?Chapter 348:


    “I’m sorry, but I can’t help you. You’ll need to look elsewhere,” Rachel replied clearly and firmly.


    Natalia was momentarily disheartened. “Why? I was hoping you would help. I know you’re the only one who could help me win. No one else understands Brian as well as you do. You know what he likes, what he needs. Your support would make my pursuit much more effective.”


    Rachel stood her ground. “I really can’t assist you.”


    Natalia didn’t press further after her initial request was declined. “Okay, but expect me to reach out. Could you save my contact? We should add each other on Messenger too,” Natalia suggested, pulling out her phone.


    “There’s no need for us to connect on Messenger, Miss Carpenter.”


    “I told you, just call me Natalia. We aren’t rivals now. Perhaps we’ll even be allies one day. Allies should definitely stay connected through Messenger.”


    Despite Natalia’s persistent urging, Rachel reluctantly agreed to add her on Messenger.


    Once they connected, Natalia quickly flooded Rachel with a series of emojis. Through her choice of emojis, Natalia came across as endearing and yful.


    “I’ve been meaning to ask, what is it about Brian that you find appealing?” Rachel suddenly asked.


    Natalia began to respond. “It’s because—”


    She stopped midway, yfully teasing, “You know what? I’ll keep that a mystery for now. Maybe I’ll share it next time. What about you? When did you start falling for him? Has it been longer than me?”


    Natalia appeared genuinely intrigued by the conversation, eagerly firing off one question after another.


    “That’s all in the past.”


    Rachel obviously preferred not to dwell on the past.


    Suddenly, a harsh voice erupted in the distance, eximing, “Where’s the manager? I need to speak to them now! Why on earth would they hire a retard here?” The word struck a nerve.


    Rachel instinctively turned around.


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    There was Jeffrey, standing meekly at a table, his head bowed in a clear sign of distress. His cheeks burned with shame as he bowed in humility, stammering, “I-I’m truly sorry, this is… this is all my doing.”


    Rachel felt a surge to intervene.


    Recalling Jeffrey’s plea, however, gave her pause. “Rachel, finding work is hard for someone like me, and keeping a job is even harder. Seeing me struggle or get scolded will hurt you, but I need to see if I can manage on my own. I don’t want to be a burden on you forever. Please, let me try.”


    With this memory, Rachel held back, her heart heavy with pain, yet she resisted the urge to step in.


    Meanwhile, the patron continued his tirade, “If you can’t even speak properly, how are you supposed to serve your patrons? If it’s a mental issue, you should be getting treatment, not making patrons ufortable by being here.”


    Jeffrey’s embarrassment deepened with each word.


    He had never been subjected to such humiliation in public.


    All he could do was keep apologizing, not knowing how else to respond. Meanwhile, the patron’s demeaning tone persisted. “Is the manager gone? Why is nobody addressing this?”


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