Chapter 276: Ah, Being Too Popular Isn’t Good Either

Chapter 276 Sigh, fame has its downsides too

Shortly after Su He woke up in the afternoon, she heard someone knocking at the door.

When she opened it, she was taken aback—there were several women gathered outside, each holding a basket.

"May I ask—who are you here for?"

Seeing her open the door, the women's eyes lit up.

"Miss Su, it’s me—I live next door. I'm Qin Fenghua, wife of Liu Kai, the director of the Traditional Chinese Medicine Department. Remember when you gave us some homegrown veggies last time?"

Su He did remember her. After all, they were neighbors and occasionally greeted each other when going out.

"Of course I remember, Auntie Qin. But—what brings all of you here?" Su He asked curiously.

"Well, we saw Dr. Fu in the newspaper, so we all came to congratulate him! This is just a small token of appreciation from our family—nothing much, but we hope you’ll accept it," Qin Fenghua said, handing her basket to Su He.

"And mine too! It’s just a little something, but we mean well."

"Same here! These are for Dr. Fu—good for his health."

"And me! I also live next to you. Congratulations to Dr. Fu!"

Seeing so many people wanting to give gifts to her husband, Su He quickly declined, "Oh no, please—I’ll let him know you stopped by, but we can’t take these."

"Nonsense! You must take them! Let’s visit each other more often."

"Come on, take them! It’s our way of saying thanks."

"My husband and Dr. Fu work closely together—they get along really well."

"Us too!"

"Right, my husband and Dr. Fu are also very close. Dr. Fu’s wife, let’s visit more often!"

Su He was at her wit’s end.

In the end, she had no choice but to accept their gifts and send them on their way.

She couldn’t say no—these women loved to gossip, and rumors would spread if she turned them away, saying she looked down on their gifts.

She could handle it, but she didn’t want Dr. Fu dragged into more talk and become the subject of idle chatter.

He was already busy enough with work every day.

Sigh, fame really is a double-edged sword.

That evening after dinner, Su He took Zai Zai and Niu Niu to the shop and finally reunited with Su Shiming and his wife after three days.

"Mom, Dad, thanks for holding down the fort these past few days," Su He said with a smile.

"Oh, not at all, not at all. All the money we made these days is here. Holding onto all this cash was nerve-wracking—it’s a relief to hand it back to you," Su Shiming joked.

"How busy was it these days?" Su He asked.

Su Shiming and Wen Qing exchanged a glance before he replied, "Honestly? Swamped. Good thing we stepped in to run the shop these days—otherwise, you’d have lost a fortune in sales and regulars."

Su Shiming was clearly pleased with himself.

"Busy is good—means the shop’s doing well."

"Exactly. During the holidays, lots of folks working outta town came home and went outta their way to check out your shop after hearing about it," Wen Qing replied with a bright smile.

"In that case, you two must be exhausted. I’d rather make less money than run you ragged," Su He said, concerned.

"What are you thinking, sweetie? Your folks are still tough as nails," Su Shiming said with a laugh.

"I packed y’all some food. Do you want to eat here or at home?" Su He handed the lunchbox to Wen Qing.

"Let’s head home to eat. It’s been quite busy these days. Sweetie, can I bail for a bit?" Su Shiming joked.

"Of course! Take a couple days off and rest," Su He replied immediately.

"Alright then, your mom and I will head back now."

"I’ve got my car—lemme drive you," Su He offered.

"No need, it’s just a few kilometers. I’ll bike your mom home," Su Shiming declined her kindness.

After hugging Zai Zai and Niu Niu, the couple rode off on the bike.

Wen Qing sat on the backseat, holding Su Shiming’s waist, feeling like kids again.

These past few days, they had come to the shop and gone home together, their lives packed but happier than ever.

"Let’s go home and see what goodies our girl cooked up for us," Su Shiming said, grinning.

"Our daughter is already exhausted. We’ll eat whatever’s there," Wen Qing chided, patting his back.

"I know, I was just joking. I’ll happily eat anything she cooks."

When they got home and opened the bag containing the lunchbox, they found two red envelopes tucked inside.

"This—this is—" Wen Qing, who had opened the lunchbox, held the red envelopes and looked at Su Shiming beside her.

Su Shiming quickly took the envelopes and peeked inside.

"Did sweetie put these in by mistake? We should return them to her tomorrow," Wen Qing sighed softly.

"No, this is our daughter’s way of being a good daughter. She probably thought we wouldn’t accept them, so she slipped ’em in. Hahahaha..." Su Shiming couldn’t help but laugh, chuckling.

"Ah, this kid. The shop has just opened, and she’s already giving us money. She’s sweet—too darn sweet," Wen Qing sighed, though she couldn’t stop smiling.

"Yes, our sweetie has really grown up. Let’s see how much she gave us," he said, opening the red envelopes.

Each had two hundred bucks inside.

"Sweetie gave us too much!" Wen Qing gasped upon seeing the money.

"Ah, I, old man Su Shiming, never figured I’d see the day my kid supported me."

They remembered clear as day how Su He was before.

But damn if she didn’t turn things around.

"My embroidery is almost done. Once I'm done, I'll go to the shop with you to help our daughter. If the shop doesn’t need me, I’ll help her cook and cook for everyone. Su He can’t stay in the kitchen all the time, after all, right?"

Having cooked for the family for so many years, Wen Qing naturally knew how troublesome it was to prepare meals for an entire household.

Her daughter was juggling the shop, cooking, and childcare.

As a mother, she naturally wanted to help out.

"I don’t need money. Just let our daughter pay you your wages. Anyway, I don’t spend much normally." Wen Qing had already made up her mind.

Su Shiming thought for a moment and nodded in agreement.