Huh? Wait, wait, wait???

Isn’t that Su Man?

Wu Xinghai had been intimidated by Su Man since childhood — how could he possibly be having dinner with her? Looking more carefully, the angle of the photo was peculiar, and the distance somewhat far. It was clearly a candid shot. So the man dining with Su Man was definitely not Wu Xinghai.

Unfortunately, the angle of the photo only showed the man’s back and the back of his head…

Li Li’s mind stirred with suspicion: Where did Su Man meet this man?

Another message came in:

[Wu Xinghai: I ran into Su Man at a Western restaurant by the Bund! I’m keeping an eye on her for you! Loyal enough, right?]

Li Li was thoroughly exasperated. He replied:

[Li Li: Why are you watching her? Who she has dinner with has nothing to do with me.]

[Wu Xinghai: Nothing to do with you? Since when did you two break up?]

[Li Li: Get lost! I’ve always been one of the Research Institute’s outstanding single young men, okay?!]

[Wu Xinghai: Oh, my mistake then.]

Li Li frowned and stared at the word “mistake” for a moment. After a while, he moved his fingers, pulled up the photo from earlier, and zoomed in to look at it more carefully.

He’d run into her at the entrance earlier and, seeing how formally she was dressed, had assumed she was attending a dinner banquet. It turned out it wasn’t a banquet at all — it was a date…

In front of him, she was always fierce and sharp, but in this photo she was smiling so sweetly. Someone who didn’t know her would probably take her for a refined, elegant young lady from a prominent family. But in reality?

Tch. What a shrew.

As Li Li kept thinking about it, a vague irritation stirred in his chest without explanation. He put down his phone, lay on his bed for a while, and the more he thought about it, the more annoyed he became. He picked up his phone again to look at the photo.

He stared at the photo and grumbled inwardly: You’ve got some nerve, Su Man. Whenever I chat a little too long with some girl, you give me the cold shoulder. And now you just quietly slip off to go on a date with some guy? Where did you even meet him? Does he know what kind of person you are? Could it be that your parents set you up with him?

At that thought, Li Li paused slightly, a little stunned.

He knew Su Man well. Other than work, she trained. She didn’t even have Weibo on her phone, let alone any of those messy social apps for meeting people. So she had virtually no channel through which to meet men. But if an elder had introduced them… that possibility was very real.

Li Li’s mood became, subtly, just a touch… complicated.

If Su Ba and Su Ma had really arranged a blind date for Su Man… then it meant they didn’t think Su Man would end up with him. Otherwise, there would be no reason to introduce her to someone else.

—

In truth, Li Li himself hadn’t figured out what he wanted either.

He’d always found the childhood engagement thing ridiculous to even say out loud. He had no plans to date anyone right now — at the very least, he’d wait until he finished his doctorate before considering marriage and romance.

Was the Su family really in that much of a hurry?

Setting up a blind date when she was only 23?

Li Li found it utterly incomprehensible.

He wanted to call Su Man and ask her about it, but that felt like it would be beneath him. He decided to just forget about it and go to sleep with his head buried.

But someone wasn’t going to let him sleep.

Just as Li Li was finally drifting off, Wu Xinghai called again, the ringtone going on and on without stopping.

“What now?!” Li Li answered, irritated.

“Big discovery!” Wu Xinghai’s voice crackled with the excitement of someone chasing gossip. “Su Man and that guy just left the restaurant. Guess how they left?”

Li Li was completely done. “How did they leave? On their feet, obviously.”

“Hey, you’re no fun at all. I’m telling you, they took a rideshare! Get it now?” Wu Xinghai said. “That man — no car! All dressed up like he’s something, but turns out he’s flat broke. Aren’t your families close? You should tell Su Man’s parents, so that tomboy doesn’t get taken advantage of.”

Li Li laughed coldly. “Aren’t you the helpful one.”

“Well, we all grew up in the same compound.” Wu Xinghai chuckled. “I can’t just watch her jump into a fire pit, can I?”

—