesugi Koshi's ramen shop is not a bar, he will still come into contact with all kinds of people.

At Christmas, Ling felt uncomfortable because Ren, who was not only a friend but also a homosexual, ate a piece of ice cream that Zhuo had already eaten.

Zhuo didn't want his behavior to make Ling worry, as that would be putting the cart before the horse.

Of course, Zhuo would not be unfaithful, and Ling should believe this as well, but mood issues are another matter.

"Oh, by the way, Utsunomiya-kun, why do you suddenly want to work part-time?"

Hearing Uesugi Yue skip the previous topic and shift the focus to such a simple question, Zhuo closed his mouth.

Uesugi Yue had only met Ling once, and they didn't really know each other. Even if they really got to know each other in the future, if Uesugi Yue was asked to keep it a secret, he wouldn't... His character wasn't really reliable. But I guess Ling wouldn't listen to him, so it didn't matter if he told him, but the purpose of saving money for marriage was still a little embarrassing to say.

I think everyone Zhuo knows knows that he likes Ling, and even he himself understands this. Even so, it is not easy to express that he wants to save money for a proposal and the ring.

However, if he didn't tell her, Uesugi Yue wouldn't be able to accept it. He was the one who helped him get a part-time job, so it wouldn't be good to hide it. If he really thought about it, Zhuo didn't think that Uesugi Yue, who was so small that he couldn't even fit ten people, was so busy that he needed to hire someone. He probably just wanted to help.

"Lao Dong...Master Yue, this is it. This matter needs to be kept secret, and you can't tell him even to someone else."

"Ah, I see. You want to give your girlfriend a present, right? A birthday present or something like that?"

"But, maybe not... Her birthday has already passed, so I'm planning on doing this this year. I want to... buy some jewelry..."

"..."

Zhuo's voice became smaller and smaller, and when he finished answering, there was silence.

"It's childish to think about these things as a high school student, but also impatient and overestimating one's own abilities." Zhuo could also think of these things, and after telling the truth with embarrassment, he anxiously waited for Uesugi Yue's voice. After a long silence of about ten seconds, a long sigh came from the other end of the phone, and then the voice became much lighter and said, "I'm old~ This is the truth that Kiritani-kun reminded me of, oh, I was fooled even through the phone~" "Little calf~"

"Uh, you called me."

"If that's the case, you'd better not come to my house. Even if you work hard for your girlfriend, if your boyfriend disappears for a long time because of this, he will definitely feel bad."

This is indeed the truth.

Uesugi Kotsu's ramen shop is in the other direction. If he goes there after school or on holidays, it will definitely take up most of Zhuo's free time. From now on, he will hardly have the chance to stay with Ling except at night.

Compared to this, Zhuo felt that Ling did not value the marriage proposal obtained in return so much.

So Zhuo replied, "That's true," and started to imagine the stores he might pass by on his way home, such as the convenience store he often visited not far from home, to see if they were hiring.

At this time, a voice came from the other end of the phone and said, "Let's do this."

"If you'd like to go to an izakaya, I can recommend one to you. There's one owned by a friend of mine, it's relatively quiet, and it might suit your personality."

"Friend? The friend who seduced the ramen chef?" This sentence popped up involuntarily in Zhuo's mind, but he resisted the urge to complain. Thinking about the last time he met Uesugi Yue in the convenience store, he felt that the izakaya was probably not far from Zhuo's apartment, so he ran into Uesugi Yue who was "visiting" a friend in the convenience store.

"That's fine...Isn't this going to cause you any trouble?"

"Hey, kid, are you really a high school student... Okay, okay, leave this to me. To be honest, I'm usually very busy and don't have much time to go there. Besides, I can't really handle Yui..."

(Busy dealing with Chiyoko, Tazuru? Toie?)
"Well, I can't really handle it..."

"What are you talking about, brat! I asked you to help look after the lady boss. It's hard for a woman to run an izakaya~"

"Oh, I'm so sorry that you're willing to trust me so much."

"No, no, no, I don't trust you at all. Just call me if you have any problems. Yui doesn't have any children, so she's always alone. I'm worried that she'll be bullied. It's just right that you can be a little phone bucket."

Judging from Uesugi Yue's tone, it seems more like disdain than a request. Zhuo doesn't know whether it is hard for the izakaya owner to run a shop alone. However, Zhuo can see that Uesugi Yue is reliable, and he pampers her even if she is his mistress. This may be different from his past stories.

"I'll go check with Yui first. Once I'm done, you can come to the store and visit with me or something? That way you'll be more familiar with the airflow and maybe feel more comfortable."

"Thank you very much...but is this too much trouble for you?"

(End of this chapter)