Chapter 2: Blind Date

Xu Shiqi sat leisurely in the restaurant.

The restaurant was on the second floor. Although the sun outside was blazing, it was blocked by bamboo blinds, and the air conditioning behind her made her feel very comfortable.

She checked her watch; it was exactly noon. Her seat today allowed her to see the entrance, so she could observe every person who came in. It wasn’t that she intended to watch them; she was just bored.

After counting the fourteenth person who entered, a man hurried in and looked up at the time on the restaurant wall, seemingly relieved. Xu Shiqi observed him, clicking her tongue inwardly. If he had been the seventeenth person to come in, she could have used it as an excuse to stay a few more minutes because it matched her name.

The man looked around and quickly found her.

“Miss Xu…?” he asked.

Xu Shiqi smiled.

“Sorry, I’m a bit late.” The man sat down, rolled up the sleeves of his shirt, and took the menu from the waiter who followed him. “Shall we order?”

Xu Shiqi raised her hand to the waiter, “Please bring a glass of ice water first.”

The man looked up, a bit surprised, then very pleased. When the waiter left, he formally apologized, “I’m very sorry for being late on our first meeting. I hope you don’t mind.”

“It’s okay.”

Xu Shiqi’s gentle tone made the man feel relieved from the rush. Drinking the ice water, he felt completely comfortable. He carefully asked about her preferred dishes and ordered a bottle of red wine.

While the waiter was opening the wine, Xu Shiqi’s phone rang. She made an apologetic gesture and walked over to the air conditioner to take the call.

“Seventeen, it’s Baohua.”

It had been more than ten days since Baohua’s wedding, so she should be on her honeymoon. Xu Shiqi curiously asked, “Where are you calling from?”

“We’re back,” Wen Baohua’s voice had a smile, “Xia Bang is busy, so we didn’t stay long. Where are you?”

“Me?” Xu Shiqi glanced back at the man who was looking at her, and laughed softly, “I’m doing something very mundane with a stranger.”

“Huh?” Wen Baohua was stunned, “Are you on a blind date?”

Xu Shiqi couldn’t help but laugh out loud. If this question was asked by Kuang Xiaoan, it wouldn’t have been so accurate: “You guessed right, but there’s no prize.”

Wen Baohua also laughed: “Perfect, I brought some gifts for everyone. Let’s meet at the usual place tonight. I don’t need a prize, just listening to your blind date story will be interesting enough.”

“Okay, I’ll be there.” Xu Shiqi hung up the phone and returned to the table, “Sorry about that…”

Xu Shiqi and her high school friends had regular monthly gatherings if they were in town. She had worked out of town for a while and hadn’t been able to attend for a long time, but she still remembered the place.

The nightlife started late, and as the city lights began to twinkle, it was time for their gathering. They had a regular private room in a famous bar, which was said to be owned by a relative of Wen Baohua.

When Xu Shiqi entered, the noise almost deafened her. A male classmate was howling a song like a wolf, and the high-quality soundproofing was the only thing tolerating the awful singing. Everyone else was already used to his howling, so she quickly adjusted.

As soon as she entered, someone pulled her to the sofa. It was Kuang Xiaoan, whose expression showed that Wen Baohua had likely already whispered in her ear. Kuang Xiaoan eagerly asked, “I heard you had a blind date today? How was it? What does the guy do? Is he coming tonight…”

“You’ve had too much to drink,” Wen Baohua lightly patted her shoulder, “Didn’t we agree not to bring plus-ones to our gatherings?” She turned to Xu Shiqi, “How about bringing him along tomorrow?”

During this break, Xu Shiqi had already been handed a drink and had taken two sips while greeting others. She turned back and smiled, “What were you talking about?”

“Don’t try to dodge!” Kuang Xiaoan squeezed in, knowing Xu Shiqi’s talent for evasion.

“No tomorrow, the date ended before lunch,” Xu Shiqi shrugged, answering truthfully.

After she took Wen Baohua’s call and returned to the table to apologize, the man quickly interrupted her.

“You’re not going to use a friend’s emergency as an excuse to leave, are you?”

Xu Shiqi paused, she was just being polite. However, since he mentioned it, she sincerely said, “I do have something to attend to, I apologize.”

The man looked disappointed. He had only made a joke he saw in a movie to lighten the mood, but she indeed had something to do. He tried to persuade her, “Even the most urgent matter can wait until after this meal.”

Xu Shiqi tilted her head slightly and smiled, “I don’t like men who are late. Really.”

With that, she left gracefully.

She didn’t care if the man was dumbfounded, angry, or annoyed afterward.

Kuang Xiaoan had long known Xu Shiqi’s pickiness, but still asked disappointedly, “What did he look like? Was the first impression that bad?”

“What did he look like?” Xu Shiqi tilted her head as she did earlier and smiled, “I forgot.”

The others, waiting to hear her “Seventeen’s Blind Date Tale,” dispersed in disappointment.

“Seventeen, don’t be the last girl in our class to get married,” a male classmate said, passing out cigarettes.

Xu Shiqi took one and lit it. After two puffs, she noticed Wen Baohua staring at her with eyes wide open. “What? Are you eager to get pregnant?”

Wen Baohua thought for a moment, then stepped back a little, resting her chin on her hand as she looked at Xu Shiqi: “I just can’t get used to the fact that you smoke.” Seventeen wasn’t a seductive woman, but her posture, with one hand holding the cigarette and the other supporting her elbow, had a certain… charm.

Kuang Xiaoan crossed her arms and sneered from the side, “She may look like a good woman on the outside, but inside, she doesn’t have a single bone that can stay still.”

Xu Shiqi smiled, “Anyway, there’s no one around me to inhale my secondhand smoke.”

Soft music was playing in the private room, and under the dim lights, Xu Shiqi’s words, though a bit lonely, carried an undeniable air of nonchalance.

Wen Baohua initially wanted to say something, but thinking about how she had just gotten married and might come off as wanting everyone else to hurry up and get married too, she decided against it.

Seeing her expression, Xu Shiqi smiled. Talking to her had this advantage: just a slight hint, and she would stop. On the contrary, Kuang Xiaoan was straightforward. She reached out and pinched out Xu Shiqi’s cigarette, glaring as she said, “This kind of harmful thing, you should do less of it. I think you should hurry up and find someone to take care of you.”

“I’m not harming anyone,” Xu Shiqi muttered. But she wasn’t addicted to smoking, so it was fine to extinguish it. There were many things in her life that, like a cigarette she couldn’t get addicted to, easily dissipated.

“It’s even worse to harm yourself,” Kuang Xiaoan continued to glare.

“That’s right,” Xu Shiqi nodded, “I won’t do anything that harms myself. Don’t worry.”

“You guys are too serious. Come on, let’s go drink…” A female classmate, who had evidently been drinking a lot with the guys, was already swaying. She grabbed Kuang Xiaoan and dragged her off—the latter being a formidable drinker, it was her turn to shine.

Wen Baohua smiled as she watched everyone fool around, as long as they didn’t end up as drunk as they did on her wedding night.

Xu Shiqi knew everyone’s temperament well, so she went out to order some things to sober them up. Just as she stepped out, her phone rang. Sighing, she answered it.

The yelling from the other side almost pierced her eardrum, so she had to hold the phone away.

“Xu, Shi, Qi… what fault did you find with him this time?”

“Mom,” Xu Shiqi said lazily, “He was late!”

“Late? He’s a busy man, and you insisted on scheduling it during rush hour. It’s cooler in the evening, but you made him run around in the heat at noon. I heard he was only a few minutes late. I bet you arrived early on purpose?”

A mother knows her daughter best. Xu Shiqi didn’t argue, simply acknowledging, “I hate people who are late. I don’t want someone like that!”

“Fine.” You could almost hear the gritting of teeth over the phone. “Next time I’ll arrange someone who won’t be late. Don’t find another excuse.”

“Okay,” Xu Shiqi replied obediently, “I’m not really that picky.”

But clearly, her words weren’t very convincing, as her mother snorted twice and hung up.

Xu Shiqi shook her head with a smile. Ever since she came back home, her mother had thrown herself into the task of finding her blind dates, even if it meant repeatedly failing. She was also determined to keep trying until she succeeded.

What excuse should I use next time… Xu Shiqi thought as she went downstairs.

When she returned to the private room, everyone had gathered around the coffee table, seemingly playing some new game.

The table had been cleared, even the previous wine stains were wiped clean, and a solitary wine bottle was spinning innocently on the table. Everyone’s eyes were fixed on the bottle’s mouth. Xu Shiqi watched two spins and immediately felt something was off. She tried to quietly slip away, but someone had already grabbed her. As expected, the bottle’s mouth pointed directly at her.

“I’m going to check if the drinks I ordered are here,” Xu Shiqi said, standing up gently.

She had the most persuasive voice in their class. When she spoke gently, it could melt anyone. However, after so many years, her classmates had developed some immunity—meaning this trick didn’t work anymore.

People on either side clamped her in place, making it impossible for her to move. Someone shouted, “Baohua just got married, she has the right to ask the question. Don’t let her run away.”

Wen Baohua hadn’t joined the game today but came over, holding back her laughter.

“Seventeen, I’m asking.”

Xu Shiqi looked helpless. She should have known better than to be curious. Curiosity killed the cat.

“…Um, what drink did you order just now?”

Everyone was stunned. Xu Shiqi cheered and hugged her, “Baohua, you’re the best.”

Naturally, no one wanted to know this answer, and seeing Wen Baohua waste her chance, everyone protested. During the commotion, Wen Baohua distributed the gifts she brought back from her honeymoon, handing them out to everyone. When she reached Xu Shiqi, she whispered, “I’ll let you off today, but I’ll still be interested in your questions next time.”

“Sure,” Xu Shiqi nodded generously. If it had been someone else today, by the game’s rules, she would have had to answer truthfully.

“Hearing you talk about blind dates, I wanted to learn a thing or two. My sister is even more troublesome than you, sigh!” Wen Baohua sighed.

Xu Shiqi thought for a moment and remembered Wen Baohua had only one cousin, who was her bridesmaid—a very thin girl.

“Not everyone needs a blind date. Isn’t it good for her to find love on her own?”

“Ah, let’s talk about it next time…” Wen Baohua hadn’t finished before being dragged into the game as punishment for not asking a challenging question earlier. This time, Xu Shiqi just stood on the sidelines watching the fun, determined not to participate again.