Chapter 481 - 480: New Store Renovation Progress

Seeing Lu Yunque had followed her out, Yun Zijin frowned slightly. "Why did you come out too?"

"I only came here to see you. Since you left, I naturally had no reason to stay."

Lu Yunque was being completely honest, with no intention of lying to Yun Zijin.

"But I have to get back to the Wangyou Milk Tea Shop soon to meet Tongtong. We have to go out for something."

She might not have a formal job, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t busy.

Yun Zijin owned countless properties. Finding something for herself to do was the easiest thing in the world.

"Wherever you’re going, I can be your personal driver for the day."

Lu Yunque wasn’t demanding that Yun Zijin spend one-on-one time with him. As long as he was with her, he felt like the world was a more beautiful place.

"...Alright, then. You can drive my car and be our chauffeur?"

Although Lu Yunque’s Rolls-Royce Phantom was plenty comfortable, Yun Zijin preferred her "Randomly Spend" brand minivan.

"Deal. I’ll have my driver take my car back, and I’ll drive yours."

Lu Yunque had been curious about Yun Zijin’s "Randomly Spend" minivan ever since he first saw it, but today would be his first time driving it.

With Lu Yunque driving, Zero One sensibly took the front passenger seat, while Yun Zijin sat alone in the back.

It took Lu Yunque less than an hour to drive from the convalescent home to the entrance of the Wangyou Milk Tea Shop.

By then, it was lunchtime. Yun Zijin went into the shop to get Qin Sitong. They clocked out, grabbed lunch nearby, and only then drove to Xinghua Street.

A surprised expression crossed Lu Yunque’s face when he heard the two women say they were going to Xinghua Street.

"I knew you were opening a branch, but I didn’t expect you’d be opening it on Xinghua Street of all places."

Clearly, Lu Yunque knew what kind of place Xinghua Street was.

"It just so happened that the lease on one of the shops over there was up, and the tenant wasn’t renewing. We went to take a look, decided the storefront met our expectations, and locked it in. It saves us on rent, too."

Yun Zijin was easygoing about most things, but making her pay rent was like pulling teeth.

’Her! The most famous landlady in Dijing, actually having to pay rent to open a shop? Impossible! Absolutely impossible!’

Even if there hadn’t been a suitable storefront available, Yun Zijin would have made one available.

"That’s true. Our little Dijing landlady isn’t the type to pay rent to anyone."

Lu Yunque seized the opportunity to tease Yun Zijin, and was rewarded with a glare.

When they arrived at the branch on Xinghua Street, the people from the design studio and the renovation crew were already there. Seeing Yun Zijin and Qin Sitong, the whole group greeted them enthusiastically.

"Our two young bosses are here! We’re just on our lunch break now. Feel free to ask any questions. If you see anything you’re not happy with, just point it out, and we’ll get it fixed right away."

Eager to build their reputation and make a name for themselves with this project, the studio and their construction team were taking their work very seriously, especially when it came to selecting materials.

Lu Yunque wasn’t a professional in the field, but the Lu Group was involved in real estate development and had several renovation teams on its payroll.

When he first started at the Lu Group, Lu Yunque had spent time on construction sites, observing both new builds and renovation projects.

He would observe carefully during inspections, identifying and resolving issues.

So, in this regard, Lu Yunque could be considered a semi-pro.

"Want me to take a look for you?"

Lu Yunque volunteered, not wanting to see Yun Zijin get ripped off.

"You know what to look for?"

After all this time together, Yun Zijin never knew Lu Yunque had such a skill.

"A little. I can spot most of the common problems."

Before becoming CEO of the Lu Group, Lu Yunque had also spent some time working at the ground level.

This was one of the reasons his position as CEO of the Lu Group was so secure.

It was because he had not only operated at the executive level but had also delved deep into the company’s grassroots—understanding how the work actually got done—that he could be so thorough when making decisions.

"An expert, are we? Go ahead, check whatever you like. We’re doing this to build our reputation, so our materials are absolutely top-notch."

Mr. Zhou had taken to inspecting the site daily. Today, he happened to be there when Yun Zijin’s group arrived, and he hurried over when he heard Lu Yunque offering to help inspect the work.

Of course, Lu Yunque wasn’t going to take him at his word. He began his inspection in earnest.

"This area here—you should change the material. It’s a high-traffic spot where a lot of people will be putting their hands. A mirrored surface will be covered in fingerprints. It’ll leave a bad impression on customers and won’t look good.

"Not unless you have someone stationed here at all times, wiping it clean the moment it gets smudged."

But that was obviously impossible. Things in the shop would be busy enough; how could they spare someone to stand guard just to wipe down the ordering counter?

Lu Yunque did a walkthrough and raised several other points. Although Yun Zijin and Qin Sitong were laymen, after hearing Lu Yunque’s explanations, they felt he was right.

"I didn’t realize you’d be bringing an expert with you today. It’s quite intimidating, I must say."

Mr. Zhou had initially thought Lu Yunque was just trying to show off in front of the two women, but he never expected him to actually find so many legitimate issues.

Besides, his points were very professional. Even if you didn’t like it, you couldn’t deny he was right.

As a result, much of the permanent fixtures they had already installed had to be torn out and redone.

If Yun Zijin and Qin Sitong hadn’t been paying so well, there would be no way they’d agree to do this much rework.

The issues Lu Yunque raised weren’t actually problems under normal circumstances; he was just pointing them out to be on the safe side and take preventative measures.

Even if they hadn’t done the rework, the project would have passed final inspection without any issues, as it definitely met all safety standards.

Even if the quality control inspectors came, they wouldn’t find any violations.

Of course, since the client was paying well, they had no complaints about the rework.

However, now that Mr. Zhou knew Yun Zijin had an expert on her side, he became much stricter when supervising the crew’s craftsmanship.

It wasn’t enough to just meet the national standard anymore; now, they had to meet Mr. Lu’s standard.

Otherwise, if he pointed it out during the final inspection, the reputation their studio had spent so long building would be ruined in an instant.

After inspecting the branch renovation, Yun Zijin was generous with her praise for Lu Yunque on the way back. "You were amazing today.

If you hadn’t pointed out those issues, we never would have noticed them.

I’m surprised a company with such a good reputation would try to cut so many corners."

Yun Zijin was very glad she had brought Lu Yunque to the branch. Otherwise, they would have likely gotten badly ripped off on this renovation.

"It’s not really about being ripped off. Their work is considered acceptable by industry standards.

"They just stick to the bare minimum safety standards instead of striving for the best quality.

"If you have any more renovation projects in the future, just come to me. The Lu Group has a few renovation teams on retainer. Their work is decent, and I can get you a discount."