Chapter Seventeen

After repeated urging from Xiao Ping, Zuo Xutong finally agreed to meet the son of a relative of Xiao Ping's friend.

She arranged to meet at the coffee shop downstairs from the company. At 6:55 p.m., Zuo Xutong arrived at the coffee shop early. There weren't many people inside; they were mostly white-collar workers from the office building.

Although it was her first blind date, she wasn't nervous at all. This relaxation was not only reflected in her mindset but also in her clothing. She didn't wear makeup and dressed the same as usual. Compared to the girls around her who were trying their best to become beautiful, she seemed very unambitious.

She found a seat by the window, and as soon as she sat down, she saw a handsome man in a high-necked trench coat walking towards her. Zuo Xutong's first reaction was that it definitely wasn't him. Why would such a handsome man need to go on blind dates? He would have been swarmed by women long ago and snatched up until there wasn't even a bone left.

However, she was wrong this time. Lu Feng came in, looked around, and walked straight toward her.

"Are you Zuo Xutong?" Lu Feng looked at her attire, not quite sure, and then looked at the photo on his phone. It was a passport photo that Xiao Ping had sent to the matchmaker without her daughter's consent, taken two years ago when she had just started working.

Zuo Xutong looked up without warning: "Ah, right."

"Hello, I am Lü Feng."

"Hello."

"I'm sorry I'm late." Lu Feng sat down and smiled apologetically.

"It's okay, I just got here too." Zuo Xutong thought the man in front of her was incredibly handsome. Although she wasn't a looks-obsessed person, she had to admit that such looks were top-tier in the dating market. However, she wasn't overjoyed or excited about it. After all, this blind date was just a formality to appease Xiao Ping.

"I heard you're two years older than me, but you don't look that age," Lü Feng asked with a smile.

Zuo Xutong felt that he was better off not smiling, but when he did smile, he was even more irresistible. His face was like a black hole, firmly attracting the gazes of all the women around him. They shamelessly wore their "hunger" on their faces, like a pack of hungry wolves seeing a wild boar.

For the first time in her life, Zuo Xutong felt ashamed of her appearance. Of course, it wasn't because Lü Feng was too dazzling, but because of the malicious looks the women gave her. They must have been thinking that this country bumpkin was not worthy of the stunningly handsome man sitting across from her; it was like a beautiful flower stuck in cow dung! Clearly, the issue was no longer whether or not to go on a blind date, but how to leave with dignity.

"Oh, I'm older than you?" Zuo Xutong came to her senses and remembered that Xiao Ping had been rambling on and on in her ear, but she hadn't listened to a word of it. So before coming here, she only knew that her blind date was a man, and knew nothing else.

“Yes.” Lü Feng nodded.

"Don't you mind?" Zuo Xutong originally wanted to say, "Don't you mind a relationship between an older woman and a younger man?" But then she felt that she was being too shameless. Did the other person even want to "date" her?

“I was a little hesitant at first, but I heard you're a top student, incredibly smart. I was never a good student, my grades were always terrible, so I really admire people with high IQs,” Lu Feng stroked his hair and chuckled, “For example, I really like Zhuge Liang, Sima Yi, Guo Jia, and Gou Huo from 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms'…”

"Dog Goods?" Zuo Xutong was a little confused. Who was "Dog Goods"? Was it a nickname for someone like the Crouching Dragon and the Young Phoenix, or the Tomb Tiger and the Young Unicorn? The ancients were really strange. Why did they always like to use animals to describe their strategists?

"Yeah, you don't even know Gou Huo?"

Zuo Xutong shook her head in confusion, thinking, "That's impossible. I've read 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms' twice, how come I have absolutely no impression of this character?" She thought for a while and then asked, "Is it Meng Huo from 'Seven Captures of Meng Huo'?"

“It’s not Meng Huo, it’s Gou Huo!” Lü Feng said with certainty.

Zuo Xutong lowered her head and pondered for a while, then suddenly had a flash of inspiration, and her voice rose sharply: "You're not talking about Xun Yu, are you?"

"Huh?" Lu Feng opened his mouth wide, clearly not understanding what she was saying.

"You dog..." Zuo Xutong really wanted to laugh. You really can't judge a book by its cover. She felt much better after that. But out of politeness, she just grinned and, to make sure the grin didn't seem sarcastic, she even made a joke: "Now that you mention it, it reminds me of our company's general manager who likes to order 'pig offal' at restaurants... Now every time I see him, I think of 'pig offal'."

"He must have some very distinctive features, right?"

Zuo Xutong understood that the "characteristics" Lü Feng mentioned were definitely not a compliment, and hesitated before saying, "Well, how should I put it..."

Before she could finish speaking, a voice rang out from behind her: "Zuo Xutong, who are you talking about?"

Zuo Xutong turned her head and saw Peng Kun standing behind her with a cup of coffee in his hand, his expression quite unpleasant. She quickly covered her face with her hands.

Peng Kun glared at her angrily, then turned and left.

Lu Feng watched him leave, then asked, "Why are you covering your face? Who was that person?"

“I was afraid he’d throw coffee in my face; he’s just ‘pig offal,’” Zuo Xutong said.

"Hahaha..." Lu Feng burst into laughter, grinning from ear to ear, "He's just a 'pig offal'? That name doesn't quite suit his image."

Zuo Xutong then realized that Lü Feng had a low threshold for laughter and was really "two-faced". Generally, handsome men are either cool or arrogant, and it is rare to find someone like Lü Feng who is cool and handsome on the outside but silly and naive on the inside.

After a while, Lü Feng reminded him with concern, "The 'pig offal' was standing behind you the whole time, and he heard everything you said."

"Oh no, really?" Zuo Xutong exclaimed.

Lu Feng nodded, then said with a wild idea, "Why don't you quit your job and come work for our company?" He seemed to have completely forgotten how he had begged and pleaded with everyone he knew to get this job.

"What company do you work for?" Zuo Xutong asked.

Chiran Food Co., Ltd.

"A food company? That's not my area of ​​expertise."

"It's okay. We don't have high educational requirements where we're from. Besides, you're so smart, you'll definitely learn it in no time."

"I can't do it. If I went to your company, my only skill would be eating. I might eat your company out of business in a few days."

"Hahahaha." Lu Feng laughed even harder this time, almost pounding his chest and stamping his feet. Zuo Xutong had no idea which of her words had triggered his fragile laughter nerve.

"Haha, hahaha... We produce pet food." Lu Feng laughed so hard he could hardly breathe, but the movement was so big that his wig accidentally fell off his head.

Then Zuo Xutong saw a bright bald head, or more precisely, a bright bald head with a striking contrast to the half-circle of black hair below, like a 500-watt incandescent light bulb wearing warm earmuffs.

Zuo Xutong was stunned for a moment. After a few seconds, it was her turn to want to beat her chest and stamp her feet, but she desperately held back again, almost causing internal injuries.

Lu Feng frantically touched the top of his head, his expression instantly freezing. This face looked like a young Keanu Reeves, but the hairstyle resembled an older Gorbachev. No wonder such a hardcore guy had to go to the matchmaking market to find a partner.

In fact, Zuo Xutong didn't care much about appearance; she valued a person's inner qualities and temperament more. However, Lü Feng didn't give himself a chance to continue showcasing his inner qualities and temperament. After his wig fell off, he was horrified and covered his head, feeling ashamed as if his underwear had been exposed. He didn't even say "sorry" before running away like a gust of wind.

"He really is a man as swift as the wind." Zuo Xutong looked at his retreating figure and finally smiled.

The blind date lasted only fifteen minutes before ending with the male guest running away at the last minute. Luckily, he hadn't had time to order himself a coffee, otherwise Zuo Xutong would have been at a huge loss.

It was still early, and Zuo Xutong planned to go back to the company to continue working overtime. Just as she stepped out of the coffee shop, she received a call from Xiao Ping: "Tongtong, are you off work yet? Don't be late for your blind date today!"

"Mom, it's over."

"It's over? What's over?" There was a few seconds of silence on the other end of the phone, followed by a hysterical shout, "You mean the blind date is over? Wasn't it supposed to be at seven? It's only 7:15! It's over in just fifteen minutes?"

"Yes, he left first." Zuo Xutong couldn't understand why Lü Feng didn't shave his head completely. In her opinion, a light bulb was much more pleasing to the eye than earmuffs.

"It's because they didn't like you, right?" Xiao Ping suddenly deflated, her tone revealing undisguised disappointment.

"Possibly." Zuo Xutong was more than happy for her to think that way, since she had already completed her mission.

She hung up the phone and had just entered the company when she saw Peng Kun walking towards her. She wanted to find an obstacle to hide behind, but after a moment's hesitation, he was already in front of her: "Did you just go on a blind date?"

Zuo Xutong recalled the scene at the coffee shop and nodded guiltily.

"Dressed like that for a blind date, you practically have 'poor' written all over your face." Peng Kun was clearly furious. No one would be happy to be called "pig offspring," especially since he had paid for the meal.

"Yes, that's why he ran away." Zuo Xutong hoped that saying this would make him feel better.

"You scared him away, didn't you?" His expression did soften a bit.

"No, his wig fell off," Zuo Xutong told the truth.

Peng Kun finally couldn't help but laugh: "I advise you to focus your attention on your work from now on."

“Yes, that’s what I was planning to do too,” Zuo Xutong seized the opportunity and said, “President Peng, I was just about to ask you if I could take over the company’s MEA cost reduction project for next year?”

Peng Kun's smile vanished, and he asked seriously, "You want to take charge of this project?"

"right."

"No, what are you thinking?" He refused outright, not even bothering to give a reason.

"Why?"

"Why don't you understand this yourself?"

“I know I’ve only been with the company for two months, and some people might disagree with me being in charge of such an important project, but I can prove that I am the most suitable person.”

What proof do you need?

Zuo Xutong certainly didn't dare to say that she had been researching this topic for more than five years and had even been using the company's laboratory without permission. She was afraid of bringing herself unexpected trouble, so she could only suggest: "I heard that this project has not yet discussed specific plans. Why not let everyone compete fairly? Each participant can develop a plan and let their abilities speak for themselves."

“No, I already have someone in mind to take charge of this project. Besides, who agreed to let you participate?” Peng Kun’s attitude was firm, even more so than Jiang Zhuo’s.

Zuo Xutong wanted to try again, but the other party didn't give her a chance to continue speaking and just walked away.