In a cafe in City C, Luo Anran looked at the clock on the wall. It was almost 10:30. Anian told her that the man would come at nine o'clock, but why didn't she see anyone?
Luo Anran was so anxious that she felt a little uneasy, but it was inappropriate for her to call the person who wanted to meet her today. Once she made a call, he would be bothered. Then... she couldn't get any money.
Biting her lower lip, Luo Anran waited quietly. Her coffee had cooled down, and the waiter had come a few times to give her a new cup. Until the clock's hand pointed at the number eleven, Luo Anran saw a man walking into the cafe holding a magazine in his hand.
The man was dressed in a black suit with a white shirt inside, his face cold. He was exuding a terrifying aura that told people to stay away from him. His dark eyes were shining with cold light, which made people dare not to look straight at him.
Was he the person she was supposed to meet today?
Luo Anran thought of what Anian had told her. He was the manager of a construction company. His job kept him busy running the projects here and there all year round. He was thirty-two this year and still single. Today, he made time to go back to City C, and then he would take this opportunity to meet Luo Anran.
The man looked younger than she had imagined, also more handsome. Perhaps this blind date wasn't a wrong decision.
Seeing the man walking towards her, Luo Anran was afraid that he couldn't recognize her. When he was about to approach her, she reached out and said hello to him.
Leng Jue looked at the woman who had just greeted him, his amber eyes shrinking. He just came back from the army today, and the old man had called him.
Was this the woman his old man wanted him to meet no matter what?
When he met Luo Anran's eyes, his indifferent eyes became even colder. She was neither good-looking nor well-shaped. It seemed his father's vision was getting really worse.
"Hello, my name is Luo Anran." Anran was afraid that the man would feel she was impolite, so she took the lead in reaching out to say hello to him.
Leng Jue's eyes swept from Anran's dirty fingernails to her face; then he turned around and sat down in front of her.
Anran felt a little embarrassed. Her hand was held out midair. She didn't know if she should withdraw her hand or wait for him to shake it.
In the end, Anran tucked her drooping hair behind her ear and said, "Anian's aunt must have talked to you on the phone. I'm from a single-parent family. I have a mother and a younger brother. If you want, we can get married immediately."
Hearing the word "married", Leng Jue frowned with displeasure, "What do you mean by immediately?"
Anran tried to figure out the meaning of his words. Thinking that he wanted to do it quicker, she answered, "Within a month..."
"Hmm?" Leng Jue's amber eyes suddenly turned cold.
Anran thought he was unsatisfied, so she asked tentatively, "How about half a month?"
Leng Jue sneered, his cold voice shuddery.
The man in front of her was so intimidating that Anran was a little scared. She gulped a few times and then suggested, "Mr. Wei, if you aren't satisfied with it, you can tell me your idea, and we can discuss it now."
Mr. Wei?
Leng Jue stared at her motionlessly. "Who told you my surname is Wei?"
Huh? His name wasn't Wei?
But Anian clearly told her that the man who was going on a blind date with her today was surnamed Wei.
Anran hadn't figured out that she had mistaken Leng Jue for someone else. The moment he heard her addressing him as Mr. Wei, he knew this confused-looking woman had mistaken him for someone else.
No matter how bad his father's judgement was, he wouldn't just go to the street and get him some random woman. However, he suddenly wanted to know what this woman would do next.
With a strange look in his eyes, Leng Jue lifted his head and waited for her to continue.
Anran hesitated for a long time. She felt that she might have remembered it wrong. After all, her call with Anian was ten days ago. And as she had a bad memory, it was likely that she had remembered his name wrongly.
"Could you please tell me what was your name again?" Anran asked earnestly.
Having served in the military for a long time, he hadn't spoken as many words as he did today. However, he didn't mind spending a while here with this woman. If he had returned early, his old man would know that he hadn't seen the woman whom he had arranged for him today.
Looking at the watch on his wrist, Leng Jue said, "My last name is Leng."
His last name was Leng?
Anran nodded without contemplating. She bit her lip, "Mr. Leng, do you think I'm different from the person in the photo? I know that I'm not beautiful or elegant. But if we get married, I'll take good care of my parents-in-law. You don't have to worry about that."
Anian told her on the phone that Mr. Wei... No, it was Mr. Leng's parents who weren't in good health and that there was no one to take care of them. If she told him these words, she should be able to relieve his worries.
Take good care of her parents-in-law... Leng Jue's eyes reflected her image, assessing her. He hadn't looked at her carefully before, and he only thought that she wasn't outstanding. But now, it seemed she had something worthwhile.
Anran had bright and creamy skin with exquisite facial features. When her clear eyes looked at people, they seemed to carry a sky full of stars. Her eyelashes were pretty long, her nose straight, and her pink lips like fruit jelly.
But she was wearing a plaid shirt and a pair of faded wash jeans, accompanied by a pair of canvas shoes. No matter how beautiful people were, wearing her current outfit wouldn't show any of their temperament.
"Luo Anran, right?" Leng Jue asked suddenly.
Anran's body went rigid. "Yes."
"How old are you?" Leng Jue asked again.
"I'm twenty-two," Anran replied.
"Have you graduated yet?"
"There's still seven months to go before graduation."
Leng Jue's slender finger gently tapped the coffee table. "You're only twenty-two years old, and you're rushing to get married. Are you so eager to experience the marriage life?"
Anran felt somewhat dejected, but soon she regained her composure. With her head held low, she said, "I'm sorry, this is my personal problem. I don't want to explain too much. If Mr. Leng has a good impression of me, we can continue to talk about getting married. Anian told me that you are also in a hurry to get married."
Oh yes, he was in a hurry to get married. But it wasn't his hurry. It was his father's!
Leng Jue suddenly wanted to know what she was hiding. She wanted to get married at the age of twenty-two. Did she want to hold the wedding ceremony together with the graduation ceremony?
Interesting.
Leng Jue's amber eyes flashed curiously. All of a sudden, he heard the sound of high heels tapping on the ground. He tilted his head slightly and saw a red-lipped woman in a tube top walking toward him.
Since Leng Jue didn't know this woman, he guessed she came to find Luo Anran, didn't she?
As he had supposed, the woman was here to see Luo Anran.
With the brand-new LV bag of this season in her hand, she walked to Anran in a few strides on high heels. Without saying anything, she took out the money bills from her bag and threw them at Luo Anran's face. "Take it. Don't you want the money? I'm begging you to stop looking for Liangchen in the future. You've been dating him for only a few months, and you think that you were once his girlfriend so you could go to the Fu family's villa to borrow his money? You don't need your face anymore?
"I'm really puzzled. Why did he associate with people like you? You pretend to be innocent every day but you are cheap to the bones!"
The thick stack of money hit Anran in the face. It didn't hurt her, but it was so uncomfortable.
She looked at the woman, took a deep breath, then said calmly, "Please don't insult me."
For some reason, Meng Lina felt amused. She snorted coldly, "Did I insult you? Didn't you go to the Fu family's villa and borrow money from Liangchen? Luo Anran, I really don't get it. You've always acted behind others' backs, and now you're acting proud and dignified. Aren't you tired of it?"
Something exploded in Luo Anran's head. Her ears were buzzing, and she could hardly control her emotions.
There weren't many guests in the cafe, but there were also quite a few of them. As Meng Lina's sharp voice reached everyone's ears, people began to point at her, whispering to each other.
Leng Jue, who was sitting in front of her, had his eyes darkened.
She tried to keep calm. "I'll pretend that you didn't say anything. Please, take your money back."
"Yo, yesterday you came to borrow money, and today you don't need it anymore?" Meng Lina smirked as she spoke. "I heard that you're going on blind dates every day. Do you want to find a man to rely on, or do you want to find a suitable person to sell yourself for a good price?"
She knew that Meng Lina didn't like her, but if she could remain calm hearing those words, she was a coward.
Anran slowly got up from her seat and stared at Meng Lina motionlessly.
"Don't look at me like that. I'm telling you, next time..."
Bam!
Before she could finish her sentence, Luo Anran slapped her. When she withdrew her hand, five clear fingerprints appeared on Meng Lina's face.
Feeling a burning pain on her left cheek, Meng Lina widened her eyes. She couldn't believe that Anran would hit her in front of so many people.
Her complexion instantly turned sinister. Just as she was about to return a slap to Anran, someone grabbed her hand.
Leng Jue had caught her wrist.
"Let go of me. I advise you to mind your own business!" said Meng Lina to Leng Jue sternly.
"Don't shout at me in that ear-piercing voice of yours. Also, I'm definitely going to take care of this small business." Leng Jue looked indifferent, and it seemed he didn't use much force to grab Meng Lina's arm.
She felt as though her wrist was about to be crushed. It hurt so much, but she didn't want to show weakness. "Do you know who I am?"
"Do I need to know?" asked Leng Jue.
As Leng Jue spoke, he used a little more force. Meng Lina could no longer remain calm. Her face turned pale as she struggled to bear the pain. "I'm telling you, my father is Meng Linsheng. If you dare to touch me, you'll definitely regret it for the rest of your life!"
