Chapter 1

"Why haven't you come back yet? Didn't you say we'd watch a horror movie together?"

When Shu Yao received the message from Zhao Tiantian, she was trying hard to restrain herself from pouring the bowl of braised pork on the head of the man sitting opposite her.

The restaurant was bustling with people and chattering, but the corner by the window was suffocatingly quiet.

She thought that if she had committed a crime, she should be punished by the law.

Instead of letting her be tricked into a blind date with a greasy, ordinary man.

Shu Yao replied expressionlessly, lowering his head: [We're filming now. I'll show it to you when I get back.]

Zhao Tiantian: [? ]

As the question mark popped up, a voice with a teasing smile came from across the table.

"Ms. Shu, why is she always looking at her phone? It seems like I'm not as attractive as her phone."

"Ke Da"

The phone screen went dark.

Shu Yao raised his eyes and looked at the man opposite him.

The man looked to be about 200 pounds, and everything from his clothes to his shoes was adorned with conspicuous luxury brand logos. His gaze was blatant, without any concealment.

Shu Yao is a person who believes in first impressions, and this man in front of her, from the very beginning, when his eyes seemed unintentional, but focused on her chest several times, she put him on the list of "no need to contact him a second time".

Therefore, she had no intention of wasting any more time.

She maintained her composure and said in a gentle voice, "Mr. Li, if I had known that this dinner was a blind date, I would have turned my aunt down from the start. I don't know how my aunt introduced me to you, but I'm not interested in blind dates, so I won't waste your time."

The man didn't look angry at all, fiddling with the gold ring on his hand: "Do you have someone you like?"

"No."

"Then why are you so against blind dates? My mom said, you've never been in a relationship before? Then you should get to know more people of the opposite sex." He looked like a seasoned veteran, his eyebrows raised slightly, and his tone meaningful, "Do you know what happens to a woman who lives without a man for a long time?"

Shu Yao frowned silently. The implicit hint in Li Chengwei's words made her impression of this strange man plummet.

She answered sincerely, "I'll be happier."

Shu Yao's appearance, just like her surname, looks comfortable, with small features and skin whiter than snow. She is like an elegant magnolia, very beautiful but not aggressive.

Her red lips were slightly raised, and her long black hair fell softly in front of her chest. Even though she was bare-faced and wearing a rustic gray sportswear, she was still so beautiful that people couldn't take their eyes off her.

Li Chengwei tentatively "forgave" her coldness.

He picked up the kettle beside him and poured water for her. After he finished, he patted the back of her hand with an expression that said, "Don't be so stubborn." He said, "That's because you haven't tasted the joy of having a man."

Shu Yao didn't have time to dodge, so she suppressed her displeasure and wiped the place where he had hit her with a wet towel under the dining table.

"How does Mr. Li know that I haven't tasted it?"

Li Chengwei's smile froze for a moment, but he quickly returned to normal: "Ms. Shu, how many have you dated? Too many will lower your impression of him."

Shu Yao originally thought that even if she was deceived into a blind date, if the other party did nothing wrong, she should give him appropriate respect. After all, the other party might not know the truth.

But Li Chengwei's words and his previous behavior made her feel that it would be better not to give him this respect.

"Mr. Li, don't you think it's too offensive to ask such a question on the first meeting?"

"Sorry, I'm a straightforward person." Li Chengwei took a sip of coffee, frowned, and put it down with disgust. "If you're curious about me, you can ask me directly. But men and women are different after all. If a man lives to 33 and has no ex-girlfriends, it's not normal, right?"

"I'm not interested in Mr. Li's love history." Shu Yao asked gently, "Can Mr. Li cook?"

"No," Li Chengwei said as a matter of course, "Cooking is usually done by women."

"That's such a shame." Shu Yao folded the wet wipes in her hand and placed them on the corner of the table. "I just want to find someone who is handsome, rich, and loves to cook. Every day when I come home, there will be a delicious meal waiting for me. How happy that would be."

"..." Li Chengwei was silent for a moment. "It's okay. Our family doesn't lack this little money. We can just hire a few chefs when the time comes. Not to mention you, even if we have five or six children in the future, we can still take care of them. Oh, and Miss Shu, do you like children?"

"dislike."

"It's okay. You'll like it after you give birth. My mom says all women are like that."

Shu Yao closed his eyes, unable to bear it any longer, and decided to give up his composure: "Then does Mr. Li like being cuckolded?"

"What do you mean?"

"It doesn't matter if you don't like it. Maybe you'll like it after wearing it. You can find someone else to try it on."

The smile on Li Chengwei's face disappeared without a trace.

No matter how beautiful her face was, it couldn't save his negative impression of Shu Yao at the moment.

He grabbed his phone and stood up, revealing his beer belly, which had been hidden by the dining table. "My mom said you were gentle and lovely, so I was willing to take the time to meet you. I didn't expect you to be so selfish and uncultured. There's no need to talk anymore. You come from a single-parent family with average conditions. You just rely on your looks, what a bunch of shit."

"Mr. Li is too modest. I can't fit in..." Shu Yao's eyes swept over his huge beer belly from top to bottom. Finally, he smiled slightly and uttered a word meaningfully, "You."

Li Chengwei turned and walked away cursing.

Regardless of what storm might happen later, at least at this moment, Shu Yao felt pretty good.

She had never encountered anything strange in her daily work, but today was an eye-opener for her as she saw the diversity of life.

The dishes on the table were barely touched.

Shu Yao adhered to the principle of being here since he was already there, so he ate leisurely and then slowly walked to the subway station.

It was late at night, and the pedestrians who had been running around all day were exhausted. There were many people in the subway, but it was very quiet. Some were playing with their mobile phones, while others were closing their eyes to rest.

Shu Yao found an empty seat and just sat down when he saw two messages on his phone that his aunt had sent him five minutes ago.

Yaoyao, I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have left you alone, but I also wanted to create space for you. Your mom told me you're almost 26 and asked me to help find a suitable boy. She urged me several times. This time, it just so happens that my sister's sister's friend's son is a good guy. I heard he's a good guy. Although he's a little older, he's tall, comes from a well-off family, and is filial.

"I know you young people don't like this kind of blind date format, but you also have to understand your mother. It's okay to be 26 in Fuchuan, but in your mother's town, a 26-year-old girl who's not married is already going to be talked about. Don't put too much pressure on yourself, just treat it as making friends, okay?"

Shu Yao suddenly understood the marketing logic of the matchmakers.

A tall figure does not necessarily mean tall, but is most likely fat.

Being filial does not necessarily mean a person has good character, and he is most likely a mama's boy.

Shu Yao didn't know how to respond. She could act without any scruples in front of Li Chengwei, but some things, once labeled "I'm doing this for your own good," became difficult to deal with.

She simply gave up.

Under pressure from her mother, she had added several boys on WeChat, but after chatting a few times, she politely declined and never met them.

After this incident today, I’m afraid her life will not be so peaceful anymore.

My mind was in a mess, and my heart felt like it was being pressed down by a ball of cotton, making it hard to breathe.

Shu Yao let out a long sigh, and noticed out of the corner of his eye that someone hurriedly walked in a few seconds before the subway door closed.

She was immersed in her troubled thoughts and didn't pay any attention at first, until a familiar piece of gray trouser leg appeared in her sight.

There are two thin white edges on the sides of the gray sweatpants, exactly the same as the pants he chose today.

Shu Yao stopped fiddling with his phone and slowly moved his gaze up from the other person's trouser leg.

A pair of long legs, wrapped in brand new sweatpants, followed by a right hand with distinct joints and slender fingers holding a mobile phone, straight shoulders, and wearing an ordinary sportswear, she looks like a street model.

She should have had the leisure to appreciate it, Shu Yao thought, if they hadn't worn the same clothes.

She raised her eyes pretending to be calm, but the moment she saw the other person's face clearly, she was stunned.

Shen, Shen Ye?

I don’t know if he noticed someone was watching him, but the boy also looked over.

One lowered his head, the other raised his head, and the two looked into each other's eyes from a distance that was neither far nor near.

Compared with seven years ago, Shen Ye's facial features have become more angular, with thin lips, a high nose bridge, and the contours of his eyebrows and eyes seem to have been carefully carved.

His left hand was in his sweatpants pocket, and his eyes were cold and indifferent, yet also a bit lazy.

That’s great, Shu Yao thought. I don’t know what kind of job he does, but he still looks so young. Unlike her, she is in her twenties but has the mental state of a forty-year-old.

But that's not the point. The point is, isn't this scene a bit awkward? Should she take the initiative to say hello?

When Shu Yao was struggling, he withdrew his gaze first and seemed not to remember her.

Who wouldn't say this is someone's "survival after a disaster"?

Shu Yao instantly lost half of his psychological burden.

There was only one empty seat in the carriage, next to her.

He quickly came over and sat down.

Once she treated him as a stranger, Shu Yao no longer cared so much and her eyes fell back on the phone in her hand.

After four stops passed peacefully and silently, the subway passed through the city center with the heaviest traffic and slowly stopped.

"Make way, make way——"

Someone sitting four seats away from Shu Yao stood up, pushed through the crowd in the aisle, and walked towards the door.

The man had a crew cut, black-framed glasses, and was about 1.9 meters tall.

Look familiar?

If she remembered correctly, this seemed to be Liu Yang, the sports committee member of Shen Ye's class back then.

What’s going on? Is there a Fuchuan No. 3 Middle School alumni reunion in the subway tonight?

Shu Yao thought speechlessly.

However, she and Liu Yang were not as familiar as she and Chen Ye at the beginning, so Liu Yang should remember her even less.

Just as she was taking it for granted, Liu Yang, who had already passed in front of Shu Yao, suddenly seemed to realize something, took two steps back, and exclaimed in surprise:

"Oh my god! Chen Ye, Shu Yao?!"

The subway was not very noisy, so his voice immediately attracted many people's attention.

But Liu Yang didn't realize it. After looking back and forth between the two of them, he exclaimed enthusiastically, "Oh my God, you two are still together? Your couple outfits are so romantic! I believe in love again!"

Shu Yao: “……?”

Where's the romance?

What do you believe in?

No, how could it be “returned”?