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Chapter 7: Blind Date
ᰔ No wonder I couldn’t get you to go out with me. ᰔ
“I’m quite realistic…” Shen Suhui slowly lowered her head. “Jiang Shiluo and I are completely different people. She’s warm and kind-hearted, a great friend, but as a partner, there will be a lot of friction. Anyone who stays around me for too long will eventually find me boring and uninteresting…”
“Shen Suhui.”
“Hm?”
“You’re not boring. You’re very cute,” Yu Ran said seriously. “Don’t belittle yourself. Though I don’t know what you’ve been through, your personality tells me that you’ve had a difficult time.”
“…Really?” Shen Suhui grinned, trying to smile, but couldn’t. She felt a bit bitter.
It was a kind of bitterness that couldn’t be explained, like she’d been wronged for a long time, like no one had cared for a long time, and suddenly someone came along and gently asked her what was wrong.
That person was Yu Ran.
She had liked her for over ten years, yearned for her for over ten years—the distant, unreachable Yu Ran.
“You should try to open yourself up to more people. You need a new life, to actively embrace the beautiful side of life…”
“As long as you actively seek and discover it, it will come.”
“…”
Shen Suhui moved her lips.
“We… we should go back,” Shen Suhui said. “We’ve been here too long. People might notice.”
“…Mm.” Yu Ran didn’t argue.
She wasn’t afraid of others noticing but was concerned about Jiang Shiluo. There would be many chances to be honest in the future, just not on this long-awaited birthday night.
—–
After that day, both of them were busy.
The coffee shop’s traffic was increasing, and Yu Ran often worked overtime. During this period, the most common message Shen Suhui received from Yu Ran was, “I’m too busy, can’t make it to your place for now.”
Shen Suhui knew Yu Ran was busy, but this sudden busyness made her uneasy. No matter how busy she was, Shen Suhui couldn’t help but overthink. The two weeks without seeing each other left her feeling very low.
—-
On Jiang Shiluo’s birthday night, Yu Ran had told her to try opening herself up, to accept new people and things. If she liked Jiang Shiluo…
What Yu Ran meant was, if she liked Jiang Shiluo, she could accept that, and she wouldn’t interfere.
Yu Ran could let her go, anytime, anywhere.
Since childhood, she had always been dispensable, and she had never known what it felt like to be truly needed.
Shen Suhui’s heart twisted, the churn of emotions making her feel nauseous.
This was a major symptom of depression, accompanied by a loss of appetite, cognitive sluggishness, and motor impairment… It had already severely affected her life. Shen Suhui closed the coffee shop, went to the hospital for a follow-up visit, and started a new round of medication.
She had originally thought she was healing well, but just a short time apart from Yu Ran had brought up the emotions buried deep inside her, sending her into another round of torment.
Shen Suhui suddenly felt hopeless.
—-
The First People’s Hospital was very large. Shen Suhui slowed down her pace as she got her medicine, hoping for a chance encounter. But why was it so difficult? Yu Ran had been back for a year now, and during this time, she had been to the hospital three times, and yet they hadn’t bumped into each other even once. All those coincidences in TV dramas were just fake.
The hospital was bustling with people coming and going, with green signs everywhere. Shen Suhui quietly sat on a chair after picking up her medication. To stabilize her emotions, she had purposely taken some Vitamin B before coming.
She stared absently at the signs for various departments, her gaze lingering on the “Orthopedics” sign when her thoughts were interrupted by a sudden phone call from Wang Lanzhi.
“Tonight, I’ve arranged a date for you with Xiao Jiang. The restaurant details will be sent to you later. You must go on this blind date.”
“Mom, I’m in the hospital.”
“In the hospital? Are you sick? Cancer?”
“No, it’s not cancer, I’m just sick…”
“As long as it’s not cancer, other minor illnesses can be fixed with money…” Wang Lanzhi impatiently interrupted, “You should go on this blind date properly. Xiao Jiang is wealthy, didn’t you say you had depression? Once you marry Xiao Jiang, your ‘wealthy illness’ will definitely be cured…”
“…”
Shen Suhui felt her mood becoming restless again.
“Alright.”
She had no energy to argue with Wang Lanzhi. Shen Suhui stayed in the hospital until 5:30 PM, confirming that she wouldn’t run into Yu Ran, and then went directly to the agreed meeting location.
—–
Yu Ran didn’t finish her surgery until 6:30 PM.
There had been so many surgeries these past few days that she had been in a constant state of numbness, but 6:30 was still considered early for her.
-yr: Finally done, I’ll come find you later.
She sat in the car, just fastening her seatbelt when Shen Suhui replied.
-14th Year: Sorry, I have plans tonight. The café is closed, let’s meet next time, okay?
Yu Ran paused, furrowing her brows. It wasn’t because Shen Suhui had plans, but because she always had such a cautious attitude.
-yr: Of course, no pressure. You can tell me anything.
The BMW SUV drove out of the underground parking lot. As Yu Ran was about to change lanes to head to the gym, the small group chat “Zhang Zhong F4” that hadn’t been active in a while sent new messages.
A red light ahead, Yu Ran stopped the car, her hand resting on the steering wheel as she looked at the screen.
-14th Year: Got it.
Yu Ran didn’t reply again. She felt that Shen Suhui had been avoiding her these past days.
She opened the four-person group chat.
-yr: Sure, when?
Lu Yushan: Tonight. Is that okay? Enlan has dinner with the shareholders in the Hua district tomorrow, so it can only be tonight.
-yr: Sure. What about you? @Officer Jiang
Officer Jiang didn’t reply, and the three of them agreed on a location. When they arrived, Officer Jiang finally responded in the group chat.
Yu Ran turned off the screen, parked the car in the underground parking lot, and then went to the agreed restaurant.
—-
Since high school graduation, she hadn’t been to this restaurant. It had a great atmosphere, and the four of them used to come here for afternoon tea, chatting and studying afterward.
The three of them met at the entrance of the mall. Lu Yushan was still as talkative as before. When she saw Yu Ran, she gave her a big bear hug, then held Zhang Enlan’s hand with her right hand, chattering away with her.
Yu Ran was a bit relieved that Officer Jiang couldn’t make it; otherwise, both her ears would have suffered.
“Since Officer Jiang isn’t here, I have no one to talk to. You two are so quiet.”
Zhang Enlan laughed: “You’re not saying we can’t listen, but Luoluo will respond, and you two end up arguing nine times out of ten.”
“Arguing is fine…” Lu Yushan reminisced, “It was so lively back then. Growing up, it’s not as fun…”
As they were talking, the three walked closer to the restaurant. Yu Ran immediately spotted the familiar figure by the window.
It was peak hours, and the waiters were too busy to notice the three of them.
Why was Shen Suhui here?
“Why aren’t you leaving?” Lu Yushan followed Yu Ran’s gaze, “Hey? Isn’t this the second class… what’s her name…” She racked her brain.
“Shen Suhui?” Zhang Enlan pushed her glasses up, “I think that’s her name. She was Luoluo’s good friend in freshman year, quite introverted.”
“How do you know she’s Officer Jiang’s friend?” Yu Ran asked.
Why does everyone around her know about the high school Shen Suhui, but she has no memory of her?
Zhang Enlan said, “Once, Luoluo told me. I asked her why she didn’t introduce us to her, and Luoluo said Shen Suhui liked peace and didn’t like socializing.”
“Hello, how many people are there, please…”
“Three, thank you.”
Yu Ran walked to the table behind Shen Suhui. Shen Suhui had her back to the entrance, and from this angle, Yu Ran could clearly see her date, a man around 35 years old, wearing glasses, slightly chubby, with dark skin.
Tonight, there was a date.
The words “Tonight, there’s a date” flashed through Yu Ran’s mind.
“Miss Shen, your mother has already told me about your situation. I’m a very loving husband…” The man spoke while tapping the table, “After marriage, you won’t have to work. I’ll sell the café, and you can stay at home, take care of the children. My financial situation can easily support you and the kids…”
“Sorry, Mr. Jiang, but the café is something I worked hard to build. I know how much hardship I endured in the past, and whether or not I marry you, I will never sell it.”
Facing this man, Shen Suhui’s tone was much firmer, and her voice carried a cool, spring-like chill.
“Miss Shen, I think women should know how to act coquettishly and soften up. That’s how men will like you…” Jiang You pushed up his glasses. “Besides, women live on their youthful years, right? Over time, they lose value. If you keep being this stubborn, no man will want you.”
After saying this, Jiang You’s gaze directly focused on Shen Suhui, who only exposed a small part of her neck due to the cold weather.
“Miss Shen has a nice figure and fair skin. Do you usually work out?”
“Shouldn’t… you be a virgin?”
“Perverted old man!!!” Lu Youshan angrily cursed. “Is Shen Suhui an idiot? Letting this greasy man insult her like that.”
“Should we go over?” Zhang Enlan said, “Shen Suhui seemed to have this kind of personality in high school.”
Lu Youshan stood up. “I’ll go over…”
“Wait.” Yu Ran said, “Let’s hear what this man has to say next.”
Lu Youshan angrily sat back down.
“Well, I have a good first impression of you. Your mother is a vampire, and before we even had a chance to talk, she was already eyeing the money in my pocket.”
Shen Suhui trembled. “What did my mom say?”
“What did she say?” Jiang You raised his head, thinking for a moment, before showing a mocking expression. “Oh, she said she doesn’t need money. For the dowry, she wants me to prepare a house and a car… Hmph, isn’t that asking for too much?”
“……”
Shen Suhui felt all the blood in her body turn cold.
“Marrying off a daughter to get a wife for a son—living in a family like that won’t make you happy. It’s better to marry me early. The industry I work in has great prospects, and I’m probably going to get a promotion by the end of the year. By then, I’ll get you more nannies. You’ll just need to have a few sons for me…”
Yu Ran could no longer listen to this. Hearing these words, she felt an unprecedented anger.
She really wanted to rush over, slap the man a few times, and throw red wine in his face to wake this arrogant man up.
But she had to keep calm. After all, this was just a normal blind date. Doing that wouldn’t be appropriate, and it might even lead to Shen Suhui getting scolded by her mother when she went home.
Yu Ran gently placed her hand on Shen Suhui’s shoulder, causing Shen Suhui to tremble, obviously startled. When she looked up, her eyes met Yu Ran’s smiling gaze, and in that moment, Shen Suhui felt her heart settle.
“Yu Ran, why are you…”
“I wondered why I couldn’t get ahold of you tonight. Turns out you came here for a blind date?” Yu Ran’s smile was graceful. “Sir, has your conversation ended?”
“Who are you?” Jiang You’s tone was dissatisfied.
“I’m her high school classmate. Two hours ago, I invited Shen Suhui to have dinner with us, but she said she already had an appointment and didn’t want us to book the same restaurant,” Yu Ran explained, motioning for Jiang You to look over. Lu Youshan and Zhang Enlan greeted them.
“If this is done, I’ll take Shen Suhui with me. After all, it’s been a long time since we last met.”
Jiang You said, “We haven’t finished talking. Why don’t you join us and share the table?”
“I think we’re done, Mr. Jiang,” Shen Suhui said. “We haven’t seen each other for years. I turned down their invitation tonight because of you, but you’ve repeatedly insulted me, and I’m very upset…”
She didn’t know how to fight back. Facing Jiang You’s verbal offenses, all she could say was that she was upset.
“But I…”
“Excuse me,” Yu Ran stood up. “I’ll take the bill for tonight’s dinner.”
She wrapped her arm around Shen Suhui’s waist and led her to their table, kindly helping Shen Suhui sit on the inside.
Jiang You’s face showed embarrassment, but he couldn’t do anything to stop them. He packed up his briefcase and walked away with a flushed face.