Chapter 5: You Matched with the Wrong Person

She ran off like the wind. Lu Jingchuan glanced down at the clothes thrown at his feet and, before Wang Xiuhong and the others could crawl over to retrieve them, addressed the crowd: “These clothes and shoes, twenty yuan. Anyone want them?”

“No selling!”

Li Cuihua and Wang Xiuhong shouted in unison, rushing over in a panic to grab the clothes. However, Lu Jingchuan wasn’t going to give them a chance and repeated, “Twenty yuan, take everything.”

The outerwear they were wearing was all new. The cost of buying fabric and cotton at the supply and marketing cooperative exceeded twenty yuan. Plus, there were other warm clothes and two pairs of cotton shoes. This price wasn’t high at all.

Among the crowd of onlookers, a woman took interest and responded, “I’ll take them.”

The transaction was swift. Holding a pile of clothes and shoes, the woman walked away amidst the hysterical shouts of Li Cuihua and Wang Xiuhong.

Lu Jingchuan also went to the hospital with his twenty yuan. He had taken a liking to Bai Linglong, admiring her bold and fierce spirit. The surprise his aunt had arranged for him needed to be handled carefully.

When he arrived, Bai Linglong was talking to Dr. Wei about the surgery costs. Seeing her pleading with the doctor to save her mother and promising to complete the payment by tomorrow, he immediately intervened, “Doctor, I’ll cover the expenses. Proceed with the surgery.”

“Who are you?” Dr. Wei hadn’t seen him before.

“You don’t need to ask who I am. Tell me how much, and I’ll go pay now,” Lu Jingchuan replied directly.

“Two hundred.”

Lu Jingchuan nodded. He took out a wad of money from his pocket, counting over 120 yuan, plus the 20 yuan from selling clothes, and handed it all to Bai Linglong.

“Arrange for Auntie to go into the operating room first. I’ll go back to my aunt’s house to get more money. I’ll be back in five minutes.”

Without waiting for Bai Linglong to thank him, he hurried off.

Seeing that she could gather the money needed, Dr. Wei wasted no time and instructed the nurses to take the patient to the operating room.

Lu Jingchuan returned in less than five minutes. Bai Linglong was at the payment window. He immediately handed her the hundred yuan he had borrowed in a rush from his aunt. “Linglong, use this money for now. Keep the remainder after paying for the surgery.”

He had truly come to her aid in her hour of need, moved by the situation. “Thank you,” she said.

“No need to thank me.”

Although Lu Jingchuan’s face showed no emotion, there was a hint of a smile in his deep eyes.

Bai Linglong completed the payment and finished her tasks there. It dawned on her that amid dealing with her family, she had neglected her arranged blind date with him. Even someone as thick-skinned as her felt a bit embarrassed, smiling awkwardly, “My messy family affairs must have amused you.”

“It’s okay. Every family has its troubles.”

Lu Jingchuan understood. Though a city dweller, many of his comrades came from rural backgrounds, and he had heard all sorts of bizarre stories. Families like the Bai’s were not uncommon.

The two waited outside the operating room. Despite Bai Linglong’s change in attitude, her body was still that of the original owner, influenced by her memories. She was deeply worried about her mother’s safety, pacing nervously at the door.

“Linglong, where is your mother injured?” Lu Jingchuan asked.

“Her head.”

Bai Linglong pointed to the right side of her own head. Her expression changed when she spoke about it, her face full of resentment. “My scumbag father had an affair during the marriage, hooked up with the daughter of a dead man in a leadership position, and came back this New Year to force my mother to divorce. She probably guessed he was seeing someone else back then and didn’t agree.”

“The scum of the Bai family wants to climb up and live a good life. They’ve been trying to force my mother all day. Yesterday, I got into a fight with them. They outnumbered me, and I neglected to protect my mother. She got hit in the head by Old Granny Bai and started bleeding heavily, passing out right away.”

“How are you going to deal with your scumbag dad and your family?” Lu Jingchuan had just met her, but he understood her temperament. She wouldn’t let the other side off easily.

“He’s heartless, so don’t blame me for being unkind,” Bai Linglong replied coldly.

She had inherited all the memories of the original owner, including her resentment towards Bai Jianren. Last night’s argument had also worn down her last trace of affection for her father.

Even if she hadn’t taken over the original owner’s body today, with the original’s bold and vengeful character, she would eventually have made life difficult for the scumbag.

Lu Jingchuan understood now. She had no feelings for her father or anyone else in her family. Right now, she had to stay here to take care of things.

Suddenly, he remembered something and asked her, “Linglong, your mother is waiting here for surgery. Why did you go on a blind date?”

At this point, Bai Linglong looked embarrassed and explained honestly, “I didn’t have any money on hand. My mother urgently needed two hundred yuan for surgery fees. My aunt introduced me to a match, saying there was a dowry of two hundred yuan, which was just enough for the surgery fee, so I went.”

Lu Jingchuan looked surprised, almost incredulous, frowning in suspicion. “My aunt said that?”

Just as Bai Linglong was about to reply with “yes,” a middle-aged woman who had urged her to go on the blind date hurried over, clattering loudly. Even from a distance, Bai Linglong could feel the anger on her face, her high-pitched voice filled with dissatisfaction.

“Miss Bai, didn’t you agree to go on a blind date with me this morning?”

“How could you go back on your word? Are you deliberately playing me for a fool?”

“I helped you out of goodwill. How could you deceive me like this?”

Bai Linglong was dumbfounded. “But I did go.”

“You went?”

The middle-aged woman had rushed up to her, glanced at Lu Jingchuan nearby, and rattled off, “You went? Then why was that surname Pan boasting and bragging in front of me just now, saying Comrade Lu was on a blind date with her niece?”

“Surname Pan? Niece?”

A flash of fire lit up in Bai Linglong’s mind, and she had a wild guess. Pointing at her, she asked Lu Jingchuan, “Is she your aunt?”

“No,” Lu Jingchuan shook his head.

Bai Linglong’s pupils contracted, nearing the truth. She pointed at Lu Jingchuan and asked the middle-aged woman, “The person you introduced me to, isn’t he?”

“No,” the middle-aged woman also shook her head.

Bai Linglong was now speechless, her face constantly changing expressions. Her neck was stiff, and she said, “Auntie, you said you were introducing me to someone wearing black clothes and black pants, a tall guy, handsome and in his twenties, with the surname Lu, matching him perfectly. I went on a blind date with him this morning.”

Now it was the middle-aged woman’s turn to be dumbfounded, staring at Lu Jingchuan fixedly, her voice sharp and breaking, “You went on a blind date with her? Your surname is Lu too?”

“Yeah, Lu, like the land,” he replied.

Lu Jingchuan now understood. The matchmaker had introduced the man sitting next to him to Bai Linglong, but the information given matched him as well. That’s why Bai Linglong mistook the person.

Now he was somewhat relieved. It was good that she mistook him. That guy whatever Qing and Pan Jinlian were quite a match, a perfect couple made by heaven.

While he was sighing with emotion, the middle-aged woman was slapping her thigh and complaining, “Miss Bai from the Bai family, the comrade I introduced has the surname Lu, like the railway Lu, not the land Lu. You matched with the wrong person.”