Chapter 4 Dreamland: I wouldn't agree to marry just anyone...

Zhou Jinqin later recalled that she must have been bewitched by Liang Minghe's appearance and voice. Under such an ambiguous invitation, she actually lost her guard and nodded.

At that time, she had no fear of invitations from the opposite sex; all she could think about was how to help the kitten withstand the hurricane that night.

Zhou Jinqin pointed to the cat clinging to her and tentatively asked, "Can I bring it with me?"

“Okay.” Liang Ming closed the umbrella and put it aside, then squatted down and stared at the wary cat.

"Put it in my bag."

He was referring to a large handbag with contrasting patchwork on both sides and the classic LV logo printed on the front. It must have been expensive, and now it was just casually placed on the concrete floor by the man.

He took out his tablet and earphones from his bag and handed them to Zhou Jinqin without any ceremony: "Then put my things in your bag."

Zhou Jinqin took the things but didn't move. She looked at the dirty cat with concern and asked, "Won't it get your bag dirty?"

"It's okay, just wash it clean if it gets dirty." Liang Minghe replied nonchalantly, then tentatively tapped the cat's head with his index finger. Seeing that the cat didn't resist or meow, he grabbed it by the armpit and scooped it into his bag.

The kitten nestled obediently in the bag, only half its head peeking out. Its eyes remained wary as it looked at Liang Minghe, but it showed no inclination to "escape."

Liang Minghe pinched its ear tips and laughed, "Luckily I bought the large size, otherwise this fat cat wouldn't fit."

As if the kitten understood, it pretended to bite the tip of his outstretched finger.

"Haha!" Liang Minghe laughed even louder. He picked out a rabbit from the pile of jingling plush toys clipped to his bag and put it on the cat's chest. "Alright, alright, sorry, this is your compensation."

The kitten sniffed the rabbit keychain, rubbing its head against the fluffy fur, seemingly quite satisfied. Liang Ming stared at it for a while before standing up.

She didn't know when he had taken apart a kitten keychain; the circular clasp was on his slender middle finger, and the kitten, swaying in the wind, was winking at Zhou Jinqin. Liang Minghe poked the kitten's face with his other hand and asked her, "Is this for you?"

Zhou Jinqin was stunned: "I don't need you to compensate me for anything."

Liang Minghe looked up at her and said, "I didn't mean to compensate you."

"Then what is this?"

"I just wanted to give it to you."

As if possessed, Zhou Jinqin took it and hung it on her bare bag.

Liang Minghe picked up the LV cat bag, tilted his head to look at her, and said, "Let's go."

Neither the person nor the cat struggled; they obediently followed a man they didn't know well to his home in the city center.

Liang Minghe's home is on the top floor of a high-end mansion. Perhaps because most of the non-load-bearing walls have been demolished, the area looks much larger than the 230 square meters he mentioned. However, it does not feel empty. Instead, it is filled with various art pieces and a series of strange and unusual objects.

The entryway cabinet is designed with a wave-like shape, the hooks are inverted lanternfish, the coasters are half a pearly seashell, and the cup is an inverted glass jellyfish head. Because it fits the curve of the coaster perfectly, it doesn't wobble.

In this home, records can be framed and displayed on the wall, paintings can be used as carpets, and vases can be wolves cloaked in wool...

There are no restrictions on the use of objects here; anything seems to be the theme.

Japanese-style solid wood? American retro? Neo-Chinese style?

The decoration of this house cannot be summarized by a specific style; rather, it is more like a magical art space full of childlike fun, a wondrous paradise in a dream.

Liang Minghe took a pair of crocodile-shaped slippers from the shoe cabinet and placed them next to Zhou Jinqin's feet, while he himself put on a pair of clownfish slippers with flapping fins.

He crouched down and laid the fat cat, which was trapped in the bag, on its back on the floor. His large, long paws naturally cupped the cat's belly and gave it a gentle rub. "For you doctors, my house must be pretty messy, right?"

It was indeed a bit different from what I had imagined; the home of this cool-looking man was surprisingly adorable, but it was by no means messy.

Zhou Jinqin looked at him and shook her head: "I'm no longer a doctor, you shouldn't hold me to the standards of a doctor anymore."

“Oh, right, I shouldn’t have held you to the same standards as a doctor.” Liang Minghe shrugged and smiled relaxedly.

The cat, forced to do several sets of sit-ups, finally broke free from the man's grasp. Liang Minghe clapped his hands, stood up, put his hands on his hips, and leaned closer to examine the messy plum blossom prints on Zhou Jinqin's clothes: "But, does your tolerance for stains increase after you stop being a doctor?"

Zhou Jinqin's white shirt, already splashed with water, was now even more unsightly after being rubbed by the dirty cat. She blushed a little at the teasing: "Could I use your bathroom?"

Liang Minghe nodded: "I suggest you take a shower. There's a dryer at home. You can wear my clothes in the meantime."

He emphasized, "Don't worry, they've never been worn before."

Zhou Jinqin did not refuse. Years of professional demands had long since shaped her into a germaphobe, and she really couldn't convince herself to continue being so dirty.

"It might take a while..." She hesitated, holding clean clothes, before stepping into the bathroom.

Liang Minghe was holding the cat high in the air, and the two of them tilted their heads to look at her: "How long? Will I be able to see you tomorrow?"

"It won't take that long..." Her face flushed even more from the teasing, "An hour will do."

"It's never too late to see you." Liang Minghe nodded, then said something inappropriate, "Go ahead, I'll wait for you."

The warm water poured over her head, washing away the confusion in her mind and clearing her head a little. Zhou Jinqin suddenly realized how reckless she had been tonight. Perhaps the other party was just having fun with her. With his superior conditions, what reason did he have to choose to marry such an ordinary stranger as her?

She didn't care about being labeled as dishonest; she had made up her mind that she would retract all her previous statements as soon as she left.

Zhou Jinqin quickly finished showering. As soon as she opened the bathroom door, she felt an extremely cold temperature seeping into her open pores.

Seeing her shivering, Liang Minghe pointed to the long men's down jacket hanging by the door: "You can wear that."

The down jacket was very long; Zhou Jinqin estimated that it reached her ankles, providing all-around protection against the cold.

But... he himself was clearly shivering from the cold.

Zhou Jinqin ignored the clothes rack designed as a giraffe doing a split and eating grass. Instead, she walked to the low table in the living room, picked up the remote control dressed as the God of Wealth, and adjusted the air conditioner, which was set at 16 degrees Celsius, back to the default setting of 26 degrees Celsius.

She said, "There's no need for that."

Even if she were completely unguarded, Zhou Jinqin couldn't possibly be completely at ease facing a complete stranger of the opposite sex, even though their relationship had progressed rapidly to the point of discussing marriage...

“Oh…” Liang Minghe glanced away awkwardly. He put the bag of cat food he had been holding up on the shelf, then stiffly changed the subject, starting to complain about the cat trying to climb up his lap. His tone was as helpless as could be, “The packaging recommends that a kitten of this weight should eat about 100 grams of cat food a day, but your cat has already eaten three 50-gram portions of mine, and it’s still meowing!”

While she was taking a shower, Liang Minghe bought all the necessary items such as cat bowls, cat food, and cat litter. He even wiped her dirty fur with pet wipes to make it barely clean.

Zhou Jinqin approached and petted the kitten. Her long eyelashes drooped slightly on her eyelids as she spoke softly, "It probably still thinks it's a stray and is afraid of not having enough to eat, so it takes every opportunity to eat to its heart's content."

She was wearing his cartoon short-sleeved shirt, and she looked so thin she seemed to float inside the shirt.

Liang Minghe gazed at her soft profile, half-hidden in the light, and spoke after a long while: "Now that its immediate problem has been solved, shouldn't it be time to address the problem between you and me?"

Zhou Jinqin knelt on the carpet, her delicate eyes lowered, and said apologetically, "What I said just now was inconsiderate. I'm sorry, please pretend I didn't say anything."

“But I took it seriously. I don’t think you said those things entirely on impulse.” Liang Minghe looked directly into her watery eyes. “I don’t think you would invite just anyone who walks past you to marry you.”

“But that’s not fair to you,” Zhou Jinqin mustered her courage to look him in the eye, “You don’t know me at all, do you?”

"I don't have outstanding looks, no house, no car, no money, and not even a job to make a living. How can someone like me be suitable to start a family?"

She spoke calmly, dissecting herself without any hesitation.

“If you think these are the necessities of marriage, then that’s perfect, I have them all,” the man said clearly.

Zhou Jinqin didn't expect that he wouldn't even offer a polite rebuttal, but instead would tell her so bluntly that everything would be ready as long as she wanted to.

She was lost in thought for a long time before she managed to gather her thoughts, her tone tinged with grievance: "Marriage is not a game, why are you making fun of me?"

Based solely on the information she has, Liang Minghe's financial situation, appearance, and personality give him a huge advantage in the dating market, so there seems to be absolutely no reason for him to fall for someone like her who has nothing.

But it seemed the other party was destined to fall for her. Liang Minghe picked up the jellyfish glass, took a sip of water, and became more serious: "I'm not kidding. I don't agree to just anyone proposing to me."

"As you just saw, I'm just as troubled by the pressure to get married as you are. If you're willing, we can team up to deal with our parents. Of course, if you want to take this relationship seriously, we can also try to live a simple life like any other couple."

Zhou Jinqin asked instinctively, "What if one day we can't make it anymore?"

“Then let’s part amicably.” His voice followed closely behind hers. “Don’t worry, I’m not the type to pester you.”

The dryer had finished its task and started singing. Before she could respond, Liang Minghe stood up and reached out his hand to her: "You can think about it carefully tonight. If you don't regret it, I'll pick you up and take you to the Civil Affairs Bureau tomorrow."

"My thoughts..." Zhou Jinqin unknowingly fell into his trap, "How can I tell you?"

Liang Minghe chuckled softly. Like a magician, with a snap of his fingers, he conjured up the slip of paper with her number on it from behind her head.

The small note, like a paper airplane, darted nimbly before her eyes with his beautiful fingertips: "It will come in handy."

The rain intensified at night, pounding haphazardly against the car. Zhou Jinqin leaned against the car window, her mind a complete mess.

The car quickly stopped outside her hotel. As she unbuckled her seatbelt, Liang Minghe casually leaned towards her and asked, "What color clothes are you wearing tomorrow?"

He asked her questions with complete nonchalance, as if he had no recollection that she was still in the consideration stage.

Zhou Jinqin was taken aback, then turned to him and asked, "How can you be so sure I'll go tomorrow?"

Liang Minghe sat up straight, his head resting on the back of the chair, his sharply defined face half-hidden in the darkness. Instead of answering, he asked, "Will you regret it?"

Zhou Jinqin paused for a moment as she opened the car door, then nimbly stepped out.

Her voice came on the wind: "Purple."

A note from the author:

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Thank you everyone for the nutrient solution! [Laughs]

Next chapter: Wedding!

So, Liang Ming, why are you carrying Xiaoqin's phone number with you all the time? [doge emoji with rose in hand]